Kimya and I headed out to Point Reyes on Friday, 9/1/06, to scout for the Sacramento Audubon (www.sacramentoaudubon.org) trip I was to lead the following day.  There were almost no shorebirds at Abbott’s Lagoon, so, instead, on the following day we ran the typical migrant songbird loop:  A and B Ranches, Drake’s, Lighthouse, Fish Docks.  Friday eve Kimya and I found this young male American Redstart at the A Ranch (Nunes).

We also saw a herd of the introduced Axis Deer.  This large male bellowed and caught our attention.

A striped skunk was busy foraging—one of the few species that never bothers to look around for predators.  They’re pretty safe except from Great Horned Owls.

On Saturday we had quick looks at a Blackpoll Warbler at the Lighthouse, difficult views of an American Redstart at the Fish Docks, and this very cooperative Chestnut-sided Warbler at the Lighthouse.

A Hermit Warbler was among the many Townsend’s and Yellow Warblers we saw throughout the day.

There was a woman (I forgot her name, but she is a regular pelagic bird leader with Debbie Shearwater) who pointed out thousands of Sooty Shearwaters on the horizon and sitting on the water.

Labor negotiations with Sacramento County and most of the union bargaining units broke down completely, and much of the county workforce went on strike on 9/5/06—the day after Labor Day.  My bargaining unit stayed out for two weeks.

On Saturday, 9/9/06, Kimya and I went to Half Moon Bay to look for the Buff-breasted Sandpiper that had been reported and get a change of scenery.

Also present was a juv Semipalmated Sandpiper (left) foraging near a juv Western.

We also saw two Red Phalaropes that day (on right, with Red-necked).

Since I was obliged to put in 6 hours on the picket line each day (a period that felt much longer than the 9 hours I typically put in at work), I needed a break during the second week.  The pickets went for 24 hours, so I did a morning shift on Tuesday, 9/12/06, then went to Bodega Bay and spent the night.  I spent the following day, Wednesday, at Point Reyes, and returned for an evening shift on the picket line.

At Owl Canyon at Bodega Bay I had an American Redstart and a Chestnut-sided Warbler, and a Clay-colored Sparrow at the Campbell Cove parking area.  There weren’t many migrants the following day at Point Reyes (one of the few days that hasn’t been good at the Point this fall), but I did enjoy watching the large flock of Elegant Terns at Drake’s Beach.  Many have a rosy wash to their breasts.

On Saturday, 9/23/06, I ran another Sacramento Audubon trip to the Point, and at our first stop of the morning we found the continuing Yellow-throated Warbler—without a doubt, the highlight of the day.

We also had an immature male American Redstart at the Lighthouse and a White-winged Dove at the Mendoza Pond (B Ranch) that we heard about through the birder’s grapevine.

We finished the day with a full loop of Abbott’s Lagoon.  The highlight came early with two Short-eared Owls off the path to the lagoon.

As always, more photos can be found here:  http://new.photos.yahoo.com/chrisconard2002/albums

The next installment will be about our trip to the Salton Sea for Blue-footed Boobies and stops at several desert springs.  I haven't downloaded the photos yet, so I'm not sure what I have to work with.  Don't expect good pictures of boobies:  they were about a mile away.