A day when every bird counted - Mendocino Beacon

Sunday it rained most of the day, a steady soak-you-to-the-bone kind of rain, but the volunteers who participated in the annual Audubon Christmas Bird Count (Fort Bragg circle) just shook it off.

Bird counters gather for an evening meal at the Caspar Community Center to swap stories of bird sightings and turn in their counts at the annual Christmas Bird Count in Fort Bragg.

One of Art Morley’s team members covering the Simpson Lane/Pearl Drive area east of Highway 1, counted Northern Saw-whet owls in two locations. The little owls are losing their range and considered uncommon on the North Coast, according to Audubon.

David Jensen’s favorite sighting was a flock of Sooty Shearwaters off of Point Cabrillo. He explained these are ocean birds and you don’t usually see them from shore. He suspects the flock he saw were non-breeding teenagers, as the adults are currently breeding in the southern hemisphere.

Tess McGuire of Little River sets up a scope to identify the birds on the rocks and in the water on Noyo Bay. In a short time, she spotted a Glaucous Gull and a Pelagic Cormorant.

A Wood Duck was spotted in the Lake Cleone area by Charlene McCallister and Ron LeValley. They walked more than eight miles in the rain on Sunday to count birds at McKerricher.

Peregrine Falcons were spotted by multiple teams up and down the coast, to the delight of many a birder. Several teams also caught sight of Red Crossbills, finches that have developed beaks perfect for removing pine seeds from cones, according to team leader Adam Hutchins. The brick-red bird lives in the pine forest along the coast but they can be difficult to spot.

Peter Steel and Pam Huntley were excited about the Ring Neck Ducks they spotted at a pond in the Woodlands and Catherine Keegan’s team caught sight of a Northern Mockingbird in Fort Bragg. While the mockingbird is common in much of California, there are few in town, according to Keegan. Tim Bray’s favorite sighting was a male Sharp Shinned Hawk.

As 50 or so volunteers gathered in Caspar for a shared meal, the cell phones came out. No not pictures of the grandkids. The screens showed pictures of birds seen near and far.

Many of the counters volunteer for multiple counts and it’s easy to see why. Tess McGuire counted at the Petaluma River the previous weekend and will join the volunteers in Manchester next weekend. One birder used to count in Hawaii. She recently moved here and is learning our local birds. The joy and companionship of the group is palatable and it could be addictive.

To quote a common refrain, “We had a good day.”  To find out more and how to participate, go to mendocinocoastaudubon.org.

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A day when every bird counted - Mendocino Beacon
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