« Año Nuevo State Reserve: Land Critters | Main | Northern Elephant Seals: Molting »

February 23, 2006

Año Nuevo State Reserve: It's For The Birds

Northern Harrier Año Nuevo State Reserve

From the spider webs I walk through along the nature trail, I know I am the first person out this morning. And if that hint had not been enough, then the bird life would be. I always pick the first tour of the day when I visit the park. I always try to head out before the crowds scare all the animals and birds far from the trail. Every time I visit, I see something new and different. More than one hundred different types of birds have been identified at Año Nuevo, from raptors to shore birds, and everything in between.

Birds Of Prey

White-Tailed Kite Año Nuevo State Reserve

Walking out across the great big field near the nature trail entrance, you'll always see raptors hunting. There's a particular female harrier that has lost all fear of humans. She swoops down close as you walk along. You're also likely to see white-tailed kites perched along the windbreaks of Monterey cypress planted after the Second World War. And like everywhere else in California, there are always turkey vultures.

Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura) Año Nuevo State Reserve

Other Birds

California Quail (Callipepla californica) Año Nuevo State Reserve

Early in the morning is the best time to see California Quail. Males and females like to chase each other down the nature trails, but upon seeing humans, they dive into the dense underbrush and you aren't as likely to see them for the rest of the day.

White-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys) Año Nuevo State Reserve

All manner of what the Africans refer to as LBJ's - Little Brown Jobs - also live in the fields and chaparral, although we generally think of these as songbirds, or just plain birds.

American Robin (Turdus migratorius) Año Nuevo State Reserve

Chaparral means a habitat along a shrubby coastal area that has hot dry summers and mild, rainy winters. It has tall, dense shrubs and some dispersed scrub oak. The word chaparral comes from "chaparro," which means scrub oak in Spanish.

Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia) Año Nuevo State Reserve	American Robin (Turdus migratorius) Año Nuevo State Reserve
Meadowlark (Sturnella) Año Nuevo State Reserve	Costa's Hummingbird (Calypte costae) Año Nuevo State Reserve
Bewick's Wren (Thryomanes bewickii) ??? Año Nuevo State Reserve	White-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys) Año Nuevo State Reserve
Black-chinned Hummingbird (Archilochus alexandri) ??? Año Nuevo State Reserve	American Robin (Turdus migratorius) Año Nuevo State Reserve White-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys) Año Nuevo State Reserve
Western bluebird (Sialia mexicana) Año Nuevo State Reserve	Allen's Hummingbird (Selasphorus sasin) ??? Año Nuevo State Reserve

Posted by sorsha at February 23, 2006 1:41 PM