Date: 7/16/25 9:36 pm From: Gerry McChesney via groups.io <gerry.mcchesney...> Subject: Re: [pen-bird] Good numbers of Least Terns, San Mateo Bayside, 7/16/25
Date: 7/16/25 12:13 pm From: Christopher Hayward via groups.io <p_t_nymph...> Subject: [pen-bird] Good numbers of Least Terns, San Mateo Bayside, 7/16/25
Hi All,
For folks who perhaps don't get rare bird alerts I wanted to add on to Ron's report from the Foster City Shell Bar yesterday, that good numbers of Least Terns were also seen in Redwood Shores yesterday afternoon. Jari Toivanen found three two days ago at the west end of Canvasback Way, then yesterday Michael Long and I counted 13 at the same location. The group which included several juveniles then began foraging in the pond near Whisperwave Circle. Really fun to see this many.
Pond GPS here, 37.54831, -122.24283, it can be reached by parking on the west end of Seabrook Ct. then following the public access trail past the western most viewing platform.
Also good numbers were reported on eBird at the Foster City Shell Bar late yesterday afternoon, which seems to be the best time for good looks at high tide.
A couple of photos on my eBird list, link below
Date: 7/15/25 3:40 pm From: Ronald- Thorn via groups.io <Tronthorn...> Subject: [pen-bird] Least Terns in Foster City
This morning, I checked for shorebirds at the Shell Bar along Beach Park Blvd. across from Marlin Ave. in Foster City. The tide was going out and the mudflats were covered in shorebirds,mostly Western Sandpipers. No arrivals of turnstones or Red Knots noted. Scanning with binoculars to a large group of Forster's Terns feeding on the bay off of the mouth of Belmont Sloughthere were a couple of Least Terns. I set-up the scope, as there were feeding terns even further away. After several scans in counting, there were ( 27 ) Least Terns among the Forster's. Terns. Some Least Terns were departing and heading north, I assume back to the breeding grounds in the East Bay. Least Terns have been noted in July and August off of Foster City, butin lesser numbers.
Ron Thorn
Date: 7/15/25 12:57 pm From: Alvaro Jaramillo via groups.io <chucao...> Subject: [pen-bird] Thursday Farallon Islands - first offshore pelagic of season (Sunday).
Hello all
The two Farallon Island pelagics so far were great! With thousands of
breeding birds, as well as Cocos Booby and lots of nice views of Tufted
Puffin. We have a mid-week trip from Sausalito this Thursday that still has
spaces left. Also, there are two August dates open. We have been seeing
Black-footed Albatross without much trouble so far, and hope that continues.
Many Humpback Whales, and a distant Blue Whale were found on the trips so
far.
This Sunday we are also heading offshore from Half Moon Bay. These
summer pelagics have been really successful in the past, and we are always
excited to offer them. One never knows if a surprise will show up.
Date: 7/11/25 10:42 am From: Ronald- Thorn via groups.io <Tronthorn...> Subject: [pen-bird] Some arrivals this week
An eclipse male Blue-winged Teal was on the Nob Hill Pond on the 8th. The male Blue-winged Teal was still present this morning near an eclipse male Cinnamon Teal. There was not muchof an increase of shorebirds except for Greater Yellowlegs. I did note the first arrival of Black-bellied Plovers. ( 24 ) adult Ring-billed Gulls on Belmont Slough across from Preserve Park on the 9th. ( 3 ) Adults on the 2nd were the first arrivals. This morning, I noted the first dispersal of juvenile California Gulls coming from colonies in the south bay. ( 31 ) Juveniles passed by Coyote Point.
Ron Thorn
Date: 7/9/25 6:34 pm From: San Mateo County Bird Alliance via groups.io <office...> Subject: [pen-bird] Tomorrow Night's Monthly Meeting - Wildlife Photography!
Tomorrow night, July 10th, our Monthly Meeting features Wildlife Photography from Vishal Subramanyan, who will present his journey as a wildlife photographer in California, from the coast to the mountains. He'll share stories of animals big and small, from shrews to mountain lions, and how he captured these incredible photos.
Subramanyan is an award-winning wildlife photographer and a National Geographic Young Explorer! As a freelance storyteller, he partners with leading conservation organizations in California and beyond to create stories that inspire deeper connections between people and nature. He graduated from UC Berkeley in 2024 with degrees in ecology and statistics. His work has been featured by National Geographic, CNN, NPR, Smithsonian, and the LA Times, and has won prestigious awards, including Wildlife Photographer of the Year.
Join us on ZOOM at 7:00 PM. Registration: https://bit.ly/3HYIZVG
Date: 7/8/25 9:13 am From: maliadances via groups.io <maliadances...> Subject: [pen-bird] San Mateo County Cumulative Year-list Report for --- June 2025
*Greetings Pen-birders,*
San Mateo County birders found a total of 8 species that were new for the year by the end of June. The 8 new bird species will bring the total species observed by the end of the sixth month to 280. In reading the following, please note, the number in parenthesis next to the bird name is the rarity code assigned for San Mateo County birds. *From the link below* , you can *see definitions for the rarity codes,* *download a checklist* which shows seasonality, frequency, and county breeding information, *find a full list of the birds* observed so far in 2025 *, plus* *all monthly reports going back to 2009.* http://www.sequoia-audubon.org/SMCbirds.php ( http://www.sequoia-audubon.org/SMCbirds.php )
*Here are the new birds for June, their finders and locations where found:*
Cedrik von Briel obtained audio, which is on his eBird list, of a calling COMMON POORWILL (4) while visiting Stulsaft Park. He mentioned it sounded distant and was very surprised to hear it from this location and time of year. While surveying Williams Sisters Ranch during the Palo Alto Summer Bird Count, Troy Pittock obtained photos and audio of a WILLOW FLYCATCHER (5). During the same bird count, Garth Harwood and Curt Bianchi observed and photographed a BELL’S SPARROW (6) at Skyline Ridge OSP near where there have been sightings of this species in previous years. Adam Dudley photographed a RED-EYED VIREO (4) at Año Nuevo SP. Tiana Turner, who knows I love birds, is one of my Belly Dancing students, and a non-birder. Tiana texted me a photo of a bird across the street from her house in Millbrae and asked if it was a YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRD (4)….. and it was! So cool when non-birding friends find cool birds! Marty Freeland and Dessi Sieburth encountered a BLACK-AND-WHITE WARBLER (4) at Whitehouse Creek near Rossi Rd. Ron Thorn and Leonie Batkin found a HOODED WARBLER (4) in a riparian area along Stage Rd. While birding on San Bruno Mountain, Sam Talarigo, discovered a breeding plumaged, singing, male BAY-BREASTED WARBLER (6).
*Birding San Mateo County:* There are plenty of ways to see birds. Did you know *The San Mateo County Bird Alliance leads birding Field Trips* on a regular basis? To join a field trip, check out their schedule here: http://www.sequoia-audubon.org/fieldtrips.html
*Alvaro’s Adventures runs offshore pelagic trips* June - October, with many seabird, whale and sea-life finding trips out of Half Moon Bay and other ports. Alvaro’s pelagic schedule here: https://www.alvarosadventures.com/pelagic-dates-2025.html
*To stay informed of the latest bird news, consider creating an account with both Peninsula Birding (Pen-bird) and eBird.* To join eBird, simply go to https://ebird.org/home and create an account. To join the Peninsula Birding group, join here: https://groups.io/g/peninsula-birding You can post your sightings there and be kept informed of sightings throughout the county including discussions about birds, population trends, where-can-I-find topics, events, field trips, webinars, pelagic trips and conservation issues. You can engage with other members of the birding community and can connect with online/offline discussions.
*This Report:* As a volunteer for the San Mateo County Bird Alliance I gather content for this report, each month, by primarily using eBird and Pen-bird. When posting to Pen-bird, please include the location and date of your sighting in either the subject line or in the body of your email. If you don’t use eBird or Pen-bird, you can always email me directly. Thank you!
If you have questions or comments regarding this report, or if I missed something,
Shorebird arrival has shown an increase in the last several days with Willets, Long-billed Curlews, Marbled Godwits and Western Sandpipers. The first arrival of Long-billed Dowitcherswere at the Nob Hill Pond yesterday. Also, yesterday at the Ravenswood Salt Ponds R1/R2 were ( 5 ) Wilson's Phalaropes. Over at the Ravenswood Salt Pond SF2, there was aninflux of newly arrived Elegant Terns at the colony on the island with the Caspian Terns. There were ( 570 ) Elegant Terns. July has shown, there is a northward dispersal to the BayArea from Mexico and southern California. Passerine news, there has been some post-breeding dispersal of Wilson's Warblers along the bayside.
Ron Thorn
On Fri, 04 Jul 2025 12:52:09 -0700, "Troy Guy via groups.io" <guytroy...> wrote:
>Long-tailed Duck at Pescadero Marsh at noon on the Fourth of July. Most closely resembled breeding male - large white eye patch with all dark neck. Plumage looked worn and/or molting. No long tail. Pictures can be sent to email on request. > >Troy Guy >Pescadero
Date: 7/4/25 1:04 pm From: Troy Guy via groups.io <guytroy...> Subject: [pen-bird] Long-tailed Duck PES marsh
Long-tailed Duck at Pescadero Marsh at noon on the Fourth of July. Most closely resembled breeding male - large white eye patch with all dark neck. Plumage looked worn and/or molting. No long tail. Pictures can be sent to email on request.
Date: 6/24/25 3:50 pm From: Ronald- Thorn via groups.io <Tronthorn...> Subject: [pen-bird] Summer Tanager at Coyote Pt.
A female SUMMER TANAGER was in a Eucalyptus Tree along the public access trail next to the Coyote Point Museum today. There has been more shorebird arrival. Yesterday on theSteinberger Slough next to the Nob Hill Pond in Redwood Shores was the first arrival of a Short-billed Dowitcher in alternate plumage. The Earliest arrival is the 13th. On the slough were( 40 ) Willets that increased to ( 460 ) today. The pond had ( 13 ) Greater Yellowlegs yesterday increasing to ( 22 ) today. An over-summering Surf Scoter was on the slough.
Ron Thorn
Date: 6/22/25 5:35 pm From: Marty Freeland via groups.io <martinf3...> Subject: [pen-bird] American Redstart, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, other notes
Hi all,
This morning an adult male American Redstart was along Gazos Creek Road just above the intersection with Cloverdale. It was singing frequently and quite cooperative. This is not the same bird that was present a little over a week ago (found by Chris Henry and Cedro von Briel and photographed by Chris and Malia), as that was a SY male (a "yellowstart"). Adult males are quite rare in the county and also are incredibly fun birds. Incidentally, the adult male I had last spring on upper Pomponio Creek was exactly a year ago, to the day.
A male Rose-breasted Grosbeak was in the same area of Gazos Creek, perhaps one of the 2 males present nearby in May. It feels like we have had a pretty good spring for Rose-breasted Grosbeaks on the Peninsula: San Mateo has had 5 (2 on Gazos, 1 near Pescadero, 1 on Tunitas, 1 in El Granada) plus a hybrid, San Francisco has had ~10ish, and I had another male later in the day at Rancho del Oso, just south of the border with Santa Cruz County.
The Hooded Orioles nesting in Pescadero have successfully fledged young. Two Lawrence's Goldfinches in upper Montara yesterday were part of the great year that species is having regionally. Although it really does seem like Bullock's Orioles may be absent from their traditional breeding spot on Stage Rd. for the first time since 2018 (I have not detected them there at all this season despite stopping many times, and there are no eBird reports either), a pair was in a Eucalyptus stand along Whitehouse Canyon Road today.
Date: 6/22/25 4:25 pm From: Ronald- Thorn via groups.io <Tronthorn...> Subject: [pen-bird] Recent sightings, Ancient Murrelet
On the 18th, I did a seawatch from Pigeon Pt. The seawatch was cut short as there was not much activity. Low numbers of Sooty Shearwaters in the gloom at the horizon. A very lateRed-throated Loon in alternate plumage was northbound. A number of alcids were on the water close to shore. There were ( 83 ) Common Murres, ( 17 ) Pigeon Guillemots, ( 24 )Rhinoceros Auklets and ( 4 ) Marbled Murrelets. Flying north was an Ancient Murrelet rare for this time of year. There is a scattering of summer records from the county. On the 18th,Leonie and I stopped along Cloverdale Road between the addresses 3800 and 4309 listening for Grasshopper Sparrows on the hillside. A Loggerhead Shrike was on a fence near the top of the hillside. The Later part of June post-breeding dispersal Loggerhead Shrikes have been noted. There has been no confirmed breeding in county since the nineties thatI am aware of. Did it summer in the county or come from the outside of the county? I did see the Loggerhead Shrike well enough that is was not a juvenile.
Ron Thorn, Leonie Batkin
