Half Day of Birding

After far too many days indoors I ventured out in search of Short-eared Owls in Elk Grove today. Boo hoo! I struck out, not scoring any owls but will try again sometime next week. Can't complain though, I did get nice shots of a v. cooperative Say's Phoebe, a species that has previously thwarted my efforts to photograph it.

Say's Phoebe
Being only a few miles north of the Consumnes Wildlife Area I had to drive over for a visit. I decided to traverse the board walk through the marsh. There were plenty of noisy Marsh Wrens and Song Sparrows in the reeds. I tailed the little Song Sparrow below then, just as I snapped the shot, it turned its head.

Squandered shot: DAMN IT ALL TO HELL!
This handsome Cinnamon Teal drake admired its own reflection in the marsh ala Ugly Duckling. If he's waiting to turn into a swan he's got a long wait ahead of him.

Who is the fairest of us all? QUACK!

Flocks of Greater White-fronted Geese, and ducks of the Pintail, shoveler and Green-winged Teal persuasion slept or dabbled in the marsh. Overhead, were scads of noisy croaking Sandhill Cranes I thought would have headed north to the tundra by now. I shot little groups of them but if only the sun wasn't back lighting them! *whine, whine, whine*
Sandhill Cranes soaring above
I took the short leisurely hike along the wooden boardwalk at Consumnes and was rewarded with several shots of this American Bittern. It played "I can see you but you can't see me", and I must say I beg to differ with it.

This bittern slunked along in the reeds by the viewing platform

I looked for it on my way out and it
struck this "You can't See Me!" pose
Eventually it decided I could see it, and it scuttled into the reeds
Leaving Consumnes I drove the scenic route along the Sacramento River. I was actually there looking for an old birding spot where I once found Long-billed Curlews, Lazuli Buntings and Blue Grosbeaks. No luck there either, but I'll find the spot eventually and will have the photos to prove it!

Baby Fix!

Drove over to the Bay Area today for a baby fix. Here's the deal, the fraternal twin boys are the sons of my buddy Barbara's foster son James. His adorable widdle 10 day old boys are named Wyatt and Virgil. Names sound familiar? Anyway, I got to cuddle and play with the boys who are so young that playing with them amounts to holding them and gawking at their teeny fingers and toes. Cool! Hey, how come babies don't have puppy breath?


Virgil (l), with brown hair looks like his Dad,
Wyatt (r) has black hair and looks like Mommy
Thank heavens Angie's Mom came to stay and help with the boys for their first few weeks. I thought they were pretty kind to let me visit while the boys are so ensie. Talk about hectic! The babies need to be fed every two hours, day and night.


Grandmother, Mom, other Grandma Barbara w/Wyatt, Uncle Eric w/Virgil

Uncle Eric and Daddy James holding Wyatt
who, despite photo is not eating an apple
I had fun visit. Barbara with Eric, drove up from Monterey. It's been ages since I got to play with a v. young baby. I got to cuddle Adan when he was a newborn and he's away at college now - told you it was a long time!

Birdies in My Neighborhood

Exchanging stares with a Red-shouldered Hawk
Bleck! Despite it being a gray, drippy and dreary sort of day, I ran a few errands then visited a few local parks to see what was hanging around - uh... not much. Still, I always enjoy checking out the chickens in Old Fair Oaks Village. I probably drive through the village park at least once a week to admire the feral chickens.


A few of the usual roosters, taking it easy
I blew a perfectly good photo op when I spotted a full size rooster and a bantam strolling side by side, but I was too slow. Two minutes sooner I'd of had a shot of them side by side - identical in every feather but a HUGE size difference between them. I've seen such rooster 'twins' in Fair Oaks Village on several occasions.


Full size rooster left, ensie identical Bantam, right
Speaking of bantams, a few days ago I noticed a new comer that stuck out because of his exotic looks. This little cockerel has the longest tail feathers in the park as well as a strange white ear skin and a fancy rose comb. I did a little on line research and I think he's a black Rosecomb Bantam. What a pretty little fellow! How did he ever end up at the park? Why would someone buy such a nice looking bantam then dump it in the park? I doubt anyone would accidently lose such a nice little bird. I keep having to shake off my urge to scoop him up and bring him home.

V. Handsome & abandoned little fellow: a Rosecomb Bantam

Check out Pretty Boy's fancy rose comb

I stopped by Sailor Bar and Rossmar Bar on the American River and was amazed how common Lark Sparrows actually are. I used to think of them as being rare and exotic - I guess I just wasn't getting out much. I found some Gold-crowned Sparrows, first of the year and Cedar Waxwings. I was stunned earlier this week to find Western Bluebirds which I didn't think would show up until at least late March. They seem - at least to me - to be back early, and I can say the same for American Robins, which I saw today for the first time this year.

A couple of Acorn Woodpeckers

At Rossmar Bar I spent a fair amount of time watching Common Goldeneyes and Common Mergansers fishing in the river but then it started to drizzle again. I gave up and returned home to to a nice hot cup of coffee.