They're Back!

Anna's Hummingbird (male) - Calypte anna

I had just cleaned out my hummingbird feeders, when two Anna's Hummingbirds arrived! Unlike most California Hummingbirds, they are short-distance migrants and have probably been down in California's coastal chaparral for the past 2 months. They eat large numbers of small insects and spiders in the winter when nectar is not available. 

It's really important to thoroughly clean your hummingbird feeders frequently when in use. Fungus or molds that can grow in feeders will infect hummers and kill them. The Audubon Society states, "This infection causes the tongue to swell, making it impossible for an afflicted hummingbird to eat. Ultimately, it will die of starvation, slowly and painfully. A mother can pass this infection on to her babies; they will die of starvation." 

So keep your feeders clean to ensure an "infection free" season of hummer watching! As the weather warms up you should change your sugar water, and clean your feeders, every 3 days. Use hot water without soap or detergents to clean them. Avoid "fancy" feeders that have areas inaccessible to cleaning where mold and fungus can grow. Your sugar water should be mixed at a ratio of 4 parts water (boiled and cooled), to 1 part sugar. Use only white granulated sugar.

For more information on the maintenance of hummingbird feeders I highly recommend the following website:   http://seaandsageaudubon.org/Conservation/TreeTrimming/HummerFeederCare.html

Band-tailed Pigeon - Brewer's Blackbird

 Columba fasciata - Euphagus cyanocephalus

Band-tailed Pigeons and Brewer's Blackbirds showed up at our feeding station this week.  Both of these birds can be seen traveling in flocks year-round.  Several of last year's Blackbird nests still remain in the bushes across from our garden!  

The Band-tailed Pigeons used to arrive in time for the ripening of our local cherry trees.  Hundreds of them would descend on our neighborhood and eat every single cherry in a few days.  Then they would leave.  For the past few years, they arrive way before the cherries are even tiny buds, and stay all summer!  I guess our neighborhood suits their needs!  The field guides indicate that they could live here year-round.  However, for the past two years I have watched them leave our area when the weather gets snowy and then return months later in the spring. They probably drop down to snow-free elevations in California and forage on acorns, grains and berries.

The Brewer's Blackbirds have been nesting here for years. They return to our neighborhood every spring, after spending the winter in the Central Valley of California.  Right now their local flock is about 16 in number.  They will nest in colonies of just a few, or up to 100, pairs!  It will be interesting to see how many pairs stay and nest in our neighborhood.  They have been enjoying the seed I put out at our feeding station lately, but they are also great insect eaters!

 Violet-green Swallows - Tachycineta thalassina

 The Violet-green Swallows have recently returned from overwintering in Mexico, or even as far south as Costa Rica!  The one above was facing the sun at first, and then turned around and let the sun light up its beautiful green feathers!  I've watched them inhabit a cut bank on the highway, several summers in a row.  They like to nest on rocky cliffs above river gorges.  They cannot walk, but can perch, and fly with agility and speed (up to 28 mph!)  They search high above the river for flying insects to eat.  I always look forward to their return, as well as all the other birds that spend their summers here!

 Manzanita - Arctostaphylos sp.

Now Blooming!

The warmer temperatures and longer days have triggered the blooming of a few local plants!  The white manzanitas down at Conflict Flat are once again in full bloom, as well as the pink manzanitas in our neighborhood!  These are one of the early-flowering plants that are important nectar sources for Hummingbirds and insects in the spring.

Willow catkins - female/left & male/right 

Salix sp.

After many months of having colorful but bare branches, the local willows have burst into bloom!  Willows are dioecious, and have separate male and female plants!  Right now both male and female plants are bursting out of their "Pussy Willow" stage.  Their soft silvery hairs help keep the developing reproductive parts of the plant warm!  Unlike most "non-attractive" (dull colored) flowers, willows are insect pollinated.  The female flowers will produce a large amount of strongly scented nectar, and the male flowers will produce a ton of pollen! We'll just have to wait and see what insects they attract!

Sierra Valley 3/18/19

Sierra Valley 

We went over to Sierra Valley twice in the past 10 days! I wanted to check out what birds were showing up. The Steel Bridge is a great place to bird watch, and luckily the dirt road wasn't too wet to drive on. Often the road is a quagmire and impassable at this time of year. We spent several hours bird watching and enjoying the expansive views. We saw Sandhill Cranes, Tundra Swans, a Bald Eagle, seagulls, Tree Swallows, Killdeers, Starlings, raptors, and Red-winged Blackbirds! We also saw a Coyote and a herd of Mule Deer. It was gorgeous!

Located at 4,850' in elevation, Sierra Valley is the largest alpine valley in the Sierra Nevada. It is approximately 120,000 acres in size! Over 230 bird species frequent this valley. It is a key stopover on the Pacific Flyway. It is also rich in plant life with over 1,000 documented species of plants! I want to go back in a month or so to see what other birds have arrived, as well as what's blooming.

Sandhill Cranes - Grus canadensis

Sandhill Cranes mate for life.  Sierra Valley is the southernmost breeding/nesting area for these cranes.  Most Sandhills migrate farther north into Idaho, Oregon, Washington, Canada, and Alaska to breed.  They do not breed in large numbers in Sierra Valley, probably under 20 pairs nest here.  We saw 16 cranes as we drove through the valley, always in pairs.  These are LARGE birds, measuring up to 4' feet in height, with wingspans up to 7'7" in width!  The red color on their foreheads is not feathers, it is rosy, papillose, bare skin!

Tundra Swans - Cygnus columbianus

These lovely Tundra Swans had stopped over on their spring migration north to the High Arctic.  Their migration route is a total of 5,000 miles round-trip, from the Central Valley of California to the High Arctic!  These birds mate for life, and travel in small and large "bevys" or "wedges" (groups).

 Red-winged Blackbirds (males) - Agelaius phoeniceus

We saw several large flocks of Red-winged Blackbirds, that were predominantly males.  The males are distinguished by their beautiful bright-red and pale-yellow shoulder feathers (coverts).  These birds are widespread across the U.S. year-round.  In winter they mainly eat grains, seeds, plants, as well as some insects.  They usually spend their winters in snow-free areas, sometimes even traveling down to Costa Rica.  I did see a lot of these blackbirds down in the Gray Lodge Wildlife Area, in California's Central Valley, this winter.  These strikingly colored birds were beautiful to watch!

 European Starlings - Sturnus vulgaris

We also saw several large flocks of European Starlings.  These birds are non-natives, but have spread across the entire U.S. since their introduction (from Europe) in New York in the early 1890's!  The following quote from Birds of North America states, "Starlings flourished in North America because of their varied diet and ability to adapt to new food sources supplied either directly or indirectly by humans.  They mostly feed on the ground and readily devour many types of insects, fruits, cultivated grains, and weed seeds."  Starlings have had a significant negative impact on native cavity-nesting birds, because they will take over their nest sites.  As yet no one has figured out how to deal with this huge problem. 

 European Starlings - Sturnus vulgaris

 Red-tailed Hawks - Buteo jamaicensis

We also saw several raptors perched on fence posts throughout the valley.  Both of the raptors pictured above are Red-tailed Hawks, even though they vary greatly in coloration.  From youth to adulthood the feathering of raptors can change a lot!  So far I've learned that the distinguishing marks of a Red-tailed Hawk are its dark head, a white breast with a band of brown streaky feathers below, and its red (orange) tail feathers.  I still have lots to learn! 

California Mule Deer - Odocoileus hemionus californicus

We saw this herd of Calfornia Mule Deer as we wandered through Sierra Valley.  They can be distinguished by the black tip of their tails.  The other commonly see Mule Deer in our area is the Columbian Black-tailed Deer (also a species of Mule Deer).  It has a black stripe extending down the tail to a black tip. This herd above is probably a group of females, as none of them have any "buttons" or beginning antlers.  It was a nice surprise to see so many of them all together.  In my neighborhood, the biggest group I have ever seen was only six in number.

 Sierra Buttes 3/19/19

Weather Update

This past week has been cloudy, cool, and rainy, with a total rainfall of 1.5".  The coming week is predicted to be cloudy and rainy as well.  The river flow is staying around 1,000 cfs.  I went skiing up the Gold Lake Road again last Monday, and there was still 7.5' of snow at 6,000' in elevation.  On Yuba Pass, there is still about 10' of snow.  We are so lucky to have such a good snow pack!  It doesn't look like we'll be hiking in the Lakes Basin anytime soon, maybe not until May at the earliest.  In the meantime the skiing is great!

How are the Gray Foxes?

What's happening on the river?

What other birds will migrate through our neighborhood?

Check back next week for the answers to these questions and more!

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