A few highlights from our SFO trip to Dryden Lake this morning. We arrived about 7:30am and walked on the John Schug trail, heading north on the trail from the lake, we saw RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET, SONG SPARROW, FIELD SPARROW, TREE SWALLOW, SWAMP SPARROW, OSPREY, RED-TAILED HAWK, TURKEY VULTURE. Between 8:30am and 9:30am we found a hotspot at the junction of the trail and Chaffee Road on the west side of the trail; most of the following were seen in the poplar tree on the west side of the trail closest to the trail. We got very nice long views of: YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER, RED-BELLIED WOODPECKER, and nearby without moving, we saw DOWNY WOODPECKER, HAIRY WOODPECKER, NORTHERN FLICKER, EASTERN PHOEBE. Heading back to the lake and then south on the trail, our leader Susan Danskin called our attention to the drumming of a GROUSE AT ABOUT 10:00AM. This was a first for most of us and very exciting! One person in our group claims to have seen it beating its wings, and another experienced birder walking by (Jay McGowan?) saw it walking. Hopefully, he'll post more on this.
Lastly, around 10:30am, on the way back to the cars, we saw three Northern Flickers up in the trees and got excellent views of the yellow shafts of the tail and wing feathers as two males scuffled and flew about while the female stayed put. There were many other birds we saw as well, but those were the highlights! Happy birding and remember to protect your skin! I notice a lot of people bird without hats in full sun! * * * * * * * * * *"Don't ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come ALIVE, for what the world needs is people who have come ALIVE." - Dr. Howard Thurman, American Theologian, Clergyman and Activist (1900-1981) * Sandra (Sandy) Wold Cayuga Basin Bioregion Map, Author, Originator, Designer, and Publisher, www.sites.google.com/site/cayugabioregionmap/ <https://sites.google.com/site/cayugabioregionmap/> Interdisciplinary Artist/Educator, https://www.linkedin.com/pub/sandra-sandy-wold/a7/114/877 NYS Certified Math/Science Teacher and Tutor, *www.sites.google.com/site/fallcreektutoringservices/home <http://www.sites.google.com/site/fallcreektutoringservices/home>* -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
