Ducks and more at Lake Merritt: 2-4-20 Oakland, CA

Ruddy Ducks

Non-breeding plumage

Drake Mallard

Mallard pair

Forster’s Tern

Western Grebes: two resting, one on alert

Ring-billed Gull

Dunlin at San Pablo NWR, 2-1-20: Novato, CA

• The name Dunlin comes from dunling, the earliest known English name of the species, which dates back at least as far as 1531. Dunling is a compound of the English word dun(meaning gray-brown) and the diminutive -ling. So the name Dunlin essentially means “little brown job.”

Non-breeding birds

These beautiful shorebirds look much different and are much easier to identify from a distance when they have that black belly.

Ring-billed Gulls at San Pablo NWR: Novato,CA (2-1-20)

Here in Novato, CA covers for parking areas are often made of solar panels.  What a great idea!

Western Meadowlarks at Big Break on the Delta: Oakley, CA 2-2-20

The western meadowlark is a medium-sized icterid bird, about 8.5 in in length. It nests on the ground in open grasslands across western and central North America. It feeds mostly on bugs, but will also feed on seeds and berries.

Black-necked Stilts (San Pablo NWR, 2-1-2020) Novato, CA

Black-necked Stilts

• Black-necked stilts sometimes participate in a "popcorn display,” which involves a group of birds gathering around a ground predator and jumping, hopping, or flapping to drive it away from their nests.

Hamilton Wetlands, 2-1-20: Novato, CA

Black Phoebe

The male Black Phoebe gives the female a tour of potential nest sites, hovering in front of each likely spot for 5 to 10 seconds. But it’s the female who makes the final decision and does all the nest construction

Mourning Dove

Dinner plate sized mushroom

Male Anna’s Hummingbird

Great Egret