A Virtual Springtime Bird Walk in Peñasquitos Preserve
By Jeanie Anderson
Please join me for a virtual bird stroll with all your senses – slower paced and quieter than a hike – through Peñasquitos Preserve. This actually happened on the morning of May 11, 2023. We met at 7:45 am and began our bird adventure with 2 veteran birders, Cindy, and her dad Dave, along with Pam Davis, a newly minted bird lover and amazing photographer, who took the photos used in this article.
The morning is cool and overcast but Spring has Sprung – by this I mean that the Spring migrating birds have arrived in our patch of wild to stay through Summer and hopefully breed. And, our resident avian wonders are in breeding mode, all announcing their territories in song. With our 4 pairs of eyes and ears, we have excellent senses, complemented by our binoculars and photo gear. I open my eBird app to start a reporting session to input our observations and track our movements. Right off the bat, we hear the trill of the Orange-crowned Warbler and the lovely lilting melody of our spring migrant, the Black-headed Grosbeak, high notes in the Morning Chorus symphony.
To learn more about eBird click here: https://ebird.org/about
As we virtually wander down a side trail into the woods, we search for the White-tailed Kite’s nest seen back in February. We move as quietly as possible. Suddenly someone says Kite! Looking up, we see a beautiful white raptor with black markings flying with grace and power. He’s being chased by an American Crow who wants his breakfast!
In the same area, we discover a House Wren flitting to her nest in the hole created when a sycamore branch breaks off – quite a nice little house for a wren family.
Our team hears a high-pitched squeaky call and finds a flock of lovely Cedar Waxwings feasting on berries, high in the trees.
Someone spots a handsome finch that is not a native species – called the Scaly-breasted Munia aka Spice Finch aka Nutmeg Mannikin. One of us hears the Ash-throated Flycatcher, a Spring and Summer migrant to the Preserve. It shows itself nicely with notable poofy head feathers.
As we wander past the Ranch House toward the west, we see a male Mallard relaxing aside the cistern and in the large stand of cacti, we are struck by the beauty of a male Hooded Oriole as he forages for breakfast insects and fruit.
Up in the trees near the Ranch House, our eyes catch a flash of yellow and upon closer look, we are rewarded with great views of the male Yellow Warbler with red streaks on his breast. This busy little lemon drop beauty is an insect eater, visiting the Preserve in Spring and Summer.
We venture to the west of the orchard and circumnavigate the field making several more avian observations. To recap, eBird reports that we observed a whopping 33 species of birds comprising 180 individuals. An excellent morning of birding indeed!!
Observers: 4
- Duration: 3 hr, 8 min
- Distance: 1.43 mi
eBird maps our journey as well with Google maps overlay:
eBird Report Map
Report from eBird showing the observations
We look forward to you joining us for our next bird hike through the Preserve. Our Bird Checklist for the Preserve can be found here:
https://www.penasquitos.org/s/Penasquitos-Canyon-Bird-Checklist_Sept2013.pdf
All photos by Pam Davies
