BACKYARD BIRD OBSERVATIONS FROM OUR MEMBERS AND FRIENDS

What a marvelous spring we’ve had! Springtime is the breeding season for birds, and without a doubt, the months of May and June were all about nesting and raising the next generation.

Baby birds were simply everywhere. You documented nests, fledglings, and adults feeding and caring for their young in 20 different species. The list includes quail, doves, flycatchers, chickadees, titmice, swallows, nuthatches, wrens, mockingbirds, bluebirds, finches, juncos, orioles, and cowbirds! (The banner photo shows a family of Western Kingbirds in Milpitas.)

Hooded Orioles and Bullock’s Orioles, two birds that arrive here in the spring to nest, lent a burst of cheery orange and yellow color to your yards. Brown-headed Cowbirds made their annual springtime appearance at your feeders, and a juvenile was observed being fed by a Dark-eyed Junco (you’ll find more about cowbirds and their unusual reproductive strategy in the observations below). Spotted Towhees demonstrated their characteristic singing and foraging styles. As always, raptors captured your attention, like a pair of Red-shouldered Hawks, and a White-tailed Kite eating its prey.

You also documented a range of interesting phenomena and behaviors. There were Eurasian Collared-Doves and House Finches with unusual colors; Anna’s Hummingbirds displaying their stunning red feathers; Great Blue Herons exploring nest sites; and Western Bluebirds fresh from the bird bath, wet feathers plastered to their skin, looking like dinosaurs. There was House Finch courtship and competition, and a nighttime visit from Western Screech-Owls. A number of you delighted in the sounds of birds like the Northern Mockingbird, recording songs and calls.

*Ash-throated Flycatcher nestlings in a nest box in San Jose (photo by LC Boros).*

This spring, All Around Town received its first report of an Ash-throated Flycatcher, making this bird the 121st species to be documented by this project! Ash-throateds spend the winter months in Mexico, arriving here in the spring to nest. They prefer dry “edge” habitats, frequenting trees and bushes next to open spaces. They are cavity nesters and will use nest boxes, which is where these birds were found on a ranch in San Jose.

Here are your backyard and neighborhood bird observations for the months of May and June:

Becky Ewens (San Jose) told us about the birds she saw in her yard in May.

An adult male Hooded Oriole in Becky’s yard. Adult males have a black patch of feathers on their face and throat, glossy black wings with white stripes, and a black tail. They are a deep yellow-orange color.

She writes: “A Hooded Oriole pair are frequent visitors. They must be nesting nearby and I hope I get to see their young after they fledge like in past years. The male is quite chatty and I always know where he is.”

*A Mourning Dove nest in Becky’s yard. Mourning Doves often nest more than once during the breeding season. In warmer climates, the birds may nest five or six times a year.*

“This is the second Mourning Dove nest on the drain pipe this season. I believe the first one managed to successfully raise two young.”

*A Red-shouldered Hawk observed by Becky. Red-shouldered Hawks have extensive red barring on their breast and belly, and brown-and-white checkered wings. They are smaller than Red-tailed Hawks.*

“There are a pair of Red-shouldered Hawks hanging around but they're often chased off by the crows.”

“The Oak Titmice and Chestnut-backed Chickadees are always fun to observe. There are several Black Phoebes hanging around since the percolation ponds behind the house have been full. There's been both a male and a female Brown-headed Cowbird visiting the feeder. The female is more skittish than the male. Nothing really scares the male.”

A House Finch in Becky’s yard. While most adult male House Finches have red feathers on the head and breast, some have orange or yellow feathers. The birds get their color from the foods that they eat, and the pigments contained in different foods lead to the expression of different colors.

Becky adds: “The most interesting bird (besides my favorite Hooded Orioles) was a House Finch with pale yellow feathers. He showed up for a few days in a row but seems to have moved on.”

Tammy Baeza (San Jose) had a House Sparrow and a Brown-headed Cowbird visit her feeders in early May. She writes: “This was a one-time visit and I didn’t see these two again. I’d be flustered too.” She took a video of the two birds.

A House Sparrow (left) and a Brown-headed Cowbird (right), recorded by Tammy. The House Sparrow was introduced into the United States from Europe in the 1850’s, becoming widespread first in cities and then in the countryside. Although it is still a common bird, its numbers have declined sharply in the U.S. in the past fifty years.

Tammy also captured this video of a House Finch calling.

This is an adult male House Finch. Notice how his throat swells each time he calls.

Eurasian Collared-Doves are usually a buffy brown color with dark wing tips. These doves spotted by Kristin have unusual plumage and may be leucistic, meaning that they lack pigmentation in some of their feathers. The birds do have the telltale black line on the back of their necks, characteristic of their species.

Kristin Lynn (San Jose) shared with us: "I think I finally spotted a pair of Eurasian Collared-Doves. I'd been hearing these birds around here for a long time but had never seen one. (On the other hand, Mourning Doves were frequent visitors to the balcony in May and June.)"

An adult male California Quail, photographed by Carol Ann. Adult males often perch in high places, “standing sentry” over their families, surveying the surroundings and sounding the alarm if they sense danger.

In early July, Carol Ann Krug Graves (Monte Sereno) told us: “California Quail visit our yard with some regularity, and we always enjoy seeing them. They’ve now been here twice in three days, and it seems to be the same family. A couple of days ago, David spotted one, and called me over. I looked out and saw a mom with about eight tiny babies walking across the driveway. I went to get my camera, but wasn’t quick enough to get any photo of the mom or babies.”

“However, David hadn’t seen those quail; he had seen an adult male in a tree, and it was still there. The bird moved around in a couple of trees, then on the roof, and finally he took off, perhaps to join the rest of the family. I got a few photos of the male.”

“This afternoon when I opened the front door, I heard scurrying and vocalizations, and caught a glimpse of a few babies disappearing under shrubs. Then I noticed the adult male back in the same tree where we first saw him. Hopefully, these birds will visit again.”

Anjali Mallya (Cupertino) writes: “Band-tailed Pigeons were new visitors in my backyard. They are very quiet and hard to catch a glimpse of when they fly together in a flock. I was able to positively ID them when they perched on the street lamppost.”

“One afternoon I heard captivating sounds of the Northern Mockingbird. It made so many different vocalizations but I found the trilling sounds most enchanting. Thanks to my zoom video I was able to clearly see it too.”

A Northern Mockingbird recorded by Anjali. Northern Mockingbirds are mimics, imitating sounds of other birds as well as man-made sounds like car alarms! Male mockingbirds can have more than 150 songs in their vocal repertoire.

She adds: “The House Finches are very busy and active. Usually I don’t take their videos much these days but I am glad I was able to capture this moment where three of them were interacting.”

In this video, a male House Finch approaches a female, perhaps courting her. A second male swoops in, as if to drive the first male away.

*A Western Bluebird at Deanne’s bird bath. Male Western Bluebirds have a brilliant blue head, wings, and tail.*

Deanne Tucker (Los Altos) writes: “Our new fountain continues to attract birds. I've never seen Western Bluebirds in our yard before, so it was exciting to see this pair come in for a dip.”

*A Western Bluebird dries itself after bathing in Deanne’s bird bath. Note how small this wet bird looks - a lot of a bird’s size is an illusion created by its fluffy feathers.*

Steven Rice (Palo Alto) wrote to us in early May: “Flocks of Cedar Waxwings occasionally visit, so many that when they fly overhead the sun is completely blotted out! (cue ominous music!).”

*Steven’s first “image” of a Cedar Waxwing flock!*

*Cedar Waxwings flocking outside of Steven’s home. These birds often travel together in large groups, seeking fruiting trees and bushes, where they’ll settle in to eat.*

Two juvenile Violet-green Swallows and an adult seen by Steven at Cuesta Park. The young birds call to an approaching adult, likely hoping to be fed. Note the yellow lining on their bills, a sign that they are very young birds.

In early July, Steven went for a bird walk at Cuesta Park in Mountain View. He writes: “It was fun and productive to have the Backyard Birder herself spotting and identifying the birds seen. Walking through the semi-wild and landscaped areas provided an opportunity to see how different species occupied and used different types of vegetation in different 'neighborhoods'.”

*An adult male House Finch enjoys snacking on thistle, photographed by Steven.*

A Brown Creeper observed by Steven blends beautifully into the bark of a tree. Creepers often do just as their name suggests - scurry up the trunks of trees in search of food, while remaining well camouflaged.

Jack Tomlin (Los Altos) told us about June in his backyard: “Band-tailed Pigeons have been around occasionally eating oak acorns although now the supply is very limited. Over the month there were many newly hatched birds being fed: Dark-eyed Juncos, Chestnut-backed Chickadees, and Pygmy Nuthatches. There was one White-breasted Nuthatch with its two parents. In early July, one Bewick’s Wren was being fed and a week ago there were five or six fresh Pygmy Nuthatches.”

A Band-tailed Pigeon in Jack’s yard. Band-tailed Pigeons are the largest members of the dove and pigeon family found in Santa Clara County. They are usually observed in forests or in places with many trees.

“One day I was able to count twelve Pygmy Nuthatches swarming a suet block and grabbing sunflower seeds from a feeder. There may have been more waiting in the trees. They are not much bothered by me being around. Some landed on me while I was adding to the feeders. Two used me to launch down to a bird bath.”

Pygmy Nuthatches are cooperative breeders - relatives of a breeding pair help the pair raise their young. The birds are often seen in large groups, as in Jack’s video.

Eve Meier (San Jose) told us in early July: “I had Western Bluebirds nesting in my front yard bird box. Just a few weeks ago, the babies fledged. I spotted four young bluebirds on my backyard suet feeder all at the same time!”

“We also had House Finches nesting in our entryway which we hardly use. We could hear the young birds making a lot of noise each time a parent came to deliver food and, boy, they sure do make a mess! They fledged a week or two later.”

In June, Curt Bianchi (Saratoga) had a surprise visitor at his bird bath.

He writes: “In the last edition of All Around Town I remarked that lately the main visitors to our backyard bird bath had been the most common species in our area—specifically, some Mourning Doves who seemed to be dominating the bath. So it came as a surprise when I checked the camera recently and found that it had recorded a nocturnal visit by a Western Screech-Owl.”

Western Screech-Owls visit Curt’s bird bath. The owl that you first see on the ground appears to be a young bird. Juvenile screech-owls stay close to their parents for about five weeks after they leave the nest.

“In addition to the owl on the bird bath itself, you can see a young owl fly behind the bath. Initially, you can see its eyes glow behind the bird bath stand. Then it flies to the right of the frame, then across the frame to the left. A first for our bird bath and a fun video to see when I checked the card!”

*A male Anna’s Hummingbird in Teresa’s yard. Males have red feathers covering their head and throat. Females have a small patch of red feathers just on the throat.*

Teresa Cheng (Cupertino) sent us some photos of her most frequently seen backyard birds, taken on June 16.

*A male Lesser Goldfinch visits Teresa’s bird bath. Males have a black cap and are more brightly yellow than females.*

Bill Bauriedel (Palo Alto) writes: “My wife and I have been keeping track of backyard birds since December 2011. Each time we see a new bird which could be seen from our home we record it. Our first bird was a White-crowned Sparrow, followed by thirteen more common birds before the end of 2011. We only recorded each new species once.”

“Things got more spread out after that. This May, we saw a pair of Great Blue Herons checking out a possible nesting location on a flat redwood tree branch in the school behind our house but easily visible from our yard. One of the herons had a stick in its beak, but they soon decided against building a nest at that location. This was bird number 50 for us! A major milestone.”

“Some of the birds such as the Bald Eagle were seen on a flyover. The same for the Canada Geese and Mitred Parakeets. The most unusual sighting was an immature California Quail at the end of July 2017 which was definitely out of its normal territory. One day a Turkey Vulture landed in the street in front of our house to feast on a dead squirrel.”

“Prior to the heron sighting we saw a Spotted Towhee in our yard. This was an unexpected bird for our neighborhood. Lots of things are changing, not only in our yards, but around our county and our country which changes the mixture of the birds we see in our backyard.”

*A Spotted Towhee in a characteristic pose, head thrown back and singing, photographed by Joseph.*

Joseph Ribera (Sunnyvale) saw the Spotted Towhee above on Mother’s Day: “This little guy looks a little scruffy but he was singing his heart out.”

*A male Western Bluebird with a caterpillar, spotted by Joseph. Bluebirds feed insects to their young, so perhaps this treat is intended for a nestling or fledgling.*

In early May, Joseph noticed the Western Bluebird above: “He's not consuming the caterpillar, so maybe he’s taking it to a nest. I frequently spot bluebirds on the power lines along with Northern Mockingbirds.”

LC Boros (San Jose) tells us: “As usual May and June were full-on nesting season here at the ranch. Things started off pretty slowly due to the cool weather but by mid-May almost all of the nest boxes were full. We have 22 boxes in total. Eighteen of those had activity this year although two were just incomplete nests.”

“In addition to the Western Bluebird clutches, Tree Swallows, White-breasted Nuthatches, Bewick’s Wrens, House Wrens, European Starlings, and even Ash-throated Flycatchers made use of the offerings.”

“Using a borescope made nest box inspections far less invasive this year and we were able to track progress and upload info to NestWatch much more quickly. Here is a series showing one of the Tree Swallow clutches from start to almost fledged.”

*Newly hatched Tree Swallows in one of LC’s nest boxes*

*The growing nestlings. Note the strong yellow outline on their bills, perhaps making it easier for the parents to know where to put the food!*

“All of the adults, when they could get away from nest duty, flocked to baths for a bit of ‘me time’. Occasionally a newly-fledged bird would also show up to take its first dip.”

An adult male Bullock’s Oriole bathes in LC’s bird bath. Adult males have a black crown, eyeline, and throat stripe, different from the patch of dark feathers on the adult male Hooded Oriole’s face and throat. The Bullock’s also has more extensive white barring in its wings.

A juvenile European Starling visits LC’s bird bath. Starlings were introduced into the United States in the 1890’s, when one hundred of the birds were released in New York City. Today, the birds are abundant, found throughout the contiguous United States.

“One of our Wild Turkey females also showed up one morning missing most of her chest and back contour feathers. The feathers have since grown back, but it was an unusual molt.”

*A molting Wild Turkey female. Sometimes turkeys lose large patches of their feathers simultaneously during molt.*

*Hooded Orioles in flight, a female on the left, and a male on the right. Note the male’s black throat feathers.*

“And then there was just the pretty plumage to admire as all the pairs showed off their feathers and flying skills.”

*A fox squirrel visits LC’s special squirrel-and-jay feeding station.*

“Not to be outdone, our families of fox squirrels (we have two now as another pair have set up shop out by the old pole barn!) successfully raised another generation. We have a couple of feeding setups specifically for the squirrels and jays: offering nuts without baffles to allow relatively easy access. Their residency then helps deter the highly destructive ground squirrels from coming up near the house. Providing specialized setups means they leave the other feeding stations alone and thus the songbirds can enjoy their offerings unmolested.”

Emma Shelton (Menlo Park) says: “The resident birds in our neighborhood corner are finally adjusting to the loss of some large trees for nesting, which happened during the March and April storms. May started out pretty cold too!”

Emma’s Neighborhood Bird List for May and June

Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
California Gull
Downy Woodpecker
Nuttall’s Woodpecker
Acorn Woodpecker
Cooper’s Hawk
Violet-green Swallow
Anna’s Hummingbird
California Scrub-Jay
American Crow
Chestnut-backed Chickadee
Oak Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Pygmy Nuthatch
Dark-eyed Junco
Bewick’s Wren
House Finch
Lesser Goldfinch
California Towhee
Spotted Towhee

“We have about half a dozen California Scrub-Jays that patrol the feeders, and they are always noticeable when they do. Lately the nuthatches have been quite numerous and have Squeak-a-thon parties a few times a day!”

“It’s been really fascinating having our younger birder son here for a few days lately. He notices all the different birding behaviors and the different ages and stages, which I hadn’t noticed before. So many young birds and families, with the chickadees, titmice, nuthatches, juncos, wrens, and House Finches in particular. He’s noticed that only our House Finch fledglings (newbies) are begging for food. All the other first-year birds seem to be fending for themselves, although still flying around as family groups.”

*A Spotted Towhee hard at work in Emma’s yard. Spotted Towhees are ground foragers, known for vigorously scratching at the ground to stir up insects, sometimes making holes.*

Emma adds: “Watching Spotted Towhees excavate the backyard under the feeders is pretty amusing.”

Steve Patt and Deborah Jamison (Cupertino) had some interesting visitors on their balcony railing.

Of the photos above, Steve writes: “A striking display of brood parasitism.”

Striking, indeed! The birds in these pictures are an adult Dark-eyed Junco (left) and a juvenile Brown-headed Cowbird (right). Cowbirds have an unusual reproductive strategy: they lay their eggs in the nests of other bird species, leaving it to the foster parents to incubate the eggs and raise the young cowbirds as part of their own brood. This phenomenon is called “brood parasitism.”

In Steve’s pictures, you can see the foster parent junco feeding the much larger baby cowbird that it has raised.

Steve also photographed this unusual-looking House Finch above. For a short period of time during their development, juvenile House Finches may have tufts of feathers sticking up from their head. These are some of their downy baby feathers, mixed in with more adult-like plumage.

Carolyn Straub and Steve McHenry (San Jose) told us: “Our Hooded Orioles arrived on June 30. Perhaps mom and dad. Male and female, and likely later on the chicks. We must have a spare palm tree. They have never been so late.”

A White-tailed Kite eats a rodent in a contributor’s yard. These birds mostly eat small mammals, hunting them by hovering in place in the air, scanning the ground, then diving down to take their prey.

A Milpitas contributor writes: “In the last week of June, for the first time we saw a White-tailed Kite bringing prey to our front yard redwood tree and consuming it before flying off. We have seen White-tailed Kites around Milpitas quite often but it’s the first time we saw one right in our front yard.”

“As the dry summer comes, we are delighted to see the goji berry bushes blooming profusely, and since the berries are bland and tasteless to humans, we leave them as treats for a family of Northern Mockingbirds.”

An adult female Hooded Oriole visits a Milpitas yard. Adult females lack the dark face and throat patch of the males. They have yellow tails, and their wings are grayish rather than a glossy black color.

“As a surprise this year, a family of five Hooded Orioles, parents and three juveniles, decided to join in on the feast, a source of extra food in addition to the hummingbird sugar feeders.”

A family of Western Kingbirds, four babies in a row, begging for food from a parent (far right), in Milpitas. Recently-fledged young depend on their parents for food for the first two or three weeks after leaving the nest. Kingbirds are a flycatcher species, in the same family group as phoebes.

The contributor adds: “We also witnessed the feeding of a brood of Western Kingbirds. We love their noisy chittering around the neighborhood and the front yard.”

Happy backyard birding this summer, everyone!

Bird species reported to All Around Town from October 2020 onwards (species in bold are new this month)

Greater White-fronted Goose
Canada Goose
Mallard
Bufflehead
Hooded Merganser
California Quail
Wild Turkey
Indian Peafowl (feral)
Rock Pigeon
Band-tailed Pigeon
Eurasian Collared-Dove
Mourning Dove
Vaux’s Swift
White-throated Swift
Anna’s Hummingbird
Rufous Hummingbird
Allen’s Hummingbird
Killdeer
Long-billed Curlew
California Gull
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Black-crowned Night-Heron
Turkey Vulture
White-tailed Kite
Golden Eagle
Northern Harrier
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Cooper’s Hawk
Bald Eagle
Red-shouldered Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Ferruginous Hawk
Barn Owl
Western Screech-Owl
Great Horned Owl
Belted Kingfisher
Red-breasted Sapsucker
Acorn Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Nuttall’s Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Pileated Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
American Kestrel
Merlin
Olive-sided Flycatcher
Western Wood-Pewee
Pacific-slope Flycatcher
Black Phoebe
Say’s Phoebe
Ash-throated Flycatcher
Western Kingbird
Hutton’s Vireo
Cassin’s Vireo
Warbling Vireo
Steller’s Jay
California Scrub-Jay
Yellow-billed Magpie
American Crow
Common Raven
Chestnut-backed Chickadee
Oak Titmouse
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Tree Swallow
Violet-green Swallow
Barn Swallow
Bushtit
Wrentit
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Pygmy Nuthatch
Brown Creeper
House Wren
Bewick’s Wren
European Starling
California Thrasher
Northern Mockingbird
Western Bluebird
Varied Thrush
Hermit Thrush
American Robin
Cedar Waxwing
Scaly-breasted Munia
House Sparrow
House Finch
Purple Finch
Pine Siskin
Lesser Goldfinch
Lawrence’s Goldfinch
American Goldfinch
Chipping Sparrow
Fox Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
White-crowned Sparrow
Golden-crowned Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Savannah Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Lincoln’s Sparrow
California Towhee
Spotted Towhee
Western Meadowlark
Hooded Oriole
Bullock’s Oriole
Red-winged Blackbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
Brewer’s Blackbird
Orange-crowned Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Black-throated Gray Warbler
Townsend’s Warbler
Canada Warbler
Wilson’s Warbler
Western Tanager
Black-headed Grosbeak
Lazuli Bunting

Hybrid ducks, domestic ducks, unidentified gull species, and Rufous/Allen’s Hummingbirds have also been reported to All Around Town.

References

All About Birds website, www.allaboutbirds.org. Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA.

Birds of the World. Edited by S. M. Billerman, B. K. Keeney, P. G. Rodewald, and T. S. Schulenberg. Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/home

Dodder, Matthew. What to look for: Flycatchers of spring. The Avocet, Spring 2021, p.4. Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society.

eBird: An online database of bird distribution and abundance [web application]. eBird, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. http://www.ebird.org

Credits

All Around Town is compiled by SCVAS Member Julie Amato.

Banner Photo: Western Kingbirds, submitted by a Milpitas contributor