Birds

* Birds Marbled Godwit

From Alaska

September 19, 2021September 19, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 50 Views 0 Comments Limosa fedoa

The godwit in the video captures first what looks like a small crab, and later some kind of worm. These

* Birds Mallard

Mixed Mallard

September 18, 2021September 9, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 47 Views Anas platyrhynchos

Photographer James Kusz spotted and photographed this extraordinary Mallard. It’s a white-breasted brown Mallard. Mallards are known for hybridizing with

* Birds Great Blue Heron

Bluenotes

September 16, 2021September 4, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 54 Views 0 Comments Ardea herodias

I’ve filmed the Great Blue Heron a number of times here in the park, but I’ve never heard it vocalize.

* Birds Burrowing Owl Whimbrel

Not-Quite-So-Long-Bill

September 14, 2021September 14, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 49 Views 0 Comments Numenius phaeopus

The Long-Billed Curlew isn’t the only shorebird with a long curved bill. Photographer James Kusz caught these Whimbrel foraging in

* Birds Long-billed Curlew

Early Longbill

September 13, 2021September 2, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 52 Views 0 Comments Numenius americanus

Another early migrant, along with the Marbled Godwits, is this Long-billed Curlew. This one is likely to be a male.

* Birds Bushtit

Bugtits

September 12, 2021September 2, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 58 Views 0 Comments Psaltriparus minimus

I saw a handful of these little featherballs busy pecking in the crown of a fennel bush. How odd, I

* Birds Marbled Godwit

Early ‘Wits

September 11, 2021September 19, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 66 Views 0 Comments Limosa fedoa

The Golden Gate Audubon bird blog advised recently that the fall migration was starting early this year, and these Marbled

* Birds Double-crested Cormorant

Cormorant Commandos

September 10, 2021September 1, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 58 Views 0 Comments Nannopterum auritum

If I were a foot-long fish I think I’d have a better chance of survival with the water surface full

* Birds Great Blue Heron

Bird in Pipe

September 9, 2021September 1, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 66 Views 0 Comments Ardea herodias

Shortly after chasing away the Cormorant (“Bossy Blue,” September 4 2021) the Great Blue Heron stalked cautiously into the big

* Birds Black-crowned Night Heron

Young and Old

September 8, 2021September 1, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 69 Views 0 Comments Nycticorax nycticorax

Shooting video of a Black-crowned Night Heron is almost a total waste of pixels. The bird seems to surpass all

* Birds Savannah Sparrow

Sad Savannah

September 5, 2021August 24, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 75 Views 0 Comments Passerculus sandwichensis

This Savannah Sparrow foraged for bugs, its favorite food, on the rocks on the east side of the park, just

* Birds Double-crested Cormorant Great Blue Heron Great Egret

Bossy Blue

September 4, 2021August 31, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 93 Views 1 Comment Ardea alba, Ardea herodias, Nannopterum auritum

Herons and cormorants have very different styles of hunting. The herons (and their family members, the egrets) stay mostly still

* Birds Great Egret

Loses Feather

September 2, 2021August 31, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 54 Views 1 Comment Ardea alba

This might not be the most dramatic event in a bird’s life or in a nature watcher’s experience. But, while

* Birds California Towhee

Towhee at Work

July 31, 2021July 23, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 85 Views 0 Comments Melozone crissalis

This California Towhee was foraging in its usual way, on the ground, looking for seeds, sometimes scratching with both feet

* American Coot Birds

Lone Coot

July 30, 2021July 22, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 77 Views 0 Comments Fulica americana

Earlier in the summer — or late in the spring — I reported on birds that had missed the migration

* Ants Birds Black Oystercatcher Bugs

Ants on Bird

July 29, 2021July 22, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 131 Views 1 Comment Haematopus bachmani

I was watching this solo Black Oystercatcher on a rock off the east side of the seasonal Burrowing Owl sanctuary.

* Birds House Finch

New Fledgling

July 25, 2021July 17, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 105 Views 1 Comment Haemorhous mexicanus

Recently I posted images of the new crop of House Finches in the park. Although those were “newly hatched” for

* Birds Willet

Breeding Willets

July 24, 2021July 23, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 107 Views 3 Comments Tringa semipalmata

The Willet is a familiar sight in the North Basin, but it usually wears a plain coat of gray, as

* Birds Brown Pelican

Pelican Pond

July 23, 2021July 23, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 126 Views 1 Comment Pelecanus occidentalis

The full moon flexed its muscle today. Overnight it pulled up the waters of the North Basin over the seawalls

* Birds Great Blue Heron

Tough Pull

July 21, 2021July 15, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 125 Views 1 Comment Ardea herodias

This Great Blue Heron used all its tricks and all its power to try to yank a meal out of

* Birds Western Gull

Gull Scrap

July 20, 2021July 15, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 92 Views 0 Comments Larus occidentalis

These two Western Gulls got in a tug-of-war over some piece of scrap that was so tough it took both

* Birds Great Blue Heron

Heron Awakes

July 19, 2021July 13, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 108 Views 0 Comments Ardea herodias

The bird stood on the rocks on the east side of the seasonal Burrowing Owl sanctuary like a statue. The

* Birds Brown Pelican Canada Goose

Shift Change

July 17, 2021July 17, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 83 Views 0 Comments Branta canadensis, Pelecanus occidentalis

The North Basin looked like Pelican Pond in the early morning hours. Once again, dozens of Brown Pelicans flew in

* Birds Canada Goose Events

High Voltage Wire Kills Goose (Updated)

July 16, 2021July 17, 2021 Marty Nicolaus 203 Views 1 Comment Berkeley Fire Department, Berkeley Police Department, Branta canadensis, PG&E

A Canada goose was electrocuted this afternoon after apparently colliding with a 12,000 volt wire that supplied electricity to the

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