By Jon Fisher
Published by Los Angeles Audubon Society in the Western Tanager, Vol. 86 No. , Mar-Apr 2020
While the casual observer might look at the seemingly endless concrete covering much of the coastal slope of the county and imagine it to be far from a birder’s nirvana, this area supports a remarkable number of birds from the common to the exceptional. The last couple of months were no exception.
While the winter rainy season started off looking rather promising, it quickly went bust; with January and February producing little in the way of measurable precipitation. This was quite a reversal from last year’s above average winter, though not unexpected in southern California. Lacking precipitation, green hillsides started turned brown long before they normally would. Obviously this affects water and food resources that wintering, resident and migrating birds rely on, ultimately affecting numbers and breeding success.
Wet or dry weather aside, there were plenty of interesting birds around this winter. Many continuing rarities were present, a number of new discoveries were made, and a few good birds that spent previous winters returned for another.
Very rare in the county were two Trumpeter Swans in Pico Rivera from December 23- January 9 (Frank & Susan Gilliland). More expected was a single Tundra Swan continuing at the Piute Ponds on Edwards AFB through January 17 (Kimball Garrett).
A “Eurasian” Green-winged Teal was along the San Gabriel River in Pico Rivera from January 5-February 8 (Larry Schmahl). One or two typically turn up in the county each winter, often returning to the same locale each year.
Another nice find were two Barrow’s Goldeneyes along the California Aqueduct south of Pearblossom on January 8 (Alex Lamoreaux, John Collins, Karin Marcus, George Rementer). They remained in this area through January 29. In total, the aqueduct provides waterfowl with quite a lot of artificial but apparently quite acceptable deep water habitat. Only a few extensive birding surveys have been done, but those that have indicate good potential.
Up to five White-winged Scoters and five Black Scoters were present off Dockweiler State Beach in El Segundo through February 6 (Richard Barth), with scattered reports north to the well-covered Ballona Creek mouth.
A White-winged Dove continued in Redondo Beach through December 30, while others were in Culver City Park on December 20 (Walter Lamb), at Loyola Marymount University in Westchester on January 5 (Russell Stone) and at the LAX Dunes on February 18 (Matthew Berdaigo).
Notable was a Spotted Dove at Forest Lawn in Glendale on February 6 (Andrew Birch). This non-native species has nearly been extirpated since the 1980s when it was a common sight in yards and parks. Today the population is largely limited to a handful of birds in and around the Huntington Park area.
Vaux’s Swifts were over Silver Lake Reservoir on December 30 (Andrew Birch) and at the Bette Davis Picnic Area in Glendale on January 13 (Alex Coffey). Over one hundred were at Bonelli Regional Park in San Dimas on January 22 (Keith Condon).
The Red-necked Grebe wintering at Cabrillo Beach was seen through January 25. A late find was one at Castaic Lagoon on February 19 (Zachary Hirst).
An American Oystercatcher was in San Pedro at both White Point Park and Royal Palms Beach through February 19, with two seen there occasionally. One and sometimes two were at Malibu Lagoon off and on from December 23-February 18 (Rhys Marsh), and one continued at the Ballona Creek mouth through February 11. Two more were on the breakwater in Los Angeles Harbor on December 22 (Angie Trumbo). Lastly, one was at Paddleboard Cove on the Palos Verdes Peninsula on February 22 (Adam Johnson). Some of these records may pertain to the same birds moving up and down the coast.
The Pacific Golden-Plover in the Ballona Wetlands area continued through January 20. Mountain Plovers, declining in the county and elsewhere, were nonetheless present in the east Antelope Valley with sixteen first observed there on January 6 and up to twenty-two seen through January 18.
Rather rare in winter was a Solitary Sandpiper continuing at the South Coast Botanic Garden in Rolling Hills Estates through January 9.
The only gull of note was a Lesser Black-backed Gull at the San Gabriel Coastal Basin Spreading Grounds in Pico Rivera from February 2-3 (David Bell, Luke Tiller).
Unusual inland was a Red-throated Loon at El Dorado Park in Long Beach on February 11 (Derek Hameister).
A good find was a Masked Booby on the breakwater at the Ballona Creek mouth from February 8-22 (Lance Benner), offering a scarce opportunity to easily see this species from an easily accessible coastal location, rather than from a boat.
An American Bittern was at the Ballona Freshwater Marsh from January 12-February 24 (Dean Schaff).
A Neotropic Cormorant continued at Westlake Lake through December 25.
A California Condor was along Interstate 5 near Pyramid Lake on January 31 (Kyle Lindemer). Teetering on the brink of extinction in the late 1980s, their last stronghold was the Sespe Wilderness in Ventura County. That used to be the place to go to see a wild condor before the last individuals were captured. Once numbering just over two dozen individuals, captive breeding and reintroduction efforts have increased the population to over 450. They are now found sparingly in many parts of southwestern California, and locally in northern Arizona and southern Utah.
Quite rare in winter was a Swainson’s Hawk in the east Antelope Valley on January 7 (Joesph Dunn). The first spring migrants noted were twenty-seven birds over Burbank on January 23 (Alexander deBarros).
The Zone-tailed Hawk that spent last winter in Monrovia had returned again as of February 15 (Karen Suarez), but was probably present for some time. It was reported through February 23.
Six Short-eared Owls were on San Clemente Island on January 1 and nine were present on January 2 (Justyn Stahl, Nicole Desnoyers), with one still there through January 12. Another was over Valley Village on January 20 (Rebecca Marschall)
Northern “Yellow-shafted” Flickers were at Sycamore Canyon in Whittier on December 28 (Mickey Long), at the Los Angeles Country Club on January 5 (Kimball Garrett) and in Beverly Hills on January 7 (Scott Logan).
Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers were at South Gate Park from January 20-25 (Richard Barth), at the Rincon Fire Station along Highway 39 above Azusa on February 11 (David Coates) and at Brand Park in Glendale from February 18-19 (Andrew Birch).
A rare “Black” Merlin continued at the Bette Davis Picnic Area in Glendale through February 20 and a still scarce but more expected pale “Prairie” Merlin was in the west Antelope Valley on January 26 (David Bell).
The returning wintering Greater Pewee in Pacific Palisades was seen- or at least heard- through January 25. Actually seeing this bird has been difficult.
An Ash-throated Flycatcher continued at Madrona Marsh in Torrance through February 16 and another was below the Whittier Narrows Dam in South El Monte from January 1-3 (Naresh Satyan). The Brown-crested Flycatcher wintering at the South Coast Botanic Garden in Rolling Hills Estates was reported through February 19.
A returning wintering Thick-billed Kingbird was at Horsethief Canyon Park in San Dimas from February 7-24 (Keith Condon). It was first detected here in January of 2014, and though it was not seen the last two winters it was almost undoubtedly present.
Tropical Kingbirds continued at Entradero Park in Torrance through February 18 and at Ken Malloy Harbor Regional Park in Harbor City- with two recorded there infrequently- through February 23. Another was at El Dorado Park in Long Beach from January 11-February 21 (Joyce Brady).
A Hammond’s Flycatcher continued at Hopkins Wilderness Park in Redondo Beach through December 22 and others were at Carr Park in Glendale from February 19-23 (Richard Barth), at Valley Park in Burbank on February 22 (Josh Chapman) and at Horsethief Canyon Park in San Dimas on February 23 (Bruce Aird). Quite rare in winter was a Dusky Flycatcher at Fox Hills Park in Culver City on January 5 (Dan Cooper, Nurit Katz).
Pacific-slope Flycatchers were in Atwater Village on December 21 (Andrew Birch), at Wardlow Park in Long Beach on January 1 and at LA Valley College on February 17 (Rebecca Marschall). Another continued at the South Coast Botanic Garden through February 12.
Eastern Phoebes continued at the Bette Davis Picnic Area in Glendale through February 22 and at Apollo Park in Lancaster through January 12.
Cassin’s Vireos continued at the South Coast Botanic Garden in Rolling Hills Estates through February 12 and at Ken Malloy Harbor Regional Park in Harbor City through January 14. Others were at the West San Gabriel River Parkway Nature Trail in Lakewood from January 5-25 (Tracy Drake), in West Hills on January 17 (Abby Larson) and at Santa Fe Dam from January 31-February 12 (Chris Dean).
Rare in winter were single Cliff Swallows at the Sepulveda Basin in Van Nuys on December 30 (Jon Fisher) and at the Ballona Freshwater Marsh on January 11 (Femi Faminu).
The Pacific Wren in Santa Anita Canyon above Arcadia was reported through February 9. Others were along Mt. Baldy Road on January 19 (Tom Miko) and at the LA County Arboretum in Arcadia from February 8-22 (James Maley).
A rare winter Gray Catbird was Walnut Creek County Park in San Dimas from February 18-24 (Keith Condon).
Evening Grosbeaks were discovered at Blue Ridge and at the Grassy Hollow Visitor’s Center near Big Pines on January 19 (Luke Tiller, David Bell). Up to three dozen continued in the area through February 23. Red Crossbills were also in this area from January 20-February 7, with over 100 being seen at times (Mark Scheel, Lance Benner). While much observer effort was concentrated on these easy to see birds, one has to wonder what else the higher San Gabriels might hold in winter.
A Clay-colored Sparrow continued at Madrona Marsh in Torrance through February 16 and another was at Santa Fe Dam from January 29-February 16 (Brittany O’Connor).
Rare in winter were Green-tailed Towhees at Farnsworth Park in Altadena on February 13 (Dionisio Castro) and at Cold Creek Valley Preserve near Calabasas on February 16 (Alexander deBarros).
A “Large-billed” Savannah Sparrow was near the Ballona Creek mouth from February 16-17 (Luke Tiller, David Bell). Though rare in the county, this is the most reliable place to find this Savannah Sparrow subspecies. It’s also a spot where multiple Savannah Sparrow subspecies- including the salt marsh loving “Belding’s”- can be seen in one spot.
A Harris’s Sparrow continued at a residence in Rancho Palos Verdes through February 18. More expected were White-throated Sparrows along the LA River in Long Beach above Willow Street from January 5-15 (Jeff Boyd), in Claremont on January 11 (Paul Clarke, Catherine McFadden) and in Beverly Hills from January 31-February 9 (William Tyrer).
The Dark-eyed “Gray-headed” Junco at Hahamongna Watershed Park in Pasadena was present through February 17. Others were in Juniper Hills in the southern Antelope Valley from December 28-29 (Kimball Garrett) and at St. Andrew’s Priory near Valyermo on January 26 (Grace Wong). Dark-eyed “Pink-sided” Juncos were at O’Melveny Park in Granada Hills on January 25 (Rose Liebowitz, Alexander deBarros) and at Grassy Hollow Visitor’s Center near Big Pine on January 26 (Ed Stonick, Tom Miko).
An Orchard Oriole was at the Valley Sod Farms Community Garden in North Hills on December 14 (Rebecca Marschall). Another returned to winter again at Loyola Marymount University in Westchester at least as of December 28 (Candice Byers); it was reported through January 19.
Hooded Orioles were at the Huntington Gardens in San Marino from December 20-January 25 (Kellen Apuna), in Valley Village on January 4 (Rebecca Marschall) and at Colorado Lagoon in Long Beach on January 28 (Nancy Salem).
Moving on to wood warblers, a Northern Waterthrush was at Walnut Creek County Park in San Dimas on February 18 (Keith Condon).
Eight Black-and-white Warblers were either found or continued during the period.
The American Redstart in Calabasas continued to be reported along Las Virgenes Creek through February 17. Another was at Polliwog Park in Manhattan Beach from January 24-February 5 (Sara Boscoe).
A Lucy’s Warbler was in Calabasas from January 4-17 (Mark & Janet Scheel). In addition, five Nashville Warblers- rare in winter- were present during the period.
A Northern Parula, likely a returning bird, was at Peck Road Park in Arcadia from December 27-31 (Dessi Sieburth, Oscar Moss).
Palm Warblers were at the West San Gabriel River Parkway Nature Trail in Lakewood from December 27-January 23 (Christine Jacobs), at Santa Fe Dam from January 29-February 23 (Brittany O’Connor) and continuing in the Sepulveda Basin in Van Nuys through January 1.
The Painted Redstart at Inglewood Park Cemetery was observed there through February 9.
At least nine Summer Tanagers were present over the period, with just three of these being known continuing birds. As expected, all were on the coastal slope.
Black-headed Grosbeaks- common migrants and summer visitors but scarce in winter- were at the William Andrews Clark Library in Los Angeles from January 5-8 (Rebecca Marschall), in Pasadena on February 3 (Susan Gilliland) and in Calabasas on February 12 (Heather Medvitz).
From the foregoing it’s obvious there was a lot for the active birder to see this winter. As birding in the county continues to draw more interest and attention, the number of records likewise continues to grow.
Many vagrants this winter were seen by dozens or even more birders. Chasing such rarities is certainly rewarding, as is the inevitable renewal of birding acquaintances in the field. Even more exciting is finding your own rare birds. To that end it’s worth exploring under-birded and out of the way places as well as the oft attended ones.
While many of our regular winter birds and vagrants will remain for some time to come, spring migration is upon us. Waterfowl are already moving north in numbers. Northbound passerines are at present represented mostly by swallows, but March will see the first Western Kingbirds, Bullock’s and Hooded Orioles and others arrive in numbers. April and May are always be great months to be in the field. It’s also a good time to think about including any evidence of breeding in our eBird lists. It’s very easy to do and adds value to our records.