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On our annual trip to the U.S. we always make it a point to go birding at the two of our favorite places in Orange County: San Joaquin Wildlife Sanctuary (SJWS) and Bolsa Chica Wetlands. This time we were fortunate to see (and get photos of) some species that we hadn't encountered the past 8 years or so. It was like meeting an old friend whom we hadn't seen for a while - and saying "Hello like before!"
At SJWS these were the "friends" we met:
Tree Swallow - although a regular resident, we weren't able to get photos the previous times we were here.
Rufous Hummingbird, quite uncommon and therefore a nice surprise.
The Common Yellowthroat, although "common", we never saw them the past 8 years that we've been here. And now we saw at least three of them frolicking by the reeds.
Another surprise was the very active Blue Grey Gnatcatcher
The highlight of the morning was the White-faced Ibis that was feeding at Pond D.
At Bolsa Chica, aside from the usual species seen here, we saw a Greater Yellowlegs.
Black-bellied Plovers, still in non-breeding plumage were quite plentiful.
The Belted Kingfisher was less skittish now.
I'm not 100% sure about the ID of this bird, but my guess is Least Flycatcher.
The highlight of the day was a couple of lucky shots of Ring-billed Gulls. One was flying with the moon in the background.
The other was when an immature bird leapt and then dove for some fish and I caught it at the perfect moment.
It was indeed nice to have seen these birds once again after a really long time.
Yesterday, my wife and I did something that we haven't done for awhile. It was refreshing, exciting and such fun even if it lasted only a little more than an hour.
We went birding in the afternoon. At Bolsa Chica. We were so used at driving there without any problem that we were just appalled at the traffic jams we encountered.
After an hour and a half (what normally takes less than an hour), we finally arrived at our destination. Surprisingly, there weren't too many people around. The boardwalk was almost empty.
Then we found out why. Blustery winds that further lowered the temperature of an already chilly afternoon. But we were prepared - having worn jackets and sweaters in anticipation of such a weather condition.
The Pelicans were there, putting on their usual show of leaping from their swimming position, flying low and then plunging into the water after some unfortunate fish.
The usual denizens of a coastal mud flat were there. It was dinnertime for the birds and this Long-billed Curlew was enjoying a fresh mussel still in its shell.
A Black-bellied Plover, on the other hand, was able to "un-shell" its meal.
One reason why I wanted to go to Bolsa Chica was to see the Reddish Egret. It has been a year since we last saw it - and it was at some distance when we did. I was hoping we would get some closer looks this time. At the trail east of the tidal gates, we saw a juvenile Reddish Egret cavorting at a place too far for our camera lenses. I prefer to see the more colorful adult anyway, I told my wife. By now the sun was getting close to the horizon, so we decided to hike back. Don't worry, Cynthia assured me, God will send the Egret to us. It was while I was shooting at the moon (literally) halfway through the return trail, that I glimpsed an adult Reddish Egret fly by and land at a mudflat not too far away. I called my wife's attention to it and as the sun's fading light bathed the place in a warm red-orange glow, we had our moment with the lovely egret. That orange glow and the blowing wind created an image that seemed like the egret was on fire. I thought it appropriate to call it, "The Firebird".
