March 21 and 24, 2011
For the Vertebrate Biology class I am taking this semester, we’re required to keep a detailed field journal of all our wildlife observations. I took two walks along the main channel of the Laguna de Santa Rosa for making observations that I could include in my journal.
(13:50 to 14:20) On March 21st, Eclipse and I went for a wildlife-watching walk along the creek behind our house. It was sunny with a light breeze (70° F), and we began at Faletti Park on Gravenstein Way in Cotati, and walked along ~ 250 m of this channel of the Laguna de Santa Rosa, on the NE side of the creek. I saw most of the usual suspects, even though I was birding without binoculars: Mallard on the creek, and flying overhead. Anna’s Hummingbird, American Crow, House Finch, Black Phoebe. My favorite sighting of the day was a lone Green Heron flying south along the creek. I regularly see these birds (one at a time) along the creek, and they always flush when I get within about ~ 10 m, usually before I have even noticed they were there. It was good to get a nice (if brief) look at this bird. I also saw an orange/brown butterfly with heavy black margins that I was not able to identify, and some small orange/brown mushrooms growing in bark in a playground. We also found a good-sized oval-shaped Puffball (10 cm diameter) in the grass near some trees (possibly Calvatia pachyderma). The overall shape was oval, and the top was “cracked” open.
(14:30 to 15:05) A few days later, on March 24th, Eclipse and I took another walk along the Laguna, beginning at Draper Park and walking on the bike trail along the SW side of the creek. We went north to Commerce, and then backtracked to South Gravenstein Way (overlapping a small part of the route observed on the 21st). It was cool (55° F) and wet out, having rained earlier in the day, but was not raining during our walk. I saw some birds I hadn’t seen on the previous walk, including American Robin, Common Pigeon, and Chestnut-backed Chickadee. Again, I saw a few American Crow (~5), although there is a larger population in the area (I often see them in groups of at least 30). An unusually small number of American Bushtit were foraging in trees near the bike trail (perhaps others had flown off just before I arrived). Without binoculars, I found it tricky to identify a Red-shouldered Hawk, even though it was sitting in a well-visible location in the top of a tree ~ 6 m high. It was very brown, with obvious striping on the tail and a dark head. The lack of red plumage indicates a juvenile. Ultimately, though, I was able to confirm the ID when it called before flying to a tree on the other side of the creek. Several gulls were circling high overhead, but I wasn’t able to ID them.
I heard two or three Pacific Tree Frog, and saw some large (6 cm diameter) mushrooms that were light tan with grayish gills. I also kept track of some of the plants seen along the route, which included Miner’s Lettuce, Himalayan Blackberry, and Fennel.
Species List
March 21st: Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos platyrhynchos), California Scrub Jay (Aphelocoma californica caurina), Green Heron (Butorides virescens anthonyi), Anna’s Hummingbird (Calypte anna), American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos), House Finch (Haemorhous mexicanus frontalis), California Towhee (Melozone crissalis), House Sparrow (Passer domesticus), Black Phoebe (Sayornis nigricans semiater), American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis jewetti), Puffball (Calvatia pachyderma)
March 24th: American Robin (Turdus migratorius), American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos), Black Phoebe (Sayornis nigricans), California Towhee (Pipilo crissalis), California Scrub Jay (Aphelocoma californica), Common Pigeon (Columba livia), Red-shouldered Hawk (Buteo lineatus), Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura), American Goldfinch (Carduelis tristis), Anna’s Hummingbird (Calypte anna), Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos), House Finch (Carpodacus mexicanus), American Bushtit (Psaltriparus minimus), Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia), Chestnut-backed Chickadee (Poecile rufescens), Pacific Tree Frog (Pseudacris regilla), Miner’s Lettuce (Claytonia perfoliata), Himalayan Blackberry (Rubus armeniacus), Thistle sp, Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare), English Ivy (Hedera helix)
Let me know what you think!