Posts in: Birds

The first storm of Fall over the California Northern Coast Range means I should be hearing the song of White Crown birds very soon! (they summer in the foothills and mountains, overwinter in the valley; seemingly they appear shortly after the summer weather breaks)

A Nuttal’s woodpecker visited our front yard Toyon yesterday! #Yarden #NuttalsWoodpecker #Birds

Adult California Gull and their chicks at the Arcata Marsh & Wildlife Sanctuary last July #CaliforniaGull #BirdPhotography #Birds #NorCalCoast2025 #Fujifilm #SOoCOn a manmade island, covered in short grass, an adult white and gray California Gull looks away from their three chicks. The chicks have fluffy brown plumage.

Brown Pelicans occupying an island at the Arcata Marsh & Wildlife Sanctuary back in July #BrownPelicans #BirdPhotography #Birds #NorCalCoast2025 #Fujifilm #SOoCA Brown Pelican comes in for a landing on a very small island in a large pond. The island is full of other brown pelicans, mostly grooming themselves. They're a dirty brown with awkwardly long necks and long, thick beaks.

Last time I was in Mendocino County, for the first time I finally saw the Stellar’s Jay. The fancy looking birds were a riot to watch flitting between trees. They were not easy to photograph being high up in the canopy. #StellarsJay #BirdPhotography #Birds #NorCalCoast2025 #Fujifilm #SOoC

The back of a Stellar's Jay, with its signature mohawk head crest, sitting on a dead branch. It is looking to the right, so its face with a very large and dark eye can be seen. There's green foliage in the background, slightly blurred.

Our cultivated California native seedy grapes are ready. The two plants mostly feed Northern Mockingbirds, Western Scrub Jays, and in the late fall, Kinglets, but some grapes will be for the humans in the form of a compote. As a bonus, gaze upon our lone avocado! #Yarden #HomeOrchard

Many bunches of ripe purple grapes hang from a grape vine.A hand is holding a metal colander filled with ripe red grapes. It's being held under a grape vine.An avocado is hanging from an avocado tree. It has a long stem and a narrow, green speckled body. A hand is nearby acting as a scale. It's about five fingers long and three fingers wide.

I think this is the last nectarine harvest. About 6 pounds. The shield bugs were showing up and nectarines were dropping fast from wind and bird pecks :-( They were effortlessly plucked off the tree. Next harvest: Asian pears! #HomeOrchard #Nectarines #Yarden

A nectarine tree with almost a dozen dropped fruit on the gravel and dirt area below. The tree still has a few dozen nectarines on it.A collander of very ripe dark red to orange colored nectarines sitting on a scale. The scale is on a plastic covering upon a tile counter. The scale reads 6 pounds and 5 ounces, so there’s about 6 pounds of necartines.

#WhiteTailedKite #Birds #BirdPhotography #NorCalCoast2025 #Fujifilm #SoOC

A White-tailed kite, soaring above under overcast skies, is gliding away from the camera, showing its belly and an eye. It has a mostly white body with its wings fading to grey. Its neck has a rust-red collar.

#Wrensday #MarshWren #Birds #BirdPhotography #NorCalCoast2025 #Fujifilm #SoOC

A tiny Marsh Wren, kind of far from the photographer, is perched on a reed, just below a fluffy cat-tail head. The Marsh Wren is looking to the right, with its near vertical short tail just visible behind the reed. It is within a sea of other cat tails, all with fluffy stuff hanging off them.

#GreaterYellowLegs #Birds #BirdPhotography #NorCalCoast2025 #Fujifilm #SoOC

A Greater Yellowlegs shorebird has a small fish or minnow hanging from its beak. The bird is mostly grey with black vertical markings here and there, especially on its wings. Its eyes are very dark and its legs are orange yellow. It is standing alone in a very shallow pond on an overcast day.

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