A Ring-Billed Gull and a Savannah Sparrow

It's rained quite a bit this week.  The water pooled up at school in large, deep puddles, which kept most of the birds away.  However, there were still American crows and ring-billed gulls, like the one pictured below.  I took the photo below at the Vista Courthouse parking lot.

Ring-Billed Gull

This week I have also seen many American kestrels, a white-tailed kite, and a few red-shouldered hawks.  I saw a red-shouldered hawk today that was being mobbed by about twenty crows.  Large numbers of crows often gang up on one hawk, even if the hawk is not much bigger than them.

Today I also got my first photo of a savannah sparrow.  Savannah sparrows are found throughout the United States, Canada, and Mexico.  They summer in the northern United States and Canada, and winter in the southern United States and Mexico.  In coastal California, central Mexico, and some areas where the summer and winter ranges meet, they are around all year.  They are found in open grassy areas such as marshes and fields.  They are streaked all over except for their chins and bellies, which are white.  They have pink beaks and often have yellow lores (the area above the eye near the beak).  Below is a savannah sparrow that was sitting in a tree next to the library at school.  (They are not always so pale as the one below.  They can be pale, reddish, or darker brown.)

Savannah Sparrow