Buena Vista Lagoon November

This past Saturday was the bird count at the Buena Vista Lagoon.  It was bright, clear, and sunny, though not too warm.  We saw fifty-four different species.  Below are four views of the lagoon.

One of the first birds I saw in the morning was a little Pied-billed Grebe swimming all by itself in the water beside the road.  Below is a photo of it.

Pied-billed Grebe

There were quite a few hummingbirds (both Anna's and Allen's) and House Finches at the lagoon.  There were a few everywhere we went.  Below are photos of an Anna's Hummingbird and two House Finches, another Anna's Hummingbird singing, and an Allen's Hummingbird.

Anna's Hummingbird and House Finches

Anna's Hummingbird

Allen's Hummingbird

There were many American Crows around; sitting in trees, scavenging, and chasing a hawk.  Below is a crow sitting on the roof of the nature center.

American Crow

There were more Eurasian Collared-Doves on Saturday than I've ever seen at the lagoon before.  There were around thirty of them near the nature center.  We usually only see a few of them.  Below is a photo of the doves sitting on a telephone pole and telephone lines.  Although a few of them appear much paler than the others, they're all Eurasian Collared-Doves.

Eurasian Collared-Doves

There were a few House Sparrows around.  Most of them were cheeping under the tiles of roofs.  They like the curved tiles; they can hide in them and build their nests in the little caves.  Below is a male House Sparrow under a roof tile.

House Sparrow

There seemed to be more Western Grebes and Double-Crested Cormorants than usual.  There were large groups of them around.  The Double-Crested Cormorants seem to like swimming together in a V shape (no matter how many of them there are) and sometimes they all dive into the water at the same time.  Below are three photos.  The first is a Western Grebe and the second two are Double-Crested Cormorants swimming in V's.

Western Grebe

Double-Crested Cormorants

Double-Crested Cormorants

The Spotted Sandpiper was in its usual place under the bridge.  It flew back and forth once or twice along the edge of the water and ran around.  It didn't stay out in the open for very long, though, and I only managed to take one good photo of it through a fence.  Below is the Spotted Sandpiper.

Spotted Sandpiper

A Red-Tailed Hawk and a Northern Harrier were soaring very high up in the air (which is unusual for a harrier).  For a while they flew together peacefully, but then the harrier started to dive at the Red-Tailed Hawk whenever they came close to each other.  There was some long, stringy thing attached to the harriers claws that later fell off.  It can be seen in the photos below.  I'm not sure what it was.  Below are two photos; one of the Northern Harrier and one of the harrier and the Red-Tailed Hawk.

Northern Harrier

Northern Harrier and Red-Tailed Hawk

There were a few Snowy Egrets around.  Below is one of them sitting on what is probably a pipe in the lagoon.

Snowy Egret

Since we didn't see very many warblers earlier in the day, I went back behind the nature center a second time (I usually head back there when we first arrive).  Although I didn't see any warblers except for more Yellow-Rumped Warblers, I did see a Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher, which I hadn't seen in a long time.  Unfortunately, I didn't take a photo because was too high up in a tree.  I also saw a Ruby-Crowned Kinglet, but it was in the same tree as the gnatcatcher; right next to it, actually.  The only bird I managed to take a photo of was a Mourning Dove that I accidentally flushed.  Below is a photo of it.

Mourning Dove

Although it isn't quite finished, the nature center has been remodeled.  It now has an observation deck.  There are stairs and (soon) an elevator.  The view is beautiful, and we can now see some parts of the lagoon we hadn't been able to see from ground level.  Although the center isn't open to the public quite yet, our group was able to go up on the deck.  Here's a sneak peek of it.  Below are photos of the view from the deck, the deck itself, the new staircase, and the nature center from the outside.