Buena Vista Lagoon March

Today was the bird count at the Buena Vista Lagoon. We saw fifty-eight different species of birds. It was very foggy in the early morning, then cleared up and became warmer later on. Below are five views around the lagoon.

There were quite a few Mallards at the lagoon today. There was a pair feeding together in the ditch beside the road, and several other pairs scattered around the lagoon. Below are two photos. The first is a male Mallard in the ditch. The second is of three Mallards in flight.

Mallard

Mallards

There were also quite a few Western Bluebirds around the nature center. I had never seen them there before. They appear to be using the bluebird boxes that were put up around the area. Below are three photos of the Western Bluebirds (the first is a female, the second two are males).

Western Bluebird

Western Bluebird

Western Bluebird

There were many, many Song Sparrows sitting atop bushes and trees, singing and establishing their territories. Below are two photos of Song Sparrows.

Song Sparrow

Song Sparrow

There were several American Coots here and there around the lagoon. Below is a photo of one.

American Coot

Today we saw a few different hawks: Red-tailed, Cooper's, and Red-shouldered. One Red-shouldered Hawk was sitting on top of a sign. I happened to be standing right below it, and it peered over the edge at me. After it had flown into a eucalyptus tree, I was able to take a photo. It was later mobbed by a horde of Hooded Orioles. Below is the Red-shouldered Hawk.

Red-shouldered Hawk

There were hundreds of swallows today, most of which were Northern Rough-winged Swallows. Two Northern Rough-winged Swallows came down and sat on a telephone wire for a while, preening themselves. Rough-winged Swallows seem to be more willing to perch on wires than any of the other swallows, though I'm not sure why. Below are three photos of the swallows.

Northern Rough-winged Swallow

Northern Rough-winged Swallow

Northern Rough-winged Swallow

There were quite a few hummingbirds at the lagoon, both Anna's and Allen's. Below are two photos. The first is of an Anna's Hummingbird. The second is an Allen's.

Anna's Hummingbird

Allen's Hummingbird

Once it became a bit warmer, a few Western Fence-Lizards came out to bask in the sunshine. Below are two photos of one of the lizards (with a nice view of the blue throat).

Western Fence-Lizard

Western Fence-Lizard

There were a few Mourning Doves around. One sat very still in a tree and let me come very close. Below is a photo of it.

Mourning Dove

The most unusual sight of the day was a very large Common Snapping Turtle laying eggs. Snapping turtles are not native to California, and were probably introduced as escaped or released pets. In my research, I found that on this website: http://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/factsheet.aspx?speciesID=1225 (run by the U.S. Geological Survey) the Buena Vista Lagoon is listed specifically as one of the sites where a snapping turtle was found (under the heading "Nonindigenous Occurrences"). Snapping turtles are very distinctive. They are most easily identified by their large size (they look too big for their shells), their hooked beak, and their very long, spiny tail. Young snapping turtles have sharp ridges on their backs, which become less prominent as they age (older turtles appear to have almost flat shells - the one we saw was old). They will eat aquatic plants, carrion, and pretty much any small creature they can catch. As suggested by their name, they bite. Below are two photos of the snapping turtle.

Snapping Turtle

Snapping Turtle

There weren't very many herons or egrets. There were only a couple of Great Blue Herons and Great Egrets. Below is a Great Blue Heron flying over the lagoon.

Great Blue Heron

Most of the Cliff Swallow nests along the bridge have fallen to pieces. The swallows haven't nested there in quite a long while. Today, there was a single pair flying to and from a nest, though I don't know if they'll continue using it. A couple of years, Cliff Swallows rebuilt the nests, but never actually used them. Well, this year could be different. We'll see next month, I suppose. Below are the two Cliff Swallows in their nest.

Cliff Swallows