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Whittier Audubon Field Trips
Our field trips are usually on the third Saturday of the month from September
through June. The length of the field trips varies from a Saturday morning
to a full weekend. We also hold "bird walks" especially geared for
beginners, at Sycamore Canyon. If you would like to be notified of our trips and programs by email, please
notify Jay Oberholtzer. The trips for September,
2009 through June, 2010 are:
|
Date |
Description
|
Trip Leader |
| Saturday, September 19, 2009 |
Barstow/Daggett Sewage Plants, Saturday September
19 2009.
Led by Larry Schmahl.
SEPTEMBER FIELD TRIP TO BARSTOW/DAGGETT
This will be some desert birding at the tail end of Summer with Fall
migration well underway. This should give us a good chance at migrant
flycatchers, vireo and warblers as well as a wide variety of resident
species. Depart at 6:00 a.m. from the Whittier Community Center (Mar Vista
and Washington)
Larry Schmahl will lead; let me know
if you plan to come |
Larry Schmahl |
| Friday, October 30, 2009 |
Owling Night (tentative) at Starr Ranch
Friday October
30 , 2009 Led by Linda Oberholtzer
Our fall field trip to Starr Ranch Audubon Sanctuary in South Orange
County has a DATE CHANGE. Celebrate Halloween early by coming on an
evening owl survey, on FRIDAY, October 30th at 7 p.m. Ride in an
open air wagon truck in special areas not usually open to the public, in
the dark, and listen for the sounds of Western Screech, Great Horned and
Barn Owls. You might even see a mountain lion or other critters. Children
are welcome. Must make reservations by contacting Linda Oberholtzer at
lindaoberholtzer@gmail.com and
state the names of the persons coming. I will e-mail you detailed driving
directions and instructions. Limited space available. Fee is a minimum
donation of $8.00 each.
|
Linda Oberholtzer |
| Saturday, November 21, 2009 |
Playa del Rey, November 21, 2009. Led by
Roy van de Hoek.
Our November field trip will be to Marina del Rey,
led by our president Roy van de Hoek. Roy will show around the shoreline at
Playa del Rey where we'll look for rocky shorebirds like Surfbirds,
Oystercatchers and Wandering Tattlers. We'll also check out Ballona
Freshwater Marsh, a bit of habitat that supports many birds in the middle
of a densely populated urban area.
We will likely meet at 7:00 AM at the Whittier
Community Center, corner of Mar Vista and Washington, to carpool. But check
with Roy for a positive plan. Or come to the November meeting on the 19th.
Roy van de Hoek leads. |
Roy van de Hoek |
| Saturday December 12 2009 |
Bill Bell Bird Walk at Whittier
Narrows December 12 2009. The Bill Bell Bird Walk will be on Saturday,
December 12th-- meeting at 8 a.m. in the Whittier Narrows Nature Center
parking lot. Refreshments to follow in the picnic shelter near the- parking
lot at the conclusion of the walk. Any refreshment contributions can be
dropped off with Colleen at the Whittier Narrows Nature Center before the
walk and she will put them out at the end of the walk.
Please join former Whittier Daily News editor, Bill Bell, on the annual
"Bill Bell Bird Walk" on Saturday December 12th at 8 a.m. at the Whittier
Narrows Nature Center, 1000 N. Durfee Ave., South El Monte, CA. (626)
575-5523. Meet in the parking lot. |
Roy van de Hoek
|
| |
|
|
| Saturday-Sunday January 23-24, 2010 |
Carrizo Plain, January 23-24, 2010. Led by Roy van de
Hoek
Visit the beautiful Carrizo Plain National
Monument in San Luis Obispo County. Now in its winter mood, with bird
life having migrated from Arctic Alaska, the Pacific Northwest, and the
western states mountain ranges and prairies, in this special landscape
with a special geography of hope.
We will see the special migrants such as the
Sandhill Crane in farm fields and near Soda Lake, Mountain Plover on the
bare ground areas, and Mountain Bluebird hovering for insects. We will
see several flocks of Long-billed Curlew feeding on grasshoppers and
beetles in the soil with their long beak, but also resting in the vast
prairies and alkaline wetlands known as Soda Lake.
In addition, we will see an abundance of diurnal
raptors such as the arctic migrants, particularly the Rough-legged Hawk,
but also many Ferruginous Hawk, Peregrine Falcon, Merlin, and Bald Eagle
(maybe). We will also see the year-round diurnal raptors found at
Carrizo. They include the Prairie Falcon, Golden Eagle, Northern Harrier
(marsh hawk), and White-tailed Kite. And of course, we will see many
Red-tailed Hawk and Kestrel as well. We will likely not see the
Red-shouldered Hawk or Cooper's Hawk as this is not wooded country habitat
those two hawks prefer, but instead we will see the raptors of the
wide-open spaces of a prairie, with a large lake in center of the plain.
At dusk, and perhaps at some of the isolated
trees during the day, we will find some nocturnal owls sleeping, such as
the Short-eared Owl, Long-eared Owl, Great-horned Owl, and I hope to show
you some close-up looks at a diurnal owl, namely the Burrowing Owl.
We will see plenty of our smaller birds as well,
particularly hundred of Horned Lark, Western Meadowlark, Lark Sparrow,
perhaps a Lark Bunting, and others such as the Vesper Sparrow, Grasshopper
Sparrow, and lots of Loggerhead Shrike.
We will take time to study and learn about the
famous San Andreas Fault, most beautifully displayed at Carrizo, and the
magical Native American "rock art" of multiple colors at Painted Rock. We
will visit the interpretative nature center briefly as well, where we can
see a California Condor, wings spread out, on display.
There is almost 100% certainty that we will see
the fastest mammal of North America, the American Pronghorn Antelope. And
sometimes, we find a Badger and often we see a herd of Tule Elk, and if we
are lucky, we will hear the large male elk can be heard bugling. You will
also learn about the Giant Kangaroo Rat and endangered Kit Fox, found only
in the greater Carrizo region of southern California.
The Carrizo Plain is approximately a 3 hour drive
north from Whittier, California. You will take Interstate 5 north over
the Grapevine (Canon de Uvas) and Fort Tejon (Badger), to Highway 166
offramp toward Maricopa. We will meet on Saturday morning at 8am in
Maricopa on Highway 166, at the parking lot of the Motel 8. You can make
reservations to stay there on Friday night and Saturday night, so that you
do not have leave from Whittier at 5am on Saturday morning, which is
another option. The phone number for Motel 8 is (661) 769-829. The
website is
www.motel8maricopa.com. The email address is
motel8@bak.rr.com. We will have dinner on Saturday night in Maricopa
or nearby Taft.
Pack a lunch for Saturday afternoon, bring warm
clothes, including a wool cap and gloves, good walking shoes that are
waterproof, however most birding will be from near a car. Fill your gas
tank in Maricopa before 8am. And get ready to know the Carrizo Plain, its
bird life and habitat, but also more about your president, a biologist and
geographer, who has led trips to the Carrizo Plain for 20 years (beginning
in 1989).
If you have questions, please contact Roy van de
Hoek at (310) 877-2435, or by email at
robertvandehoek@yahoo.com
Roy van de Hoek leads. |
Roy van de Hoek |
| Saturday-Sunday February 20-21, 2010 |
Carrizo Plain, February 20-21, 2010. Led by Roy van de Hoek
(Note: We are trying again for Carrizo Plain. We got rained out in
January, so we are going to take another run at it in February)
Visit the beautiful Carrizo Plain National
Monument in San Luis Obispo County. Now in its winter mood, with bird
life having migrated from Arctic Alaska, the Pacific Northwest, and the
western states mountain ranges and prairies, in this special landscape
with a special geography of hope.
We will see the special migrants such as the
Sandhill Crane in farm fields and near Soda Lake, Mountain Plover on the
bare ground areas, and Mountain Bluebird hovering for insects. We will
see several flocks of Long-billed Curlew feeding on grasshoppers and
beetles in the soil with their long beak, but also resting in the vast
prairies and alkaline wetlands known as Soda Lake.
In addition, we will see an abundance of diurnal
raptors such as the arctic migrants, particularly the Rough-legged Hawk,
but also many Ferruginous Hawk, Peregrine Falcon, Merlin, and Bald Eagle
(maybe). We will also see the year-round diurnal raptors found at
Carrizo. They include the Prairie Falcon, Golden Eagle, Northern Harrier
(marsh hawk), and White-tailed Kite. And of course, we will see many
Red-tailed Hawk and Kestrel as well. We will likely not see the
Red-shouldered Hawk or Cooper's Hawk as this is not wooded country habitat
those two hawks prefer, but instead we will see the raptors of the
wide-open spaces of a prairie, with a large lake in center of the plain.
At dusk, and perhaps at some of the isolated
trees during the day, we will find some nocturnal owls sleeping, such as
the Short-eared Owl, Long-eared Owl, Great-horned Owl, and I hope to show
you some close-up looks at a diurnal owl, namely the Burrowing Owl.
We will see plenty of our smaller birds as well,
particularly hundred of Horned Lark, Western Meadowlark, Lark Sparrow,
perhaps a Lark Bunting, and others such as the Vesper Sparrow, Grasshopper
Sparrow, and lots of Loggerhead Shrike.
We will take time to study and learn about the
famous San Andreas Fault, most beautifully displayed at Carrizo, and the
magical Native American "rock art" of multiple colors at Painted Rock. We
will visit the interpretative nature center briefly as well, where we can
see a California Condor, wings spread out, on display.
There is almost 100% certainty that we will see
the fastest mammal of North America, the American Pronghorn Antelope. And
sometimes, we find a Badger and often we see a herd of Tule Elk, and if we
are lucky, we will hear the large male elk can be heard bugling. You will
also learn about the Giant Kangaroo Rat and endangered Kit Fox, found only
in the greater Carrizo region of southern California.
The Carrizo Plain is approximately a 3 hour drive
north from Whittier, California. You will take Interstate 5 north over
the Grapevine (Canon de Uvas) and Fort Tejon (Badger), to Highway 166
offramp toward Maricopa. We will meet on Saturday morning at 8am in
Maricopa on Highway 166, at the parking lot of the Motel 8. You can make
reservations to stay there on Friday night and Saturday night, so that you
do not have leave from Whittier at 5am on Saturday morning, which is
another option. The phone number for Motel 8 is (661) 769-829. The
website is
www.motel8maricopa.com. The email address is
motel8@bak.rr.com. We will have dinner on Saturday night in Maricopa
or nearby Taft.
Pack a lunch for Saturday afternoon, bring warm
clothes, including a wool cap and gloves, good walking shoes that are
waterproof, however most birding will be from near a car. Fill your gas
tank in Maricopa before 8am. And get ready to know the Carrizo Plain, its
bird life and habitat, but also more about your president, a biologist and
geographer, who has led trips to the Carrizo Plain for 20 years (beginning
in 1989).
If you have questions, please contact Roy van de
Hoek at (310) 877-2435, or by email at
robertvandehoek@yahoo.com
Roy van de Hoek leads. |
Roy van de Hoek |
| Saturday, March 20, 2010 |
Bolsa Chica and Huntington Park, March
20, 2010
Led by Jeff Allison |
Jeff Allison |
| Saturday-Sunday April 17-18, 2010 |
San Diego Saturday-Sunday April
17-18, 2010 Led by Jay Oberholtzer
This will be a really special weekend trip to San Diego led by Jay
Oberholtzer. Watch for details and make your plans.
|
Jay Oberhnoltzer |
| Saturday, May 22, 2010 |
Gallileo Saturday, May 22, 2010 led
by Jeff Allison Our May field trip will take place on May 22d and will be
to Galileo Park near California City. This is an area well to the north of
Lancaster, so it’s a fairly long drive. In order to be there at a reasonable
time to see some birds, we will leave the Whittier Community Center at 6:30
AM. Due to the distance, this will be a full day; we will not be back before
3:00 PM. Bring water, sunscreen, a hat, and your binoculars. If you’re
planning on driving, have a full tank of gas. We’ll carpool as best we can
from the community center. You may want to bring a lunch or we may be able
to eat at the restaurant on site. I’ll try to have information on the
restaurant at the meeting on the preceding Thursday.
The area is known as a migrant trap and for bringing in some true rarities,
so there’s no telling what we might see on this trip. You may recall that
we went out here two years ago and had, among other things, an Ovenbird. I
also recall lots of Swainson’s Thrushes and a number of Scott’s Orioles,
plus various other migrant warblers. No guarantees, of course, but the place
can be pretty birdy in the right circumstances.
Jeff Allison will lead. Drop me an email (Jeff.Allison@amate.us)
if you’re planning on going.
|
Jeff Allison |
| Saturday June 19, 2010 |
Little Jimmy Saturday June 19,
20109 Led by Larry Schmahl
Field trip on Saturday June 20th will be to Lttle Jimmy
|
Larry Schmahl
|
|