For reports on these trips, click here. Trip Findings are generally on Page 2 of the Observer newsletter. ___________________________________________________________
Field Trips, November 15 -December 23, 2007. Scheduler: Maureen Geiger, 444-0804, mkgeiger@sbcglobal.net
Thursday-Monday, November 15-19 Central Valley Birding Symposium 2007 Contact: Frances Oliver, (209) 369-2010 hummer52@sbcglobal.net
Join birders from near and far and enjoy the company of great birders and naturalists such as Ed Harper, Laura Erickson, Jon Dunn, Alvaro Jaramillo, Joe Morlan and Keith Hansen. Field trips take birders to surrounding hot spots to celebrate the diversity of birds that winter in the Central Valley, and workshops provide excellent information on a variety of topics such as digiscoping, difficult-to-identify species, birding by ear, and an eBird primer for data submission. Check the schedule of field trips and programs at www.cvbs.org and register by email: registration@cvbs.org or call 209/369-2010 for information. Registration fee of $90 includes full event or $45 for single day attendance.
Sunday, November 18, 8am-Noon Effie Yeaw Nature Center - Habitat Improvement Leader: Jack Hiehle, 967-0777
Join Jack and other nature lovers to assist with habitat restoration at this lovely nature area. Possible tasks include weed removal, pond clean-up, erecting fencing around oak trees for protection, and checking bird nest boxes. Call Jack for details.
Saturday, November 24, 7:30am Discovery Park Leader: Maureen Geiger, 444-0804 mkgeiger@sbcglobal.net
This is a great, often overlooked park near downtown Sacramento. Join Maureen to look for a variety of wintering species such as sparrows, hawks, woodpeckers and bluebirds. This trip will end before noon. On I-5 from downtown, take the Garden Highway exit and turn left/east onto Garden Highway. Take the first left onto Natomas Park Drive, and the first right onto Capital Park Drive. Parking is permitted on either side of the Drive.
Sunday, November 25, 8am Goethe Park Leader: Cathie LaZier, 457-6882 empid@earthlink.net
Meet Cathie in the first parking lot on the right past the entrance kiosk for this morning walk. She will look for resident birds and wintering species in the oak woodland and along the river. The trip will last until late morning and is a great trip for beginners. Goethe Park is at the end of Rod Beaudry Drive, off Folsom Blvd. From Hwy. 50, take the Bradshaw exit; go north to Folsom Blvd., east to Rod Beaudry Drive, and turn left. There is a park entrance fee; if you want to carpool into the park, meet Cathie about 10 minutes earlier behind the pizza place on the northeast corner of Folsom and Rod Beaudry Drive.
Thursday, November 29, 8-Noon Effie Yeaw Nature Center Leader: Jack Hiehle, 967-0777
Meet Jack in the Nature Center parking lot in Ancil Hoffman Park for a 4 hour walk on the trails which wind through the oak woodland and down to the American River. This is an excellent birding area, and Jack will share his knowledge of the native and non-native plants and trees of this parkway area as well. A great trip for beginners and more experienced birders alike.
Saturday, December 1, Daybreak Great American River Bird Count Compiler: Jack Hiehle, 967-0777
Join Jack and other volunteers to assist with this annual count of birds and other creatures along the American River Parkway sponsored by the American River Natural History Association (ARNHA). Results of this count are important to future planning for the Parkway, and the goal is to have 11 teams of two or more persons each. The count differs from other Christmas Counts in that teams count species rather than total numbers of each species. Contact Jack for details, team assignments, and meeting and compilation locations.
Sunday, December 2, 9am-Noon Nimbus Fish Hatchery /American River Leader: Ed Harper, 971-3311 calidris@surewest.net
Join Ed for an informative walk along the American River. Ed is a great birder who will be looking for any interesting birds with emphasis on tricky identification of the many gulls that winter on the River near Nimbus Dam. This trip will last until late morning. A scope is useful in addition to binoculars. Meet at the Nimbus Fish Hatchery parking lot near Highway 50 and Hazel Avenue (about 15 miles east of Sacramento).
Monday, December 3, 8am-Noon Nimbus Fish Hatchery Leader: Jack Hiehle, 967-0777
This is another opportunity to explore the Nimbus/American River area. Walk with Jack and look for diving ducks, kingfishers, wintering gulls and other wildlife along the River. He will also be sharing his knowledge of interesting archeological points relating to early Chinese gold mining. Meet in the parking lot of the Nimbus Fish Hatchery off Hazel Avenue.
Wednesday, December 5, 7am Caswell Memorial State Park Leader: Gary Fregien, 451-2767 calaveri@sbcglobal.net
Caswell Memorial State Park is located in the Central Valley near the town of Ripon, about an hour south of Sacramento. The park's position along the meandering Stanislaus River affords a combination of water and mature Valley Oak forest and riparian vegetation understory, in stark contrast to the surrounding agricultural lands, and is a magnet for a variety of resident and migrant species. For more information about the park, go to www.parks.ca.gov, click on "Find A Park" and use the drop-down menu to find Caswell. There is a day-use fee to enter the park. Plan to spend several hours in the park, so bring food and water. Trails are primarily level, but may be damp. Dress appropriately. Meet Gary at the Park & Ride on the east side of Hwy 99 at the Sheldon Road exit south of Sacramento.
Friday, December 7, 8am-Noon Sailor Bar Area, American River Parkway Leader: Jack Hiehle, 967-0777
Join Jack in exploring the plants, birds and animals of this riparian corridor along the River. Jack will share his broad expertise on the usual wintering residents of this area. From Winding Way, turn south on Kenneth, then east on Emperor Street to the end.
Saturday, December 8, 8am-Noon Wetlands and Waterfowl Tour II Leader: Kevin Cassady, 875-9196 cassadyk@saccounty.net
Tour one of the seasonal or permanent wetland areas within the Sacramento Regional County Sanitation District Bufferlands in Elk Grove. The wetlands and waterfowl tour offers a chance to see many bird and mammal species including waterfowl, shorebirds, raptors, beavers and coyotes. Tour participants will enjoy a 2 mile walk guided by a Bufferlands staff wildlife biologist who will explain current management and restoration techniques. Space is limited and the meeting location is weather-dependant, so please contact Kevin Cassady during the week preceding the event for exact meeting location and directions.
Saturday, December 8, Very Early River Walk Bird Count Cosumnes River Preserve Recorded Information, 684-2816
Meet at the Visitor Center on Franklin Blvd, south of Twin Cities Road, for this monthly birding census trip. It is a great birding area, always full of surprises, and joining the group is a good way to find out what’s happening and to hone your birding skills. This walk covers about four miles at a leisurely pace and takes approximately five hours, so bring lunch and liquids. Be sure to check the recorded information a day or two before for exact meeting time and possible updates.
Saturday, December 8, Sunset Trip, 2 pm till dark Sandhill Cranes and Other Wintering Birds of the Sacramento Valley A “Save Our Sandhill Cranes” sponsored trip Co-ordinator: Mike Savino, 446-1392, Birding Guides from Sacramento Audubon
Sandhill Cranes are the focus of this trip, but the experienced birding leaders will also help you identify the waterfowl and shorebirds that winter here. Ducks, swans and geese, as well as shorebirds, feed in the flooded fields and marshy areas of the delta, and hawks patrol overhead. Meet at the Cosumnes River Preserve Visitor Center parking lot, at 2 p.m., where we will stroll the boardwalk in the Lost Slough Wetlands, then drive out along Desmond Road and possibly further, searching for more cranes and other birds. Optional dinner at Wimpy’s afterwards with SOS Cranes board members for further discussions. Dress for changeable weather; bring scopes and FRS radios if you have them. From Sacramento, take I-5 south to Twin Cities Road; go left (east) to the stop sign at Franklin Blvd.: turn right (south) on Franklin and, driving through the preserve, watch for the visitor center parking lot on your left. Further directions and maps are available at www.cosumnes.org. This is a great trip for beginners.
Sunday, December 9, 8 am Solano Lake/Putah Creek Leader: Mark Martucci, 833-6722 matuchbirdman@yahoo.com
The Lake is a good area for wintering ducks including possible Barrow’s Goldeneye and Hooded Mergansers. Phainopeplas are possible, and Pileated Woodpeckers have been found in the area several times during the last year. A drive up Putah Creek may turn up wintering passerines as well. There is a $5 per car fee at the Lake Solano campground. Bring lunch and liquids and meet Mark at the Park & Ride in West Sacramento: (West Capitol Exit; turn left at the light; then left again into the lot). Plan on a trip lasting into the afternoon.
Sunday, December 9, 8am-Noon Habitat Improvement Day Leader: Jack Hiehle, 967-0777
Join Jack and help restore and improve an area near the American River. Your efforts will help keep this area a beautiful place to be. Call Jack for details as projects vary.
Sunday, December 23, 7:30am - late-afternoon Palo Alto Baylands/Martin Luther King, Jr. Regional Shoreline/Arrowhead Marsh Leader: Scott Hoppe, 835-8471 shoppe01@earthlink.net This is a great opportunity to see rails! Scott has timed this trip to take advantage of extreme high tides which cause rails and mammals to head for higher ground, often being visible in the process. He will stop in Alameda on the way to search for shorebirds and wintering ducks as well as possible rails there also. And rarities are always a possibility at any of these locations. Meet him at the Park and Ride in West Sacramento, (West Capitol Exit; turn left at the light, then left again into the parking lot). This trip will last well into the afternoon, so bring lunch and liquids and wear waterproof footwear for moving around near the marshes.
