Natural History Journal

For whatever reason, I have long been fascinated by loons.  Like the mournful call of the Gray Wolf echoing across a frozen wilderness, there is something in the plaintive cry of the Common Loon that embodies the very essence of wilderness, simultaneously inspiring a sense of adventure while instilling a feeling of peace and tranquility. Or at least, that's what I've led myself to believe, having never heard the call of the loon in person.  (It's on my to-do list.)  Common Loons ( Gavia immer ) visit coastal California during the non-breeding winter season.  As it would happen, loons are generally silent during this time of year, and cry their eerily beautiful and plaintive song primarily during the breeding season (i.e. when they're not in California).  Common Loons are synonymous with wilderness lakes of the north woods, breeding across Alaska and Canada, as well as the very northern reaches of the United States.  (Minnesota seems to be known...

 Sanderlings ( Calidris alba ) are smallish sandpipers of the swash zone, perhaps the "peeps" seen most commonly on the beaches of central California.  They stick together in flocks as they run up and down the beach, chasing the waves as they forage in the swash zone.  (The swash zone is the part of the beach that is covered with each incoming wave, and uncovered again to reveal potential tasty morsels beneath the sand.) The rather cute, gentle appearance of Sanderlings belies their amazing life strategy.  These birds may not look it, but they are truly daring, swashbuckling adventurers, flying thousands of miles between overwintering grounds around the world and breeding grounds high above the Arctic Circle.  Sanderlings are one of the most widespread shorebirds in the world, found during the winter on most temperate and tropical beaches.  For most of the year, they can be found in Californ...

Terns are a neat group of birds, and Caspian Terns ( Hydroprogne caspia ) are particularly eye-catching with their bright bills and dark caps.  They are in the same family as gulls, Laridae, though unlike gulls, terns seem to be generally free from the stigma that is usually attached to those ubiquitous birds of the coast.  While visiting Moss Landing recently, I spotted (and heard) quite a few terns swooping overhead; I was excited to see a few on the ground, within range of my camera! The Caspian Tern is the largest species of tern in the world; it is as big as a large gull, and is frequently seen in mixed flocks with gulls.  They occur on every continent except Antarctica.  Terns are known for their aerial dives, and Caspians are no different.  They fly over bodies of water while looking down to spot fish.  When they see potential prey, they dive steeply and plunge into the water in hopes of nabbing a fish.  Earlier this spring...

Western Snowy Plovers ( Charadrius nivosus nivosus ) are small, sparrow-sized shorebirds, found up and down the Pacific coast in decreasing numbers.  They are cryptically colored and easy to overlook, as they blend in perfectly with the sand and bits of driftwood and sea wrack of their beach habitat.  Like other plovers, Western Snowy Plovers belong to the family Charadridae, along with our more familiar and conspicuous Killdeer ( Charadrius vociferous ).  I personally think Snowy Plovers are one of the cutest birds around.  Ranging from Washington to Baja California, Western Snowy Plovers forage on beaches and foredunes for very small crustaceans, invertebrates and insects.  The breeding season lasts from March through September, which unfortunately coincides with the period of heaviest use of beach habitat by tourists.  These diminutive shorebirds nest on sandy beaches and shores, at stream mouths and on coastal dunes, l...

Visit a beach in California, particularly in the northern half of the state, and you are likely to come across stands of European Beachgrass ( Arundo arenaria ).  It looks so innocuous, picturesque even, waving in the Pacific breeze and blurring the line between land and sea.  But this grass, a plant you've probably never thought twice about, is much more than it seems.  Innocuous it is not.  European Beachgrass is one of California's most wanted offenders: an introduced, aggressive invasive species. This picturesque photo of the California's Pacific Coast has a secret...  Most people won't notice that the grass seen here is an imposter; it's not native to the area, but a species that doesn't belong in this ecosystem. The main crime this grass is guilty of is being too good at its job.  In 1869, European Beachgrass was planted around Golden Gate Park in San Francisco, and since 1900, it has been int...

Much like California's deserts, a cursory glance at our coastal dune ecosystem - by the untrained eye - shows little more than a barren, windswept, lifeless place.  But the concept of coastal dunes as lifeless is far from the truth.  In fact, the unfortunate truth is that much like deserts, coastal dunes have been written off time and time again as areas in need of "improvement."  As a result, nearly all of California's coastal dune systems have been severely degraded.  Restored dunes at Moss Landing State Beach Highways cut through the dunes, housing developments and condominiums perch on top of them, mining operations remove sand entirely.  Invasive plants have been introduced to "stabilize" the soil: most notably, iceplants ( Carpobrotus chilensis and Mesembryantheum crystallinum ) and Eruopean Beachgrass ( Ammophila arenaria ).  These plants have been wildly successful, covering extensive dune systems to the exclusi...

A fiery flash darts through the riparian canopy of oaks, pouring forth a beautiful song.  For a moment you are stunned.  You grab your binoculars and search for this flaming apparition.  After following the song and scanning the trees, your eyes are drawn to a patch of bright sunshine in the canopy.  Your binoculars come to rest on a brilliant, almost tropical-looking bird: a male Bullock's Oriole ( Icterus bullockii ).  If you're relatively new to birding in California, particularly the Central Valley, you might be very surprised to learn that a bird this bright and beautiful spends the warm months with us!   A bright and flashy male Bullock's Oriole Bullock's Orioles breed across much of the western United States, migrating to Central America for the winter.  In the Great Central Valley of California, they seem to favor Valley Oaks ( Quercus lobata ) in riparian areas.  Cottonwood trees are also ...

Swallows of all species are beautiful, graceful birds, swooping acrobatically through the air as they catch insects on the wing.  Tree Swallows ( Tachycineta bicolor ) are one of our most flashy birds, with their iridescent plumage contrasting with clean white fronts.  In most places, swallows migrate south for the winter, only returning to breed in the summer; but here in California's Great Central Valley, Tree Swallows and similar Violet Green Swallows ( Tachycineta thalassina ) s tick around all year.  Still, they are probably most visible in the warmer months.  I enjoy watching swallows every chance I get, and have been happy to see quite a few Tree Swallows out and about recently.  Tree Swallows nest in tree cavities, as well as nest boxes.  Because they take so readily to nest boxes, researchers have been able to study the ecology of Tree Swallows in detail.  Like other swallows, Tree Swallows feed primarily on flying insects, whic...

It's spring, and the marshes, grasslands and woodlands of California are brimming with life as young birds of all description hatch, grow and begin to fledge.  I've mentioned before that when I can't get out into a proper patch of wilderness, I enjoy birding at CSU Stanislaus.   This year, there is something particularly exciting on the college campus: a family of Great Horned Owls ( Bubo virginianus ). Great Horned Owls begin breeding very early (or late) in the year, with courtship beginning in the late fall and early winter.  While out for a walk last December, Eric and I heard a pair of Great Horned Owls on campus.  Noting the presence of tall pine trees (potential nesting habitat) and an abundance of prey (gophers and waterfowl), I dared to hope they might choose to stay.  And it turns out, they did! Great Horned Owls lay their eggs as early as January or February in California.  Eggs are incubated by the female for about four weeks,...