Birds of Pinnacles National Park

A few days ago, Eric and I spent a lovely spring day hiking with friends at Pinnacles National Park.  And of course, when I say "hiking," you know I mean birding also!  We hiked eight miles in total, from the visitor center along the Bench, Sycamore, and Moses Spring Trails to Bear Gulch Reservoir, encountering 47 species of birds along the way.

A diversity of plant communities in Pinnacles National Park offers habitat for 160 species of birds.  While much of the steep mountainous terrain in the park is covered by chamise-dominated chaparral, pine and oak woodland, dominated by gray pine and blue oak, is well represented also.  Riparian corridors of sycamores and willows follow the paths of Bear Gulch and Chalone Creek, offering refuge in an otherwise often hot and arid landscape.

From the moment we got out of the car near the visitor center, the sound of birds filled the air: most notably, the raucous calls and incessant chattering of a large flock of Acorn Woodpeckers.  One of the loudest voices of the oak woodlands, gregarious Acorn Woodpeckers are highly social birds that form family groups and maintain communal caches of food in granary trees.  Watching their antics is highly entertaining!

Acorn Woodpeckers guard their granary tree, in this case a gray pine, along the Bench Trail.

Many of the birds found in this part of Pinnacles National Park are typical species of oak woodlands.  Besides Acorn Woodpeckers, Downy and Nuttall's Woodpeckers foraged through the trees.  Western Bluebirds, Black Phoebes, Western Kingbirds and Violet-green Swallows all hawked for insects in the open areas around the visitor center, flying out from perches to nab insects mid-air.  

A male Western Bluebird perches on a powerline near the visitor center.

California Scrub-jays are another highly vocal presence in oak woodlands, and these numerous blue beauties were joined by a smaller number of darker blue, crested Steller's Jays.  Other corvids present included a nice sampling of both American Crows and Common Ravens, all of which were especially prevalent near the campground where their chances of an easy meal were the best!

A California Scrub-jay hanging out in the campground.

Scuttling along in the underbrush and emitting their endearing little contact calls were several pairs of California Quail.  Listen for the male's distinctive three-part "Chi-ca-go" song, sometimes sung from a low perch, and watch for movement in the chaparral as they make their way through thickets, generally keeping under cover.  We spotted a pair foraging in the open near the campground, and heard many more as we hiked along the Bench Trail.

A California Quail foraging in the open.

As the Bench Trail makes its way toward Bear Gulch, parallel to the park road, it follows a dry streambed dotted with spring wildflowers and opens up to a beautiful view of the High Peaks in the distance.

Spring along the Bench Trail

California Towhees seemed to be more abundant a little higher up, in the Bear Gulch area, where they scratched on the ground beside the parking lot and underneath picnic tables in search of tasty morsels.  Drab and brown to most eyes, California Towhees are washed with subtle shades of orange, buff and fawn that warrant a closer look.  Spotted Towhees were heard in the tangled undergrowth along the creek as well.    

The subtle beauty of a California Towhee.

While Song Sparrows and House Wrens sang from low riparian vegetation along the creek, Oak Titmice and White-breasted Nuthatches called from the trees above.  It is always a treat to watch nuthatches foraging on tree trunks and limbs, hitching along and moving straight down vertical surfaces head-first!  

A White-breasted Nuthatch heads down a tree trunk - head first!

Leafy-green and cool, verdant with ferns and blooming with wildflowers, riparian areas along the Sycamore Trail and in Bear Gulch offer a shady retreat for hikers and wildlife alike.  Where there is water, there is wildlife!

A shady retreat along the Sycamore Trail to Bear Gulch

Colorful birds spotted in the trees along the creek included Bullock's Orioles, Lawrence's Goldfinches, and Black-headed Grosbeaks, singing their enchanting operatic song.

The song of Black-headed Grosbeaks filled Bear Gulch!

Climbing into the rock formations that Pinnacles is known for, either in the High Peaks region of the park or along the trail to the reservoir, listen for the descending song of the Canyon Wren, dancing off the cliffs.  A cheerful song, it never fails to bring a smile to my face!

Just a small taste of the fascinating rock formations at Pinnacles, the haunt of Canyon Wrens.

Riding the warm updrafts, or thermals, that rise up along the high rock cliffs and peaks are a host of raptors.  Turkey Vultures were abundant, joined by a large number of Red-tailed Hawks and a few Red-shouldered Hawks.  We watched as a plucky American Kestrel harassed a much larger hawk, and when a Cooper's Hawk shot through the canopy up in Bear Gulch, small songbirds fell silent in its terrifying wake! 

But the soaring bird everyone hopes to see at Pinnacles is, of course, the majestic California Condor.  Soaring on wings that span nine-and-a-half feet, condors are an incredible sight to behold, utterly dwarfing the other vultures and hawks. 

California Condor 602 is a male who hatched at the Los Angeles Zoo in 2011 and was released at Pinnacles in 2013.

Look for condors soaring above the ridge just south of the park visitor center, but keep an eye out for them throughout the rest of park as well.  We saw seven or eight individuals over the course of the day, and were rewarded for our efforts when we reached Bear Gulch Reservoir by the sight of a pair of these incredible birds soaring together high above the peaks.  It was a special experience to sit quietly in the shade of a boulder, watching the condors as they soared effortlessly across the sky and contemplating the herculean efforts of the last thirty years that have come together to make that sight possible.

Bear Gulch Reservoir

For more on the inspiring and altogether wild story of condor conservation, stay tuned!!  I will have much more to say about that very soon!