Lawrence’s Goldfinch, erratic but regularly encountered. Photo: Chris Wood
Southern and central California hosts a superb variety of habitats: from rough rocky shores, wild sandy beaches and bird-rich coastal wetlands to sage scrub, grasslands and moist wooded canyons, low-elevation and high-elevation deserts and oases, cool mountain forests of pine and fir, rich offshore waters and an inland sea. This tour will visit all these habitats at the most beautiful time of year, when the hillsides and valleys are green and the wildflowers are spectacular, and near the height of spring migration, when both migrant and resident species are numerous and singing.
We should see over 250 avian species along with a number of marine mammals.
Day 1: The tour begins at 6 p.m. in Los Angeles. Night in Los Angeles.
Day 2: We’ll travel south along the coast through Orange County to San Diego, sampling the bird-rich coastal wetlands and sage scrub. At Bolsa Chica we’ll find huge concentrations of herons, shorebirds, gulls, terns and lingering waterfowl, including “Black” Brant, Heermann’s Gull, Elegant Tern, “Belding’s” Savannah Sparrow and possibly wintering Pacific Golden-Plover. Several parks act as oases for both migrant passerines and breeders including Allen’s Hummingbird. The sage-covered slopes support such California specialties as Wrentit, California Thrasher and the endangered California Gnatcatcher. Night in San Diego.
Day 3: In the San Diego region, famous for its abundance of birdlife, we’ll see many lingering wintering species, permanent residents and spring migrants. The striking rocky coastline at La Jolla and Point Loma is frequented by Brandt’s and Pelagic Cormorants, Wandering Tattler and Black Turnstone. Black-vented Shearwaters may be just offshore, and bays and mudflats are awash with other waterbirds such as Western and Clark’s Grebes, Cinnamon Teal, American Avocet, Long-billed Curlew and Black Skimmer. Point Loma acts as a migrant trap for passerines, including Rufous and possibly Calliope Hummingbirds. Nearby canyons and streams host White-tailed Kite, Bell’s Vireo, Lazuli Bunting and Hooded Oriole. Night in San Diego.
Day 4: Early this morning we’ll drive east into the mountains, stopping to search for Mountain Quail, Gray Vireo and Rufous-crowned and Black-chinned Sparrows, and then descend to below sea level at the Salton Sea. We’ll spend much of the day around the south end of the Salton Sea, a huge desert lake created when the Colorado River was diverted in 1906 and overflowed into the Imperial Valley for two years. The irrigated agricultural lands, lakes and the sea itself support thousands of birds including American White Pelican, White-faced Ibis, Gull-billed Tern and Yellow-headed Blackbird, and we may even see a lingering Ross’s Goose. In the fringing desert scrub we should find Gambel’s Quail, Greater Roadrunner, Burrowing Owl and Abert’s Towhee. The town of Brawley can be excellent for spring passerine migrants, White-winged Dove, Costa’s Hummingbird, and Gila Woodpecker. We’ll hope to see Yellow-footed Gull, although it can be difficult to find at this time of year. An evening outing at Finney Lake and Brawley should produce Lesser Nighthawk and Western Screech-Owl. Night in Brawley.
Day 5: After a final morning of birding around Salton Sea, we’ll drive north into the cool San Jacinto Mountains, stopping along the way to look for Pinyon Jay. Clothed in forests of pine, fir and oak, the high San Jacinto Mountains tower over the desert region near Palm Springs and support sought-after species such as White-headed Woodpecker, Band-tailed Pigeon, Mountain Chickadee, Pygmy Nuthatch and Western Bluebird. Night in Idyllwild.
Day 6: We’ll continue north to the Mojave Desert, with its open “forests” of Joshua tree and yucca and expanses of saltbush and creosote. At the famous Mojave Desert oases of California City and Galileo Hill, we’ll search for Lawrence’s Goldfinch and migrants such as Hammond’s Flycatcher, Black-headed Grosbeak and Lazuli Bunting. The desert scrub here hosts Le Conte’s Thrasher, Rock Wren and Sage, Black-throated and Brewer’s Sparrows. Night in Mojave.
Day 7: Butterbredt Springs is a superb migrant trap, and an early morning visit may produce hundreds of transients including Gray Flycatcher and Black-throated Gray and MacGillivray’s Warblers. Chukars are possible and this is a very good places to see Mountain Quail. In the afternoon we’ll drive west through the southern San Joaquin Valley and the interior valleys of Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo Counties. The scenery will become greener and greener as desert turns to grassland and then to classic California oak savanna, which should be a spectacular green and dotted with the expansive blues and oranges of lupines and poppies. Birds of this open country include the endemic Yellow-billed Magpie, California Quail, Lark Sparrow, Tricolored Blackbird, possibly a lingering Lewis’s Woodpecker and Lawrence’s Goldfinch. Night in Morro Bay.
Day 8: Reminiscent of Big Sur, the coastline at Morro Bay is some of the most beautiful anywhere: wild, sandy beaches and miles of rocky shoreline pounded by Pacific surf. The estuary here is exceedingly rich with extensive tidal mudflats. The coast is frequented by large numbers of migrant Pacific Loons and Surf Scoters—thousands may be seen in a single day—as well as Black Oystercatcher, Surfbird, Pigeon Guillemot and lingering Glaucous-winged Gulls. Sea Otters are numerous and close to shore. Imposing Morro Rock is home to nesting Peregrine Falcon, White-throated Swift and Canyon Wren, and nearby canyons support Band-tailed Pigeon, Nuttall’s Woodpecker, Hutton’s Vireo, Chestnut-backed Chickadee and possibly Northern Pygmy-Owl.
We’ll take a half-day boat trip out into Morro Bay, looking for Pink-footed and Sooty Shearwaters, Red and Red-necked Phalaropes, Pomarine and Parasitic Jaegers, Common Murre, Cassin’s and Rhinoceros Auklets and possibly Black-footed Albatross and Northern Fulmar. Marine mammals will be plentiful and may include Risso’s, Pacific White-sided and Common Dolphins. In the early evening we’ll search for Common Poorwill. Night in Morro Bay.
Day 9: After a final morning in the Morro Bay area we’ll drive south via the splendid Santa Ynez Valley toward Santa Barbara. This charming small city, nestled between the coastal Transverse Ranges and the ocean, is famous for its Spanish architecture, excellent restaurants and fine birding. Cool shaded canyons of sycamore, bay, alder and oak support several species of hummingbirds, Pacific-slope Flycatcher, Cassin’s Vireo, Western Scrub-Jay, Yellow-billed Magpie, and Oak Titmouse. An active local contingent of birders may provide us with a surprise or two. Night in Santa Barbara.
Day 10: A short drive to Ventura and the Island Packer’s dock will put us on a boat across the Santa Barbara Channel to Santa Cruz Island. Peak numbers of loons, Brant and scoters will be moving off the coast and pelagic species should include the sought-after Xantus’s Murrelet, as well as several other species of alcids. A few late Gray Whales may be migrating north through the channel as well. Santa Cruz is the largest of the Channel Islands, and in the oak- and eucalyptus-dotted canyons we’ll search for the endemic Island Scrub-Jay. Rocky cliffs and sea caves support nesting oystercatchers and guillemots as well as California Sea Lions and Harbor Seals. Night in Santa Barbara.
Day 11: After a final morning in the Santa Barbara region we’ll drive south through Ventura County searching for Snowy Plover, Cassin’s Kingbird, Grasshopper Sparrow and any expected species we may still be missing. We’ll finish by looking for Spotted Doves in suburban Los Angeles. Night in Los Angeles.
Day 12: The tour concludes this morning in Los Angeles.
Updated: 05 June 2006
Prices
- 2008 price about $3,670
- Single Occupancy Supplement $640
Notes
This trip is limited to seven participants and one leader; 14 and two leaders.