One of California’s many near-endemics, a male Tricolored Blackbird reveals his trademark white wingbar. Photo: Paul Lehman
The Kern River Valley has long been known as the best remaining expanse of riparian habitat in the entire state of California. Large populations of riparian breeding birds can be found here as well as several endangered and threatened species and subspecies, such as the Yellow-billed Cuckoo and the “Southwestern” Willow Flycatcher. Many species that can be local and scarce statewide, such as Lawrence’s Goldfinch, are usually numerous here, and two species (Brown-crested Flycatcher and Summer Tanager) have breeding populations that are well isolated from the nearest other populations far to the east. In addition to the riparian habitats, the oak woodlands and chaparral of the surrounding foothills have a number of species that are nearly unique to California. A short distance to the east lies the Mojave Desert, with an entirely different set of birds, and to the north is the great Sierra Nevada, one of the most spectacular ranges in North America and home to a wide variety of microhabitats. Based in Kernville for all six nights, we’ll have ample time to explore all these habitats.
Beyond seeing a large number of species from a wide spectrum of habitats, this tour offers an excellent introduction to the Sierra Nevada and the Kern Basin. There will be at least one slide session about the Sierra, highlighting the dramatic differences between the eastern and western sides. We will also have the opportunity to review slides in the evening of some of the more difficult groups of birds, such as the notorious Empidonax flycatchers and the Carpodacus finches (House, Purple, and Cassin’s). Our emphasis will be on the species we will have seen in the field.
Day 1: The tour begins at 3:00 p.m. at the Bakersfield airport. The drive to Kernville takes about an hour and a half, but we will stop along the Kern River to search for such species as Black Phoebe, American Dipper and Rufous-crowned Sparrow. Night in Kernville.
Day 2: We’ll spend the entire morning exploring the South Fork of the Kern River. The largest remaining population of Yellow-billed Cuckoo in California is found in the extensive mature stands of riparian woodland here, and we hope to hear and see it. Isolated populations of Brown-crested Flycatcher and Summer Tanager, and the largest population of the federally endangered southwestern subspecies of Willow Flycatcher (Empidonax traillii extimus), occur here as well. Other riparian species such as Nuttall’s Woodpecker, Yellow Warbler and Lazuli Bunting are numerous, and there are often good numbers of the dramatically marked Lawrence’s Goldfinch. In the marshes and more open areas we’ll search for Tricolored Blackbird and the endemic subspecies (A. p. aciculatus) of Red-winged Blackbird. After an afternoon rest and an early dinner we’ll venture into the Greenhorn Mountains for some late afternoon and evening birding. Among the dusk/evening species we hope to see or hear are Flammulated and possibly Spotted and Northern Saw-whet Owls and Common Poorwill. Night in Kernville.
Day 3: This morning we’ll rise early and head north up the North Fork of the Kern River. We’ll scan the skies for Black Swifts as they travel down the canyon shortly after dawn from the waterfalls where they breed to their feeding areas, which can be many dozens of miles away. Other aerial species we should encounter include White-throated Swift and Violet-green Swallow and there is a chance for Vaux’s Swift. Continuing north we’ll enter the lush Greenhorn Mountains. This area, at the southwest end of the Sierra, gets more precipitation than the eastern side, and the woodland is denser. Species we might see here include White-headed and Pileated Woodpeckers, Red-breasted Sapsucker, Pacific-slope, Dusky and Hammond’s Flycatchers, Cassin’s Vireo, Hermit Thrush, Nashville (western ridgwayi subspecies), Hermit and MacGillivray’s Warblers, Green-tailed Towhee and the distinctive “Thick-billed” Fox Sparrow. We’ll also watch carefully for the secretive but strikingly marked Mountain Quail, and there is at least a chance of encountering the always elusive Northern Goshawk. This evening we’ll search for Barn Owls emerging from their roosting trees, and there is a possibility of finding Western Screech-Owl. Night in Kernville.
Day 4: This morning we’ll head east over Walker Pass to the Mojave Desert. Species we’ll search for here include Costa’s Hummingbird, Verdin and Le Conte’s Thrasher, and we have at least a decent chance of encountering a Prairie Falcon along the way. Later we’ll drive up the steep east crest of the Sierra and search in the Joshua Trees for Cactus Wren, Black-throated Sparrow and Scott’s Oriole. Small numbers of introduced Chukar are also found here. Cresting the east face we’ll drop down to Chimney Creek Campground, an area of mixed pine and dry oak woodland. Here we’ll search for a mix of species, from chaparral-loving Wrentits from the west to Plumbeous Vireos and Gray Flycatchers, species normally associated with the Great Basin. In the summer of 2004 there was even a territorial Grace’s Warbler. White-breasted Nuthatches of two subspecies (aculeata from the west and tenuissima from the east) occur here, the only location we have found these two distinctive-sounding types together. They may represent cryptically marked species, and the eastern birds may represent a third species. Other target birds here include Western Wood-Pewee, Pinyon Jay, Western Tanager and Spotted Towhee. In the nearby areas of sage we might find Brewer’s and Sage Sparrows. Night in Kernville.
Day 5: This morning we’ll drive up the eastern Sierra, watching for Pinyon Jays on the more arid eastern side. Our first major stop will be Troy Meadows, where we’ll search for higher-elevation species such as Calliope Hummingbird, Williamson’s Sapsucker, Clark’s Nutcracker, Pygmy and Red-breasted Nuthatches and the strikingly marked montane subspecies (oriantha), a summer breeder that winters in western Mexico. On our return we’ll stop at Bald Mountain, which at 9383 feet offers a commanding view (weather permitting) of the entire southern Sierra region from Mount Whitney to the east, the highest peak in the Lower 48, to the Piute Mountains far to the south. Violet-green Swallows will be numerous overhead. In the trees on the slopes we might find White-headed Woodpecker, Brown Creeper and Cassin’s Finch, and we have an excellent chance of seeing Blue Grouse, the males of which in the Pacific states call from tall conifers rather than the ground as in the Rockies subspecies. Their low but loud series of booming notes is distinctly different from the softer double-hooted notes of the Rockies birds. The birds here probably represent a distinct species. Night in Kernville.
Day 6: This is a flexible day. Depending on what birds we have not yet seen, we may venture back to the Greenhorn Mountains to the north or the higher Sierra to the northeast, or even bird the riparian areas closer to Kernville. We may have a chance to do a bit of birding around Bakersfield, where there are small introduced populations of Spotted Doves and Rose-ringed Parakeets. Night in Bakersfield.
Day 7: The tour will conclude this morning in Bakersfield.
Updated: 22 July 2008
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Notes
This tour is limited to seven participants with one leader.