Famosa Slough in late January

With the cold weather, other than my daily walk and exercise, my ventures have been limited.  I certainly hibernated during last week's rains.  I don't like heavy rain.  In fact, I don't like rain at all.  With the rains gone on Sunday, I took a walk to the Famosa Slough, a wetland in San Diego.  While it was quiet, there were a number of birds just hanging out, so to speak.

In the picture shown above, American Avocets look stately as they cruise along.  As you can see, the heads of some of the birds show that breeding season is near.  Their winter plumage changes to a pinkish tan color.  Both male and female take turns incubating the eggs.  The American Avocet is a beautiful bird.

Below are two pictures of a juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron.  I published a picture the first time I saw a juvenile, in a post in July.  (http://bicoastalgrandma.blogspot.com/2012/07/bird-watching.html)  The juvenile shown below was in the exact same spot as I found him in July.  However, if it is the same bird, he now has white spots on his back.  I took these picture from two different positions through a chain link fence about five feet from where he was perched.  Other than occasionally looking around, he never flinched at the click of the shutter.

Juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron

Juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron

The Mallards came near.  The Northern Pintail looks regal, at least, in my opinion.  When they're foraging for food, all you see is their bottoms with the long pintail sticking up in the air.  It is a curious sight.  The center picture shows an American Wigeon on the edge of the island in the middle of the property.  There were also some Killdeer on the same island, but my camera range was not sufficient. If the Kildeer is facing you, it looks like the bird is wearing a turtle-neck sweater due to black stripes across its breast.  If a predator is near, the Kildeer will feign a broken wing to lure the predator away from the nest.  It is a cute bird.

Mallards

Northern Pintail

American Wigeon

As I was preparing to leave the Slough, I spotted another bird.  It flew from bush to bush about 20 feet away.  I took some pictures and then, later last night, (since I'm so new at this) compared them to bird pictures on the Internet.  Then I verified it with a birding expert.  The bird shown below is a Say's Phoebe, a flycatcher.  It winters in California, but it was the first time I'd seen it.

 

Please feel free to share a comment

Check out my other photos

Nutribullet Superfood Nutrition Extractor (Google Affiliate Ad)

Transitions

Since I returned from my New York visit, I've been walking/jogging 3 miles a day, as well as occasionally walking up long hills in neighboring Ocean Beach.  The long hills are preparing me to reach the top of Mt Beacon in New York on my next visit.  To improve my daily diet, I've been using the Nutribullet since July of this year.  Although I always ate my vegetables and some fruit, I never had a great amount.  I was intrigued by the Nutribullet ads on TV, so I decided to try it.  I'm providing a link to the Nutribullet because I believe so much in this product.   Every day now, I have a drink made with fresh veggies, such as kale, spinach, and/or carrots, as well as fresh or frozen strawberries, blueberries, or cherries, and 1/2 a banana.  To this I add almonds, walnuts and flax seeds.  I use a 24 oz container supplied with the Nutribullet, varying the fruits.  I think it's great.   Nutribullet Superfood Nutrition Extractor (Google Affiliate Ad) 

On one of my recent walks, I noticed some fresh green blossoms dropping from some of the trees I pass on my daily trek.   At first, I thought that some small birds were causing them to drop.  At any rate, the falling of these blossoms made me think of spring.  On another block, I have to do a hop, skip and a jump to avoid dried up leaves (of a different kind of tree) on the sidewalk.  Then, one day at my daughter's house, I noticed birds in nests previously populated by other birds all summer.  The original inhabitants had moved out after their babies were ready to leave the nest.  The silence was deafening.  Now the yard is again a harbor for song.  Possibly, the new birds have just migrated for the winter.  However, the changes in the trees got me wondering if this year, San Diego has such a good climate that it may have two spring seasons.  Some years, we have cold days with heavy rains between November and February.  Thankfully for me and my exercise, this is a pleasant winter.

On my recent walk to the Famosa Slough, there were some migrating ducks.  I was looking for a bird I had not seen before.  After looking at the "regulars" I was ready to leave the property.  Then, I spotted just such a bird.  After I took the photo, I left the property.   A computer search for the name of the bird got me nowhere, so I sent an e-mail to someone I believed could identify it.  He responded that it was a "Say's Phoebe."   Thanks, Ray.

Say's Phoebe

Please feel free to share a comment

Check out my other photos