Victoria Park, Costa Mesa

Western Bluebird

Victoria Park is a pocket sized park above the Santa Anna River, it has facilities, benches annd shade trees as well as a broad view of the nature reserves along the river, so is a popular starting point for bike rides or runs along the riverside tracks. It also has car parking alongside and a short circular path around the perimeter - perfect for Winston who is ready to nap after one circuit.

There were two nest boxes hanging from the trees in the park, with young in one almost ready to leave the nest. Western Bluebirds have been found to enjoy more success with nest boxes than in natural cavities. They started egg laying earlier, had higher nesting success, lower predation rates, and fledged more young in boxes than in cavities.

A number of large flowering trees attracted hummingbirds and a hooded oriole, but they were too high in the canopy for successful photos. A black phoebe flittered around the picnic tables - reminiscent of the willie wagtails back home.

Fairview Park, Costa Mesa

Last weekend Peter and I bicycled along the Santa Anna River, and we came across an area of lush grass and big shady trees. It seemed to be a perfect spot to read a book and let Winston amble around in the way that passes for exercise for him - but his British Bulldog physique ruled out biking, so yesterday I went looking for car access. Unfortunately car access took us to the top of the bluff, with the shady park at the base. Winston may have made it down, but never up again.

Lots of hummingbirds and house finches, california towhees, black phoebes and say's phoebes, and four Cooper's Hawks - a family group.

San Joaquin Wildlife Sanctuary

San Joaquin is close to Mason Park so I stopped in on my way back and had a look at the first pond near the carpark. There were shovellers on the far side, house finches in the shrubs, quite a few starlings, hummers in the sage garden and several avocet babies. American Avocet chicks leave the nest within 24 hours after hatching. Day-old avocets can walk, swim, and even dive to escape predators. These little guys were foraging quite independently of any adult birds.

Mason Park, Irvine

Bushtit

Very cute birds, they are highly social, and are found in flocks of around forty birds. Adding to the cuteness factor, when they fly from shrub to shrub they do so in a line. They commonly use suburban areas and city parks for foraging and nesting. Tiny, and hanging out in dense shrubs, they are not easy photo subjects.

Mason Regional Park

Western Bluebird

I've been wanting to see a Bluebird, and came across my first at William R. Mason Regional Park, or as it is more commonly referred to, Mason Park, just up the road in Irvine. Mason Park has two distinct parts. The east side is a wilderness area with a small creek and climbs the northern edge of the San Joaquin Hills. The west side of Mason Park is lawns, paved paths and cultivated trees and shrubs.  An artificial lake occupies the center of the park.

A brief wander around the landscaped area was rewarded by photos of a number of birds, from an Egyptian Goose to a family of Bushtits and a Snowy Egret. Look forward to a return visit and a scramble through the wilderness area.

San Joaquin Wildlife Sanctuary

Before about the mid-1800s westward expansion, wetlands were common in California, with apparently a very large lake extending from Bakersfield to Sacramento. Over the years these wetlands were drained to provide farming land, and the Californian bird population was reduced by around 95%.

The San Joaquin Wildlife Sanctuary has gone full circle. Once a wetland whose water was diverted and drained for farming, farming declined in the early 1970’s, and the owner, the Irvine Company, leased portions of the property to some duck clubs who built ponds and levees. The Duck Clubs imported water to fill the ponds to attract ducks, but the duck numbers eventually declined (quelle surprise). The Clubs' lease over the area was not renewed, but this shut down the source of water, leaving lots of birds at risk of losing their habitat or migration stopover.

Peer Swan, then President of the Irvine Ranch Water District, facilitated an arrangement between the Water District, the City of Irvine, and the Audubon Society to restore and preserve the wetlands and the pond system, to create a haven for birds and a source of information and recreation for residents and visitors.

Bird list

Upper Newport Bay, California

"A skulking masked warbler of wet thickets, the Common Yellowthroat is far more frequently heard than seen." - so I was rather pleased that my skulking was rewarded by some ok images.

Interesting fact: Males are apparently monogamous within a breeding season,  however females show no fidelity to their mates and often attract other males with their calls.