Field Trip Report

Edgewood Park, San Mateo
June 12, 2011 8:00 AM - 12:00 PM

Fourteen of us hiked on a sunny day. In addition to the birds we enjoyed several species of wild flowers and flowering shrubs. At one point Susan P. had us gather in the shade of an oak tree on the lower Ridgeview Loop Trail while she talked about the reintroduction program for the extirpated Bay Checkerspot Butterfly. After standing still for about five minutes the group heard a rustling in the grass just a few feet down slope from the trail. We watched the three foot long snake move under a bush about ten feet away and wrap himself around it, facing us. We could see the dark skin and rings around the body. The head seemed triangular, but no one got a good look at the tip of the tail. Many of us believed it to be a rattlesnake. After the hike we visited the new Education Center.

California Quail 2
Turkey Vulture 2
Northern Harrier 2- two separate male sightings
Cooper's Hawk 1
Red-shouldered Hawk 1
Red-tailed Hawk 2
Anna's Hummingbird 6
Nuttall's Woodpecker 1
Pacific-slope Flycatcher 2- two heard only
Black Phoebe 1
Hutton's Vireo 4
Steller's Jay 4
Western Scrub-Jay 6
Common Raven 2
Chestnut-backed Chickadee 10- one adult seen feeding one juvenile
Oak Titmouse 6
Bushtit 5
Bewick's Wren 6
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 4
Wrentit 4 heard only
Western Bluebird 2
Orange-crowned Warbler 2- 2 separate birds
Spotted Towhee 10
California Towhee 6- 2 adults feeding 2 chicks in nest
Dark-eyed Junco 20
Black-headed Grosbeak 1
Purple Finch 1- heard only
House Finch 2
Lesser Goldfinch 10

29 species

This report was generated automatically by eBird v2 (http://ebird.org)

— Sue Cossins, Martha O’Neal and Susan Peterson