Last week, we ventured out to Riverfront Regional Park only to find it still closed from the recent flooding. Our next stop, Shiloh Ranch Regional Park, was also closed due to recent storm activity. Taking this as a good prompt to explore somewhere new, we visited Foothill Regional Park in Windsor, California – a 200+ acre park featuring rolling oak woodlands and three ponds.
Though the ponds weren’t home to many birds, they provided a tranquil setting for the mild afternoon.
These Mallard drakes were attached at the hip for 15 minutes as we sat pondside. Then, a female flew in, prompting one of the males to instantly shoot up from the water in pursuit.
Perched atop a leafless oak tree, this beautiful Merlin sat for half an hour, occasionally stretching its wings and fanning its tail. To observe and study a Merlin for such a long time was a thrill.
Three Lakes Trail provided a peaceful stroll through oaks and manzanitas.
Dark-eyed Juncos were out in force – we encountered several large flocks throughout the park.
We’ve noticed that in late winter/early spring, some birds begin producing odd variations of their songs. Take a listen to this interesting junco vocalization. Could this be a first-year male developing his tune?
This junco pretended it was a nuthatch and hung out on this tree-trunk for a spell.
Just past Pond C the trail opened up a bit, and we encountered a lively mixed flock of sparrows, finches, nuthatches and titmice, including this Purple Finch singing from a treetop. We love this fast, warbling, spin-cycle of a song. We think the Purple Finch is also making the short, musical, two-note call, but we aren’t familiar with that sound. You can also hear an Anna’s Hummingbird, Oak Titmouse, and Acorn Woodpecker.
We call this one: Bird On Branch.
We call this one: Bird About To Not Be On Branch.
Okay, we had no idea just how masterful a Lesser Goldfinch’s mimicry skills are. Listen to this incredible song – we think we can make out quick snippets of a Black Phoebe (exactly at 0:01), Pacific-slope Flycatcher (just before 0:04), American Robin (0:07 – 0:08), Northern Flicker (right at 0:10), House Finch (just before 0:21), American Goldfinch (between 0:24 and 0:25), Yellow-rumped Warbler (exact midpoint between 0:30 and 0:31), and White-breasted Nuthatch (just before 0:34). Do you hear anything else? Very impressive!!!
Because the Say’s Phoebe is such a dignified bird, we figured it deserved a set of haikus.
Subtle Say’s Phoebe
Need not flaunt and need not shout
Perfect as you came
Orange and gray fluff
Say, you are a phoebe too
Why must you leave soon?
On the return walk, a flash of white in the woodlands caught our eye. We tracked it through the bramble until out popped a… wait… a squirrel?!?!
It’s hard to see in the photo, but the squirrel had red eyes, indicating albinism! We found a website researching the phenomenon of white squirrels across the States. Apparently, most white squirrels are Eastern Gray Squirrels and are quite rare, especially out west. Has anyone else seen a white squirrel or know anything about them?
This Oak Titmouse sat nicely for a portrait. Look at how long its claws are!
Listen to this less-common song type from an Oak Titmouse. In the background, you can also hear a Dark-eyed Junco singing for the first 13 seconds, and a Hutton’s Vireo singing quietly throughout.
When we first arrived at Foothill, we noticed this female Anna’s Hummingbird sitting in her nest just above our parked car. When we returned to the car, she was adding nesting material. Anna’s sometimes lay eggs before construction of the nest is complete, so she may have already had some in there!
Another great day birding Sonoma County and exploring a new-to-us Regional Park!
Hummingbird on nest, Oak Titmouse, the Merlin fanning its tail–wonderful photos.
Thanks, JJ! We love seeing hummer nests – they’re so darn tiny! And thanks for always reading! We love hearing from you!!! 🙂 🙂
Lovely photos and it’s great to be able to hear some of the sounds too!
Also, awesome white squirrel!
Hi Emma, thanks for writing – glad you enjoyed the bird sounds! Your blog is great, and we just subscribed! It’s so fun to see birds from your area of the world, and now we’re going to look up and listen to some of their vocalizations! 🙂 -Teresa & Miles
I am totally impressed with your adventures and recordings. Much better than trying to read a field guide book.
Hi John, good to hear from you! Boy, thanks for the nice compliment – it made us both smile really big 🙂 🙂
Great to hear from you two. I was really concerned about you and the River!
Aww thanks! Thankfully, we’re above the flood zone, so we were fine. Our town and greater river community are in a difficult state though 🙁
Hi, found your blog by googling white squirrels in Sonoma County. I saw one at Foothill Park today getting a drink of water from the center pond. Unfortunately, I wasn’t close enough to see it’s eyes so I’m so glad you did and have a picture. It was quite beautiful and quite a treat to see. Several years ago, I saw one in roughly the same vicinity.
You are very observant and have terrific pictures, thanks so much!
Diana Penn
Oooh, excellent – thanks for letting us know you saw the albino squirrel, too!! That’s great it’s been around for several years now (assuming it’s the same one). We’d never seen one like that, so it was quite the surprise to us – and definitely a treat! Thanks for the kind words and for saying hello, Diana =)
I spotted the squirrel this morning! 05/31/2019
That’s so cool, thanks for the update! We’ve wondered if being white makes it stand out to potential predators, but it seems to be surviving just fine!!