No Ugly Ducklings

 

Pied-billed Grebe & Grebelet, Blue Heron Lake

So much sunshine in San Francisco this week. I'm feeling spoiled, and loving it. 

I've been surprised that I haven't seen the mallard hen with her ducklings at Mallard Lake since that first time more than two weeks ago. Today I spotted another hen with fewer ducklings at Metson Lake. The straight-line distance between the two lakes is around 730 feet, but I wouldn't be surprised if the hen and ducklings at the two different lakes were actually the same bunch. That there are only half as many now wouldn't surprise me either, especially after seeing a raccoon eat a duckling at Blue Heron Lake.

The first Nuttall's woodpecker I've seen in a while, here in a eucalyptus at the south end of the Oak Woodlands Trail.

When I got up near the Horseshoe Courts I wondered if the sunbathing red-tailed hawk would be in the same tree as last time -- and surprisingly, it was. 

The Steller's jay has a sundial on its head. The sundial reads, "Amidst the flowers, I tell the hours." Interestingly, the picture was taken at 9:36 a.m. (DST), but the sundial read an hour later.

This was one of several Steller's jays in the area, which often seems to host a lot of them. Someone occasionally puts rice out for them on a log in the Fuchsia Dell, and there can be a dozen of them gathered around the bounty.

A pair of hawks tries to get some altitude over the Bison Paddock while being harassed by a raven.

The bison were out in the big field again, for the first time in a long time.

A robin landed near me as I was poking my camera lens through the fence to photograph the bison. I think we were both surprised by the close encounter. But instead of flying away, the robin fluttered over to the pokeberry bush.

There aren't a lot of berries left, but the robin was getting its share.

The ducklings are definitely bigger than the ones I saw a couple of weeks ago at Mallard Lake, which lends credence to the possibility that the ones now at Metson Lake are the same ones.

Pondside Iris

The hen got out of the water in a couple of places, but the ducklings stayed afloat to keep nibbling algae. Eventually, mama gave up trying to get some rest and returned to the water to follow her brood.

The grebelets were out of their nest again today, with one of the adults staying close while the other was out hunting.

With a few contortions I was able to get a view through holes in the foliage a couple of times.

Begging for Food

The other adult was swimming briskly toward the nest with what I thought might be a crayfish to feed the youngsters, but it turned out to just be a branch. I did see a new, second nest near the first one, and I wonder what's up with that. Are they going to have another brood?

At first I thought this was one of the adults, but I'm pretty sure it's one of the nestlings. This one watched with apparent interest as an adult flew by between the nest and Strawberry Hill. It can't be long now before they make their first flight.

The Big Bear eagles are said to be close to making their first flights as well. A tiny white-breasted nuthatch landed on the edge of the nest while I was watching, but quickly flew away when the eaglet on the right raised its head to look at it.

* * *

Field, Forest, Seashore & Pond

 

Western Gull Hunting Below Cliff House

I didn't think I was going to post anything today since it was so ordinary, with the lone exception being the sighting of a female violet-green swallow gathering nest material. My only other post with a violet-green swallow (a male) is from last year's trip to see long-tailed weasels. Anyway, today's birds frequent fields (the swallow), forests (the woodpecker), the seashore (gull, pelicans, oystercatchers), and a pond (grebes).

Violet-green Swallow, Golden Gate Heights Park

The swallow would zip through the air in an arc across the street, then land and seem to peck at something on the ground, then take off again and repeat the whole round. I finally got my camera out and managed to get this one shot where it picked up a bit of cut grass, presumably for its nest. I waited a while to see if she would come back for more to no avail.

Hairy Woodpecker, GGH Park

The main gathering of brown pelicans today was out at the farthest offshore of the Seal Rocks.

This second-year Western gull was industriously working the shoreline below the Cliff House, at one point (before I got my camera out) nabbing something stringy, wiggly, silvery-clear, and about five inches long. 

Here's another highly-cropped view of the black oystercatcher with two eggs.

An uncropped view.

The nest was empty when I first checked it out. The grebelets were floating at the edge of the willows, sweetly cheeping. Only when mama returned and climbed aboard the nest did the two chicks also return.

I don't think any feeding happened before mama jumped back in the water and swam away.

* * *

Paired Hawks

 

Red-shouldered Hawk Near North Lake

I saw two more pairs of hawks sort of hanging out together today, just a day after catching Bando and a pal perched on the same streetlight down by the beach. One pair was red-tails near Elk Glen Lake. The other was a pair of red-shouldered hawks near North Lake. Although Bando and pal appeared to be different ages, I couldn't say the same for the two pairs I saw today.

A day after the rain, a slime mold (Fuligo septica) sees its chance to sporulate in mulch beneath a pine tree on the Sunset Parkway.

Limb-dancing Red-tail

Skulking Red-tail

Ruffled Red-tail

Red-shouldered Hawk

Red-shouldered Hawk Leaping to a New Perch

Yesterday it was all whimbrels down on the beach, where today I saw none. This willet was all by itself below the Cliff House.

A lone wandering tattler was hunting on the beach between waves.

This is super-cropped, but you can just make out a couple of stone-colored black oystercatcher eggs on its cliffside "nest" on Seal Rocks.

Mating Pair of Black Oystercatchers

This is the one that was off the nest in the previous shot. It briefly poked around for a bite to eat near shore, then flew back and replaced the other bird on the nest.

Video clips of wandering tattler and black oystercatcher.

After seeing great blue herons hunting almost every day for a recent, brief period of time, it's now been quite a while since I've seen one. Their youngsters must be hungrier than ever, yet the adults appear to have become more secretive about hunting.

A red-shouldered hawk feather was on the ground at Blue Heron Lake.

* * *

Lively Lake

 

Raccoon ("Sally") in Blue Heron Lake

Blue Heron Lake is in a class by itself as far as lakes in Golden Gate Park go. Other lakes come close in some regards, and in some seasons, but they are often kind of sleepy, whereas you can always count on some kind of activity going on at Blue Heron Lake. 

The pair of raccoons I call Burt & Sally were making their rounds today, turning up just as I was about to head home for lunch. Sally caught a crayfish, and Burt caught what I suspect was a baby bird, maybe a duckling. At one point, Burt ambled right into the feet of a guy reading his newspaper on a bench; the guy casually flicked his foot to get the raccoon to move on. 

The two pied-billed grebelets were sitting in their nest while mom did her own thing nearby. Several great blue heron not-so-little ones were patiently waiting in their giant nest for ma and pa to return with lunch.

It turned out to be a pretty nice day after the morning rain. San Francisco picked up 0.15 inches officially, but it seemed like we got more than that in our neighborhood, where a fairly steady light rain suddenly came down in buckets for a minute or so.

The 33-year-old American-flagged RJ Pfeiffer container ship was heading to the Port of Oakland this morning. I wondered if its cargo was American-made goods not subject to the steep tariffs that have been slowing international trade (at least until this weekend's big announcement regarding tariff reductions with China).

Bando and Pal hanging out together while overlooking Sutro Dunes (aka Balboa Natural Area). I stopped to photograph a half-dozen or so turkey vultures that were circling above Sutro Heights (along with the usual ravens and gulls), but they drifted out of sight before I could get my camera out.

The two hatched grebelets still have the nest to themselves.

Mama hangs out close by.

The two grebelets seem to think mom is going to feed them.

Unfortunately, she appears to be doing a little housekeeping on the nest instead.

Burt tours a patch of English daisies.

Raccoon & Iris Patch

After bumping into the feet of a guy sitting at the bench, Burt sidles along the path toward a pair of mallards who are about to jump in the lake, taking no chances with the raccoon.

Sally munches a crayfish (whose reddish claw you can just make out in her paws).

Can't resist trying to get a shot of them near their sign.

Big Nest with Big Babies

Burt pulled something out from under a big log. A couple of us onlookers thought it might be a root or something until we saw its stringy guts being stretched out.

Sally came to check out what Burt was eating, but it was too late.

Back to the hunt.

A brief timelapse of clearing weather this afternoon.

Mt. Shasta Sunrise Yesterday

And then a little later in the morning.

* * *