City Life

 

Calypte & Echium

I was about to leave the park at Lincoln Way and 5th Avenue this morning when I spotted a hummingbird perched on a thin, twiggy tree stem poised above a patch of blue Pride of Madeira flowers. About 15 or 20 yards from the mayhem of 4,000-pound vehicles traveling 44 feet per second (30 mph), this Anna's hummingbird, weighing in at an impressive two-tenths of an ounce, was going about her business.

Life in the city.

Motor vehicles are around 150,000 times heavier than hummingbirds on average (according to Microsoft Copilot). For a comparison, a 170-pound person would have to be next to a highway of vehicles weighing 25.5 million pounds, or about 64 times the weight of a freight train locomotive. And you'd need a constant stream of them.

The sad fact is, we'd probably get used to it just like the hummers do. 

After you get used to something, you take it for granted and hardly notice it's there anymore. For some people, their whole lives are like that, and it makes them bored and then depressed, wondering what's the point of knocking yourself out. From just a slightly different viewpoint, though, everything can be seen as novel and amazing. Everything is a doorway to having our minds blown, in a "Zen mind, beginner's mind" way.

Female Northern Flicker, Oak Woodlands

The female was digging like mad in the dirt, and I was wondering when she was going to finally pop up with something in her beak, when this male swooped down and scared her away.

I was used to people spooking the flickers when I'd try to photograph them along the path, but I was surprised to be well off the path this morning and enjoying undisturbed views of the birds, when other people started to mosey through. And then (city life again), a guy who'd taken a leak started doing something else, and I knew it was time to get out of there. I know there are gay hookup places here and there, but I hope this morning's scene in the Oak Woodlands was a one-off.

Foxgloves & Forget-Me-Nots

I heard a little bit of tapping near the foxgloves and soon spotted this little female downy woodpecker.

The male was in the same tree, but higher up. They both moved so quickly that I only got these two semi-acceptable shots before they relocated to another nearby tree that was much taller, which put them out of range.

As this noisy red-shouldered hawk swooped into the tree, the other noisy hawk that was already in it, flew away with a beak full of nesting material.

It kindly moved to a new branch with better light.

This is the same hummer as at the top of the post. She only got into this favorable plane of focus in two of the frames as she circled the inflorescence to feed on its nectar.

I decided to check out the Sutro Dunes/Balboa Natural Area again today, and just as I arrived, this red-tailed hawk (not Bando) winged up from the ground with an unidentified small prey item in its talons, which it made quick work of. Here it's scratching an itch.

I thought it was flying away for good, but it landed on another nearby pole.

'Lectro Hawk

The waves were even a bit bigger today, but the wind wasn't as strong. About the same handful of brown pelicans was roosting on Seal Rocks.

The South Lake GBH didn't fly away this time, evidently in a more mellow mood.

I stopped at my usual GBH nest-viewing spot at Blue Heron Lake and was surprised when an almost comical-looking unknown wading bird (an adult green heron?) suddenly fluttered away. Before turning my gaze upward to the GBH nests, I hadn't even thought to look for anything so close to shore. I surveyed my side of the lake to see if the bird had landed close by and instead found this pied-billed grebe apparently on her floating nest of leaves. Another grebe, presumably her mate, was nearby, just out of the frame to the left. I could tell I was making her nervous, so I departed, although I'd love to have seen the little grebe eggs in the nest.

Cloud Timelapse (Today)

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Waiting It Out

 

One of the Murphy Twins, Waiting Out the Wind

Had a dentist appointment this morning so only went out for a short bike ride. The threat of rain almost made me sit this one out, but I do like to experience a little inclement weather once in a while. Lucky for me, I was biking past the Blue Heron Lake boathouse when it started to rain, so I took cover under an awning there, where I was able to view the blue heron nests (which showed little activity). 

I was soon joined beneath the awning by a few other folks, but most people walking around paid the rain no mind. No rain jacket, no umbrella, no problem. I kinda love that. However, even a light rain can soak you fast while riding a bike, so I preferred to wait it out.

There are a few places in San Francisco where you can find paintbrush (Castilleja coccinea), but this was a new spot for me. This is the Balboa Natural Area, where the Say's phoebe used to hang out, although I haven't seen the phoebe here in weeks. (Although Google Maps names this place Balboa Natural Area, there is a park sign calling it Sutro Dunes.)

Pelican numbers were down again from their peak a couple of days ago, but a few are still hanging around. The shape of Seal Rocks makes it easy for birds to perch on the south-facing side, but unfortunately this is also the windward side today.

This is almost certainly one of the two red-tailed hawks who often perch on the nearby Murphy Windmill blades. A dense tree canopy blocks the wind on the perch above, and last June I saw both hawks occupying the perch at the same time.

I stopped at South Lake to check out this great blue heron, but the heron wasn't having any.

It took off right after I snapped the previous photo and flew to the other side of the lake. I followed, and when it saw me it took off again! When did these guys become so camera-shy? Must be something to do with nesting season.

These three amigos were lounging languidly in the shallows of South Lake.

Some short timelapse sequences from the past two days.

A little video of the red-tail.

View from the Cliff House today.

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Heron Gets A Fish

 

Catch of the Day at Blue Heron Lake

Despite yesterday's Google AI query that resulted in park staff denying there are fish in the lakes of Golden Gate Park, today's query ("Are there fish in Blue Heron Lake?") returned a list of the following names of fish in the lake: sunfish, bluegill, pumpkinseed, perch, bass, koi, pike, minnows, shad, carp, catfish, and muskellunge. 

If I had to guess what the great blue heron above caught, I'd say sunfish, but let me know if you know different. Click any photo to view it larger.

I'd been watching the heron for a while and was just about to pack up the camera and ride home when I saw it make a stab at something. I zoomed in to discover that it had caught a pretty good-sized fish. It took just under two-and-a-half minutes to go from catching it to swallowing it (according to timestamps on the photos).

View from the Aeonium Highlands
A highlight of the day's walk was a sound rather than an image. I heard my first-ever hermit thrush singing here in the city. It was in someone's back yard, and traffic noise on Pacheco Street almost drowned it out. Another highlight was finding the band-tailed pigeon nest (first seen on 2/11/25) empty, presumably after a successful fledging of chicks that I never got to see.

Heron on the Hunt

Passing Geese

The Long View

The fish struggled right up to the end.

The serrated beaks of great blue herons help them keep a strong grip on even a flailing fish.

After getting the fish aligned with its bill, the heron is finally ready to drop it down the hatch.

A fish becomes a heron.

Happy Heron

Mt. Shasta This Morning

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Return of the Pelicans

 

Brown Pelicans & Cormorants on Seal Rocks

I haven't worked up such a sweat on my morning walk in a long time. What a great day to be outside. I can't remember the last time I actually felt hot outside. Biking through the park on my way to the beach I even glided through a scent cloud of petrachor, courtesy of sprinklers showering hot pavement. That will all be gone by tomorrow as temperatures slide twenty degrees downhill with a small chance of rain.

I suspect the beautiful weather we've had the last two days has had little to do with bringing in the pelicans, but today they were back. I'd love to know where they've been and what brings them here now. Is the fishing getting better here, or just worse wherever they've been? Will they even still be here tomorrow? (Finally, a question I can answer -- tomorrow.) [UPDATE: There were about half as many pelicans the next day, and none putting up with the windy conditions at Top-o-the-Rock....]

Waning Crescent This Morning

I saw the tree-trimmers going to work on this tall cypress last week, but only realized last night that the plan was for the tree's total removal. I snapped the photo on the left when I started my walk this morning at about 8:30, and by the time I returned around 11, all that remained was the photo on the right. 

What's left the next morning. I gather they are removing a perfectly healthy tree because they're afraid the weather will knock it down, either into their own house or a neighbor's.

Female Anna's Hummingbird

This Allen's hummingbird was near Mallard Lake, but I hesitate to say it's Shady Allen since there are probably more than one of the species around by now. Years ago, another photographer showed me how to tell one bobcat from another by marks on their noses. I'd like to know the key for telling one hummer from another.

I think all that yellow in the background is some kind of acacia in bloom.

Here's a picture of the plant, Acacia longifolia, or Golden Wattle. Not to be confused with Swamp Wattle.

Mourning Dove Skulking Across a Log

Down by Elk Glen Lake there was this one random cherry tree gone wild, much like the one in the San Francisco Botanical Garden. Meanwhile, the small cherries near the Japanese Tea Garden have not yet flowered.

I was about to leave Elk Glen Lake when I spotted a great blue heron on the hunt and decided to stick around a while to watch. Some huge carp were flailing around, often near the heron's legs, but the heron paid them no mind. Too big to eat, no doubt. I wondered if the fish were spawning. Meanwhile, Google's AI bot has this to say: "While Golden Gate Park's lakes, like Stow Lake and the Chain of Lakes, are popular for recreation, there are no fish present in them, and fishing is prohibited," and, "The park management confirms that there are no fish in these lakes, making fishing a moot point." 

The red-winged blackbirds were having a field day today. This one came swooping out of some nearby tules to land on the log and get a drink. It seemed surprised to suddenly encounter a great blue heron and a human.

It hurried down to the edge for a quick sip of water but quickly lost its nerve and zipped back into the tules.

Great Blue Heron & Tule Reflections

Hard to say how long I watched the heron on the hunt, but at no time did it make a stab at anything. I'd hoped it would go for one of the bullfrogs croaking nearby, but it didn't even go looking for them.

While I was watching the heron I was surprised to notice a large twinberry plant right next to me. An Allen's hummingbird briefly buzzed around it but didn't stop for a drink.

A brown pelican seems to react to the landing antics of a cormorant.

Pelicans at Top-o-the-Rock

Brown Pelicans Return to Seal Rocks

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