Bird Categories:

Birding Trips:

These area activities are scheduled on various weekends and usually on a Wednesday or Thursday during the week. The field trips range from half-day outings to weekend trips to birding hot spots. Field trips are open to MDAS members and nonmembers alike. You do not have to be a birding expert: only one who enjoys nature.

Physical Difficulty
All our field trips are rated for physical difficulty:
Category 1: Easy, little or no walking, smooth paths.
Category 2: Moderate, 1 mile or more, possibly rough terrain.
Category 3: Difficult, extensive walking on rough terrain.

What to Bring?
It’s a good idea to bring a small backpack with rain gear, hat, sunscreen, field guide, and binoculars. We have a limited number of loaner binoculars available by calling the trip leader at least 7 days in advance. Some people like to take a drink and a snack to keep them going. Wear suitable shoes. Subdued colored clothing is preferable but not essential.

For full day outings take your lunch. Ask whether you will be returning to the cars for lunch. Many people also take a drink and a snack to have at the end of the walk.

What about Bad Weather?
Weather or the vailability of leaders may require changes. Trips go in light rain or drizzle. If in doubt, call the leader up to 1/2 hour before departure. If you are coming from some distance, call the leader and confirm departure point and time.

What about Transportation?
You can drive to the meeting point and carpool with the leader or other birders. Carpool expense are shared among driver and riders at the rate of 20 cents per mile; tolls and entry fees are shared equally by driver and riders.

In the directions, the term “carpool time” refers to the actual time that the participants depart from the meeting site.

Looking for the Field Trip Schedule?

Check out the Calendar or the latest Quail Newsletter if you are a member.

Check out the Bird Trip Reports for a list of birds that were seen on our latest trips. (Many thanks to Hugh Harvey for compiling!)

Bird Sightings eMail List:

Do you want to share your bird sightings with other Contra Costa birders? Would you like to know where birds are currently located? You can now do both by joining the MDAS Bird mailing list group dealing with birding in Contra Costa County, Alameda County and the San Francisco Bay area. Click here to subscribe

California Bluebird Recovery Program:

Bluebirds! They carry the blue of the sky on their backs but have lost much of their natural nesting habitat. The Bluebirds and many other cavity nesting birds need our help by restoring spaces for their nesting and conservation. With such a goal in mind, the California Bluebird Recovery Program (CBRP) has undertaken to increase the help being given to the cavity nesting birds. Since 1994, CBRP has placed and monitored hundreds of nestboxes with successful results. If you are interested in being a nestbox monitor, CBRP will provide you with;

• Nestbox plans designed for several varieties of occupants
• Suggestions for placement of boxes
• Convenient forms for recording activity in each box
• Assistance for monitors

To volunteer as a monitor and/or subscribe to the quarterly newsletter, Bluebirds Fly, send your name, address, phone number, and your $10 tax-deductible check payable to MDAS-Bluebirds to:

CBRP Program Director
Dick Blaine
22284 N De Anza Cir
Cupertino, CA

In return, you will receive the quarterly newsletter and a copy of Monitoring Your Bluebird Trail in California.

Local Check Lists:

• Northern California Daily Check List (2005)
• Heather Farms Check List

Bird Banding:

Banded birds can be occasionally seen upon close examination. These birds are being tracked for scientific purposes by a variety of sources. These two links include information about how to report banded birds.

• Reporting Banded Birds
• Reporting Banded Shorebirds

Birding Ethics:

Before advertising the presence of a rare bird, evaluate the potential for disturbance to the bird, its surroundings, and other people in the area. Proceed only if access can be controlled, disturbance can be minimized, and permission has been obtained from landowners. The sites of rare nesting birds should be divulged only to proper conservation authorities. In any conflict of interest between birds and birders, the welfare of the birds and their environment comes first.

• American Birding Association (ABA) Ethics

Birding Northern California by Jean Richmond