"Summertime, and the Birdin' is Easy" (August 16, 2004)

I spent an unseasonably warm and sunny day yesterday at the San Mateo Coast, near the town of Pescadero. It was a minus tide, and there was plenty of newly exposed territory for the local animals to explore. The dark rocks, festooned with mussels, barnacles and many varieties of seaweed, nicely set off the beauty of the birds.

Of note was a handsome surfbird, with mere vestiges of breeding plumage remaining, and a family group of black oystercatchers. The adults dropped food on the rocks for their two submissive, begging youngsters. Upon closer examination, I noticed that the bills of the young oystercatchers were shorter than those of their parents, and had black tips.

There were plenty of rafting Western grebes beyond the surf zone, and a handsome and easily IDed Heerman's gull searched the shore, his red bill contrasting with his dark gray back. Black turnstones busily poked amongst the fly-ridden strands of kelp while battalions of brown pelicans flew over. An unidentified small, dark alcid floated out beyond the rocks: no scope, no ID.

Taking advantage of the increased offshore real estate was the largest haul-out of harbor seals that I'd ever seen at that location. There were at least 100 animals, mostly adults, with varied pelage and in apparently fine fettle. Two pairs frolicked in the water nearby, doing their bit to increase the numbers of young seals come next spring. They looked blissful. Back on shore, I was feeling pretty blissful myself, an awestruck witness to a slice of California paradise.

Debbie Viess

A version of this essay was first published on Calbirds.