Contributor
Date
Location
- Age and sex
- Adult, Unknown sex - 2
- Sounds
- Call
- Playback
- Playback not used
Media notes
Recorded after sunset. Two birds that likely have a nest just next to the road or they really like that particular bush as a roosting spot (they flushed from the same bush on my way up the road earlier). Recorded from a distance of 10-20 feet.
Observation details
Wow so this is THE place to see these birds. This is a bigger count than I've ever had of these birds by a big multiple; and I think it is an underestimate and there may have been 50 birds using the habitat in the area. It is very difficult to get an accurate count. About 8-10 singing birds at sunset. Many juveniles with variable amounts of streaking. I counted one way going east, and tried hard not to double count birds that I was pushing in front of me-- when I had large groups, I waited until I passed them, and could no longer hear or see those birds before I started counting again. I also only detected birds not too far from the road, with only a few excursions into the dense chaparral. At least 3-4 distinct family groups in different locations, all with streaky hatch year birds. One of those groups had 16 birds visible at the same time with many many juveniles. Perhaps there is some limited post breeding dispersal and hatch year birds get together (there were at least two adults in the group too)? Or breeding was particularly successful this year after a lot of rains? Or this is typical for this location where I don't bird regularly? Adults were straightforwardly recognizably ssp. belli (very dark and colorful, with distinctive song), and this is their breeding habitat. With juveniles/hatch year birds, I suppose it is not easy to rule out canescens sparrows dispersing from the desert to the north (of which I've had fledglings as early as 6 weeks ago on May 7 in the creosote scrub, and they are known to disperse upslope into our mountains in the summer). But these birds moved through chamise habitat in tight groups and had belli adults with them, and many of them were really young birds, and I'm calling them all A.b. belli. Many of the juveniles and immatures were indeed pretty dark on the back and wings as well, with noticeably brown or buffy base color to their underparts. (It has been unusually cold and wet so far this year into June. I wonder if the canescens birds are indeed moving upslope into the mountains when the desert habitat is still good. eBird doesn't have too many records, but then again, very few people have birded the mountains this year). Some photos and recordings attached.
Technical information
- Recorder
- Tascam DR-05
- Microphone
- Sennheiser MKE400
- Accessories
- Original file size
- 8.89 MB