Morro Coast Bird Festival – part 1
I treated myself to four days of birding at the Morro Coast Bird Festival in January 2019. Although I chose some trips to areas I was already familiar with, I found it extremely beneficial to go with someone who pointed out birds I had never seen before.
One of the best trips was the boat trip on the bay. We saw two peregrine falcons perched on boat yardarms, and the overcast light was perfect for getting detail.
Peregrines nest at Morro Rock, and there are often two nests there.
A sea otter was eating a small octopus very near the boat, and I got some absolutely amazing photos, helped by the overcast light.
Ospreys were also hanging around the marina, catching fish and eating them on the boat yardarms.
I can’t get over how this angle makes the osprey look like it has googly eyes.
This red-tailed hawk was a little bedraggled from the wet leaves.
A dozen turkey vultures roosted hear the heron rookery, waiting for the thermals to send them aloft.
I’ll be posting more from the Morro Coast Bird Festival in the next week. Stay tuned!
Photos and text copyrighted by Cindy McIntyre
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Jet Eliot said,
February 23, 2019 at 8:53 am
Wow, we started out here with such incredible peregrine photos. Then when I got to the otter I gasped. Holy smokes! An octopus! Thank you for this Morro Bay series, Cindy. I started at the other end, part 5 or so, and got addicted. Thank you so much.
Cindy McIntyre said,
February 24, 2019 at 10:18 am
You know, there can be a surprise on any trip, and I’m glad I was there when these birds and otters gave such a great performance!