2021 Begins with Birds
I didn’t realize the above photo of the gnatcatcher at Morro Bay would be so popular on the Birding California Facebook page. Last count it had 1200 reactions and 83 comments. It’s reminiscent of the Angry Bluebird that was popular several years ago. This little fluffball was uncharacteristically cooperative, as they are generally in constant motion catching, well, gnats.
The gnatcatcher on the right is one that was banded at Morro Bay in January 2019 by the California State Parks crew. Yay! I love finding banded birds, and even more when I get enough readable numbers to trace when and where it was banded.
I wanted to find the zone-tailed hawk that had been seen at Morro Bay (and has been sighted elsewhere, hanging out with turkey vultures) but no luck. However, it was a perfectly productive morning to photograph other avian denizens.
Oddly, the bay was still and calm, while just the other side of the Rock were raging waves (my previous post.)
Eared grebe 
Ruby-crowned kinglet 
Savannah sparrow 
Savannah sparrow 
California thrasher 
Eared grebe
Spotted towhee 
Fox sparrow
Photos and text copyrighted by Cindy McIntyre
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Website: CindyMcIntyre.com
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Morro Rock-Otters & Birds
Photographers like me like to go out early in the morning when the birds are active and the people aren’t. Marilyn and I headed out to Morro Rock, part of Morro Bay State Park on Saturday, with a stop at my favorite California viewpoint off Hwy 46.
As is typical of summer, the coast is often shrouded in fog on mornings when it is sunny and headed for hot weather in Paso Robles.
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