WESTERNTANAGER

FREE— Inside —

1994 Checklist of theBirds of Los Angeles County

Volume 60 Number 7 April 1994 Los Angeles Audubon Society

* . . : . • 1

I.'"- • -

" - • " " - v -

1st Prize — Inside ABA Area: American Kestrel by Brad Sillasen

Your Free ChecklistDid you know that over 450 speciesof birds have been recorded in LosAngeles County? That is almost halfof the birds recorded on the ABAlist, and new birds are being addedas more and more people are outthere looking.

How many birds have you seen inthe County? It doesn't matter if you

are a world-class lister or a backyardfeeder-watcher, it is fun to record thebirds you see locally and a great wayto introduce young people, shut-insand senior citizens to the wonders ofthe birds around them.

The 1994 Checklist of the Birds ofLos Angeles County was compiled byKimball L. Garrett and Jon L. Dunn.

1994

ANNUAL

PHOTO CONTEST

WINNERS

Los AngelesCountyBreeding BirdAtlas

by Fred Heath

A little over 10 years ago, Iwrote an article with thesame title which appeared

in the Western Tanager. At the time,I suggested that we could start thisfive-year project in 1984. SometimesI'm a little slow and I sure havebeen known to procrastinate (as amatter of fact, this article wascompleted a week after my dead-

lst Prize — Within Los Angeles County:Wilson's Warbler by Jay Fuhrman

line), but the Los Angeles CountyBreeding Bird Atlas will finallystart in 1995. For those of you whocan't remember that far back orweren't reading yet, I thought anexplanation of exactly what abreeding bird atlas is might behelpful. This article will be some-what brief and will be followed upwith more details in the next issueof the Tanager (if I finish in time).

IntroductionAn atlas, of course, is a set of

maps. A breeding bird atlas is a setof maps, usually one per species,which shows where the bird possi-bly, probably or definitely breeds.The map for each species is usually

broken down into rectangular grids,and the presence (or absence) ofbreeding activity (with notation ofthe degree of confidence) is noted ineach grid block. Individuals orteams of birders cover each blockand try to simply determine to thehighest degree of confidence pos-sible whether a species breeds inthat block. An estimate of the spe-cies population is not necessary, justpresence as a breeder in each gridblock. To make it even easier, this isdone over a five year-period. Thus,if a species which is thought to bebreeding is missed in one year,there are four more years to findbreeding evidence.

The value of such an atlas, oncecompleted, is immense. It can beused in developing an ecological da-

tabase, in deter-mining whichbreeding speciesmay be threat-ened and thuswhat uniquehabitats shouldbe protected,and by land useplanners, devel-opers, govern-ment and envi-ronmentalists .It provides abaseline to mea-sure futurechangesagainst. And fi-nally it helps

educate both the public and every-one concerned about birds. Even themost jaded listers will find thatsearching out breeding evidenceadds a new dimension to his or herbirding experience.

The L. A. County EffortIn order to get a running start in

1995, much preparation will beneeded this year. Tom Frillman,Kimball Garrett, Mike San Migueland I have formed a steering com-mittee, and we are moving forward.The first decision we made was tosimplify the map-making process byusing the readily available 7.5minute series of topographic mapspublished by the U.S. Geological

Survey. These maps are divided intosix equal parts by bisecting themwith a vertical line and dividingthem into thirds horizontally. Wethen get rectangular blocks roughlythree miles on a side. Using thisgrid, we end up with a little over400 blocks in Los Angeles County.

The County will be broken up intoperhaps ten regions (such as the SanGabriel Mountains, L.A. Basin, SanFernando Valley, etc.) with a coordi-nator for each region. By the timeyou read this we hope to have foundour regional coordinators. However,the task of finding an overall coordi-nator will probably just be gettingunder way. If anyone out there is in-terested or has a suggestion, pleasecontact me through Audubon House.

For this year we will do a few testblocks (probably one for each region)to see what some of the problems are,to use as training areas and helppublicize the upcoming total effortstarting in 1995. A few of the testblocks have already been chosen.They are the blocks which containthe following: 1) Exposition Park(Kimball had already found nestingAnna's Hummingbird as of Febru-ary); 2) Charlton Flat (where theLAAS Picnic and Breeding Surveywill take place); 3) Malibu CreekState Park and Tapia Park; 4) PiutePonds on Edwards AFB; 5) LovejoyButte (these last two will be sur-veyed for breeding birds as part of afield trip on April 16; see "FieldTrips" for details); 6) Upper andLower Shake (west of Lake Hughesin the Angeles National Forest).

A field card for recording breed-ing data is being developed and maybe ready for the April 16 field trip.Details of the methods and criteriafor data collection will be discussedin the next Tanager. During theyear, a manual will be put togetherto help all field workers. In addi-tion, a newsletter will be publishedand distributed to all atlas projectvolunteers and interested parties.Finally, a computer program fordata collection will be chosen. Need-less to say, if any readers are inter-ested in lending a hand in any ofthese activities, they are welcome tobecome a part of this project. -•*-

Western Tanager

A C L O S E R L O O Kby Kimball L. Garrett

M arch 19th. St. Somebody-or-other's Day. The daythat Cliff Swallows

should already have been at the SanJuan Capistrano Mission for any-where from one to six weeks. Theday the brain-dead news depart-ments of local television stationsshow us pictures of Rock Doves orHouse Sparrows and pass them offas swallows, much as they mightpass off a family squabble or localgossip as a news story. The day thatbirders go almost anywhere but SanJuan Capistrano to see Cliff Swal-lows because they know that eventhese darlings of the southernOrange County tourist trade can onlytake so much concrete and asphalt.

March 19th has come and goneagain, bringing with it more thanjust the feathered fraud of a Cham-ber of Commerce think tank. Quitea few migratory species arrive incoastal Southern California aroundMarch 19th. One of the more inter-esting ones is the Lesser Night-hawk, a desert dweller that hasfound a handful of localities on thecoastal slope to its liking as well.

Lesser Nighthawks are wide-spread throughout our deserts,though their crepuscular habitsmake them less familiar than manydiurnal desert birds. Large numbersmay be found in the Imperial,Coachella and Colorado River Val-leys, as well as the high deserts(north through the Death Valley re-gion, and also in the Owens andFish Lake Valleys where they over-lap with the Common Nighthawk).

Look for them hawking mothsaround streetlights in the eveningin desert towns such as Brawley,Baker or Needles. Coastal popula-

The Lesser NighthawkChordeiles acutipennis

Lesser Nighthawk at the south end of the Salton Sea, 3 June 1991

tions of Lesser Nighthawks areharder to come by, but the specieshas managed to hang on in a hand-ful of alluvial washes on the south-ern flank of the Transverse Moun-tain ranges. Locally, a population ofseveral pairs exists in the belea-guered Tujunga Wash; they aremost easily seen at dusk on summernights just upstream from FoothillBlvd. Developers are trying to pushthrough a large private country clubfor this wash, an incredible way totreat one of the most endangeredhabitats in North America. Otherwashes where Lesser Nighthawkspersist in Los Angeles County in-clude the San Gabriel River Washin Irwindale, Duarte and Azusa,and the lower portion of San

Francisquito Canyon in SantaClarita. They probably occur inother washes in the Santa ClaraRiver drainage and to the east inthe Claremont area. Lesser Night-hawks are also widely, but spar-ingly, seen on the coastal slope inmigration, especially in late sum-mer and fall. The above, inexact ac-count of the Lesser Nighthawk'sbreeding range again points to thebenefits to be derived from a Breed-ing Bird Atlas of Los AngelesCounty. Five years of atlasing toclose this century should teach us agreat deal about the distribution ofthis species in coastal alluvialwashes, and help us focus moreclearly on the threats to its contin-ued existence there. *•«--

April 1994

The Spinepicker PenguinSpecies Novum

by Hank Childs(Dedicated to Fred Heath, Editor, "Not The Western Tanager," April, 1983)

E valuation of declassifiedsatellite photos of north-eastern Greenland has

revealed a new population ofpenguins (order Ciconiiformes,super family Procellarioidea, familySpheniscidae; fide Sibley & Monroe,1990). Its northern hemispheredistribution and the tool-usingbehavior make this new speciesunique in the annals of ornithology.It has been named as follows:

Species Novum: Spinepicker Pen-guin, Spheniscus pickeri; Childs, 1993.

Range: Known only from thetype locality: May Co. (+county),Greenland, latitude 75 degrees N,longitude 35 degrees E.

Habitat: Ice, normally cubed,fresh or mineral water nearby. Moredetailed information about the loca-tion was sealed by the AOU Check-list Committee to prevent collecting,"ticking" or victoremanuel-ism, pos-sibly damaging activities to thisrelict population.

Type specimen: Collected Decem-ber 27,1993 and located in theAdult's Museum, Upland, California.

Description: Dorsal surfaceblack, extending across head to bill;rest of body white, including billand appendages (Fig. 1).

Tool use: Field work completedrecently has shown that this pen-guin uses spines of the sea urchin(Strongylocentrotus sp.) in obtainingits principal food, manhaven, an At-lantic herring, and various speciesof shrimp. By lining up its catchalong the spine, greater efficiency infood gathering is obtained. Al-though this use of a tool by a bird isnew to science, it should be remem-bered that the Woodpecker Finch(Camarhynchus pallidus) of theGalapagos Islands has been known,since Darwin (1859), to use a cactusspine as a tool to obtain insect lar-vae. The size of this diminutive spe-

cies and its use of the spine isshown in Fig. 2.

Discussion: The similarity in theuse of spinelike tools by the Wood-pecker Finch and the SpinepickerPenguin cannot be a random occur-rence. The closeness of relationshipof the Galapagos Penguin and theSpinepicker Penguin is obvious onanatomical grounds, i.e., presence ofvestigial wings. Re-evaluation of themovement of tectonic plates ofPangaea on the Cocos-Galapagosland mass during the Precambrian,

Fig. 1, above. Type specimen:Spinepicker Penguin. Photographed insitu on basalt outcrop.Fig. 2, right. Penguin in hunting modewith sea urchin spine. Note small size.

shows that some of that island masscould have moved in pre-Panama-nian days directly north to itspresent position in the north Atlan-tic. Due to the change to the arcticclimate, the Woodpecker Finch be-came extinct in Groenland (sic). Thesmall size of this species indicates avariant from Bergman's Law re-garding larger size for species incooler climates. Avian paleontolo-gists are renewing their efforts toobtain fossil evidence to substanti-ate the finch's existence there.

Why the Galapagos Penguin didnot mimic the behavior of the resi-dent Woodpecker Finch, as did theSpinepicker Penguin, has yet to bedetermined. Comparison of the ElNino effects in both areas is thoughtto be a fruitful, or piscatorial, areaof research for future, advanced de-gree candidates in ornithology. •*»•-

Calling All BirdersI am collecting information on the historical and current distri-

bution of the Purple Martin in California, and I would greatly ap-preciate any information on known or suspected nesting locations.I will be collecting this information throughout the 1994 nestingseason, so please keep an eye out on your travels this summer. Forfurther information or to send nest records, please contact:

Brian WilliamsP.O. Box 605Loomis, CA 95650(916) 624-4861.

Western Tanager

<s

O P E N E Y E SA Column for Young People by Dan Kahane

T his month's "Open Eyes" isfor Los Angeles AudubonSociety parents and children

alike. As we eagerly await thearrival of Birdathon season, I wouldlike to share an update on AudubonAdventures and the outdoor educa-tion programs that your Birdathonefforts support.

LAAS is a national leader in con-servation and environmental educa-tion. With funds raised through theLAAS Birdathon, the Society spon-sors 210 Audubon Adventures class-rooms, providing natural sciencecurriculum materials to more than6,500 students and their teachers!Each of these students receives theaward-winning newsletter six timesduring the school year. This year'stopics include Wildflowers, MarineMammals, Songbirds, Animal Com-munication, the ever-popular issueon Snakes, and a brand new issueon Water. This year's AudubonMonth poster will highlight endan-gered species. In addition, for thepast two years, the success of theLAAS Birdathon has allowed thechapter to award two teachers fullscholarships to Audubon EcologyCamp in the woods of Connecticut.

LAAS Birdathon dollars alsohelp support the National AudubonSociety's Ballona Wetlands Educa-tion Program. This exciting outdoorscience program reaches youngpeople in portions of our communitywhere low environmental aware-ness and limited access to the out-of-doors often go hand in hand.Nearly 4,000 students, many ofthem from South Central and EastLos Angeles, will visit the Ballona

Wetlands this year to participate ina hands-on outdoor science adven-ture that none will soon forget. Fortwo hours they explore the last ma-jor salt marsh in Los AngelesCounty, peering through micro-scopes at the microorganisms thatform the base of the wetlands foodpyramid and discovering the won-ders of birding using binoculars andspotting scopes. They study theunique adaptations of the plantsand animals that inhabit the saltmarsh, coastal dunes, Del Rey La-goon and Ballona Channel.

Project Director Melanie Ingallsand I are extremely proud of the 30volunteers who give so much oftheir time and energy, providingthese young people with a positive

model of environmental advocacy.We invite all of you to visit the Na-tional Audubon Society office inPlaya Del Rey and be our guest toobserve our outdoor classroom inaction. Field trips generally takeplace on Tuesday and Thursdaymornings from 10:00 A.M. to noon.

Finally, on behalf of all teachersand students who have had their"eyes opened" to the joys of nature,our heartfelt thanks to all the mem-bers of LAAS, and especially to allyou Birdathoners (past and future)for your generous support of a pro-gram that we believe will help tosecure a future for the earth's as-tounding diversity of wildlife andhabitats and perhaps for we hu-mans as well. »~-

April 1994

The Longest Day

E R S O N A L H I G Hby Mike San Miguel

A s birders, we expose our-selves to all of the extra-ordinary things nature has

to offer. As much as we are thrilledby her subtleties and awesomedisplays of power, we are sometimesdisappointed when the day's eventsare dull or don't live up to ourexpectations. That's what the chasefor a rare bird is all about and whywe can hardly wait for the next alert.We travel great distances and spenda lot of time and effort to experienceas much as we can cram into ourdays or weekends in the field. Andthere never seems to be enough time.

Two of my favorite birding part-ners, Bruce Broadbooks and BobPann, and I recently rented a carfor a three-day trip to Arcata andCrescent City to look for the BlackVulture, Snow Bunting and Gyrfal-con that had been seen and re-ported by many birders since earlyDecember — and in the case of thevulture, since last September. Afterspending the better part of a fullday in the Arcata bottoms unsuc-cessfully looking for the vulture, wedecided to move on to look for thebunting. We soon found the bird inits "favorite habitats" — a smallgravel patch and on top of a lightstandard in the middle of the park-ing lot on Smuggler's Island nearthe Crescent City marina.

The following morning we droveon up to the Smith River bottomsnorth of Crescent City and, again,after only a short period of time,were rewarded with great looks atthe Gyrfalcon. Surely this is one ofthe most impressive raptors in theworld. It put on an excellent show,chasing several raven seemingly forthe pure joy of it, harassing the

much larger Tundra Swans flying insmall groups through the area, andabsolutely terrorizing the largeflock of wigeon, including a Eur-asian, that grazed in the grassyfield adjacent to a shallow pond. Asis often the case with a bird as re-markable as a Gyrfalcon, we weresoon joined by a group of birdersfrom all over the state. Even afterwatching the Gyr for over twohours, it was difficult to force our-selves to leave the bird and ourfriends and move on.

Later that morning we birdedthe headlands near Crescent Cityfor shorebirds, Harlequin Ducksand other specialties of the area. Wethen headed back south to try againfor the vulture. Along the way, inthe vicinity of Patrick's Point, wewere treated to a Pileated Wood-pecker that flew directly over ourcar as we sped down Highway 101.Once again in Arcata we spent theremainder of the day looking, with-out success, for the vulture.

Concluding that our prospects offinding the bird the following daywere slim to none, we decided tohead home. While we missed thevulture, which would have been aCalifornia state bird for all of us,the bunting and the Gyr were lifebirds for me. Because the trip hadalready been a success, the700-mile, 11-hour drive back to L.A.after a long day of birding was nobig deal. Right! Birders often do 24hours straight, with only a fewwinks of sleep in the car and eatingat fast food restaurants, and thinknothing of it. Besides, our energylevels were still relatively high be-cause we had been richly rewardedfor our efforts.

Little of the two days of birdingand other activities of the weekend,and for that matter from our collec-tive years in the field, had preparedus for what we were about to expe-rience.

As we drove south in the earlymorning on Interstate 5 about amile north of its intersection withHighway 14, everything seemed asit always had. The faint glow fromthe millions of lights that illumi-nate our great city was there. Traf-fic was light but dominated by bigrigs that are always found on thismost important and heavily usedhighway in California.

We had planned to stop for gas(since the gauge was nearly onempty) at Roxford Avenue, a spot fa-miliar to most L.A. birders as a meet-ing place for travels to the AntelopeValley and other birding spots to thenorth. Prom there we would dropBob at his home in West L.A. andthen go on to Brace's in Westchesterwhere I had left my car.

Suddenly and violently our carbegan to sway wildly from side toside and seemed to bounce from thepavement. I yelled to Bruce, "EARTH-QUAKE!" The roadway in front of uswas undulating and rippling as if itwas liquid, and every crack andseam in the roadbed was spewingcurtains of dirt and dust as the con-crete slab beneath us literally begancoming apart. Chunks of concreteseemed instantly to be everywhere,and the cars and big rigs, which un-til now were only anonymous trav-elers, seemed to be moving in everypossible direction as their head-lights flashed like tiny searchlightsthrough the thickening dust thatfilled the air.

6 Western Tanager

Behind us, through the rear win-dow of the car, the sky suddenlyturned a brilliant bluish-white asthough a thousand arc-welders hadbeen turned on, and columns ofwhite smoke shot up out of the eerieglow. Having worked for SouthernCalifornia Edison for the past 20years, I am familiar with powertransmission systems in the areaand recognized that the 200,000volt transformers at nearby PardeeSubstation were likely blowingapart. Ahead of us, the horizon ofthe city flashed dozens of bluish-white and orange flashes as numer-ous transformers and gas fires ig-nited. For about 20 intensely fright-ening and terrifying seconds naturecontinued her awesome show ofpower and might.

By then traffic had come to avery slow crawl and many cars withflat tires pulled over to the side ofthe road. As we began cautiously toinch our way forward, additionalaftershocks continued to shake ourcar. It became increasingly difficultto see anything through the thick-ening pall of dust as traffic began toback up and eventually came to acomplete stop. It was obvious wewere not going to get any farther,and we made a U-turn onto thefreeway median divider and backthe wrong way on the freeway tobacktrack to the Lyons Avenue off-ramp and then hopefully headsouth along the Old Road. Thatroute was also blocked.

As we waited for a few momentstrying to figure out what to do next, Iremember looking up to our left andseeing one of the freeway columnswith strings of steel re-bar hanginglike spaghetti from the top of thestructure. Francis Ford Coppola orOliver Stone never produced a movieas surrealistic as what we were expe-riencing. "Bruce, Bob, let's get out ofhere." Bruce was driving, and hisability to keep us on the road and outof trouble was remarkable, but it wastime to go.

By now we knew the only possi-bility we had of getting home anytime soon was to drive back towardVentura on Highway 126 throughFillmore and Santa Paula and to

pick up the 101 into town. As webacktracked along the interstate,the roadway was an obstacle courseof shattered concrete, boulders anddirt from nearby hillsides andstranded vehicles abandoned due tomechanical malfunction and, insome cases, by terrified motoriststoo afraid to drive any farther.

Our immediate concern was tofind a service station because bynow we were about to run out ofgas. As we approached Fillmorethere was a faint glow in the sky asif it were coming from the town.Rounding a long curve in the high-way we realized the glow in the skywas not the lights from the townbut a fifty foot pillar of fire shootingdirectly out of the highway. We nowknew from radio reports that a 6.5magnitude earthquake centeredsomewhere in the San FernandoValley had ruptured a large naturalgas main. I remember thinking,"Only 6.5! Surely what we had justexperienced must have been greaterthan that."

After waiting for abut 30 minutes,experiencing even more aftershocks,we watched the towering flameahead of us slowly go out. Movingahead on 126 past the flame that hadjust burned out, there was a smallcrater in the roadway with what ap-

all of Ventura and Santa BarbaraCounties and the San Fernando Val-ley had brought business and com-merce to a halt. Without power torun the pumps at any of the gas sta-tions in the area, our prospects werevery dim and we could be stranded inSanta Paula for a very long time un-less we acted.

By now about four hours hadpassed since the quake. As luckwould have it, and after some aggres-sive negotiating, a construction con-tractor we found working nearby hada gallon of gasoline that he offered tous. We were able to get as far as Ox-nard where we found a small inde-pendent and very resourceful stationopen with pumps operated by a por-table generator. The line for gas re-minded us very much of the oil em-bargo days but we were very glad, inspite of the hour-long wait, to be fi-nally headed home.

Reflecting upon the events of the32 hours that began with the ex-hilaration of watching the Gyrfal-con, mother nature had not disap-pointed us. She had given us all wehad hoped for, except this time shehad shown us an awesome displayof her power, and we had been rightin the middle of it. Once again shereminded us of who is really incharge.

mother nature... hadshown us an awesomedisplay of her power...

peared to be spots of molten concreteand earth very similar to lava.

Radio reports began to fill in apicture of large-scale destruction tothe interstate so vital to life and com-merce in Southern California. In par-ticular we learned that the inter-change we had just left had col-lapsed. The reports also placed usvery near the epicenter of the quake,now upgraded to 6.6, when it hit at4:31 A.M. Massive power outages to

We finally got into L.A. at aboutnoon. We were tired, still badlyshaken from our incredible experi-ence and anxious to get to the secu-rity of our homes and families.Driving the last few miles of ourlong journey and seeing some of thedamage along the way, we realizedhow lucky we were just to be alive.We also knew we had just gottenthrough the longest day of birdingwe had ever experienced.

April 1994

1st Prize — Outside ABA Area:Rusty-margined Flycatcherby Jay Fuhrman

2nd Prize — Outside ABA Area:Chaffinch by Cosmo Bloom

2nd Prize — Within L.A. County:Lewis' Woodpecker by Brian Small

WESTERN TANAGER

Published 10 times a year byLos Angeles Audubon Society,

a chapter of National Audubon Society.

EDITOR: Jean BrandtCONSERVATION: Sandy Wohlgemuth

ORNITHOLOGY CONSULTANT:Kimball Garrett

FIELD TRIPS: Nick FreemanPROGRAMS: Dan Kahane

PELAGIC TRIPS: Phil SayreDESKTOP PUBLISHING: WP Plus

PRINTING: Marcotte Printing-

Opinions expressed in articles or letters

herein do not necessarily express the

position of this publication or of LAAS.

PRESIDENT: Fred Heath1st VICE PRESIDENT: Pat Little

2nd VICE PRESIDENT: Peter ShenEXECUTIVE SECRETARY:

Mildred NewtonRECORDING SECRETARY:

Pat NelsonTREASURER: Richard Epps

Annual membership in both societies is$35 per year and $20 for new members fortheir first year. Membei's receive the West-em Tanager newsletter and Audubonmagazine, a national publication. Renew-als of membership are computerized byNational Audubon and should not be sentto LAAS; however, new memberships maybe sent directly to LAAS. Make checkspayable to the National Audubon Society.

Nonmembers may subscribe to the West-ern Tanager for $15 per year. The news-letter is sent by first-class mail to sub-scribers and members who pay an addi-tional $7. Make checks payable toLos Angeles Audubon Society.

Los Angeles Audubon SocietyHeadquarters, Library

and Bookstore are open to the publicTuesday-Saturday10:00 A.M.-3:00 P.M.

213 876-0202 — office213 876-7609 —fax

Printed on Recycled Paper

Western Tanager

CONSERVATION CONVERSATION

I f you read last month's Tanagerarticle ("Volunteerism UnderAttack") on the National Bio-

logical Survey Bill (HR 1845) andits infamous amendments, you'llknow what environmentalists areup against. Here's a perfectlysplendid bill that calls for a nation-wide database of all our livingcreatures — mammals, birds,insects and plants — that wouldprovide scientific input for suchprojects as delineating wetlandsand protecting endangered species.

Then along came a death squadof congressmen that cut the gutsout of the measure. One amend-ment denied the use of volunteers tosupply the data, particularly sin-gling out Audubon for condemna-tion. The other prohibited any staffperson from doing a survey on pri-vate property without written per-mission.

The Tanager report was factualand relatively restrained (whichsuits our proper image). But theseamendments should get the adrena-line pouring into the veins of anybirder worth his or her salt. Wehave been insulted, defamed, red-baited, denigrated and spat upon.To refresh your memory, here are acouple of quotes: "This research istoo important to allow it to behandled by... potentially prejudicedindividuals who will not be requiredto be accountable for the quality ofthe work performed." We wouldbring our own agenda to NBS, hesays, (presumably a biased, sinisterone). "You start with bad science,you end with bad science." (BillyTauzin, D-LA). "The NBS is... ev-erything that radical preservation-ists could ask for" and will lead tothe establishment of a militant eco-

Gestapo force." (Bill Emerson, R-MO).If this wasn't so serious and in-

sulting, it would be laughable.What kind of mentality can con-ceive of Christmas bird countersfaking a report? Especiallyundercounting to demonstrate thatbirds are in bad shape. Most of thefun of bird counts is to get the mostspecies and the largest numbers ofbirds. If they are looking at Na-tional Audubon as a monolithic con-spiratorial cabal that will order itsmembers to cheat in this way, theyare not only nuts but they are judg-ing us by their own depraved stan-dards. The chairman of the presti-gious International Council for BirdPreservation says, "During the de-bate [on these amendments], im-ages of crazed environmentaliststramping across the land, discover-ing endangered species under every

2nd Prize — Inside ABA Area:Black-necked Stilt by Don Des Jardin

by Sandy Wohlgemuth

rock or log, were used to scare pri-vate landowners." Listen to theman. This unconscionable attack ispart and parcel of the massive at-tempt to undermine the Endan-gered Species Act. The phalanx ofdevelopers, big agriculture, timberlords and grazing moguls wants tohold on to its power and crush us"special interests."

Have we had enough of this gar-bage? Are we going to take it any-more? The shocking truth is thatour House of Representativespassed this bill with both miserableamendments. The only weapon wehave short of a march on Washing-ton is letters and phone calls. Iknow, I know, everything ends upwith the old call for letters. But thisis something special. Our honor asbirders and citizens is at stake. Wewould be saving the governmentmillions of dollars and countlesshours of labor by volunteering, andthese guys give us a bum rap. Sotell your senators to pass HR 1845in its original form, washed clean ofamendments. Tell your congressmember to do the same when thebill is reconsidered in conferencewith the Senate. Be polite but firm.If you make a local call to your rep-resentative, your opinion will be re-layed to Washington. Do both. *—

HonorableU.S. SenateWashington, DC 20515

HonorableHouse of RepresentativesWashington, DC 20510

April 1994

B I R D S O F T H E S E A S O Nby Hank Brodkin

A pril is the month of warblermigration. Sometimebetween the second and the

third weeks of the month it will bepossible to go into the flower per-fumed coastal canyons and find oaktrees dripping with up to ninespecies of warbler. Empids call fromthe alder trees while Lazuli Bun-tings sing from the chaparral. Oneparticularly dependable site for thisphenomenon has been the WalkerRanch section of Placerita State andCounty Park in Santa Clarita.

If the rain schedule is right, therecently burned hillsides will blazeagain — only this time with kindand gentle wildflowers as if naturewere apologizing for the devastationof last fall. The Theodore PayneFoundation's Wildflower Hotline —(818) 768-3533 — will keep you ap-prised of where the best displayscan be found.

It is also time to think of givingsomething back for the pleasurethat birding has given us. ProjectTanager, designed to monitor tana-ger populations in our mountains, isorganized by Cornell University.Contact Mindy Westgate, CornellLab of Ornithology, 159 SapsuckerWoods Road, Ithaca, NY 14850.Birders who are familiar with birdsongs can run Breeding Bird Sur-veys. Contact Bruce Peterjohn, Co-ordinator, Breeding Bird Survey,Pautuxent Wildlife Research Cen-ter, Laurel, MD 20708.

Local reports were few and farbetween this past month. Otherparts of the country have hadSnowy Owls, Gyrfalcon and Red-polls. And Texas' Rio Grande Valleyhad a Collared Forest-Falcon — abird of dense neotropical forests —

the first verified sighting of thisbird in the U.S. But because of theearthquake and the usual pre-spring migration doldrums, we canonly offer these few reports.

Three Little Gulls — two first-winter and one second-winter —were found at the Niland Boatrampon the Salton Sea on 29 January(Guy McCaskie), and they were stillpresent in mid-February. An adultThayer's Gull was on the Los An-geles River at the Anaheim Streetcrossing in Long Beach.

Three Violet-green Swallows— the first of the spring — were re-ported from Chatsworth Reservoiron 30 January (Wanda Dameron),and a ridiculously early BankSwallow was at the San JoaquinMarsh in Orange County on thesame day (Peter Shen).

A Sage Thrasher was found atSanta Fe Dam in Irwindale on

21 January (Ray Jillson), and onthe same day a very rare FieldSparrow was discovered at Hun-tington Central Park (Jeff Boyd).The sparrow, California's fifth, re-mained through mid-February.

The steady spread of Great-tailed Grackles continues; a pairwas at Castaic Lake on 16 February(Kimball Garrett and JonathanAlderfer).

Good Birding! -<*~-

R ecords of rare and unusual birdsightings reported in this column

should be considered tentative pending re-view by the AMERICAN BIRDS Regional Editorsor, if appropriate, by the California BirdRecords Committee. Send your bird observa-tions with as many details as possible to:Hank Brodkin271/? Mast Street, Marina Del Rey, CA 90292.(310) 827-0407 E-Mail: hankb@kaiwan.comOr call David Koeppel at (310) 454-2576.

1st Prize — Humorous: Snowy Egrets by John Branum

10 Western Tanager

F I E L D T R I P SContinued from page 12

Saturday, April 16 — Wildflowers,Butterflies and Breeding Birds ofthe Antelope Valley. This trip is aBirdathon activity, so arrange spon-sors for your efforts. Fred Heath willlead this trip to Bob's Gap and otherareas in the vicinity in a Breeding BirdAtlas format. Contact Audubon Houseby phone for Birdathon forms and tosign up. Meet at 7:30 A.M. at theLamont-Odett Overlook. Take Hwy 14 Ntoward Palmdale and watch for the pull-out on the right side about 2.5 miles pastthe Pearblossom Hwy turnoff.

Saturday, April 16 — Franklin Can-yon. Leader Steve Saffier. FranklinCanyon is located between ShermanOaks and Beverly Hills. Over 100 spe-cies of birds have been seen in the chap-arral, lakeside and oak/pine woodlandhabitats of the canyon. Meet at 7:30 A.M.at the Sooky Goldman Nature Centerlot. From the 101 Fwy in the Valley,take Coldwater S into the hills andmake a 90° right turn at the ridge ontoFranklin Canyon Dr. (not a throughstreet). Continue Vi mile to the Nature

Reservation and Fee Events(Limited Participation)Policy and Procedure

Reservations will be accepted ONLYif ALL the following information

is supplied:

1) Trip desired2) Names of people in your party3) Phone numbers (a) usual and(b) evening before event, in case ofemergency cancellation4) Separate check (no cash please) toLAAS for exact amount for each trip5) Self-addressed stamped envelopefor confirmation and associated tripinformation. Send to:

LAAS Reservations7377 Santa Monica Blvd.

West Hollywood, CA 90046-6694.

If there is insufficient response, thetrip will be cancelled two Wednesdaysprior to the scheduled date (fourweeks for pelagics), and you will be sonotified and your fee returned. Yourcancellation after that time will bringa refund only if there is a paidreplacement. Millie Newton isavailable at Audubon House onWednesdays from noon to 4:00 P.M. toanswer questions about field trips.Our office staff is also availableTuesday through Saturday for mostreservation services.

Center. The lot is past a gate designat-ing the William O. Douglas OutdoorClassroom.

O Friday, April 22 — From VenturaM-/on the M.V. Vanguard. 30-hour tripdeparts at 10:00 P.M. Call LAAS for res-ervations. Leaders Arnold Small andMitch Heindel.

Sunday, April 24 — Starr Ranch Au-dubon Sanctuary. This unstrenuouswalk through oak woodlands should begood for passerines and young raptors.Take the 5 or 405 Fwy to El Toro Rd.and go NE to Santa Margarita Pkwy.Turn right onto the parkway and con-tinue to Antonio. Meet Park RangerPete DeSimone in the Ralph's lot atthe NW corner of this intersection nearthe bank. We'll leave the lot at 8:30 A.M.and carpool into the park in private ve-hicles. Reserve by phone with AudubonHouse. Rain cancels. $5 donation toStarr Ranch optional. Do not send mon-ey to Audubon. Participation limited.

O Friday, April 29 — From Ventura^i /on the M.V. Vanguard (backup tripfor April 8 or April 22, if needed). Lead-ers Brad Schram and Mitch Heindel.

Saturday, April 30 — Shake Canyonand vicinity. Leader Doug Martinwill be touring the wilds of the SantaSusanna Mountains. Migrating war-blers, vireos, flycatchers, etc., andbreeding montane birds should makefor a high species count. Bring sturdyshoes and food for a full day of birding.Meet at 7:30 A.M. at McDonald's inCastaic. Take the 5 Fwy N to LakeHughes Rd. in Castaic.

Sunday, May 1 — Topanga StatePark. Leader Gerry Haigh. Meet at8:00 A.M. First Sunday each month. SeeApril 10 write-up for details.

Saturday, May 7 — Van NormanReservoir. Leader Dustin Alcala.Meet at 7:30 A.M. See April 2 write-up fordetails.

Sunday May 8 — Whittier Narrows.Leader Ray Jillson. Meet at 8:00 A.M.See April 10 write up for details.

Saturday, May 14 — ChatsworthReservoir. Leader Dustin Alcala.Meet at 7:30 A.M. See April 9 write-upfor details.

Saturday, May 14 — ButterbredtSprings — Lizards. LA. Zoo herpetol-ogist and LAAS member Harvey Fis-cher will lead our search for DesertHorned, California Whiptail, Leopard,Collared, Zebra-tailed, Desert Spinyand other lizards seen in Jawbone Can-yon. We will briefly bird ButterbredtSprings, then look for lizards. Meet at8:00 A.M. at the intersection of JawboneCanyon Rd. and Hwy 14. Take Hwy 14past Mojave and continue N on Hwy 14about 17 miles to Jawbone Canyon Rd.on the west side. Meet 100 yds. along atthe message board on the left. Antici-pate heat, thirst, hunger and rock-hop-ping. Red Rock Canyon State Park fivemiles to the north is good for camping.About two hours' driving time from LA.Sign up by phone with LAAS.

O Saturday, May 21 — FromVl/San Pedro on the R.V. Vantuna,6:00 A.M.-6:00 P.M. Santa BarbaraIsland and the Osborne Bank.Leaders Kimball Garrett andBarney Schlinger. Fee: $37.

Saturday and Sunday, June 11 and 12— Yosemite. Leader Louis Tucker.We'll concentrate on Goshawk, Pileatedand Black-backed Woodpeckers, PineGrosbeak, Great Grey Owl, Blue Grouseand other specialties. Trip ends Sundayafternoon in Owens Valley. Possiblesnow on ground, in air. Strict silenceenforced during owl watch. Bring Satur-day night sack dinner. Meet at 7:30 A.M.in the Mariposa Grove parking lot justE of Yosemite's south entrance. Suggeststaying in Oakhurst area south of parkFriday night. We will plan to reservesufficient campsites for the group forSaturday night at Crane Flat. Yosemitecampsites on sale April 15 throughMistix — (800) 444-7275. Campsitesand hotels in area sell out very quickly.Limited to 13. Reserve with SASE and$20 to LAAS for itinerary and lodginginformation.

Friday to Monday, June 24 to 27 —Southern Sierra Weekend with BobBarnes. Friday: Bloomfield Ranch,Walker Pass and Troy Meadows. Satur-day and Sunday: Kern River Preserve,Lake Isabella, Great Basin and easternSierra. Monday: Western Divide andGiant Sequoias. Some night birding.More details in May Tanager. Limitedparticipation. Fee: $11 for each day yousign up ($44 for four days). Reservewith SASE to LAAS for trip and lodginginformation per field trip policy. '•*--

April 1994 11

EVENING MEETINGMeet at 8:00 P.M. in Plummer Park.

ID Workshop precedes the meeting at 7:30 P.M.

April 12,1994 Dr. Charles CollinsThe Santa Cruz Island Scrub Jay

T o speciate or not to speciate... could you repeat the question? Dr. Collinswill delight and amaze us with an illustrated account of his research on

this distinctive relative of our pugnacious coastal form.

May 10,1994 Herb ClarkeBirding the Southern Sphere

J oin one of Southern California's premiere wildlife photographers on anillustrated trip from the tip of the neotropics to the tip of the Ethiopian

biogeographic region.

F I E L D T R I P S

B efore setting out on any fieldtrip, please call the Audubonbird tape at (213) 874-1318 for

special instructions or possible cancella-tions that may have occurred by theThursday before the trip.

J. Denotes Pelagic Trips

Saturday, April 2 — Van NormanReservoir. Leader Dustin Alcala. Ri-parian and grassland habitat surroundthe reservoir and adjacent ponds. Takethe 405 Fwy N to the Rinaldi offrampjust S of the 5 Fwy interchange. Go Won Rinaldi about a mile to the front gateon the right (N) side. Meet at 7:30 A.M.

in the lot inside the gate on the left. Wewill carpool from there and stop about1:00 P.M. Restrooms on-site.

<j> Friday, April 8 — From Ventura*J^*on the M.V. Vanguard. 30-hour tripdeparts at 10:00 P.M. Call LAAS for res-ervations. Leaders Arnold Small andMitch Heindel.

Saturday, April 9 — ChatsworthReservoir. Leader Dustin Alcala.Grassland/oak scrub habitat with alarge body of water. Take the 405 FwyN to Roscoe Blvd. and head W to Fall-brook Ave. Take this N to the DWP en-trance at the end. Meet at 7:30 A.M. at

Los Angeles Audubon Society DATED MATERIAL7377 Santa Monica Boulevard Please ExpediteWest Hollywood, CA 90046-6694

Non-Profit OrganizationU.S. Postage

PAIDPERMIT NO. 276

Glendale, CA

the gate. Finish up early afternoon.Bring lunch and water. No restrooms.

Sunday, April 10 — Topanga StatePark. Second Sunday this monthonly. Gerry Haigh will lead partici-pants through this diverse coastalmountain area spared by last fall's fires.An ideal trip for a beginning birder orsomeone new in the area. A botanist isusually present. From Topanga CanyonBlvd. heading SW from the Valley, turnE (uphill) on Entrada Dr. (7 miles S ofVentura Blvd., 1 mile N of Topanga Vil-lage). Follow the signs and turn left intothe park. Meet at 8:00 A.M. in the park-ing lot of Trippet Ranch. $5 parking fee.

Sunday, April 10 — Whittier Nar-rows Regional Park. Join Ray Jill-son to see songbirds, migrants, breed-ing raptors and others. Some lakes havebeen cleared, so visibility has improved.A population of introduced cardinals isresident. Meet at 8:00 A.M. at the Na-ture Center, 1000 Durfee Ave. Take the60 Fwy to South El Monte, just W of the605 Fwy, taking the Peck Dr. exit S.Take the offramp onto Durfee Ave.heading W (right), and turn left into theNature Center.

Continued on page 11

12 Western Tanager