It has been a slow start to spring migration with warblers, flycatchers and vireos being seen in low numbers through the month of April. Birders I’ve spoken to down south said that they are starting to see a push of neotropical migrants just now so hopefully the floodgates open for us in May.
The fourth spring record of a Pectoral Sandpiper was found in flooded fields off of County Road 103 on April 19th. (SS) This uncommon migrant is much more expected in the fall when juveniles migrate south but to see a northbound adult is a real treat anywhere in California.
A Cassin’s Finch was spotted at Grasslands Regional Park on April 16th, presumably a migrant that was last seen flying east. (BW, MP) This species is quite rare in Yolo but birders have enjoyed one of the biggest irruption winters of Cassin’s Finch in recent memory. This winter alone included records of a single bird in Davis and a flock of over 20 on Rayhouse Road. Reports from across the state indicate that these birds have dispersed from the mountains into the lowlands, coast and desert this past winter.
A flock of 21 calling Short-billed Dowitchers dropped into Woodland Water Treatment Plant on April 20th, this is a particularly large number of this usually coastal shorebird. (BW,EI) A regular migrant in low numbers this bird usually has to be heard vocalizing to distinguish it from the similar Long-billed Dowitcher.
Continuing birds that spent their winter in Yolo included an Eastern Phoebe west of Woodland that was last seen on April 5 (RF) and the Putah Creek Harris’s Sparrow that was last seen on April 11th. (CT) The territorial Allen’s Hummingbird in Clarksburg continues coming to a private feeder daily. (TU)
Thank you to the following observers for their checklists and reports: Sean Smith (SS), Bart Wickel (BW), Michael Perrone (MP), Emmett Iverson (EI), Rob Furrow (RF), Cameron Tescher (CT), and Tom Uslan (TU)
eBird checklists:
Pectoral Sandpiper: https://ebird.org/checklist/S85942119
Cassin’s Finch: https://ebird.org/checklist/S85658518
Short-billed Dowitcher: https://ebird.org/checklist/S86008179
Eastern Phoebe: https://ebird.org/checklist/S84848305
Compiled by Emmett Iverson, Davis, CA