Riverwalk Herons and Egrets

Black Crowned Night Heron


Black Crowned Night Heron (Juvenile)


Green Heron



Snowy Egret

The weather was perfect this morning so Mike brought his camera along on our walk. We saw a few herons and an egret mixed in with the mallards that reside in the Riverwalk area of Riverside.

Hummingbird Nest

Hummingbird Nest

We encountered this nest during a shopping excursion. We aren't sure if the two "bumps" in the back are wings or baby hummingbirds. We did see but not photograph the babies when the parent was away.

Birding at James Reserve

Anna's Hummingbird


Stellar's jay




Black-headed grosbeak


Western Bluebird


Mountain Chickadee


Butterfly


We went to a small party Friday night and ran into Jen who mentioned that white headed woodpeckers had been spotted at the James Reserve near Idyllwild. We were planning on birding Saturday morning but had not decided where and that settled it right then and there. Jen was a great host and we had a fine time, even though we didn't see the target species. That just means we will have to come back some other time.

The Mountain Chickadee was new to Chris and we only had brief glimpses of the black-headed grosbeak before. The western bluebird is similar to eastern bluebird except that it wears sandals and is a vegetarian. Actually, it has a little more brown.

Baby Killdeer with Parent

Baby Killdeer with Parent

Chris spotted a mother and two baby killdeer in a pond at San Joaquin Wildlife Sanctuary. The babies hid under the mother for a while and then came out. One of the babies walked in a comical way that only babies can.

Wilson's Phalarope

Wilson's Phalarope

Here's a new bird for us from San Joaquin Wildlife Sanctuary: a Wilson's Phalarope. There were several but only one male still in the spring plumage. We also saw some black skimmers on the stream in front.

Red-tailed Hawk with a snake

Red-tailed Hawk

Botanical Gardens, UC Riverside

Hooded Oriole at La Sierra University

Hooded Oriole

We took our morning walk today to the campus of La Sierra University. It's a small, quiet university, beautifully landscaped and is home to a few bird species. The hooded orioles are new to us and we saw a few pairs including one feeding a fledgling.

Birds of Prey at La Sierra University

Red-tailed Hawk

Kestrel

Birding at Prado Regional Park, Chino

Vermilion Flycatcher

Vermillion Flycatcher (Juveniles)

We went birding on the morning of July 4 at Prado Regional Park in Chino. The most exciting find for us was the Vermilion Flycatcher. This one was feeding two juveniles. 

The western grebes were also caring for a juvenile.

Western Grebes

Whe we first arrived, we saw a few common yellowthroats and later we saw the lesser goldfinch.

Common Yellowthroat

Lesser Goldfinch

On the way out we spotted a few Nutmeg Mannikins.

Nutmeg Mannikin

All in all, it was pretty good birding for a quick trip to a nearby park.

Juvenile Black-Crowned Night Heron

Juvenile Black-Crowned Night Heron

We are happy that we'll be able to see black-crowned night herons near our new home. Here's a juvenile we found near Riverwalk.

Western Bluebird

Western Bluebird

We took a walk this evening to La Sierra University and found a few birds on the campus. There was a family of Western Bluebirds but only the male would pose for a photo.