Malibu Lagoon Trip Report: 28 October, 2012

Don’t forget to visit our new page for the Malibu Lagoon 2012 Project, frequently updated with new photos. We just added a new interview with Suzanne Goode, Also look for the link to the plant revegetation list.

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The Malibu Lagoon reconfiguration continues apace, as you’ll see from some of the photos in the slideshow above.  According to Don Harvey in Bob Purvey’s interview of 10/24/12, now on our Project Page, over 25,000 plants have been implanted and are being sprinkled until the rains are more dependable. You can’t really see them yet, but that forest of flags marks their locations.

Trip leader Lu Plauzoles reports that weather was sunny and warm, not unusual for October. Migrants continue to arrive, including: American Wigeon, Horned and Clark’s Grebes, Black-crowned Night Heron, Dunlin, Glaucous-winged Gull, Belted Kingfisher, Say’s Phoebe, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Yellow-rumped (Audubon’s) Warbler, Savannah & White-crowned Sparrows, and Western Meadowlark.  The Elegant Terns, so numerous for the past 6 months – peaking at 240 in June – have dwindled down to two and will likely be off to warmer climes in November. Duck and gull numbers continue their fall increase. Coot numbers remains high as always, probably to taper off next March.

Snowy Plover PV:YB (left leg Pink above Violet: right leg Yellow above Blue) was found on Surfrider Beach last Monday, 10/22, by alert SMBAS photographer Joyce Waterman. [The violet ring is just barely visible.] We sent this photo to Pt. Reyes Bird Observatory which informed us that PV:YB was born this year at Oceano Dunes (near Pismo Beach) where it was banded as a nestling, then later seen at Guadalupe Dunes in August, then on Surfrider in September. If you see it on the beach, give it some room, and it will likely spend the winter with us.

NOTE: Our 10 a.m. Parent’s & Kids Birdwalk remains canceled until the parking lot is again fully available.

Links: Unusual birds at Malibu Lagoon
Aerial photo of Malibu Lagoon from 9/23/02.
Prior checklists: July-Dec’11, Jan-June’11, July-Dec ’10, Jan-June ’10, Jul-Dec ‘09, and Jan-June ‘09.

Comments on Bird Lists Below
Total Birds:   Oct. total birds of 1099 are 3% above average (Jul – Sep were all down), an insignificant amount.  Brown Pelican numbers remain down, probably due to the large west coast die-off due to lack of food. Sanderlings, Terns, Yellow-rumped Warblers and Red-winged Blackbirds are well above average. Monthly total bird numbers have been up & down, up & down during the project so far.
Species Diversity:   Of 104 total species appearing in October for 2007-12, no more than 62% of them appeared on any single day. Whenever you visit, expect to see about 5/8ths of what is possible at that time of year.  October 2012 with 64 species is 5% above average, an insignificant amount.  All 9 categories of birds were about average.  Passerines were up slightly despite the lack of vegetation, probably the result of a more alert trip leader.
Summary of species diversity from the 6-year average so far:  May +4%, June -10%, July +10%, Aug. -6%, Sep. -20%, Oct. +5%. The only constant is change. It will be interesting to see the results when the project is done, the workmen are gone and the vegetation is beginning to grow.   [Chuck Almdale]

Malibu Census	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012
October 2007-12	28-Oct	26-Oct	25-Oct	24-Oct	23-Oct	28-Oct
Temperature			60-74	60-65	59-64	72-78
Tide Lo/Hi Height	H +6.9	H +5.9	L +3.5	H +6.02	H +5.40	H +5.93	Ave.
Tide Time	1036	0813	0941	0952	0718	0845	Birds
Wood Duck			1				0.2
Gadwall	2	4	4	2	6	8	4.3
Eurasian Wigeon					1		0.2
American Wigeon		3	10	1		16	5.0
Mallard	24	8	24	10	25	10	16.8
Blue-winged Teal		4			2		1.0
Cinnamon Teal		2					0.3
Northern Shoveler		15	25	8	12	18	13.0
Green-winged Teal	2		4		2		1.3
Greater Scaup	5						0.8
Bufflehead	1	2					0.5
Red-brstd Merganser						1	0.2
Ruddy Duck	3	8	18	7		4	6.7
Pacific Loon					1		0.2
Common Loon			1		1		0.3
Pied-billed Grebe	5	1	10	3	4	2	4.2
Horned Grebe	1					2	0.5
Eared Grebe	3	1	6	5	3	4	3.7
Western Grebe	18	1	20	6	10	5	10.0
Clark’s Grebe						1	0.2
Blk-vented Shearwater		12					2.0
Brandt’s Cormorant			1		3		0.7
Dble-crstd Cormorant	24	20	25	15	32	45	26.8
Pelagic Cormorant					1		0.2
Brown Pelican	182	55	8	40	12	6	50.5
Great Blue Heron	5	6	4	3	3	2	3.8
Great Egret	2		1	2	2	6	2.2
Snowy Egret	17	16	15	2	26	6	13.7
Blk-crwnd N-Heron	5	4		6		1	2.7
Osprey	1			1	1		0.5
White-tailed Kite	1						0.2
Cooper’s Hawk				1			0.2
Red-shouldered Hawk	2						0.3
Red-tailed Hawk			1		2	1	0.7
American Kestrel	1			1			0.3
Merlin					1		0.2
Peregrine Falcon			1		1		0.3
Virginia Rail					2		0.3
Sora	2	1	4	1	1		1.5
American Coot	105	140	266	100	370	250	205.2
Blk-bellied Plover	92		114	100	700	75	180.2
Snowy Plover		58	61		5	62	31.0
Killdeer	26	2	5		15	12	10.0
Black Oystercatcher					2		0.3
Spotted Sandpiper	1	3	4	3	3	3	2.8
Willet	25	16	40	26	10	7	20.7
Whimbrel	6		6		28	2	7.0
Marbled Godwit	17	12	25				9.0
Ruddy Turnstone			12	5	10	15	7.0
Black Turnstone			2		3	2	1.2
Sanderling		1	145			200	57.7
Western Sandpiper			5		1	6	2.0
Least Sandpiper	6		12		16	14	8.0
Dunlin			4		2	2	1.3
Short-billd Dowitcher			20				3.3
Long-billed Dowitcher				30	2		5.3
Wilson’s Snipe		1					0.2
Heermann’s Gull	18	45	12	41	14	8	23.0
Mew Gull	2						0.3
Ring-billed Gull	45	27	14	97	18	39	40.0
Western Gull	128	65	82	52	80	6	68.8
California Gull	5	6	123	8	120	60	53.7
Herring Gull	2	1	1	1			0.8
Glaucous-wingd Gull		1				1	0.3
Caspian Tern	2		1				0.5
Forster’s Tern	2	1				22	4.2
Royal Tern	2	1			1	11	2.5
Elegant Tern	4	2	11	4		2	3.8
Rock Pigeon	35	3	6	45	4	20	18.8
Mourning Dove	2	1	10	1	2		2.7
Anna’s Hummingbird	4	3	1	10	2	1	3.5
Allen’s Hummingbird	4	5	2	6	2	7	4.3
Belted Kingfisher		1		1	2	1	0.8
Black Phoebe	6	3	6	8	10	8	6.8
Say’s Phoebe	1	1	1		2	1	1.0
Western Scrub-Jay				1	2	2	0.8
American Crow	9	8	5	18	4	9	8.8
Tree Swallow			1				0.2
Oak Titmouse			1			1	0.3
Bushtit	8	15			20		7.2
Bewick’s Wren			5	2	1		1.3
House Wren		1	1	2	1	1	1.0
Marsh Wren	1		2				0.5
Ruby-crowned Kinglet	3	2				1	1.0
Hermit Thrush	4						0.7
Northern Mockingbird	5	1	3		2	2	2.2
European Starling	45	35	12		60	10	27.0
American Pipit	3	1					0.7
Ornge-crwnd Warbler		1					0.2
Yellow-rumpd Warbler	12	20	3	15	8	25	13.8
Blk-throated G. Warbler				1			0.2
Common Yellowthroat	3	3	3	10	9	5	5.5
Spotted Towhee	3	1		1		1	1.0
California Towhee	5	2				2	1.5
Savannah Sparrow		1	8			1	1.7
Song Sparrow	7	3	6	1	4	3	4.0
Lincoln’s Sparrow	2						0.3
White-crwnd Sparrow	4	6	4	10	18	4	7.7
Red-winged Blackbird		5				40	7.5
Western Meadowlark	1		1	1		1	0.7
Brewer’s Blackbird	9	2		1	2		2.3
Great-tailed Grackle	1	4			8	8	3.5
House Finch	4	4	4		5	4	3.5
Lesser Goldfinch	2			5	1	4	2.0
Totals by Type	28-Oct	26-Oct	25-Oct	24-Oct	23-Oct	28-Oct	Ave.
Waterfowl	37	46	86	28	48	57	50
Water Birds-Other	340	231	341	170	440	315	306
Herons, Egrets	29	26	20	13	31	15	22
Raptors	5	0	2	3	5	1	3
Shorebirds	173	93	455	164	797	400	347
Gulls & Terns	210	149	244	203	233	149	198
Doves	37	4	16	46	6	20	22
Other Non-Pass.	8	9	3	17	6	9	9
Passerines	138	119	66	76	157	133	115
Totals Birds	977	677	1233	720	1723	1099	1072
Total Species	28-Oct	26-Oct	25-Oct	24-Oct	23-Oct	28-Oct	Ave.
Waterfowl	6	8	7	5	6	6	6.3
Water Birds-Other	8	8	9	7	12	8	8.7
Herons, Egrets	4	3	3	4	3	4	3.5
Raptors	4	0	2	3	4	1	2.3
Shorebirds	7	7	14	5	13	12	9.7
Gulls & Terns	10	9	7	6	5	8	7.5
Doves	2	2	2	2	2	1	1.8
Other Non-Pass.	2	3	2	3	3	3	2.7
Passerines	22	21	17	14	17	21	18.7
Totals Species	65	61	63	49	65	64	61.2