Malibu Lagoon Field Trip Report: 24 Feb., 2013

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Windy welcome for the hardy souls who came out on February 24th! We were wondering what birds – if any – might be seen in such a blustery locale, but we were certainly rewarded! It was a significant contrast to earlier expeditions along the narrow temporary path to the beach. What had been the muddy mess was suddenly hardened clay with parched cracks under our footsteps. When we got to the beach little was to be seen except a distant flock of gulls on the exposed beach near The Point. Even the Snowy Plovers were scattered in little groups near tiny windbreaks such as a beached sea urchin; anything to get some relief form the wind.

But as the day wore on, the wind died down and we were able to see a number of our usual species, albeit smaller numbers of shorebirds than usual. Our reward came when we observed a group of Common Mergansers frolicking in the Lagoon while we were finishing our adventure at the Adamson House landing. Even from a distance, it was obvious we had witnessed a special event as this is a rarely-seen LA County species.

Our census of the birds in the channel during the project period this month was: No. Shoveler 2, Bufflehead 1, Pied-billed Grebe 1, Double-crested Cormorant 6, Great Blue Heron 1, Coot 3, Ring-billed Gull 4, Western Gull 2, California Gull 6, Anna’s Hummingbird 1, Tree Swallow 6, Cliff Swallow 3.

Brant – absent in January – returned in force, with 15 individuals beating their prior record of 11 on 6/27/10. The six (4 male, 2 female) Common Mergansers were unusual, as this species prefers fresh water over brackish or salt; in over 30 years we’ve recorded only 7 previous visits to the lagoon. One Raven showed up – they’re always in the general area but we hadn’t recorded one since 11/28/10. The Cliff Swallows are returning migrants – a bit early it seems to me, as we have only 1 previous record for February. Snowy Plover PV:YB was back on the beach among the 36 roosting birds.

Our next three field trips:  Hiker Lu’s Santa Monica Mountains Explorama, 9 Mar, 8:30am;  Malibu Lagoon, 24 Mar, 8:30am; Walker Ranch (Placerita Cyn) 6 Apr, 8:30am.
Our next program:  Tuesday, 2 Apr., 7:30 pm at Cristine Reed Park.   Topic to be announced.  The usual reminders will be emailed from the blog.

NOTE: Our 10 a.m. Parent’s & Kids Birdwalk will resume on 28 April, 2013.

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:   Feb. total birds of 1104 are 29% below average; low numbers are mainly in the gulls and coots.
Species Diversity:  February 2013 with 52 species was  8% below the 56.3 6-year average, a minor variance.
Summary of species diversity from the 6-year average so far:  June -10%, July +10%, Aug. -6%, Sep. -20%, Oct. +5%, Nov +2%, Dec -4%, Jan +2%, Feb -8%. Still, the only constant is change.
10-year comparison summaries are available on our Lagoon Project Census Summaries Page.
[Lu Plauzoles & Chuck Almdale]