Stints, Baird’s & other birds, Malibu Lagoon, 22 August 2021

[Posted by Chuck Almdale]

August can be excruciatingly hot. At least in theory. In actual practice on seaside Sunday mornings it’s quite pleasant. Today was slightly foggy—that’s our famous SoCal morning fog “burning off by noon.” The temperature was at 68°F at 0830, and 73°F at 1130. That is only slightly below the typical late August morning.

For the 13-year period 2009-21:
Temperature at 0830 ranged 63-72°F, average 68.3°F
Temperature at 1130 ranged 68-81°F, average 75.5°F.
Nothing to complain about there.
Then check back at 1700, after the temperature’s gone past 100°F.

Migrants from the north and possibly elsewhere continue to drop into the lagoon. We keep seeing reports of a Reddish Egret hopping around at the lagoon, but no one I personally know has ever been there at the right time to spot it. One of our birders keeps leapfrogging it: it’s there on Thursday, he’s there on Friday, it’s there on Saturday, he’s there on Sunday. So it goes, as Kurt Vonnegut frequently observed.

Our total species count popped up to 62 from July’s 40 and June’s yearly low of 34 species. Most Mallards and Gadwall have left, now that they have grown flight feathers and can fly, and the numbers of gulls, terns, cormorants and pelicans dropped. The shorebirds jumped up though: 341 birds in 17 species versus July’s 138 birds in 9 species.

The lagoon water level was high: 7’8.4″ on the tidal clock.

Black-crowned Night-Heron adult & juvenile (Ray Juncosa 8-22-21)

We dawdled at the meeting point, waiting for another group to vacate our next stop, the viewpoint near the Pacific Coast Hwy bridge. We didn’t want to be crowded, due to—you know—the current Covid-19 Delta variant explosion in infected, sick and dying.

And this is where a typical relaxed August morning’s birding took a sharp left turn.

We were sorting through a small group of about a dozen shorebirds wandering around on the thick algae coating the channel. Mostly Western and Least Sandpipers, at least 75 yards away and sunward, so we’re squinting to see color and patterns.

Western (L) and Least (R) Sandpipers (Ray Juncosa 8-22-21)

We picked out a couple of Baird’s Sandpipers, which tend to show up in small numbers at this season. Baird’s normally travel south from their high Arctic breeding grounds via the central flyway—Mississippi River and Great Plains—but a few always wander out our way. They’re about one inch longer than the 6.5” Western Sandpiper, which itself is 0.25-.50” larger than the Least Sandpiper (the world’s smallest sandpiper). Baird’s have shorter, straighter bills than the Western, and an odd yellowish color on their breasts and heads, with thin dark streaks running vertically through the yellow breast.

Chris Lord got our attention (not everyone at once) when he said: “I think one of those Baird’s has a darker throat, sort of orange or reddish…not really yellow. Maybe you should take a look at it. It might be something different.” So we all—one by one—figured out where it was and watched it through out binoculars and several scopes, as it walked around, poking at tiny invertebrates on the surface of the algae. Views weren’t wonderful.

Chris Tosdevin commented at some point: “There are little dark spots on the breast below the orange.” Chris Lord said that was a good mark to remember.

After several minutes of squinting sunward at the bird, we had decided: the color of the throat was decidedly darker in an orange or reddish or rufous sort of way; the bill was definitely short, almost straight, and thicker than the thin bill of the Least Sandpipers; the wings seemed longer than the tail although we couldn’t see the tail to judge how much longer, there were some flecks of rufous in the scapulars (back); the bird was not larger than the Western Sandpiper, possibly slightly smaller.

One of our group, either Lillian or me, commented, “Maybe it’s a Red-necked Stint. [Ha ha ha.] It sort of looks like one. [Ha ha ha.]” At some point, recalls Chris L, he asked me what my candidate species were and I said Red-necked Stint, which got him looking at his Sibley. We were all now taking turns checking through my National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America and Chris L.’s copy of Sibley’s Field Guide to Birds of Western North America. I don’t think anyone was ready to take this suggestion seriously; not because it didn’t look like a Red-necked Stint—it did—but because it was so galfangled rare.

After a few more minutes we were slowly moving towards thinking maybe that was not an absurd speculation after all and the bird actually was a Red-necked Stint, a species none of us had ever seen in North America. Lillian and I had seen a few of them in 1988-89, thirty-three years ago, in Singapore, Australia and New Zealand, when it was in basic (non-breeding or Winter) plumage, lacking any trace of red. Many of the others had never seen one at all. So…not a lot of experience in our group with this species. We’re starting to agree among ourselves that yeah, maybe it really is a Red-necked Stint, what do you think?, too bad it’s so far away, any chance at getting a photo?, and I’m looking at the bird through the telescope when it flies out of the field of view, heading west towards the private golf course.

It didn’t land, it didn’t come back. We waited 5-10 minutes but it was gone. Cue moans and groans.

Western Pygmy Blue Butterfly, Brephidium exilis, Malibu Lagoon (Chris Tosdevin 8-22-21) The smallest butterfly in the world with wing-span of 3/8ths to 3/4ths of an inch. Many live in the brush around the lagoon, almost too tiny to see.

Black-crowned Night-Heron & Great Egret (Ray Juncosa 8-22-21)

We then continued on our usual route, heading east to the viewspot near the PCH bridge. There we found a few ducks and saw a lot of shorebirds—Willets, Whimbrels, a Spotted Sandpiper, peeps, Black-bellied Plovers, a Least Tern and two Caspian Terns, a few gulls and cormorants and some scurrying Snowy Plovers—far across the lagoon to the south, on the lagoon shore of the beach. So we headed back around the lagoon to get a closer look at them.

We birded as we went, as always. Four species of egret/heron, some Killdeer, Anna’s and Allen’s Hummingbird, a moblet of Bushtits, House Finches, several Common Yellowthroats, a Mockingbird, Black Phoebes, Starlings, Great-tailed Grackles. The usual suspects.

We made our way through the beach crowd enraptured by large, surfer-covered waves, and to the SE corner of the lagoon, past the long flock of gulls, Double-crested Cormorants, Brown Pelican and the many larger shorebirds including Willet, Whimbrel, Marbled Godwit and Black-bellied Plovers. Here, walking on the algae coat, were about 150 peeps—small shorebirds like Western and Least Sandpiper, Sanderling, Dunlin, Ruddy Turnstone, Semipalmated Plover and two Short-billed Dowitcher. Nearby, in the sand, were about thirty Snowy Plovers, doing their best to dodge the many zombified beachwalkers oblivious to the presence of tiny sandpipers underfoot.

Among the peeps on the algae were a few Baird’s Sandpipers and far out, near the edge of the algal mat, two Red-necked Phalaropes. Unbeknownst to us, Chris Lord was vigorously scope-combing one-by-one through the peeps for the “stint,” subjecting them to this analysis: “It was the only bird I sought in those peeps. I used a yes/no screen until I got to yes! I called our attention to it, ‘That orangey bird is right in front of us,’ then gave better directions.”

I waved in the few members of our group who were off chatting, and we all got on the bird for at least 40 minutes. The light was better at this angle, the bird was closer, and we slowly became more certain that it was indeed a Red-necked Stint. Not convinced, just more certain. Several of us got photos.

Chris Lord recollects: “As we discussed the bird’s field marks, all indicated Red-necked Stint. I also pointed out that nothing we’d seen made it not a Red-necked Stint except the unlikelihood of its being in Malibu. I should have quoted (but didn’t) my uncle Ralph, the first bird watcher I knew or even heard of, who would say about finding an unlikely oddity, ‘Well you know they have wings, and they fly.’ However anybody else saw and described the color, it was always—rightly or wrongly—orangey to me, never rufous or otherwise.”

Most of us don’t carry phones (what’s the collective noun for Luddites?—how about A smashing of Luddites) and no one had anyone we could call anyway. So I suggested to Chris T. that he send some photos off to Kimball Garrett at the L.A. County Museum of Natural History when he got home. He did that, posted the sighting with some photos into eBird and after Kimball confirmed the sighting as Red-necked Stint, Chris sent a note to the manager of LA County weekly rare bird report.

Apparently others were interested in seeing this bird, and a few people showed up before dawn the next day (Monday, 23 August). It (or another Red-necked Stint just like it) was relocated around 0810. Three days later, it’s still there. As of blog posting time, it was last reported to LACoBirds hot line on Weds. 25 Aug, and last reported to eBird on 26 Aug at 7:26am., the 71^st such reporting. 
Link to Malibu Lagoon on eBird

Ruddy Turnstone plumage variations (Ray Juncosa 8-22-21)

Two plovers: Semipalmated and Western Snowy (ringed g:y/g) (Chris Tostevin 8-22-21)

Many thanks to photographers: Femi Faminu, Lillian Johnson, Ray Juncosa & Chris Tosdevin

Two Red-necked Phalaropes (Chris Tosdevin 8-25-21)

The next SMBAS scheduled field trips: Maybe January 2022. Wear your masks, get your shots, and maybe someday we can have organized trips again.

The next SMBAS program: Zoom Evening Meeting, Topic TBA, early October, 7:30 p.m.

The SMBAS 10 a.m. Parent’s & Kids Birdwalk remains canceled until further notice due to the near-impossibility of maintained proper masked social distancing with parents and small children.

Links: Unusual birds at Malibu Lagoon
9/23/02 Aerial photo of Malibu Lagoon

Prior checklists:
2021: Jan-July
2020: Jan-July, July-Dec  2019: Jan-June, July-Dec  
2018: Jan-June, July-Dec  2017: Jan-June, July-Dec
2016: Jan-June, July-Dec  2015: Jan-May, July-Dec
2014: Jan-July,  July-Dec  2013: Jan-June, July-Dec
2012: Jan-June, July -Dec 2011: Jan-June, July-Dec
2010: Jan-June, July-Dec  2009: Jan-June, July-Dec.

The 10-year comparison summaries created during the Lagoon Reconfiguration Project period, remain available—despite numerous complaints—on our Lagoon Project Bird Census Page. Very briefly summarized, the results unexpectedly indicate that avian species diversification and numbers improved slightly during the restoration period June’12-June’14.

Many thanks to Jean Garrett, Lillian Johnson, Ray Juncosa, Chris Lord, Chris Tosdevin, Ruth Tosdevin, and others for their contributions to this month’s checklist.
[Chuck Almdale]

	Malibu Census 2021	3/22	4/25	5/22	6/20	7/22	8/22
	Temperature	60-61	58-63	59-68	63-69	66-74	68-73
	Tide Lo/Hi Height	L+0.86	H+4.83	L+1.57	H+4.89	H+4.20	H+4.55
	Tide Time	1223	0843	0736	0627	1148	1034
1	(Black) Brant		1
1	Canada Goose	6	8	6	10
1	Cinnamon Teal	7
1	Northern Shoveler	8
1	Gadwall	16	25	18	65	48	12
1	American Wigeon	8
1	Mallard	16	18	22	40	37	9
1	Green-winged Teal	25
1	Surf Scoter	2
1	Red-breasted Merganser	12	3		1	1	1
1	Ruddy Duck						2
2	Pied-billed Grebe	6	1	1		2	1
2	Eared Grebe	2
2	Western Grebe	11	4
7	Feral Pigeon	6	9	15	9	15	6
7	Mourning Dove	6			2	4	3
8	Anna’s Hummingbird	3	1	1	1	1	1
8	Allen’s Hummingbird	2	4	2	1		3
2	American Coot	235	75	6	9	8	2
5	Black Oystercatcher	4
5	Black-bellied Plover	31	22	5	13	43	90
5	Snowy Plover	23				9	29
5	Semipalmated Plover		29			1	4
5	Killdeer	7	1	6	4	9	20
5	Whimbrel	6	3	19	9	51	17
5	Marbled Godwit	10					4
5	Ruddy Turnstone	5			2	2	8
5	Red-necked Stint						1
5	Sanderling	160					12
5	Dunlin		1				2
5	Baird’s Sandpiper						5
5	Least Sandpiper	8	1			8	35
5	Western Sandpiper	4	20			12	65
5	Short-billed Dowitcher						3
5	Spotted Sandpiper		1				2
5	Willet	6	2	1			40
5	Red-necked Phalarope					1	4
6	Heermann’s Gull	42	28	280		2	1
6	Ring-billed Gull	12	6
6	Western Gull	65	40	35	45	52	55
6	California Gull	130	35	10	4	1	4
6	Herring Gull	1
6	Glaucous-winged Gull	1	1	1			1
6	Least Tern						1
6	Caspian Tern	4	20	13	3		2
6	Royal Tern	24	6		2	5
6	Elegant Tern		395	107	1	240	1
2	Double-crested Cormorant	25	12	26	26	52	27
2	Pelagic Cormorant		1				1
2	Brown Pelican	27	105	235	27	58	30
3	Great Blue Heron			3	2	5	4
3	Great Egret	2	1	1	4	11	4
3	Snowy Egret	3	2	1	6	22	24
3	Green Heron			1
3	Black-crowned Night-Heron					9	3
4	Turkey Vulture	1		1
4	Osprey	2	2	1
4	Cooper’s Hawk					1	1
4	Red-shouldered Hawk			2			1
8	Belted Kingfisher						1
4	Peregrine Falcon		1
9	Black Phoebe	2	8	6		3	4
9	Western Kingbird			1
9	California Scrub-Jay	2				1	1
9	American Crow	5	4	4	3	4	4
9	Common Raven	1
9	Violet-green Swallow			2
9	Rough-winged Swallow	6	2	3			2
9	Cliff Swallow			8	4		4
9	Barn Swallow	10	25	30	18	40	25
9	Oak Titmouse			2		1	2
9	Bushtit	20	1	8	4	1	20
9	Wrentit						1
9	Western Bluebird	2
9	Northern Mockingbird	2	4	5	2	1	1
9	European Starling	75	5		8		30
9	House Finch	10	6	6	6	6	18
9	Lesser Goldfinch	16	2				2
9	Spotted Towhee		1				1
9	California Towhee	4		3			1
9	Song Sparrow	7	7	8	4	5	3
9	White-crowned Sparrow	6	2
9	Hooded Oriole		1	1
9	Red-winged Blackbird	2	2	4		25
9	Brown-headed Cowbird	2	1		1
9	Great-tailed Grackle	8	6	6	8	20	5
9	Common Yellowthroat	3			4		2
9	Yellow Warbler			2
9	Yellow-rumped Warbler	15	1
	Totals by Type	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug
1	Waterfowl	100	55	46	116	86	24
2	Water Birds – Other	306	198	268	62	120	61
3	Herons, Egrets & Ibis	5	3	6	12	47	35
4	Quail & Raptors	3	3	4	0	1	2
5	Shorebirds	264	80	31	28	136	341
6	Gulls & Terns	279	531	446	55	300	65
7	Doves	12	9	15	11	19	9
8	Other Non-Passerines	5	5	3	2	1	5
9	Passerines	198	78	99	62	107	126
	Totals Birds	1172	962	918	348	817	668
	Total Species	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug
1	Waterfowl	9	5	3	4	3	4
2	Water Birds – Other	6	6	4	3	4	5
3	Herons, Egrets & Ibis	2	2	4	3	4	4
4	Quail & Raptors	2	2	3	0	1	2
5	Shorebirds	11	9	4	4	9	17
6	Gulls & Terns	8	8	6	5	5	7
7	Doves	2	1	1	2	2	2
8	Other Non-Passerines	2	2	2	2	1	3
9	Passerines	20	17	17	11	11	18
	Totals Species – 89	62	52	44	34	40	62