[Text by Chuck Almdale; photos by Ray Juncosa & Chris Tosdevin]

Don’t miss the quiz at the bottom.

Ho hum, another beautiful day in paradise, fighting vaguely the old ennui. I can’t complain, but sometimes I still do, as someone once wrote. We were forewarned the temperature would go over 80°F, but it started at 62° and was only 70° by 11am. I arrived early and counted a mere 125 Brown Pelicans, which appeared to have at least quadrupled before I left but after the time I could tolerate counting them all again. Marie was already there and alerted me to the presence of a Black-necked Stilt and one of the phalaropes, somewhere around, perhaps on the other side of one of the islands. There eventually proved to be two stilts, rarely together, except for the photo below. Many of the birders asked about them: “Have they ever been here before? I don’t recall ever seeing them here.”

My records show for Black-necked Stilts on 319 monthly walks during period 10/21/79 – 6/23/24 (45 1/2 years): 11 appearances and 36 birds total, or 3.4% of the time; 26 birds and 4 of the visits were in April, the remaining 7 visits and 11 birds were scattered over 6 months; they’ve been entirely absent January – March.

So…yeah…not too common at the lagoon. Chances are better for them south at Back Bay Newport, or north at Pt. Mugu NAS where the marshes and tidal flats are more extensive.

As typical for this time of year, the swallows – Barn, Cliff, Rough-winged and Tree, in that order of abundance – were busily catching bugs and feeding their young. Perched in the island grass just past the north channel (see above) was a small family of Barn Swallows, plus an adult and juvenile Tree Swallow on an adjacent stem of grass. Most people got a decent telescope view, but getting a group photo proved difficult.

We don’t get a lot of phalaropes at the lagoon. Over the years – and the same 319 visits – we have amassed the following:
Wilson’s Phalarope: 4 visits, 4 birds, June-Sept, most recently 7/23/23.
Red Phalarope: 2 visits, 2 birds, Sept & Nov, most recently 11/6/82!!
Red-necked Phalarope: 22 visits, 75 birds, Apr – Nov, except June & Oct., most recently 8/27/23.
Obviously the Red-necked is the most frequent of the three to visit, showing up a whopping 6.9% of the time. I don’t keep these numbers in my head, but I’m well aware that of the three the Red-necked is by far the most common (or least uncommon).

So when we finally located the bird, out poking over the sand and gravel on one of the islands rather than spinning in the water, creating a whirlpool vortex to suck up tiny invertebrates from the depths, I was quite surprised – thrilled, really – to discover that it was not just a Wilson’s Phalarope, but a female in bright alternate plumage. It hung around for most of the morning, moving around a lot. I hope everyone got a good look because it might be a long time before you see this bird in this plumage again.

All three phalarope species fall into that very small group of species that are polyandrous and exhibit reversed sexual dimorphism. This means that the female mates with several males; the males then handle all the nesting and chick-rearing duties while she “moves on,” so to speak. [Women are always elated to hear about this although I can’t imagine why.] She’s more brightly colored than the male, whose drabness helps to camouflage him and his eggy nest. I wrote a three-part blog series a few years back on the close relationship between polyandry and reverse sexual dimorphism, which you can find beginning here. Oddly enough, it leads off with a photo of a female Wilson’s Phalarope in breeding plumage, taken at the lagoon by chapter member and Snowy Plover maven Grace Murayama.

The breeding birds were busy. Here’s an adult male House Finch apparently stuffing some food down a young one’s gullet while another protests.

I hand out little lagoon bird checklists to any birder who wants one. I suspect that most birders find them too challenging to read – they double quite nicely as a test for presbyopia – or if they bother to record birds they do it onto eBird over their smartphones. My 2-sided 1/4-page list has 140 birds on it and includes everything that has shown up at least 3.1% of the time. People ask if we ever have to write things in. Last year I wrote in 26 birds. So we regularly find irregular birds.

While on the beach path at the north end of the channels I saw Ruth waving frantically at me while Chris was pointing ahead. “Must be a good bird,” says I to myself. When I got there and figured out which bush it was on, I was pleased to see a male Scaly-breasted Munia (Lonchura punctulata) in breeding plumage. Well, of course it’s an introduced bird, but it’s quite attractive and I couldn’t recall seeing one at the lagoon before. They’ve been in SoCal for decades, expanding their range very slowly. It must be thirty years since I first saw them at Huntington Beach Central Park, only 50 miles to the south. Someone was recently on the LACoBirds chatline looking for sightings of these munias being nest-parasitized by Pin-tailed Whydahs. No whydahs at the lagoon, yet, although they’re not far away at Madrona Marsh. Scaly-breasted Munias are native to SE Asia, from India to China and through Indonesia to the Wallace Line. They’re very attractive and have been popular cage birds for centuries. They must be pretty good at escaping their cages as you can find them all around the world, living in people’s parks and gardens. This species was a new bird to our SMBAS monthly lagoon trip list. Dan Cooper recorded the first one at the lagoon way back on 26 Sep 2016.

The birds were flocking out to sea, and every now and then we’d spot a dolphin’s dorsal fin briefly breaking the surface. More and more birds showed up – pelicans and gulls – so we knew that they’d found a school of fish. In reply to a question concerning what they were eating I replied that Top Smelt comes first to mind but that I really don’t know. Anyone care to opine?

On our way back to our cars we stopped by the metal “bird hide” to watch a Green Heron on the sand at the west end of the nearby island (see photo below), stalking the water’s edge.

The light was bright, the sun well positioned and we could actually see olive-green on the bird’s back. Suddenly, from the brush behind it, this small rodent-looking animal scuttled across the sand towards the water, and after a few seconds, ran into a small patch of foliage at water’s edge. We watched for a few minutes but it never reemerged. It looked like a well-inflated 10″ sausage with a short naked tail, very small ears and very short legs. We didn’t get a photo. When I got home I googled photos, texts and maps and came up with Botta’s Pocket Gopher Thomomys bottae. It’s the only one of five possible pocket gophers in California that’s in Los Angeles County. Lillian recalled seeing pocket gophers at the lagoon prior to the 2012 lagoon reconfiguration. We have them in our back yard, gnawing on the roots of our bushes, and I’m familiar with their noses, which is all you normally see of them. Nearly all photos of pocket gopher on the web show only the head sticking up out of a hole, but this one has most of the animal.

The photo below shows a Botta’s in almost the same habitat as the lagoon, sans vegetation. This is exactly what the one at the lagoon looked like, scuttling across the sand: a fat furry sausage with a short naked tail.

In the process of figuring out what this was, I contacted Karen Martin, Pepperdine University professor and beach lover. She passed my query on to coworker Rodney Honeycutt, who informed me that – among other things – pocket gophers like sandy soil and can swim. He sent me a link to a PDF of a study with the intriguing title of “Swimming Ability of Pocket Gophers (Geomyidae)” by Troy L. Best (Univ. of Oklahoma) and E. Blake Hart (Univ. of Kansas. LINK. Among their conclusions they write: “If an “average” Geomys (in water shallow enough for it to occasionally touch the bottom) swam for 362 seconds at an average speed of 17 cm/sec, it could cross a placid body of water more than 50 m across.” The portion of the channel that the gopher headed for was about as shallow and narrow as it is anywhere in the lagoon area, perhaps as narrow as 10 ft, not more than 30 ft. So it could swim across that in 18-54 seconds. I hope the distance was closer to 10 that 30 feet because (see below) this is the sort of thing that can happen to a pocket gopher when out in the open.

Quiz Time!

All photos are from Malibu Lagoon 6-23-24). No fantasy photos or remote locales.

Quiz Answers & credits
#1. Pied-billed Grebe (Chris Tosdevin 6-23-24)
#2. Both are Snowy Egrets (Chris Tosdevin 6-23-24)
#3. Willet, still in breeding (alternate) plumage, which they quickly lose (Chris Tosdevin 6-23-24)
#4. Black Phoebe, commonly near water (Chris Tosdevin 6-23-24)
#5. Black-crowned Night Heron, juvenile, probably same one we had last month (Ray Juncosa 6-23-24)
#6. Two Heermann’s Gulls, left – 1 year old (2nd summer) , right – adult, back from breeding; adult Western Gull behind. Heermann’s come north for the winter. (Chris Tosdevin 6-23-24)

Malibu Lagoon on eBird as of 6-28-24: 7827 lists, 320 species
Most recent species added: Red-breasted Nuthatch (31 October 2023, Kyle Te Poel).

Birds new for the season: Black-necked Stilt, Black-bellied Plover, Wilson’s Phalarope, Forster’s Tern, Green Heron, Tree Swallow, Scaly-breasted Bishop, Spotted Towhee, Hooded Oriole, Red-winged Blackbird.  “New for the season” means it has been three or more months since last recorded on our trips.

Many, many thanks to photographers: Ray Juncosa & Chris Tosdevin

Upcoming SMBAS scheduled field trips; no reservations or Covid card necessary unless specifically mentioned:

• Mt. Pinos Birds & Butterflies Sat 20 July 8am
• Malibu Lagoon, Sun. July 28, 8:30 (adults) & 10 am (parents & kids)
• Malibu Lagoon, Sun. Aug 25, 8:30 (adults) & 10 am (parents & kids)
• These and any other trips we announce for the foreseeable future will depend upon expected status of the Covid/flu/etc. pandemic at trip time. Any trip announced may be canceled shortly before trip date if it seems necessary. By now any other comments should be superfluous.
• Link to Programs & Field Trip schedule.

The next SMBAS Zoom program: To be announced, Evening Meeting, Tuesday, October 1, 2024, 7:30 p.m.

The SMBAS 10 a.m. Parent’s & Kids Birdwalk is again running. Reservations not necessary for families, but for groups (scouts, etc.), call Jean (213-522-0062).

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

Prior checklists:
2023: Jan-June, July-Dec 2024:
2021: Jan-July,  July-Dec 2022: Jan-June, July-Dec
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 Marie Barnidge-McIntyre, Lillian Johnson, Chris Lord, Chris Tosdevin, Ruth Tosdevin & others for their contributions to this month’s checklist.

The species lists below is irregularly re-sequenced to agree with the California Bird Records Committee Official California Checklist. If part of the right side of the chart below is hidden, there’s a slider button inconveniently located at the bottom end of the list. The numbers 1-9 left of the species names are keyed to the nine categories of birds at the bottom.
[Chuck Almdale]

	Malibu Census 2023-24	1/28	2/25	3/24	4/28	5/26	6/23
	Temperature	53-64	51-62	46-54	62-72	57-64	62-72
	Tide Lo/Hi Height	H+5.06	H+5.06	H+4.71	L-0.14	L-0.77	L-1.17
	Tide Time	1008	0921	0936	0738	0635	0537
1	Brant (Black)					2
1	Canada Goose	8	9	7	6	8	9
1	Cinnamon Teal	3		2
1	Northern Shoveler	10		4		2
1	Gadwall	54	40	24	20	22	35
1	American Wigeon			4
1	Mallard	7	35	12	10	14	15
1	Green-winged Teal	17	25	4
1	Surf Scoter	4	32	6	4
1	Long-tailed Duck				1
1	Bufflehead	12
1	Red-breasted Merganser	4	2	9	4	2
1	Ruddy Duck	30	1
2	Pied-billed Grebe	2				1	1
2	Eared Grebe	1
2	Western Grebe	14	240			9	1
7	Feral Pigeon	4	4	2		5	3
7	Eurasian Collared-Dove		1
7	Mourning Dove		4			2	5
8	Anna’s Hummingbird		1	2	2	2	1
8	Allen’s Hummingbird	5	5	5	1	5	1
2	American Coot	148	46	63		1
5	Black-necked Stilt						2
5	Black Oystercatcher				4
5	Black-bellied Plover	45	42	3			1
5	Killdeer	18	12	3	6	4	3
5	Semipalmated Plover				9
5	Snowy Plover		21	20
5	Whimbrel	4	6	39	4	2
5	Marbled Godwit	5	20	20
5	Wilson’s Phalarope						1
5	Spotted Sandpiper				1
5	Willet	3	15	4	2		2
5	Greater Yellowlegs				1
5	Ruddy Turnstone	5	2
5	Sanderling	7	10
5	Least Sandpiper	16	20	12	2
5	Western Sandpiper		8	20
6	Bonaparte’s Gull				2	10
6	Heermann’s Gull	12	60	16		6	65
6	Ring-billed Gull	25	200	18	4	3
6	Western Gull	30	85	58	16	45	160
6	Herring Gull	2		3
6	California Gull	270	400	170	60	38	3
6	Glaucous-winged Gull	3	3	1
6	Caspian Tern			2	20	8
6	Forster’s Tern						1
6	Elegant Tern				200	190	25
6	Royal Tern	3		4	60	2
2	Red-throated Loon		1		2
2	Pacific Loon	1	1
2	Common Loon					1
2	Brandt’s Cormorant		1	1		35
2	Pelagic Cormorant	1	4	1		1	4
2	Double-crested Cormorant	18	28	32	26	120	24
2	Brown Pelican	26	300	171	235	348	125
3	Black-crowned Night-Heron	1			1	1	2
3	Snowy Egret	7	6	3	3	2	7
3	Green Heron						1
3	Great Egret				5	4	9
3	Great Blue Heron	1	3	1	4		3
4	Turkey Vulture					1
4	Osprey	1			1
4	Red-shouldered Hawk			1
4	Red-tailed Hawk	1
8	Belted Kingfisher	1	2
8	Nuttall’s Woodpecker					1
9	Black Phoebe	1	4	2	4	7	3
9	Cassin’s Kingbird		1		4
9	Warbling Vireo					1
9	California Scrub-Jay	2	2	2	1
9	American Crow	10	10	4	3	4	6
9	Common Raven			1	2	3
9	Tree Swallow			1			3
9	Violet-green Swallow				2	8
9	No. Rough-winged Swallow			5	5	2	5
9	Barn Swallow			10	10	20	20
9	Cliff Swallow					30	6
9	Bushtit	12	12	2	2	5	9
9	Wrentit	1	2			2	1
9	Blue-gray Gnatcatcher		1	1
9	House Wren		1			1
9	European Starling	2	19	5
9	Hermit Thrush	1
9	Scaly-breasted Munia						1
9	House Finch	12	12	15	10	15	11
9	Lesser Goldfinch	6	20	20	2	5	2
9	Dark-eyed Junco					2
9	White-crowned Sparrow	15	12	15
9	Song Sparrow	10	10	14	10	5	5
9	California Towhee	1	2	1	1	4	4
9	Spotted Towhee			1			1
9	Hooded Oriole						1
9	Red-winged Blackbird	2	35	4			11
9	Brown-headed Cowbird			2
9	Great-tailed Grackle		1	3		2	3
9	Orange-crowned Warbler	2	2	1	1	1
9	Common Yellowthroat	5	2	2		1
9	Yellow-rumped Warbler (Aud)	6	10	4
	Totals by Type	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun
1	Waterfowl	149	144	72	45	50	59
2	Water Birds – Other	211	621	268	263	516	155
3	Herons, Egrets & Ibis	9	9	4	13	7	22
4	Quail & Raptors	2	0	1	1	1	0
5	Shorebirds	103	156	123	29	6	9
6	Gulls & Terns	345	748	272	362	302	254
7	Doves	4	9	2	0	7	8
8	Other Non-Passerines	6	8	7	3	8	2
9	Passerines	88	158	115	57	118	92
	Totals Birds	917	1853	864	773	1015	601
	Total Species	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun
1	Waterfowl	10	7	9	6	6	3
2	Water Birds – Other	8	8	5	3	8	5
3	Herons, Egrets & Ibis	3	2	2	4	3	5
4	Quail & Raptors	2	0	1	1	1	0
5	Shorebirds	8	10	8	8	2	5
6	Gulls & Terns	7	5	8	7	8	5
7	Doves	1	3	1	0	2	2
8	Other Non-Passerines	2	3	2	2	3	2
9	Passerines	16	19	22	14	19	17
	Totals Species – 99	57	57	58	45	52	44