San Joaquin County |
all photos & text by Don Roberson
all photos taken in California |
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Bonaparte's Gulls
20 Nov 2005 at Stockton wastewater treatment ponds |
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![]() County birding statistics and links are on Joe Morlan's site. An introduction to local birding spots in San Joaquin County is on the Stanislaus Audubon site. |
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For San Joaquin County the focus is on the
wintering flocks of Bonaparte's Gulls. Although these dainty gulls are
widespread in California in migration, this is a famed spot for large concentrations
in winter. In 20 March 1979, Dick Erickson found a Little Gull among the
Bonaparte's; I chased it that afternoon and was successful (below left);
it was one of the first chaseable Little Gulls in California, and would
start a string of nine winters in which the Stockton ponds hosted up to
4 different Little Gulls. That afternoon of 20 March 1979, I discovered
an adult Black-headed Gull. That individual would return for 8 consecutive
winters (my shot below right is from Oct 1982, during its 5th year of known
occurrence). These two species would make the Stockton ponds famous throughout
North America.
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Below are a couple views of those Stockton wastewater ponds (both taken 20 Nov 2005). The lower shot shows Rita Carratello and Tim Manolis birding the ponds. It is very much a "scope necessary' sort of spot. | ||
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All photos & text © 2006 Don Roberson; all rights reserved. | ||
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