An amazing bird found on 27 Dec was this Brown Booby (above, photo © Cooper Scollan). It was seen sitting at the end of Wharf #2 in Monterey Harbor before flying off by two guys arriving to work at the fish company at wharf's end (John Lucido, Klaus Campbell). They did not know that the Monterey Peninsula CBC was underway that day — but they contributed the bird of the count!

Unfortunately, a young Indigo Bunting in Steve Rovell's Marina yard 22-23 Dec (right, photo 22 Dec © S. Rovell) did not stick around for the count.

Throughout November, dozens of Humboldt squid Dosidicus gigas were found beached along the Pacific Grove shoreline, attracting much attention from wintering gulls and from Brown Pelicans (above, 24 Nov © Don Roberson). According to the Monterey Bay Aquarium web site, these large squid can grow to six feet, weigh up to 110 pounds and feed on a staggering array of prey items. The Aquarium has captured some healthy ones but they are very hard to maintain in captivity. This squid appeared here during the major El Niño of 1997-98, and some remained in Monterey Bay for ten years, then disappeared. According to a news interview with an Aquarium scientist, this fall's event is a mysterious re-appearance.

While watching the gulls and squid on 24 Nov, hundreds of Pacific Loon were streaming past Pt. Pinos, and a flock of Surf Scoters (right) included a male Black Scoter (second scoter in top row, right © D. Roberson).

This first-cycle Franklin's Gull (left © D. Roberson) was encountered with a flock of 110 Ring-billed Gulls in a strawberry field along Giberson Road, enroute to Zmudowski SB, on 4 Nov.

In early November, migrant Short-eared Owls were encountered. Four were present along Moro Cojo Slough on 6 Nov (photo of a male, below left, © Rick Fournier), where they might winter. More unexpected was a migrant over Monterey Bay, 6 miles west of Moss Landing, on 4 Nov (Kate Cummings).

In late October, a first-year Red-naped Sapsucker, molting from juvenal into formative plumage, was in willows at the gatehouse for Monterey Dunes Colony (photo 21 Oct, below right, © Rick Fournier).

The flocks of crossbills included adult males, females, and younger birds. They looked smallish, with thinner and (maybe) longer bills than the type 2 Red Crossbills of invasions past and, in contrast to those prior birds, these 2012 crossbills appeared to forage only on cypress cones. A male from the 15 Sep flock is shown at left (© D. Roberson).

Their calls were faster, softer, higher-pitched and "wirey" in comparison to the usual, stronger "kip-kip-kip" of type 2 Red Crossbills. On 15 Sep in the Pacific Grove cemetery, I switched my digital camera to a "video" mode and shot a wild Blair-Witch-Project unviewable movie, but in the background you can hear the vocalizations at this link [just close your eyes and listen, weeding out the cries of crows]. These vocalization have been confirmed as type 3 Red Crossbill by crossbill researcher Dr. Jamie Cornelius.

There are 8–10 "types" of Red Crossbills in North America, which differ in size, bill shape, vocalizations, habitat, and food preference. They may eventually prove to be multiple different species. The one that normally reaches MTY in 'invasion years' is type 2, a pine-loving population that is widespread, and includes the Sierra Nevada. Type 3 is usually a taiga species, mostly in Alaska and Canada where it prefers spruce and hemlock; see a page by Jeff Groth (and use links there to check out the original 8 types). This year a huge southward invasion of type 3 crossbills is underway across much of the northern United States.

Here in Monterey County, flocks ranging from 6 to 50 birds were at numerous sites in Pacific Grove between 8-16 September. Small flocks were also seen in the City of Monterey and on the MTY side of Fremont Peak (on 13 Sep), while others have been in Santa Cruz. However, after that week, most of them have seemingly evaporated. Be sure to continue to report any crossbills you encounter this fall/winter, and more recordings would help us understand whether the entire autumn 2012 invasion is composed of just type 3 crossbills. As far as I know, this type has not been documented in MTY before.

Good migrant waders continued to be located in September. Two juvenal Ruff were present, including this male near Salinas (near right, photo 10 Sep © D. Roberson). Even better was a juvenal Buff-breasted Sandpiper at Moonglow Diary 8-11 Sep (far right, photo 8 Sep © D. Roberson). It has been quite a number of years since there was a chaseable "Buffy" in MTY.

Most of our rarer shorebirds are HY (=hatch-year) individuals in juvenal plumage. Nearly all the Baird's and Pectoral Sandpipers each fall migration are such young birds. Therefore it is a treat to find a wayward adult among them occasionally. The photo below, from 10 Sep (© D. Roberson) shows an adult Pectoral Sandpiper (left-hand bird) next to a juvenal Pectoral (right-hand bird). Note the substantial differences in back and covert feathers, and in the breast pattern.

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