The final highlight of the first half of 2021 was reported on 31 May, when Brian Sullivan discovered an alternate-plumaged Stilt Sandpiper at a restricted access site near Salinas. This is the first-ever spring record from MTY, although it is certainly very late in spring migration! The bird was in nice breeding plumage (=alternate plumage; photo from 2 June, left, © Brian L. Sullivan). It proved to be present from 30 May-2 June.
    Locally, we might average about one Stilt Sandpiper annually, but nearly all of them have been juvs in fall migration, and just a handful in basic plumage in late fall or early winter. The only other Stilt Sandpiper in alternate plumage was an adult at Castroville on 4 July 1994 (S.F. Bailey, D. Roberson, R. Carratello).

The other late May shorebird vies with the Rusty Blackbird (below) for the best bird of 2021 so far. On 29 May, newly-arrived MTY resident, but long-time Bay Area birder, Steve Tucker, discovered an alternate-plumage White-rumped Sandpiper at a restricted site in the lower Salinas Valley (two photos below, © Steve Tucker). This is a major rarity anywhere in California, yet over half of the State's records have been very late spring vagrants in late May or early June.
    California has had less than 25 White-rumped Sandpipers ever, but MTY has four them now: two in spring and two in fall. The other spring bird was at the Carmel River mouth from 2-7 June 1978 (found by Jeri Langham). The two fall birds were at the Salinas WTP, back when those were active, and both were adults heading south in fall: 14-15 Sep 1985 (found by S.N.G. Howell; also seen 18 Sep 1985 at Salinas R. m. by P.J. Metropulos), and from 1-9 2007 (found by B.L. Sullivan, and seen by many). Unfortunately, this year's White-rumped was never refound after it was discovered and documented.

Typically in late May or early June, MTY birders locate a few "eastern" landbird rarities at "vagrant traps" along the coast. This was not a typical year. Spring was unseasonably cold and had many more foggy or windy days than were expected. Many of our usual western migrants and local breeders arrived late. With just a few exceptions, landbird rarities were few. A singing Northern Parula at A. Molera SP on 14 May (T. Amaral et al.), and a female Rose-breasted Grosbeak at a feeder near Pt. Lobos 2-4 June (John Hiles), were just about it. By far the rarest "eastern" vagrant in late May was a singing Yellow-throated Vireo at Rancho Cañada, Palo Corona Reg. Park, on 30 May (Don Roberson, Rita Carratello; photo © D. Roberson, left). This is the 12th MTY record.

Somewhat ironically, this year's Yellow-throated Vireo was singing high atop large cottonwoods in the old golf course at Rancho Cañada. These same cottonwoods hosted two different singing Yellow-throated Vireos back in late May-early June 2017 (both found by Michael Rieser). Unfortunately, unlike 2017, this year's Yellow-throated Vireo was not refound the next week, although people looking for it re-discovered the lingering Vermilion Flycatcher (see below) at Rancho Cañada.

There was a mild influx of Red Crossbills this last winter, all "type 2" (Ponderosa Pine types) — and a few lingered locally into May — but only a trifling flight of Evening Grosbeak. Yet a female Evening Grosbeak put in an unexpected May appearance at John Hiles' feeder in the Pt. Lobos vicinity from 11-14 May (photo 12 May, right, © John Hiles). This is quite late for this species to be in MTY.

Bill Hubick was able to record its call, and had it analyzed by an expert in Evening Grosbeak vocalizations. It was "type 1."
Type 1 is the most widespread type in the West, from the northern Rockies and the Cascades to at least British Columbia and south to Oregon and the Black Hills of South Dakota. These grosbeaks occasionally wander south to the northern Sierra Nevada and beyond. This type apparently does not nest in California; the Sierra Nevada breeders are "type 2."

In early May, Paul Fenwick found the rarest MTY bird to this point in 2021. In the main parking lot for Lake El Estero in downtown Monterey, he photographed this Rusty Blackbird (right; © Paul Fenwick). This eastern and northern icterid is a major rarity in California. Nearly all have been in October-November, with a few wintering. Spring records from late March to late April are very few indeed. This MTY individual appears to be the first ever in May in all of California (CBRC 2007). Word spread quickly and many locals got to view this excellent rarity on 7 May. It was documented only that one day, and many got good photos.
    Rusty Blackbird populations have been in serious declines in recent decades. The CBRC put it back on their review list in 2006.There had been only ten previous records in MTY — all between October to February — and only two this century: one in San Carlos cemetery at Lake El Estero (27-28 Oct 2013) and one at Moonglow Dairy (13 Jan-18 Feb 2018).

For many of us who grew up in the West, this was the first time ever to see a spring-plumaged Rusty Blackbird. In fall and winter, most Rustys have extensive rusty coloration on the head and back (see the Oct 2013 bird halfway down that seasonal page). Breeding plumage is obtained as the reddish edges wear off to create a shiny black male or a slate-gray female. The presence of this vagrant among Brewer's & Red-winged Blackbirds and Brown-headed Cowbirds permitted us to compare features. Here (left) is a collage from photos of the Rusty Blackbird and a male Brewer's Blackbird nearby [I placed the birds side-by-side by combining two photos; © D. Roberson]. We can compare bill shape and tail length.
   The literature says Rusty Blackbird has a slimmer, more evenly proportioned bill and a shorter tail and legs than Brewer's. I think we can see some of those characters in this collage. More importantly, the Rusty has rusty edges to the tertials and greater coverts. There are times, particularly in autumn, when some Brewer's have reddish edges to the back or head that creates an i.d. problem. The location and color of these edges (Brewer's are browner and shorter) is a key to identification in those difficult birds (see Musher et al. 2017). Bill shape or tail length are additional characters.

Other fine birds found in April 2021 included a Gray Flycatcher photographed by Kent Van Vuren on 30 Apr (another one-day-wonder), a scarce Least Tern photographed on Elkhorn Slough on 22 Apr (Roger Lambert), and two observations of Pileated Woodpeckers (alas, without photos): one was on a private ranch in Rooster Canyon in the Diablo Range, on 3 Apr (Robert Keiffer), and another was described in flight at Pt. Pinos on 11 Apr by a visiting birder (Samuel Holman) who was familiar with the species as the eBird editor for Klikitat County, Washington. These are now among six records of this rarity that have appeared in April or May since 2015. This great woodpecker breeds in Santa Cruz Co., and presumably those here in MTY are spring dispersals from an expanding population there.

Both Least Tern and Black Skimmer have small breeding populations in San Francisco Bay. Presumably these populations migrate up and down the coast of MTY during spring and fall migration, but birders find only a handful as they fly through MTY. This year we've had a smattering of Black Skimmer sightings from late March to early May. On 8 May five skimmers were together in the north harbor at Moss Landing, both roosting and foraging for food. The roosting skimmers sat among 17 Red Knot (quite a high count these days; Bill Hubick). We were lucky to aim a camera at a skimming skimmer (right, 8 May, © D. Roberson).

Several rare wintering birds remained into April: the Tropical Kingbird in its second winter at Laguna Grande was present to 9 April, and another found in January at Carr Lake, Salinas, was apparently still present on 8 May (Mike Stake). Last year the Laguna Grande kingbird set the all-time late date of 29 Apr 2020 but this year's date breaks that record. At Locke-Paddon Park in Marina, a Northern Waterthrush that arrived on 30 Oct wintered, and was last reported on 28 Apr (Kent Van Vuren). In Pacific Grove, "Verano" or "Old Red," the adult Summer Tanager, made it through its 8th winter locally; it was last reported on 7 Apr 2021 (Blake Matheson).

Also in Pacific Grove, on 30 March, a Black-and-white Warbler bathed in Rita Carratello's backyard birdbath. This was not a known wintering bird so perhaps it was an early migrant?

The excitement in late February and early March was the presence of a pied-patterned oystercatcher among Black Oystercatchers. First discovered at Yankee Pt. by resident Bonnie Burgess, it stayed at that location from 27 Feb-3 March. Then, from 10-19 March, it visited various spots in Pacific Grove, from Pt. Pinos to Asilomar SB (photo, right, from Pt. Pinos 10 Mar, © D. Roberson).
   The general consensus of those consulted consider it to be a hybrid Black x American Oystercatcher, based primarily on a "hybrid index" in Jehl (1985). A minority challenged those underlying assumptions, noting that Jehl (1985) found hybridization in Baja California to be rare. The CBRC's use of the index has labeled the majority of pied birds in California as hybrids (CBRC 2007), inconsistent with Jehl's analysis. The alternative is that this bird represents just one plumage state within the known cline of plumage states within frazari American Oystercatchers from west Mexico; see a much longer discussion on-line. Whatever your opinion, it was a very striking oystercatcher on the MTY coast.
   Claims of "American Oystercatcher" at Pt. Lobos in Apr 1954 and Apr 1955 do not have documentation, but could have been correct. An American Oystercatcher record from Avila Beach, San Luis Obispo Co., in Oct 1964-Mar 1965, just south of MTY, and one at San Francisco, in Apr 2011, north of MTY, have been accepted as the northernmost records in the state (e.g., CBRC 20007).

Highlights posted from December 2020 included the presence of at least five different Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers. One of those, at Lagunita Mirada, City of Monterey, wintered locally and was last reported on 23 Mar 2021.

To those five we can add two more, for an unprecedented total of seven different Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers in winter 2020-21. A juv male found by Rita Carratello at Little Peachtree Valley, far to the southeast in MTY, on 31 Jan 2021 (photo left, © D. Roberson) was presumably the same bird, now in full adult male plumage, on 9 March (Alex Rinkert, Mark Kudrav). Also present of 31 Jan were 6 Red-breasted Sapsuckers and a hybrid. Remarkably, a male Red-naped Sapsucker had been located at the same site on 30 Jan (Bill Hubick). Sapsucker city!

Yet another juv male Yellow-bellied Sapsucker was found by Eliana Heiser in Laguna Grande Park, Seaside, on 24 Mar 2021 — just the second record for that eBird hot spot. That's seven Yellow-bellied and one Red-naped in winter 2020-21, more than ever before.

Our long Covid-year 2020 concluded with an Eastern Phoebe along the Carmel River, just upstream from the Highway 1 bridge, discovered by Bill Hill on 28 Dec. We typically average about one Eastern Phoebe each winter, yet two more would be discovered later that winter. Oddly, both were found on or near the lower Carmel River, but comparison of photos ruled each one to be a different individual. Thus, three vagrant phoebes within a 5-mile stretch of the lower Carmel River — a phenomenal winter. Eastern Phoebe #2 was at Palo Corona Reg. Park, found by Rita Carratello and her adult-education birding class on 8 Feb (photo below left 8 Feb, © Rita Carratello). This individual sported an injured leg, and tended to sit on wires or fences through its stay that ended 28 Feb. Eastern Phoebe #3 was found the Mark Kudrav at the Paso Hondo access to an upstream portion of Garland Ranch Reg. Park. at Dampiere Park on 18 Mar; it remained to 22 Mar (photo below right 20 Mar, © D. Roberson)

Literature cited:

• California Bird Records Committee (R.A. Hamilton, M.A. Patten, and R.A. Erickson, eds). 2007. Rare Birds of California. West. Field Ornith., Camarillo, CA.
• Ehrlich, P.R., D.S. Dobkin, and D. Wheye. 1988. The Birder's Handbook. Simon & Schuster, New York.
• Jehl, J.R., Jr. 1985. Hybridization and evolution of oystercatchers on the Pacific Coast of Baja California. Ornith. Monogr. No. 36.
• Musher, L, P. Pyle, D. Irons, and J. Tietz, James. 2017. Identification of male Euphagus blackbirds in fresh fall plumages. Western Birds 48: 205–210.
• Roberson, D. 2002. Monterey Birds, 2d ed. Monterey Audubon Soc., Carmel, CA.
• Roberson, D., and C. Tenney, ed. 1993. Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Monterey County, California. Monterey Audubon Soc., Carmel, CA.
  

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