Christa Godfrey

Thanks Akiley. Good call on the Dowitcher. I went back yesterday and a group of mixed shorebirds was in the same pond, including a Dowitcher in breeding plumage. It was super windy and the Phalaropes were nowhere to be seen. What made you say Wilson's rather than Red necked? Red necked Phalaropes had been reported recently in that area by a couple of eBird listers. Wilson's would be rare for our coast, though I guess not impossible. I had seen a group of 20 or so Phalaropes in that pond on my bike earlier - assumed they were the Red necked ones reported a couple days prior, also as a group of 20...

On June 25th, at Hayward Regional Shoreline in Hayward, CA, in a pond in the marshes just north of Winton Ave entrance, there was a mixed flock of non-migrating Marbled Godwits and Willets, plus a couple Avocets and Black necked Stilts. I had seen about 20 Red necked Phalaropes in this pond a few days before, so I'm pretty sure the small white with red neck birds in this group are them. There are also some cinnamon colored small plump birds mixed in. Red Phalarope? Red Knot? other? Sorry photo is not great. The Red necked Phalaropes where right near the path when I was on my bike, with no camera. Of course, when I returned with 400mm lens a few days later, the raft of birds was quite far out. Hopefully you can zoom on this image, or I can add a cropped version... It was a very high tide, and very windy - conditions in which you can sometimes find exotics along this shoreline. Thanks in advance for any input!

There were quite a few of these swallows at Quarry Lakes Regional Park, in Union City, CA today. Only managed one ok shot. My best guess is Northern Rough-winged Swallow, but not confident. Thanks!

Ah, the dawn comes slowly! I'm sure you are right, Ivory Bill and Nighthawk. There was another photo in this series of what was clearly a Ruby-crowned Kinglet. It was confusing, as there were numerous birds in this thicket. The posture and shape of body and head in the two photos I included looked so elongated, and un-Kinglet-like, my mind just couldn't go there... Maybe just the angle made the bird look more stretched out. Thanks for sorting this out!

I am stumped by this one. Sorry the lighting in the photos is not ideal. Shots taken at Big Morongo Canyon (near Joshua Tree National Park) on March 7, 2019. Thanks for help! Christa

I saw one of these on Monday at Arrowhead Marsh, Oakland. Was new to me, and so beautiful. Perhaps it's the same bird, headed south ahead of the storm...

This juvenile hawk landed on a dock at MLK Shoreline Park in Oakland today, as a storm was approaching. My first guess was Cooper's Hawk, but the tail seems a bit short. Overall, he seems a better match to Cooper's than Sharp shinned, except for the tail... Thoughts?

Thanks for the ID help. Oh boy. White crowns are so common around here. And easy to ID as adults. Guess I should have thought to look up their youth.

Took these photos at last light on 11/28/18, at MLK Shoreline Park/Arrowhead Marsh area, Oakland, CA. I'm as confused by sparrows as by raptors. Looking at drawings of sparrows in Nat. Geo's Birds of Western North America, it does not match either Song or Chipping exactly. Perhaps it's another one entirely? though Song and Chipping seem the closest matches...

Thanks for the ID tips. I knew he was one of the smaller ones. Perching on a smallish birch branch not an option for the redtails, etc. I considered Merlin, but didn't think his coloring was quite right. The white at the neck was not shown in my book. So many variations with the morphs, the seasons, the juveniles... Excited that a relatively uncommon falcon was perched on our neighbors' tree!

Spotted this small hark yesterday (Nov 28, 2018) in San Leandro, CA. It remained perched for a long time, so I could not get a flight shot. Could turn its head at least 180. I would throw out some ideas of what I think it is, but I am perpetually confused by raptors! This is my first post. Hope I am following the rules!