Southern California 
Morro Bay 
{ •Sania Maria 
I Goleta ^ 
^ •-,§anta Barbara 
— ,Maiibu MorongoValley 
^ Los Angeles 
Huntington Salion Sea 
"Sk N*Oceanside ^ 
Blythe •! 
V )San Diego 
Pl.Loma\f El Centro. 
Tijuana R. Valley '^ — ' 
Guy McCaskie 
Kimball L Garrett 
T he seasons highlight was a Bluethroat 
that appeared on San Clemente Island 
in mid-September, a first for California 
and the Lower 48 United States. Other excep- 
tional rarities included a Cerulean Warbler 
and a Black-billed Cuckoo. Additional va- 
grants appearing in greater-than-expected 
numbers included Worm-eating Warbler, 
Scarlet Tanager, and Dickcissel. The good 
coverage generally afforded the deserts of 
Inyo County and Kern County extended as 
well to the Mojave Desert of San Bernardino 
County this fall, with several notable rarities 
in that area, including the county’s first Red- 
throated Pipit and Dusky-capped Flycatcher. 
The fall saw minor to nonexistent flights of 
boreal and montane species in the Region. 
Similarly, water bird movements were gener- 
ally unremarkable, apart from a large souther- 
ly push of Common Murres and a substantial 
inland passage of Sabine’s Gulls. 
Abbreviations: G.H.R (Galileo Flill Park in 
extreme e. Kern); N.E.S.S. (n. end of the 
Salton Sea, Riverside); P.M.N.A.S. (Point 
Mugu N.A.S., Ventura); PR (Piute Ponds, Ed- 
wards A.EB., ne. Los Angeles); S.E.S.S. (s. end 
of Salton Sea, Imperial); 'VA.EB. (Vandenberg 
A.EB., nw. Santa Barbara); VC.G.P. (Ventura 
County Game Preserve near Pt. Mugu N.A.S., 
Ventura). Because most rarities in s. California 
are seen by multiple observers, only the ob- 
server(s) initially finding and/or identifying 
the bird are included. Documentation for 
species on the California Bird Records Com- 
mittee (C.B.R.C.) review list (<www. 
californiabirds.org>) is forwarded to the 
C.B.R.C. and archived at the Western Foun- 
dation of Vertebrate Zoology in Camarillo. 
WATERFOWL THROUGH 
CORMORANTS 
A few Tundra Swans were found in the n. half 
of the Region, with one in Baker, San 
Bernardino 16 Nov (BD) being the southern- 
most. The earliest of the wintering Eurasian 
Wigeons was a male in Huntington Beach, 
Orange 28 Sep (DC). A summering Harlequin 
Duck at Cayucos, San Luis Obispo remained 
through 13 Oct (MLS), and another was at 
San Miguel 1. 28 Aug (RMcM). White-winged 
Scoters remain rare on the coast, with 2 off 
Goleta, Santa Barbara 16 Nov (KBr) being the 
only ones reported. Reports of scoters inland 
included a Surf Scoter on L. Havasu, San 
Bernardino 9 Nov (PEL) and 2 more at S.E.S.S. 
25 Nov (GMcC), 2 White -winged Scoters on 
L. Havasu 25 Oct (PEL, BLC) and another at 
Pleasant Valley Res. near Bishop, Inyo 11 Nov 
(BJK), and a Black Scoter on L. Havasu 6 Nov 
(PEL). A Long-tailed Duck at La Jolla, San 
Diego 9 Nov (GMcC) was the only one re- 
ported. A Barrow’s Goldeneye at FC.R. 16 
Nov OEP) was at an unusual location, and a 
This hatch-year Sandhill Crane, one of three found on the 
Southern California coast this fall, was photographed in 
Rancho Santa Fe, San Diego County on 30 October 2008 af- 
ter having arrived in the area fifteen days earlier; it re- 
mained into the winter. Photograph by Thomas A. Blackman. 
male photographed at Quail L. 28 Nov-4 Dec 
(KLG) provides the first documented record 
for Los Angeles as well as being the 500th 
species found in that county — more bird 
species than have been reported in most states 
and provinces. 
The only report of a migrant Pacific Loon 
inland was that of one at Quail L. 28 Nov-19 
Dec (KLG). A Red-necked Grebe in Santa Bar- 
bara 29 Nov (WTF) was the only one found 
on the coast, but another was inland, where 
much rarer, at Searles L., San Bernardino 20 
Oct (SH). A Laysan Albatross photographed 
at the “9 Mile Bank” off San Diego 27 Aug 
(RH) was unexpectedly close to shore. Two ■ 
Cook’s Petrels over Arguello Canyon 75 km w. i 
of Pt. Arguello, Santa Barbara 3 Sep QSF) | 
were in an area where small numbers can be |; 
expected. Single Flesh-footed Shearwaters j 
were off Morro Bay, San Luis Obispo 5 Oct 
(BKS), 10 km n. of Santa Cruz 1. 13 Oct i 
(WTF) and 30 km w. of La Jolla 1 Nov (PEL). | 
Single Manx Shearwaters were seen from j 
shore at Cayucos 19 Oct QSR) and Pt. Vi- 
cente, Los Angeles 4 Aug (MSanM). A Wilson’s 
Storm-Petrel, rare off Southern California, 
was at the “60 Mile Bank” off Los Angeles 4 
Sep OSF). Very few Least Storm-Petrels were J 
reported, but one landed on a yacht off n. San - 
Luis Obispo 9 Sep (Pacific Wildlife Care), 4 ;; 
were at the “14 Mile Bank” off Orange 20 Sep 
(MS), and 10 were at the “9 Mile Bank” off 
San Diego 16 Sep (DPo). 
Six Red-billed Tropicbirds were encoun- 
tered w. of the Channel Is. during the fall 
(WTH). A Red-tailed Tropicbird pho- j 
tographed 248 km wsw. of Pt. Conception, i 
Santa Barbara 17 Aug (WTH) was far off- 
shore, where probably regular. A Blue-footed 
Booby, most unusual along the coast, was 
photographed 43 km off San Diego 23 Aug 
(DPo, TRS). The only reports of Brown Booby 
were of a single bird at the Cortez Bank 62 km ! 
wsw. of San Clemente 1. 5 Oct (WTH), an ad. 
6 km w of San Clemente 1. 4 Nov (MHS), and 
an imm. at La Jolla 9 Nov (GMcC). An imm. 
Red-footed Booby that rode a sport fishing 
boat from off nw. Baja California into San 
Diego Bay 29 Sep (]McD) remained until the 
following morning (DWA). A Neotropic Cor- 
morant, a casual visitor to se. California, was 
at Fig Lagoon near Seeley, Imperial 24 Oct-17 
Dec (GMcC), with 2 there 5-11 Nov (KZK). 
HERONSTHROUGH 
OYSTERCATCHERS , 
A Tricolored Heron at Bolsa Chica, Orange 16- 
31 Oct (GG) was the only one reported. Two 
Reddish Egrets at RM.N.A.S. 5 Sep, with one \ 
remaining through 25 Nov (DPe), were the ; 
only members of the species found n. of San 
Diego and Orange, where now regular. At least 
4 Yellow-crowned Night-Herons remained in 
Imperial Beach, San Diego through the period 
(GMcC), and an ad. was in Ventura 15 Aug j, 
(SG). Five Glossy Ibis were found in the Im- 
perial Valley, Imperial between 1 & 15 Aug 
(TE, GMcC, PAG). Six Wood Storks at S.E.S.S. 
5 Sep (GMcC) were the latest this year. 
A juv. Mississippi Kite remained on Point 
Loma, San Diego 11-18 Sep (MJB). A Harris’s 
Hawk was around Warner Springs, San Diego 
19 Sep-t (EE, JCH, KL); the provenance of 
such birds generates much discussion. Single 
156 
NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS 
