This Black Phoebe youngster was continuously hungry. It appeared that its parent was making it fly from place to place in order to earn its meals.
I never did get a photo of the bird being fed.
Photographed at Estero Beach, Baja California on May 1 of this year.
European Starlings are cavity nesters, and this family chose a hotel room vent to nest in.
Mealtime!
An Anna's Hummingbird:
A few of the birds at the Estero Beach Hotel estuary:
The Tricolored Heron is rarely seen in Southern California, but can usually be seen at Estero Beach:
Long-billed Curlew:
Willet:
Photographed on the first of May of this year.
The last stop on my week of birding in northern Baja California was the Estero Beach Hotel, south of Ensenada.
It is one of my favorite spots anywhere. It's a lovely hotel with a relaxed, non-pretentious atmosphere, and to top it off, it has a huge estuary (thus its name) full of birds.
A week of birding did not tire me out, but a week of driving did! Arriving at the hotel at sunset, I skipped birding and headed for dinner!
A margarita is always a good idea!
The hillsides near San Telmo, on the way to San Pedro Mártir National Park, are excellent habitat for the Gray Thrasher, a bird found only in Baja California. This area is near the northern extent of its range:
I'm outta' here!
The Brown-headed Cowbird is not loved by birders since it is a nest parasite, but it is a handsome bird.
A coyote strolls through a meadow in San Pedro Mártir National Park:
In late April in San Pedro Mártir National Park, nesting was seemingly going on everywhere you looked!
Here is a Western Bluebird leaving a nest cavity very high in a tree. I'm surprised I got a somewhat reasonable photo.
A Pygmy Nuthatch takes a look around its nest cavity:
See previous posts below for nesting Pacific-slope Flycatchers.
In 1989, Western Flycatchers were split into two species, the Pacific-slope and Cordilleran Flycatchers.
In July 2023, they were re-lumped! In other words, the visually identical Pacific-slope and Cordilleran Flycatchers are now, again, called Western Flycatchers. (no need to get into why they were initially split and later re-lumped...)
When I visited Baja's San Pedro Mártir National Park in April of this year, these birds were still called Pacific-slope Flycatchers.
I have never seen so many!
Pacific-slope Flycatchers were seemingly everywhere. OK, not everywhere, but I must have seen a dozen or more.
Here are a few:
This one was building a nest inside a storage shed near the park entrance:
This one was nesting within the hole in this log:
Can a flycatcher do a swan dive?
A few birds photographed in San Pedro Mártir National Park in April of this year.
A Pinyon Jay doing what a Pinyon Jay does best, make noise!
Hairy Woodpecker:
Black-throated Gray Warbler:
Western Bluebird:
Located in the foothills on the road to San Pedro Mártir, Meling Ranch is one of the most peaceful places to relax in Baja California.
There is a stream which runs through it.
On an April morning I sat quietly by the stream and waited for birds to approach. ("Pick a good spot and let the birds come to you.")
A Killdeer hunts for insect prey:
An American Robin plunges head first to bathe:
Where's my hot towel?
A female Lawrence's Goldfinch comes for a drink:
An Anna's (probably) Hummingbird comes to drink:
