It turned out to be birding. It didn't rain while I was there, but there were intense winds. On the way out to this coastline, about 70 miles away, I was entrapped for speeding in an area called Central Park that the limit went unnecessarily low. 68 in a 50, $93 ticket.
I went to check out the jetty on the south end of the peninsula, but it was cut off during high tide. I was trying to see if I could get looks at BLACK-LEGGED KITTIWAKE which had been reported off the coast. I did see a number of RED PHALAROPE flocks scanning the shore.
At Chance a la Mer State Park, I drove onto the beach for a vantage point. Gulls were being fed by a man while I was here. After not seeing to much action over the water, I IDed the gulls that were around my car, which included what turned out to be a number of THAYER'S GULL, as well as MEW GULL, CALIFORNIA GULL, and RING-BILLED GULL. While scanning, I came across a solo BRANT, and HEERMAN'S GULL cruising the shoreline. A television weatherman van parked right in front of me to do a live broadcast. The star apologized for blocking my view, but said they'd be done in a half-hour. I decided it was time to leave.
The gull pictured is a GLAUCOUS-WINGED GULL that was near my car today, not one of the others stated.
ReplyDelete