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Barbara Aste - San Diego: Great website, thanks! Pat - La Mesa, CA: Going nuts trying to ID this bird. I live right across the freeway from Lake Murray. They look like some kind of grosbeak or maybe a large finch? A lot of pink on head, throat, and back. Brown/grey stripey wings. Hanging out in the same area as Anna\'s Hummingbirds and Lesser Finches at 6:00-6:30 pm. They like some pretty high places. Vesta Bateman - Albuquerque, NM, USA: I love the picture of the bird on the shore with the orange sunset background. Jennifer Quincey - San Marcos, CA USA: Hello, sent you an email before I saw this! My eyes are not always good with the small type on the comp. I have a Black Phoebe that comes into our backyard everyday, and it is so fun to watch him. Jennifer Quincey Kristin G. - El Cajon, CA, USA: Thanks for the great local information. I am a new lover of hummingbirds. I have had such a great time watching them feast on my new feeder. I\'ve been very curious as to which types are in are area. Your site helped answer my questions! Barbara Cleves - San Diego: Your photo of the white heron is in our living room and looking great. How about taking photos of the children picking up trash at Lake Murray on Sept. 15th? It is the I Love a Clean San Diego from 9:00-12:00. Jan - Fallbrook: What a great resource! Kathy - Rancho Bernardo, CA: Thank you for your nice site. There is a hawk that comes and sits on our fence (and screams) every morning, and via your site, I think he is a RedShouldered Hawk. We enjoy him - a natural rooster! Fran Shepherd - San Diego CA USA: My goodness, what an effort you\'ve put into your generous website. I have out-of-town friends from Santa Cruz at the present time, one of whom is a birder. I\'ve printed the Audubon recommended locations with maps, and now have four pages of the birds you\'ve seen and photographed! Will certainly scout around your site a bit more, have already emailed you for any personal recommendations you may have for sitings this particular season in July. Thnx again Scott. Fran, Clairemont area Matt - Otay Ranch One: New to CA. Thanks for your song recordings. Anna\'s hummer came to my feeder the second day it was out. Candace Weiss - Carlsbad, Ca USA: I forgot the owls are very large at least 15 inches. They\'ve nested in an old crow or raven nest and are active in the daytime. Candace Weiss - Carlsbad,Ca USA: We have some large owls nesting in a Torrey Pine tree. I\'ve observed three adults, a nest with babies and some screeching calls. July 7th , 2012 Mary Hart - Cuyamaca Woods Western Exposure: Just found this website and I certainly appreciate the work that has gone into it. Will try to make an appropriate contribution. Kathleen - La Mesa CA: Hi I am visiting my daughter in La Mesa. A bird comes to the feeder that is dark in body, (black/gray) with a muted red head. Anyone I ask to identify it does not know. I am sure it is a fairly common bird but I would like to know what kind it is. Thank you. Sally Trickey Burch - Fletcher Hills-San Diego-CA: Daved Waxman - Edgewater, Florida: The Mourning Dove is my all time favorite bird. They are so very cute and their voices with their cooing is so soooothing and relaxing. They can also make me meditate or sleepy. I can never get enough of their wonderful voices. I wish I could have a yard full of these precious birds. Marianne - Santee, CA: Spotted a Baltimore Oriole today. He jumped from bird feeder to bird feeder, didn\'t like anything we had a left. I noticed the other birds that frequent our feeders (finches, doves, black pheobe etc.) all took off when he arrived. We also have a pair of ring neck doves who come and feed almost daily now. Cheryl - Santee, CA: My husband and I are HUGE nature lovers. We live on the west side of Santee and see A LOT of wildlife right outside our door. Thanks to your site we were able to identify two of the many birds we observe daily. They are the American Krestal & the Blue Her ron! The American sits on top of a huge pine and preens itself. The Blue Herron lands in the field of where we live and catches gophers and lizards. We\'ve observed it catch and swallow a couple of gophers in one visit and also fly off with a gopher back to where it nests. We\'ve ALSO watched a pair of hawks as they chased down and caught a Sparrow and wrestled with it on our roof. Unfortunately the birds flew away as my husband tried to photograph them. Thank you for the opportunity to identify these magnificent birds we have the privilege of watching everyday! Isaac Gibbs - Spring Valley: Hi,.. I have been amazed by birds for awhile. I have been all about Wildlife for some time now though. Also, a Photographer such as yourself. Most recently have been looking to do a photographic essay on the Burrowing Owl, so i rode my bike from Spring Valley to Otay Lakes yesterday in search, but mostly just to check out the surroundings so next time i can Plot out where i\'m going to search for them or post up. I have been shooting at 200mm\'s and i don\'t have anything bigger, so i have only posted photographs of what i can get up close too, such as the Anna\'s hummingbird, Western Bluebirds, and the small local birds. I Live right next to the Sweetwater res. So i have Been watching the swarms of Swallows and keepin my eye on these 2 Red tailed hawks... I went to a different location today that i had heard they perch at,.. maybe i can get eye with them this time.... Anyways, I\'m Stoked you put up this site, it has been pretty helpful for me as i was searching for the name of this Falcon i saw earlier today,.. and It was the first one on your List.. Sweet!. Such fascinating creatures, and really helps you step up your photography game. I\'d love to adventure sometime. Give me a shout. IsaacGibbsPhoto@Gmail -Cheers, Isaac Gibbs Lenora Hilsman - Temecula, CA, USA: silvie - san diego: I was having an ahh moment looking at your photographs this afternoon at Mission Trails Regional Park. Stunning photos, thank you for sharing your talent with us. Silvie Susan Dusharme - Escondido,: Like your site. Live in San Pasqual Valley and see many birds not on my bird guide. Hope to identify more with your site. Thanks lots. Anne E. - La Mesa: Beautiful web site and photographs. A question: we saw a large (100+) flock of some bird over Lake Murray just recently. Seemed like small, light-colored birds. Turns in unison. Just stunning. Any idea what they might be? Raquel - Lakeside, CA: Hi there, I am a birdwatcher and have feeders and bird baths in my yard. I just started it as a hobbie recently, I have seen the white crowned sparrows, house finch, goldfinch, the mourning doves, the ring neck mourning doves, jays, moking birds, crows, bluebirds, starlings, house sparrow, purple finch. I have Linda Lake nearby, I have seen wood ducks, and mandarin ducks, canadian geese, common geese, herons, egrets, pelicans, mallards, there is just so much out here. If anyone wants to be friends my email is sam underscore n underscore rock at yahoo dot com I love birds! Jane Cartmill - Encinitas, CA USA: I had a handsome spotted towhee in my bird bath this morning here in Encinitas. Sally Burch - Fletcher Hills,El Cajon, SD Cnty,CA: Heard & saw a California Gnat Catcher in my backyard on 03/17/12. I heard a kitten mewing & in looking for it, it seemed it was all over the back yard. I finally saw a small bird that looked a little like a bush tit, but the sound coming from him was definitely a mewling kitten. He was on my huge Cleveland sage, then flew across the yard to the higher bushes. Looked it up & he had to be the California Gnat Catcher. It was a thrill. I\'ve seen over 50 different species in my yard in the past 7 years. Sally Burch - Fletcher Hills,El Cajon, SD Cnty,CA: Heard & saw a California Gnat Catcher in my backyard on 03/17/11. I heard a kitten mewing & in looking for it, it seemed it was all over the back yard. I finally saw a small bird that looked a little like a bush tit, but the sound coming from him was definitely a mewling kitten. He was on my huge Cleveland sage, then flew across the yard to the higher bushes. Looked it up & he had to be the California Gnat Catcher. It was a thrill. I\'ve seen over 50 different species in my yard in the past 7 years. Barbara Carlton - El Cajon, CA: What a great resource! I see birds (tiny black silhouettes, mostly) and never know what they are. Thank you for compiling all this information. Terry Baird - San Diego: Thanks for a great referance source Patricia - San Diego, CA: Thanks for the awesome site Scott! I was looking for info on owls because I spotted one in the area (Tierrasanta). Your site has been very fun, and I will probably find an image here to incorporate into a new painting of a bird. :) Marc Heafey - La Mesa CA USA: This is a great site. I\'ve only been birding a couple years now so I need a lot of help with identifying species. And your site beats my Audobon guide. I frequent the Mission Trails and Otay Mesa wetlands areas, but now thanks to your site I\'m heading for Lake Henshaw to find some bald eagles! Richard Hayashi and I are founding members of The Honorable Otay Mesa Ornithological Society and regularly monitor the activity near and around our work site. Keep up the great work! Richard Hayashi - San Diego: My friend Marc H and I work at the CHP Otay Mesa Commercial Facility port of entry on the border. Marc got me into walking the streets adjacent to our facility. We are surrounded by fields which are home to a number of species. We have observed Barn Owls, Burrowing Owls, Kites, and Hawks. Birding is fun! John Eigenauer - Bakersfield, CA: Scott What a great website you have! I just stumbled upon it. The organization is so easy to navigate and the pictures are perfect! Sincerely John Eigenauer Peggy - Descanso, CA: A friend just sent me your website. I am looking forward to spending time looking up birds and learning more. My parents were world class birders, my father (who outlived my mother) saw more than 6000 species. Thanks! Sandra Hall - San Diego, CA USA: Valencia Park. We have what sounds like and looks similar to a red shouldered hawk in our neighborhood. I wish someone with some experience were around to confirm. It's calling loud most days, which I enjoy but it can be a little puzzling. Carolyn - Poulsbo, WA, USA: Lovely site and great photography! I don't have much of a camera but have a slew of birds this year: mated pair and one single western tanager, pileated/hairy/downy/flicker woodpeckers, cooper's hawk, varied thrush (mated pair), black-headed grosbeak (mated pair), house finch - lovely rosy coloring, goldfinch (mated pair), song sparrow, mourning doves, towhees, chickadees, juncos a-plenty, and the usual robins, crows, townsend's bluejays, etc. It's been quite the year and, thanks to sites like yours, I've been able to identify most of them. Nancy B. - La Mesa: Love this site! I refer to it often as a newbie birder in my attempts in identifying. Thank-you for including the areas in San Diego the birds have been found as well as the sound bites. Lois Harford - Poway, CA, USA: We're enjoying your site, and now have it bookmarked for many more visits! We've been watching birds bi-coastally for many, many years - but we're just casual novices and protectors of a very small "habitat". Tim binder - Del Mar, CA: I saw a eurasian collared dove at my backyard feeder this morning, among the many mourning doves who are daily visitors. Since I have not seen this bird before, your website helped me to identify it. Thanks, and you can add Del Mar Heights to the locations where the dove has been seen. Tim Binder Hank - new orleans: Where is the best spot around San Diego that I might find Lawrenec's Goldfinch Rene Ekstrand - San Diego, CA 2119: Hi I live by Lake Murray, and, for the past month have started joggin around the lake. Was so shocked to spot a pair of Wood Ducks! Could not believe my eyes!!! Finally did some looking on the computer and, it seems that they have been welcome guests here for awhile! Am so excited about your site. I can see that I must start a new hobby! Bird watching!!!! kimberly - topeka, kansas, usa: Bridget - San Diego: Thanks for the great website. I wanted to report that last Sunday I was at Lake Murray and saw a stunningly large collection of Osprey. At first I thought-"Nah, these must be gulls". But when one dived down talons first and grabbed a trout about 20 feet int front of me and I looked closely at the number flaying around need the boat and fishing docks I counted 10. A bit unusual to see that many at a time, que no? steve dawson - carlsbad, ca: there is a burrowing owl that lives in a fenced in grassland, on the corner of highway 1 and anvenida encinas in carlsbad. this area is not the state run program for nesting ocean birds, this particular owl lives in a private fenced in area that appears to be fenced in for privacy reasons before a building project juliette - la mesa: I was walking at Lake Murray last weekend 1/22/11 and the biggest bird had made a nest on the telephone pole. I 'm not sure what kind of bird it is, it's huge! a white underbelly and brown wings. Have you heard about it? You have to check it out! Patty dogwalker - Imperial Beach: What a fantastic resource. I walk my dogs around the Estuary here and am so pleased to be able to identify the birds I've encountered now. Thank you so much for the valuable information. John Eschenbach - Oceanside,CA: I am retired now and I am begining the hobby of bird watching. Your site is an excellent resource to my wife and I. Thanks so much for offering this site. Tom Marshall - Felton, CA: As a birder who grew up in SD County qwho still comes back often to bird here, I appreciate this resource. Joseph Downs - San Diego CA: Being with your site is the most fun a student of birds can have with his clothes on! Thank you from my tail feathers and talons to my beak. Jamie - El Cajon CA: San Diego native , grew up in Spring Valley, spent many hour watching birds in the Cuyamacas. I can't access the the links to the birds, MYS not accessible or something. Ellen Thompson - Lemon Grove: I just want to say although I am just starting to be more interested in birding and have so much to learn your website has proved very useful to me, since I love Lake Murray and love to just hang out and watch the birds there. birdy - santee, ca. usa: change your directions to santee lakes, the entrance isnt on carlton oaks Aashyay - Jalandhar, Punjab, India: We are bird lovers and group in involved in bird rescue. Marie Stewart - Coppel ,TX, USA: I have gotten lots of information that will be of great help on my up coming trip Thanks for all your work, Marie Stewart Joy Danen - Edmonton, Alberta, Canada: Scott, your photographs are superb! I can see how much you love all these pretty birds - your passion shows through in each and every shot! I became interested in bird photography after I chanced upon a Great Horned Owl in the park on one of my winter walks. Now I'm hooked. Your photos are inspiration and I simply must improve my shots with the limited equipment I have. Don't stop! Joy Paul Jeffs - RB: There is a resident population of Nutmeg manikins in San Diego near Lake Hodges. I see them frequently. Paul Jeffs-RB Neil & Ann - Ramona, Ca: Love the web site. We saw a female Black Headed Grosbeak in our yard today, a first after living here 25 years. Also many hooded orioles coming to our hummingbird feeder. Thanks for the information. Clay Underwood - Chula Vista, CA: Thanks for the great site. It helped me identify a male hooded oriole, a frequent visitor to my backyard in eastern Chula Vista, CA. Kathy Stone - La Mesa, CA: I live in La Mesa and am seeing a new bird this summer in our yard. It is a beautiful yellow with black wings and is nesting in our Mock Orange. It may have some white but it's fast, so I'm not sure. The call is a sort of mournful 2 or 3 notes. The only yellow bird I know of is a Baltimore Oriole, but we are a long way from Baltimore! Any idea what this is? Thankyou so much! Richard Ciapanna - Tijuana, BC, MX: Hi Scot, I was an avid east coast birder, living here now and saw your website. I saw your list of birdwatching locations and thought i'd make a suggestion. I have no car, so take the trolley, and i wonder with awe what it would be like birding along the green line in the morning. The trolley trestle is very high you see, and the san diego river along there, well, it's literally all tree-top eye-level birding from Fashion Valley all the way to Mission San Diego Station. One could bird all morning and not have a stiff neck. Just a suggestion from a fellow birder who misses his hobby very much. Keep up the good website, RCiapanna2000@yahoo Kathy Kajewski - Lakeside, CA: I really enjoy all your photos and information. Thanks! Libby - Lompoc, CA: I love your site. Your photos-male, female, immature--often beat a coin toss when I'm trying to ID a bird sighted. You even beat Cornell's site! Darlene - San Diego, CA: Hi! I frequent Lake Murray a lot and chronicle the lives of most of the killdeer there in my blog. I looked at some of your killdeer photos and even though they are several years old, I think I see one that I actually recognized who still hangs out at the lake. I had a feeling that he was an elderly bird and now I know that he is. Jackie - San Diego, CA: Susan Smith - San Diego, CA: This is the best website I've found for my purposes. Your photos are marvelous and the descriptions with locations are just what I need for a quick guide before heading out on the trail. It will be a great reference and I will use it often. Michele Theberge - Oakland, CA: What a wonderful site! Thank you so much for it. The photography is amazing. I am an artist who loves to draw birds so I use the web for inspiration and source material. Will be sure to come back again as many of the SoCal birds are the same species as we have up here in Northern California. Mary - Ramona, California: Wonderful website, I was able to identify the woodpeckers I have been seeing on the property as "Acorn Woodpeckers". I am sure this site will be an excellent resource in the future. Thanks Karylee Feldman - La Mesa, CA, USA: Scott, What a wonderful site - you've created a treasure trove. :-) I was looking for ideas of birdwatching groups or events at Lake Murray or not too far, and found you. I will certainly enjoy all your work. Thank you! Karylee Nathan Ryan - San Diego, CA: Nice site Scott, It helped me find what took up nest at my condo roof eve. Chris - San Diego, CA, USA: I was searching for information on a new bird that I have seen around San Diego County lately and this site provided the intel. I'm writing to let you know that I have recently observed the Bullock's Oriole over the past 2 months in Mission Valley near the VA building, and up in Alpine near the Tea shop. May 2010 Chuck Taylor - Monterey Park, CA: Found your site while looking for info on the Hooded Oriole. Beautiful presentation. Thank you. G Hemping - Ramona: We have a pair of Western Tanagers visiting our yard. Beautiful birds Rose Andrews - Rancho Bernardo, CA: We have a pair of Black Headed Grosbeaks visiting our feeder in backyard. Beautiful bird! Dan - Kingston Nova Scotia Canada: Two purple finch have been at our feeder since late this morning. They seem to really enjoy sunflower seeds. Both birds appear to be male. Di Jin - San Diego, California usa: We found a male Northern Cardinal in Border Field State Park today. Got photos. seems they are actually not supposed to be here Patricia Coe - La Mesa, California: I have a nesting Black Chinned Hummingbird in a low tree on my patio... she is high enough that I cannot look into the nest. We just watched two Annas fledge ten days ago from a nest built atop a wind chime on the same patio and I was so busy watching them that I didn't notice the Black Chinned female building her nest... much more secretly than the Annas. Nests are very different as are the flight and feeding habits of the two birds. I feel very honored to have these birds using our patio area. Marie Johnson - La Mesa: tom floodberg - Chula Vista, California: We have three pheasants (two males and one female) visiting our backyard for the last week. They are gorgeous, not shy, and a real pleasure to observe. Nick Chill - La Mesa, CA: Great display at the Mission Trails visitor center! Chilln@nickchillphotography Kirsten Currie - the sweetest place on earth: I Love your pictures! I wish I could be there to see your showing. Mary Day - Superior, WI : I bought the cutest bird feeder on this website. I was able to pay for it with my PAYPAL account which was nice, and convenient. If you're looking for a bird feeder you're going to want to check this out. Also, it's owned by one person - so it's easy to order, etc. Novel Home Decor Lynn Lilyquist - Rancho Santa Fe CA 92067: Have you seen Nutmeg Mannakins around? I have them in my feeders. Is this unusual? Lynn Sam - Rancho Santa Fe, CA: Excellent! Marcia M - El Cajon, Calif. USA: OMG! I was so excited to find this site! I walk around Lindo Lake on a regular basis & love taking pictures of the ducks, etc. We also have several different types of bird feeders in our back yard. This is an awesome representation of the many birds in our area. I found one that I took a picture of 2 years ago, but no name (Vermilian Flycatcher/ Lindo Lake). There is a duck at Lindo Lake that I'm still trying to find the name of, & a little bird in our back yard that I can't identify. I'm going to look again at your pictures to see if I can figure them out. This is a fabulous resource with beautiful pictures & descriptions. YIPPEE! Marcia Tracey Harmon - Anchorage, AK: Scott, I spent the first two weeks of January 2010 making the loop from San Diego, Borrego Springs, the Salton Sea, Joshua Tree, La Jolla, and finally back to San Diego. In that time I took many thousands of photos of many species of birds (and other wildlife). Now I am trying to identify many of those birds, and in the process I stumbled upon your fantastic site. What a find! You have done a great job! Thank you, and thank you for your offer to verify species I am unsure of. You are indeed, THE friend of birds! Tracey Harmon, Anchorage, AK Sally Burch - Fletcher Hills,El Cajon,Ca.: I've so many guest birds the last 2 weeks or so. Right now we have a lovely Flicker in our midst again-I first saw him last year- and a cedar waxwing(could only see one although one spring we had a large flock of them),yellow-rumped warblers,and more, but this morning i saw a new pair I'd not seen before. They looked like pictures of Hutton's Vireo or maybe ruby-crowned kinglets-i'm just not sure as they were pretty evasive. Have you seen the hutton's vireo around our area before? Thanks for all you do for the birds. Sally Ivette - San Marcos, ca: Hi, tonight an owl flew above me and landed in a tree of my front yard. I saw him perfectly, but didnt know what kind of owl he was,Thanks for have the pictures because i would never have know it was called the Spotted Owl. dslavitt - san diego, CA 92119: derae - indiana: hi bob francella - Poway california: I have a picture of a Cassin’s Kingbird that I took in Poway, Julie - Valley Center, CA, USA: What a delightful website. Having sound for some of the birds is a great feature. I thought I had some rufous-sided towhees in my yard, but I see from your sight that they are in fact spotted towhees. Great photos and very helpful descriptions and information. Jan Johnson - Escondido, CA: I continue to be amazed at this site! Saw a couple of birds today but they were too far away and backlit so I could not be sure what they were. But they were sounding off so I was able to find that sound on this site! They were, without a doubt, Cassin's Kingbirds! Quite a distinctive sound. Taina Chahal - Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada: I enjoyed your photos of the purple finch. They were helpful for me in identifying a new bird visiting my mom's yard. Catalina - San Diego: Hello, The neighborhood cat was out on the prowl and brought his catch to us. Thankfully, this bird was not dead. Not the typical "domestic" bird catch, we tried to figure out what type bird it was. Anyhow, this bird (about the size of a young morningdove) with green and yellow hue among the brown feathers, long legs, long distinct skinny toes with long sharp claws, long narrow kind of orangey beak---not skinny or hooked. My husband caught the bird as it squirmed out of the cat's mouth. The bird aggressively pecked at my husband's hands. Doves, pidgeons, mockingbirds are not this aggressive. I took the bird to the bird rescue this afternoon, and was told that it is a "sora." I looked up the "sora" on the web. That picture does not look like the bird we had. I looked at your page next. The bird that looks most similar to the one that the cat caught looks like the clapper picture on your website. Jan Birdyjj - Escondido, CA, USA: Nice site. Just stumbled onto it while looking for some info for a future article for my "Bird of the Month" feature on my own website. Chris Lange - Laguna Hills, Ca: While a 2nd generation San Diegan, we now live in Orange County. This past 4 months, we have had the privilage of having a Nuttall's wookpeker in our bird house. I only observed the male who had red over all of the top of his head, turning black just before his beak. Could not tell if there were fledglings, but I think there were. Will try and put mirrors in the house for next season. Chris Lange Kathy - Mitchell, Nebraska: I was searching for an area near Lakeside to find Nuttall's Woodpeckers and came across your site, it's very helpful. Think I will check out the Santee Ponds during our visit in August. I was there once before, about 8 years ago, but wasn't on the woodpecker quest at the time. Only two USA woodpeckers to go, Nuttall's and Golden-fronted, then I will have seen them all (not counting the Ivory Billed) Thanks for providing a great site Phyllis - Escondido, CA: I really enjoyed exploring your website. I am a "fledgling" birdwatcher. The site helped me identify some of the birds I have seen around San Diego. Thanks Annett Sichting - Dresden, SA, Germany: Hallo, I'm surprised and happy about the wunderful Photographs of the Red-Tailed Tropicbird, i observed this year on Philip Island and Norfolk Island. I was not so lucky to catch him in this quality with my camera. Thank you and Greetings Annett Andrew Steiger - San Diego, Ca, USA: There's a huge Red-Tailed Hawk that spends most of her time in the tree in my yard. This morning it seems that she decided that it was her time to mate, and she started her call. Before long, 3 males approached and were dive-dancing for her affections. Two were younger, and one was older. This has been going on all day. It's so exciting to watch! I hope you all get to see this if you haven't already! mike - san diego: excellent job with this site I know rely on it to help ID birds Brent Rushall - Casa de Oro, Spring Valley: Most valuable site. Would you like a contribution? Susan Tarvin - Claremont, CA LA County: We have heard birds in our palm tree and were hesitant to prune because we did not want to disturb any nests. I saw our nester this morning and he was the most beautiful bird, a very bright orange with black. He was in our kumquat tree and later in our peach. He allowed me to view him (and even talk with him) for a short time. We looked him up and found that he was a hooded oriole. I am so glad we allowed him and his family to stay in our yard! Lance Partlow - San Diego, CA, USA: I love you interative bird identifier. It's so cool. I just started bird watching and of course am having a tough time identifieing birds. This really helps me. The pics and descriptions are great. The sounds bits are cool also. Like to see more of them. Thanks so much. true blue - bay park, san diego, ca, usa: i have found a huge feather on the ground and i wasn't sure what kind of bird used to sport it. it was found in clairemont. it is 2 feet long approximately and spotted and striped, in cream and black. any info or pics would be great. thanks. a birdwatcher. roxy - baril: cool Christina, Flinn Springs - El Cajon CA: Hi. I'm looking for hummingbird nesting information. Are there any ways to attract hummingbirds to nest in my area? I saw a hummingbird nest "kit" on line developed by a hummingbird specialist in New York--any feedback? By the way, my niece's home is a dirt road, Shanteau Drive, El Cajon, CA and they have (probably) golden eagles that nest on the hill behind their home. After the 2003 fires, they appear to have returned. Certainly a lot of prey, rabbits, ground squirrels, rodents, etc. Also a darling flock of quail and my personal favorite, roadrunners. Yolanda - De Luz, California, USA: I see so many beautiful birds around my home but do not know what they're called! It's also near impossible to be certain of a species by simply typing its physical description in a search engine. It helps so much to come across this Web site that is specific to the San Diego region, find photographs of the birds I see, and even learn about them. I have bookmarked your page as one of my favorites! Katherine - College Area, San Diego, CA: A beautiful and well-organized website! Now I am 99 percent sure the sparrow I saw at Lake Murray on Friday was a song sparrow. I was poring over sparrows in bird books until I was going cross-eyed! Drake Garvin - La Mesa, CA, USA: Excellent site. Great resource, it provides lots of detail (especially the photos) I can use to compare with my own photos. This will be my first stop when researching a bird search, thanks. George Singletary - Walnut Creek, CA, USA: Great pictures/descriptions of the birds. I found them very helpful for identification of some in photographs I had taken. Nick Chill - La Mesa, CA, US: You have a wonderful site set up here, and take some great birding photos. A very good resource for many. I will be using your site to set goals for birds to add to my list of photographic subjects. Carolee Ferguson - Escondido, CA - USA: I would like to be put on your e-mail list. Thank you, Carolee kathryn - la costa, carlsbad, ca: I just moved here from northern ca. and am a very green birder however I would love to figure out what bird is singing outside my window every night. I've never heard this strong and loud a song after dark in my life. Any ideas? thank you Renee - San Marcos, CA: Nice to find a local birding sight. I just spotted what I'm pretty sure is a male Allen's hummingbird at my backyard feeder. Are they very common (migrating) birds around here? (I'm in No. County). Been birding since I moved here 13 years ago. Some of my best yard finds have been a black-throated blue warbler, green tailed towhee, cedar waxwing, scarlet tanager and the Allen's hummingbird today! Christina - Passaic, NJ: The Cedar Waxwing is one of my favorite birds. I love the gradiation of the shade of taupe, and of course the black 'mask'. Looks like you have some beautiful pictures in your site. Thank you harry - ghana: i am looking for afriend Kathy Reutter - Ramona, CA: Beginner! Having fun in my little 1/2 acre identifing birds! Lydia - Del Mar, CA: A welcomed website with the local bird information that I was searching for. "birds" CS Looney - Grapevine, TX: Red Crested Cardinals (3) observed 10 December, 2008 at Sheraton Resort, Kaanapali Beach, Maui, HI. Carolyn - Grantville (San Diego): I was sitting outside on the patio facing our hillside when I spotted a flock of yellow breasted birds eating seeds from the bushes. We are about 3 miles from Mission Trails. I ran inside to grab the binoculars and eyed these beautiful plump little warblers with yellow breasts & black around the beak (the smaller one was a very yellow color and the larger ones were a lighter yellow). They were busy eating seeds and flying from bush to bush. I wanted to identify them and went to the internet where I found your wonderful site! Thanks for the infomative and beautiful pictures of our local birds. It looks like they are the yellow breasted chat! Thanks again! Rick - San Diego, CA, USA: Mark Breeding - San Diego: We have a large number of pet rats in four cages in our back yard. What we thought was a Peregrine Falcon has been visiting our rats numerous times, drool coming from it's beak. By using your site I was able to determine that it is actually a Cooper Hawk. Apparently it mated in my neighbor's Black Elm this spring. I have taken some nice pictures of it leering at my rats. You are welcome to them if you want. Mark David Allen - Encinitas, CA: Wonderful site! I added a link to my Web page for the High Country Villas birding group in Encinitas. Terri Varnell - Ramona, CA, USA: great site- thanks Greg Dunne - Alpine, Ca. USA: Hi, really like the site. Trying to get some information on a duck I've seen lately at Lake Murray. Two ducks actually, one is larger than a Mallard and is all black. The other duck it hangs out with is slightly smaller then the all black one, but he or she is black and white. Again, great site and I enjoy walking the lake three times a week. Greg. Sue - Mission Trails,San Diego: I feed Wild Birds in the area and the last 2 weeks have dramatically noticed a reduction in Birds. I fear the West Nile Virus may be responsible. Claudia - San Diego, CA, USA: Love the site - was walking around Lake Murray and in Mission Trails today. This gives me great info on the birds - succinct and easy to read. Love the pictures! Thanks for keeping this updated. Sherri - La Mesa, CA, USA: Scott, Great site. This was the first result that popped up when I did a google search for hummingbirds in San Diego. Tommy will learn about hummingbirds in a couple weeks, so I was just getting ready. What a lot of work you've done! Sherri Anne Marie - San Diego: HI Scott, I finally looked at your website! I found a 5 year old email from Jennie and it had your website on it. John C - La Mesa CA, USA: I found a juvenile Nutall's Woodpecker outside work today, apparently killed by something. This is in Sorrento Valley near Mira Mesa Blvd and Stranton. I took photos of it to verify what type of woodpecker it was. Never saw one this far west before I must say though. Robert & Keri Bojarski - Fallbrook, CA, USA: We've just relocated to Fallbrook from Maine and were introduced to your site by a friend. Thanks for all the entries, they are helping us to distinguish/identify our hummers and hawks! We had our first Rufous sighting today, quite an entertaining fellow... Melissa Whipple - Allied Gardens : What a wonderful site! We have a wildlife friendly garden and we have tons of birds and I visited your site to help identify some of them. What a treasure. Thanks, Melissa Randall - Spring Valley, CA: Thank you very much. A good source to confirm sightings of birds I see in my back yard and in Bancroft Creek Canyon. Mark Richey - Carlsbad, Ca: We observed a male Oriole in our palm tree in the back yard this AM (June 22 08). Location across from Pointsettia Park, Hidden Valley and Palomar closest major crossroads. Wendy Lloyd - Edmonton, AB Canada: I saw a Ruddy duck on a man made lake in our neighborhood. I was directed to this website with my search. He was brown, stiff black tail and a blue bill. Had to find out what kind of duck he was. Thanks! LindieLee - Fallbrook, CA: We see a roadrunner almost daily here. Becuase there is small pond near us we see waterbirds that are uncommon to this area like egrits and kingfishers. A bird that looks just like a Altmara (is that the corect spelling) is at our feeder daily this spring. He spins with the feeder so we see him from every angle. However, my research indicates that he dosent migrate into this area. Um. Kathy - Ahwahnee, California, USA : I love this site. There are so many birds and very few place to go that give all the information and multiple pictures. When I'm not sure which bird I'm looking at I come to this site and 99% of the time the additional information/pictures you give make identification possible. Thank-you very much. Jim - Normal Heights, San Diego: Just found your site today after seeing a mother wood duck (I believe, that is what another visitor told me, and the photos look right) with twenty (yes two zero) ducklings! We saw them in the drainage that runs along the lake path towards the dam from the San Carlos access (with the ball fields). Love your site, wish I had my camera today. Never been a birder before, but I think I may have been bitten by the bug... jonas - mexico: I think this site is awesome, I'm making some translations of some of the species that corresponds to the northwestern region of Mexico to "spanish". So thus im asking for your permission of letting me publish this material. If so, I would appreciate it so much. My mail daltainagaeilge@yahoo com Cynthia Parnell - San Diego, CA: Scott- Your pictures at the Mission Trails show were so very good - so sharp and great shots. Thank you and your website is tremendously helpful. Great info and pictures. It will be a valuable resource for me. Thanks Fran Shepherd - San Diego: Hi Scott, Nice seeing you in AZ. We see you're not only an astrologist, but your camera with huge zoom lenses is for other fascinating inhabitants of the sky... 'Bye for now, Fran and Chuck ZaCurrie - Omaha, NE, USA: how can i get prints? Eric Dobbs - San Diego: Keep up the important work that you do!!! I look forward to your show in April! Eric Dobbs Lianne - San Diego: Hello - I am recently moved to California and have been delighted with all the birds in my back yard and at Lake Murray. I haven't ventured too far yet, but there's a hooded oriole camping in my back yard and trying to ID it is what led me to your site. I'm still looking through everything, but one thing that caught my attention was you used to live in Baltimore but never saw a Baltimore oriole there. I lived in Baltimore (and Frederick) for almost 15 years... and I never saw an oriole, either. =) I've always liked birds, but never really studied them before. Living in California is making me change my habits, and I'm having a great time. Thank you for putting together this site! Jeanie Anderson - San Diego, CA: Look forward to your show in April 2008. Thanks... Green Jeanie Bird Joe Doaks - Vista: Thank you for your hard work. Great web site! Lesa Green - Lakeside, CA San Diego: I just love your website. Today we spotted a hawk at the corner of Lakeview Rd and East Lakeview Rd. We identified it as a ferruginous hawk from the photos on your site. Thank You, Lesa Paul F. Caron - Green Valley, AZ: Very fine work. We retired in Az from Connecticut several years ago and I started taking pictures on morning walks of some desert birds. Since then interest has grown and I am delighted to be introduced to your site by a friend of mine in San Diego. GREAT! Glenn Tyson - San Diego, CA, USA: Very nice & informative site. Susan Lindenberger - Vancouver BC Canada: Just came across your site. Thanks for all the great information. We are making our first trip to San Diego Nov 14-20 for a meeting but will do some birding before it starts. So many birds you have which we have nevers seen! My husband is especially keen for a Tricolored Blackbird and I'd love a Wrentit, but we'll be happy with whatever we see. We are also concerned about the terrible fires you have recently suffered, and are saddened by the impact on people, their property and also the wildlife and habitat. We wish you all a timely recovery. W. Thomas Manders - Framingham, MA: thanks for the wonderful site. Cindy Turley - San Diego - Del Cerro: Wow! Love your site. I will add to my favorites. Susie - Loudon, TN: We were surprised to see a Male Rose-breasted Grosbeak at our feeder yesterday for the first time. We live on Tellico Lake in Tennessee. Since he had his fall stripes on his head, we were able to positively able to identify him through your site. Thanks! Carol - San Diego County: Great website, Scott! I've added a link to "Bird Friends" from the "Bluebirds of San Diego County" website. Ivan Petrov - Champaign, Illinois: Awesome pictures! I am humbled; I go to San Diego once a year in April and manage to go birding for a day or two. Really rewarding. Congratulations on the excellent web-site - the best I have seen. regards Ivan Velo Mitrovich - London, UK: What a great site, especially when you need to see the difference between a San Diego Towhee and an American Robin. Growing up in San Diego above what is now the abandoned Alvarado Rest Home, it's a real pity that they didn't keep the canyon as an open space and instead allowed in the hospital, rest home, apartments, etc. The amount of wildlife that used to be down there... Abeshek - Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India: I love bird-watching and this site has got all about it. Ted Jaworski - Oceanside, CA: We saw for the first time since 2000 (we moved in 2000) a Nutall Woodpecker in our Liquid Amber tree. It appeared to be a young male. We noticed the area observed didn't much include north county SD... until now! We are seeing an abundant of birds this year since the steady decline starting 2004 with the low point of two years ago. The rufus hummer and some of the more colorful finches are back. Rufus was last time seen 2004. guess-who - hershey pa: looks great scott. keep it up Mike Rosenzweig - Tucson, AZ: Thanks for this site. It is just what I have been looking for: places, species and a few other goodies. Beth Dirksen - (San Carlos) San Diego: Thank you so much for sharing your outstanding pictures and the research you have done into so many of our County's species!! I really enjoy your website and spend lots of time there! sally burch - el cajon: i just heard a bird yesterday that turned out to be a type of raptor. he was very small, but doesn't look like a kestrel-though his sound was like a squeaky toy. that was one of the sounds a kestrel makes,supposedly. he was dark gray & brown with a banded tail,yellow eyes & a flat falcon head. no band or mustache on the face. any ideas? he was perched on the top of a telephone pole for quite a while. love your site. it's very informative! Jackie Allison - Nipomo, CA: Excellent website; informative, coupled with artistic photographs! Thanks for sharing! Sue Taylor - Tacoma, WA: Lovely pictures. We hope to get your way this fall. I enjoyed your site, the pictures and where you photographed the birds. It gives me a good idea of where we need to visit. jamil wayo - kumasi ghana.: Hi i wanna be a guest in your house ricky m - NOLa usa: i just caught 3 wood ducklings in my yard and could use some tips on raising them to a slightly riper age for release. rickymo0079@msn .com any help would be appreciated. 24may07 Kelly - San Diego: Hi. I'm glad I found your site! I came across it as a result of trying to identify a bird I didn't know, that I saw twice today in my neighborhood (and I've lived here 9 years). It was a lesser goldfinch. The first one was on Caminito Sopadilla in Scripps Ranch, and then one at Miramar Reservoir (Scripps Lake). You might consider adding the reservoir to your birding hot spots. Among others, I've seen quail, roadrunner, osprey, goldfinch, lesser goldfinch, thrasher, jay, great-tailed grackle, turkey vulture, hawk, harrier, falcon, owl (heard) etc. etc. etc. Jason Wilbarger - Oregon, OH: What a great site. As a new birder I'm constantly looking for information on the hobby and I'd say, youre site holds a wealth of information. Again, thank you and keep up the lovely work! J. Wilbarger Miguel - San Jose, CA: Hello! I have seen this one bird in my backyard, it's big, like 5" tall, 2" wide, and maybe 5" long. It's blue, but mostly brown. Have you seen a bird like this? It sounds like something I've never heard before. Mainly because I've never seen this type of bird. Meaning, I've never seen it, so I've obviously never heard it. But it sounds cool. Have you ever seen one? Or heard one for that matter? If you do, please let me know, I'd love to find out what has been flirting about in my backyard. Thanks so much Sir, I loves your website, very cool indeed sir, veeeeeery cool indeed. Marilyn - Vista: Hi, I have a tiny wild bird that appears to interact with my cat through a non-opening window. I think it may be a vireo. It is solitary and flits rapidly within a palm. The nest was conical in a fork of the palm fronds. Have you heard of a wild bird playing with a cat like this? Marilyn Jo Rasmussen - Johnson, NY USA: I "stumbled" across your site while researching owls in the San Diego area. A man who lives there phoned and asked me what kind of owls live near because he wanted to mount an owl house on his property to rid himself of a mouse problem naturally. I just want to say how much I enjoyed your pictures and your comments about the birds in your area. I am going to add you to my resource page and recommend my shop "browsers" to visit. - Jo Rasmussen (wildbird-shop) Brenda Parker - San Diego, CA: I live in Scripps Ranch. I believe we have the Magnificent Hummer. Also the black phoebe. I have some warblers, but I'm not sure which ones. Also some songbirds, but don't know what bird they're coming from. We have some crows and owls. I think the great horned owl. I have fun watching the nature in my backyard. I though I had an oriole, but now think they must be warblers of some kind. Jim Pryal - Federal Way, WA USA: I have been watching a few light colored "green" small birds in the trees near our deck and bird feeder. I'm not sure if they feed on my deck but the tree about 15' from the deck has some fuzzy seeds on it and they are feeding there. I looked at them with binoculars and saw them in my Field Guide of Birds, as Orange-crowned Warblers. Federal Way is just north of Tacoma WA in western WA, I found your web site! Thanks Fiona Reid - Skull Valley, AZ: Was on the internet searching for a photo of a green tailed towhee and was led to your site. Thank you SO much for the gorgeous photos of birds on your site. The number of images really helps sort out identifying features. Basically - THANKS! Minh Nguyen - San Diego: You're doing a good thing with this site. I'm also a photographer, and I'm glad to see that there are people that care about the environment and about San Diego enough to take the effort to do this. Joy Fox - Ramona, CA: Enjoyed browsing your site. I live on Mussey Grade approximately straight east of Scripps Poway Parkway. I have numerous feeders out and see hundreds of birds in my yard daily. I've seen a pair of Golden Eagles (at least I was pretty sure that's what they were) on a regular basis cruising the mountains around my house, so at least now I know I'm not crazy. You've got some great pictures to help me ID some of the visitors that come to my yard. Keep up the good work. Joy Jennifer and Tony - Birmingham,Al. 35068: We have ferns on our front porch and a purple fench weaved her nest right into the fern leaves. So now we are gonna have us 5 babies on our porch until they are gone. I have never seen a bird build so fast. I think it's really something. I just wanted you to know this. And thank you for the information. Jennifer and Tony Loretta - La Mesa: Today at Seaport Village I saw a BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERON. I love looking at your site. I use it all the time. cj - spring valley, CA: I love listening to birds and going to Lake Murray to see them. Thanks for having this site! Sammy Owen - Phoenix, AZ: This website is better than any other! (That is the ones I've visited) Me and some friends are creating a whole file about hummingbirds! This one really helps! Just one thing, I think you should find a little more facts about hummingbirds. Maybe even discover different kinds of hummingbirs! Ruth Capers - La Jolla: Very nice website. Several years ago I was walking on Black's Beach and thousands of birds (swifts, I think) came in like a swarm and entered a hole in the mountain. (Must be a huge cave inside.) Over a period of weeks I saw this every morning, thousands of birds exiting at once or entering a hour later. I thought it is something that might be of interest to other birders. It was during the week of October 9 - October 20 It was breathtaking. Nancy Hazen - Santee, CA: I love this site. Libby McClendon - La Mesa: Don Connors - Carlsbad CA: Very impressive site! Is there any way to list the birds by site, such as Batiquitos Lagoon? It would be great if we could have a DVD with bird video and audio of the Batiquitos Lagoon. Is there such a recording or am I expecting too much? Don Connors Board Member Batiquitos Lagoon Foundation Martha Erickson - Oceanside: Hi Scott - I met you when you were photographing at the Robinsons' on Saturday. Very nice website indeed - I'm very impressed. I like the search and informational features as well as the beautiful photographs. One quibble, since I'm a former English major/proofreader type: please take the apostrophe out of the "it's" in the invitation to search on your home page when you have a chance - thanks. Thank you for providing this wonderful compendium of San Diego County birds. d30john - Mission Valley: Ecellent site you've made. I use it often to refrence my bird photos. I have added the URL link to my photoblog (http://d30john.blogspot.com/) Elisabet Teilor - POL: Good day Guys Good site. Thanks a lot. I'll be back to you. Jack Woot - AUS: Hello. Guys! Good site. Thanks a lot. See you leter Don - San Diego: What a great site you developed! Thanks to you, my 5 and 3 year olds and I were able to identify Northern Mockingbirds that nested above our front porch. Two eggs hatched and the little ones are doing well. The photos and MP3 clip were perfect. Thanks for sharing your work. xmkj gnrcp - USA: oevijn xjmqsg svgztdw wflihenc bxgdayp mbsxgteuz xrbzgqh Alena - Spain: you have very nice guestbook and website Ed Mirsky - Del Mar, CA: I love your site. I recently looked at the photos of Hooded Oriole and found a few typos. Run the following through your spell checker Appearence: Male: Bright orange body. Black wings with white wing bars. Black bill. Black patch covering face, throat, and chest. Black tail feathers. Female: Yellow underparts, olive-gray upperparts and eyestripe. White wing bars. Immature male similiar to female, except it has a black throat. 7" in length. snaponcook - El Cajon, Ca., USA: Please e-mail me back, I have had a hard time identifing a couple of species of birds that come around the house. Karen Klinger - san diego,ca: Great website! Love the photos and info-keep it up! Free Kid Game - Austria: I wandered into site from a google and enjoyed. Computer Helpers - Santee, CA: Very nice site. Computer Helpers Dawn - USA: Good design! Tue Feb 21 22:48:19 2006 Olga - England: Nice site! [url Deb (DJ) Feuerborn - San Diego: This is a wonderful site. One of the best bird websites I've ever seen. Great job. Thanks. Loretta - La Mesa, CA: I love your site. I feed birds in my backyard. This site is a great help in identifying birds in which I’m having a difficult with. One was the Winter Wren it was not in any of the books I have. Again, thanks a lot for your wonderful photos and information. kenoz - usa: i love the site Pat - OR: Was thinking of birding the San Diego area and came across your site. It is very informative and I appreciate your providing directions to the birding hotspots. Your pics are fabulous. google pr main - US: deneglka - USA: Cool site of course people! Polly Attwood - Concord, MA: This is a great site! I am planning a visit in April to San Diego to visit my daughter, and am hoping to do some birding while I am there. Your lists fill me with delight at the thought of all I might see, and also with a sinking feeling that one week is not going to be nearly long enough. Where would be the best place to start? I have done some birding in various places, but am by no means an expert. Polly Damir Filipovic - Kroacia: I love you Bolivia Joanie Hartman - San Diego, CA: I have been feeding birds in my yard for years and I just discovered this website. It's nicely set up - I look forward to getting to know it. Thank you for providing people with an attractive and informatve site. Sincerely, Joanie Hartman Sunaring Kurniandaru - Yogyakarta, Indonesia: I'm a college student from Indonesia. i interest to learn about bird ecology and behavior. i want to join the mailing list about bird and have communication with friends from another country. thank's Naring Joel Hawk - San Diego, CA, USA: Loved the website. Lots of great information. Appreciate your efforts in providing the information. Thanks. Don Crain - San Diego: Very nice resource, fun to use. Therese - Imperial Beach, CA: Hi, I met you at the Community Garden when you were taking those Clay-colored Sparrow pictures. Great photos, wonderful site, thanks for all the time you put into making it. karine beaupré - Canada: Infomation most helpful for my site at karinevacancieshotmailcom Marjorie Hastings - San Diego Ca: Glad to read through your web page Hope you add more as I found you had not added anything recently Shelly Magier - San Diego, CA: Awesome site!!! Simple, beatifully designed, and the photos are of course fantastic. Karl Homer - san diego, ca: My Pet White Winged Parakeet (Brotogeris versicolurus versicolurus) escaped in Tierrasanta. Small hook Bill. All green with yellow streak on closed wing and all white open wing. Apparently there are feral flocks in S.F and Orange County so there is a chance that she survived If you see her please contact me - (858) 229-9560 Mark Watson - Tampa: Congratulations on the new layout. Keep it up to date as a celebrity :) James Beckett - Miami: really good one, but i would stick more with updating and fresh data. this will help a lot to play. nikki - Colo spgs , colo USA: I just wanna know ...???? Is it a rare occurance to see a dove flying wild at night in San Diego? Rebekah - Concord, California: I found your website while I was trying to find information on the house finch's incubation period (There is a couple nesting on my fronch porch) Your website is wonderful. The information is very helpful and the pictures are more than amazing! A big pat on the back to the photographer!! Ed & Barb - Long Island,NY: Very nice site, and great pictures, especially encouraging for someone planning to visit your area. I appreciate your effort here and your passion for birding. Ed maga onyeocha - CANSAS: I DON DEY HERE SHA? GREAT SITE Gary Strawn - Santee, CA: This is a great web site. I have recommended it to manty of my fellowSan Diego Fly Fishers. When the fish aren't biting we spend a lot of time watching the birds, an dthis web site makes it more fun. Thanks, Gary anonymous - earth: Very, very nice. Please continue updating this website with new goodies for years to come. Thanks again, I'm bookmarking it for future enjoyment. Michelle S. - Riverton, Utah, U.S.A.: Absolutely WONDERFUL website! Well organized, informative, and very attractive with stunning photographs. Love your site! I am educating my 3 young children regarding the various birds that frequent our backyard. Your site has exactly what I needed to provide complete and accurate information regarding several of the birds we are observing every day. THANK YOU!!!!!!! rich cook - reno nv: outstanding. I totally enjoyed my visit Bill Jones - Carlsbad, Ca: I am a board member of the Buena Vista Audubon Society in Oceanside. We are developing a bird photo archive to support the Buena Vista nature Center education programs. Is it possible to use some of your photos in that archive? I am just finishing a review and selection of donated slides(1000s) but most are not useful for the archive and I am looking for other sources to fill out the ABA list. Archive photos will not be used commercially and copyright restrictions can be accomodated. Any help would be greatly appreciated and acknowledged. Bill PS: Great website!! Rod and Thia Brown - Morley Field (North Park) San Diego: LOVE your site! It helped us so much....we are just starting to do research into birds of our area. Thank you. Rod and Thia Brown Susan - San Diego, CA: I especially enjoy the photos. I, too, aspire to be a photographer someday .. amateur or otherwise. You're site is inspiring. Thanks for sharing .. Jeff M. - Athens, Georgia, USA: Great website! I just added it to my favorites. Joanie - El Cajon, CA USA: Great Osprey photos! I finally saw one flying over Lake Murray with a fish in its talons. Pretty exciting! Your website is great!! Colleen Southern - San Carlos: I love your site and after birding down at Lake Murray I check your site to see which birds are there. I think I saw Forester's Tern today. cj (again) - california, san diego: Your site is very nice. Im 11 and ive been trying to take pictures of birds. your site is very helpful. THANKS!!!! cj - san diego, california: Your site is the best!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Barbara Vealey - Rancho Santa Margarita, CA: Please see my email from blv01@cox.net regarding our Common Peafowl (?) sighting!! Lindsey - Escondido, CA: Beautiful and informative site! Thank you! patricia - phoenix, arizona: Thank you for your web-site....I live just off of a park/golf course,(2 blocks away) and have a Kestral hawk, a Thrasher, a woodpecker(red headed), and various other birds. It was fun, and interesting to see a still photo, and also hear the birds I see around home, and work. at work we have a mockingbird that dive bombs us as we go out to our cars in the afternoon!! it is funny to see everyone duck as it comes at them, and also give us something to talk about at breaks! The Thrasher must live somewhere near my home, and comes out after sunset, right before it gets dark(at least thats when I see him) and tears up the yard, pecking holes all over the place! thanks for a great website...I will enjoy looking, and learning....pat Karen Scanlon - San Diego: What a lovely, and comprehensive, website. I enjoyed looking at the bird photos and learning about birding. Thanks for a most entertaining peek at the pretty birds. DOug Rippe - Oxnard CA: Nice site. I am a beginner birder and looking to take pictures around my house, at the beach, and interesting places birds like to hang out in the city (drains, navy base, etc). Just bought a Canon 20D. Not sure what lens I need, Something stronger than my 80mm. ripped@adelphia.net Janice - Penasquitos-San Diego, CA: Thanks for sharing all of your great pix. It's nice to see various views of our local birds. I always have problems with sparrow and woodpecker IDs, your website really helps. I like to take pictures of the "freeloader" birds at the Wild Animal Park. I have more fun looking at them than the critters on exhibit. Thanks again! JLH Kathy Dickey - Cardiff, CA: LOVE your website! Thank you so much. This will be very helpful for me as I learn more about the birds and wildlife of San Diego area. I am training to be a docent at Batiquitos Lagoon and also San Elijo lagoon. Thanks, Kathy LE PECHON - PARIS FRANCE: Thanks for replying to my e-mail. I have found the detailes upon the mocking bird and I send your website adress to my children leaving in San Diego. Very good idea to have recorded the song of each bird Monique Le PECHON deanne west - la mesa: I was intested in viewing the sparrows and larks and a few finches today. I sent one of your Note Cards to Lisa Wood, this morning. It was the photo of a white - crowned Sparrow. A Very nice ----- perfect picture. So, I began wondering.....which sparrow...is commonly known as the English Sparrow? I think that it has a black "bib". So, that would be the House Sparrow. According to my research on your web-site this morning... Am I right? MOM Alex Kesaris - San Diego, CA USA: Hey, Scott! Nice website. Great photos! I'll send your URL to the folks in bird conservation out in CT... Cheers, Alex L. Stokes - Tulare, Ca. United States: Thank you so much, i just have to see more, but there was a certain bird, i had to look up and was lead to this site...much to my surprize i found the bird in my backyard....i was so excited and wanted to share it with you..from the description and pictures you presented in here i found out what it is..a Green Heron...and we are about 25 min to 3 rivers...there are marshes around this valley, here in cow country...llooll i was really blessed to see this bird, he or she is now perched way inside a evergreen over the fence ...i sure am glad i had the priveledge to enjoy seeing him..we get all kinds here...and i like to look them up...ty for all the photo's and descriptions...a bird lover from the center of california...L. Stokes MIKE SEGAL - MOJAVE,CA: NICE SITE!I LIVED NEAR LAKE MURRY IN THE 60'S AND 70'S. MY MOM STILL LIVES THERE. IT'S NICE TO KNOW SO MANY PEOPLE ARE ENJOYING THE WILD LIFE! IT SEEMS THAT EVEN THOUGH THERE IS LESS OPEN AREA,THE BIRD COUNTS SEEM WAY UP WHEN I VISIT.YOUR SITE SEEMS TO SUPPORT THIS. I RAISE LOTS OF BIRDS AT MY HOUSE IN THE DESERT AND HAVE COMPLEMTED THE LAND WITH HABITAT PLANTINGS AND FOOD PLOT TREES,SO I REALLY AM IN TUNE TO THIS TYPE OF THING. GREAT JOB AND KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK! Roger Zellmer - San Diego, CA: Beautiful pictures youy have here. How do you like that Tamoron 200-400 lens? What kind of camera do you have it on? I just got the Canon Rebel and want to buy a telephoto lens for it. -- I no longer own the Tamrom lens. It was ok, but really noisy and slow, and I prefer my canon 400. Max - Seoul, South Korea: Hi there. Thanks for the mockingbird clips. Much appreciated. Debra Moss - San Diego, CA, USA: trying to identify the birds in my backyard since I have set up feeders michael o'griffin - mount laguna, california: greetings~ i have had a feeding/drinking/bathing station here at my place for the last 3 or 4 years that attracts 40 or so band tailed pigeons on the large end to pygmy nuthatches and hummers on the small end. 100 to 200 birds a day, locals as well as transients du jour. anyone interested in info on viewing them contact mick at mickincal@sbcglobal.net. Ann Van Leer - San Diego: Excellent job! I am working on a site for the Rose Creek Watershed Oportunities Assessment and would like to link to yours with this text. Ok? Thanks, Ann Van Leer. o Bird Friends of Lake Murray and San Diego County www.bird-friends.com is an easy-to-navigate and user friendly site listing frequently seen birds in San Diego County. It includes photos and descriptions. visitor - san diego ca: nice site being able to type in a color to indentify a bird really helps. thanx. Steve - San Diego: Coopers Hawk. Thanks, Mike. http://binarywolf.com/blog/2004/10/coopers-hawk-accipiter-cooperii.html Lars Elvik - Valley Center, CA: What, no Barn Owls? I have also identified (by song) Screech Owls on my property. Overall, though, I have enjoyed this site very much and visit it often. Thank you for maintaining this site. jim felder m.d. - st. charles mo: playing in sd canyons as a kid 1942-5 i saw many roadrunners. are they still around? Mike - La Mesa: Wanted to add something for Steve who posted below me. Thats not a red tailed hawk. It is a Coopers Hawk. You are lucky, Coopers hawks sightings are much more rare, as they are stealth hunters. Red tails hunt from high positions which makes them easy to see. You can identify the Coopers hawk because the tail feathers are much longer than they would be on a red tail. Although it can be easily confused with an immature red tail as the tail feathers have the same barring on them :) Sorry for the novel. Mike - La Mesa: You have some AMAZING photos. As an aspiring falconer is great to see someone who has high quality photos of both raptors, and many kinds of waterfowl. They both are extremely beautiful and your photos do them justice. Steve - San Diego: Found your site from a link on the SDAS site. You might like this red-tailed hawk about a mile from Lake Murray. http://binarywolf.com/blog/2004/08/hawk-on-fence.html Mike Zolezzi - San Diego, CA USA: Great Web Site and keep it growing. Robert Draper - Hemet, CA USA: You have a wonderful site. As I am a beginning birder, I have used it to identify birds seen in the San Diego area. I have not had time to go to Lake Murray, but it looks like a fruitful place to visit. Thanks for the nice photos. As I take bird photos whenever I can, if I have a particularly good one, especially at Lake Murray, I will send it to you. Regards, Bob Draper Matt Tritt - Atascadero, Ca.: Nice pictures and descriptions of Phainopepla nitens! I have a nice pair hanging out in my yard in northern San Luis Obispo County. I also have (at least) one scrub jay who eats ticks off the backs of our resident deer Pretty funny, eh? larrym@zipcon.net - Seattle,WA: What a nice website. I'm sending this down to my daughter,who lives just North of you. Wer're both somewhat new to birding and I know she'll be glad to find another spot to go birding. Thank's for your information. Larry Mary Ann Robinson - San Diego: Scott I'm impressed with your great website. Hope to see some of the Palomar birds on your site soon. I notice you still need the Mountain Quail and the band tailed pigeon and I'm sure you'll get them on Palomar Mtn. Gary Strawn - Santee, CA: Great site! I am a fly fisherman and Conservation Chairman for San Diego Fly Fishers. I have also been working with the San Diego Stream Team doing water sampling and working with the San Diego River Park Foundation. As I get out into out San Deigo River water shed I am getting more interested in the birds I see. I am amazed at the variety. Now I have an easy way to help identify what I have seen. Thanks, Gary Victoria - San Diego, CA: Dear Scott, What a delight to discover your site! Growing up in New Zealand, with its' incredible bird life, it's a joy to learn so much activity exists here. After living 12 years in SD I've moved to a Nth Park cottage with a great yard & many birds - hummingbirds, finches, 2 nesting Jays, "Pig & Poo", plus many I can now name with your assistance. Observed a red-shouldered hawk swoop & devour his breakfast this morning just yards away...Discovery Channel in my b'yard. Thanks so much for the time you've invested & for sharing it with us all. Victoria. PS Living in Pt Loma I noticed several pairs of Blue Macaws..any guesses as to how/when they became locals, too? Marjorie hastings - Spring Valley,CA.: could not find the Long-eared Owls what did we do wrong ??? Tamara Bartman - Lemon Grove: I was looking for picture of bird spotted by my dog in Lemon Grove. It had a very long slim beak with slender body. In flight the wing span looked at a foot and half on each side with broad width but did not have head dress on head. what kind do you think ? did not look like the Heron pictured or the Egret. It is a nice web site will put it in my favorites. Tamara Marty Herbert - San Diego, CA: Your site has some really excellent photos. I am an avid photographer who has recently taken to birding and I can truly appreciate how hard it is to get nice shots (even witht he right equipment). Your site is also well organized, easy to use, and full of good info. Keep up the great work. Kevin Tat - SD, CA, USA: Hi Scott, you just have a beautiful bird page here, it's just wonderful work! I found this page thru SD Audubon Society, cause I was trying to link my images to a link in SD Audubon, I got some pretty good images in www.pbase.com/kevintat and I thought Audubon could use some of them, I have many more to upload, and on my way to take more pictures of birds. Did you take all those pictures in your site yourself? they are incredible! Good day! It's nice to know there are some of you bird lovers out there. Regards, Kevin Tat Robert Vaughn - Salt Lake City, UT: Jen Dineen - Hollister, CA, USA: A dove has made a nest on my back patio. I was looking for the incubation period. Thanks for the information. wingwatcher - Connecticut: Great photos, info, and a unique website. Love it! Candy - Norwalk, CT, USA: I had a Red Tailed Hawk in my backyard this morning! We have squirrels that come to our back door for peanuts. I had just fed them, was getting ready for work when I heard the crows & other birds squawking more than usual. When I went to check, the squirrels were like frozen little statues. Up in our tree was a hawk! The crows were a few branches away, making a lot of noise & managed to chase the hawk away. I was really surprised, I always thought they lived in the woods! Thanks to your fabulous website, I was able to verify it was definitely a Red Tailed Hawk & that the crows own my backyard!!! Tony Konefal - Pocono Mts. PA: Enjoyed your photos very much! I have a question about equipment used to photograph the Osprey. The caption indicated a 1000mm Meade. Can you please give me details of Meade model,camera,film and any special gear. Thanks so much Regards, TONY Ken O'key - South Mission Beach: What a great site. I wish I would have found it sooner:)) Thanks for the work to keep it going. Nicole Ramirez - El Cajon: Wow, i enjoyed this site, thank you. Cool search engine too. I know birders grow tired of my inadequate descriptions. I do try and wont give up. Will put this site in my favorites. SARAH - UK WALES: I live in a park called Garreg Wen which means white stone, it not far from the beach, we have so many different birds here. When we first moved here i came upon a very strange duck red faced white fetherd and very friendly we named him Ed the visitors call him Elvis he's a muscovy duck. Their are mallards here to but last year they dident breed very well I hope this year there will be more ducklings Chris - Santee, CA: After moving to Santee from OB I have spent many mornings listening and watching all the local birds in my area. Your site has been very helpfull in helping me ID many species. I am still new at this and your site is a great commpanion to my Audubon society book. Keep up the great work. Thanks again. John Hall - Amherstburg,Ont,Can. : Wow!What an awesome site!A perfect companion for my trip to San Diego.It is so nice to be able to add new birds to my life list,as i have seen most of the ones back east.Have you ever heard of Point Pelee National Park?I live about 40 minutes away from there.Keep up the good work,John. Joey - San Diego: Killer site! Thanks for all your hard work! Ernest - La Mesa: Thanks for a great web site and especially for the "fact sheet" on each of the birds. Please keep up your good work. Les Harrison - College Station, TX: This is a great site. I was in San Diego for a conference. While I had my Sibley, I didn't have a local checklist to help me identify the local birds. Your site was a big help and enabled me to match most of the descriptions in my field notes to their proper owners at the end of the day. Keep up the great work! Nancy Vouk - San Diego: Hi, We were wondering whatever happened to the Burrowing Owls that lived along the San Diego River flood channel. We haven't seen them this year. Thanks for a great web site. Pat Fishtein - Princeton, NJ; San Diego, CA: I am a birder from the eat coast and am learning western birds. I have seen some new birds here, including 2 red-faced warblers. This website has been a wonderful resource for my transition. Shelley - San Diego: Thank you for all the beautiful pictures, and great job on your website too! Michele Herrmanns - San Diego, CA, USA: What a great web site and magnificant pictures. It will be my reference point for identifying birds. I started out with hummingbird feeders, then bird seed for backyard birds, now I am branching out. I'll have to go to Lake Murray. I am going to send you an e-mail to see if you can tell me what this black egret is. Thanks in advance. Michele prue gane - worcester England: This was the most imformative web site I have found so far. I have come to visit family but would like to do some birdwatching. It is very helpful to have the areas and birds most likely seen in that area. Thankyou. Katera - North Platte, Nebraska: I found your website to be very helpful with my report on birds that I did for school. I loved the pictures. I am interested in being a bird photographer, and I was wondering if you took the pictures yourself, or if you got them off another website. Bill Jones - Carlsbad, Ca: Larry Dutton - Niles, OHIO, USA: Impressive website. Tremendous Pictures. Makes me want to move out west. However, if you ever come east you can add several photos. Looking forward to visiting again soon. Sean Hudson - San Diego: Great web site. I just got into birding and your site is now first on my list to look at first. Thanks for sharing all your hard work!!! Oldmoon Mullins - El Dorado County, CA: Your shot of the Hermit Warbler, viewed on another website, was terrific! Was enough to attract me to your official website. Nice work. Locally, my favorite is the Western Tanager. shaitia wells - kankakee,ill.: i like the photos that you have on your website. chris tanner - la mesa, ca: great site, wonderful pictures, i have seen red tailed and coopers hawks, a falcon and even a female california gnatcatcher in my backyard which borders the last undeveloped hill in la mesa (unfortunately, it will be developed soon) Samantha - San Diego, CA: I stumbled across your site while searching for birding hot spots in San Diego. You've done a marvelous job, and your bird photographs are wonderfully delightful. Thank you for sharing your photos and for linking other great birding spots to your site. Brent Hickey - Dalton .N.S.W. Australia: Lucia Bailey - La Mesa, CA USA: I have become very interested in the birds around our home and on our walks. We have several occupied bird houses with wrens and house finches this year and it's so interesting to watch the devopment of the chicks (from afar of course). We even have a nest under the front of our 5th wheel trailer and are waiting for them to mature and fly away so we can go on a trip. Thanks for your web sight, I've learned so much. Sincerely , Lucia Lynne Stoll - Mira Mesa CA: What wonderful pictures!! What detailed work!! Thank You. I found this site because today I saw that little bird again with what I called a "punk" haircut. It was a Black Phoebe. Thank You. I enjoy having feeding stations in my backyard. I have seen several bird types that you have pictured. This includes the Red Tailed Hawk sitting on my fence one morning; sure scared ME. I keep raw peanuts in the shell in a seperate place for the Jays. Anyway, Thanks again. Very informative. Lynne Stoll Bob King - Santee: Just wanted you to know I really enjoy your web site and photos. What speed film do you use? Wonderfull shots. Marilyn Wilson - Rancho Bernardo: No ravens? Gail Norton - San Diego, CA: Love your site. You've done a beautiful job. If you haven't heard, there has been a golden eagle seen at MTRP several days in a row just across the driveway at the Visitor Center heading south across Mission Gorge Rd. I saw it 2 mornings in a row a week ago and noticed in the registration book there was another sighting at the same time of day on 4/26. My e-mail address is abirdwoman@hotmail.com Niomi - Ramona, CA: Great Website! Your efforts in creating this information on local birds is very helpful and appreciated. I live on three acres in the west end of Ramona near Mt. Woodson and have lots of birds on my property. Your website has helped me in getting to know them all better. sadie Dabbs - Weatherford, Tx: Hello, We play golf on a course which has 8 lakes. There is an Island hole and we have 2 Mute swans who live there. We speak to the swans each day when we play this hole. They have learned our voices and come toward us when we get to this green. For a couple of weeks we were concern about the condition of the swans. We could only see one and we always in the past saw two. One day last week about April 3, we noticed one of the swans in the marsh and was what we though could be nesting. The other swan would swin around but not come around us as in the pasted. We continue to see the one swan in the marsh, sometimes out a little ways from the marsh swimming and dipping down as in the past, but never very far from the marsh. Now, after reading your informations on Mute swans, we know what the condition of the swans are. They are, we hope, getting ready to become parents. Just hope nothing happens to the eggs. Lots of critters around this golf course. We would really enjoy wittnessing the hatching of the little ones and enjoy seeing them grow up. Thank you for your information. Really makes us feel as if we did understand the swans. They are so beautiful and each time before hatching began, they would swim toward us and we called their performance, The swan dance on the island hole. I always would have them perform for our guest when we had some for golf. This might sound stange to you, but we really enjoy this beautiful birds. Thank you again. Sadie and Loyd from Texas Zlatko Filipovic - San Diego CA Us: Paul Kemp pamela suiter - mount airy,north carolina,usa: Thank you for sharing your photos.I am a birdwatcher and protecter of my backyard birds.I will come back to your site. Gary Grice - Santee, CA: Great photography. Good luck on geting your new lens. Looks like you will put it to good use. Boyd Kelso - Chula Vista, : Thanks for your efforts to keep San Diego an excellent home for many species of birds. Hans Dettinger - Hamburg, Germany: Wonderful site! Your photos and descriptions made my tour of Lake Murray so much more enjoyable! San Diego really is the most beautiful place in the world both in landscape and wildlife! Dave - Connecticut, U.S.A.: Excellent site. I like the description along with photos. Dennis Dawes - Darlington England: A wonderful page for bird lovers. Here in the north of England there seems to be a decline in many kinds of garden birds.Maybe you have the answer. Good luck! in all your endeavour's. Jean H. Allen - El Paso, Tx: How I wish some of your beautiful birds would visit our back yard. I feed White Wing doves, Inca Doves, and, of course, English Sparrows (House Sparrow or Weaver Bird) by the dozens each AM and PM. Once in a while a House Finch, but eye problems have decimated their numbers in recent years. Thoroughly enjoyed your site. Nancy P - San Diego: I have a new visitor (or 2)in my Talmage back yard and I've been trying to figure out what it is. I had a few birds picked out but thanks to you and your pictures, I am sure my new visitor is a Yellow Rumped Warbler. Thank You, I really enjoy your website, it is definitely in my "favorites". Keep up the good work! Donna Bailey - Mississippi Gulf Coast, USA: Wonderful photo's. I see you enjoy birding and photography as much as I do. If you would like to see my photo's got to http://community.webshots.com/user/1birdylady Gene Lund - La Mesa` Ca 91942: Tsodi (Jody) - Maine, USA: Your site is absolutely fabulous - such beautiful photos - quite obviously a labor of love. Thank you for sharing your experiences and expertise and these wondrous creatures! Jody jessica - aus: i loved your site Joanie - El Cajon,California, USA: Nice website! david burch - vancouver wa: thanks for haveing a black phoebe wingwatcher - Connecticut, U.S.A.: I saw your photo of Stellar's Jay on Birder's Forum and had to come see more. Love your setup and descriptions. Some of your photos I have been trying to get myself. They can be pretty tough to get when they don't co-operate. Great shots, nice work. Nany Nolan - Hurst, TX: Hi, I was looking for another Lake Murray, near the DFW area and I found...one of my FAVORITES instead...Lake Murray in California! I think it is located in or near the community of La Mesa? I just know that while I was living there from 1998 until late 2000, I would drive there to watch the ducks, and the little chipmunks. The lake is wonderful, and as all the lakes that I saw in California, they are very different from "lakes" in Texas. My memories of Lake Murray bring both smiles and sadness at the same time. I smile at the memories of the tranquility I felt as I would sit at that lake, and I cry as I remember the reasons I came. Someone I loved deeply was gravely ill and at rare moments, in between staying at the hospital pretty much 24/7, I would drive there to relax and collect my thoughts. Another favorite lake I went to at one point on a daily basis was Lake Chollas in San Diego, located on College Grove Ave. right off of Hwy. 94. I am SO GLAD I found your site...thank you for sharing it!!! Nancy Nolan in Texas :o) Barbara Cleves - Lake Murray: Scott I haven't looked at this site in awhile but it is fantastic! What do you do in your spare time? The photos are wonderful and you have a wealth of information. Good work. Barbara Joe Alexander - Middletown, MD, USA: Some excellent pics! Good info too. We'll be in SD in a couple of days & I was just doing some last-minute searching for birding info. Thanks! Joe Alexander Middletown, MD Donna Lane - Fallbrook San Diego Cty CA: Thanks for having this site! Looking for info on Orioles, as we see them in our yard and have purchased a feeder for them. Now the question is: when do they travel? They are not here now, but we want to be prepared as they make their journey north. Thanks again for the site. Will revisit to check out the other birds so I can make our place more bird friendly. Regards! Anitra L. Kaye - San Diego, CA: I've recently become more interested in local birds. Having always feed the local sparrows, jays and finches, I put up an oriole feeder and was rewarded with a female visitor on the first day. Hunting the net in order to figure out what type of oriole she was lead me to your website. It was a pleasant and very informative surprise. Thank you for taking the time to create such a wonderful site. Walt Hutchinson - Bay Point, CA: Excellent Web Site! I am trying to identify a pair of birds the male of which looked like a Hooded Oriole (to my inexperianced eyes) except that the black patch was restricted to the throat. They were eating insects (I think) right outside my study window for several minutes but have not returned (I am NOW camera ready.) Is this a variant? My son thinks that they are nesting in our palm tree but I see no nest. (They may have been feeding on the blooms.) I grew up in Escondido, by the way. HutchTrout@aol.com Patricia A. Nixon - PA, USA: what a helpful list- we will be vacationing in your area next week- gives me a good idea of what to look for when birding- definately bringing the 10 x40 binos. Thanks. Jennie - La Mesa, CA, USA: I enjoyed looking at your site! Janet Campbell - San Diego, CA, USA: I found your website today while trying to find a site to help me identify a beautiful pair of birds who have been frequenting my hummingbird feeder for the past few weeks. I'm not an official "birder", by any means, but I enjoy watching the usual hummingbirds at the feeder. I'm sure the male and female pair I've seen helping themselves at the feeder (while stupefying, I'm sure, the much smaller hummingbirds) are Hooded Orioles. The beautiful photo and clear descriptions you've provided on this site match "my" birds perfectly. Thanks for having such an informative and attractive website. | |