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Daily Bucket -Summer at Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge Belongs to the Blackbirds [1]

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Date: 2024-06-11  

Summertime is quiet time for the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge. The visitor center which finally reopened last spring is only open 2 days a week.

The vast majority of birds are long gone, the ponds are grasslands and the days are hot and dry. Instead of hundreds of snow geese and ducks, you see dozens of Red-Winged Blackbirds.

The Daily Bucket is a nature refuge. We amicably discuss animals, weather, climate, soil, plants, waters and note life’s patterns.

We invite you to note what you are seeing around you in your own part of the world, and to share your observations in the comments below.

Each note is a record that we can refer to in the future as we try to understand the phenological patterns that are quietly unwinding around us. To have the Daily Bucket in your Activity Stream, visit Backyard Science’s profile page and click on Follow.

Here are some more RW Blackbirds:

The insectivores rule during the summer. All along the six-mile auto route, we saw Western Meadowlarks, Black Phoebe, Ash-Throated Flycatchers and other non-waterfowl.

This Western Meadowlark found a great perch for singing

Western Meadowlarks have beautiful markings on their head and back.

Black Phoebe readying to take flight

Western Kingbird perches on some dried brush

Ash-Throated Flycatcher

Not sure who this is

This one either

Either Song or Savannah Sparrows, I couldn’t lighten it up anymore but saw some striping on the breast of the bird on top.

There was one spot where a remnant of a pond remained. So we have a handful of ducks who declined to migrate and live year-round in the refuge.

A small flock of ducks stayed behind — Pintails, Shovelors and Widgeons

An American Widgeon

A Widgeon pair (Eurasian?)

Northern Shovelor

We did see a couple of raptors.

Redtailed Hawk played peek-a boo before flying off.

Finally, a little creature appeared in the road directly in front of us.

Bad photo thru the windshield of a long eared Jackrabbit

There were lots of dragonflies but I couldn’t get a decent shot of any of them. I also saw Killdeer, a Great Egret and a California Quail with a brood of bumblebee babies that rapidly disappeared into the brush. As normal, Turkey Vultures soared high above seeking potential meals.

I can hardly wait for October/November when the ponds refill and the waterfowl return.

Currently, temps in NorCal are staying above average with today’s high predicted at 100+ degrees. There already have been several small wildfires around NorCal with the largest being about 14,000 acres and lasting several days. Fire season has started.

What’s up in your neck of the woods?

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