Belted Kingfishers spend much of their time perched alone along the edges of streams, lakes, and estuaries, searching for small fish. They also fly quickly up and down rivers and shorelines giving loud rattling calls. They hunt either by plunging directly from a perch, or by hovering over the water, bill downward, before diving after a fish they’ve spotted. #Kingfishers live near streams, rivers, ponds, lakes, and estuaries. They nest in burrows that they dig into soft earthen banks, usually adjacent to or directly over water. Kingfishers spend winters in areas where the water doesn’t freeze so that they have continual access to their aquatic foods. Info via #CornellLabs Photo credit: Cecelia Sheeter #BEKI #Kingfisher #CrayfishForDinner #Mohawk #BedHead #Audubon #Birding #BirdPhotography #DivingBirds ... See more

⚠️ RARE BIRD ALERT ⚠️
Madera County

Pectoral Sandpiper (Calidris melanotos) (2)
- Reported Oct 05, 2020 11:29
- Madera WTP, Madera, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&q=36.9417288,-120.1645947&ll=36.9417288,-120.1645947
- Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S74470707
- Media: 1 Photo credit Gary Woods ... See more

Submitted by Gary Woods. ... See more

Please consider joining Fresno Audubon as a member and receive a FAS sticker and local area Birding Resource Guide, Details follow - click below! Thank you for your support!

https://myemail.constantcontact.com/Get-your-FREE-Birding-Resource-Guide.html?soid=1110499919850&aid=8w4ec8U9lSs ... See more

Become a member! Become a Member and receive your FREE Birding Resource Guide and Fresno Audubon Sticker! Membership Drive Now Underway Join here! A HUGE thank you to those who have already become mem ... See more

Bullock's Orioles are medium-sized songbirds with slim but sturdy bodies and medium-long tails. Orioles are related to blackbirds and share their long, thick-based, sharply pointed bills. Adult males are bright orange with a black back and large white wing patch. The face is orange with a black line through the eye and a black throat. Females (pictured here) and immatures are yellowish-orange on the head and tail, with grayish back and white-edged wing coverts. Immature males show a black throat patch. Bullock's Orioles feed in the slender branches of trees and shrubs, catching caterpillars and also feeding on nectar or fruit. They are agile and active, often hanging upside down or stretching to reach prey. Info via Cornell Labs. Photo Credit: Cecelia Sheeter #BUOR #BullocksOriole #Audubon #Birding #BirdNerds #WildlifePhotography #BirdingPhotography #BirdPhotography #Ornithology #CornellLabOfOrnithology #Bullocks #Orioles ... See more

The White-crowned Sparrows are now starting to chow down at the Fresno Audubon Bird Feeding station at the San Joaquin River Center! Thanks to all who donated to our Bird Seed Fundraiser earlier this year. 👏 Photo credit: Sandra Mcmillan-cato ... See more

⚠️ RARE BIRD ALERT ⚠️
Fresno County

Neotropic Cormorant
(Note: different location than previous sightings)

(Phalacrocorax brasilianus) (2)
- Reported Oct 02, 2020 10:56
- Orange Cove WTP, Fresno, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&q=36.608769,-119.3340969&ll=36.608769,-119.3340969
- Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S74325211
- Media: 9 Photos
- Comments: "Both appear to be adults. Bright blue eyes. Smaller than a DCCO with a longer more pronounced tail. Clear white V pattern around the yellow throat with a shorter bill (getting darker and more great toward the end) than a DCCO. Roughly the same size a a mallard, seen in pictures. Could possibly been the same bird(s) seen at a different location last month, who knows. First seen with a group of DCCO. When they flew they seemed to have a slightly faster wing beat than DCCO and flew together and in front of DCCO. Later spotted again, this time only one bird by an Egret." Photo credit: Chris Rempel ... See more

⚠️ RARE BIRD ALERT ⚠️
Fresno County
- Marbled Godwit (1 report)
- Pectoral Sandpiper (1 report)
- Ferruginous Hawk (1 report)

NOTE: all sightings are UNCONFIRMED unless indicated.

Marbled Godwit (Limosa fedoa) (1)
- Reported Oct 01, 2020 07:36
- Fresno WTP, Fresno, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&q=36.7047606,-119.8916531&ll=36.7047606,-119.8916531
- Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S74296549
- Media: 1 Photo

Pectoral Sandpiper (Calidris melanotos) (3)
- Reported Oct 01, 2020 07:36
- Fresno WTP, Fresno, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&q=36.7047606,-119.8916531&ll=36.7047606,-119.8916531
- Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S74296549
- Media: 1 Photo

Ferruginous Hawk (Buteo regalis) (1)
- Reported Oct 01, 2020 07:36
- Fresno WTP, Fresno, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&q=36.7047606,-119.8916531&ll=36.7047606,-119.8916531
- Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S74296549 photo credit: Gary Woods ... See more

Note when out and about birding. 🦟 Mosquito-bite warning: Tulare County has 2 human West Nile cases and more ‘probable’. Officials say you should dress in long sleeves and pants during dawn and dusk and when in areas where mosquitoes are active 🦟

Read more here: https://www.fresnobee.com/news/local/article246150225.html?fbclid=IwAR2BDWSDedddpq2bDSyJYFAYdIESv48sJohaZkjlCtcJw0mQHISBLKu9QFw#storylink=cpy ... See more

A disturbing article and image from Smithsonian Magazine. Jak Wonderly’s ‘Caught by Cats’ aims to increase awareness of domestic cats’ deadly effects on wildlife. In the United States alone, cats kill an average of over 2 billion birds and 12 billion mammals each year. Cats are the leading cause of non-natural bird deaths, accounting for just under 75 percent, according to a 2015 study. A friendly reminder to keep your cats indoors to help save birds. Info via Georgia Audubon. ... See more

Jak Wonderly's 'Caught by Cats' aims to increase awareness of domestic cats' deadly effects on wildlife. ... See more

Well done former first lady Laura Bush. 👏 👏 👏 ... See more

The former first lady posted on Instagram asking those in the state to 'darken the night sky’ and protect migrating birds ... See more