Tag Archives: chicks

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There is an active nest near the Point Arena Lighthouse of Common Raven chicks. The mother and father raven have been busy bringing food to the seemingly insatiable chicks. When Perry looked at his photos on his computer, he was surprised to see the mother was feeding her chick blackberries!

Ravens are omnivorous, eating even carrion. It's interesting to see the mother feeding the ripe berries to her chicks.

Ravens are highly intelligent. They've been known to use tools to get food and defend their territory. I've seen a video of a raven dropping a stick on a steep roof and then racing down to catch it before it hits the ground - over and over. So they know to use an object to play. They can also mimic human speech, and several have been taught to say, "Nevermore!"

Thanks to Perry for allowing me to share his photos with you here. To see much more of Perry's photography, here is the link to his website: https://magentaraven.com/

A beautiful, sunny day today, with some high clouds. Wind picked up in the afternoon.

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Several species of swallows migrate northward to the Mendonoma Coast to build their nests, lay their eggs and then diligently feed their chicks. Craig Tooley wrote, "These little Barn Swallows are perched above the front door of friends of ours. Our friends have graciously decided to enter and exit their house through the back door until the chicks fledge. The swallow parents are hard-working.”

Later Craig noticed this Barn Swallow skimming over the sand, presumably scooping up insects from the wrack on the beach.

Interested to know what beach wrack is? Here's an explanation from the web:

Natural material that washes onto the beach is referred to as wrack and includes algae, sea grasses, and some invertebrates such as sponges and soft corals. Wrack serves as the primary source of nutrients to beach communities and is the foundation for the food chain.

Good to know!

Thanks to Craig for allowing me to share his photos with you here. To see much more of Craig's nature photography, here is his website: http://www.ruffimage.com

It's beautiful here on the Mendonoma coast today, temps in the 70s with a stronger afternoon breeze.

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I love the liquid sound of California Quail calls, and I've been hearing them at our place in Anchor Bay. John Batchelder photographed several chicks recently.

Bob Marton spotted what looks like two coveys of Quail chicks - 24 in all! That's a lotta chicks.

Thanks to John and Bob for allowing me to share their photos with you here. To hear the calls of these beautiful birds, here is a link to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/California_Quail/sounds

Today, Friday, is sunny with a hint of coolness in the air - quite nice!

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Several people have sent in photos of CA Quail chicks. One is Craig Tooley.

And Jon Loveless saw a family too. I count 11 balls of feathers. Jon said there were 13 in all.

Here's a close-up of a male by Michael Reinhart. Such beautiful birds...

Thanks to Craig, Jon and Michael for allowing me to share their photos with you here.

Drippy fog this morning has evolved into brilliant sunshine this afternoon. Summer on the Mendonoma Coast!

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Pelagic Cormorants, seabirds, nest on bluff faces on the Mendonoma Coast. Karen Wilkinson photographed a pair at their nest, and when she looked at her photo on her computer, she found two tiny chicks.

You can see an eggshell (or possibly an unhatched egg!) and two chicks that look as if they just hatched! The father Pelagic Cormorant is leaving the nest in Karen's photo. He brings food back to his mate and now for his offspring. It's quite magical to watch these nests. They are very quiet and it's almost mystical to be in the moment and be quiet too.

Thanks to Karen for allowing me to share her photo with you here.

Another hot day, but it feels like it is breaking. Yep, the weather is changing again, maybe even some rain for the weekend.

Spring doesn't know...