May Field Trips
Sat.—May 29—8 a.m.—Buena Vista Lagoon Bird Count. Join the regular monthly bird survey team and get to know the Buena
Vista Lagoon. Have the satisfaction of contributing to the ongoing bird database by performing a little citizen science. We always
record a nice assortment of freshwater wetland and marsh species on this easy-paced monthly excursion. Directions: I-5 to I-78
East, take Jefferson St. exit, turn right and make another right turn onto Lagoon View Dr. Leader: Joan Fountain, 760-729-1379.
Sat.—May 29—8:30-10:30 a.m.—Basic Birding Class at the Buena Vista Lagoon Landing. Novice birders are invited to join
our monthly class for some informal, no-pressure birding. Your leader will share some friendly tips and help you practice your bird
identification skills. Directions: I-5 to I-78 East, take Jefferson St. exit, turn right and go to stoplight, turn right and park in Landing
parking lot on the right-hand side of road. Leader: Tom Troy, 760-420-7328.
June Field Trips
Sat.—Jun 5—8 a.m.—Whelan Lake Monthly Bird Count. Whelan Lake is a reserve with a freshwater lake and riparian edge habitat. Directions: I-5 to Hwy. 76 East, left at Douglas and continue to light at North River Rd., left on North River Rd. Meet at the cul-de-sac at the end of the road by the entrance gate. Leader: John Haddock, 760-941-7824.
Sun.—June 13—8:00 a.m.—Palomar Mountain State Park Lazuli Bunting, Olive-Sided and other flycatchers, woodpeckers, swallows, and, with some luck, Purple Martins, nuthatches, and orioles. It's a great month to be in SD high country. Bring a lunch for a picnic. Directions: 78 to 15 North to 76 East, then 20.6 miles to the Palomar Mountain State Park sign. Turn at sign and go up hill to S-7 at top. Turn left and then another immediate left at corner store. Go 3 miles to park entrance, pay day use fee, and proceed short distance to picnic area on the left. We`ll gather there. Car poolers meet at 6:50 at La Costa Park-and-Ride.
Leader: Steve Brad, 760- 633-1639 stevebrad1@earthlink.net
Sun.—June 27—7 a.m.-4 p.m.—Summer Lazy-Daze Pelagic Boat Trip. This 9-hour trip departs Point Loma Sportfishing at
7 a.m. to explore the bird-rich 9- Mile Bank from the comfortable 85-foot Grande. On our way out of San Diego Harbor we'll
motor slowly by the live bait tank barges for super-close-ups of lounging sea lions, several hundred Brandt's cormorants, several
species of gulls, and dozens of shorebirds, egrets and herons. On our way out of the harbor we'll check for oystercatchers amongst
the cobbles of Ballast Point. On this trip we expect to see two to four species of dolphins and numerous seabirds including phalarope,
fulmars, shearwaters, auklets, murres, murrelets, and jaegers. Last year this trip found two black-footed albatrosses and had
a humpback whale surface close to the boat. Cost of the trip $70 (Early bird discount price $60 if purchased before June 11). For
reservations, call Point Loma Sportfishing at 619-223-1627, and tell them you are interested in the June 27 BVAS birding trip on
board the Grande. More info at www.socalbirding.com
Sat.—June 26 —8 a.m.—Buena Vista Lagoon Bird Count. Join the regular monthly bird survey team and get to know the Buena Vista Lagoon. Have the satisfaction of contributing to the ongoing bird database by performing a little citizen science. We always record a nice assortment of freshwater wetland and marsh species on this easy-paced monthly excursion. Directions: I-5 to I-78 East, take Jefferson St. exit, turn right and make another right turn onto Lagoon View Dr. Leader: Joan Fountain, 760-729-1379.
Sat.—June 26 —8:30-10:30 a.m.—Basic Birding Class at the Buena Vista Lagoon Landing. Novice birders are invited to join our monthly class for some informal, no-pressure birding. Your leader will share some friendly tips and help you practice your bird identification skills. Directions: I-5 to I-78 East, take Jefferson St. exit, turn right and go to stoplight, turn right and park in Landing parking lot on the right-hand side of road. Leader: Tom Troy, 760-420-7328.
July Field Trips
Sat.—Jul 3 —8 a.m.—Whelan Lake Monthly Bird Count. Whelan Lake is a reserve with a freshwater lake and riparian edge habitat. Directions: I-5 to Hwy. 76 East, left at Douglas and continue to light at North River Rd., left on North River Rd. Meet at the cul-de-sac at the end of the road by the entrance gate. Leader: John Haddock, 760-941-7824.
Sat.—July 31 —8 a.m.—Buena Vista Lagoon Bird Count. Join the regular monthly bird survey team and get to know the Buena Vista Lagoon. Have the satisfaction of contributing to the ongoing bird database by performing a little citizen science. We always record a nice assortment of freshwater wetland and marsh species on this easy-paced monthly excursion. Directions: I-5 to I-78 East, take Jefferson St. exit, turn right and make another right turn onto Lagoon View Dr. Leader: Joan Fountain, 760-729-1379.
Sat.—July 31 —8:30-10:30 a.m.—Basic Birding Class at the Buena Vista Lagoon Landing. Novice birders are invited to join our monthly class for some informal, no-pressure birding. Your leader will share some friendly tips and help you practice your bird identification skills. Directions: I-5 to I-78 East, take Jefferson St. exit, turn right and go to stoplight, turn right and park in Landing parking lot on the right-hand side of road. Leader: Tom Troy, 760-420-7328.
August Field Trips
Sat.—Aug 7 —8 a.m.—Whelan Lake Monthly Bird Count. Whelan Lake is a reserve with a freshwater lake and riparian edge habitat. Directions: I-5 to Hwy. 76 East, left at Douglas and continue to light at North River Rd., left on North River Rd. Meet at the cul-de-sac at the end of the road by the entrance gate. Leader: John Haddock, 760-941-7824.
Sun.—Aug 8—8:00 a.m.—San Diego River Expected birds include south-bound migrants and early-arrival wintering sandpipers. For those interested, we`ll be working on identifying the juveniles, terns, and wading birds, including Little Blue Heron and clappers. Should be quite birdy. If there's interest we`ll go to lunch at a restaurant on the bay. Directions: Take I5 south to Sea World Drive. Follow Sea World Drive to the traffic light at South Shores Park. Turn left at the light, then make an immediate right on the road that runs beside the river. Park along that road. We`ll bird this section and some other areas later.
Leader: Steve Brad, 760- 633-1639 stevebrad1@earthlink.net
Mon.—Aug. 16—Wed. Aug. 18—Storm-Petrel & Tropicbird Extravaganza. Join BVAS on a mid-week, multi-day pelagic
boat trip in waters at the southern edge of the ABA area. Our purpose on this mid-August trip is to spend two days on the ocean
looking for Mexican exotics, tropicbirds, Craveri’s murrelets, and southern hemisphere pterodomra species that might be straying
up into U.S. waters. We'll go beyond the 9-Mile Bank out to underwater ridges and domes 100 miles offshore. We’ll depart
Point Loma Sportfishing onboard the comfortable Grande on Monday at 7 a.m., and return on Wednesday at 7 a.m. Cost of the
trip is $315 (Early bird discount price is $285 if purchased before July 30). For reservations, call Point Loma Sportfishing at 619-
223-1627, and tell them you are interested in the Aug. 24-26 BVAS birding trip on board the Grande. More info at www.socalbirding.com
Sat.—Aug 28 —8 a.m.—Buena Vista Lagoon Bird Count. Join the regular monthly bird survey team and get to know the Buena Vista Lagoon. Have the satisfaction of contributing to the ongoing bird database by performing a little citizen science. We always record a nice assortment of freshwater wetland and marsh species on this easy-paced monthly excursion. Directions: I-5 to I-78 East, take Jefferson St. exit, turn right and make another right turn onto Lagoon View Dr. Leader: Joan Fountain, 760-729-1379.
Sat.—Aug 28 —8:30-10:30 a.m.—Basic Birding Class at the Buena Vista Lagoon Landing. Novice birders are invited to join our monthly class for some informal, no-pressure birding. Your leader will share some friendly tips and help you practice your bird identification skills. Directions: I-5 to I-78 East, take Jefferson St. exit, turn right and go to stoplight, turn right and park in Landing parking lot on the right-hand side of road. Leader: Tom Troy, 760-420-7328.
Visit www.socalbirding.com for full pelagic birding information
Birding Agua Hedionda Lagoon
Sat, June 19 8:00 a.m.
For the variety of habitat it provides and the impressive list
of birds it supports, Agua Hedionda Lagoon in Carlsbad
probably hasn’t gotten its fair
share of birding attention over
the years. Perhaps the biggest
obstacle has been the lack of
obvious birding trails or regularly
scheduled guided walks.
That’s now about to change.
Vince Kalaher will be leading a
new monthly bird walk at the
lagoon, sponsored by the Agua Hedionda Lagoon Foundation.
Participants
will meet at the Discovery Center, 1580 Canon
Road, Carlsbad, at 8:00 a.m. From the Discovery Center,
the walk will proceed counterclockwise around the lagoon
(with some carpooling). Those interested in a slower pace
will be able to linger at several sites along the north shore
that offer especially productive shorebird viewing.
Walks will normally be held on the third Saturday of the
month, unless that conflicts with other Discovery Center
events. Upcoming walks will be on
June 19th and July 17th
BVAS Field Trip Info Line
Check out the new
BVAS phone-in service
for last-minute information
about scheduled field trips.
Call the hotline number to
hear a recorded message
giving the latest information
about dates, locations,
directions, and times for
upcoming field trips.
760-688-0660Heavy rain cancels field trips
Birders of all skill levels are always welcome to join us!
