Birds of summer now playing at Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve
Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve, which thankfully is not a state park and is not slated for closure, is one of those rare locations where weekend crowds do not severely affect the quality of wildlife viewing.
That's because the Huntington Beach reserve is comprised of vast wetlands and the primary wildlife are birds, which are far too concerned with feeding and mating to be bothered by people strolling the pathways and aiming cannon-like camera lenses at them.
Birds thrive here, and it appears the summertime transition is underway. On most afternoons, black skimmers can be viewed flying low patrol and literally skimming the surface with large beaks, trying to nab small fish. The footbridge adjacent to the parking lot is the best location from which to witness this phenomenon.
Several species of terns frequent the reserve and many nest there. Their search for small fish seems endless and their honey hole is the inflow area at the north end; here the birds hover and dive-bomb in a repeated practice that only occasionally results in the capture of small fish entering the estuary.
Not far inland from this site is a tall barren tree, atop which is a large great blue heron nest, spilling over with awkward heron chicks, which generally attract a paparazzi trying to capture mama during feeding time or the grand departure. (There were three chicks when I visited two weeks ago; that number might have since been reduced.)
It was after I had passed the heron nest, Sunday mid-morning, that I caught the osprey in flight (top photo). The fish-eating raptor was flying from one tree to another, perhaps to get a better view of its watery surroundings.
It was, after all, almost lunch time. I was hungry too, so I completed the hiking loop and drove to a nearby restaurant.
-- Pete Thomas
Photos (top to bottom): Osprey, tern (elegant or royal?), Forster's tern, and black-necked stilt. Credit: Pete Thomas / Los Angeles Times
