A Field Trip, Latinos Invade California, and a Curse

To my little Ducklings,

Saturday afternoon, we decided to go on an adventure.

A Latino bird, the (unfortunately named[*]) Brown Booby had been reported on outer Point Reyes. In fact, three had been seen, which is unusual because Boobies don't normally appear in sets of three. Seriously. Usually only one shows itself at a time. Seriously.

I say Latino because they are generally found only off the coasts of Central and South America, and the Caribbean. Why they occasionally show up in the US is somewhat unknown. Could they have flown up for lunch? Could these three be university students who came north for their Spring Break?

However, as we were about to depart, our progress was halted in its tracks by a visit to our feeder from a part-time Latino, this one a winter resident of Mexico:

Geeks will note the notched tail features that confirm his identification.

This Rufous Hummingbird is commuting north to somewhere between northern Oregon and Alaska, where they breed in the summer, before returning to Mexico for winter. Amazingly, this bird weighing no more than a nickel flies as far as 3,900 miles twice each year.

This Lothario had a lady "friend" with him:

"Damn, girl, why you gotta hang over my shoulder like that? Can't you see I'm busy drinking all this fine, fine nectar?"

Happy to get a surprise new year bird, we launched our trek to Point Reyes. Now, preparation is a hallmark of a successful trek, and I consider myself an expert in hallmarks. So, you can imagine my consternation when, after nearly two hours of driving, we encountered first a sign reading, "Road closed ahead" and then "All visitors must use shuttle". Arg--public transport? Really?

Teeth grit, more than slightly annoyed at having to pay $7/person for the right to ride a shuttle, we boarded the bus that would take us to the trailhead.

One of the first things we noticed along the walk to Chimney Rock was that many visitors to Point Reyes are apparently illiterate:

The dots at the top are some of the many people who must lead sad lives, being unable to read or comprehend. They must be friends with the people who let their dogs run free on trails with, "No dogs allowed" or "Dogs must be on leash" signs.

Fortunately for us, our target was hanging out on the rocks, preening his feathers for that oh-so-sexy look that will win the hearts of las chicas caliente:

As we returned near sunset to catch the last bus back, the winds picked up and several birds took advantage of the uplift to lazily circle overhead. Unfortunately, we counted exactly 13 vultures circling above us; of course, a typical group of circling vultures is called a "Kettle", but a group of exactly 13 vultures is called a "Curse" and is generally considered bad luck.

Maybe we are OK, as nothing awful has happened. Yet. Stay vigilant, mis amigos.

Later this week, we journey to Florida for a rapid-fire trip around south Florida. Expect the next post late this week, and full of rum-fueled creativity.

Adios,
Me

[*] By the way, since I was curious, I looked up the origin of the name. Wikipedia offers this :

Their name was possibly based on the Spanish slang term bobo, meaning "stupid",as these tame birds had a habit of landing on board sailing ships, where they were easily captured and eaten.