BIRDS OF BOLSA CHICA WETLANDS

The Bolsa Chica wetlands is home to a variety of plant and animal life, but it’s the birds that attract the most attention. Bird populations are swelled by migrant species in late fall and winter, but various species of egrets, willets, grebes, gulls, terns, sandpipers, stilts and other shore birds can be seen all year. About 170 bird species have been spotted in the wetlands; some of the more rare or unusual are highlighted below.

Black Skimmer

( Rynchops niger )

Until recently, only occasional black skimmers ventured north into Bolsa Chica from their traditional range, but in the last few years the bird has established a regular population as high as 100 in the reserve. This unusual bird feeds by dragging its bill in the water as it flies, nodding occasionally to seize small fish.

Belding’s Savanna Sparrow

( Passerculus sandwichensis beldingii )

Bolsa Chica is one of the most vital habitats for this endangered bird: 10% of all Belding’s savanna sparrows make their home in the reserve. This sparrow is a year-round resident.

California Least Tern

( Sterna antillarum browni )

This endangered bird prefers to nest on undisturbed stretches of sandy beach--a habitat in short supply in Southern California. In Bolsa Chica, an island has been built to give the terns a nesting site relatively free of predators. This long-distant migrant can be seen at Bolsa Chica April through September.

Light-footed Clapper Rail

( Rallus longirostris levipes )

These large marsh birds are more common in Anaheim Bay, but transient individuals are occasionally spotted at Bolsa Chica. An attempt to attract a permanent population of the endangered bird (by bringing in more cordgrass, from which it builds its floating nests) is under way.

Peregrine Falcon

( Falco peregrinus )

This raptor had almost vanished from the West Coast until it was reintroduced several years ago. Occasional sightings are made throughout the year at Bolsa Chica, where it inhabits the nearby bluffs overlooking the wetlands and preys on ducks, shorebirds and seabirds.

Brown Pelican

( Pelecanus occidentalis )

Locally, the brown pelican nests on the Channel Islands, but juveniles and non-breeding adults can be spotted fishing in the outer bay at Bolsa Chica. It is also endangered.

Research: RICK VANDERKNYFF.