Scientists Puzzled as Rare Seabirds Turn Up
From Times Wire Reports
Scientists are stumped about why thousands of rare seabirds are suddenly being spotted on land in Northern California.
Red phalaropes live many miles off the Pacific Coast and usually land only in the Arctic, where they breed and raise their young.
But bird enthusiasts began spotting the birds in Sonoma County on Christmas Day, and flocks have since been reported in residential neighborhoods of San Francisco, Palo Alto and Los Gatos, among other areas.
The largest sighting was a flock of 1,200 near Half Moon Bay.
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