April 5, 2021
I met two friends from San Diego, Mark and Camille Stratton, at the Madera Picnic Grounds early on April 5 to see if we could get a look at the local breeding pair of Pygmy Owls. They had been seen about 7:30am the previous day. We got there at 6:30am left about 9am, the owls did not arrive and there was speculation among the crowd whether the numerous Oak Woodpeckers had chased the them off. There were plenty of good birds including Hepatic Tanager, Hooded and Scott’s Orioles, Red-naped Sapsucker, Nashville, Orange-crowned, two Black-Throated Gray, Yellow-rumped and Wilson’s Warblers plus several Painted Redstarts. A very photogenic Yellow-eyed Junco. A Zone-tailed hawk cruised through at altitude. Later we stopped at Madera Kubo and found a new arrival – Black-headed Grosbeak. As I was leaving at about 11:15am I noticed a new crowd at the Owl spot – both owls were hanging out in the open! I grabbed a few photos and then spread the word to other birders at Kubo and Santa Rita Lodge. Everybody got to see at least one of the pair.
