I did a solo big day for my Birdathon team Patient Listening. My goal was to get audio recordings of as many species as possible within 24 hours. I ended with 71 species recorded (out of a total of 114 species observed throughout the day), plus or minus a few that might have some shaky IDs. Good recordings typically require both remote locations (to avoid background noise) and lots of time (to get close to the bird) - both attributes that aren't particularly compatible with a big day - but for today, I prioritized quantity over quality. This was my first time trying to do this type of big day (and my first time doing a solo big day at all), and I was pleased with the species diversity - plus it was a ton of fun.
I started the day owling the John Nicholas trailhead in Sanborn CP, missing most of my target birds but lucking into a single Great Horned Owl. If anyone has any tips about where / how to owl effectively, I'm all ears. At sunrise, I zipped through Vasona and McClellan to get to the Pichetti / Stevens Creek area, grabbing a nice California Thrasher rendition. I couldn't relocate the Hermit Warbler at the Cooley picnic area, but I picked up a few other common warblers. At Pearson-Arastradero, I found a cooing Rock Pigeon gathering nesting material near the trailhead and some enthusiastic House Wrens further down.
By the time I reached the bay, it was already mid-day. Activity was low, song was even lower. I broke out the parabolic microphone to tease out some Northern Shoveler quacks and Least Sandpiper calls, but there were lots of seen-only birds here, and I had no luck with any rails. Most of my bay-side stops were unproductive - quiet shorebirds and ducks - but still had some highlights, like Brown-headed Cowbirds at Sunnyvale WPCP
Things picked up once I left the bay and headed back towards Ed Levin, where I quickly ran a singing male Lawrence's Goldfinch near Sandy Wool lake. I also picked up the Great-tailed Grackle that I missed at the WPCP. I braved the traffic going south for an excellent trip to Coyote Valley OSP, then finished off the day at the Fortini trailhead at Stile Ranch. This was my first time ever coming here without finding Rufous-crowned Sparrow, but I was happy to record Horned Lark and Grasshopper Sparrow. I finished the day in the best way possible - listening to Common Poorwill calling its heart out in the dusk. It serenaded me all the way down the trail, as I returned home tired (14.5 miles of walking!) but satisfied.