Living with the Lockdown – Treasure Hunt #10

Posted on June 10, 2020 | by MMPC

Prologue

Our Treasure Hunts usually end with some suggestions on where a treasure might be found. However, in this hunt, it’s incredibly easy! Western Gulls are all over town … the harbor, the beaches, Costco, McDonalds and every other place where food scraps can be easily appropriated … not that Western Gulls should be eating this kind of stuff! Read on to learn where Western Gulls can be found in a more natural habitat.

Western Gull, Big and Beautiful

The large, dark-backed Western Gull is found only on the Pacific Coast from Washington to Baja, and is seldom seen far from the ocean. This distribution is very limited compared to most North American gulls, and since we are on the ocean, Western Gulls are all over Santa Barbara.

gull years The Western Gull is a “four-year” bird; that is, it takes four years to reach adulthood and breeding status. The photo on the right shows the changes as the bird progresses to adulthood. It is easy to see that plumage varies and takes on more and more of the adult plumage characteristics in each successive year.

Most of the Western Gulls we encounter here in town are full-grown adults … bold, raucous and fearless around humans. But when the adults are not dining on French fries and other human food, they (and the juveniles) are at sea consuming all manner of aquatic life including fish, shell fish, eggs and young of other birds and what they can scavenge around sea lion colonies. And they, like many other sea birds, are clever thieves … stealing food from other sea birds. In short, they are very “opportunistic feeders”.

Once Again … Procreation

While the photo above shows the progression to full adult size and plumage, the whole process starts with the nesting period and the chicks. The chicks are cute and it is … after all … Spring. Western Gulls nest in colonies on off shore islands, rocks and on islands inside estuaries. We are especially blessed because of our proximity to the Channel Islands, where large colonies are found on both Santa Barbara Island, with 7,000 nesting pairs, and on Anacapa Island, with 10,000 nesting pairs. The modest nests are built on the ground by finding a depression and filling it with vegetation, feathers and whatever else is available. Several, but most often 3 eggs, are laid.

gull scrapbook

These grayish eggs … with dark “polka dot” spots, are incubated, by both the male and the female, for about a month. At that time, the chick will hatch with the aid of a small projection at the end of its beak. This projection, or “egg tooth”, has two jobs to do. First, it breaks the sac surrounding the chick inside the egg allowing the nearly born chick to access oxygen stored between the sac and the shell. When that is done, the youngster now has enough oxygen to tackle the second, and more difficult task … to crack the shell and emerge. With its work done, the egg tooth falls off when the chick is 2-3 days old.

Mom and Dad Have Big Jobs

Feeding

In the above photos you can see that the newborn looks like a down covered version of the

Showing off the "red spot" — Showing off the “red spot”

egg … grayish with the same blackish “polka dots”. And it needs to be fed … for up to three months! Like humans who are attuned to the vocalizations and fussiness of their offspring when they are hungry, the Western Gull, like many other gulls, has the ability to recognize the needs of their offspring as well. When the chick is hungry, it signals by touching a red dot on the lower jaw of an adult, who will then regurgitate a meal for the hungry chick. Further, the color red, is programmed into the DNA of the gulls, so no other color spot will do. This conclusion was such a scientific breakthrough, that fifty years ago the research on this signaling approach won a noble prize for the Dutch biologist Niko Tinbergen.

Teaching

Just like we have to teach our kids to walk and drive a car, adult gulls must teach their offspring to fly. The downy birth coat will soon be replaced by feathers, and the fledgling will be able to fly after 6-7 weeks. These flying lessons are relatively risk free when the nest is on the ground. The fledgling can only crash and fall a few soft and vegetated feet. However, I once observed an adult pair who had chosen a very safe nest location in a small crevasse on a high cliff. With many loud vocalizations, they had urged the youngster to the edge and then squawked their instructions to fly. The fledgling approached the edge, looked down the cliff face to the ocean hundreds of feet below, turned toward its parents, and gave them a look that clearly stated “You gotta be kidding!” Then it hustled back to the nest. I watched this attempted flying lesson repeated over and over until the boat had to leave. I’m sure the kid eventually “got it” and I smiled all the way back to the harbor.

Why have I spent so much time on this part of the gull life cycle? Because it is happening as I write … a three week period when you will see nothing like it without traveling to far distant places around the globe. In a non-pandemic year, I would be on a boat to Anacapa Island to look at the thousands of nests, adults and chicks! It is an incredible sight and one that happens right here in our very own back yard.

And Up North …

The numbers of Western Gulls in the Bay area are dwindling because their natural food supply is not as reliable as it has been in the past. And scavenging has also become more difficult. Gulls and other birds have historically used dump sites to scavenge for discarded (and unhealthy) human food remains. To discourage this practice, these areas are now deliberately being covered over more rapidly than they were in the past.
As a result, Western gulls have become a serious nuisance for baseball parks in the Bay area. For 20 years, both the San Francisco Giants and the Oakland Athletics have had thousands of gulls flying over both Oracle Park and the Oakland Coliseum. Originally, they came after the game was over, but they are now arriving as early as the 7th inning. They swarm the field, pooping on fans, making loud raucous noises, and distracting the players. When the games are over, they dine on leftovers of stadium food discarded in the stands … with a definite penchant for nachos and garlic fries.

gull stadium

How do the birds know when games are about to end? Nobody knows! About ten years ago the gulls made a hasty exit from the San Francisco stadium when a Red-tailed Hawk showed up. But the hawk decided it did not particularly like the neighborhood and left. Back came the gulls in full force. A falconer is one answer, and the Oakland stadium has done just that … but it is extremely expensive. Oracle Park also tried to lure a pair of Peregrine Falcons into making the stadium its permanent home, but that effort failed. Several other attempts at making kites that looked like raptors also failed. As far as I know, the ritual invasion of the Western Gulls is still going on. Makes one wonder if perhaps this brand of scavenging might not be so fruitful if humans properly disposed of their own food trash?

Most of the photos in this Treasure Hunt were taken by Donley Olson and Larry Jon Friesen. The baseball photo was from the Mercury News in San Jose.

Living with the Lockdown – Treasure Hunt #5

Posted on April 20, 2020 | by MMPC

More Mesa and Treasure #5 Photo by Chris Brems — More Mesa and Treasure #5
Photo by Chris Brems

Today’s Treasure May Be Flying, Wading or Standing Still – But Always Breathtaking

heron-egg — Egg facsimile courtesy of Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History

Today’s treasure starts with this lovely, pale blue egg. What emerges from this egg, after being incubated roughly a month? It’s a Great Blue Heron Chick!

During that month it will have been lovingly and periodically rolled (to keep its temperature constant) and “sat on” by both Mom and Dad. (Dad helps during the day, but Mom gets all the night duty.) The newborn will weigh about 1¾ ounces, and when it emerges, it may be surrounded by up to 5 other chicks who have hatched earlier. Nestlings can verbalize immediately and the parents will then feed them by regurgitating food they have gathered. Although the youngsters can leave the nest, and sit on a branch after only a few weeks, Mom and Dad will still feed for 49-81 days. After that, the nestlings are on their own.

gbh What do we know about the adult in addition to their being elegant royalty of the bird world? Full grown Great Blue males, at 50 inches tall, are the largest of the North American herons. Their wingspan can reach 80 inches. But all this height and wingspan weighs a mere 6-8 pounds because, as for all birds, their bones are hollow. They have long legs (see “Fun” below), an “S” shaped neck, a thick dagger-like bill and an amazing 9 inch stride.

They Look Like and Move Like Royalty, but Eat Like a Peasant … Just About Anything

Great Blues are opportunistic feeders and hunt 90% of their waking hours. They will eat anything within striking distance: fish, amphibians, reptiles, small mammals, insects, and other birds. In freshwater creeks and ponds, as well as salt water lagoons, they grab smaller prey in their strong mandibles or use their dagger-like bills to impale larger fish, often shaking them to break or relax the sharp spines before gulping them down.

The Great Blue hunting style involves wading or standing like a statue. Moreover, they are very skittish, so approach slowly … or not at all. If they have perceived you as a threat, they will take off by beating their wings hard, catching the wind and then gracefully cruising at speeds of 20-30 mph. You may see Great Blue Herons on More Mesa this time of year because its wetland areas are well … wet … and therefore good hunting grounds. You can also see Great Blue Herons almost all year at Goleta Beach County Park.

Completing the Circle of Life

In order to complete their life cycle, adult Herons need to find mates, and produce eggs. Since the young are vulnerable to predators, Great Blue Herons generally choose to build their nests within 2 miles of feeding habitat, in high trees, and in large colonies consisting of other Great Blue Heron nests*. To start with, like many birds, Great Blue Herons have elaborate mating rituals where the male does most of the chasing, while the female sits in one place, sings a little and expects to be impressed. Male Great Blues perform by flying in huge circles around the colony and fighting off other competitors for the lady of their choice.

Once the monogamous pair (at least for that season) is formed, the nest must be built. This is an elaborate affair, with the male choosing the nest site and gathering materials. He presents the materials (usually twigs) to her and then lays them at her feet. At this point, the female takes responsibility for the creation of the nest. She uses the “gifts” the male brings her and either builds a new nest or uses the supplies to repair an old one. For the final touches, the female lines the nest with leaves and plants to create padding for the three to six eggs she will lay over the next 10 days or so. Viola! Back to the egg!

*They are called heronries and you can look for one at Goleta Beach Park.

A Fun Thing to Think About

Birds have legs with all the same structures as we have. But there are some big surprises. The sketch at the right, with the parts of the leg illustrated, shows that: gbh-skeleton

Birds walk only on their toes
Their feet never touch the ground when walking
Their ankles are in the middle of their legs
Their knees are up under their feathers where you can’t see them!

How Can I Identify Things I See on More Mesa?

smartphone Three guides, “Birds”, “Insects” and “Plants” have been created and uploaded to our web site. And, since our web site is mobile friendly, these guides are especially useful when citizen scientists and other visitors to More Mesa are in the field. So … when you are out enjoying lovely More Mesa and see something you want to identify immediately, grab your smart phone, bring up our web site and look for the appropriate Guide; Birds, Insects (includes butterflies) or Plants. It’s the perfect option!

Remember: Six Feet Apart and Stay Safe,
Valerie

It’s All About the Birds and the Bees!

Posted on October 24, 2019 | by MMPC

Mother Nature Has Incredible Ability to Bounce Back!

In our Spring Issue we waxed eloquent over the rains that had filled our prolific and very significant vernal pool. And further, those same rains also created an unusually effective ecological chain of events. The rains brought grasses … grasses in great profusion. These grasses then provided an abundance of food for the rodents that are prey for our local birds … the most important of which is our “signature and logo” the White-tailed Kite.

Fledgling Kites Photo Courtesy of Morgan Ball — Fledgling Kites
Photo Courtesy of Morgan Ball

Here’s how the rains inspired the kites. In normal rain years (October 1st of the current year to September 30th of the following year) More Mesa supports two, and sometimes three pairs of adult kites. The nests are conveniently referred to as “East”, “Central” and “West”. Each breeding pair typically has 2-4 chicks per nest, but not all the chicks may survive. “Doing the math” tells us we could have between eight and eighteen kites on and around More Mesa at the end of a breeding season. However the number is typically much closer to eight. During the recent drought, we had several years with no More Mesa chicks reported at all. Last year More Mesa had but a single breeding event that produced two chicks … perhaps the only youngsters in all of the Goleta Valley.

BUT THIS YEAR WAS A BANNER YEAR! Of the 10 breeding events in the Goleta Valley, More Mesa had three active nests that fledged at least 10 young and possibly many more. Further, there is some evidence that one or more of the pairs have “double clutched” … that is, they raised yet another set of chicks. In the past we have seen chicks hatched as late as October, so there may even be more to come!

AND EVEN MORE EXCITING … In our extensive web feature about White-tailed Kites, we have described the kite’s practice of winter communal roosts. We have not observed one of these roosts for many, many years. However, this year, a large communal

Multiple Kites Roosting - September 2019 Photo Courtesy of Barry Rowan — Multiple Kites Roosting – September 2019
Photo Courtesy of Barry Rowan

roost was discovered in the central area of More Mesa. This particular roost is unusual for a couple of reasons. First, roosts typically are a winter phenomenon that occurs, at the time when all, or most of, the chicks are fledged. But this roost was identified in September. Moreover, at one point there were 29 birds observed at the central roost. This is an extremely large number and would indicate that either there were a great many chicks fledged on More Mesa, or there were visiting kites from other areas around the Goleta Valley … or both! (As of this writing the roost has been abandoned. This is typical behavior, and as yet, an alternate roost has not been identified.)

And What About the Bees?

bees Bees, and their almost 300 species of insect buddies, are, as usual, busy nectaring from coyote bushes in flower during the fall and winter seasons on More Mesa. You can read about this unassuming, but extremely important plant on our web site.

The Past – Taking Another Look at More Mesa’s History

Of late we have departed from the “standard” format we historically used for our periodic e-mail updates. In this issue we are returning to one of our most popular features: that concerning More Mesa’s past. Although we are reprising information shared with you in our very early issues, we are also including new material that has been revealed since we originally published. With that prologue …

The Chumash – The original, local Californians lived on More Mesa as early as 6,000 years ago. However the first mention of these highly sophisticated native people was made by the Cabrillo expedition in 1542. The ship’s journal noted that the area of the Goleta Slough and west More Mesa was the most heavily populated region in all of Alta and Baja California.

First map of the Channel Islands Campbell Grant — First map of the Channel Islands
Campbell Grant

Then in 1602, the first map of the Santa Barbara Channel was drawn by Father Antonio de la Ascencion, diarist of the Viscaino Expedition. In the image shown, we have taken the liberty of translating the handwritten Spanish on the map into English. The “Big Town” was probably Mescalatitlan or Dos Pueblos.

Campbell Grant, in the opening chapter of his book, “The Rock Paintings of the Chumash”, waxes eloquent about the wealth of plants, trees, animal and sea life that were accessible to the Chumash. He says, “It is small wonder that the Chumash chose to live in such a land. It was a fine place to live.” A ramble through More Mesa convinces one that it still is a fine place to live.

Mysteries!

Posted on August 13, 2019 | by MMPC

Spring came so late this year that it might as well have been a really long winter. But it is warm at last, and More Mesa has presented us with three different mysteries!

Mystery #1: What was actually found in our vernal pool

In our last issue we talked about the More Mesa Vernal Pool finally filling … after 8 long years of drought. Joanna Tang, a graduate student at UCSB, lead the scientific study of our pool with the aid of More Mesa supporter, Angela Rauhut, who took most of the measurements. Joanna has kindly written a synopsis of what she found after 3 months of study.

More Mesa has a vernal pool harboring several locally rare plants and animals that are vernal pool specialists. Even after being dry for 8 years, recent plant and animal surveys have revealed the resiliency of these special vernal pool species. They are adapted to live in aquatic conditions during the winter, reproduce and drop seed as the vernal pool dries out. Then they remain in the dried up pools as seeds and cysts (invertebrate eggs) that can withstand prolonged desiccation — just add water and they come to life!

After this year’s winter rains, several vernal pool specialist plants popped up. There was, appropriately enough, Popcorn Flower, a common vernal pool plant in the area.

However, we also saw Pacific Foxtail and Lemmon’s Canary Grass, small native grasses that are only found in More Mesa and a few other pools near UCSB. Another plant found commonly in the local vernal pools is Coyote Thistle, but More Mesa’s Coyote Thistle has unique leaf and stem forms that may make it a distinct subspecies. Of particular interest, More

Mesa is the only local pool sampled this year that has Clam Shrimp — this little crustacean requires deeper vernal pools that stay filled with water for longer, so the large More Mesa pool is the perfect habitat for it! Other common freshwater invertebrates like Copepods and

Ostracods were also found in the pool, as well as plenty of tadpoles of Pacific Tree Frogs!

It is so much fun to see the More Mesa pool come to life with so many species this year!

Our many thanks to Joanna and Angela for the data and photographs in this article.

Mystery #2: What’s going on with these big birds chasing one another?

One recent early evening, two of our More Mesa fans were hiking on County owned More Mesa Open Space. They came across one large bird being loudly pursued by 2 or 3 other (perhaps smaller) birds. The pursuers disappeared quickly, but the bigger bird, resolutely and overtly, perched on a nearby tree with a huge portion of food clasped tightly in its talons. Fortunately the hikers managed to capture a photo of the perched bird and asked if it could be identified. The mystery thickened … what species and why the chasing?

Immature Coopers Hawk (Photo by Chris Brehms & Mark Johnson)

After studying a few books and sites, a rank amateur guessed it might be an immature Red Shouldered Hawk, but decided to get some real experts to weigh in. Oddly enough the experts were a little more than puzzled as well. The reason it was puzzling was that the bird in the photo was NOT an adult. It was an immature, meaning its in year 1 of its life. This ruled out the scenario where we would have an adult with food and juveniles chasing it. They might be chasing, but they were chasing an immature bird with prey, either a nest-mate or some other non-related bird. It seems a likely scenario that it was a group of young Cooper’s tussling for the food brought by an adult. However, the experts agreed that there was probably an adult around somewhere

The final verdict? The proud holder of the food was this Immature Coopers Hawk.

Many thanks to Rebecca Coulter, Krista Fahy and John Storrer for their help, advice and descriptions of what was likely happening.

Mystery #3: Why are the Locks on the Southeastern Gate Gone?

This mystery is not nearly as much fun as the ones above. The locks are gone because they have been stolen.

No private vehicles are allowed on More Mesa because of the potential for disastrous fires. A case in point: Twelve years ago, a fire on More Mesa burned to the edges of Hope Ranch and Vista la Cumbre. It started as a result of sparks from a motorcycle that was illegally being ridden on More Mesa.

At that time the More Mesa Preservation Coalition took on the task of reducing the potential for fire on the eastern side of More Mesa. We collected private funds and obtained permission to finish the fence limiting entry onto More Mesa. After the fence was finished, we placed locks on the fire gate that would allow entry to those agencies that needed to have access to More Mesa. These included the owner of More Mesa, the Fire Department and the Sheriff. For many years these locks were in place and working well.

Unhappily emergency work by the gas company left the locks untended, and they were stolen. Because the special fire department locks are difficult to obtain, the gate was unlocked for several weeks. During that time, off-road vehicles and trucks decided to make More Mesa a playground and rode around in the mud after our frequent rain storms. Some of these vehicles got stuck and had to be pulled out by a tow truck. In one instance the tow truck had to be pulled out by a bigger tow truck. IT WAS A MESS!

A new set of locks was installed (several hundred dollars) and were gone the very next day. A third set disappeared in a few weeks. There is apparently a way to destroy any lock and chain … no matter how sturdy they are. Now there are no locks at all.

WE NEED YOUR HELP!! If you use More Mesa, please help to protect it. If you see vehicles illegally out on More Mesa, grab your cell phone and call the Sheriff. When you do this quickly, the Sheriff may get out there and confront the offender. We cannot let this magic place be destroyed by people who think they have a right to ride anywhere and everywhere their vehicles can possibly go. THANK YOU.

More Mesa At Night (August-October 2018)

Posted on November 14, 2018 | by MMPC

A Very Different Walk

Night Walk on More Mesa: Continuing with our “Walk on More Mesa” theme, a very different kind of walk presented itself in late September. Jennifer Stroh of the Land Trust for Santa Barbara County invited me to an informal walk that was not only on the west side of More Mesa, but it was a night walk as well! Since I had never experienced a night walk that focused on nocturnal animals, I was eager to participate.

Our leader was Ted Mullen, a Senior Biologist, graduate of UCSB, and currently a scientist with MRS Environmental, here in Santa Barbara. As soon as we headed out onto More Mesa, Ted launched our adventure with a lesson in listening … a key skill when there is little, or no, light; and especially important when one is trying to identify birds and animals that hunt at night. He talked about identifying all the various sounds (man made and otherwise) and then sorting them out from one another. And, although the man-made intrusions on More Mesa are somewhat limited, he pointed out two important ones:

The “drone” sound of freeway and other traffic, and how that background noise affects the ability of hunting animals to hear sounds that are vitally important to them; for example sounds of rodents and other prey moving through the grasses. We did note, however, that the “drone” was not as obvious, or even discernible, in all the parts of More Mesa that we visited.
The intrusion of street lights from neighboring communities, and how they would also affect the ability to hunt … especially for the owls that make their homes on the north facing side of More Mesa.

night walk map

At the beginning of the walk, on the northwestern edge of More Mesa, we heard three species of Owls: Barn, Great Horned and Screech. Then Ted surprised some of us by noting that Screech Owls did not screech at all, and proved it by playing several of their calls. We were also treated to the sight of an owl flying quite close to us.

great horned owl in flight — Great Horned Owl in Flight
Photo by Larry Friesen

One of the “owl” stories Ted told, and one that I got a big chuckle out of, concerned Great Horned nest building. The Great Horned, being a bigger bird, hunts larger animals, like rabbits and skunks. Moreover, skunks are regularly on their menu because, unlike the rest of us, the Great Horned is not bothered, at all, with the stench of skunk spray. Ever-vigilant parents, the Great Horned will therefore sometimes line their nest with skunk carcasses. This clever strategy prevents predators from being tempted to carry off the chicks … because most of the rest of the world is definitely not fond of skunk spray!

As our walk progressed towards the coast, we saw and heard Spotted Bats and, at one point, we even heard a Towhee; a bird that should have been asleep. Maybe we woke it up … or something else woke it up?

The sky was brilliant and clear. Amateur astronomers had a blast and we even got to see all the lobster boats out on the first day of the season. It was an absolutely wonderful walk and I was privileged to be part of it.

How You Can Help

Our coalition very rarely solicits donations from our supporters, only in times of real need. While More Mesa is not in immediate jeopardy (no building plan has yet been submitted to planning), we spend additional funds to remain in a “ready state” for when the developers make their move.

That means continuing to build and maintain a database of supporters who can help us by contacting their elected officials, testifying at hearings, recruiting their friends, contacting the media and coming together for a show of community support. Lastly, we maintain a small contingency budget so that we can react quickly when the time arises.

Our immediate expenses for the next year are not large (unless things change with development plans), no more than $5,000. But without those funds to replenish our budget we could be flat-footed the day the development plan is filed.

I am sure that you support many other important causes; I just wanted to put in my request for the White-tailed Kites, the Great Horned Owls, the Red-tailed Hawks … and even the Spotted Bats of More Mesa. A gift of $50 or $100 to keep us in a ready state would be terrific.

Thank you so much, from all the critters of More Mesa.