Birding in Santa Barbara (1 Viewer)

I'm going to Santa Barbara in a week or so (for work) but I will have a little bit of spare time. Any suggestions on good birding locations nearby? I have been birding in Canada before but not in Southern California so a lot of the birds will be new to me.

My neck of the woods! I am the listserve owner of the Santa Barbara county birding group. Feel free to join (if only temporarily) and ask a question of the group. Some of California's best birders are in Santa Barbara and you will find them helpful and informative if you are looking for specific birds. You might even find a willing guide to show you around. See the two links below which should get you started (tons of info)...


http://www.sbcobirding.com (especially Page 3)
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sbcobirding/

In Santa Barbara consider visiting:

Devereux Slough
Lake Los Carneros
Santa Barbara Botanic Garden
Andree Clark Bird Refuge
East Beach/SB Harbor
Goleta Beach Park

A short drive north of SB to the wine country (Solvang, Los Olivos) will get you Yellow-billed Magpie, only found in CA.

Enjoy your visit.

Great - thankyou very much. I will be based near goleta so that's encouraging. I'd love to see a yellow-billed magpie. Any tips on how to find them or is it easy?

mcali said:

Great - thankyou very much. I will be based near goleta so that's encouraging. I'd love to see a yellow-billed magpie. Any tips on how to find them or is it easy?

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They aren't found in Santa Barbara or Goleta but it is quite easy when you are in their territory a short drive north. I mentioned Solvang, a Danish community website , which is a popular tourist destination and is a nice place to visit for shopping and sight-seeing. One of the California Missions is in Solvang. The small town of Los Olivos is nearby a few miles to the north, and a wonderful Park called Nojoqui Falls (pronounced "nah-ho-wee") is to the south of Solvang. This entire area known as the Santa Ynez Valley is Yellow-billed Magpie habitat. Look for them around large Valley Oaks in open valleys, or around fenced ranch land and vinyards outside of these towns. This part of SB county is about 1/2-3/4 hour drive north of SB on Highway 154- San Marcos Pass.

Perfect. Thanks again. I'll let you know how I get on in a couple of weeks.