One Day in San Diego County.... (1 Viewer)

I would sincerely appreciate any advice on where to focus a single full day birding in San Diego area in late February. Goal is to maximize total number of species observed (as most west coast birds will be new to me).

I will be based in San Diego, but can travel as required to start birding from pre-dawn into the evening. Leading candidates to focus on are hotspots in Salton Sea area, or the Tijuana Estuary (or perhaps both).

I would love to go offshore, but figured i could see more with a full-day on land. Any tips on guides who facilitate such trips are also appreciated.

Thanks,

Peeter

I have the same question. I have a day to bird in the San Diego area in two weeks and I can see there are many fine spots. Any advice from the community on birding areas will be greatly appreciated!

Depends on the species you want to see. Mary Beth Stowe has a great website by location and species for San Diego.

http://www.miriameaglemon.com/Birding Pages/San Diego Birding Pages/San Diego Birding Pages.html

Thanks for the link, a wealth of information there. But overall, still hard to put into context of having to pick a few to hit within a single day.

For me, i didn't really think it was about the individual species...it is about developing a strategy to maximize species variety, or perhaps more appropriately habitat/site variety within a day considering travel/lighting etc.

Considering the season, it seems like Salton Sea would be an ideal focus area. It hosts a wide variety of resident species, regularly attracts vagrants/rarities...and winter is apparently the ideal time to visit. Experienced birders seem to achieve 120+ species in a day, so perhaps a visitor has a better chance to hit 100+ here in a day versus coastal sites? Referencing the bird festival field trips in march, it seems like trips focussing on numbers/diversity are geared towards the desert.

Draft Itinerary: (logic is that lighting is better in the morning for southeast salton sea, and less of an issue for circling sites like the smaller lakes or cattle call park in the midday or afternoon as it is easier to adjust your position relative to the light).

1. Sunrise on the shore of the salton sea (end of Bowles Rd)
2. Obsidian Butte
3. Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge
4. Red Hill Marina
5. Davis Rd / Pound Rd.
6. Calipatria agricultural fields
7. Ramer/Finney Lake
8. Brawley
9. Anza-Borrego Desert (Boulder Creek)
10. Sunset at the Desert View Tower, Jacumba.

Excellent online resource, and guides who facilitate a birding marathon... http://southwestbirders.com/contents.htm#birding

Another interesting site to consider for visiting birders:

http://theabf.org/event/plants_animals/borrego_valley_hawkwatch

"The Borrego Valley Hawkwatch counts more spring Swainson's Hawks than any site in North America. It is possible to see 500 hawks in one day!"

Runs now through April 15th.