Around Oakley: City offers no shortage of 'birding' opportunities

By Roni Gehlke
BIRD WATCHING or "birding" is a widely practiced recreational sport in the Delta region. Ornithologists say there are anywhere from 200 to 300 species of birds around the area at any given time.

About 10 million birds pass through the Delta every year. That includes our own backyards here in Oakley. While there are some serious bird watchers in town, you don't have to be one of them to take a few minutes to watch and listen to the birds in abundance enjoying the warm summer climate.

"This is a wonderful time of year to see some rare birds out in Oakley," said Mike Moran, naturalist for the East Bay Regional Park District. "Even though it's July, we are already seeing some of the autumn birds migrating in."

The Big Break and Marsh Creek trails run almost parallel to the San Joaquin River throughout Oakley. My husband and I recently took a walk along the Big Break Trail that runs next to the Ironhouse Sanitary District property.

The left side of the trail area is filled with brambles of wild blackberries on their way to ripening. There are also some sweeping views of the wetland areas, including marsh-type plants and trees where the birds like to hide and nest. It isn't uncommon to see finches, crows, jays and other common birds flying from one cattail to the other.

On the other side of the trail are the sanitary district's ponds. The water area is usually a great habitat to see geese, ducks and gulls enjoying the sunny weather.

We also were able to see another bird that was unfamiliar to me. It looked very much like a variety of gull. Notice I didn't say "seagull." According to Moran, there isn't actually a seagull in California.

All of the gulls in our area have different names. For instance, most of us are probably familiar with the California Gull. It has a yellow bill with a black ring, yellow legs, brown eyes and a more rounded head.

The bird I saw out on the island in one of the ISD ponds looked similar in size and coloring except it had a black cap on its head and a large, bright orange bill.

According to Moran, this bird is called a Caspian Tern. Recently, it has become common throughout the waterways of Contra Costa County.

The Caspian Tern is largest in the tern family of birds. Interestingly, the bird can live up to 26 years. Moran said the park district has been following the Caspian Tern's migration into the area.

So far, it has seen the water birds in colonies in a variety of ages and stages in their life span, but it has not seen the birds nesting here. The birds have been seen at the fledgling stages flying about, and even mating.

For those who don't want to leave their neighborhoods in search of birds, there are plenty right outside your own homes. Moran said Oakley is a hot spot for several varieties of hawks and other raptors.

On many mornings, you can see four or five hawks doing their search for food in the area. It isn't uncommon to hear them sending off their own little bird song before they can be seen.
The park district is working on counting all of the hawks and other raptors in the area. On Aug. 27, the organization will be looking for volunteers interested in helping count those birds located in the Oakley area along the trail and beyond. Check the district's Web site, www.ebparks.org, for more information.

Speaking of Web sites, the park district is now on Twitter, Facebook and a couple of the other social networking sites. Moran said the feeds are coming from the main office in Oakland, and the local guys are just in the talking stages about putting their own information out there.
Those interested in keeping informed with the park district should check out www.ebparks.org and follow the instructions on social networking.

Roni Gehlke is an Oakley resident. Reach her at ourbackyard@comcast.net.