San Luis Obispo County Listers
These birders keep a county list and have submitted the numbers to me. If
you would like to be included here, please send information in the format below
to mstiles@calpoly.edu.
NIB = No Introduced Birds (Chukar, Wild Turkey,
Starling, Rock Pigeon, House Sparrow, Eurasian Collared Dove) Some birders do not count introduced species.
It is your choice how you want your list included here. Just let me know.
Total county list = 453 (447 NIB)
Most recent update 22 September 2008
- Brad
Schram
TOTAL BIRDS: 424 NIB (425 including
Eastern Wood Pewee--not accepted by CBRC)
400TH BIRD: Brown Booby July 1996
Brad's comments: My best county bird is probably Trumpeter Swan (1973--second So. Cal
record) and Arctic Warbler--found by a group of us at Oceano--would be a close
second. I'm still waiting for Greater Pewee, Bendire's Thrasher, and Hepatic Tanager.
Editor's note: Brad also has 441 birds for Santa
Barbara County!
- Greg Smith
TOTAL BIRDS: 418 NIB
400TH BIRD: Pinyon Jay 05 Dec 1995. Found on
Red
Hill Road off Highway 58.
Greg's comments: My best county bird was the first
definite record of White Wagtail (Motacila alba) for the State of California, 05
Oct 1984.I'm still looking for Yellow-billed Loon, Least Storm Petrel, and Laysan Albatross.
- Tom Edell
TOTAL BIRDS: 417 NIB (418 including
Eastern Wood Pewee--not accepted by CBRC)
400TH BIRD: Brown Booby July 1996
Tom's comments:
My best county bird is probably the Arctic Loon I found on 7 Dec 1991.
Close seconds are Yellow Wagtail (Sep 1981), King Eider (Oct 1985), Garganey (with Jim Royer in Oct 1991),
and Yellow-billed Loon (with Curtis Marantz in Dec 1990). Painful misses are Manx Shearwater,
Tricolored Heron, Wood Stork, Golden winged Warbler, and Grace's Warbler.
Still waiting for Trumpeter Swan, Emperor Goose, Zone-tailed Hawk, Chimney Swift,
Pinyon Jay, Clark's Nutcracker, Bendire's Thrasher, Bohemian Waxwing, Hepatic Tanager, and Tree Sparrow.
- Karen Havlena
TOTAL BIRDS: 409 NIB
400TH BIRD: Brown Thrasher 19 April
1999
Karen's comments: My best county bird (that I found
personally) was Dickcissel. It was also a "yardbird" for me, 7-10 Sep 1991. My
two worst misses are Cape May Warbler and Wood Stork. I would love to add Wood
Thrush to the county list.
- Curtis Marantz
TOTAL BIRDS: 402 NIB
400TH BIRD: Horned Puffin 16 July 2007
Curtis' Comments: My best bird is the Piping
Plover. Because of its declining status it may not be seen again. Easiest misses are Manx Shearwater, Fork-tailed Storm-Petrel. Buff-breasted Sandpiper, Tufted Puffin, Least Flycatcher, Eastern Kingbird, Mourning Warbler, and Painted Bunting.
- Bill Bouton
TOTAL BIRDS: 389 NIB
Bill's Comments:
I consider some of my best finds in SLO County to be Yellow-billed Loon, Brown Booby, Yellow Rail, Yellow-billed Cuckoo
and Cape May Warbler. My worst miss is what I believe was an “Old World Warbler” that
got away without being identified in the Arroyo de la Cruz wetland.
- Mike Stiles
TOTAL BIRDS: 374 NIB
Mike's Comments: My best finds are Lucy's Warbler and Scarlet Tanager, both
found, coincidently, at the Montana de Oro Campground. My contribution to county birding
is the formation of Slocobirding email rare bird alert, and the creation and
upkeep of these web pages.
- Maggie Smith
TOTAL BIRDS: 355 NIB
Maggie's Comments: My 300th bird was the Northern Pygmy Owl, 9/1/05. My best county bird was the Yellow-green Vireo that Tom Edell and I found at Oceano. Perhaps my favorite bird was the male Yellow-headed Blackbird I saw at Oso Flaco shining in the fog.
- Al Schmierer
TOTAL BIRDS: 353 NIB
Al's Comments: Maybe the best birds that I have found would be the (first county record)
Reddish Egret and several Pinyon Jays in 2003. The most beautiful of the rarer birds on my
list would have to be the Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, followed by a male Scarlet Tanager as
a distant second. In a way, a Least Bittern up close in the open in the sun in my scope was
one of the most satisfying birds!
- Jon Dunn
TOTAL BIRDS: 346 NIB
JLD's Comments: Best birds include Tufted Duck, King Eider, Piping Plover, Rock Sandpiper, Black Swift,
Least Flycatcher, Great Crested Flycatcher (2), Arctic Warbler, White Wagtail, Golden-winged Warbler, Cerulean Warbler, Worm-eating
Warbler, Kentucky Warbler, Connecticut Warbler (2), and Painted Redstart. Worst misses are Magnolia and Chestnut-sided Warblers,
Bobolink, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, and Indigo Bunting. And, am looking forward to seeing a Le Conte's Thrasher. I used to bird in SLO rather frequently in the 1980's when I lived in Santa Barbara. I enjoyed birding there again recently in
connection with the WFO meetings in Santa Maria and look forward to spending more time there again. I suppose that 1979 Stejneger's
Petrel on the Davidson Seamount trip has now been taken by Monterey County (not included in my total).
- Ryan Jorgeson
TOTAL BIRDS: 342
Ryan's Comments: My personal best find in this 2007 Spring was a MacGivilary's Warbler found on Santa Rita Road in Templeton. May 30th on Reservoir Canyon Road in SLO County Lazuli Buntings were present. My Second Personal best find this Spring was a White-Throated Sparrow. The Horned Puffins were also very rewarding
- Jamie Chavez
TOTAL BIRDS: 330 NIB
Jamie's Comments: Personal highlights are Pine Warbler, Bay-breasted Warbler, two Scarlet Tanagers, Painted Redstart, Laughing Gull, Yellow-throated Vireo and Mountain Chickadee. I feel
fortunate to have seen the Arctic Warbler and the Golden-winged Warbler. There
are several missing birds on my list including some owls and pelagic species.
These will come in time. If I knew exactly where the county line is at the Santa
Maria River estuary I might add Little Curlew and Red-necked Stint to my total.
I only count these on my Santa Barbara County list. I would like to find a county
first Black Vulture one day!
- Regena Orr
TOTAL BIRDS: 324 NIB
Regena's Comments: I do live in San Luis Obispo County and thought I would make Mike feel better by joining the County Listers. My best county
bird was a Yellow-billed Cuckoo that I banded in San Simeon.
- Brian Daniels
TOTAL BIRDS: 324 NIB
Brian's Comments: My best birds for SLO would be Piping Plover, Arctic Warbler, and
White Wagtail. Although I live in Los Angeles County, I've managed to see 34 warbler species in SLO including
Cerulean Warbler and Connecticut Warbler.
- Nancy Mann
TOTAL BIRDS: 319 NIB
Nancy's Comments:Best bird: Brown Thrasher and Dickcissel in my yard in Arroyo Grande in the 1980's
Most Painful Missed Bird: California Condor
- Mark Brown
TOTAL BIRDS: 311 NIB
Mark's Comments:I used to live in San Luis Obispo and currently live just a few miles south of the San Luis
Obispo/Santa Barbara County line. I was first taken birding by Mike Stiles in January 1979. (The Carter Administration children) We saw
Bald Eagles at Lopez Lake, my first county bird! So, I really have no excuse why my county list is so low!! I am missing some
embarrassingly common birds. But I have seen good birds including: Tufted Duck,Scarlet Tanager, Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, Prothonotary
Warbler, Worm-eating Warbler, Canada Warbler, Common Grackle, Glaucous Gull, Laughing Gull, & Gray Catbird. I have found “Mark Brown’s
Myiarchus” at Oso Flaco, the Cal Poly Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (helped by Adonis Tate), I cofound with Kyle Braunager the Laguna Lake
Franklin’s Gull, also Red-eyed Vireo, Summer Tanager, White-winged Dove & Broad-winged Hawk. I have seen Black Terns at Oso Flaco for
the last three Mother’s days, a favorite birding memory. I have really enjoyed birding with the SLO County boyos and Maggie these last
few years.
- John Luther
TOTAL BIRDS: 289 NIB
John's Comments: I have never lived in San Luis Obispo
County, but have relatives living in Los Osos, Templeton and Paso Robles so
I keep getting back there. Best birds I have seen include Reddish Egret,
Golden-winged Warbler, Painted Redstart, and the recent Dickcissel.
- John Sterling
TOTAL BIRDS: 269 NIB
John's Comments: I have never lived in San Luis Obispo County
but I have birded there a bit over the past 25 years. Best find was 3
Blackburnian Warblers in one day--a day before the Grace's Warbler was
found!...best birds include Piping Plover, Arctic Warbler, Golden-winged
Warbler. I hope to contribute by finding a first county record someday.
- Mike San Miguel
TOTAL BIRDS: 260 NIB
Is there a more stunningly beautiful place in S California than the north coast of the County or the remote eastern plains?
I think not and the reason I don’t have a larger SLO list is the long drive from my home in Arcadia. During a calm, chilly dusk
in March 1964 I was birding with my mentor Dave DeSante at a remote ranch in the Carizzo Plains when we found an adult California
Condor sitting on a stump. It struggled to take flight in an attempt to get away but without the thermals it must have for flight
it became exhausted and eventually give up. Seeming to trust that we meant it no harm it sat calmly on the ground as we approached.
I had the best looks I knew I would ever have at such a magnificent creature. That experience, among many in those formative days,
began my intense love of birds that continues to this day. I count Reddish Egret, Little Curlew, Arctic Warbler and Painted
Redstart among the best birds I have seen in SLO but none of those tops my experience with the Condor all those years ago.
- Gjon Hazard
TOTAL BIRDS: 238 NIB
Gjon's Comments: Gotta be one of the state's best
counties, wish I could get there more often. Best find: Painted Bunting (2nd
County Record) September 29, 1988, Montana de Oro.
- Steve Rovell
TOTAL BIRDS: 230 NIB
Steve's Comments: Just like John Sterling and Don Roberson, I too, live
outside SLO County. I don't visit often, usually just when something
rare shows up and my teaching and family schedules allow it. In my few
visits, I have managed to see a few rarities, including Golden-winged
Warbler, Painted Redstart and Arctic Warbler. My best find is a Least
Flycatcher. I don't like seeing the "1" in front of my county total,
so expect me to contact some of you for tips on where to go and maybe
even to go birding. I'm still waiting for one of your Royal Terns to
make its way up to Monterey County. That would be something!
Editor's note: Steve also has 417 birds for Monterey County!
- Don Roberson
TOTAL BIRDS: 204 NIB
Don's Comments: I've never lived in SLO and have only rarely visited,
yet have had the good luck to find or co-find two great SLO birds:
Short-tailed Albatross and Red-tailed Tropicbird. Incidentally, had I
seen Wild Turkey in SLO, I would included that on my NIB list. The
evidence supports the proposition that Wild Turkey was once native in
northern & central California's oak forests, and is thus a re-introduced
native bird (more like Peregrine than like all the clearly non-native
IBs). See this page on my website for more
details.
Editor's note: Don also has 451 birds for Monterey County!