2014-10-23 Autumn In Garner Valley

In the past I’ve written about my late June meetings with Pinyon Jays in Garner Valley, but on this autumn visit there were different avian hosts to entertain me. I spent most of my time along Morris Creek where it emerges from the chaparral-covered slopes onto the valley floor and meets the larger valley below. There were no ‘exceptional’ birds I met this day. Except for the Hairy Woodpecker and the Sharp-shinned Hawk, I’ve seen all these birds in my own yard at one time or another. But this is no cause for disappointment by me. I do not chase birds as much as I chase places. I can enjoy the birds I meet if I enjoy the place I meet them. I’ve enjoyed the times I’ve spent in Garner Valley.

Birds I met on this expedition were Hairy Woodpecker, White-Crowned Sparrow, Dark-Eyed Junco, Ruby-Crowned Kinglet, Mountain Chickadee, White-Breasted-Nuthatch, Oak Titmouse, Northern Flicker, Western Scrub-Jay, California Scrub-Jay, Sharp-Shinned Hawk.