Bolsa Chica Fieldtrip
As we arrive at the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve I notice that this day is particularly warm and sunny. In the distance a significant haze is visible, but there aren't many clouds. It's 10:10 AM and we've just been handed our binoculars and data collection sheets. I am standing facing west to avoid looking into the sun, and off to my right I notice quite a few pigeons, which Travis informs us don't really count since they were introduced into the area by people. The air temperature is reported to be about 72 degrees Fahrenheit. The wind seems unusually strong in this area, but the weather reported a wind out of the south east of 10 to 15 miles per hour. My partner for the data collection today is Mariah. If I stick with her today I am bound to learn a few new bird names. As we begin our walk around the Ecological Reserve we stop first on the footbridge about ten feet from where we began. As I peer down into the water below I see a lot of shells littered about. Travis tells us that what we are seeing are razor clams, muscles, sponges, algae, and a few stingrays. I was surprised to find out that this
Snowy Egret (Carbo egretathula) 1 wait and attack 1ft. Spotted Sandpiper (Actitis macularia) 1 probing 0ft. 1.5in. Wait and attack 0ft. 2in. As we made our way around the inner bay area we looked to our right and noticed a lot of birds in the creek area of the wetlands. I estimated about 80 birds visible in the creek area. About 90% of which seemed to be resting. The black-necked stilt looks similar to a flamingo because it stands in the water on one leg. The creek area was muddier than the inner bay, and seemed from where we were standing to be mostly a shallow pool of water. In the channel area we noticed a pool of bacteria, in water that must have been very high in alkaline. It was a peach/pink type color, with white around the edges and we saw a bird in it, so it must not be toxic. Birds seen in the Creek/ Channel area:
Some common words found in the essay are:
Ecological Reserve, Egret Carbo, Sandpiper Actitis, Outer Bay, Inner Bay, Caspian Tern, Tern Sterna, Sanderlings Calidris, Bay Common, Sandpiper Calidris, inner bay, 1 probing, plunge dive, 1 aerial, aerial plunge, aerial plunge dive, 1 aerial plunge, probing -5ft 3in, data collection, 1 surface, plunge dive 100ft, -5ft 3in, probing -5ft, 1 probing 0ft, wait attack,
Approximate Word count = 754
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
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