Date: 1/10/26 8:24 am From: Ryan Winkleman via groups.io <rswinkleman...> Subject: [OrangeCountyBirding] Orange County RBA: January 10, 2026
* California
* Orange County
* January 10, 2026
* CAOC26.01.10
This is the Orange County, CA weekly Rare Bird Alert (RBA) and local events
summary. California Bird Records Committee (CBRC) review species are
capitalized and marked with asterisks below. All documentation of review
species should be forwarded to the CBRC secretary, Tom Benson, at
<secretary...>
BIRDS MENTIONED
Neotropic Cormorant
Little Blue Heron
Tricolored Heron
Western Cattle-Egret
Bald Eagle
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Tropical Kingbird
Hammond’s Flycatcher
Western Flycatcher
Eastern Phoebe
Plumbeous Vireo
Townsend’s Solitaire
Clay-colored Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Vesper Sparrow
Baltimore Oriole
Tennessee Warbler
American Redstart
Northern Parula
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Grace’s Warbler
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
NEOTROPIC CORMORANTS kept overrunning the county this week. Remember when
every other surrounding SoCal county except OC was getting them all the
time and we were all like, “When are we going to get this species
already???” and then finally we got the ONE bird at San Joaquin in Irvine
and everybody rushed to see it (even me, when I still chased birds!). I
used to actually keep count of them in the NAB reports for the first couple
years! Now they are just everywhere….except in RSM! I am still waiting for
one to show up amongst the cormorants at Oso Reservoir…
At least one immature LITTLE BLUE HERON continued at Bolsa Chica Ecological
Reserve in Huntington Beach this week.
A TRICOLORED HERON continued at Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve in
Huntington Beach through January 8. A bird reported from the Brookhurst
Marsh on January 4 was presumably continuing from a couple months back when
one was first seen I believe at the Talbert(?) Marsh (I’m being lazy and
don’t want to look :D).
At least one WESTERN CATTLE-EGRET continued at Bolsa Chica Ecological
Reserve in Huntington Beach through January 7.
BALD EAGLES were reported from Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve and
Huntington Central Park in Huntington Beach this week.
A YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER continued at the Olinda Ranch Neighborhood Park
in Brea on January 9. Another was in the Mesa Court Housing area at UCI on
January 4.
A TROPICAL KINGBIRD continued at the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve in
Huntington Beach through January 8.
A HAMMOND'S FLYCATCHER was reported from Mason Regional Park in Irvine on
January 4 and from Huntington Central Park in Huntington Beach on January
8.
A WESTERN FLYCATCHER was reported from the Los Coyotes Country Club in
Buena Park on January 7.
An EASTERN PHOEBE continued at Harriett Wieder Regional Park in Huntington
Beach on January 8.
A PLUMBEOUS VIREO continued at George Bellis Park in Buena Park on January
5, while another continued at Riverdale Park in Anaheim on January 3. A
third was at Cedar Grove Park in Tustin on January 7.
A TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE continued at West Coyote Hills Tree Park in
Fullerton on January 6.
A CLAY-COLORED SPARROW continued in residential Buena Park through January
6.
A WHITE-THROATED SPARROW continued at Aldrich Park at UCI on January 4.
Another was on the west side of Campus Village, also at UCI, on January 4.
Several years back I was doing a nest survey and had a Dark-eyed Junco
nesting right along the sidewalk near this spot, with its nest buried under
the grasses that run along the sidewalk in this area. It was very cool to
find.
A VESPER SPARROW was along the Arroyo Trabuco Wilderness in Rancho Santa
Margarita on January 8, south of the big Christian school, where this
species has been every winter for the last 4 or 5 years.
A BALTIMORE ORIOLES continued at Harper Park in Fountain Valley on January
7.
A TENNESSEE WARBLER continued at Harvard Community Park in Irvine on
January 4. Another was at East Bluff Park in Newport Beach from January 3
to January 8, while a third was at Marina Park in Seal Beach from January 7
to January 9.
A male AMERICAN REDSTART continued at Huntington Central Park East in
Huntington Beach through January 7, a presumed immature male continued
across the street at HCP West on January 4, and a female-type continued at
the Environmental Nature Center in Newport Beach on January 4. Another male
was at Haven View Park in Huntington Beach from January 4 to January 8.
A NORTHERN PARULA continued at Huntington Central Park West in Huntington
Beach through January 7.
A CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLER was at Gibbs Park in Huntington Beach from January
4 through January 8.
A GRACE'S WARBLER continued at Memory Garden Memorial Cemetery in Brea
through January 6.
A ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK was at Riverdale Park in Anaheim on January 4.
LOCAL EVENTS
Note: We will no longer be listing individual trips on this weekly email.
For a complete up-to-date list of current field trips, please visit the
webpage on Sea and Sage’s website:
https://seaandsageaudubon.org/field-trips/.
The Orange County RBA and events summary is produced weekly by Ryan
Winkleman. Sightings of rare birds can be posted to the OrangeCountyBirding
listserv, emailed directly to Ryan Winkleman (<rswinkleman...>),
and/or submitted to eBird (http://ebird.org/content/ebird). Any supporting
details (descriptions, photos, audio recordings, etc.) of rare sightings
that are not already disclosed on the listserv or on eBird should also be
emailed to Ryan Winkleman separately for consideration to be mentioned in
the current quarterly report for North American Birds.
Those sightings that are included in this summary generally include those
that are considered rare (regionally or seasonally) for Orange County based
on "The Birds of Orange County: Status and Distribution" (Hamilton and
Willick), "Birds of Southern California" (Garrett and Dunn), and/or more
contemporary changes in local or regional status and distribution. Rarities
that regularly or seasonally occur at a particular location, such as
annually wintering rarities on Seal Beach National Wildlife Refuge, may or
may not be included in this digest, but reports of these same species
occurring at other, atypical locations throughout the county may be
included. We don't include hybrids, subspecies, introduced or exotic birds,
or in most cases and for no real reason, geese. All bird reports are vetted
to the extent possible prior to each publication, but in the interest of
sharing information, the accuracy of any given report cannot always be
guaranteed, nor can the presence of any given bird for those who choose to
chase after them.
Information on upcoming local events can be viewed on the Sea and Sage
Audubon website (http://www.seaandsageaudubon.org/). Sea and Sage Audubon
is based out of the Audubon House at the San Joaquin Wildlife Sanctuary in
Irvine. They sponsor a number of public field trips, special birding
events, conservation lectures, and social gatherings throughout the year.
Information regarding upcoming local events should be considered accurate
at the time of this posting. However, for the most current information
please refer to the field trip list on the Sea and Sage Audubon website at
https://seaandsageaudubon.org/field-trips/. It is also recommended that you
refer to that website immediately prior to engaging in any field trip to
confirm that trips are still occurring. If you know of additional upcoming
events that are not sponsored directly by Sea and Sage Audubon, please
email Ryan Winkleman for inclusion. #RBA
