Date: 2/14/26 2:54 pm From: Ryan Winkleman via groups.io <rswinkleman...> Subject: [OrangeCountyBirding] Orange County RBA: February 14, 2026
Happy Valentine's Day!
* California
* Orange County
* February 14, 2026
* CAOC26.02.14
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
Eastern Phoebe
Tropical Kingbird
Plumbeous Vireo
Grasshopper Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Vesper Sparrow
Baltimore Oriole
Scott’s Oriole
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Pine Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
NEOTROPIC CORMORANTS continued along the Upper Santa Ana River in Anaheim
this week, as well as at Tri-City Regional Park in Placentia and Centennial
Regional Park in Santa Ana.
At least one immature LITTLE BLUE HERON continued at Bolsa Chica Ecological
Reserve in Huntington Beach through February 13, with one report of both
immature birds together again.
A TRICOLORED HERON continued at Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve in
Huntington Beach through February 13.
A WESTERN CATTLE-EGRET continued at Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve in
Huntington Beach through February 13.
A BALD EAGLE continued on the coast at Huntington Central Park in
Huntington Beach on February 9.
A YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER continued at Tustin Heritage Park in Tustin
through February 13.
An EASTERN PHOEBE continued still at Overlook Park/Harriett Wieder Regional
Park in Huntington Beach on February 12.
A TROPICAL KINGBIRD continued at Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve in
Huntington Beach through February 11.
A PLUMBEOUS VIREO continued at Bart Spendlove Memorial Park in Mission
Viejo on February 8, while another continued at Tustin Heritage Park in
Tustin through February 14 and yet another was at Columbus Tustin Park in
Tustin on February 8.
Multiple wintering GRASSHOPPER SPARROWS continued at Quail Hill in Irvine.
A WHITE-THROATED SPARROW continued at O’Neill Regional Park in Rancho Santa
Margarita through February 12, while another continued in residential
Orange on February 14.
A VESPER SPARROW was reported from Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve in
Huntington Beach on February 13.
A BALTIMORE ORIOLE continued at Pepperwood Park in Irvine through February
13, while another was at Bart Spendlove Memorial Park in Mission Viejo on
February 7 and 8.
A SCOTT’S ORIOLE continued at the Ramakrishna Monastery in Trabuco Canyon
through February 8.
A CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLER continued at Gibbs Park in Huntington Beach
through February 9.
An immature female PINE WARBLER continued at Good Shepherd Cemetery in
Huntington Beach through February 8.
A BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLER was at Brenner Park in Buena Park on
February 13 and 14.
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/.
BIRDING WORKSHOPS AND CLASSES
Sylvia Gallagher’s Learning More California Land Birds Workshop will be
starting in March. Registration doesn’t open until March 2 so I will post
the link when it gets closer!
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
