Date: 8/22/26 12:46 am From: eBird alert via groups.io <alert.ebird...> Subject: [slocobirding] [eBird Alert] San Luis Obispo County Rare Bird Alert
*** Species Summary:
- King Eider (2 reports)
- White-winged Dove (1 report)
- Ridgway's Rail (2 reports)
- Common Gallinule (5 reports)
- Pacific Golden-Plover (2 reports)
- Solitary Sandpiper (1 report)
- Black Tern (5 reports)
- Least Bittern (2 reports)
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Thank you for subscribing to the <daily> San Luis Obispo County Rare Bird Alert. The report below shows observations of rare birds in San Luis Obispo County. View or unsubscribe to this alert at https://ebird.org/alert/summary?sid=SN36231 NOTE: all sightings are UNCONFIRMED unless indicated.
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Ridgway's Rail (Rallus obsoletus) (1)
- Reported Aug 21, 2026 07:07 by Kilian Hampl
- Laguna Lake — Prefumo Creek Mouth, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.6930037&<ll...>,-120.6930037 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S385603506 - Comments: "***Very rare. Continuing crazy awesome find by Herb, the first in SLO county since 1973/first in 53 years! Unfortunately h/o. I first heard this bird give a single “churr” call at about 7:15 this morning shortly after arriving (though it didn’t initially register to me that that was the bird). I then heard it give several more “churr” calls and then later a partial series of clacking calls around 9 am from here: (35.264408, -120.692692), but I don’t believe it was heard after that. I was able to hear this bird well and clearly despite each encounter essentially being limited to a single call - though as previously mentioned I didn’t realize that I had heard it initially.
Similar to Black Rail, Ridgway’s Rail historically occurred in Morro Bay, but declined drastically due to habitat loss and fragmentation, etc and was eventually extirpated from SLO county in the mid-late 20th century. My understanding is that it is not well known whether nominate obsoletus (SF/Bay area) or R. o. levipes (SoCal/Light-footed) occurred here. I will take another look at Herb’s photos for a possible subspecies ID and will update if needed.
I have seen and heard many RIRAs in the Bay Area, but this is a bird I never expected to get in SLO county!
Common Gallinule (Gallinula galeata) (1) CONFIRMED
- Reported Aug 21, 2026 07:07 by Kilian Hampl
- Laguna Lake — Prefumo Creek Mouth, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.6930037&<ll...>,-120.6930037 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S385603506 - Comments: "*Rare but regular. Continuing young bird found by Jay Carroll on Wednesday (8/19). This was a relatively small gallinule that had an elongated dusky reddish bill with a large dull yellow tip, a rounded dusky reddish frontal shield, dark eye, browner cheek and paler throat (signs of immaturity), and dark ashy-colored neck, breast, and belly the latter of which had pale fringing. The legs were a dull yellow and the back and some wing coverts were a deep chestnut brown. The primaries were dark. I did not hear this bird vocalize to the best of my knowledge. It was in view on and off throughout the morning and was relatively close, and my views were relatively close. A few bad photos tba eventually."
Pacific Golden-Plover (Pluvialis fulva) (1) CONFIRMED
- Reported Aug 21, 2026 07:07 by Kilian Hampl
- Laguna Lake — Prefumo Creek Mouth, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.6930037&<ll...>,-120.6930037 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S385603506 - Media: 1 Audio
- Comments: "***First truly inland county record? I can’t find any others away from the immediate coast…Regardless, Herb, Brian, and I were scanning the mudflats when I/we heard what sounded to my ear like a Golden-Plover calling. Suddenly the bird materialized flying in and it landed on the mudflats amongst the Killdeer, and it was immediately apparent that the bird I/we heard calling was, in fact, a Golden. We continued to watch this Plover as it foraged amongst the Killdeer for about twenty minutes before a Bald Eagle flew by and flushed most birds from the area. When this happened the Plover flushed as well and circled around calling, before eventually flying off in the direction of the Laguna Lake Park not to return. As mentioned previously this was an obvious Pluvialis Plover with a rather slim and more lanky build, a medium-sized dark bill, a dark eye, a buffy face, a pale supercillium that extended down around the auriculars and sides of the neck to at least the sides of the breast, a gold-spangled cap and back, a mottled dark breast and mottled dark underparts extending to the vent, pale whitish undertail coverts, and relatively short primary projection (compared to American). Due to the distance I was unable to see how many primaries projected past the tertials in the folded wing. In flight I was able to see that the tail was extensively barred and that the underwing was entirely pale, lacking the “dark armpits” of Black-bellied. The legs and toes were dark. Much of the wing coverts were old and worn, and this bird appeared to be an adult or at least a SY bird (So I guess AHY is most accurate) in prebasic molt. As mentioned previously this bird was rather vocal, giving fairly typical-sounding “chu-EET” flight calls. My views of this bird, although not exceptionally close, were decent, and I was able to see most if not all parts of this bird well. I also was able to obtain a few distant low-quality photos and recordings which will be added."
Solitary Sandpiper (Tringa solitaria) (1) CONFIRMED
- Reported Aug 20, 2026 18:34 by Pair of Wing-Nuts
- Atascadero Wastewater Treatment Ponds--no internal access, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.6424508&<ll...>,-120.6424508 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S385422373 - Media: 1 Photo
- Comments: "Observed foraging in shallow flooded vegetation in second basin from south end - slightly smaller and slimmer than nearby Killdeer with distinct, complete eye-ring, brown above and white below with brown breast, dark folded wing edges and tail, greenish legs, white supralorels and medium length, straight bill, olive at the base with a dark tip and about the same length as its head."
Black Tern (Chlidonias niger) (1) CONFIRMED
- Reported Aug 21, 2026 17:03 by Tom Edell
- Cayucos Creek Mouth, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.907463&<ll...>,-120.907463 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S385604241 - Media: 5 Photos
- Comments: "Continuing adult standing on the beach mostly with by separate from Elegant Terns. When flushed it foraged for a short time and then returned to the beach. Medium gray feathers molting into the back and nape. Bird is obviously smaller than adjacent Elegant Terns (see photos). Reddish leg color is visible in some photos."
Black Tern (Chlidonias niger) (1) CONFIRMED
- Reported Aug 21, 2026 10:12 by Yamina Pressler
- Cayucos Pier, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.9069453&<ll...>,-120.9069453 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S385566713 - Media: 2 Photos
- Comments: "What a fun bird to watch!! Continuing individual. Noticeably smaller than nearby foresters and elegant terns. Ashy gray back, mostly black head behind the eyes, black beak. Faster wing beats. Photos. I was able to locate the bird within a few minutes of arriving. It continued in the same location previously reported (south east end of the pier). I watched it for the better part of 30 minutes before I lost it"
Least Bittern (Botaurus exilis) (2) CONFIRMED
- Reported Aug 21, 2026 07:07 by Kilian Hampl
- Laguna Lake — Prefumo Creek Mouth, San Luis Obispo, California
- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&<q...>,-120.6930037&<ll...>,-120.6930037 - Checklist: https://ebird.org/checklist/S385603506 - Comments: "*Rare but regular. 2-3. Presumably continuing birds that have been here for some time now. Initially I saw a male fly distantly over the bulrushes before landing down in them. Shortly thereafter I heard that bird vocalize and then another bird answer from elsewhere. Later just prior to my departure a female flew back into the island of bulrushes from closer to us and was in view for about a minute before moving back into the bulrushes and out of sight. I am not sure whether or not the female is the same bird that answered the male earlier in the morning, as I was not able to tell where that individual was calling from. Both birds were small buffy bitterns with buffy-streaked breasts, pale throats, white mantle lines, large buffy wing covert patches that contrasted with the darker primaries and secondaries, dark caps and short dark tails, and thick elongated yellow bills and feet, the latter of which projected past the short tail in flight. The back of the male was very dark whereas the female’s back was also darker but not quite as dark as the male’s…more brown. I could see only the pale eyes of the female, as the male was too distant to see finer details like that. I was able to see the female well, albeit briefly, whereas the male was seen more distantly and briefly and not as well. As mentioned previously I heard these birds vocalize, giving loud harsh piercing “ga-ak-gak-gak-gak!” contact calls typical of this species. I did not make any attempt to record these birds (I would have surely been unsuccessful), nor did I opt to take any photos (particularly of the female) as these birds have already been well documented here and there were several other observers present."
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