Birds I'm Watching: Place to Play Park, Santa Rosa

While waiting for my son at his Clarinet lesson today, I took a walk around the small pond at Place to Play Park, in Santa Rosa. Saw quite a few birds, including about 300 Canada Geese. Among them was what I'm pretty sure was a Snow Goose--which would be an unusual sighting for the middle of Santa Rosa--but the bird lacked the black primaries a snow goose should have--so, not entirely sure about this one. One expert I consulted has said it may be a partial blue morph snow goose.

Also saw a Say's Phoebe, Greater Yellowlegs, Wilson's Snipe, Killdeer, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Yellow-rumped Warblers, Mallards, a pair of Shovelers, a single male Bufflehead, a single female Common Merganser, Crows, American Pipit, Long-billed Dowitchers (pictured), Black-necked Stilts, Double-crested Cormorants, gulls I didn't take the time to identify, three White Pelicans, and a few Scrub-jays.

For more about birding in Sonoma County, see my website: Sonoma County Bird Watching Spots

Miscellaneous: A Visit to the Theater

Went on a field trip with my son's class at the Santa Rosa Charter School for the Arts today. The class saw a dance performance by students at Santa Rosa High School and then visited the set for the Santa Rosa Junior College's production of The Wizard of Oz. Set designer Peter Compton gave us a behind-the-scenes look--literally. The kids got to walk on stage and see how the backdrops and turntables work and then they had a look at the scenery shop where the sets are built and props created. Not a bad way to spend a morning.