Eastern Sierra Bird Alliance

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Eastern Sierra Bird Alliance

Events, news, and bird and wildlife education for the Eastern Sierra Check the latest newsletter for updates at http://esaudubon.org/newsletters/

Eastern Sierra Audubon Society offers field trips (http://esaudubon.org/events/field_trips.php), evening programs (http://esaudubon.org/events/programs.php), a newsletter, and educational programs (http://esaudubon.org/education/index.php) for the Eastern Sierra.

06/05/2026

Who's up for a high country birding trek with a ghost town and a secret mission?

On this Saturday's field trip:

1) We'll be on the lookout for birds that are breeding. June 4-7 is the Big Weekend for the California Bird Atlas and we'll be a part of it by logging observations of breeding behaviors such as courtship, nest building, and feeding young. No one has submitted an observation to the Atlas confirming that White-crowned Sparrows are breeding in Mono County. We could be the first ones to do it!

2) We're secretly hoping to spot a White-tailed Ptarmigan! They can be pretty shy mid-morning, but maybe we will get lucky.

The adventure begins at 8 am, with Lacey Greene and Forrest English leading a hike through the ghost town of Bennettville and beyond. Meet us at the Tioga Rd (Hwy 120) Saddlebag Lake turnoff. Plan to hike 3-6 miles of rough trail or cross country, on and off snow. Hiking poles recommended. Bring water, sunscreen and snacks. Return by 1pm.

RSVPs appreciated: [email protected].

Map link: https://maps.app.goo.gl/D2SveQ18xuLYNDMK7
Coordinates: 37°56'18.4"N ,119°14'54.6"W

Photos: White-tailed Ptarmigan, Keith Maley/Audubon Photography Awards. All other photos by Forrest English: Cassin's Finch gathering nesting material, Dark-eyed Junco nest with eggs, Mountain Bluebird carrying food.

06/04/2026

🌲🐦 Birds & Bristlecones Returns This Summer! 🐦🌲

Step into one of the most extraordinary forests on Earth and discover the birds that call it home!

Join local naturalists for a FREE one-hour guided walk through the ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest. Learn about the fascinating bird species of the high Sierra while exploring the unique ecology of the world's oldest living trees.

Thank you to our friends at Sierra Forever (Eastern Sierra Interpretive Association) for offering these nature walks!

📅 Fridays at 9-10 AM
• June 5
• June 12
• June 19
• June 26
• July 3
• July 10

📍 Meet at the Schulman Visitor Center Deck

🥾 Walks take place at approximately 10,000 feet elevation and include some elevation gain. Please bring:
💧 Water
🧴 Sun protection
👟 Comfortable hiking or walking shoes

Whether you're an experienced birder or simply curious about nature, these walks are a wonderful way to connect with the Eastern Sierra's remarkable wildlife and landscapes.

Tag a friend who would love to explore the ancient Bristlecones with you! 🌲✨

05/28/2026

In the last field trip of our spring First Saturdays series, we're off on a hiking adventure. Love is in the air! Nests are being built and eggs are being laid. Come check out the romantic ghost town of Bennettville and look for breeding birds on this Big Weekend for the California Bird Atlas.

Likely lovebirds include White-crowned Sparrows, Dark-eyed Juncos, Ruby-crowned Kinglets and Cassin's Finches, all engaging in activities from counter-singing and courtship to feeding nestlings and possibly the awkward first flights of fledglings.

We'll also hope to see Grey-crowned Rosy Finches foraging in the receding snowpack, American Pipits on display...and we'll be on the lookout for the majestic chicken, the White-tailed Ptarmigan, although they can be pretty shy mid-morning.

Other likely birds include Mountain Bluebird, Hermit Thrush and possibly Bald Eagle.

Meet at the Tioga Rd (Hwy 120) Saddlebag Lake turnoff at 8am.
Map link: https://maps.app.goo.gl/D2SveQ18xuLYNDMK7
Coordinates: 37°56'18.4"N ,119°14'54.6"W

Plan to hike 3-6 miles of rough trail or cross country. Expect to travel on and off snow. Hiking poles recommended. Bring water, sunscreen and snacks. Return by 1pm.

Email [email protected] with questions or to RSVP (thank you!).

California Bird Atlas Big Weekend is a four-day statewide celebration of birds and the California Bird Atlas project that launched this year. During this weekend, birders across the state will help document the bird species that are breeding this spring. Read more here: www.easternsierrabirds.org/sponsored-projects/

Photo: Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Mark Mitchell/Audubon Photography Awards

05/25/2026

Announcing the first Big Weekend of the California Bird Atlas! June 4-7 is a statewide celebration and mobilization to gather data during this busy breeding season.

🦆Stay tuned this week when we'll announce details for a field trip on the morning of Saturday, June 6 in the Lee Vining area.🦆

Here are a few ways to help with the Atlas on your own:

1) Watch birds as you usually do, but spend more time looking at each bird's behavior and watching for signs of breeding. Get to know breeding behaviors and how to use breeding codes in eBird to report what you've seen. Don't forget to leave comments explaining what you saw.

2) Do targeted birding for the Atlas to help confirm breeding:

For instance, in Mono County, the following birds have been observed several times with 'probable' breeding behaviors but not yet 'confirmed': Gadwall, Cinnamon Teal, Green-winged Teal, Spotted Towhee, Sage Thrasher, Western Meadowlark.

For Inyo County, the following birds have been observed several times with 'probable' breeding behaviors but not yet 'confirmed': Western Meadowlark, Ruddy Duck, Brown-headed Cowbird, Sooty Grouse, Mountain Bluebird, Northern Harrier, Downy Woodpecker, White-breasted Nuthatch, Green-tailed Towhee.

2) Do targeted birding in Atlas blocks (approx. 3x3 miles) where more information is needed:

You can easily find blocks where no one has submitted any eBird checklists to the Atlas! And in other blocks, you can help by looking for bird behaviors that no one else has reported yet.

The California Atlas website (californiabirdatlas.org) has a new Blockboard map where you can see detailed data for each block.

See easternsierrabirds.org/sponsored-projects/ for more resources and links!

Got questions for the California Bird Atlas team? Tune in to their town hall meeting this Wednesday, May 27 (Zoom, 7 pm). Check the April dispatch for a link to register: https://ebird.org/atlascalifornia/news/atlas-dispatch-april-2026.

05/23/2026

They might be trickier to identify, but there's a team of scientists advocating that it's worth the effort!

05/18/2026

If you’ve noticed a lot of bird activity lately, you’re not imagining it! Dozens of species are breeding in the Eastern Sierra.

How do we know? Because more than 200 people in Mono and Inyo Counties have submitted eBird checklists to the California Bird Atlas since it launched in January.

Thanks to those birders, there are observations of over 120 bird species that show ‘confirmed’ breeding behavior—things like carrying nest materials, carrying food, building nests, sitting on nests, and feeding hungry little nestlings!

Other species have only been observed with ‘probable’ breeding behavior and are likely to be breeding. Who will be the first to confirm it? Could it be you?

Head to our website if you’d like to join the Atlas project: www.easternsierrabirds.org/sponsored-projects/

And THANK YOU to the Eastern Sierra birders who are already contributing.

All data from this post came from the eBird Atlas website on May 16, 2026. To see more, head to ebird.org/atlascalifornia/ and click on ‘Explore’ at the top of the page.

05/15/2026

🎉 Exciting News from the Eastern Sierra Bird Alliance! 🎉
We are excited to announce that we have awarded two $500 scholarships to graduating seniors — one from Mono County and one from Inyo County!
We are incredibly proud to support these students as they begin their next chapter, and we wish them all the best in their future endeavors. Their essays stood out for how strongly they aligned with our mission and commitment to conservation, education, and community engagement.
Thank you to all of the students who applied and shared their passion and perspectives with us. 💙🐦

05/08/2026

This Saturday, join us for the World Migratory Bird Day / Spring Big Day edition of our monthly bird walk at the COSA! We'll keep our eyes and ears open for birds that have arrived for the warm season, as well as birds that are just stopping for a while before continuing their journeys.

Come explore one of Bishop’s great natural areas and discover the birds that call it home. Whether you're brand new to birding or already love getting outside with binoculars, this walk is for you...

⏰ 7:30 AM – Saturday, May 9

📍 Bishop Paiute Tribe’s COSA (Conservation Open Space Area).
Meet in the large parking lot behind the DMV, next to the USFS and BLM offices. DMV address: 1115 W Line St, Bishop, CA 93514

✨ All ages are welcome and no experience is required. We’ll have binoculars and field guides to share.

Come enjoy this beautiful natural area and the birds we find there. We hope to see you out there! 🐦🌿

05/06/2026

This Saturday, May 9, is an important day for observing and celebrating spring migrants in the northern hemisphere! Help us celebrate World Migratory Bird Day and Global Big Day by birding with us.

According to the Cornell Lab BirdCast, an estimated 715,600 birds flew over Inyo County the night of Friday, May 1 into the early hours of Saturday morning. (Mono County: 512,300). The total number of birds that have made this flight over Inyo so far this spring is expected to be nearly 25 million.

Of course, these birds aren't just flying overhead. You may have been able to spot some of them refueling for their trips, or arriving here for the breeding season.

We encourage you to get out and record your observations on eBird this Saturday. You can do it on your own, in your backyard or favorite birding spot. Or join one of our events:

Birding in the Black Lake Preserve with the Eastern Sierra Land Trust: https://eslt.org/event/world-migratory-bird-day-2026/

Our May COSA walk: https://www.easternsierrabirds.org/esba-calendar/cosa-bird-walk-may2026

05/01/2026

UPDATE! Due to the BLM permit for this field trip, we are limited to 12 participants. Please RSVP now if you are hoping to go: [email protected].

For our First Saturday field trip in May, we’re heading to Fish Slough and taking a closer look at arthropods! Trip leader Ceal Klingler is a biologist, conservationist, and writer who hopes you’ll admire and possibly adore your smaller neighbors.
On this walking trip, she is hoping to see Inyo tiger beetles, harvester ants and their golden sand scoops, milkweed beetles, migratory painted lady butterflies (and possibly monarchs), and the flying, jumping, and lumbering animals who eat them.

Please come prepared to walk in hot weather and bring close-range binoculars if you have them. Meet at 9:30 AM at the southern turnoff for east Fish Slough from Fish Slough Road (approximately 37.43309, -118.40607; past the private houses and pavement; look for a turnoff and parking area to your right/east). Return by 1PM.

RSVP to grab a spot: [email protected].

Photo © C. Klingler: A red milkweed borer takes off at Fish Slough.

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Bishop, CA
93514

Website

https://www.easternsierrabirds.org/

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