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San Gregorio Ranch Gets a Very Unusual Feathered Visitor
Local birders alerted us that at least one Harris’s Sparrow, whose normal winter habitat is a narrow strip of the Great Plains, has taken up at Cascade Ranch in the near POST-protected properties Whaler’s Cove and the Cowell-Purisima Trail. Rancher Nando Muzzi runs Cascade Ranch under a conservation easement held by the California Coastal Conservancy.
The handsome Harris’s Sparrow appears to have come west to enjoy some bugs, which are, in turn, feasting on rotting Brussels sprouts. (Yummy!)
Since the big sparrows are rarely seen anywhere near California, birders have been coming from far and wide to add the species to their “seen” lists. Both Mr. Muzzi and the property owner (and former POST board member), Steve Blank, are being kind enough to let birders onto the property to check old “Harry” out!
Some interesting facts about the Harris’s Sparrow: It’s the only bird in the world that breeds exclusively in Canada. It does so along the edge of boreal forest and tundra in north-central Canada. Sadly, the boreal forest is being hit hard by climate change, so the bird may be attempting to adapt.
In winter, the sparrows observe a very clear hierarchy to determine who gets first access to food: The oldest males get the worm — or seed, or bug. California is a very unusual place for them to end up, but since the birds often winter in agricultural fields and pastures, Cascade Ranch must have looked like the right spot to be.
If you do go ogle the Harris’s Sparrow, stop and take in the view at Whaler’s Cove or do the easy, beautiful coastal hike on Cowell-Purisima Trail!
You can also learn more about this and other birds on Cornell University’s incredible ornithology website.
Living Among Lions on the San Francisco Peninsula
Via Wikimedia Commons
A map of mountain lion sightings in residential areas in the San Jose Mercury News suggests that the cats are coming from the greenbelt of open spaces on the west side of Highway 280 — which includes several POST-protected parcels. One puma was spotted in Windy Hill. (POST Conservation Project Manager Abigail Adams also recently spotted a paw print on a POST easement near San Gregorio.)
That’s a good thing. More open spaces, along with a ban on hunting in California, are beginning to boost the predators’ numbers. Officials estimate there are 6,000 of them in the state.
Admittedly, it’s scary to spot a mountain lion on your block or to find one napping in your tree. But you are more likely to be killed by a deer than by a mountain lion, according to Zara McDonald of the Felidae Conservation Fund. The cats, by predilection, avoid humans whenever they can. In fact, some trackers have found evidence that humans have come within 50 feet of a mountain lion without ever knowing it was there.
When a puma ends up on Alpine Road, it’s probably looking for a mountainous throughway of another sort: Wildlife corridors are a vital ingredient for keeping puma populations healthy. When they can’t find natural throughways, pumas sometimes revert to highways and suburban byways, neither of which are good news for people.
Take another look at the Mercury map: You’ll see that almost all of the sightings are on the boundary of an open space or in a stretch of developed land between large open spaces.
So treat the cats with some respect if you happen to see one — and be sure to follow the experts’ best recommendations for not having a conflict with it.
You can make your home less appealing to a wandering mountain lion by avoiding feeding any wildlife that it might prey on. Make your best effort to keep deer away by landscaping with plants they don’t like to eat. Keep pets indoors. Motion-activated lighting can also repel the cats.
To steer clear of mountain lions in wilderness areas, avoid hiking alone or wearing headphones. Keep children and dogs close to you. Never approach or run away from a mountain lion, if you see one. Instead, make an effort to appear bigger by raising your arms. If all else fails and you are attacked, fight back! One 60-year-old woman likely saved her husband’s life by repeatedly jabbing an attacking puma with a ballpoint pen!
Newly Opened Cowell-Purisima Trail Is a Hit!
The new Cowell-Purisima Trail — a broad, relatively flat 3-mile trail tucked between artichoke and brussel sprout fields and a rugged stretch of San Mateo coastline — has generated a lot of interest, and more than a few hikers, since it opened last month.
The opening was heralded in nearly every local media outlet, including the San Jose Mercury News, the Half Moon Bay Review, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Bay Citizen, and Half Moon Bay’s Patch. It’s even found its way onto the national everything-but-the-kitchen-sink site About.com.
In many ways, the story of the trail — which is owned and managed by POST — is the story of the California Coastal Trail to which it adds three miles: It’s not easy to secure permanent public access to our coastline, but there’s a lot of pent-up demand for residents to get out there and appreciate California’s windswept western edge.
POST first acquired the land on which the coastal trail now sits 25 years ago. It’s taken that long to coordinate with all of the state agencies that help oversee the state’s shoreline (particularly during difficult economic times), to work with longtime farmers to ensure their operations aren’t disrupted and to secure enough funding to create a safe, visitor-friendly trail on the rugged terrain.
The million-dollar-per-mile price tag may sound like a lot, not least to the many generous POST donors who helped make this public trail possible, but it’s actually slightly under what the state budgeted on a per-mile basis to realize the dream of a public trail along the coast from Oregon to Mexico.
From the interest the trail has gotten, though, it seems that Californians believe the time and effort are well spent to appreciate the sweeping views — and seals! — the trail provides.
Check out POST’s photos of a recent walk-and-talk Paul Ringgold led on the trail, and don’t miss Patch’s virtual hike.
Photos by Kathryn Hargis
POST
Jeff Powers
Paul Ringgold
Meghan Scanlon
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