Nature lovers go cuckoo over bird sighting in Whittier Narrows

Who cares? It's too small to eat.

very neat.
Today I saw a bird in my backyard.
I had never seen such a bird in the San Gabriel area.
Ive lived in Pasadena, San Gabriel, West Covina- and I had never seen this bird...
It was yellow and black.
I didnt want to get closer in fear of scaring it away.
To me it appeared like a Cardinal- but just in yellow and black...
It was so different I asked dad to come out and see.

roadrash wrote:

very neat.
Today I saw a bird in my backyard.
I had never seen such a bird in the San Gabriel area.
Ive lived in Pasadena, San Gabriel, West Covina- and I had never seen this bird...
It was yellow and black.
I didnt want to get closer in fear of scaring it away.
To me it appeared like a Cardinal- but just in yellow and black...
It was so different I asked dad to come out and see.

Get a camera.

WHAT A WONDEFUL DELIGHT. WE ARE BLESSED TO HAVE SUCH RARE BIRDS RETURNING HERE TO SOUTH EL MONTE. I HOPE THAT MY FAMLIY AND I CAN SEE IT REAL SOON. THANK YOU ALL FOR KEEPING UP THE WHITTIER NARROWS NATURE CENTER. IT IS A VERY NICE WALK. VISITING WITH MOTHER NATURE IN ALL HER GLORY AND SPLENDOR IS BEAUTIFUL. PLEASE KEEP TAKING CARE AND LOOKING AFTER OUR LITTLE ANGELS FROM HEAVEN. SOME OF US DO APPRECIATE MOTHER EARTH. ;) xoxoxo

rare yellow billed cuckoo? sure, I boned him back in high school.

What do they taste like?

My homeboy "Perico" hangs around Whittier Narrows all the time, nobody writes about him........

Chupis wrote:

My homeboy "Perico" hangs around Whittier Narrows all the time, nobody writes about him........

That's because I barbecued him two weeks ago.

It's wonderful that the First page of the San Gabriel Tribune has a story on the Federally Endangered bird, the Bells Vireo. And it is wonderful that Don Cooper has finally found it in the San Gabriel Valley. But it is no secret to people who follow such birds that the Vireo nests every year in the Whittier Narrows Nature Bird Sanctuary near the Nature Center. In fact, the Rivers and Mountains Conservatory notes many of the the Bells Vireo and the chats from bird maps tracked by avian enthusiast, Edward Barajas, for six years or more. Sadly, the California State Agency (funded by tax dollars), the RMC, still wants to destroy the open wild space of the Bird Sanctuary so that the Federally Endangered bird will have no home at all.

Every year you can hear the sweet song of the Vireo and the 'meow' of the chat. All anyone has to do is come to the Bird Sanctuary and listen. Docents and other volunteers photograph the beautiful birds and the Sanctuary, and this fall the Nature Center will have another photo show and perhaps the work of the plein air artists that come to enjoy the wild open space. The Vireo is a migratory bird and comes to the Sanctuary to nest in the mature trees. The Rivers and Mountains Conservatory wants to take out the mature trees for a parking lot but say they will 'replace' the trees with two baby ones.

Come, soon, and enjoy the peace and tranquillity that the Sanctuary offers. And listen for the 'meow' of the chat. You will swear it IS a cat!

I am glad a cuckoo and some other scarce birds have come back...however, i worry that some cuckoo people will not take care of the habitat it needs in a responsible way...i am worried that a public entity, the RMC, which is supposed to protect and help maintain the rivers (why hasn't there been any coordinated clean up days for the Rio Hondo or the San Gabriel and their tributaries such as was done along the Los Angeles River?) and mountains is a bit more concerned with the needs and wants of some supposedly pubic but acting more like private entities which want a water museum and conference center instead of a nature center on the site of the current Whittier Narrows Nature Center in the Natural Area ... read the Draft Environmental Impact Report and see how the less destructive alternatives are not considered, partly because they are 'not close enough to the river'... however, there are realistic alternatives to having a permanent site for water education such as mobile units which are very effective and less expensive.... there are more points that even lay people can pick up on and comment on and i encourage everyone who wants real nature right in our own back yards instead of artificial displays to get involved, go to http://www.naturalareafriends.net/ by the way, the the Montebello Hills also need defenders.. they really do connect with the Whittier Narrows area....go to www.saveourmontebellohills.com to find out more... we can work together to protect nature for ourselves and the future.....

If you want to watch some more cuckoos in action, go north on Rosemead, make a left on Valley and you will see cuckoos to your left at a Rosemead City Council meeting.