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Bird of the Month Yellow-billed Cuckoos are large, brown-and-white birds with a yellow bill. They forage slowly and methodically in treetops for caterpillars and other insects. They are uncommon but widespread in the central and eastern U.S. but in the West are rare and restricted to cottonwood-dominated riparian forests along larger rivers. They winter in South America. Yellow-billed Cuckoo populations declined by more than half since 1966, mostly in the West where its riparian habitat has been converted to farmland and housing. They were extirpated entirely from British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, and Nevada. Once common in California, habitat loss now limits the California breeding population to small numbers of birds along the Kern, Sacramento, Feather, and Lower Colorado Rivers. The western Yellow-billed Cuckoo is a candidate for federal endangered status. Yellow-billed Cuckoos nest late with the first nests built in July. They once nested on the coastal slope of southern California but were extirpated over the past century. Now, there are a handful of sightings at scattered riparian habitats, starting in May and maxing out in July, which are "spring" migrants arriving from South America. Yellow-billed Cuckoos probably bred along Potrero Creek prior to ranching and development, and our July 9 cuckoo represents an attempt to re-establish a breeding population in our restored riparian habitat. ~ Steve Edelman Birding CLUB The big birding news was a Yellow-billed Cuckoo that fatally crashed into a window at the home of Tom Paulek and Susan Nash on July 9. This is Four Seasons bird #99 and represents an attempt to re-establish a breeding population of one of the most threatened species in the western U.S. (see Bird of the Month). On August 1, the Birding Club conducted a Virtual Bird Walk in which everyone birded Four Seasons and we compiled our lists afterward. Our total of 23 species was a new record for summer! The following Club members submitted key sightings: Barbara Wasco, Julie Shuttleworth, Tom Paulek, Tina Canon, Sandra Butler-Roberts, Genie Cooper, and Mona Swinehart. Just about everyone commented on the general lack of birds – that's the "summer doldrums," when the only birds are the ones that breed here, they have finished breeding, and the young and parents are quietly fattening up for the winter. On Aug. 4, Julie Shuttleworth sighted a Western Tanager in her backyard, our first trickle of fall migration! The Birding Club welcomes beginning and experienced birders to participate in monthly bird walks along FS nature trails and to take seasonal field trips. Email steve.h.edelman@ gmail.com. ~ Steve Edelman FOUR SEASONS BREEZE | SEPTEMBER 2020 35 Check with your club contact to confirm meeting place, date, and time. The Yellow-billed Cuckoo that fatally crashed into a window on July 9. Note that the back and wings are a lot paler than a typical cuckoo (see Bird of the Month). Photo by Susan Nash Note the disheveled plumage of this immature bird, one of many at Four Seasons this time of year; this one is our familiar Lesser Goldfinch. Photo by club member Jacque Sneddon. Yellow-billed Cuckoo. Photo by National Park Service.

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