BENICIA PELICAN LOG
2013
Acrobats high over Benicia |
Pelican Islands in Benicia, CA |
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October 23, 2013 (3:00 PM) (a rare, late-season sighting)
Driving north on 680, approaching the Benicia Bridge, we saw 15 white pelicans: 14 in the the ponds in the Al McNabney Marsh (Waterbird Regional Preserve), and one flying solo to the northeast heading for the open waters of the Suisun Bay. The last time we saw pelicans in October was 2004 in Vallejo.
August 24, 2013 (2:12 PM)
Vaughn and I saw three on Little Pelican Island. At 2:34pm, we came back and saw only one on the island, 2 in flight high over the Strait.
August 23, 2013 (2:26 PM)
We saw two standing at rest on Little Pelican Island. A few minutes later, having walked up the street a ways, we stopped in front of the Railroad Depot to chat with Mayor Patterson. Glancing back, I saw two pelicans in low flight over the water east of Little Pelican Island. Not sure if they were the same two - or a third and fourth addition to the happy island party. Windy, and approaching high tide.
August 20, 2013 (1:35 PM)
After several weeks of seeing NO pelicans in Benicia, we saw two on Little Pelican Island. It was high tide, and one was standing with its head under a wing (asleep?) with small waves chopping and slapping over its feet. It wasn't long before it woke and flew off, east over the strait a bit, landing on the water far out from the Marina. A minute or two later, the second pelican flew off and joined the first one.
July 31, 2013 (10:43 AM)
One on Little Pelican Island.
July 30, 2013 (5:40 PM)
Seen from foot of First Street: a single pelican in flight over the marshes east of First Street, circling clockwise beyond the Railroad Depot and out over the strait toward Martinez.
July 26, 2013 (5:39 PM)
One on Little Pelican Island, high tide.
July 26, 2013 (11:42 AM)
Three on Southampton Bay off West K Street. (I saw in the paper that salmon fishing season opened this week or last. Will this lead to an increase in pelican citings?)
July 19, 2013 (2:24 PM)
Four on Little Pelican Island.
July 17, 2013 (1:11 PM)
Six on Little Pelican Island.
July 16, 2013 (5:15 PM)
Eight on Little Pelican Island. One flew off over the Strait to the west while we were watching.
July 16, 2013 (1:45 PM)
Five on Little Pelican Island.
July 15, 2013 (3:05 PM)
Ten on Little Pelican Island.
July 13, 2013 (3:00 PM)
Three on Little Pelican Island. A few minutes later, a fourth flew in for a graceful landing.
July 12, 2013 (5:56 PM)
One on Little Pelican Island.
July 11, 2013 (2:26 PM)
Two floating high over the strait. 9 more on Little Pelican Island. Two more heading west over the Strait. A few minutes later, another one or two circled and joined the flock on Little Pelican Island.
July 10, 2013 (5:52 PM)
Two circled in, flying east over the strait, then counter-clockwise around Little Pelican Island and back to the west. Two more were high over Southampton Bay. A few minutes later, two - possibly the same as the first two - eased down to a soft landing on Little Pelican Island, approaching counter-clockwise again from the strait. These last two were big!
July 6, 2013 (3:10 PM)
One on Little Pelican Island.
July 5, 2013 (5:52 PM)
Two on Little Pelican Island. One swam ashore, and then one flew off toward the Benicia Bridge and/or Martinez.
July 3, 2013 (5:10 PM)
Mary Susan and Vaughn were traveling north on 680 approaching the Benicia Bridge. A large number of pelicans gathered along the northeast margin of one of the ponds in the marshes to the east of 680. (I looked it up - this is called Al McNabney Marsh, located in the Waterbird Regional Preserve [ebparks.org/parks/waterbird]). Then as the car crossed the Benicia Bridge on 680, 5 pelicans crossed above, flying southeast from Benicia's side of the Strait toward the marshes.
June 26, 2013 (5:29 PM)
First, we saw a single pelican standing alert at high tide on an almost-invisible Little Pelican Island rock. Then we noticed two more on the western tip of Middle Pelican Island - and a few minutes later, the first pelican joined them there. Then a fourth pelican circled in off the strait and joined the others.
June 25, 2013 (5:19 PM)
Two on the back side of Middle Pelican Island.
June 24, 2013 (1:23 PM)
Eight - or maybe nine? - on Little Pelican Island.
June 23, 2013 (2:54 PM)
Eight on Little Pelican Island.
June 21, 2013 (1:22 PM and still [or again] at 5:23 PM)
Four on Little Pelican Island.
June 21, 2013 (9:50 AM)
One mid-Southampton Bay.
June 21, 2013 (9:47 AM)
As I drove across the Carquinez Bridge from Crockett to Vallejo, a single White Pelican flew over the bridge, east-to-west, just ahead of me. Very distracting! And beautiful!
June 21, 2013 (8:15 AM)
Two mid-Southampton Bay.
June 18, 2013 (5:50 PM)
Six on Little Pelican Island.
June 14, 2013 (8:55 AM)
Three mid-Southampton Bay.
June 12, 2013 (4:42 PM)
Six on Little Pelican Island and 2 more swimming westerly from there toward Middle Pelican Island.
June 11, 2013 (4:45 PM)
Four in the marshes east of 680 in Martinez.
June 11, 2013 (2:29 PM)
Five on Little Pelican Island and 2 more on eastern tip of Middle Pelican Island.
June 10, 2013 (7:07 PM)
One floating solo on the little bay between the First Street Spit and Sailor Jacks, occasionally madly scrambling among the gulls for some kind of food. We didn't see anyone throwing bread or anything - fish? At about the same time, another pelican flew in from the east to land on the far side of Middle Pelican Island.
June 10, 2013 (4:31 PM)
One (or maybe two?) on Little Pelican Island.
June 4, 2013 (5:30 PM)
Seven on Little Pelican Island.
June 2, 2013 (11:50 AM)
At least 12 doing acrobatics high above Southampton Bay and western Benicia. (A group of 4 and another group of about 8.)
May 31, 2013 (5:33 PM)
Five on Little Pelican Island.
May 30, 2013 (2:37 PM)
Nine on Southampton Bay.
May 29, 2013 (4:43 PM)
Four on Little Pelican Island, two more on Middle Pelican Island.
May 28, 2013 (2:21 PM)
Nineteen on Little Pelican Island, Middle Pelican Island and the rocks between.
May 27, 2013 (2:45 PM)
Seven on Little Pelican Island, and at least five on the far side of Middle Pelican Island.
May 25, 2013 (2:20 PM)
On Southampton Bay: three near shore along West K Street.
May 25, 2013 (12:18 PM)
On Southampton Bay: five near shore along West K Street, another 12 near the far shore, Benicia State Park.
May 22, 2013 (12:55 PM)
Eleven casually congregating on Little Pelican Island. They didn't seem alarmed in the least as a huge barge chugged past.
May 22, 2013 (8:30 AM)
They have been around every day lately. From 9th Street Park, we saw several groups at the far shore of Southampton Bay, probably numbering about 18, and another solo much closer on open water in the Strait.
May 18, 2013 (1:20 PM)
One close to shore at 9th Street Park, huge, landed on water for a minute, then took off again to join three more out over Southampton Bay. Also, a group of five in flight high above the Southampton hills, and another five on the water along the far shore of the Bay.
May 15, 2013 (2:32 PM)
Four on Little Pelican Island, foot of First Street. (Actually, they were on the small rocks off the Strait side of the Island.)
May 13, 2012 (1:35pm)
Two afloat on Southampton Bay. After kindergarten pick-up, Vaughn and I stopped and looked through the binoculars.
May 12, 2012 (10:21am)
One resting on Little Pelican Island, another flying in low, landing & standing tall.
May 12, 2012 (10:12am)
At least 8 spread out from Southampton Bay out into the Carquinez Strait.
May 11, 2012 (11:37am)
About 10, afloat far off shore in Southampton Bay.
May 10, 2012 (5:22pm)
At least 3, maybe 5 on Little Pelican Island off the foot of First Street.
May 9, 2012 (2:00pm)
First sighting of the year - a lone pelican on Little Pelican Island off the foot of First Street. A minute later, a second one flew in (from where?) and joined it.