Hairy woodpecker (Picoides villosus), autumn, Cataract Trail, Mount Tamalpais


Pygmy nuthatch (Sitta pygmaea), winter, San Francisco backyard

Allen's hummingbird (Selasphorus sasin), spring, San Francisco backyard


Great horned owl (Bubo virginianus), spring, Glen Canyon, San Francisco


Tree swallows (Tachycineta bicolor), late winter, D.U.S.T. Trail, Coyote Hills Regional Park


Fox sparrow (Passerella iliaca), autumn, San Francisco backyard


House finches (Carpodacus mexicanus), winter, San Francisco backyard (two on upper section are males; one on lower is female)


Oregon junco (Junco hyemalis), autumn, San Francisco backyard


Pine siskins (Carduelis pinus), autumn, San Francisco backyard


American white pelicans (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos), summer, Las Gallinas Wildlife Ponds


Western grebe (Aechmophorus occidentalis), spring, Estero Trail, Point Reyes


Great egret (Casmerodius albus), summer, Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge


Cooper's Hawk (Accipiter cooperii), autumn, Blufftop Coastal Park


Common raven (Corvus corax), autumn, Bothin Marsh Open Space Preserve


Northern harrier (Circus cyaneus), winter, Bald Mountain Trail, Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve


California quail (Callipepla californica), Point Reyes National Seashore


Black-necked Stilt (Himantopus mexicanus), spring, San Francisquito Trail, Baylands Preserve

Suggested reading and resources:
• Birds of San Francisco and the Bay Area, by Chris C. Fisher and Joseph Morlan (order this book from Amazon.com).
• Birds of North America, by Kenn Kaufman. My favorite all-purpose birding guide (order this book from Amazon.com).
• Stokes Field Guide to Bird Songs: Western Region, by Kevin J. Colver with Donald and Lillian Stokes (order this cd set from Amazon.com). This 4-cd set is a collection of all major western bird calls and songs. The common bird name is spoken and followed by a series of recorded calls and/or songs. A printed booklet is included in the set. If you're trying to expand your birding world, learning to bird by ear is the way to go, and being able to identify individual bird noises is invaluable. I recommend using the cds in conjunction with a bird field guide -- then you can weed out the birds not found wherever you happen to be (many rare southern Texas and Alaska birds are included on the cds) and more effectively narrow down a search.
• Peterson Field Guides:  Hawks of North America, by William S. Clark/Brian K. Wheeler (order this book from Amazon.com) (Note: a new edition of this book in expected in autumn 2001)
• National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Birds: Western Region, by Miklos D.F. Udvardy (order this book from Amazon.com)

Links:
Golden Gate Audubon Society http://www.goldengateaudubon.org
Marin Audubon Society http://www.marinaudubon.org
Point Reyes Bird Observatory http://www.prbo.org
Ornithology Web Site (with photographs) http://www.birdwebsite.com
Golden Gate Raptor Observatory http://www.ggro.org/ggro.html
Watchable Wildlife http://www.dfg.ca.gov/watchable/index.html
CONE Sutro Forest http://cone.berkeley.edu/
All About Birds http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/
Virtual Birder http://www.virtualbirder.com/vbirder/