Subject: Yellow-billed Magpies
Date: Jun 28 14:45:17 1998
From: B&P Bell - bellasoc at mail.isomedia.com


Hi Tweets

Denny, your best bet for Yellow-billed Magpie is to head west on I-80
and get down on the edge of the Sacramento Valley. This will likely mean
that you will have to drive about an hour to an hour-and-a-half down to
roughly the Rocklin area. You might get some a little higher, but your
percentages are better a little lower. If you want to do a little other
birding in the area, you might go on down to the Douglas Blvd exit off
I-80, and head east watching for sign for Folsom Lake State Park and
Granite Bay (p. 87, BC5 in the Delorme Northern California atlas). Best
in the early morning, and probably not on a weekend. Good candidates,
besides Yellow-billed Magpie, are Oak Titmouse, Western Scrub Jay,
Nuttall's Woodpecker (besides Downy and/or Hairy), Bullock's Oriole,
Anna's Hummingbird (and possibly Calliope) plus a collection of other
stuff. Would make for a good day trip. If your time is more limited, you
can just look for the YBMA when you get down toward the Valley and away
from highly built up areas. Look for open oak-grassland areas.

While in the Lake Tahoe area you can check out Sugar Pine State Park,
Donner State Park, work up State Route 89 exploring side roads, and if
you want to go a ways west on Highway 50 you can look for the road to
Wright's Lake. All these places are shown on local maps, but you
probably should look into getting the DeLorme Northern California Atlas.
Would be really valuable for your trip.

Have a good trip.

Brian H. Bell
Woodinville, Wa
bellasoc at isomedia.com