I haven't seen anyone talk about the Sacramento NWR complex or refugees in the last couple of years so I thought I'd recommend them as a great place to go particularly if you like winter birding in 50+ degree temperatures. Rather than give a full report, I thought I'd highlight some California Specialties and unusual sightings.

All sites had larger populations of Great and Snowy Egrets than I have seen in past years. There were also very large populations of Turkey Vultures with a multi-year roost site just North of the Sacramento NWR visitor center. There were also large populations of Red Tail, Rough Legged, and some Ferruginous and Red Shouldered hawks. The large populations were in various morphs and ages making accurate identifications of each bird time consuming. There was a roost of more than 89 Black Crowned Night Heron's in the Colusa Refugee.

There were huge flocks of Tricolored Blackbirds with some red wing mixed in the populations.

Among California Specialties: there were good populations of White Faced Ibis, 2 to 4 Black Phoebes were seen each day, I did see 3 Yellowbilled Magpie, 2 Nuttall's and a possible Acorn Woodpecker.

Oak Titmouse, American Pipit, California Towhee, Northern Mockingbird, were seen in the refugees or in the Bidwell state park in Chico.

Good populations of most migrant duck and sparrows were about. Oddly, I did not have luck finding a white tailed Kite or the yellowlegs that I have seen in prior years.

As a side note there is a population of Red Whiskered Bulbuls at the Huntington Library in Pasadena. There was a large number of what I call red hot poker plants just starting to bloom in the Huntington grounds attracting the Bulbuls and Costa's, Anna's and Allen's Hummingbirds.