Bird Bounty on the Kern River Preserve

Have you ever ever stepped right into a secluded valley the place golden gentle, speeding water, and a refrain of birds make the entire panorama really feel alive round you? This spring, throughout a particular behind-the-scenes tour of Audubon’s Kern River Protect, members of Audubon’s Grinnell Legacy Society skilled simply that as they had been guided by means of our ongoing restoration work. From Brewer’s Sparrow and Burrowing Owl to “grinding rocks” and restored farmlands, members noticed firsthand what makes this important riparian hall so extraordinary.

Our house base for the journey was the Whispering Pines Motel in Kernville—a comfortable spot the place the sound of the river lulled us to sleep at evening and morning espresso from the in-room kitchenette fueled every day’s adventures.

Exploring the Protect

Our two-day journey started with a sundown stroll at Sprague Ranch, a former cattle ranch the place Audubon, with companions, has restored a whole lot of acres of native vegetation. As we walked the path, Protect Supervisor Reed Tollefson described how leaving Audubon’s water proper Fay Creek has sustained and elevated resiliency of habitat for birds and wildlife.

Close by, we examined a local plant restoration website, the place the varied native plant palette stood in sharp distinction to the muted fields of former hay and alfalfa. The distinction was unmistakable: the restored land was alive with sparrows, together with a lifer Brewer’s Sparrow for a few of our members, whereas the unrestored fields remained quiet. 

Because of all of the important restoration progress, the Brewer’s Sparrow was simply a part of the immense fowl pleasure we skilled on our first day. We additionally had the prospect to look at Native American grinding rocks whereas the aroma of lupine and different wildflowers drifted on the breeze. Simply earlier than the solar went down, an abundance of goldfinches (American, Lesser, and Lawrence’s) darted among the many colourful blooms, dazzling our group whereas we did our greatest to deal with studying distinguish Western from Cassin’s Kingbirds by their white-tipped tails. After a protracted day of journey and pleasure, we closed the night with a scrumptious dinner at Sierra Vista restaurant in Weldon, reviving each physique and spirit.

Early the subsequent morning, we joined Reed at Kern River Protect’s personal workplace headquarters and bunkhouse, a location that usually homes researchers working with our companions at Southern Sierra Research. Throughout our assembly, we witnessed an unforgettable sight: Tricolored Blackbirds, a threatened species, mingling with a big flock of Crimson-winged Blackbirds. It was Reed’s first time seeing them there—seemingly the wetlands, enhanced by ongoing restoration work and valuable water availability, performed a job… with somewhat good luck from our group, too.

Fowl artist and peregrine protector John Schmitt joined us for a ravishing stretch of our journey, sharing his fowl lore and experience as we hiked towards a rocky overlook, pausing to admire the wildflowers alongside the best way. On the promontory, we had been rewarded with an unlimited, awe-inspiring view of the Kern River Valley, its lush riparian hall on show beneath in a mosaic of cottonwoods, wetlands, and grasslands alive with rails, swallows, and raptors. Reed reminded us that each drop of water sustaining this oasis is safeguarded by Audubon’s historic pre-1914 water rights.

One of the crucial significant moments got here when Chairman Robert Gomez, Jr. of the Tübatulabals, Indigenous folks of the Kern River Valley, welcomed us to the Kwolokam, or “place of the duck”—ancestral lands not too long ago re-acquired by the tribe. Standing in a wide-open meadow surrounded by yellow wildflowers and pine timber, Chairman Gomez and others shared their imaginative and prescient for the Kwolokam’s future: a hothouse to help group meals safety, restored orchards, a pond, and a panorama as soon as once more welcoming herons, geese, and the treasured Pinyon Jay on the headwaters of Fay Creek.

Full of gratitude after our uncommon, guided go to to Kwolokam, just a few of us visited the unique Kern River Protect headquarters. At present closed attributable to flooding, the customer middle and supervisor’s home have been rendered inaccessible because the river has shifted course. Reed defined that with future funding, he goals to reopen public entry at Audubon’s Kern River Protect, that includes trails and interpretive signage, for this lush cottonwood forest stays the most effective locations for birds and birdwatching, in addition to a important habitat for birds just like the federally threatened Yellow-billed Cuckoo.

After a quick afternoon respite, we carpooled to the close by Hanning Flat Protect simply earlier than sundown in the hunt for Western Burrowing Owls. This protect, bought by the Kern Valley Heritage Foundation with help from Audubon, has turn out to be a haven because of synthetic burrows designed by Audubon and put in by volunteers final yr, efforts which have already drawn in each particular person owls and nesting pairs. And we had been in luck, the owls made an cute look. Watching these exceptional birds emerge at nightfall, with Swainson’s Hawks hovering overhead and John including tales of their fascinating behaviors, was the right solution to shut the day.