Acorn Woodpeckers in an Unexpected Place

I spent part of my last day in Santa Rosa walking around Lake Ralphine and Spring Lake in hopes of getting a better picture of the Snowy Egret and of the Night Heron I’d gotten so close to that I could not focus my lens before it flew away.

On my first visit I had been greeted by a Green Heron; on this visit I was greeted by another favorite, this Acorn Woodpecker.

Acorn Woodpecker

Unlike the Green Heron who immediately struck a great pose, I had to spend most of an hour trying to capture a single good shot of the Acorn Woodpecker.

Acorn Woodpecker

I wouldn’t expect otherwise, though, in the middle of acorn harvest season.

The trees were full of migrating songbirds, though it’s a lot harder to get a good shot of a small bird flitting back-and-forth eating insects than it is of a large woodpecker. This is one of my better shots of a female Yellow Warbler.

female Yellow Warbler

Strangely, I didn’t see a single egret throughout the morning, but I did catch a glimpse of the Night Heron, looking across at a small island.

Night Heron

Although I first read about Night Herons at the Colorado zoo, it was here at Spring Lake that I first saw one. Considering the large number of people walking here daily, it’s amazing how many different birds I’ve observed here.

3 thoughts on “Acorn Woodpeckers in an Unexpected Place”

  1. You take amazing photos in some pretty mundane urban parks. Next time you’re down here, you gotta get out to Laguna de Santa Rosa. Tomales Bay or Estero Americano or Russian River. These places have great birding, too. Laguna de Santa Rosa is just 8 or so miles east of Lake Ralphine and much prettier. I’ve seen lots of Night Herons there. Love your photos, Loren. You’re the best!

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