Arctic Desert Denizens~

On By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, Wild Life

More than a million snow geese migrate to California each year.

They have been following this same migration pattern,

for millennia.

They come from Russia, Alaska and Canada.

Over 30,000 of them winter at The Salton Sea in Southern California.

It is always disconcerting,

to see thousands of these arctic birdies,

sunning in the desert.

Sandhill cranes from Canada soak up the sun here too.

Cheers to you from the arctic desert birdies~

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267 thoughts on “Arctic Desert Denizens~”

      1. Thank you Cindy! I am also feeling blessed and honored. Happy, Prosperous, Safe, and Healthy New Year 2021 to you and your family as well.
        || Be Happy Always || 👪🌃🥂🎇

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      1. Exactly!! No tourists because the sea is still an ecological disaster area, but the birds are here in mass. It is a perfect place to spend the day during a pandemic because there are no people. Just you, the birds, and such a huge variety of predator tracks. Stay safe & well Dor and Happy New Year დ

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    1. All your senses are taken over by the flock. It is an amazing experience. Sight, sound, touch everything becomes part of this overwhelming flock movement. It feels like one massive, moving thing, and you are a part of it. Most amazing of all? I have never been pooped on and I always try and get in the middle of flocks. Happy New Year Alexander. I look forward to sharing another year with you my friend 👪🌃🥂🎇

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        1. Yes. It is an enigma. Scientists are studying how they do this. They are looking at non verbal communication between the birds, and at lead birds who seem to set the patterns. They are studying schooling fish too. Nature is so complex and intricate.

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  10. Sometimes our Robins migrate, I’m not sure where. If it is a mild winter they don’t leave!
    I haven’t seen too many this winter. So It will be a sure sign of spring when the Robin’s return.

    I’ve learned though that vultures like to attack black roofs. We’ve got quite a few of that avian giant in our neighborhood. One year I saw one settled on one of the chimney’s of the older house up the block! Vultures are huge compared to the Coopers Hawks and are even larger than the occasional Eagle that has stopped by! 🙂

    Lovely photos!!! Happy New Year.

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    1. Wow! Vultures are massive birds and amazing gliders. They like to be where there are things to scavenge. We have them at The Holler, but they only show up when something dies. They have very sensitive olfactory abilities. The good news is they are excellent housekeepers and keep things tidy. Happy & Healthy New Year Jules 🌿🕛💏💕

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      1. We have a utility easement that I believe draws them. Probably some good stuff for them in there.

        Though I think they also like flying over the neighborhood. Hard to tell if they are Turkey or Black vultures. We could have both kinds. 😀
        Stay safe and sane! 💕

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  15. The snow geese always stop for a rest outside of Vancouver, BC where I used to live, on the way to California every year. They are a sight to see, whole fields covered in white! Love them.

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  16. The snow geese always stop for a rest outside of Vancouver, BC where I used to live, on the way to California every year. They are a sight to see, whole fields covered in white! Love them.

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    1. Their navigation ability is incredible isn’t it. Scientists are studying how they do this instantaneously. They are looking at forms of non-verbal communication between the leaders and followers დ

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  24. Both snow geese and sandhill cranes migrate through Nebraska each year. I have been fortunate to see both. It is a breathtaking spectacle of sight and sound! Love your images, Cindy.

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  25. Photos of an amazing phenomenon.
    On our only visit to the Salton Sea, the water was fetid and low and the shores were lined with dead fish. We were told the water becomes lower each year as the flow into it is diverted. This would seem a threat to the migration.

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    1. The Salton Sea has many faces. It is a polluted, apocalyptic wasteland just as you describe in the northern parts, and amazingly wildlife still live there. At the far south, it is different. Crops are planted specifically for the migrating birds. Fields are flooded and it home to 100’000’s of thousands of migrating birds, many rare and endangered. Two ballot initiatives passed recently in California to save the sea. The Salton Sea is a complex ecological problem. Check out: http://blogs.edf.org/growingreturns/2019/10/25/salton-sea-shrinking/

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  26. We get around 100,000 snow geese stopping near us in Pennsylvania in the late spring each year. Utterly amazing to see them there with thousands of other migrating swans and such. Breathtaking, just like your photos.

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        1. Your photos are amazing!! All those swans, walking on the ice! So beautiful. I have never seen them in such numbers. I definitely want to visit. Besides, I hear the food is really good! 😉 <3

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        1. Thank you for the link. The numbers are incredible! All those migrating swans! It must be amazing to witness. I would love to visit and to meet you and your rescue kitty-kats. I would be sure to adopt one and take him with me for the ride home. When covid goes, I am going to get going, big time! Cheers to you დ დ

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  30. We used to go see huge flocks of Snow Geese stopping at Bombay Hook Wildlife Refuge when we lived in DE. Such an amazing sight! Love your photos…they bring back fond memories. 😍

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  31. Beautiful pictures. Sometimes I think I like to hibernate and just wake up for Spring….. or fly away to another country……. just thinking…. 🙂

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  36. You really have to have that artistic gift to be able to capture those geese in the splendor of their beauty. The series of photos are spectacular.
    Happy New Year Cindy. The best for you
    Manuel Angel

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  37. It certainly gives me a new perspective on the Salton Sea, Cindy. I had no idea about the massive influx of birds. Your photos certainly capture the numbers! But my favorite photo was the last one. Thanks. Looking forward to your posts this year! –Curt

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      1. Checked out the Audubon site. I’m sold. Peggy and I will put it on our bucket list. Who knows, maybe we will make it down there in January or February! Thanks, Cindy. –Curt

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        1. Be forewarned. The Salton Sea is a complex and strange place. It is the largest lake in California. It is man made and it is a final receptacle for all the agricultural run off from the Central Valley. It is polluted. It is shrinking. The winds are full of toxic dust. It has two major faces, the north lake which is like a bizarre post apocalyptic wasteland, and the southern end which has flooded fields and such abundant wildlife. All of the sea is polluted, but some animals with short stays here and short life spans are less affected by the pollution. Fish live very brief lives here. If you decide to visit, please talk to me first, to discuss where you may want to go to experience all aspects of the sea and to know what you are going to see. It is like nowhere else on earth that I have been. It is strange. I think you might like it as I do. Many of the best lodging and eating options are closed due to covid. Plus to see the birds there are specific places to go. So talk to me first please so as to avoid disappointment. This post gives you some idea of what you will experience on the northern end of the sea: https://cindyknoke.com/2018/06/17/paradise-lost/

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          1. I’ve been there, Cindy, and way back when I was the Executive Director of the Planning and Conservation League of California, the pollution was already a major factor. I will definitely depend on you to direct me to where the birds are. –Curt

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  42. It’s great to see these photos. Bird migrations are amazing. I was wondering how the fires on the west coast last summer would affect birds migrating in the fall, especially the smaller ones. But your photos show that these geese and cranes seem to be OK.

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    1. Yes. I so appreciate your concern Audrey. I don’t know the answer. The devastating loss of habitat would seem to affect all wildlife, including migrating birds. I did notice there were less birds and less variety than I normally see, but this may not be accurate because normally I stay overnight for several days in nearby Borrego Springs and take many day trips to the sea. This year I couldn’t do this due to covid and had to drive there and back in the same day which gave me much less time to see what is going on. It is four hours round trip. I am itching to go back, but it is a bit of a haul. I need to ask the biologists who I sometimes see there. They do bird counts. დ

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    1. I would never forget watching the sandhill cranes on The Churchill River doing their dance and thinking, wow, I’ll see you in Southern California in the winter!! It is a small world. Your wonderful birds are so welcome here Rebecca. Stay well my friend დ

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    1. You are most welcome Lynette. How wonderful that you know them from the north. It is such a small world and birds know this well since they navigate all around it, making friends where ever they go. Happy & Healthy New Year Lynette 🌿🕛💏💕

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