Crowds flock to Google’s Mountain View campus to see rare bird

A rare bird appeared on Google’s Mountain View campus last week, causing a big stir as throngs of people came to see the dark-sided flycatcher before it flew away.

The flycatcher was spotted on Wednesday, Sept. 17, by a pair of birders out for a morning walk at the Charleston Retention Basin, a six-acre marsh and nature trail on Charleston Road. The sighting immediately generated a lot of excitement in the birding community, according to Matthew Dodder, executive director of Santa Clara Valley Bird Alliance.

The dark-sided flycatcher, a small brown bird that eats insects, is common in parts of Asia but not the U.S., Dodder said. There have been a few reported sightings in Alaska but not the lower 48 states. “This is the first time that it has ever been seen in California,” Dodder said.

The flycatcher likely came from Siberia or neighboring parts of Asia and took a wrong turn somewhere, Dodder said. Its normal migratory route is to fly south to China or the Himalayas.

The initial sighting was reported to the SCVBA list-serve and eBird, a program managed by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Within a few hours, about 40 bird enthusiasts had descended on Google’s campus. “It just grew from there,” Dodder said, noting that he saw about 80 more people show up the next day.

For three days, birdwatchers spotted the flycatcher roosting at the marsh. They came with their telephoto lenses and “life list,” a log that chronicles all the birds seen in a person’s lifetime.

Google also joined in on the excitement, asking people to upload photos to a QR code. It even provided reserved parking and snacks and water for the birdwatchers, many of whom drove for hours to get there.

Some flew in from far-away states like New York and Michigan, according to Shani Kleinhaus, a SCVBA environmental advocate. “It’s a big business,” she said. “When we create habitats for birds, we attract the birders too. It’s all part of the ecosystem.”

By late Saturday afternoon, the crowds had thinned out. The last flycatcher sighting was reported early Friday evening, a situation that did not deter a handful of dedicated birders.

Erin Bowen and her husband drove all night from Vancouver, Washington to try and get a glimpse of the flycatcher Saturday. “We were hemming and hawing and finally decided to make the trip,” she said.

On Saturday though, the bird was nowhere to be seen. It could have moved on to another part of the marsh or possibly left the city entirely. “That’s the nature of birding, sometimes we drive for 10 hours for no reason,” she laughed.

But Bowen didn’t count it as a total loss. “I’ve chased birds to smelly and rainy locations,” she said. “Sitting here in the sun and watching pretty birds all day is not a bad thing.”

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