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Description
Albany Bulb is a park with great views of the San Francisco Bay, and a variety of bird species to be seen. The bulb is built on broken concrete fill that's covered with vegetation, and is filled with an ever-changing array of urban art sculptures and home made art installations. Despite that, it's actually an excellent birding spot. Among other interesting features, this site hosts a very dense population of Anna's Hummingbird, which is why it was the research site for a groundbreaking University of California, Berkeley study on Anna's Hummingbird high speed courtship dives (see the link to the study below).
Birds include numerous shorebirds on the adjacent Albany Mudflats, a Burrowing Owl preserve, deeper water areas good for ducks, diving birds and more, plus a variety of landbirds, such as California Scrub-Jay, Red-tailed Hawk, California Towhee, Golden-crowned Sparrow, White-crowned Sparrow, Fox Sparrow, Spotted Towhee, Bushtit, Lesser Goldfinch and more.
At the West end of the bulb, there's a high tide shorebird roost on a thin rocky breakwater, best viewed from about GPS point (37.888983, -122.325868) from Autumn through Spring, where thousands of Western Sandpiper, Least Sandpiper, Dunlin can be seen, along with sometimes hundreds of Semipalmated Plover and Grey Plover, and usually Black Oystercatcher, Marbled Godwit, Long-billed Curlew, Black Turnstone, Whimbrel and others. Red Knot are sometimes seen here among the roosting flocks, as are Ruddy Turnstone.
Birds like Red-throated Diver, Surf Scoter, Lesser Scaup, Bufflehead, and occasionally Red-breasted Merganser can be viewed out on the bay. Great Blue Heron, Black-crowned Night Heron, Snowy Egret, and Great Egret are all common, as are Double-crested Cormorant and sometimes Pelagic Cormorant. From the Northwest corner of the spit, a pair of Peregrine Falcons can often be seen with binoculars, roosting in the structure of the red and white radio towers to the North.
Details
Access
Access is by car, with parking along Buchanan Ave, and with several dedicated parking areas. There is a 2 hour limit for parking. Click on the P in the map for directions. There are bathrooms, a public beach, and numerous trails.
Terrain and Habitat
Scattered trees and bushes , Grassland , Beach , Sea , Dunes , Mud flatsConditions
Hilly , Flat , Rocky , Wet , Open landscapeCircular trail
YesIs a telescope useful?
Can be usefulGood birding season
Spring , Autumn , WinterBest time to visit
Winter , Spring migration , Autumn migrationRoute
Unpaved road , Wide path , Narrow trail , Paved roadDifficulty walking trail
Average walkAccessible by
Foot , Car , BicycleBirdwatching hide / platform
NoExtra info
IMPORTANT: as with all birding locations in the bay area, don't leave valuables in your car. Avoid leaving rucksacks/backpacks, purses or other bags in view through the car window. Keep expensive cameras inside a backpack until you're away from the parking areas - as on a few occasions, thieves from outside the area have preyed on people with large cameras standing right next to the road.
Links
- Tides Table
- Berkeley study on Anna's Hummingbird high speed courtship dives
- eBird Hotspot for Albany Bulb