Grayson Creek Birders

This monthly community science survey, in partnership with Friends of Pleasant Hill Creeks, explores two sites along Pleasant Hill’s Grayson Creek corridor. Volunteers from both groups meet to assess the condition of the creek and its wildlife.

In a recent year, the Grayson Creek team identified more than 70 species and 2,900 total birds in its survey area. While House Finches dominated by numbers, many kinds of birds were spotted: egrets and herons, of course, but also a range of raptors, including a pair of nesting Red-shouldered Hawks, as well as a variety of waterbirds, including eight Hooded Mergansers. For information on birds found in this area, please see the Grayson Creek Birders Check List.

The surveys are developing a valuable database, which can be used to promote awareness of the wildlife along the riparian corridor. A presentation of this data, for instance, helped encourage designers of the Pleasant Hill Library to include bird- and birder-friendly elements in their plans for outdoor spaces.

The efforts of Grayson Creek Birders remind the community of the value of protecting the creek for birds and other wildlife. Establishing the creek’s importance as a habitat helps attract resources and volunteers to help keep the area clean, which remains an ongoing project. During cleanups coordinated by the city’s Civic Action Commission and Friends of Pleasant Hill Creeks, volunteers removed more than 4,000 items of trash from the Grayson Creek sites.

Birders are warmly invited to join the Grayson Creek survey team, which typically departs around 8 AM, every third or fourth Sunday of the month, from the Pleasant Hill Library parking lot. Consult the calendar on this site for the next date, and confirm it with Leader Alan Bade at  or (925) 330-1780.

Upcoming Field Trips

Jun 03

MDAS Field Trip — Outer Point Reyes

JUNE 3 @ 8:30 AM - 3:00 PM

Outer Point Reyes Saturday, June 3, 8:30 AM to 3 PM Point Reyes is one of the premiere birding locations in Northern California, a great spot to find rarities during migration—like the Prairie Warbler pictured on the registration page (image by Beth Branthaver). MDAS tries to visit at least twice a year. On this trip […]

Inverness CA
Aug 19

MDAS Field Trip — Bodega Bay

AUGUST 19 @ 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM

Bodega Bay Saturday, August 20, 9 AM to 3 PM The last trip of our annual field trip calendar, but sometimes considered the first trip for fall birding. At Bodega Bay we’ll encounter flocks of shorebirds including Black Oystercatcher and Marbled Godwit, as well as terns, gulls, cormorants, near-shore pelagics and more – perhaps a […]

Bodega Bay CA
Aug 31

MDAS Field Trip — Jewel Lake, Tilden Park

AUGUST 31 @ 7:30 AM - 11:00 AM

Jewel Lake, Tilden Park Thursday, August 31, 7:30 AM – 11 AM Our traditional first field trip of fall – a short walk along Wildcat Creek and around Jewel Lake in Tilden Park. Possible highlights include fall warblers, Red-Breasted and Pygmy Nuthatch, Pacific Wren and maybe a Varied Thrush. This trip is suitable for beginners. […]

Berkeley CA