Rare, hungry seabirds find refuge on the Coastside

Thousands of rare red phalaropes, many of them hungry, are looking for refuge in Half Moon Bay, reports the Mercury News. The birds normally live many miles offshore and are rarely seen on land. But, apparently driven by the storms that are churning our coast, they’re showing up around the Bay Area, especially on the Coastside, and a flock of 1,200 has been spotted in Half Moon Bay.

Weather may be to blame. The birds float and eat by skimming sea life from the surface of the water. Smaller than a robin, they are easily tossed and turned by turbulent ocean waves and can’t eat under those conditions.

"There are storms across the entire Pacific, from China to the west coast of California. It’s a steady stream of storms, with no break in between them,’’ said Steve Anderson, a forecaster with the National Weather Service in Monterey.