Posted by Gary Potter (64.12.105.157) on July 19, 2000 at 09:40:18:
The oriole appears to be a first year male Hooded. I think that the long curved bill eliminates any other regular California species.
The Tern is a bit more of a problem. Lately I have missed more of Joe's quiz birds than I've gotten right, but I'll give it another try. First, I think that the dark cap and nape seems to eliminate Forster's (does Forster's ever show this pattern, say during moult?). Second, the bill seems a bit too long for Arctic. However, I would expect the primaries to look darker in a Common. Hum? It is difficult to judge the length of the legs in this photo, but there appears to be a horizontal red streak which I assume is the tarsus. If my assumption is correct it looks too long for the short tarsus of Arctic Tern. I conclude that most of the features of this bird add up to Common Tern, but I would not be a bit surprized to find that it is a hybrid!