Guadalupe Oak Grove Park (Spring):
Springtime in the Oaks!
by Eve Meier and Janna Pauser
Spring has sprung at Guadalupe Oak Grove Park, an urban park in the Almaden Valley area of San Jose. The grasses are green, the oak trees are leafing out and the birds are active! On this trip, learn about the native oak trees of Santa Clara Valley and observe a variety of oak tree-loving birds.
Trip Covers: March - May
Key Birds: Acorn Woodpecker, California Scrub-Jay, Oak Titmouse, Tree Swallow, Violet-green Swallow, Phainopepla (Oct - Feb)
How to Bird
Guadalupe Oak Grove Park is a 62.7-acre park in a quiet residential neighborhood in the Almaden Valley area of San Jose. It is one of the last remaining large tracts of deciduous oak savanna and oak woodland on the Santa Clara Valley floor. Rock outcroppings and an abandoned sandstone quarry are also present. The wide, crushed-granite, flat Meadow Loop Trail meanders through the Valley, Blue and Coast Live Oak habitat. More challenging trails traverse the hills of Blue Oak, California Buckeye, and Sagebrush Scrub. This trip covers the Meadow Loop Trail and the short, gently-sloped Rock Quarry Trail for a total distance of 1 mile.
To begin this trip, start in the parking lot and access the Meadow Loop trailhead nearest Thorntree Drive. Follow the trail clockwise through the flat portion of the park, first traveling under the oak woodland canopy, passing by the playground of Jeffrey Fontana Park, then continuing on the Rock Quarry Trail until it rejoins the Meadow Loop Trail. From this point, you can take a short detour to see if the Phainopepla (October - March) is still around or head straight back to the parking lot.
As you travel under the canopy of the Valley and Coast Live Oaks on the Meadow Loop Trail, notice the fallen oak branches. They are left intentionally to create habitat for local wildlife. Stop by the interpretive sign (#1 on the interactive map) and take a moment to study the three prominent oaks in this park: Valley Oak, Blue Oak, and Coast Live Oak. With all these oaks, there’s bound to be a lot of oak-loving birds!
The first birds you will probably notice are the Acorn Woodpeckers. Their loud calls resound through the park as they fly from tree to tree managing their caches of acorns. These caches are called “granaries”. To learn more about Acorn Woodpeckers and granaries, watch SCVAS Speaker Series: The Social Life of Acorn Woodpeckers by Sahas Barve. Other common woodpeckers in this park are Nuttall’s Woodpeckers and Northern Flickers.
Acorn Woodpecker managing the granary. Photo by Susan Weinstein.
California Scrub-Jays also abound and also cache acorns but these birds prefer to bury their treasures in the ground. Jays are critical to oak habitats because acorns that simply fall to the ground rarely grow into oak trees. It takes a jay and its imperfect memory to expand our oak woodland habitats. To learn more about the caching behavior of jays and other birds, read Caching In by Judith Larner Lowry in Bay Nature.
California Scrub-Jay by Steve Zamek.
Have you noticed all the nest boxes in this park? To combat the loss of natural oak tree cavities due to habitat loss, SCVAS volunteer Lee Pauser has placed these nest boxes throughout the park. Under the oak canopy, residents such as Chestnut-backed Chickadees, Oak Titmice and White-breasted Nuthatches will be using these boxes or natural oak cavities for their nesting sites. Read more about SCVAS’s Cavity Nester Recovery Program; we’re always looking for volunteers!
Bushtits, Lesser Goldfinches and Anna’s Hummingbirds also love the oak habitat but are not cavity nesters; they make their nests in the leaves of bushes and trees. Bushtits build tube-sock-shaped nests. The whole family participates in nest building and child rearing and they all sleep in the same nest. Keep your eyes open, you might spot a nest or two! To learn more about these birds, watch “Birding Basics” with SCVAS Education & Outreach Specialist Carolyn Knight: Bushtits. Red-shouldered Hawks nest here too. Listen for their calls as they fly through the trees.
Bushtits are one of the 35 species of birds that nest in Guadalupe Oak Grove Park. Photo by Janna Pauser.
Anna’s Hummingbird on a nest made of plant materials and spider webs. Photo by Janna Pauser.
In one quarter of a mile, you’ll reach the playground of Jeffrey Fontana Park. This is a good area to notice Western Bluebirds and Yellow-rumped Warblers. Western Bluebirds, also cavity nesters, often hunt for insects in the lawns. The Yellow-rumped Warblers will be in their breeding plumage getting ready to make their trip back north to their breeding grounds.
As you pass the playground, stay on the Meadowloop Trail until you reach a trail junction (#2 on the interactive map). Now, turn left to take the Rocky Quarry Trail which passes through scrub sagebrush habitat. It slopes gently up, so if you want to avoid the uphill climb, continue on the Meadowloop Trail. Stop at the bench at the overlook (#3 on the interactive map) and enjoy the view of the surrounding hillsides. Notice the large sandstone outcropping behind you and read the interpretive sign about the old quarry.
Bench at the overlook. Photo by Eve Meier
As you continue on the trail, scan the more open hillsides. Tree Swallows and Violet-green Swallows, two more cavity nesters, have returned from their wintering grounds and will be vying over the nest boxes on the hillsides. This is a great location to observe the differences between these two similar species because the birds often perch briefly on the oak branches near the nest boxes.
Violet-Green Swallow. Notice the white above and behind the eye. Photo by Deanne Tucker.
Tree Swallow. The deep blue color of the bird’s back and head extends below the eye. Photo by Becky Ewens.
Along with the swallows swooping and circling in the sky, scan the sagebrush scrub of these hillsides for Blue-gray Gnatcatchers and Spotted Towhees. Listen for House Wrens that will be singing from the brambles. White-crowned and Golden-crowned Sparrows enjoy this section of the trail as well and will be starting their migration to the north soon.
By April, also watch for newly arriving Pacific-slope and Ash-throated Flycatchers. Pacific-slope Flycatchers prefer the shady branches of the understory while the Ash-throated Flycatchers prefer a branch out in the open with a good view to do their flycatching.
Upon reaching the trail junction (#4 on the map), you have the option of taking a short flat portion of the Buckeye Loop Trail to where a Phainopepla (#5 on the map), an uncommon winter resident in this county, may still be around. Even if the bird has left, note the mistletoe-laden oak trees this bird prefers. Phainopepla mainly eat mistletoe berries and perch high in the trees to catch insects on the wing. Perhaps you’ll find another Phainopepla one day now that you know their preferred habitat?
Mistletoe-laden oak tree loved by Phainopepla. Photo by Eve Meier
Phainopepla by Carter Gasiorowski.
From this point, turn back on the Buckeye Loop trail and make your way to the parking lot straight ahead. Take a moment to inspect the eaves of the bathroom and the front of the tool shed to see evidence of the Acorn Woodpeckers hard at work!
See the holes in the eaves of the bathroom? That’s evidence of Acorn Woodpeckers hard at work! Photo by Eve Meier.
The Acorn Woodpeckers have also made holes in the nearby shed. Photo by Eve Meier.
Ready for More? While you are in the neighborhood, try birding T.J. Martin Park and Jeffrey Fontana Park. Both parks are right next door. Hint: Chipping Sparrows are often found near the playground at T.J. Martin.
Interactive Map
Directions: From CA-85 in San Jose, exit Almaden Expy. Continue south for 1.2 miles then turn right onto McAbee Rd. Travel 0.3 miles on McAbee then turn right onto Thorntree Dr. Parking lot is on your left in 0.3 miles. Latitude/Longitude: 37.236394, -121.878188
Parking: Small paved parking lot with 1 ADA spot.
Fees: None
Public Transportation: not available
Park Hours: 8 a.m. to sunset
Facilities: Wheelchair-accessible bathroom, drinking fountain, a few benches along the trail, picnic tables and good cell phone service.
Trip Mileage: 1-mile loop with a gradual slope on one section of the trail. Option to bypass this slope.
Trail Conditions: crushed granite loop trail, flat, no trail barriers, about 50% of the trail is shady, busy on weekends with walkers, go early.
Accessibility: This trail is appropriate for wheelchairs and strollers, there are no trail barriers.
Bikes: Bikes not allowed.
Dogs: Dogs are allowed on 6-ft leash
More Information
SCVAS Speaker Series: The Social Life of Acorn Woodpeckers by Sahas Barve
Guadalupe Oak Grove Park Bluebird Trail photos and more
Guadalupe Oak Grove Park Map
Guadalupe Oak Grove Park Website
Guadalupe Oak Grove Park Facebook Page
eBird hotspot: Guadalupe Oak Grove Park
Birding Basics with SCVAS Education & Outreach Specialist Carolyn Knight: Bushtits
More Resources
For more trips like this one, visit Self-Guided Field Trips.
Visit the SCVAS Birding Resources page for more information on where to bird, our birding community, bird identification resources and more.
Read “What to Look for Now” by SCVAS Executive Director Matthew Dodder.
Banner Photo Credit: Tree Swallow by Chris Johnson
Last Updated: 05/23/2022
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