Bird & Plant Identification Walks

Lake Cunningham Park is home to a wide variety of resident and migratory birds, as well as an increasing number of native plants. Four times a year, Vicki Silvas-Young leads a Bird and Plant Identification Walk on or close to the start of each season: Spring/Summer/Fall/Winter. The aim is twofold: first, to demonstrate the relationships between plants and birds; second, to observe how plant life and bird life change from season to season. These walks are free and open to the public. The City of San Jose requires a parking fee per vehicle.

The walk often starts at the Marina and follows the Inner Lake Path to the Native Garden and back. Sometimes we choose a different meeting place. We look at the birds and plants encountered along the way, their natural history, and the key identifying characteristics of each.

Below find the handout for our next walk. Download it to your smartphone or print it off for easy reference.

1. Plant List for 1st Day of Winter Walk, Sunday, December 21, 2025

References:

1. Birding for Beginners
2. Good Binoculars

Handout archive from previous walks:

1. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Fall Walk, Sunday, September 21, 2025
2. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Summer Walk, Sunday, June 22, 2025
3. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Spring Walk, Sunday, March 23, 2025
4. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Winter Walk, Sunday, December 22, 2024
5. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Fall Walk, Sunday, September 22, 2024
6. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Summer Walk, Sunday, June 23, 2024
7. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Spring Walk, Sunday, March 17, 2024
8. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Winter Walk, Sunday, December 16, 2023
9. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Fall Walk, Sunday, September 24, 2023
10. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Summer Walk, Saturday, June 25, 2023
11. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Spring Walk, Saturday, March 19, 2023
12. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Winter Walk, Saturday, December 17, 2022
13. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Fall Walk, Sunday, September 25, 2022
14. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Summer Walk, Sunday, June 26, 2022
15. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Spring Walk, Sunday, March 20, 2022
16. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Winter Walk, Saturday, December 18, 2021
17. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Fall Walk, Sunday, September 19, 2021
18. [No walks were held March 2020-June 2021 due to the pandemic]
19. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Winter Walk, Sunday, December 22, 2019
20. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Fall, 2019, Sunday, September 22, 2019
21. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Summer Walk, Sunday, June 23, 2019
22. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Spring Walk, Sunday, March 24, 2019
23. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Winter Walk, Sunday, December 23, 2018
24. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Fall Walk, Sunday, September 23, 2018
25. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Summer Walk, Saturday, June 16, 2018
26. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Spring Walk, Sunday, March 18, 2018
27. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Winter Walk, Saturday, December 16, 2017
28. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Fall Walk, Sunday, September 24, 2017
29. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Summer Walk, Sunday, June 18, 2017
30. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Spring Walk, Sunday, March 19, 2017
31. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Winter Walk, Sunday, December 18, 2016
32. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Fall Walk, Sunday, September 18, 2016
33. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Summer Walk, Sunday, June 12, 2016
34. Bird & Plant List for 1st Day of Spring Walk, Sunday, March 20, 2016

Birds of Lake Cunningham (Photo Archive)

Visit this page to see the wide diversity of birds photographed at Lake Cunningham Park.