San Mateo County Birding Guide by Sequoia Audubon Society - Printed on April 20, 2026
Pomponio State Beach
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Description
Pomponio State Beach is a small ocean park, with cliffs for sea-watching, a small lagoon at the mouth of Pomponio Creek, and some patches of scrub. Pomponio Creek forms the southern boundary of the park. While the state park includes extensive land on the east side of SR1, there is currently no public access to these areas. So the description here is of the beach park only. The large parking lot gives one access to the cliffs to the north, and the creek mouth to the south. If you walk up the cliffs, the area controlled by the park continues extensively. When walking on the beach, take care to not get trapped by changing tides.
In winter, gull flocks can be present at the creek mouth, Thayer's Gull is sometimes seen among the expected regulars. But the major draw of Pomponio consists in its seawatching possibilities. It is a quick-and-easy place from which to scan for sea ducks and pelagic species. Noted birds in recent years include Black Scoter, White-winged Scoter, Red-necked Grebe, Long-tailed Duck, shearwaters and alcids. Among shorebird migrants, Semi-palmated Sandpiper, Red and Red-necked Phalaropes, and Baird's Sandpiper have all been seen. The hills to the east of SR1 give vantage points to birds of prey; the area should be searched for migrant raptors, as well as residents like Northern Harrier, Red-tailed Hawk, and opportunistic Peregrine Falcons and Merlins. One can search this park thoroughly in well under an hour, making it a pleasant stop on a coastal drive.
Pomponio Beach, Creek, and other local landmarks are named after a Coast Miwok guerilla fighter. Pomponio (ca. 1800-1824) formed a band of militants opposed to the Spanish presence and the mission system in particular. He and his fighters allegedly used the hills and watersheds of western San Mateo County as hideaways from the Spanish authorities. Pomponio was captured and executed in September of 1824.
Look For These Birds
Canada Goose, Gadwall, Mallard, Cinnamon Teal, American Wigeon, Northern Pintail, Surf Scoter, Black Scoter, Common Goldeneye, Common Merganser, Hooded Merganser, Red-breasted Merganser, Bufflehead, Ruddy Duck, California Quail, Red-throated Loon, Pacific Loon, Common Loon, Pied-billed Grebe, Western Grebe, Clark's Grebe, Horned Grebe, Eared Grebe, Northern Fulmar, Pink-footed Shearwater, Sooty Shearwater, Buller's Shearwater, Black-vented Shearwater (winter), Brandt's Cormorant, Pelagic Cormorant, Double-crested Cormorant, Brown Pelican, Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Turkey Vulture, White-tailed Kite, Northern Harrier, Cooper's Hawk, Bald Eagle, Golden Eagle (uncommon), Red-shouldered Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk, Virginia Rail (uncommon here), American Coot, Black-bellied Plover, Snowy Plover, Semi-palmated Plover, Killdeer, Black Oystercatcher, Greater Yellowlegs, Willet, Whimbrel, Long-billed Curlew, Marbled Godwit, Surfbird, Black Turnstone, Sanderling, Western Sandpiper, Dunlin, Least Sandpiper, Short-billed Dowitcher, Red-necked Phalarope, Bonaparte's Gull (uncommon here), Heermann's Gull, Short-billed Gull, Ring-billed Gull (uncommon along coast), Western Gull, California Gull, Herring Gull, Iceland Gull (the artist formerly known as Iceland Gull thayeri), Glaucous-winged Gull, Elegant Tern, Caspian Tern, Parasitic Jaeger, Pomarine Jaeger, Pigeon Guillemot, Common Murre, Marbled Murrelet, Rhinoceros Auklet (uncommon), Anna's Hummingbird, Great Horned Owl, Belted Kingfisher, Downy Woodpecker, Northern Flicker, American Kestrel, Merlin, Peregrine Falcon, Pacific-slope Flycatcher, Black Phoebe, California Scrub-Jay, American Crow, Common Raven, Barn Swallow, Cliff Swallow, Northern Rough-winged Swallow, Tree Swallow, Chestnut-backed Chickadee, Bushtit, Bewick's Wren, Marsh Wren, House Wren, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Wrentit, Hermit Thrush, Swainson's Thrush, California Thrasher (unusual at this location), European Starling, Orange-crowned Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Wilson's Warbler, MacGillivray's Warbler, Spotted Towhee, California Towhee, Savannah Sparrow, Song Sparrow, White-crowned Sparrow, Golden-crowned Sparrow, Western Meadowlark, Red-winged Blackbird, Brewer's Blackbird, Tricolored Blackbird, Brown-headed Cowbird, Bullock's Oriole, Purple Finch, House Finch, Pine Siskin, American Goldfinch
Rarities Seen Here
In this guide, "rarities" are defined as those species given an County Abundance Code of 4, 5, or 6.
Tundra Swan (2011), Cackling Goose, Ross's Goose, King Eider (1989), White-winged Scoter (2010, 2011, 2018), Arctic Loon (2004), Red-necked Grebe (2009), American Bittern (2011), Red-footed Booby (found deceased, 2022), Osprey, Ferruginous Hawk (2018, 2020), Rough-legged Hawk (2012), Semipalmated Sandpiper (2013), Baird's Sandpiper (2017), Wandering Tattler, Red Phalarope, Black-legged Kittiwake (2017, 2018, 2021), Laughing Gull (2017), Lesser Black-backed Gull (2017), Glaucous Gull (2011, 2021), Slaty-backed Gull (2011), Horned Puffin (2015), Prairie Falcon, Purple Martin (1989), Bank Swallow (summer post-breeding dispersal), Rock Wren (2018), Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (2012), Sage Thrasher (2011)
Directions
Pomponio State Beach is located on SR1, just south of San Gregorio State Beach, and a few miles north of Pescadero State Park. From the southern edge of Half Moon Bay, it is about twelve miles south to Pomponio State Beach.
Fees
There is a $6 day use fee; if you have a State Parks pass, you can display that, instead.
Hours
The park gate is open from 8:00 am to sunset.
Hazards
Tides should be monitored carefully if you intend to walk north along the beach. Crumbling cliffs are possible, so set yourself a few feet back from the edge when scoping for seabirds.
Facilities
There are restrooms, picnic tables, garbage cans and recycling bins at Pomponio. Nearest food and drink are in San Gregorio (small general store), Pescadero, and Half Moon Bay.
Contact
The phone number for the park is 650-879-2170.
Avian Research Status
Pomponio State Beach is a hot spot in eBird, with coverage in all forty-eight calendar quadrants, representing 143 species. Recent winter rarities and Sequoia field trips have helped build the profile of this valuable coastal beach. The eBird hotspot general information page for Pomponio can be accessed here . Keep up the good work on tracking avian life by entering your sightings at eBird.
Pomponio State Beach is a designated place in iNaturalist, but as of 2020 it is lacking in comprehensive data, with fewer than sixty species recorded. Time for a mini bioblitz - call one for yourself and your friends!
As with other parks along the San Mateo coast, birders should be on the alert for banded Western Gulls. Pt. Reyes Bird Observatory (PRBO) maintains a long-running study of this species, so if you see Western Gulls with colored leg bands, note the respective legs and colors, and contact PRBO to forward this data to the researchers on this project.
The San Francisco Bay Bird Observatory (SFBBO) is conducting a long-range study of gull movements in the Bay Area. California Gulls have been leg-banded with plastic colored bands. If you see any of these gulls, please note the leg and the color of the band; if it is possible to read the number on the band, record that also. This information can be shared directly with Carly at SFBBO (cschacter@sfbbo.org). If the birds also have a metal band, and you can read that number, too, please report that to the National Bird Banding Lab.
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