OK, we can't be certain that this is the first nest that any American Avocets have built in Central Valley rice fields this season, but we can say it's the first that we've found. And it's always an amazing sight to see these nests built in these fields. The birds themselves travel all the way from Mexico to breed here in habitat provided largely by agricultural operations. Of course, it wasn't always so. These rice fields now act as replacement habitat for the vast wetlands that used to fill this area. But the birds keep coming back. We're studying this alongside our partners in the Migratory Bird Conservation Partnership, PRBO Conservation Science and The Nature Conservancy. Here's a file photo of American Avocets, just so you know what kind of birds we're talking about: