![Whitewater Preserve](http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8356/8319839542_0fd7e3b06f.jpg)
The best bird we encountered and photographed was the California Thrasher, a new one to us.
![California Thrasher](http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8502/8318780249_ef1054cbfe.jpg)
There were many ring-necked ducks. Here's a female.
![Female Ring-necked Duck](http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8215/8319839368_34a2a09b58.jpg)
We also saw a road runner and several California Quail, but they were too fast to photograph.
We went to the UCR Botanic Gardens in hopes of finding the verdin or the green-tailed towhee, but all we saw was this Hermit Thrush.