Adventure Birding

Magnolia Warbler, Fort Lowell Park: 11/06/2009

2009-11-06T14:37:00.007-07:00

Morgan Jackson and I biked over to Fort Lowell Park minutes after seeing the report on the listserv! Morgan was the first to relocate this MAGNOLIA WARBLER (seemingly a first-winter bird) found earlier today by Clifford Cathers and Darlene Smyth. Unfortunately, the bird was incredibly difficult to photograph! Fortunately, enough marks are visible in these photos to clinch the identification.

The bird was in "Cottonwood Lane," the double row of cottonwoods running east from Craycroft Road to the ruins of the old fort hospital. We last saw the bird around 2:00 PM.

At first glance from this angle, it already doesn't quite look like the more common Orange-crowned Warblers that one might expect to see in this location; notice the gray head and cheeks with distinct eye ring,and sharp demarcation between the yellow on the throat.

This is how the bird looked to us about 95% of the time... Fortunately, the extensive dark tips to a mostly white tail (as viewed from underneath) are essentially unique to the species. The white undertail coverts, vent, and yellow belly/flanks are visible here. If you squint, you might be able to make out a bit of the dark streaking in the lower flanks.

Finally! A photo with the entire bird. Still, not great quality due to the distance and lighting conditions. Wingbars are visible here, as is the extent of the yellow underparts. Not very visible but still present is a hint of the plain greenish back. Since the bird stayed relatively high in the cottonwoods the entire time, it was very difficult to get a good view of the back and uppertail.

Lastly, though distant and dark, a hint of a grayish neckband can be seen dividing the yellow throat from the rest of the yellow underparts. This neckband was only sometimes visible in the field.

According to the latest edition of "Finding Birds in Southeastern Arizona," there are only about a dozen records of this species from our region!

Good birding,
John Yerger
Tucson, AZ
----------
Senior Guide
Adventure Birding Company

Golden-crowned Sparrow, Sweetwater Wetlands: 11/05/2009

2009-11-05T16:13:00.007-07:00

all-

Today at Sweetwater Wetlands I found a 1st-year Golden-crowned Sparrow in the river associating loosely with a flock of White-crowned Sparrows. I was able to call Andrew Core, grab my camera, and refind the bird to capture these shots. While snapping pictures I heard a rustling in the leaf litter and noticed a large (for this area anyway) 4.5 foot Western Diamondback Rattlesnake about 3 feet from my feet (also pictured below)! When I moved it stopped suddenly, but then went on its way in a few minutes hardly even remembering my presence.

Enjoy!

Jake Mohlmann

Senior Guide

Tucson, AZ

1)4.5 foot western diamondback

2)Golden-crowned Sparrow portrait

3) Golden-crowned Sparrow - notice the golden fore-crown and streaky top to the head; also grayish bill.

4) Golden-crowned Sparrow - pretty plain expression on face.

10/22/09 - White-eared Hummingbird & Rose-throated Becard

2009-10-22T15:52:00.003-07:00

birders-

Today Gavin Bieber, Celina Blouin, Jerry Bock and I checked out the Santa Gertrudis Lane area today along the Santa Cruz River just south of Tumacacori National Historic Park. When we first arrived after day-break Jerry called back to alert us to the continuing VARIED THRUSH sitting on the fence very near the #(12) sign on the north side of the lane. Later in the morning Jerry had the RUFOUS-BACKED ROBIN in the same general area sitting on top of one of the pyracantha trees eating berries. Also here a fly-by CRESTED CARACARA added to the odd flavor of the morning.

At 8:54 a.m. Gavin called me to report he was watching a VIOLET-CROWNED HUMMINGBIRD as well as a remarkable WHITE-EARED HUMMINGBIRD which was very obliging to having its picture taken (as seen below).

After Jerry, Mark Stevenson and I successfully saw these 2 late-season birds (and perhaps the lowest WEHU record?) we met up with Molly Pollock who informed us of a HUGE flock that had gone by her including lots of sparrows and warblers. Gavin, Celina and I continued SOUTH beyond the road along the river where we eventually met up with the flock again. Good thing we did because in it Gavin spotted a female ROSE-THROATED BECARD that flew in briefly. I tried to get some pictures but, as is sometimes the case with this species, it was very high in a cottonwood tree and managed to stay almost completely obscured by foliage the entire 5 minutes I tried snapping shots. When I lost track of the bird it called quite loudly once and flew off. About 10 minutes later Jerry arrived (when we had to depart back to Tucson) but luckily the bird vocalized 2 more times before we left.

Location is a few hundred meters south of the Santa Gertrudis Lane/Santa Cruz River intersection where the river takes a slight jog east. We were stopped by the ranch owner that is in charge of the land south of the road along the river and he had the following to say:

"You guys are on my land ... which is o.k.! Just wanted to let you know there are some bulls running through this area with the cows and to watch out. You do know how to tell the difference right, haha?"

This is NOT regarding the areas beyond the NO TRESPASSING signs just west of the river along the lane. Not sure whose land that is...

an excellent day of birding was had by all!

cheers,

Jake Mohlmann

Senior Guide

Tucson, AZ

10/18/2009 - Dickcissel and Varied Thrush

2009-10-19T23:21:00.004-07:00

All-

John and I checked Amado sewage pond this morning (exit 48 off of I-19) and spotted a large sparrow flock on the opposite side of the pond from the frontage road. Hundreds of sparrows were joined by at least 1 DICKCISSEL pictured below.

1) Dickcissel at Amado Sewage Pond.

After this we headed near the town of Carmen on the Santa Cruz River and birded north, jumped the river, then south along the Santa Cruz for a few hours with nothing too exciting to report. A "Myrtle" Yellow-rumped Warbler was probably the rarest individual seen. At least 2 Hammond's Flycatchers were seen, one of which is pictured below.

2) A nice example of a Hammond's Flycatcher. Note almost completely dark lower mandible, nice eye ring, squared off back of the head, vested appearance, and the long-winged/short-tailed look typical of this species.

Next in line we checked out Santa Gertrudis Lane. After birding the river for 30 minutes and only finding one nice flock (including Painted Redstart, Hermit Thrush, Plumbeous Vireo, a lingering White-winged Dove) I was walking back down-river and kept flushing a raptor. On the third flush its identity was clear. A young COMMON BLACK-HAWK eventually flew over the trees and out of sight. There were also a couple of birders present on our walk back to the car that pointed out the VARIED THRUSH to us. The reported rufous-backed robin eluded us, unfortunately. Below are 2 examples of how even bad pictures can successfully yield correct identification.

3) Varied Thrush - although a fuzzy picture the "unmistakable" look of this bird is evident.

4) This image points out some aspects of this fleeting bird (sometimes that's all you get!) that might help you in case you're in a similar situation. If you look closely at the photos you'll notice the arrows on the wing pointing to a white flash at the base of the primaries as well as a white patch from the base of the tail to the sub-terminal black band. These traits are all good things to look for when differentiating other young raptors that one might confuse this with in a similar habitat in SEAZ (gray hawk, zone-tailed hawk), though these traits are also evident on Great Black-Hawk (you never know!) in case you're in that fortunate situation.

cheers,

Jake Mohlmann

Senior Guide

Tucson, AZ

10/17/2009 - Santa Catalina Mts and Tucson

2009-10-19T23:16:00.002-07:00

Had the pleasure of guiding a couple from Missouri today. Birding was slow but steady all day, and we consistently turned up at least one desirable bird at each spot. Personal highlights for me were the following, illustrated with what some might call "bad pictures of good birds..."

Red-breasted Sapsucker at Agua Caliente Park, NE Tucson: found two days prior by Liz Harrison on the Tucson Audubon birdwalk there. Having seen this bird multiple times in the Pacific Northwest, it was a little strange for me to see it hanging out on a palm tree!

Buff-breasted Flycatcher (BBFL) at Molino Basin, Catalina Highway: almost the first bird I clapped eyes on as we took our first few steps away from the vehicle was this little gem. I was stunned, having never seen this species in the Santa Catalina Mountains before. Of course, there were sightings from two different locations farther up the highway this summer: Willow Canyon and Middle Bear Canyon. Still, the bird is not expected here and certainly not at this time of year, being strictly a highly localized breeding species in southeastern Arizona. Dave Stejskal suggested to me that Molino Basin is not terribly unlike the habitat preferred by wintering BBFL in Mexico, so perhaps it will be worth keeping an eye on this area over the next few months!

In the field, I thought this bird looked so buffy it's probably a juvenile - but I only saw it for a total of about 30 seconds, mostly through the camera lens (which you can see doesn't help much). If anyone sees this bird and can take note of age, that would be helpful.

Finally, to wrap it up we saw a beautiful drake Wood Duck on the small pond at Fort Lowell Park in central Tucson:

As has been proven time and time again in this corner of the world, you never know what you'll turn up on a day of fall birding in Arizona. :-)

John Yerger
Senior Guide
Adventure Birding Company

San Rafael Grasslands - Palm Warbler - 10/16/2009

2009-10-19T19:09:00.004-07:00

Gavin Bieber and I took visiting guide Brian Finch around the San Rafael Valley this morning to look for Baird's Sparrows. We successfully obtained enough fleeting flight views to piece together an entire sparrow or 2, but the highlight of the day (for me anyway) was a PALM WARBLER I spotted in one of very few bushes available for perching at a cattle tank in the grasslands. The butterflies were in good numbers and I've included 2 pictures of the eye-catchers of the morning.

Pictures:

1) Tropical Buckeye - a buckeye of USA/Mexico border areas.

2) Palm Warbler - out of place in the San Rafael Grasslands foraging at a cattle tank.

3) Rainbow Grasshopper (Dactylotum bicolor). Found in desert grasslands in Arizona.

4) Arizona Giant Skipper - almost an Arizona specialty!

cheers,

Jake Mohlmann

Senior Guide

Tucson, AZ

Miller Canyon 12 July 2009

2009-07-12T23:23:00.006-07:00

Jerry Bock, Morgan Jackson and I spent a splendid half day in Miller Canyon today. While we missed the Spotted Owls that have been so regular there, we enjoyed a number of other species of flora and fauna above and inside Beatty's Guest Ranch.

Most popular amongst birders are the feeders located at the Beatty's "Controlled Access Site." At these feeders, we were treated to multiple male White-eared Hummingbirds:

Also, of course, the highly sought-after Berylline Hummingbird:

This appeared to be the female, given that the green coloration in the throat was not completely solid. She didn't stay still for very long, and only showed up twice in the hour that we waited: once to gather nesting material from a ball of dog fur, and once to feed.

But our favorite was this female Broad-billed Hummingbird doing yoga poses in a bush to the left of the feeders. The best theory we came up with was that she was turning herself towards the sun in different ways to expose feather mites to the powerful UV light from the sun...but your guess is as good as ours:

Not to overlooked were some neat finds in the butterfly department. This Orange-edged Roadside-skipper (Amblyscirtes phylace) caught my eye. The trailing edges of the wings are very worn, but a hint of orange is noticeable. In other photos, the forewings looked fairly rounded (rather than pointed, as in Orange-headed Roadside-skipper):

North of the border, they are only found in the Chiricahua and Huachuca Mountains of southeastern Arizona!

Also, a neat little Cassus Roadside-Skipper (Amblyscirtes cassus):

Finally, not to be outdone, there were some curious plants as well. The neatest was an orchid that Jerry identified as "Huachuca Mountain Adder's Mouth" (Malaxis corymbosa). Only a very few plants were just starting to bloom:

Happy birding/butterflying/botanizing,
John Yerger
Adventure Birding Co.
www.adventurebirding.com

Pacific Golden-Plover, Willcox Twin Lakes 26 June 2009

2009-06-28T15:47:00.006-07:00

birders-

Mark Stevenson found this adult Golden-Plover at Lake Cochise (Twin Lakes) in Willcox. Any Golden-Plover discovered at this time of year should be scrutinized at great length. Pacific and American Golden-Plovers share many similar characteristics which can make differentiating them without unobstructed point-blank inspection difficult.

This individual is a better fit for Pacific Golden-Plover. Gavin Bieber sums it up very well:

"Although this bird is in a transitional plumage state making some field marks (such as the extent of white along the flanks) harder to judge, the structure of the bird became quite evident with some close study. The long legs (especially above the joint), tertials that terminate very close to the tail tip, thick based and lengthy bill and overall brightness to the spangling are all excellent fits for Pacific Golden-Plover. In addition, when the bird flushed, I clearly noted the feet projecting past the tail."

Your input is welcome...

cheers,

Jake Mohlmann

Senior Guide

www.adventurebirding.com

Garden Canyon, Fort Huachuca - 20 June 2009

2009-06-23T16:47:00.005-07:00

We started at Upper Picnic Area in Garden Canyon, where practically our first bird of the day was a lovely SULPHUR-BELLIED FLYCATCHER sunning itself and preening on a snag. A stunningly bright male HEPATIC TANAGER delighted, too.

Just as we were preparing to leave, we heard an ELEGANT TROGON or two calling. In our attempts to track them down for a visual, we came up empty-handed but instead discovered a PLUMBEOUS VIREO singing from a nest, and a pair of HUTTON'S VIREOS building a nest (about 30 feet away from the Plumbeous).

We then made our way up to Sawmill Canyon, where several BUFF-BREASTED FLYCATCHERS awaited us. One called from the parking area; one was calling and seen up the old road starting behind the outhouses; and one or two more called and flew overhead as we walked up the main gated road to the left. An extremely cooperative RUFOUS-CROWNED SPARROW often perched only 10 feet away from the group, allowing for killer looks and photos. Best of all, we tracked down a calling ELEGANT TROGON and discovered a nest! Mark Sharon captured some amazing photos of the male at the nest entrance, which he has generously contributed for viewing by the general public:

We topped off our breeding activity discoveries when I stumbled upon a YELLOW-EYED JUNCO nest about 1.5 feet from the road under a big tuft of grass. I felt bad even though I had flushed the incubating adult by complete accident, but the 4 whitish eggs looked like they were doing quite well... GRACE'S WARBLERS finally became accommodating as we worked our way back to the cars.

Scheelite Canyon was our last stop. Although we didn't see the famous Spotted Owls, we enjoyed stellar close-up looks at CANYON WREN, DUSKY-CAPPED FLYCATCHER, glimpsed ARIZONA WOODPECKER, PAINTED REDSTART, a calling adult GOLDEN EAGLE, and heard yet another ELEGANT TROGON about 3/4 mile up the drainage.

Full list and more pictures by Mark Sharon below. Hopefully our most enthusiastic participant, Jules Wyman, will help me out if I've missed anything in this list!

Good birding,
John Yerger
Tucson, AZ
john@adventurebirding.com

(ALL pictures seen in this post were generously provided by Tucson Audubon trip participant Mark Sharon.)

Buff-breasted Flycatcher, a much sought-after AZ specialty:

Western Wood-Pewee, at a high angle for comparison:

Plumbeous Vireo nest discovered at Upper Picnic Area in Garden Canyon:

Hutton's Vireo nest discovered at Upper Picnic Area in Garden Canyon:

Very cooperative Rufous-crowned Sparrow! Almost certainly this bird had a nest nearby, but didn't seem terribly concerned with our presence:

Beautiful male Hepatic Tanager:

Grace's Warblers are often very difficult to see because they forage and sing high in the canopy of pine trees, but this one came down to give us a personal show:

Dusky-capped Flycatcher, unfortunately only seen by a few folks:

Scheelilte Canyon is a great place to see Canyon Wren, as you can tell from this photo:

Total group list, not all birds seen by all birders, 47 species:

Turkey Vulture
Red-tailed Hawk
Cooper's Hawk
Golden Eagle
Band-tailed Pigeon
Eurasian Collard-Dove
Greater Roadrunner
White-throated Swift
Broad-billed Hummingbird
Black-chinned Hummingbird
Magnificent Hummingbird
Elegant Trogon
Hairy Woodpecker (heard only)
Arizona Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Acorn Woodpecker
Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher
Dusky-capped Flycatcher
Buff-breasted Flycatcher
Western Wood-Pewee
Cordilleran Flycatcher (heard only)
Cassin's Kingbird
Common Raven
Chihuahuan Raven
Mexican Jay
Stellar's Jay
Bewick's Wren
Canyon Wren
Plumbeous Vireo
Hutton's Vireo
Bridled Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Pygmy Nuthatch (heard only)
American Robin
Grace's Warbler
Painted Redstart
Hepatic Tanager
Western Tanager
Black-throated Gray Warbler
Rufous-crowned Sparrow
Spotted Towhee (heard only)
Black-headed Grosbeak
Great-tailed Grackle
Eastern Meadowlark
Brown-headed Cowbird
Scott's Oriole (heard only)
Bullock's Oriole (fly-by)

Red-eyed Vireo - Sweetwater Wetlands - 6/23/09

2009-06-23T12:16:00.004-07:00

birders-

At about 8:00am this morning I was passing by the 'Towhee Pond' at Sweetwater Wetlands and heard a vireo that seemed out of place. Much to my delight it was a singing RED-EYED VIREO. It was in the largest willow (there are 3) at the northwest corner of the 'West Settling Basin'.

a map of Sweetwater can be seen here at Tucson Audubon Society's website:

http://www.tucsonaudubon.org/birding/sweetnames.htm

I stayed on the bird after the initial sighting for about 45 minutes until Jerry Boch, Mark Stevenson, and Thomas Staudt arrived and heard the bird singing immediately. It took a good 30 minutes or so before looks were had by all. This location is where we left it at about 10:00. It was singing from the south side of the island in the middle of the 'Overlook Pond'. It was seen while standing at the hand-railed section of the overlook area.

A discussion for the possibility of Yellow-green Vireo:

I've posted 4 pictures. There never was a good photo opportunity, for this bird never really left the tops of the trees until a brief look at the Overlook Pond. The pictures could be better (always) but enough features are seen to talk about.

The flight shot shows the nice yellow-wash on the breast sides well. This is in contrast with the underwing coverts which appear paler. They were actually very white in person. Yellow-green should have lemony yellow underwings. (The Sibley Guide to Birds). This pic. also shows a nice long white supercilium. The color on the back reflecting the sunlight is the mostly olive color of the back contrasting with the greyish head, good for Red-eyed. There was little yellow in the back color.

The shots from underneath show how there's very little contrast between flanks, chest-sides, undertail coverts, and belly. On Yellow-green Vireo I've noticed some brighter colors extending into the auricular region as well as across the chest. It's quite noticable at times. This is described well in Peter Pyle's Identification Guide to North American Birds. Peter also describes a Yellow-green as having a dusky eye line. A couple of the pictures show a pretty obvious blackish eye-line very noticable in the field as well.

This is all great, however the bird was singing it's head off for nearly 2 hours straight which helped a lot in keeping track of it for others who might be on their way. At no point did it's song strike me as odd for anything but Red-eyed. However I have a bias growing up in Pennsylvania and hearing a ridiculous amount of these birds. This I felt was the most diagnostic part.

Birds are birds and these 2 species have been confused in the past. I'm going with Red-eyed. Hopefully someone will be able to record it and/or get some better pictures so this can be investigated further if need be...

cheers,

Jake Mohlmann

Senior Guide

www.adventurebirding.com

Las Cienegas National Conservation Area and the Patagonia Roadside Rest- 16 June 2009

2009-06-16T14:30:00.008-07:00

Arising to a shockingly cool June morning, Jake Mohlmann and I departed for Patagonia with hopes of invoking the fabled "Roadside Rest Effect," i.e., the peculiar situation in which the discovery of one rarity leads to another and another. The rarity in this case was a male Scarlet Tanager reported on the 14th. White-throated Swifts overhead greeted us as we stepped from the car. Brown-crested Flycatchers, Rufous-crowned Sparrows, Summer Tanagers and Northern Beardless Tyrannulets were quite vocal as we birded the rest stop and along the creek across the road. Despite some searching we didn't manage to turn up the tanager, however; several nice consolations were to be had including a silent Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher along the creek (neither of us had observed this species here before), a Band-tailed Pigeon calling from the tree tops, a few Thick-billed Kingbirds including a pair at their nest, and up-close views of two Montezuma Quails-- a male and a female. Always a worthwhile stop with good birds and the rugged beauty of the lichen covered spires towering above.

A stop at the Patagonia Roadside Shrine afforded us with great views of Northern Beardless Tyrannulets and Costa's and Broad-billed Hummingbirds. This is a location that one feels that something unusual could be skulking unseen, and indeed, several interesting species have been found here. Maybe next time!

From the shrine, we drove to Las Cienegas NCA, a 45,000 acre site north of Sonoita with a perennial stream with riparian corridors containing towering Fremont cottonwoods, hackberry tangles, a small marsh (cienega), juniper-oak woodlands, and mesquite grasslands. Such diversity of habitats, particularly the riparian areas surrounded by a sea of high desert grasslands makes this location particularly attractive to migrants and breeders alike. We took the South Road Entrance (EC-900) from AZ 82 so that we could survey the small ponds while en route to 49ers Wash-- a seldom visited riparian strip. This is to the northeast of the better known Empire Gulch. The ponds were dry, but Grasshopper Sparrows entertained us as they crossed the road in front of us. From the"Cottonwood" parking lot at Empire Gulch we traveled northeast to the road signed on the left to 49ers Wash. (Note that there is a left fork immediately off the main road, stay right. We drove to a good-sized pullout on the left with the remains of an old campfire. From here we continued about 20 yards towards the wash and were surprised to hear a Northern Parula vocalize from a large cottonwood on the right hand side of the road near the now dry wash. We were able to photograph the sharp-looking male bird as it preened and sang, seemingly oblivious to our presence. This is about 4.4 miles from the "Cottonwood" parking lot at Empire Gulch. A pair of Gray Hawks at their nest peered down at us. We walked about another 100 yards and watched a male Hooded Warbler fly up from the root tangles and perch directly in front of us on a branch above the wash. I was able to obtain sound recordings, but photos eluded us as the bird withdrew shortly after giving us stunning views. Two very nice warblers in close proximity!

With time slipping away from us, we stopped off at Empire Gulch. This site has been host to a good number of rarities recently including the White-eyed Vireo Jake and I found and photographed earlier this month, two Yellow-throated Vireos Gavin and I observed, Gray Catbird and Hooded Warbler. We decided to sit where the water begins to see what would turn-up. Right after settling in, we heard at least one late Pacific-slope Flycatcher. Shortly after that the male Hooded Warbler found by James McKay came in and entertained us for the better part of twenty minutes, alternating between getting chased and chasing a Common Yellowthroat, getting bullied by Song Sparrows and getting spooked by a Desert Grassland Whiptail! A Hooded Oriole, numerous Yellow-breasted Chats, Blue Grosbeaks, Western Pewee, Northern Beardless Tyranulets, Yellow-billed Cuckoo were among the riparian breeders noted. With time pressing, but many more unexplored riparian strips, it was hard to tear away!

Good Birding,
Keith Kamper
Adventure Birding Company

PICTURE DESCRIPTIONS: top to bottom

1) male Northern Parula in 49ers wash

2) Thick-billed Kingbird guarding nest at Patagonia Roadside Rest

3) continuing male Hooded Warbler at Empire Gulch (1 of 2 for the day!)

4) Gray Hawk nest in Las Cienegas

5) Bewick's Wren at Roadside Rest unable to resist an imitation western screech owl

cheers,

Jake Mohlmann

Elegant Terns - Lakeside Park Tucson - 6/7/09

2009-06-07T11:28:00.002-07:00

birders-

At 9:30 this morning Keith Kamper called to report 2 ELEGANT TERNS at Lakeside Park in Tucson. Mark Stevenson, Molly Pollock, Adam Sabatine and I were en route to Patagonia Lake to check out the 2 Elegant Terns reported from there this morning but decided to try for these more conveniently lost birds instead.

These 2 pictures were taken at around 10:00 a.m. There was also an AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN flying around which later landed on the Lake.

cheers,

Jake Mohlmann

Tucson, AZ

www.adventurebirding.com

White-rumped Sandpipers (?!?!) at Willcox, 3 June 2009

2009-06-03T15:05:00.010-07:00

Birders,

Gavin Bieber and I checked out Willcox Twin Lakes golf course this afternoon and were lucky enough to stumble into 10 White-rumped Sandpipers. The previous high count for Arizona was 2 at one time. There are only 6 other late spring records published in the latest "Finding Birds in SEAZ" (thanks for the info. Mark Stevenson).

Above are 2 pictures of the White-rumped Sandpipers. One is of a flock of 9 birds huddling close together in a tight group after flying around in wide circles for a few minutes. The other photograph is a few of the sandpipers in flight flaunting how they got their names ( their white rumps ). Also while cruising around the pond a Black-crowned Night-Heron was making a fairly large meal out of an unfortunate Tiger Salamander. These salamanders (in all stages of life) are a main food source for the herons/egrets that are often seen around this sewage effluent pond.

Enjoy the pictures!

Cheers,
Jake Mohlmann
Tucson, AZ

AZ Migrant Traps - 3 June 2009

2009-06-03T14:56:00.009-07:00

Birders,

Gavin Bieber and I checked out some vagrant traps in Southern Graham and Northern Cochise Counties today. While checking out Hot Well Dunes National Recreation Area Gavin spotted an interesting wood-pewee that showed some characteristics of Eastern. The top picture is a definite Western Wood-pewee for comparison. The bottom picture is the bird in question. Your thoughts about the identity of this bird are welcome! (p.s. it did not vocalize once!)

Cheers,

Jake Mohlmann

Tucson, AZ

White-eyed Vireo at Las Cienegas, 1 June 2009

2009-06-03T10:51:00.008-07:00

Birders-

Keith Kamper and I checked out Empire Gulch, part of Las Cienegas National Conservation Area north of Sonoita this morning. Our intent was trying to obtain some documentation shots of the YELLOW-THROATED VIREO Keith found yesterday (May 31, 2009). We were unable to refind our target, however we were rewarded with a singing WHITE-EYED VIREO instead. A few pictures were obtained including this one capturing the obvious white eye and yellow lore region.

Location:

Park next to the "Cottonwood" parking lot about 1/4 mile past the headquarters building. Walk WEST (upstream) beyond the last of the water to a barbed-wire fence. Go approximately 300 meters beyond this fence and work the southern boundary (closest to the headquarters building). It was in a pretty dense hackberry thicket but moved around quite a bit while we were trying to get some decent photos.

Cheers,

Jake Mohlmann

Sycamore Canyon 24-25 May 2009

2009-06-01T15:50:00.007-07:00

There are about probably over 100 different drainages that are called "Sycamore Canyon" in Arizona alone, but my favorite is the rugged and wild Sycamore Canyon located due west of Nogales on Ruby Road. Despite its remote nature, or perhaps because of it, Jake Mohlmann and I make it a point to bird this area a minimum of 2-3 times a year.

We opted to backpack this time, which allowed us to move slower and observe more along the way. It also allowed us to go owling deep within the canyon, an opportunity most birders do not have the good fortune to experience. We were not disappointed!

Besides hearing numerous Whiskered Screech-Owls and Elf Owls, we were also awakened by a loudly squeaking Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher first thing on Monday morning. Elegant Trogons abounded, with at least 6 different vocalizing males. The hike also yielded at least ten singing Five-Striped Sparrows in a 2 mile stretch of the lower canyon, dozens of striking Varied Buntings, and we discovered a male BLACK-CAPPED GNATCATCHER about 1.5 miles north of the U.S./Mexico border! To top it all off, we were delighted by a most welcome reptilian surprise (pictures below).

The canyon is filled with lush vegetation, lots of sycamores (per its namesake), and loads of birds. It is known amongst birders for harboring rarities from south of the international border (which it crosses), and especially for its population of Five-striped Sparrows. Unlike neighboring California Gulch, these Sparrows can only be found by enduring a somewhat grueling 8-10 mile roundtrip hike. Not for the faint of heart or the out-of-shape, but a really cool way to see the birds!

Only about 0.5 mile into the canyon, you walk across a small area of slickrock that contains tiny fossil imprints. This one looks like a small seashell:

But the neatest discovery for us was a reptile that none of us had ever seen before: Brown Vine Snake (Oxybelis aeneus)! If it hadn't wiggled a bit, I probably wouldn't have seen it:

Looks just like a very thin vine. Incredible!

Jake captured a wonderful portrait of the little guy, on a sycamore leaf for size comparison:

The most captivating part of the experience was that when I initially spotted the snake, it had just captured an Ornate Tree Lizard (Urosaurus ornatus). We watched for something like an hour and a half while it struggled to orient its meal head-first, for proper consumption.

I thought "there's no way this pencil-thin snake can eat a lizard this big." Jake had full confidence that he could.

Jake going for the up-close and personal footage. The snake remained oblivious.

Apparently, Jake was right! I couldn't believe my eyes.

Incredible!

We also documented a very rare but increasingly regular resident, Black-capped Gnatcatcher:

Note the full black cap combined with clean white undertail - a diagnostic combination. Male Black-tailed Gnatcatchers also sport a black cap in the breeding season, but have a completely black undertail with only limited white spots. Blue-gray Gnatcatchers have a completely white undertail, but only a thin black streak above the eye during the breeding season.

Varied Buntings were downright common in the lower half of the canyon, but we only managed one identifiable picture from a good distance, since they remained primarily high above us at the top of the canyon walls.

Just another weekend in the wild and scenic Sycamore Canyon!

Good birding,
John Yerger

Florida Canyon, 10 and 12 May 2009

2009-05-12T23:21:00.003-07:00

Russell Graham and I spent the last morning of our 3-day tour in Florida Canyon. Since we had so much success with our other targets on the first two days - Five-striped Sparrow, Black-capped Gnatcatcher, Spotted Owl, etc - we decided to kill some time searching for an unconfirmed Aztec Thrush. While we didn't find anything quite that rare, we did enjoy splendid views of the continuing Rufous-capped Warblers.

Rufous-capped Warbler (Basileuterus rufifrons)

Russell and I saw the pair at least twice by waiting quietly in the streambed to see what else was passing through. Morgan Jackson and I employed the same technique on May 12, with even greater success. The best way to locate these birds (as with most songbirds, really) is to be very familiar with the song and call notes. While sometimes the birds simply appear in front of you - in our cases, at arms length - they are most often first detected aurally. Every hour or so, we would hear one giving its distinctive, even-toned tik-tik-tik-tik-tik call.

There are plenty of other neat things to see while waiting for the birds. Morgan and I observed a few Giant Water Bugs, including one that had egg sacs all over its back (couldn't get a photo of that one, though).

Giant Water Bug

We also enjoyed a splendidly camoflauged Canyon Tree Frog. They blend in very well with the mottled gray rocks, as you can see from this image.

Canyon Tree Frog (Hyla arenicolor)

Plenty of other "herps" are out, too, including this lovely Sonoran Whipsnak e which rapidly retreated to a short nearby mesquite.

Sonoran Whipsnake (Masticophis bilineatus)

Over in Madera Canyon on both days, the loudly singing and gaudy colored Flame-colored Tanager was a treat (as always), but the more subtly plumaged birds are really neat to watch, too. Russell and I were surprised to see this Arizona Woodpecker suddenly disappear into a nest hole!

Arizona Woodpecker (Picoides arizonae) at nest, Madera Canyon

Good birding (and herping and insecting),
John Yerger
Tucson, AZ

Broad-billed Hummingbird nest, Tucson, 23 February 2009

2009-02-26T13:07:00.005-07:00

In the 2007 edition of "Finding Birds in Southeast Arizona," Broad-billed Hummingbirds (Cynanthus latirostris) are listed as "rare" in winter - which, in fact they are overall. However, in the foothills of the Santa Catalina Mountains on the northern end of Tucson, it is not uncommon to see them in many washes throughout the winter. My discovery of a nest in a small wash in northeast Tucson on 2/23/2009 led me to wonder: is this early?

(Click on the pictures for a much larger image!)

Most migrants do not show up for another few weeks, and many of those birds begin breeding in mid-April. I wonder if the individuals that winter in Tucson stick around so that they can get a jump start on nesting? By nesting earlier than the migrants, they could take advantage of the first flowers of the season. Warmer days seem to be upon us earlier than usual this year, so that would make sense: these winter residents are well aware of that fact, and got to nesting in a hurry!

I waited about 15 minutes at a good distance so as not to disturb this nesting bird. When she decided she was ready to leave the nest for a bit of foraging, I dashed in and grabbed this quick picture. You can just barely see a tiny bit of egg sticking out from the lower rim of the nest in the foreground!

I'll check for early nesting facts in the Arizona Breeding Bird Atlas when I get back to my home library, but in the meantime here is a nice summary of the breeding biology of these hummers:

"In Mexico most Broad-billed Hummingbirds are resident, but in late spring and summer many individuals migrate to extreme northern Mexico, portions of southeastern Arizona, southwestern New Mexico, and the Big Bend region of southwestern Texas to breed. In these areas breeders inhabit riparian zones of arid canyons, usually below 2,000 m, which contain sufficient resources to support nesting for up to 5 months. Breeding behavior of females is typical of other hummingbirds except that nests are constructed low to the ground and rarely decorated with lichen."

Powers, Donald R. and Susan M. Wethington. 1999. Broad-billed Hummingbird (Cynanthus latirostris), The Birds of North America Online (A. Poole, Ed.). Ithaca: Cornell Lab of Ornithology; Retrieved from the Birds of North America Online: http://bna.birds.cornell.edu/bna/species/430

Gnatcatchers in Arizona: a very brief tail study

2009-02-03T18:07:00.006-07:00

"The Sibley Guide to Birds" mentions that under exceptional field conditions, one might be able to see the more graduated shape of the tail feathers in Black-capped Gnatcatchers (BCGN) as viewed from below. By comparison, Blue-gray Gnatcatchers (BGGN) show much less difference between the lengths of each individual tail feather. Specifically, he illustrates this with closed-position undertails. But what about uppertails? This is far too much detail to expect from a standard field guide, so I dug out more detailed references when I got curious about a recent photo I took.

What's even better than studying tail shape under brief but exceptional field conditions? A photo! While not the sharpest image in the world, I was lucky enough to catch a Black-capped Gnatcatcher in mid tail-swing as it was moving low through some mesquite (see the entry for Patagonia from 1/25/2009). I borrowed an image from Peter Pyle's "Identification Guide to North American Birds, Part I" (Slate Creek Press, 1997) to demonstrate, since illustrator Steve N.G. Howell drew such an excellent detailed comparison of gnatcatcher tail morphology and patterns. It's a bit pricey, but every advanced birder and serious ornithologist should own a copy! It's worth every penny if you want to scrutinize obscure traits that are probably not visible in the field...

Graduated tail shape tends to be most easily observed from below, since the outermost tail feathers fold underneath of the innermost tail feathers. An evaluation of the tail shape from above, it stands to reason, would be just as valid so long as the tail is spread so you can see the length of each feather compared to the next. No, you probably can't use this in the field at a quick glance, but catch a photo at exactly the right split second and suddenly it becomes useful.

Please excuse the following images from the Pyle guide being flipped; I wanted to compare the patterns of coloration on the tail as well, and my picture is most in-focus on the right hand side (if you ignore those branches).

BGGN tail morphology and pattern, page 378 in above-referenced book (Pyle 1997).

BCGN near Patagonia, 1/25/2009 (Yerger) compared with BCGN tail morphology and pattern, page 384 in above-referenced book (Pyle 1997).

The outermost tail feather (r6) in the photographed bird is clearly much shorter than the second feather from the outside (r5). I feel that you can also draw some very clear conclusions about the bird's ID by comparing the pattern of white in the outermost tail feathers, which is why I have the images flipped. But Pyle's Guide doesn't specifically mention this and I can't find all of the references I need, so I won't speculate about how useful it is!

Hope some folks find that interesting,
John Yerger

Short-tailed Hawk in Tucson, 27 January 2008

2009-01-28T22:29:00.004-07:00

This bird has been hanging around all winter, but I finally had the opportunity to go look for it! It was actually not too hard to find today, as it was soaring around when spotted. Considering how rare this bird truly is, I felt extremely fortunate to have it fly almost directly overhead several times...

What a treat!!

Good birding,
John Yerger
Tucson, AZ

Patagonia, Sonoita Creek SNA, 25 January 2009

2009-01-28T16:29:00.009-07:00

Keith Kamper, Jake Mohlmann and I enjoyed a great morning out in the Patagonia area on Sunday, Jan 25. We were greeted around 8:15AM by a surprise FERRUGINOUS HAWK, perched on a telephone pole by the high school.

We stopped by the Visitor's Center at Patagonia Lake State Park to obtain our free pass for the Sonoita Creek State Natural Area, and enjoyed a crisp male COMMON GOLDENEYE across the lake (previously posted by Peter S).

We started off by hiking into the area between the first stream crossing of the Blackhawk Trail (?) and the outflow of the dam at the west end of the lake. We were excited to see a PEREGRINE FALCON emerge from a small brushy pond with a GREEN-WINGED TEAL in its talons! The three luckier teal escaped the clutches of the falcon that morning, and fled the area.

Immediately thereafter, Keith and I discovered a very vocal BLACK-CAPPED GNATCATCHER (audio/video on the blog). In the same vicinity were several BLUE-GRAY and BLACK-TAILED GNATCATCHERS for direct comparison - neat!

(You may need to turn your volume waaaayy up...I'm not sure how much the audio/video quality is reduced by uploading it to this blog! The original video is much better, but is also 14MB.)

Again, image quality reduced from the original picture, but this is kind of a neat shot of the Black-capped Gnatcatcher with its tail fanned. A tail shot from below would have been better, but after reviewing the Pyle guide, it appears that this topside view of the fanned tail is also diagnostic. The vocalization in the video above is diagnostic as well. UPDATE: For more details, see the more recent post entitled "Gnatcatchers in Arizona."

And I thought this was just too cute to not include!

Not nearly so rare but still fun to see was a WILSON'S SNIPE and a huge mixed flock of sparrows containing WHITE-CROWNED, CHIPPING, LARK, BLACK-THROATED, and a single RUFOUS-WINGED. As we hiked down to, around, and past the Cottonwood Loop, we did not detect any rare Robin or Kingfisher, although two BELTED KINGFISHERS patrolled the creek.

Potentially the most out-of-place bird of the day was an immature male EASTERN BLUEBIRD at the fence that delineates the beginning of a private ranch, downstream from the second stream crossing (Keith and Jake only, I missed it).

On the drive back to Patagonia, about 3/4 mile west of town, we caught a prolonged glimpse of an immature GOLDEN EAGLE (big white wing patches, probably last year's young). It was immediately chased away by a Red-tailed Hawk. Just north of the U.S. Border Patrol checkpoint (north of Sonoita) was an interesting "kettle" composed of one male NORTHERN HARRIER, a RED-TAILED HAWK, and an AMERICAN KESTREL.

Good birding,
John Yerger

Nutting's Flycatcher...from way back on 23 Sept, 2008?

2008-12-07T08:12:00.006-07:00

After being forgotten for several months, I dug out some video and pictures of a suspicious Myiarchus flycatcher that Jake Mohlmann and I documented on 23 September 2008 in the Bill Williams NWR. After showing the video and photos to Chris Benesh and Dave Stejskal (and subsequently, Gavin Bieber and Rich Hoyer), we were finally able to convince ourselves that indeed we had documented a NUTTING'S FLYCATCHER! As far as we can tell, if accepted by the Arizona Bird Committee, this will constitute the 4th or 5th U.S. record.

A detailed discussion of the ID and the story of how we forgot to review this documentation for 2.5 months will follow shortly....but for now here is a brief video with the distinctive call note and a few photos showing the structure, underparts color, and undertail color.

The bird was impossible to photograph without some amount of sticks and leaves in the way! Nutting's Flycatcher (Myiarchus nuttingi) has a smaller bill, browner face, and slightly different undertail pattern than Brown-crested Flycatcher (M. tyrannulus). Nutting's is best told from Ash-throated Flycatcher (M. cinerascens) by voice, so fortunately we obtained some video with audio that helps make this distinction. Dusky-capped Flycatcher (M. tuberculifer) also has a small bill, but much less rufous in the tail and a very distinctively different, plaintive call-note.

NOTE OF CAUTION: Since we had to run a mile round-trip through sand back to the car to get my camera, the bird was no longer in view when we returned. In order to bring the bird into view for documentation, we used a very judicious amount of playback. In this video, the ONLY note made by the bird itself is the "wheeek!" note given when the bird looks directly at the camera and opens its mouth. The rest of the 'calls' are actually from a CD recording.

(The full video is better quality than this, but a significant reduction in quality was needed to upload it to this blog.)

This species can be very difficult to separate from other Myiarchus flycatchers, and Ash-throated Flycatcher is a rare winter resident in Arizona. If by some odd chance the bird is still around, it will take a great deal of caution to solidly identify it again.

Anyway, just wanted to get the information out there now that we've had some help confirming it!

John Yerger
Senior Guide, Adventure Birding Co.

Santa Cruz River near Tumacacori, 29 Nov 2008

2008-12-03T16:58:00.004-07:00

Jake Mohlmann and I took a walk down the Santa Cruz River near the town of Carmen on Saturday. The only truly rare bird was an adult female BULLOCK'S ORIOLE. Of course this bird is a relatively common summer breeder, but finding one in November is highly unusual. The quality of the pictures is fair at best, but diagnostic.

Note that the yellow coloration in the above picture is brighest on in the malar region, which is fairly distinctive of female Bullock's. I'm calling this an adult because the yellow head and upper breast coloration was brighter than I would expect in hatch-year birds, but sometimes it can be difficult. (Anyone out there with experience banding this species? It may be difficult to tell from the pictures alone.)

Also note the upper wingbar, which is formed by the buffy whitish tips of the greater coverts. If you click on the picture to enlarge it, you can also see what appears to be a row of tiny dark spurs cutting into the upper edge of the wingbar. I find this mark to be very helpful when you can't get a great look at the head pattern/color - for example, when blocked by leaves or branches. Compared with the smoother upper edge of the wingbar shown by female or immature male Baltimore Orioles, it's a fairly distinct field mark. Not that one should expect to find a Baltimore Oriole in Arizona in any season, but a nice adult male was found in Tubac earlier this year! So it helps to weigh all options.

All of these images were captured on a simple Canon Powershot S5 with a 1.5x lens adapter (rendering it effectively an 18x optical zoom).

An unusual morning mist shrouded the peaks of the Tumacacori Mountains immediately west of the river; very scenic. The riparian habitat still has a lot of cottonwoods and other native vegetation, but much of the old-growth cottonwoods and willows are gone. Cattle have tromped down much of the grasses and herbaceous growth, but there are still plenty of places for birds to hide.

Another neat find was a row of 10 White-winged Doves perched along a telephone wire in the tiny town of Carmen (just north of Tumacacori). Most of the White-winged Doves that are so ubiquitous in Arizona during the breeding season head farther south, but small concentrations of the species are sticking around more and more frequently during the winter, especially in towns along or near the Santa Cruz River.

We didn't find much later in the morning at Santa Gertrudis Lane, but there was a nice Northern Cardinal perched strikingly amongst the red pyracantha berries. There are bunches of these and other berries (hackberry, elderberry) all along the lane, and it is always worth checking to see if concentrations of fruit-eating species like Cedar Waxwings, American Robins (or the much more rare Rufous-backed Robin!) are attracted to this spot. The only thrush we found was a skulking Hermit Thrush.

Plenty of good winter birding to be had in southeastern Arizona...can't wait for the Christmas Bird Count season to start!

Good birding,
John Yerger

Tucson - Varied Thrush, 28 November 2008

2008-11-28T21:37:00.006-07:00

Sweetwater Wetlands in Tucson attracts a lot of migrants and vagrants, probably owing to its location along the (historically) once-lush Santa Cruz River. Birds that once found their way to the meandering, cottonwood-lined channels of the river now fly over the seemingly forbidding desert, chancing upon the oasis that is Sweetwater Wetlands. Roger Road Wastewater Reclamation Facility has done an excellent job managing the habitat for birds, and the payoff is sometimes rarities like this one:

Thanks to Meaghan Conway for contributing this picture of a beautiful male Varied Thrush! First photographed by Andrew Core and Tom Aldrich on 25 November 2008, the bird has been hanging out in the southeast corner of the wetlands. With the bulk of its range in the Pacific Northwest, I'll admit it was a bit incongruous seeing it hopping around under Fremont Cottonwoods bordering three-edged bullrush, then diving across the path into saltbush!

Another contribution from Meaghan Conway, showing the dense greenery to which the birds flock, under clouded skies from the first good winter rains.

Good birding,
John Yerger
Senior Guide, Adventure Birding Co.

Benson Sewage Ponds - Surf Scoter

2008-11-24T19:08:00.010-07:00

At around 10:00a.m. on November 14, 2008 Meaghan Conway, Reverend Art Schaub, and I stopped by the Benson Sewage Ponds before heading to the Chiricahuas for the weekend. Here are 2 pictures of the SURF SCOTER we found swimming near the edge of the northern of the 2 ponds. It was only noticed on our second time checking the pond and insisted on sticking to the eastern edge near the weeds. According to the TAS "Finding Birds in Southeast Arizona," Surf Scoter is a casual transient (mainly in late fall).

cheers,

Jake Mohlmann

Senior Guide

Adventure Birding Company

camera: Konica Minolta Dimage Z5