Adventure Birding

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker update

2011-11-22T22:45:00.000-07:00

22 November 2011

After an absence of about two weeks, our younger-plumaged YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER finally returned to the apple tree outside our dining room window at 9:00am this morning! We thought all of the Yellow-bellieds had departed, leaving only two RED-NAPED SAPSUCKERS behind; happily, we were wrong. It was neat to see this bird again to track how it is developing. Below I've posted a photo from about a month ago, followed by a photo of the bird from today. Note: the lighting conditions were *very* different, so try not to focus to much on the actual hue of the colors, but rather the quality of the colors with respect to the rest of the bird.

Today, the facial pattern appeared much crisper than last month's photo. Both white stripes in the face are brighter and slightly broader, with the space between showing darker and crisper black. Most importantly, the black throat frame is more continuous, fully enclosing the red color of the throat. Notably, there is still no red in the nape (further confirming Yellow-bellied). The back feathers, while difficult to see in this shot, still retain some of that butter-cream color that seems to be so distinctive of immature Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers.

Another rare visitor to southeastern Arizona put in an appearance today: a lovely WHITE-THROATED SPARROW! Most individuals of this species that stray into Arizona during the winter are of the "tan-striped" variety, but this individual seems to have much brighter white, setting off the bold yellow patches in the lores.

Finally, a resident CRISSAL THRASHER topped off the show. Bad pictures, perhaps, but great birds!

Cheers,
John Yerger
Portal, AZ
john@adventurebirding.com
----------
Adventure Birding Company
Specializing in flexible, personalized guiding in SE Arizona
www.adventurebirding.com
520-495-0229

Arizona: Red-naped vs. Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers...a learning process

2011-10-27T23:50:00.001-07:00

27 October 2011

On 22 October 2011, Chris McCreedy and Michael Lester spent a lot of time studying an odd sapsucker in the Quailway Cottage orchard (Portal, AZ). I'm sorry to say that I noted this immature-plumaged sapsucker as early as 29 September, but dismissed it after only a glance because it looked very dark overall...and I had a lot other things to do that day! A renewed itch to put the right name to the right organism has now forced me to take a closer look... Turns out, these two species are more variable than many of us ever thought! The main resource for this ID issue is a pioneering article published in the November/December 2006 issue of Birding magazine, titled "Variation in Red-naped and Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers."

On almost any given day in the fall or winter in Arizona, you could probably glimpse a sapsucker and just say "Red-naped" - and the odds are, you would be right. On October 26, however, I walked into that orchard on the Quailway Cottage grounds and encountered no fewer than 5 individual sapsuckers. At least two were fully adult male Red-naped Sapsuckers (RNSA); a third had substantial red in the nape but flew too soon. The remaining two required far more study.

Here's the bird that Chris reported on 22 October (photos are mine, taken today - click the image to enlarge):

While the Birding article does not tout any single field mark as diagnostic, it does say this: "...Red-naped Sapsuckers lacking red on the nape between October 1 and May 1 would be exceptionally unusual, if such occur at all." So, any Sphyrapicus species without red in the nape seems virtually guaranteed to be a Yellow-bellied (YBSA), regardless of age or sex. Note that there is no red in the nape of this bird. Nor is there any red in the nape of the next bird I photographed:

(I'll refer to the first bird as YBSA-1 and the latter as YBSA-2.) YBSA-1 is clearly a bird in immature plumage. Multiple resources claim that hatch year (HY) YBSA begin their molt on the summer grounds, "usually" suspend it during migration, and finish that molt on the wintering grounds. HY RNSA is supposed to molt primarily on the summer grounds, with juvenal head and body feathers "usually" fully replaced by October/November. So, YBSA-1 seems more-or-less clearcut (despite my inadequate first observation): no red in the nape + late October + immature plumage = call it a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. Aside from the nape, there are a few more supporting features visible on this bird: buttery color to the upper back feathers, and some butter-colored spangling in the crown. I always thought that immature YBSA were supposed to be buffy and lighter brown throughout, and also were supposed to have a lighter crown overall. Some do - but not all, apparently! The back pattern also appears somewhat "messy" like a traditional YBSA, but this feature is allegedly variable enough that it's only a supporting mark, at best.

YBSA-2 is a bit more complex. At first glance, I might have thought that this was an adult bird and immediately called out RNSA, but closer examination shows the lack of fully adult throat/breast feathers (note that the throat frame isn't complete and the breast feathers haven't turned to solid black yet.) I also thought at first that perhaps it was too far along in its molt to possibly be a YBSA - but the Birding article shows us a museum specimen that is just as advanced (or more so), collected October 11, 1982 in Baltimore. So it may not be fully adult-plumaged, but it's darn close, and apparently it's not unprecedented. Additionally, examples of delayed molt in RNSA are extremely difficult to find.

Looking closer still, I tried to judge what little is present of the throat frame:

It's difficult to gauge, to be sure. However, by the time this bird has all of its adult feathers in place, it looks as though it will develop a solid black frame around the throat, containing the red throat feathers. It may turn out that some of that red will end up "invading" the black throat frame, but there's no way to tell for at least another month. While there are a very few YBSA specimens out there with some red extending into the throat frame, RNSA is the species that is well known to have a very broken throat frame completely invaded by red from the throat. So...we may have to entertain the notion of "hybrid," but the bird at least has some YBSA blood and may yet prove to be a pure-blooded bird. Or, it could totally surprise all of us and start to spontaneously develop some red feathers in the nape...now that would be worth documenting!

If you haven't given it a thorough read, I highly recommend the Nov/Dec 2006 "Birding" article. It seems that a significant number of specimens were analyzed, not only by the three authors (Mlodinow, Barry and Cox) but also by a number of other researchers whose work they cite. It doesn't claim to be the final word on this ID challenge, but it's certainly my go-to reference for the moment.

I'll keep my fingers crossed that these birds stick around, since I live on-site as manager of the Quailway Cottage. If they stay, I'll be sure to take more photos as the season progresses and see if I can't reach some more solid conclusions!

Happy studying,
John Yerger
Portal, AZ
john@adventurebirding.com
----------
Adventure Birding Company
Specializing in flexible, personalized guiding in SE Arizona
www.adventurebirding.com
520-495-0229

The Forest Re-opens! Birding the Chiricahua Mountains

2011-07-18T17:04:00.001-07:00

18 July 2011

Morgan Jackson and I spent a pleasant morning in Cave Creek Canyon, five days after this portion of the Coronado National Forest officially reopened. We explored Stewart Campground (open to day use only) where we found nothing unusual, but enjoyed watching a Painted Redstart gathering nesting food for young ones. In the past few years, this area has played host to a Berylline Hummingbird, but we didn't find one today.

Walking up the South Fork road (open to foot traffic only), we were delighted to find a SULPHUR-BELLIED FLYCATCHER. I haven't been able to look for this species since May 9, when the Horseshoe 2 Fire shut down these mountains to visitation. A male ELEGANT TROGON was also very cooperative, only perhaps 150 yards from where we parked.

Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher, which was oddly silent today, looking around for the next tasty morsel.

Elegant Trogon, looking dapper as ever - only about 6 inches off the ground, immediately adjacent to the road!

Driving up FR 42, all of the areas immediately adjacent to the road underwent a low- to medium-intensity ground fire, and the only completely blackened areas from high-intensity crown fires were visible on some of the highest ridge-tops. (I'm not eager to drive through that area in person, but I've seen photos of a lot of greenery still left in prime Mexican Chickadee and Olive Warbler habitat. All is not lost!) We watched a ZONE-TAILED HAWK soaring over the ridge about halfway between where the road leaves North Fork and where the road crosses East Turkey Creek. Crews were working to repair the road where it washed out at East Turkey Creek, but we still managed to locate YELLOW-EYED JUNCOS feeding fledgings.

So, lots of good stuff on a casual morning of birding in the Chiricahua Mountains!

Cheers,
John Yerger
Portal, AZ
john@adventurebirding.com
----------
Adventure Birding Company
Specializing in flexible, personalized guiding in SE Arizona
www.adventurebirding.com
520-495-0229

After the Fire: Cave Creek Canyon, Trogon Census

2011-06-30T16:05:00.002-07:00

On June 26, 2011, I was one of the lucky few to participate in the 34th annual Chiricahua Mountain Elegant Trogon Census. The National Forest here has been off limits to the public since the Horseshoe 2 fire started on May 8, so I was eager to get back into any part of my beloved home range! The forest is still closed, but our small crew of surveyors received special permission to conduct this count. I snapped a few photos to give everyone else a small window into the fire's effects in a portion of the South Fork of Cave Creek.

A bit of background on this piece of the fire: South Fork remained one of the few patches of green on the fire map until May 25, when the fire line on the ridge was breached and flames raced down into the drainage. That initial push of the fire burned very hot. To prevent this extra-destructive type of fire from continuing down South Fork to the main body of Cave Creek (and possibly on to Portal), firefighters lit a backburn. They started from the main paved road in Cave Creek Canyon, literally walking low flames back to meet the oncoming larger flames. The goal of a backburn is to reduce brush and leaf litter on the ground with controlled, low-intensity fire, so that an uncontrolled higher intensity fire doesn't have the fuel needed to rip through the same area. If successful, the forest floor gets a much needed cleaning, which is how the natural process historically worked in a fire-evolved ecosystem like this one.

Streambed in South Fork, charred ground to the left

Exposed rock, formerly hidden by grasses and brush. White ash marks where fallen logs burned in place, demonstrating the low intensity of this controlled back burn (logs burned very slowly, not spreading flame to other areas). Large trees and some saplings are still alive! Even the hottest fire burns no more than the top three centimeters of soil, so much of the undergrowth should regenerate within a few seasons - with normal rainfall - from the seed bank stored in the soil.

For the Trogon Census, I was stationed roughly between the 2nd and 5th stream crossings (for those of you intimately familiar with South Fork). From my perspective, this stretch looked really good! Even without any rain, in a severe drought and post-fire, seedlings were already sprouting through the charred soil. Sitting in one spot for 3 hours, I detected 33 bird species. It was truly encouraging to experience the old familiar South Fork diversity firsthand. Besides spotting a male Elegant Trogon, the focal species of the survey, I also found a Painted Redstart nest, and even watched a coatimundi come in for a drink!

Elegant Trogon in motion

Painted Redstart, working hard to feed hungry babies! Nestlings were about 8-9 days old, indicating that the nest was built no more than 2 weeks after the backburn passed through the area. Painted Redstarts are a ground-nesting species, but this nest was perched about 5 feet high in a grassy patch on top of a boulder. While the substrate could still be classified as "ground," it was interesting to see that the nest was built in one of the few grassy patches remaining - above the level of the flames!

Coatimundi, heading back from whence it came after enjoying a cool drink from the stream.

Of course not everything is as rosy a picture as this. 9 residences and 14 outbuildings were destroyed in this fire, which burned almost 223,000 acres - the majority of the Chiricahuas. We lost the historic Barfoot Lookout and a lot of good high country forest around prime birding areas like Rustler Park. Narca Moore-Craig was stationed in a somewhat bleaker landscape than I for the Trogon Census, in the Maple Camp area of South Fork. To see that area through her eyes, you can read Narca's blog entry at:

http://narcamoorecraig.blogspot.com/2011/06/south-fork-with-trogons.html

Still, in one of the driest years on record, it could have been MUCH worse. Preliminary estimates say that about 20% of Horseshoe 2 was destructive crown fire, killing all of the trees in those areas and sterilizing the soil. But, that means that 80% of the acreage was low- to moderate-intensity, building the kind of mosaic that keeps our area a hotbed of biodiversity. It will be interesting to watch the regeneration over the coming years, and learn from the experience.

Like a phoenix rising from the ashes, I look forward to seeing the Chiricahua Mountains ultimately rebound in all their splendid glory!

Good birding,
John Yerger
Portal, AZ
john@adventurebirding.com
----------
Adventure Birding Company
Specializing in flexible, personalized guiding in SE Arizona
www.adventurebirding.com
520-495-0229

Sonora Christmas Bird Count follow-up: a few fuzzy photos of really cool birds

2011-01-22T15:14:00.000-07:00

For the full story on this adventure, see Matt Brooks' excellent summary of the Christmas Bird Counts we joined in and around Alamos, Sonora:
http://adventurebirding.blogspot.com/2011/01/guest-blogger-matt-brooks-sonora.html

Unfortunately I could only carry my little Canon Powershot S5 with me into the wilderness, but I couldn't resist sharing a few of my "souvenir" photos from the Santa Barbara CBC (officially called the Rancho Ecológico Monte Mojino count). NOTE: click on any of these photos to enlarge.

Colima Pygmy-Owl pair! Note the undertail pattern, useful for identifying several species of pygmy-owl.

The only "window" I had to photograph this Bare-throated Tiger-Heron...

The charistmatic Black-throated Magpie-Jay (always difficult to photograph without branches in the way!)

Finally, the grand prize: Eared Quetzal. Normally an exceedingly difficult species to see, this individual was no exception. Amazingly, we saw six (yes, 6) individuals in one tree! Even so, I still can't believe I managed even this quick shot...

Good birding,
John Yerger
Tucson, AZ
john@adventurebirding.com
----------
Adventure Birding Company
Specializing in flexible, personalized guiding in SE Arizona
www.adventurebirding.com
520-495-0229

Guest blogger Matt Brooks: Sonora Christmas Bird Counts in and around Alamos

2011-01-22T14:35:00.000-07:00

Many thanks to Matt Brooks for agreeing to share his blog post and photos with us as a guest author. Matt and I had a great time doing the Alamos and "Santa Barbara" (REMM) CBCs in the first week of January 2011.

Enjoy!
John Yerger
Adventure Birding Company
www.adventurebirding.com

Sonora, Mexico - Christmas Bird Counts

I just returned to Tucson after a great few days in Alamos, Sonora, where I participated in a couple Christmas Bird Counts. I'm not the official compiler for these count circles, so for complete details or numbers and species you'll have to wait for the CBC publication. Anyway, here's a little taste of the events from my perspective:

Alamos's count was on January 2nd, so Jay Taylor, John Yerger and I took the overnight bus down the night before and arrived just in time for the count. John and Jay headed off to the upper Mentidero Wash area, where they had a good day with some good birds, including several Buff-breasted Flycatchers and the count's only Grasshopper Sparrow. Mingo (a locally trained bird guide) and I took a group of birders up to upper Aduana Wash (above the village). We ended up having a great day in there. Highlights included 12 White-eared Hummingbirds, a surprise Broad-tailed Hummingbird, two Russet-crowned Motmots, and an amazing mixed flock with almost 30 species in it, including Tufted Flycatcher, several Slate-throated Redstarts, several Elegant Trogons, and ten species of warblers (including several Rufous-capped Warblers). Rufous-backed Robins were thick in the fruiting figs -- we had upwards of 55 by my count. Mixed in were a few White-throated Robins.


Russet-crowned Motmot, endemic to the Pacific Slope and interior valleys of Mexico and Guatemala.

Amapa in full bloom

The Alamos count had an astounding 40 participants this year. Not surprisingly, we broke the count's species high count with 172 species seen/heard on count day (the previous high count was 169). I suspect that the count week total will probably be ten or so species higher than that. Seven Mexicans participated, which is a great turnout of local talent.

The second count we participated in was a brand new one up in the mountains to the east of Alamos. The count circle is officially called the REMM (or Rancho Ecologico Monte Mojino) count, but everyone referred to it as the "Santa Barbara" count for the small village up in the mountains within the count circle. This count was a huge logistical challenge, so kudos to Suzanne Winckler, David MacKay, Stephanie Meyer, and others for setting it all up. The circle was set-up to encompass a lot of varied habitat on the edge of theSierra Madre, and included stretches of pine and oak habitats. Several of us had sections high up in the mountains, which we accessed by driving up to Santa Barbara the day before via a very rough 32-mile road that took 5 hours to drive. It was an adventure all in itself. On the way up we had amazing looks at Colima Pygmy-owl and Masked Tityra.

A few people stayed the night up at Santa Barbara to be in the oak habitat there during the count, and scored great birds such as Black-headed Siskin, Gray-crowned Woodpecker, and Spotted Wren. My group, which included Jay, John, David MacKay, and three locals from Alamos -- Alejandro, Mario, and Mingo -- hiked down into an amazing barranca (steep sided canyon) to spend the night. Our first birds for the count day were calling Mottled Owl and Colima Pygmy-owl. David, Jay, and Mario headed back up-canyon for their section, while Alejandro, Mingo, John, and I went into Arroyo Verde, an unbelievable side canyon off of the main barranca. Arroyo Verde is only 600 meters long or so, but has some of the most amazing habitat I've seen in Sonora. It was full-on Tropical Deciduous Forest (TDF), and the birds were thick and diverse. Some of the more exciting birds were Masked Tityra, Bright-rumped Attila, scores of Brown-backed Solitaires (there were so many singing it was sometimes hard to hear other birds), Orange-billed Nightingale-thrush, Tropical Parula, Rufous-bellied Chachalaca, White-striped Woodcreeper, etc. At one point we found a tree that was swarming (literally) with redstarts -- at least 30 Slate-colored and Painted Redstarts were up in the canopy. While we were watching this, we heard the unmistakable "Squee-chuck" of an Eared Quetzal. We spent 20 minutes following the sound up and down the canyon (I seriously think they can teleport) without seeing the bird, until one suddenly alighted in the tree above me. I called for John and as he and Alejandro were hurrying up, the bird flew and landed closer to where they were -- and it was followed by another, then another, then another.... At one point we had 6 Eared Quetzals all in the same tree and all vocalizing.... If that's not a birding highlight I don't know what is! It was amazing. The birds all appeared to be male, which was interesting. In addition to the quetzals, we tallied over 30 Elegant Trogons in the canyon.

Barranca Santa Barbara, adjacent to Arroyo Verde

Closer to the bottom of the canyon Mingo discovered a Rusty-crowned Ground-sparrow - a lifer for me. Once back into the main canyon, we also added Rusty Sparrow,Northern Waterthrush, Squirrel Cuckoo, and Lineated Woodpecker to the tally. Once we had hiked out to the road, we also added Laughing Falcon.

The compilation dinner was at a rancho owned by Nature and Culture International, and Stephanie Meyer hosted the meal. Good food and ronpope (eggnog) were had by all. Of the twenty-five or so volunteers for this count, almost half were Mexican -- a wonderful show of local talent and support and an example of the growing environmental awareness in parts of Mexico. A yowling mountain lion in the middle of the night was another highlight. The species count total for the Santa Barbara count was 144. And best of all, not a single House Sparrow, Rock Pigeon, European Starling or Eurasian Collared-dove were seen!

A third count (and one John and I weren't able to participate in) took place on the coast at the Navopatia Field Station, a remnant tract of pityal cactus forest. Definitely consider checking this area out as well if you are down this way.http://www.alamoswildlands.org/NavopatiaFieldStation.html

For additional photos of my trip, please see:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=261140&id=546823512&l=4201a23fea

For information about next season's Sonora Christmas Bird Counts, please email David MacKay of Solipaso Tours at info@solipaso.com. Their website is http://www.solipaso.com/.

For more information on the conservation efforts in Southern Sonora by Nature and Culture International, please see http://www.natureandculture.org/htm/mexico/mexico.htm.

I encourage anyone interested in these counts to consider coming down next year. It was a great time!

Matt! Brooks
mbrooks@tucsonaudubon.org
Tucson, AZ

Gilbert Water Ranch: Baikal Teal (mega!) and Dusky-capped Flycatcher

2010-12-08T00:09:00.001-07:00

7 December 2010

Morgan Jackson and I traveled to Gilbert today to see the Baikal Teal that was discovered by Gary Nunn on 2 December 2010. After hearing that it had been on Pond #6 yesterday, I headed that way with a few birding acquaintances that had also chosen this morning for "the chase." We were not disappointed! I spotted the mega-rarity in question at 8:30AM, in the center of the pond amongst many Northern Pintail and Green-winged Teal. Though we enjoyed wonderful views through the spotting scope, my digiscoping efforts were a bit more dismal.

Fortunately it's already been documented rather well by much better photographers with much better equipment, and does not show any obvious signs of former captivity. Of course it's difficult to prove a negative, but at least there are no bands, no clipped hallux, and feather condition appears consistent with "wild" status. The bird certainly seems wary enough, and isn't hanging out around the urban fishing docks for bread crumbs (yet).

After we had finished drinking in the beauty of the Baikal Teal, my attention turned to a call note that sounded exactly like a Dusky-capped Flycatcher. Eventually, I found the source of the note: a down-slurred "wheeewww!" Well, it turns out that it WAS a Dusky-capped Flycatcher! Not that these distant photos prove it, but the bill size and body proportions look right. At any rate, its call is extremely distinctive.

I don't have the Maricopa County guide right in front of me, but "Finding Birds in Southeast Arizona" (Mark Stevenson ed. 2007) indicates that there are only 2 winter records from the area covered by that book, which is roughly from Casa Grande due south and east. It seems that this would constitute a fairly rare record for Maricopa County, let alone in December when they should be well south in Mexico (or beyond). The brightness of the rufous edgings to the tail feathers - and the simple fact that the bird is quite far from its nearest cohorts - lead me to believe it's a hatch year (HY) bird.

Good birding,
John Yerger
Tucson, AZ
john@adventurebirding.com
----------
Adventure Birding Company
Specializing in flexible, personalized guiding in SE Arizona
www.adventurebirding.com
520-495-0229

Robb Wash Clean-up: 4 December 2010

2010-12-05T16:36:00.001-07:00

Today Corey Mitchell and I volunteered on behalf of Adventure Birding with the Tucson Audubon Society at Robb Wash, located at the intersection of North Sarnoff Drive and Speedway Boulevard on the east side of Tucson. This volunteer effort was organized with help from Tucson Parks & Recreation, Tucson Audubon Society, and Tucson Clean and Beautiful. The goal was to help clean up the area to increase the neighborhood's awareness of the importance of this wash to wildlife.

We had a great time meeting some new faces and other Birds & Business Alliance members while helping out the community. We were even treated to a bobcat that had just ambushed a Gambel's Quail for lunch utilizing the very wash we were there to clean!

(pictures below)

Good volunteering,

Jake Mohlmann
Tucson, AZ
jake@adventurebirding.com
----------
Adventure Birding Company
Specializing in flexible, personalized guiding in SE Arizona
www.adventurebirding.com
520-495-0229

Hard at work - snag that litter, Jake!

Jake and Corey came face-to-face with this bobcat, which had just captured a Gambel's Quail! What a wonderful firsthand encounter, perfectly illustrating how valuable these desert washes are for Tucson's wildlife.

Job well done!

Heerman's Gull at Sweetwater Wetlands, 8 November 2010

2010-11-10T18:49:00.000-07:00

I try to avoid text messaging in general, but when I received this one I jumped: Heerman's Gull at Sweetwater Wetlands!

I've somehow managed to miss this species in the five or so years I've lived permanently in Tucson. It seems I'm always out-of-town or guiding a client when they show up. Heerman's Gull is, after all, locally famous for being a one day wonder. There are about 35 records for Arizona, and not a single bird has stayed for more than one day. This species must have incredible wanderlust...

Anyway, it was a great pleasure to see familiar birding pals seeking this rarity, though I just missed bumping into fellow Adventure Birding guide Jake Mohlmann (he beat me by 30 minutes...) Ah well, no complaints. Though I'm not a rabid state lister and I rarely "chase" vagrant birds here, this observation served for a nice random 417th Arizona state bird for me. You just never know what you're going to see next out here!

Good birding,
John Yerger
Tucson, AZ
john@adventurebirding.com
----------
Adventure Birding Company
Specializing in flexible, personalized guiding in SE Arizona
www.adventurebirding.com
520-495-0229

Normally I hate to call a Black Phoebe (or any species) a "trash bird" - but, um...yeah.

AZ: Madera Cyn trails & madrone berry report (29 Oct 2010)

2010-10-30T11:17:00.000-07:00

Morgan Jackson and I hiked with Madison the Adventure Dog today up the Super Trail and back down to Madera Canyon via the Old Baldy Trail from 7:30AM to noon. While it's true that hiking 6.5 miles at elevation in late October is not the greatest way to rack up a species list, we were a bit surprised to barely eke out a 20 species total. But of course there were a few highlights:

WILD TURKEY - A prime number of turkeys wandered away from the road north of the Bog Springs Campground turnoff as we drove into Madera Canyon. There were 17 of them...

HEPATIC TANAGER (female plumaged) - Morgan saw and heard this bird at the south (upper) end of the uppermost parking lot. At this date it is classified as "rare" in the TAS "Finding Birds in Southeast Arizona" bar graphs.

WESTERN TANAGER - Heard giving its "pit-a-tuck" call not too far below Josephine Saddle on the Old Baldy Trail. We may have made it to the "casual" classification of rarity by this date, but it seems like there was a big push of tanagers not too long ago so perhaps they were all a bit late moving south.

TOWNSEND'S WARBLER - Ok, still "uncommon" but soon to be "rare."

Finally, the madrone berry update (Arbutus arizonica). [Side note for birders who don't know this already: this is an attractive food for wintering birds at middle elevations here; consequently also a good place to find rare birds.] Interestingly, much of the madrone berry crop was ripe or close to ripe along the Super Trail, perhaps because it receives more sun exposure (or so it seems). Along the Old Baldy Trail, many of the trees appeared to have only half-ripe fruits. There were a few sunny patches closer to the Vault Mine Trial, however, where the madrone trees had very nice crops of red berries.

Good birding,
John Yerger
Tucson, AZ
john@adventurebirding.com
----------
Adventure Birding Company
Specializing in flexible, personalized guiding in SE Arizona
www.adventurebirding.com
520-495-0229

Lighting wasn't very good for bird photography today, but we caught this Yellow-eyed Junco in an Arizona white oak.

We also didn't see too many butterflies today, but a few common ones were out like this Mexican Yellow (Eurema mexicana) I'm not totally positive, but I think it's nectaring on a type of mock pennyroyal (Hedeoma hyssopifolium?)

This West Coast Lady (Vanessa annabella) was found on the same type of flower. We saw all three species of lady on the trails today - the others being Painted Lady (V. cardui) and American Lady (V. virginiensis).

One of the non-avian finds I was most excited about today was this Madrean Alligator Lizard (Elgaria kingii). Someone overheard me talking about this one and said "ooh, I want to see that!" Before I could give her directions to where the lizard was hiding, she mentioned that the first time she'd ever heard about it was a few days ago, when a friend or relative of some kind made the claim that it ate one of their pet cats... After showing her this little guy (all of about 5.5" long), I assured her that there was no way on earth it could kill a cat - especially since it eats mostly grasshoppers, caterpillars, and moths.

Sweetwater Wetlands, Tucson (28 October 2010)

2010-10-28T22:43:00.001-07:00

Did some casual birding at Sweetwater Wetlands this afternoon from 3PM-6PM with an out-of-town birder. Passerine activity was a bit slow, but since the diversity at this spot involves much more than just songbirds, I tallied almost 50 species. Not too bad for a single loop in the afternoon starting at 90ºF!

Highlights for me:

-All 3 species of teal, though only one obvious male BLUE-WINGED TEAL
-A nice bright REDHEAD at close range on the north side of Keyhole Pond
-DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT (sitting on the stone berm between Recharge Basins 5 and 6)
-4 Rallids: SORA (2 seen very well at NW edge of Gazebo Pond), VIRGINIA RAIL (heard only), COMMON MOORHEN, and of course AMERICAN COOT
-HARRIS'S HAWK (perched in trees on north side of Sweetwater Drive)
-COOPER'S HAWK bombing after LADDER-BACKED WOODPECKERS near Hidden Pond (unsuccessfully)
-YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRDS by the score, swirling in from the sky to roost in the reeds throughout the wetland

Good birding,
John Yerger
Tucson, AZ
john@adventurebirding.com
----------
Adventure Birding Company
Specializing in flexible, personalized guiding in SE Arizona
www.adventurebirding.com
520-495-0229

Sweetwater Wetlands is perhaps the best place in southern Arizona to see Sora.

This Tucson hotspot is also a very reliable place to look for Harris's Hawks.

Visiting birders can find many common desert denizens here, as well, such as this Ladder-backed Woodpecker.

Tanque Verde Wash at Wentworth Rd, Tucson (22 Oct 2010)

2010-10-22T22:18:00.006-07:00

Keith Kamper, Morgan Jackson and I explored about a mile or so of Tanque Verde Wash west of Wentworth Rd this morning, from about 7:30AM to 9:30AM. We started off with a BELTED KINGFISHER over the small retention pond located just west of the road, just north of the wash.

The best find was this female BLACK-AND-WHITE WARBLER about 0.5 mile west of Wentworth Rd. (Interestingly, Keith observed what may have been this same bird on 10 September 2010.) It first appeared after a few imitated pygmy owl toots, accompanied by a small flock containing 2 BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLERS, an ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER, a PLUMBEOUS VIREO, HUTTON'S VIREO, "HUSKY" FLYCATCHER (Hammond's/Dusky-type), and several RUBY-CROWNED KINGLETS and YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS. Black-and-white Warbler is a rare but regular transient through southeast Arizona.

As we continued, Keith spotted this beautiful adult SHARP-SHINNED HAWK sitting motionless about 40 feet away. We admired it for some time as it scanned around for its next meal. It briefly showed interest in some singing LESSER GOLDFINCHES only 10 feet or so from its head but didn't give chase.

On the way back we stepped carefully over some very shallow bits of flowing water (!), and were almost back to Wentworth Road when we found a total surprise - MARSH WREN. Given the extremely marginal habitat here, this individual is almost certainly a transient. But it's amazing what incredibly small patches of wet, weedy habitat they'll use as a stopover point! Just goes to show: you never know how valuable your own neighborhood patch of habitat will be for one of our fine feathered friends in migration...

I'm actually amazed that Keith managed this shot, as uncooperative as the bird was...

Good birding,
John Yerger
Tucson, AZ
john@adventurebirding.com
----------
Adventure Birding Company
Specializing in flexible, personalized guiding in SE Arizona
www.adventurebirding.com
520-495-0229

Las Cienegas NCA, 15 Oct 2010

2010-10-22T22:09:00.000-07:00

Clouds over the Santa Ritas provided a beautiful backdrop to the lush (though now dry) grasslands and mesquite bosques of Las Cienegas National Conservation Area.

Fellow Adventure Birding guide Keith Kamper joined me on a visit to Empire Gulch and nearby parts of Las Cienegas NCA today. We were greeted almost immediately by a SHARP-SHINNED HAWK zipping back and forth through the cottonwood trees, perhaps searching for breakfast. It was interesting to detect two species of owl during daylight hours (accidentally flushed a GREAT HORNED OWL, and WESTERN SCREECH-OWL responded to our toots).

Passerine activity level was moderate. We enjoyed lingering LAZULI BUNTINGS and WESTERN TANAGERS, as well as a soon-to-be-late TOWNSEND'S WARBLER. A pair of COMMON GROUND-DOVES bathed in the "spring" one encounters when walking west from the parking area with the gigantic fallen cottonwood. Both PLUMBEOUS and CASSIN'S VIREO were here as well. There is currently a good amount of water in the Gulch, and although it is virtually stagnant, the birds found it attractive.

Sparrow diversity was decent, with 10 species: GRASSHOPPER, VESPER, SAVANNAH, LARK, BREWER'S, CHIPPING, BLACK-THROATED, WHITE-CROWNED, SONG and LINCOLN'S SPARROWS. Lincoln's and White-crowned were especially
numerous. We also detected CANYON and ABERT'S TOWHEES, with GREEN-TAILED TOWHEES being more numerous than the other two combined.

Turkey tracks are an interesting find anywhere outside of the forested mountains in southeastern Arizona. There have been several sightings of WILD TURKEY in recent years from this area, and I'm not really sure what to make of it all. After being hunted to extirpation in the early 1900's, they have been successfully reintroduced to many of the Sky Islands. They are certainly present in the Santa Ritas and in the Huachucas, and probably the Whetstones (the nearest range). But are these birds moving in between mountain ranges? That would be good for genetic diversity. Or do they simply wander to lower elevations in the fall/winter? Or, given sightings from the middle of the summer, are they actually residents at this peculiar elevation and habitat?

Good birding,
John Yerger
Tucson, AZ
john AT adventurebirding.com
----------
Adventure Birding Company
Specializing in flexible, personalized guiding in SE Arizona
www.adventurebirding.com
520-495-0229

Northern Jaguar Preserve (Sonora, Mexico): 2nd-7th October 2010

2010-10-18T19:58:00.000-07:00

I recently had the wonderful opportunity to do some bird surveys in east-central Sonora, on the very remote Northern Jaguar Preserve (www.northernjaguarproject.org). The only way to reach the Preserve is by traveling 35 miles of narrow dirt two-track, which at 10-15 miles an hour takes about 3 hours from the nearest town of Sahuaripa. Considering that Sahuaripa itself is about 3 hours east of Hermosillo by paved road, it really felt like we were "out there!"

The habitat was very interesting, generally similar to upland desert scrub one might find in southeastern Arizona, combined with some elements of tropical deciduous forest from farther south.

Endless rugged terrain! Looking northwest from the Sierra Zetasora.

These are the foothills of the Sierra Madre Occidental, which break up to form the "sky islands" of northeastern Sonora and southeastern Arizona. At least one of the canyons I surveyed held multiple Fan-tailed Warblers, and you couldn't walk a hundred yards without hearing or seeing a Sinaloa Wren. The real avian highlight was watching two Military Macaws flying south. Evidently this constitutes a new "late date" for them in this region per Aaron Flesch (pers comm, 17 Oct 2010).

In the afternoons I had the chance to do a bit of other naturalist stuff:

A rare stray to southern Arizona and Texas, there were hundreds of these little butterflies in every canyon! This is an Elf (Microtia elva).

A not-so-crisp picture of a really neat butterfly. This is a Black-patched Cracker (Hamadryas atlantis lelaps).

Considering there is only one documented record of this species in extreme southern Arizona, the Northern Jaguar Preserve is probably about the northern limit of their normal range. All species of Cracker land with their heads facing downward, perhaps a way to trick predators who would normally try to grab a butterfly behind the head (most butterflies landing like this would probably orient head-up). Ever wonder why they're called "crackers"? Apparently the males are known for their ability make an audible click or 'cracking' sound with their wings when approached by a predator, or to defend territories.

White-striped Longtail (Chioides catillus)

This interesting skipper is actually quite regular in south Texas, but much more uncommon in Arizona. In this portion of Sonora, only 125 miles or so south of the border, they are much more common.

Cheers,
John Yerger
Tucson, AZ
john@adventurebirding.com
----------
Adventure Birding Company
Specializing in flexible, personalized guiding in SE Arizona
www.adventurebirding.com
520-495-0229

Parque Nacional Iguazú, 28 Jan 2010

2010-08-25T13:49:00.011-07:00

28 January 2010

For this post, I'll just let the waterfalls themselves do the talking. Needless to say, the world famous Iguazú Falls were everything we expected and then some. (Note: you can click on each of these pictures for a larger image.)

For size comparison, there is a small viewing platform with a few people above the right set of falls here. This is just one drop; falls about twice this height continue below this set!

A glimpse into the Garganta del Diablo (Throat of the Devil), which divides Brazil from Argentina.

A panorama that includes most of the Argentine falls (click on it for the full view).

Wow!
John Yerger/Jake Mohlmann
Adventure Birding Company

P. S. - Ok, for those looking for a little more than "wow": Iguazú is the Spanish corruption of the Guaraní word for "big falls." The whole system actually contains 275 falls along 2.7 kilometers (1.67 miles) of the Iguazu River, which shortly thereafter drains into the Rio Paraná. About one-third of the falls are in Brazil with the remaining two-thirds being in Argentina. It's amazing what a little uplifted basalt can do... And the birding throughout the park is great!

Parque Nacional Iguazú, 27 Jan 2010

2010-08-24T18:34:00.001-07:00

Believe it or not, we spent our first entire day in Parque Nacional Iguazú without seeing any of the famous waterfalls! We were completely focused on the birds and other wildlife. Hopefully it's understandable why:

A male Surucua Trogon. In Argentina, this species is only found in the extreme northeast part of the country, though its range continues through eastern Paraguay and southern Brazil.

Tufted or "Brown" Capuchin (Cebus apella). This primate is fairly widely distributed in South America.

Best as we can figure, this is a Small-eyed Sailor (Dynamine artemisia glauce). Researching butterfly IDs is quite a bit more difficult in South America than it is in, say, Arizona! It rather obligingly posed on the underside of my hat during lunch, though. If anyone has a better idea of what any of our butterflies are, we're open to suggestions.

Ok, but really...tomorrow we focus on las cataratas!

Good birding,
John Yerger/Jake Mohlmann
Adventure Birding Company

Parque Nacional El Palmar, 24 Jan 2010

2010-02-18T17:27:00.009-07:00

24 January 2010

Today we stopped at Parque Nacional El Palmar, a remnant patch of palm-savannah in Entre Rios province. Oddly, we didn't spend much time in the palm-savannah habitat that is unique to the park, but instead were drawn to the subtropical forest patches that were within hiking distance of the camp site.

On the first night, we encountered this neat little mammal:

The Plains Vizcacha (Lagostomus maximus), the largest member of Chinchillidae, normally forages for a variety of grasses and forbs. They live in communal burrows. The ones in El Palmar have apparently taken to scrounging for leftovers amongst the campers' picnic tables. I wonder why that is...

Supplemental feeding, anyone? I thought it strange that this portion of the sign dedicated to the Plains Vizcacha says that they get by "With a little help from my friends," the park staff that feeds them supplemental grains like cracked corn and oats. Apparently this is supposed to help "conserve the species." Not exactly a technique I learned while obtaining my Wildlife and Fisheries Science degree at Penn State...let's just say I found this to be an interesting approach!

We also enjoyed a few other common birds like this Sayaca Tanager and immature Golden-billed Saltator:

Sayaca Tanager

Golden-billed Saltator

Helpful ID fact: this is the only species of saltator in South America whose supercilium is limited to the post-ocular region, regardless of age or plumage.

Off to the world-famous Iguazú Falls tomorrow!

Good birding,
John Yerger/Jake Mohlmann
Adventure Birding Company

Argentina! Day 1 - Buenos Aires (Costanera Sur)

2010-02-18T17:19:00.007-07:00

21 January 2010

Roughly 28 hours after leaving Tucson, we finally arrived at Ezeiza International Airport in Buenos Aires. Our Argentina journey has begun!

We breezed through Customs at 4:30AM and hopped on the first shuttle to the Microcentro, a section of central Buenos Aires that we deemed closest to Costanera Sur. A couple of hours later, we were out birding. We got our first glimpses of common birds like Southern Lapwing and Picazuro Pigeon on the bus ride at dawn, and even on the walk from our hotel to the reserve enjoyed Rufous Horneros, Rufous-bellied Thrushes, and the aptly named Saffron Finch. We were especially excited to see an Orange-backed Troupial, a very rare bird away from the Formosa province of north-central Argentina...but of course it may very well have been an escaped pet. The reactions on the faces of the local birders after they saw our pictures of it, however, were priceless!

A male Saffron Finch, quite common throughout much of Argentina.

We tallied almost 60 species this first morning, enjoying common birds such as Chalk-browed Mockingbird, White-rumped Swallow, Green-barred Woodpecker, and Double-collared Seedeater. We also detected some species with more restricted ranges like Black-and-rufous Warbling-Finch and Curve-billed Reedhaunter. All this smack dab in the middle of the largest city in Argentina!

View from Costanera Sur, looking back towards downtown Buenos Aires.

Jake also had a chance to test out his new digiscoping setup on this Whistling Heron and a charismatic Guira Cuckoo:

Whistling Heron

Guira Cuckoo!

I think it's safe to say we're really going to enjoy birding this country for the next 2 months...

Good birding,
John Yerger/Jake Mohlmann
Adventure Birding Company

Patagonia Lake State Park, 13 January 2010

2010-01-13T20:11:00.004-07:00

Trogons are fun. Period!

Elegant Trogon (Trogon elegans)

This particular bird is probably the same one that has been wintering at Patagonia Lake for a number of years now, both in the mesquite bosque just beyond the steps along the Birding Trail, and sometimes in the riparian habitat along Sonoita Creek upstream from the lake. It has apparently become quite accustomed to people, so it can often be seen at close distance! This may be the easiest Elegant Trogon to see in Arizona, other than birds at known nests during the breeding season.

Fun fact from Cornell's "Birds of North America" account:

"Trogon (from the Greek meaning “gnawer”; Gruson 1972) refers to their hooked, dentate bill, used in grasping insects and fruit."

New Years Day at Tumacacori 1/01/10

2010-01-01T16:53:00.008-07:00

Jerry Bock, Thomas Staudt and I decided to bird Santa Gertrudis Lane at Tumacacori to begin the New Year out right. Birds were plentiful along the lane with Western Bluebirds, Cedar Waxwings and White-crowned Sparrows greeting us as we began our walk to look for the stakeout Rufous-backed Robin and Varied Thrush. We spent a little time there with many familiar and new faces peering at the pyracantha with hopes of the two rare thrushes. No luck during the rather short time we spent there, but this obliging Sage Thrasher snacking on

pyracantha berries was a great consolation!

Sage Thrasher

We decided to bird the river and within about 1oo yards we heard the distinctive call of Rose-throated Becard. We were able to find him after several minutes of searching. Jerry went back to alert other birders while Thomas and I kept the becard in sight. It flew west over the fence towards the de Anza trail. Fortunately Dick Palmer and crew were present and we soon relocated the bird and got everyone on it. What a great start to the New Year! I was able to obtain a few marginal shots while it very actively fed.

Back view of Rose-throated Becard

Side view of Rose-throated Becard

Front view of Rose-throated Becard

Other notable species along the river include a male Ruddy-ground Dove, a rare but increasing visitor from Mexico, a very rare winter "Western" Flycatcher and Painted Redstart. This Crissal Thrasher entertained us on our way out.

Crissal Thrasher

We checked the flooded fields south of Tumacacori and found ca. 15 American Crows with greater numbers of Common and Chihuahuan Ravens. Western Meadowlarks cavorted with the three expected species of blackbirds. It has been a truly great year for crows!

Good Birding,

Keith Kamper

adventurebirding.com

Rufous-backed Robin, Tumacacori, 26 Dec 2009

2009-12-27T09:49:00.004-07:00

Had the opportunity to enjoy a lovely Rufous-backed Robin (or Rufous-backed Thrush, whichever you prefer) while out with clients along Santa Gertrudis Lane yesterday. Once the bird found a spot it liked, it simply sat there for minutes on end. Unfortunately, the only documentation-quality photo I obtained was when the bird decided to sit behind as many twigs and branches as possible...

(click on photo for much larger image)

Even from the front, however, one can separate it from the much more common American Robins that were also present. Both American and Rufous-backed Robins have yellow bills and reddish chest/flank coloration, as well as white throats streaked with black, but this is where the similarities end. Rufous-backed has a much lighter gray head, rather than the dark slate-gray or even blackish tones found in the head of an American Robin. Also, American has white eye arcs and a white supraloral stripe, absent in Rufous-backed Robins. In the field, that bold yellow orbital ring really stood out more than it does in the photo, but in good light it's quite striking. Finally, while American Robins have cinnamon-reddish coloration that extends throughout the breast and belly, leaving only the vent area white, Rufous-backed Robins have reddish coloring only in the breast and flanks: the belly and remaining underparts are white (not terribly clear in the photo, but present).

This image was crudely digiscoped by holding my Canon Powershot S5 up to the lens of my Pentax spotting scope...but it works for "souvenir" shots!

Good birding,
John Yerger
Tucson, AZ
----------
Adventure Birding Company
www.adventurebirding.com

Black-capped Gnatcatcher and Black-and-White Warbler at Cienega Creek Preserve 11/27/2009

2009-11-27T10:05:00.010-07:00

I decided to bird the Cienega Creek Preserve, east of Tucson, this morning. This is a fantastic location with some permanent surface flow, towering cottonwoods, willows, mesquites, ash, and hackberry groves. Many riparian breeders including Yellow-billed Cuckoos, Gray Hawks and Summer Tanagers call this their summer home. It is also fantastic for migrants and the occasional vagrant. After a slow fall season here, I was pleasantly surprised to hear a Black-capped Gnatcatcher at the "Three Bridge" area along the creek-- likely a first record for this location. With a little persistence I was able to lay eyes on this rare, but increasing sprite from the south. Unfortunately, I was unable to obtain photos. Next time! This might be the same suspicious gnatcatcher we observed on the Arizona Field Ornithologist's field expedition I led out here in October. Even with several looks then, we were unable to clinch the identification. The distinctive vocalization would have helped that day! If you look for this bird, please note that there is also a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher in the area. I also stumbled onto a Black-and-white Warbler with a small mixed species flock, also near the "Three Bridge" location. The only other species of note was a lingering Western Tanager. A free permit is required to access this site. Please see http://www.pima.gov/nrpr/trails/davidson/index.htm for more information.

Black-and-white Warbler

Great Birding and Happy Holidays!

Keith Kamper

Senior Guide

www.adventurebirding.com

Bay-breasted Warbler in Tucson 11/22/2009

2009-11-23T10:17:00.005-07:00

Another great find within the Tucson city limits, a Bay-breasted Warbler, was found by Richard Fray on the 21st along Woodland Road while he was looking for the Rusty Blackbird we found a couple of days ago. We assembled on the decidedly cool morning the following day along Woodland Road to look for this exceptional find (about 15 records for se Arizona). While searching for the rare warbler we observed an Arizona Woodpecker, previously reported, an interesting lowland record. With a bit of searching, we were able to obtain great views of the Bay-breasted, and a few poor photos. I wonder what will show up next!

Bay-breasted Warbler showing "spectacles"

Obvious wingbars, side and flank color

Great Birding!

Keith Kamper

Senior Guide

www.adventurebirding.com

San Rafael Grasslands, Patagonia 11/19/2009

2009-11-20T18:55:00.005-07:00

Lorel Picciurro decided to cash in on her free "guided day of birding", won at the Tucson Audubon's annual Birdathon brunch, and brought along friend Barbara Burns for the day. Boy am I glad she did! It was a great day to be out and birding yesterday: temperatures were mild, but the sun was out and the wind was down. Unfortunately we only managed 1 out of 3-4 plausible target lifers, but to be fair they were difficult and scattered targets. :)

Undoubtedly one of the highlights of the day were several exceedingly cooperative BAIRD'S SPARROWS, one of which remained perched for several minutes while we gawked and I snapped photos. These plump little Ammodramus sparrows are usually very difficult to see, skulking about in the grass, with mere glimpses obtained as they flush from their hiding places to some other distant piece of ground. Also present were a number of GRASSHOPPER SPARROWS, along with the more common Savannah and Vesper.

Baird's Sparrow

Grasshopper Sparrow

From the same exact location, we watched as a lovely WHITE-TAILED KITE perched and then hunted by "kiting" over the grasslands north of the road. This magical spot was located on FR 58. It is 1.7 miles east of the point where one first views the expansive grasslands, after exiting Harshaw Canyon, along the main road coming from Patagonia (the same point that is the junction of Harshaw Canyon Rd, FR 765 to the north, and FR 214 to the south; FR 58 continues east). There are two large and partly dead cottonwoods on the south side of the road, and a small 2-3 car pullout on the north side.

Another highlight was encountering all 3 species of bluebirds in one day: a single Mountain Bluebird not far from the western entrance of Las Cienegas NCA; a flock of Western Bluebirds along Harshaw Creek Road; and finally a small flock of 4-6 Eastern Bluebirds at the Spirit Tree Inn!

We rounded out the day with a stop at Patagonia Lake State Park, where we walked the nature trail around the east end of the lake. Afternoon birding here was slow, but we lucked into a bizarre encounter with an unusual marsh bird. We were following the trail-of-use paralleling Sonoita Creek, when I stopped short; in front of me there was a small backwater channel, and in the middle of it an AMERICAN BITTERN materialized! It had been standing with neck scrunched, waiting for some small fish to swim by for dinner. Unfortunately we caught it wide out in the open...so the Bittern proceeded to strech out its neck, as if it were surrounded by reeds (which were at least several hundred meters away), and half walked/half trotted out of the water and across the forest floor:

Taking off on a slow run, only to attempt hiding behind some seep willow!

Deciding that wasn't good enough cover...

Hiding in between the...trees?

Quite a different experience than the norm! Usually bitterns are tucked well into the reeds, where a birder can consider themselves very lucky to glimpse their striped, outstretched necks as they try to blend in with the surrounding marsh vegetation.

To cap off the day, we caught a Great Horned Owl flying into a tree at the edge of the riparian area, again close to the point where the creek meets the lake. Thinking this was splendid enough, at almost the same moment I heard a rapid "kruk-kuk-kuk" nearby. Looking up, I realized that it was a male ELEGANT TROGON giving its classic non-breeding call! It was not the least bit happy with this owlish intrusion, and made sure that its feelings were known by flying from perch to perch, cackling, and pumping its tail wildly. Neat!

The only other birds of serious interest (for me, anyway) was a calling but unseen PAINTED REDSTART about 0.5 upstream; also at about the same point we heard a sustained tremolo that must have been a calling LESSER NIGHTHAWK! This is especially noteworthy because they are considered to be "accidental" after the first week of November. Unfortunately there was no way to obtain a visual on this bird, given its cryptic plumage and (likely) well-camoflauged perch.

We ended up with over 80 species detected for the day, not bad for starting off in the lower-diversity grasslands during the peak of morning bird activity!

Good birding,
John Yerger
Tucson, AZ
----------
Adventure Birding Company
www.adventurebirding.com

Rusty Blackbird in Tucson 11/19/2009

2009-11-19T18:56:00.006-07:00

At Rich Hoyer's suggestion, Mark Stevenson, Molly Pollock and I birded the the neighborhood around Forty Niner Golf and Country Club this morning. The combination of ponds, many ornamental plantings, mesquites, washes, and small hackberry groves makes this a fantastic place to search for late fall and winter vagrants. A number of interesting species have been recorded here over the years including Little Blue-Heron, Cape May Warbler, Ovenbird, and Rufous-backed Robins. Perhaps the most unusual bird observed here today was a lingering Western Tanager. Other species detected include Great-Horned Owl, Plumbeous and Hutton's Vireo, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Western Bluebirds, American Robins, Cedar Waxwings,"Myrtle" Warbler, Black-throated Gray Warbler, and Spotted Towhee.

Great-horned Owl at Forty Niner

A last minute decision to check Woodland road was fortuitous. While looking for a previously reported American Crow, Mark spotted a female Rusty Blackbird in a mixed blackbird flock. The dark eye patch, pale eye, gray rump and thinner more decurved bill separate this from Brewer's Blackbird. I managed to obtain a few shots, though distance was an issue. I believe that this is the second Pima county record. A state bird for me!

Female Rusty Blackbird

Good Birding!

Senior Guide

Keith Kamper

www.adventurebirding.com

Rose-throated Becard and American Redstart at Tumacacori 11/18/09

2009-11-18T22:55:00.008-07:00

Jerry Bock and I birded the Santa Cruz River at Tumacacori this morning and were greeted by Mountain and Western Bluebirds along Santa Gertrudis Lane. Crissal Thrasher and Hermit Thrushes vocalized from the Pyracantha bushes as we made our way to the river. Several mixed species flocks were encountered on our walk north, with several interesting species including a lingering female Hepatic Tanager and a Painted Redstart. On our way back south, we were working through a nice mixed species flock when I noticed a female-type American Redstart, always a neat bird in southeast Arizona. While we were watching the redstart Jerry spotted a first-year male Rose-throated Becard-- possibly the same bird sighted in October and initially reported as a female. (First year males and adult females are very similar until the males begin to show pink in the throat.)

Rose-throated Becard

American Redstart

We checked the Santa Cruz at Carmen and noted Lawrence's Goldfinches and many of the usual suspects. At Tubac we found many more Lawrence's Goldfinches, but did not relocate the previously sighted Louisiana Waterthrush. Beautiful weather, great company and birds! It is hard to beat southeast Arizona in November!

Good Birding,

Keith Kamper

Senior Guide

www.adventurebirding.com

Blackpoll and Chestnut-sided Warblers at Sweetwater Wetlands 11/15/09

2009-11-18T18:48:00.007-07:00

The onslaught of vagrants continued at Sweetwater Wetlands in Tucson, with two impressive new arrivals: Blackpoll and Chestnut-sided Warblers. The Blackpoll found by Justin Jones on the 14th, decidedly the rarer of the two with just over a dozen records in southeast Arizona, was the first bird Jerry Bock and I looked for after arriving at Sweetwater after a short walk along the Santa Cruz River. The river walk produced a few interesting birds including unseasonal sightings of Osprey and Northern Rough-winged Swallow and a calling Eastern Meadowlark with the more expected Westerns. Our walk at Sweetwater began auspiciously when I noticed an American White Pelican in the distance gliding away from us. We soon made our way to the crowd of other birders searching for the Blackpoll. With so many eyes, we soon were able to glass the rare eastern vagrant. I managed to obtain a few marginal shots of this rare, but drab fall-plumaged warbler (sorry folks, but it looks so much snazzier in alternate plumage!) as it entertained the assembled throng.

Head-on view of the Blackpoll Warbler

A side view showing wing detail

A view of the back

We walked back to where Rick Taylor found the Chestnut-sided Warbler and soon were on this sharp bird thanks to Will Russell's sharp eyes. While more confiding than the Blackpoll, it sure did move around a lot while I tried to photograph it. The nerve!

Chestnut-sided Warbler with distinctive cocked tail

After a satisfying experience, we decided to make a loop around Sweetwater. Some highlights include the continuing Black-and White-warbler, a single Ruddy Ground-Dove (increasing in Arizona?) on the lawn at Roger Road which is across the road from Sweetwater, another look at the Osprey, and a Northern Harrier. We ended the day with 10 species of warblers and a total of 96 species before noon. Not bad for urban birding in November! Jerry made another swing out to Sweetwater later that day, bringing his total to 105.

Good Birding,

Keith Kamper

Senior Guide

www.adventurebirding.com

Parker - weird gull

2009-11-16T20:33:00.002-07:00

birders-

On 11/15/09 in a flooded field south of Parker, AZ this completely white gull flew into a field full of over 100 other gulls. The conclusion I came to was that this bird is either an albino or leucistic (lacking any pigment including melanin) Ring-billed Gull. Below are 5 pictures of various poses that help support the description that follows:

EYES: Although the exact color of the eyes wasn't seen, the fact they were pale was noted...the pupil was clearly visible at a distance. It could have either been yellow or pink?

LEGS: colored pink

BILL: a similar pink to the legs with a pale tip and black sub-terminal band near the end.

BEHAVIOR: acted exactly like the other Ring-billed Gulls in close proximity.

PLUMAGE: after a while under certain light some darker (only a slight shade) smudges were noted on the ends of the retrices (tail feathers). Also, under certain light, the mantle appeared a SLIGHT shade darker.

1) side by side with a 'normal' plumaged Ring-billed Gull

2)in flight, although a crappy picture, shows completely white plumage.

3) different angle showing black tip (you'll have to take my word for the pale tip)

4) back shot - no color!

5) another side-by-side with Ring-billed Gull

Your comments are welcome. This was a great bird to see and a fun study in using other clues aside from plumage coloration to aid in identification.

enjoy!

cheers,

Jake Mohlmann

Senior Guide

Tucson, AZ

Worm-eating Warbler, Desert Museum: 11/07/2009

2009-11-07T13:11:00.007-07:00

After receiving an email in the Rare Bird Alert inbox yesterday, I ran over to the Arizona-Sonoran Desert Museum today in an attempt to get some documentation-worthy photos of a WORM-EATING WARBLER. Susan Parker-Hotchkiss, a docent at the Museum, discovered the bird on November 5. Good find, Susan!

Morgan Jackson borrowed my camera while I was off getting coffee...and got this nicely framed shot of the bird eyeing up the dead leaves upon which it feeds (on the wintering grounds). As silly as the word sounds, I believe this bird's underparts coloration is most accurately described as "taupe."

One study of this bird's habits on its wintering grounds in Belize (Greenberg 1987) found that Worm-eating Warblers forage "primarily at dead curled leaves in forest understory; 75% of maneuvers by 107 individuals directed toward dead leaves.... Picks, probes, and gleans from hanging dead leaves, vine tangles, twigs, and occasionally green leaves. Most commonly forages on dead leaves; searches intensively for 10–15 s in each tangle before moving on."

Distinctive crown stripes observed from the back and topside:

And for those of you who just need to have a full body shot, this is the only one I managed to obtain. Blurry, but it leaves zero doubt as to the bird's identity:

Most literature indicates that they are rarely seen on the ground, but given the limited optimal foraging substrate in this location, I don't think the bird had much choice!

When "Finding Birds in Southeastern Arizona" was updated 2 years ago, there were about 35 total records for this bird in the region.

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

Literature cited:
Greenberg, R. 1987. Seasonal foraging specialization in the Worm-eating Warbler. Condor 89:158-168.

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

Bosque del Apache, New Mexico - SUNGREBE

2008-11-18T10:29:00.005-07:00

This photo of a Sungrebe (Heliornis fulica) was taken by Sally King on Thursday, November 13, 2008 at Bosque del Apache NWR; Steve Fettig helped Sally with the ID. The bird was still present in the same place on the Marsh Loop, per Jerry Oldenettel on November 18.

While it seems highly unlikely that this relatively sedentary bird could have made the incredible journey north from central/southern Mexico, anything's possible! I won't theorize as to whether this is a ridiculously rare vagrant (it would be a first U.S. record) or just an unusual escapee, but either way here's the picture... And regardless, many thanks to Sally for getting this sighting out there!

Fort Lowell Park, 26 October 2008

2008-10-26T19:46:00.004-07:00

Nothing fantastically out of the ordinary today, but I did find a few enjoyable birds for this relatively mid-town location. I did, however, get to play around with my Canon Powershot S5 - a neat little toy for documentation, but don't plan on getting magazine cover-quality out of it...

Try as I might, I couldn't make any of the Red-naped Sapsuckers into anything more rare (i.e. Yellow-bellied). Note the reddish coloration in the nape of the bird in the first shot, coupled with the whitish markings in basically two rows down the back. In the second photo, you can see the indistinct black border separating the red throat from the white feathers sweeping down from the bill. In combination, these features are quite distinctive of Red-naped.

At the far northeastern corner of the park, past at a neat little water feature and a large cottonwood that held one Black-throated Gray Warbler, I meandered down to the edge of the Rillito River and found a few delightful Rufous-winged Sparrows.

It always amazes me how they manager to get their little feet in between the cholla thorns! Actually, it's amazing how these desert birds manage to navigate spiny cacti at all...

Anyway, just another day birding central Tucson!

Cheers,
John Yerger
Senior Guide, Adventure Birding Co.

Long-tailed Jaeger: Lake Havasu 24 September 2008

2008-09-27T10:24:00.012-07:00

Well, they may not be the best jaeger photos, but we feel it is almost always helpful to have photos to discuss and learn from, regardless of quality.

These distant, blurry but identifiable photographs were obtained by Jake Mohlmann about 3:00-3:30PM on 24 September 2008 from Site 6 at Lake Havasu. Fortunately for us and for Lauren Harter (the original finder of the bird), this jaeger species at this age in this color morph is relatively easy to identify. I emphasize relatively because jaegers are almost never "easy" to identify - except, perhaps, in perfect adult breeding plumage. I'll let the literature do the talking for our first image.

Ocean Birds of the Nearshore Pacific, Rich Stallcup (1990):

"Unlike the other two species, some juvenile Long-taileds are pale-headed...The dorsal light grayness, contrasting a black trailing edge to the wing, is indicative of Long-tailed Jaeger for young as well as adult birds."

Blurry though it may be, a dark trailing edge to the wing is discernible on the above bird (click to enlarge it). While the front half of the bird may be slightly washed out due to lighting conditions, the pale head is still quite obvious. That may look like a collar on the side of the neck, but it's not well-defined or dark (as it should be in other jaeger species). Check out The Sibley Guide's illustration of light immature Long-tailed Jaeger to see what I mean.

This isn't a fantastically useful shot, but at least it shows the contrast of the pale head to darker upperparts again.

If you were still scratching your head (why isn't this just a wonky gull of some kind?) check out the above picture confirming the whitish-based flight feathers classic on virtually all plumages of all 3 species of jaegers. Normally those pale bases to the primaries are not so conspicuous from the upperwing - that's more of a Skua feature - but the light shining through from the underwing is playing tricks on us. Now here you have to use your imagination a bit, but if you inspect the pictures very very VERY closely, you can just barely make out a white feather shaft or two on the leading primaries...really. Maybe squint and tilt your head a little... Ok, maybe you can't see it here, but we were pretty sure we could see it in the field!

I like this one because even though the whitish primary shafts/feathers are heavily blurred due to wing (and camera?) motion, it still shows how limited the white is. Not necessarily a 100% reliable mark, but very little is 100% when it comes to jaegers. A combination of factors is necessary to clinch an ID. Anyway, Long-tailed Jaegers show no more than 2 white primary shafts (note: NOT the primaries themselves, the actual feather shafts); Parasitic, the most likely candidate for confusion, shows 3-5. Interestingly, though the uppertail coverts were barred black-and-white, the white seems to come through more than anything else on these flight shots.

That's all we have on our end, but you can check out Lauren Harter's photos of the bird sitting on the water (note the strongly black-and-white barred undertail). Also, this bird from Kentucky looks virtually identical to the one we saw. The KY bird is really interesting because much like our bird, there are a few confusing marks that, when considered in isolation, could be construed as indicative of a different species. When taken in combination, however, the ID becomes clearer.

One more interesting link: http://www.idahobirds.net/identification/ltjaeger.html. (If you were wondering about the big white patch underneath the wing in our 4th picture, check out the underbody images on this page.)

Hopefully someone else can come up with clearer, more diagnostic photos, but these will have to suffice for now. We're not finished checking references yet, so if we come up with any more enlightening pointers on these pics, we'll be sure to update!

John Yerger

The Santa Cruz River at Tumacacori and Corona De Tucson Sewage Treatment Plant 26 September 2008

2008-09-26T14:35:00.012-07:00

Ahh, nothing like sanitized effluent (perhaps less-than-sanitized since some of the water flowing in the Santa Cruz River at Tumacacori comes from Nogales, Sonora and may be untreated) to nurture a lush riparian corridor filled with towering Fremont Cottonwoods and Gooding's Willows. Add Netleaf Hackberry, mesquites and scattered weedy fields, and you have all the components needed for breeding species and migrants galore. Jake Mohlmann and I enjoyed a cool morning here today, and even dodged light sprinkles en-route. We explored the river from the Santa Gertrudis Lane crossing north to the Tumacacori National Historic Park along the Juan Bautista de Anza Trail.

Migrants were present, but in modest numbers this morning. We encountered several mixed-species flocks that included Bridled Titmice, White-breasted Nuthatches, Bell's, Warbling, and Plumbeous Vireos, as well as several species of warblers, Lucy's, Nashville, Orange-crowned, MacGillivray's Common Yellowthroat, Wilson's, and Yellow-breasted Chats amongst them. Summer Tanagers sputtered around us, with migrant Western Tanagers, Black-headed Grosbeaks and Pacific-slopped Flycatchers making known their presence. Gray Hawks seemed to be omni-present due to their vocal nature. A weedy field near where the lane crosses the river produced many Lazuli Bunting, A couple Varied Buntings, Blue Grosbeaks, White-crowned Sparrows and this gem photographed by Jake Mohlmann:

It has been a good year for Painted Bunting is southeast Arizona, and it is always nice to see an adult male of this species!

Walking north along the river, we noted a few more small mixed flocks, but there was no sign of the Red-eyed Vireo, Northern Waterthrush and Northern Parula that Adam and I observed here a week or so ago. Things really keep moving during migration!

From the MAPS station, we hiked away from the river to cover the mesquite bosque that leads towards the historic park. Green-tailed Towhees and Rufous-winged Sparrows made themselves known vocally, both in full-song. As we rounded the sharp right turn in the trail (when coming from the river) where the kiosk with information on the park and its natural history is located, we came upon a Black-capped Gnatcatcher, still rare, but seemingly increasing in southeast Arizona. The bird vocalized several times-- a strange mewing, sometimes described as slightly demonic-- the most diagnostic characteristic when in basic plumage. I managed to get a few poor-quality documentation shoots of this rare and sprightly species, more common just south of the U.S.-Mexico border.

After returning to the car, we checked the fields south of Tumacacori. Small pools of standing water were present in a few spots and held White-faced Ibises, Killdeers and a Single American Pipit.

The water levels at Corona de Tucson Sewage Ponds were fantastic for migrant shorebirds, though for how much longer it is uncertain, as the two lowest ponds are not going to be in use and are slowly evaporating. Get there now while the habitat remains! Several sharp juvenile Baird's Sandpipers adorned the ponds, out-sizing the Least and Westerns around them. Over half a dozen Pectoral Sandpipers were present; we tried in vain to find that mega Sharp-tailed Sand. Several Solitary Sandpipers were not so solitary, loosely associating in one of the muddy basins. A single Red-necked Phalarope was present, as were a few species of common ducks including Northern Pintail, and an Eared Grebe. A great day with much thanks to effluent!

Good Birding,

Keith Kamper

Senior Guide for Adventure Birding Company

www.adventurebirding.com

California Gulch on the 4th of July, 2008

2008-07-08T14:16:00.000-07:00

Because it is such a long drive from almost anywhere, many folks head for California Gulch in the late afternoon to maximize the potential for rare residents here; namely Five-striped Sparrow and Buff-collared Nightjar. Our focus on the morning of July 4th did not include the Nightjar, so we opted to head down in the morning for higher bird activity. In addition to the birds, of course, there is always plenty of good scenery in this corner of the world!

A view from the southern end of the Gulch, looking north.

We even ran into a couple of herps:

A Canyon Treefrog (Hyla arenicolor) blending in well amongst the rocks.

An Elegant Earless Lizard (Holbrookia elegans) scurrying amongst the sparse grass.

Our main mission was a serious attempt to track down a reported (but as yet undocumented) Plain-capped Starthroat, a VERY rare hummingbird - even in this land of rarities. We went through the morning with no sign of it, but we did find a few other species that I dare not insult by calling them "consolation prizes."

We also found something very interesting instead: a strange female Broad-billed Hummingbird that not only showed a white supercilium, but also a hint of white striping which framed the lower side of the auriculars, complete with darkish-colored throat (pollen). While this discovery certainly does not negate the previously reported Starthroat, it does indicate that caution should be used when identifying hummingbirds in the Gulch. We also learned that bringing feeders, even for just a morning of birding, can attract at least some attention from hummingbirds in the area. In 4 .5 hours spent in the Gulch, we noticed no other hummers besides that female Broad-billed, which particularly liked our feeder.

We did, however, track down this little guy:

A beautiful male Black-capped Gnatcatcher! A female was following closely behind him, though we didn't obtain a photo of her. These pictures were very difficult to obtain, as the subject was almost directly above our heads at a neck-wrenching height. I'm impressed that Keith managed any photos at all! Keith also recorded a half-minute or so of vocalizations which will be useful in documenting this occurrence. I believe that Dave Stejskal, Jerry Bock, and Mark Stevenson found what is almost certainly the same bird 2 weeks prior to us, in about the same area.

This fellow and many others like him were in full song throughout our visit:

He didn't afford the greatest angle for a picture, but this view is neat because you can actually see all 5 white stripes of the Five-striped Sparrow (Aimophila quinquestriata). After the monsoons begin in southeastern Arizona, these sparrows become very vocal and much easier to find. While they are quite common in the appropriate habitat throughout western Mexico, the only two places you can currently find them north of the U.S. border are California Gulch and Sycamore Canyon. (They are probably more numerous in Sycamore Canyon, but this requires a 9-10 mile round trip hike...needless to say, most folks opt for the Gulch. However, if you are fit enough, I strongly advocate birding and hiking Sycamore Canyon. It's both beautiful and bird-filled!)

My personal favorite, however, was this spectacular Montezuma Quail (Cyrtonyx montezumae):

This entertaining male and his duller-colored mate entertained us for at least five minutes, scratching at the gravel in front of our car and generally showing off. While they can be very difficult to spot initially (they hunker down in grass taller than themselves), they are often easy to observe if you can manage to find them. We just got lucky; they were sitting on the road as we drove into California Gulch! All in all, a 4th of July morning well spent.

Cheers,
John Yerger

Monsoons! Well, almost... 25 June 2008

2008-06-26T07:31:00.000-07:00

Happy days are here again! The monsoons have arrived! Well, technically; sort of; not really - take your pick, depending on your version of the definition for "monsoon."

I heard on the local news recently that the "official" start of the monsoon season in Arizona has now been "set" as June 15 each year. That's new, however, and I don't like it. The monsoons aren't really a season as defined by equinoxes and whatnot. No, the monsoons are the result of an annual, large-scale shift in wind patterns, bringing moist tropical air north from Mexico. And just like any other defined weather phenomenon, why take the science out of it?

The old definition: when the dewpoint remains above 54ºF for 3 consecutive days, the monsoons have started. Monsoon-style thunderstorms become semi-regular before those 3 days pass, but at least something measurable like a dewpoint convinces us that the rains are finally here to stay.

Regardless of the technical definition, my own personal excitement peaks when I see this:

Big, dark clouds building over Tucson! This picture was taken from my roof in central Tucson, looking east towards the Rincon Mountains (7AM on June 25).

AND...

RAIN!! Reaching down from the sky and touching the Tucson Mountains, at the western edge of the city (7PM, same day).

I live for the monsoons each year, so needless to say I get all riled up whenever I see the first real signs of the season approaching. The North American Monsoon heralds a kind of "second spring" in southeastern Arizona. Now is when many grassland sparrows and other desert and semi-desert birds will breed again, and many will breed for the first time this year (Botteri's and Cassin's Sparrows being a good example). Every plant returns to a vibrant shade of green; reptiles, amphibians, and some mammals emerge from their burrows; birds sing anew. All of our flora and fuana wait expectantly for this each year, and I completely understand. :)

Bring on the rain!
John Yerger

P.S. - In case you're interested, NOAA has a monsoon website packed with enough info to satisfy the weather nerd in all of us: http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/twc/monsoon/dewpoint_tracker.php.

A morning in Madera - 22 June 2008

2008-06-22T22:09:00.000-07:00

Morgan Jackson and I enjoyed a fine, cool early morning on the Vault Mine Trail in Madera Canyon. The most interesting non-bird sighting of the day, unarguably, was a black bear meandering along just uphill from the old mining equipment. This was very near where we watched families of HUTTON'S VIREOS, BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAKS, and YELLOW-EYED JUNCOS coming down to drink and bathe in a few little puddles created by a natural seep, so perhaps the bear wanted a drink, too...

On our way back down, just below the junction of the Carrie Nation Trail, we had no less than 4 ELEGANT TROGONS and a SULPHUR-BELLIED FLYCATCHER. Several active families of PAINTED REDSTARTS were enjoyable as well.

In the rarities department, we ran into Laurens Halsey at Madera Kubo and joined him to verify that there are 2 different BERYLLINE HUMMINGBIRDS coming in to the feeders by the store! Looks like one male and one female - exciting stuff. Laurens managed a few photos, available on the AZFO website at http://www.azfo.org/gallery/BEHU_Madera_Halsey_20080622.html.

We personally missed the WHITE-EARED HUMMINGBIRD(S), but Darlene Smyth and crew saw them earlier in the morning. The FLAME-COLORED TANAGER serenaded us and popped in for a visit to the oranges stuck on the wire fence, as well as the metal flower-shaped feeder just left of the dry stream. ARIZONA WOODPECKERS delighted as well, working their way up an oak about 5-10 feet from our heads, and later feeding a nearly independent fledgling. Laurens mentioned that VARIED BUNTINGS were thick at Proctor Rd this morning.

Photo highlights:

Fine specimen of a male Flame-colored Tanager (Piranga bidentata), single and lookin' for the ladies. Unfortunately, there don't appear to be any female Flames in the area... In the past, this bird has paired with a female Western Tanager (Piranga ludoviciana), which definitely leads to confusing progeny.

Ah, the temptation of the orange. The best part about this shot is that the tanager is a more intense orange than the fruit itself!

Arizona Woodpecker (Picoides arizonae), one of my own personal favorites.

In case you're wondering, Strickland's Woodpecker was split into two species a few years back. The woodpecker that is actually still called "Strickland's" (Picoides stricklandi) is only found in a very restricted range in the state of Mexico (yes, the state of Mexico in the country of Mexico) through central Veracruz. Oddly, the range of the Arizona Woodpecker only just reaches Arizona; it is found well south, into eastern Michoacan - abutting the range of its congener.

A parting shot: looking back up Madera Canyon, hoping those clouds pile up into regular monsoon thunderstorms. Soon enough!

Good birding,
John Yerger

Big Day! 14 June 2004

2008-06-22T18:09:00.000-07:00

I had the good fortune to be joined by Gavin Bieber and Jerry Bock on a lengthy Big Day last week. We were semi-foolhardy in our attempt to beat the June Big Day record for AZ (set by Rich Hoyer, Keith Kamper, and Jake Mohlmann in 2006), but we saw lots of great birds in the process. Jerry is lucky enough to tout this as his personal best 24-hour species total! Gavin and I have also never seen this many birds in a single June day in AZ.

Here are a few highlights:

HUACHUCAS
Lucifer Hummingbird - rare anywhere in Arizona, but a few pairs nest each year in Ash Canyon, and visit the feeders at Ash Canyon Bed & Breakfast
Buff-breasted Flycatcher - plenty of very vocal birds at Reef Townsite in Carr Canyon

WILLCOX:
Blue-winged Teal - listed as "casual" in June in the Tucson Audubon Society "Finding Birds in Southeast Arizona"
Green-winged Teal - casual in June [actually at Benson Sewage Ponds - oops]
Northern Pintail - continuing female (casual in June)
Redhead - 2 still present (rare in June)
American White Pelican - also still 2 present (casual in June)
Greater Yellowlegs - 1 still mostly in alternate plumage. Returning already? (casual in June)
Long-billed Dowitcher - accidental in June
Wilson's Phalarope - rare in June

PATAGONIA:
Osprey - a big surprise, tearing apart a prey item on a telephone pole in the wash just east of the store at Patagonia Lake (casual in June)
Violet-crowned Hummingbird - expected, but always nice (Paton's yard, photo below)
Thick-billed Kingbird - almost missed this one, heard calling just before we left the Roadside Rest Area

TUBAC:
ORIOLES - a 4 Oriole day! We wrapped up the day at the back of the Tubac Golf Course with the continuing BALTIMORE ORIOLE, a great way to finish. There are only a handful of records from this corner of the country.

We saw 154 species between 12AM and 8PM. This left us 16 species shy of Rich/Keith/Jake's total of 171, a nearly impossible gap to close at 8PM. We did better than expected with ducks, but not as well as we could have with owls and many other species - even passerines! My impression was that there was not as much singing activity in Carr Canyon or the San Pedro River as I normally expect for this time of year at the times of day we visited them.

With an excessive amount of scouting and nest-finding, a June Big Day total approaching 190 or even 200 is not out of the question. There are several really good options for routes, as Arizona's breeding diversity is very high - especially for a land-locked state. The best time would obviously be in the beginning of the month when birds are singing more, or towards the end of the month when a few shorebirds and other very early migrants are starting to trickle south.

The best part about the day? We ALMOST missed European Starling! (Almost...)

Below I've included a few photo highlights from our day:

The glow of Tucson from Windy Point Vista, on the Catalina Highway (about 3AM).

A distant panorama of the Huachuca Mountains, as seen from the San Pedro House (9AM).

The San Pedro River - only a trickle in June, but just wait until July...

Always a treat, the easiest place in the U.S. to find Violet-crowned Hummingbird (Amazilia violiceps) is in Marion Paton's yard in Patagonia. Thanks for keeping those feeders full, Mrs. Paton! (About 3:30PM)

Botteri's Sparrow (Aimophila botterii) isn't really singing much this time of year, but this fellow obliged nicely by perching out in the open on a desert broom (Baccharis sarothroides), about 15 feet from us! (About 4:30PM)

Good birding,
John Yerger

Peppersauce Canyon, 7 June 2008

2008-06-07T16:34:00.000-07:00

This morning a small group of us (myself, Morgan Jackson, and Doug Jenness) ventured into Peppersauce Canyon, hoping to track down a Gray Vireo I had heard on the North American Migration Count a few weeks before. We were hoping to find breeding evidence in the area, but saw neither hide nor tail of a Gray Vireo the whole morning. We were still pretty glad we went though, because en route to the Vireo habitat we found an even better bird - a male SCARLET TANAGER!

Needless to say, this was a state bird for everyone in the group. Credit goes to Morgan for spotting the bird, about 20 feet away from us wide out in the open. Naturally, because Doug and I were looking in another direction, and I had to throw down my backpack to rapidly fumble for my camera, it immediately became less visible. As a result, the photos are painfully poor, but fortunately diagnostic:

This picture just shows a bright red bird with a solid black wing (though you can see a hint of the light bill, and no distinctive markings anywhere besides this stark color difference).

Even worse quality, but you can see that there are no markings on the face.

Looking around for insects? Here you can see a broad, pale bill angled towards the camera. The whitish color on the wing is just an artifact of the lighting. The yellowish tinge to the breast might be a lighting artifact, but it might also be a few molting body feathers. This bird seemed to have just a few yellow feathers here and there on the face, so perhaps it is 99% finished molting into this plumage?

Scarlet Tanager (Piranga olivacea) is an Arizona Bird Comittee review species, so we'll be submitting documentation. According to Tucson Audubon Society's "Finding Birds in Southeast Arizona (2007)," there are about 20 records in all of this species in SE AZ.

Also in the canyon today, we found a late-ish Olive-sided Flycatcher (Contopus cooperi). Per the same book, this bird is "rare" in June in SE AZ:

Perched, classically, in the branch of a snag.

Once we got past the sycamore-laden stretch of the canyon and into the prime oak-juniper habitat, we started systematically searching for any sign of a Gray Vireo (Vireo vicinior). Instead, we enjoyed great looks at a more common bird in this habitat, Black-chinned Sparrow (Spizella atrogularis). Bear in mind I'm only using a Canon Powershot S5, and the image stabilization isn't that great...but it does the trick most times:

And the habitat:

Fortunately we decided to press on for just a bit longer, and came across another large drainage with plenty of trees, mostly Emory Oak and Silver-leaf Oak, but also some ash. We were richly rewarded with a fantastic animal sighting:

Coatimundi!

What total luck! Thoroughly pleased with our morning, we headed for the car around noon. We stopped for about 20 minutes at the Scarlet Tanager spot hoping for a better photo or even just a second appearance, but nada. It might still be there, though, so good luck if you go for it!

John Yerger
Tucson, AZ

Durango Highway and Tufted Jay Preserve, 7-12 April 2008

2008-05-21T13:33:00.000-07:00

After 15-18 hours or so of the hair-raising fun that constitutes driving in Mexico (no really, we actually have a lot of fun driving in Mexico), Jake Mohlmann and I were ready to see some really great birds! Fortunately, several days on the Durango Highway and the Tufted Jay Preserve did not disappoint. We were scheduled to meet up with Stanley Doctor for a 4-5 day quest for that perfect Tufted Jay picture, so we decided to scout a day or two beforehand. Our goal: figure out a way to get the often elusive Tufted Jay to pose for a photo shoot...

Our slow cruise up the non-stop curves of the Durango Highway from Villa Union (just outside of Mazatlan) to El Palmito was both birdy and scenic - and filled with Doble Remolques (double tractor trailers) around every bend! But as a passenger, you have time to enjoy the view.

We made it to the Preserve just after dark, and promptly set up camp. Before we could get to sleep, though, Jake's headlamp caught some eyeshine nearby. Our first Preserve sighting! This shot took some careful creeping and some team effort (Jake armed with the camera, I with the spotlight):

Mexican Whip-poor-will!

After a pleasant night of car-camping, we awoke to a smorgasbord of Sierra Madrean specialties: a veritable symphony of Brown-backed Solitaires; Painted and Slate-throated Redstarts mixed with migrant Townsend's and Hermit Warblers, dripping from the pines; Blue-hooded Euphonias pausing briefly in the oaks above our heads - all before we could even get the coffee going. But the really big surprise came just as we were cleaning up from breakfast - a single Tufted Jay!

The Tufted Jay (Cyanocorax dickeyi), or "Chara Pinta" en Español, is highly endemic to a very small region in western Mexico where the states of Sinaloa, Nayarit, and Durango meet. Part of this strict endemism is no doubt due to their cooperative breeding behavior. Further research is needed, but Tufted Jays apparently form small flocks in which only a single female nests and lays eggs, while the rest of the individuals in that flock simply help. This probably ensures a high rate of survival for the young, but naturally not many young are born as a result.

Perhaps it is for this reason they are sometimes so difficult to see well - the picture above is not very clear, but depicts a classic experience: Tufted Jay not quite out in the open. They are forever peering out from behind the branches. This bird disappeared down the steep hill below us, reappearing moments later with a very large katydid, disappearing once more to some unseen nest where begging young likely awaited. We began to think that our quest might be more difficult than first envisioned...

Either way, the views and the birds were spectacular! Below are a few images from our trip with Stan.

The so-called Devil's Backbone, the ridge to the east of Barranca Rancho Liebre (more properly known as Barranca San Diego?) Gazing upon this kind of terrain, you have to appreciate the hard work done by early ornithologists in this region - before there was anything remotely like the Durango Highway to get them there. This may be one reason the Tufted Jay remained unknown to science until 1935.

The view of the Barranca from the same overlook, looking north.

A pretty little Slate-throated Redstart (aka Slate-throated Whitestart, Myioborus miniatus). These birds are common throughout the area, but getting a good picture of them can be bedeveling at times!

An Ivory-billed Woodcreeper (Xiphorhynchus flavigaster), one of my personal favorites. Their song is strikingly similar to the familiar Canyon Wren I hear all the time in Arizona, but has a very different quality to it.

I wasn't personally around to see this one, but Jake captured this fascinating Odonate so that we could ID it later. It's about the length of your hand! With the help of Rich Hoyer, we subsequently identified this damselfly as Mesistogaster ornata.

A flight shot, which cannot capture how ethereal it appeared, floating through the forest.

Finally, with much patience....

(Jake, borrowing Stan's camera to show us how he operates)

We had success at last!

Above is the image Jake captured, after waiting for quite a long time in the same spot - the same method, in fact, by which he obtained most of his other pictures. By sitting still, the Jays don't often come to you; but when they do, the outcome is phenomenal. Stan's pictures came out far better than ours, of course, so we'll probably post those at a later date.

After getting some "killer" photos of a truly spectacular bird like the Tufted Jay, one would think we could call it quits. On the way back down the Durango Highway, though, how could we resist stopping for some birding at Panuco Road? This road yielded many fantastic birds, only a few of which we managed to photograph. One such prize was this Colima Pygmy-Owl, distant but easily found by following the Blue Mockingbird and other passerines that were mobbing him!

The final treat was a bird that seems to be quite difficult to photograph at this location. Jake pulled off a quick shot as they were flying overhead:

Military Macaws! Small groups of these raucous birds, which can be surprisingly hard to pin down, flew by us at semi-regular intervals while we were enjoying Golden-crowned Emeralds, Orange-fronted Parakeets, Mexican Parrotlet, Happy Wren, Rufous-capped Warbler, Streak-backed Oriole, Scrub Euphonias, and many others.

Last but not least, we had to throw in a humorous non-birding photo:

Why hitch a ride when you can just hitch yourself to the ride? We couldn't resist snapping a quick candid of some mountain-town ingenuity!

Always fun times and good birding in Mexico!
John Yerger