Species List

Stuart Healy Journal - March, 2003 If you use the contents of my journal for commercial purposes, please acknowledge the source to your clients - thanks.

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This log is in chronological order and the most recent entries are at the bottom of the page.
The last update was on Sunday, March 30, 2003.

Saturday, March 1, 2003    Previous Day    Next Day
Out today with Junece and Dixon Markham from Provo, UT. We put in a long (almost 14 hour) and largely unsuccessful day looking for four target species. The fact that our targets (Whiskered Screech-Owl, Rufous-capped Warbler, Chestnut-collared Longspur and Rufous-winged Sparrow) were in widely scattered locations didn't help the cause. Although we located all four species, we saw only two of them well and missed out completely on the most important bird. Conditions were cool, cloudy and blustery for much of the day.

The day began well enough  -- we left town at 5:00am and headed into the Huachucas where we enjoyed great looks at a very cooperative WHISKERED SCREECH-OWL in no time at all. Unfortunately, we couldn't keep that momentum going for the rest of the day. 

French Joe Canyon was the next destination and following my results there yesterday I was quite confident about the warblers. After six hours in the canyon (gate to gate) my optimism proved totally unfounded. Although I heard a RUFOUS-CAPPED WARBLER call briefly at 9:20am (at which time I saw it fly across canyon), the bird disappeared and didn't call again so we were unable to track it. A bird sang briefly from the same general location at 10:45am but again, despite much effort, I was unable to locate it. I recorded 22 regular species in the canyon including WESTERN SCRUB-JAY, CANYON WREN, SPOTTED TOWHEE and RUFOUS-CROWNED, BLACK-THROATED & BLACK-CHINNED SPARROWS.

After a long drive to the west side of the Santa Rita Mountains, we were soon able to find RUFOUS-WINGED SPARROW and enjoyed several scope looks at a few individuals.

Another long drive put us in the San Rafael Valley, unfortunately at the wrong end of the day. Even though we found a huge flock of CHESTNUT-COLLARED LONGSPURS, they were simply too far away to be useful. A few close fly-bys were also less than satisfying. Despite the late hour, activity at the south corral was quite high and we saw over 20 species at this location including PEREGRINE FALCON, GREATER ROADRUNNER, 12+ SCALED QUAIL (first time that I've seen them here), VERMILION FLYCATCHER and the usual larks and sparrows.

Sunday, March 2, 2003    Previous Day    Next Day
Out today with Warren and Marie Mendenhall from Bourg, LA. Despite some crazy weather, we enjoyed excellent birding in the Patagonia area. The day began partly cloudy and very mild with zero wind. By 12:30pm a strong weather front hit us while birding at the Paton's; bringing wind, rain and a dramatic temperature drop. Driving home through the Sonoita grasslands on highway 82, I encountered a severe (and thankfully short lived) hail storm. Back in Sierra Vista it was still sunny, albeit a little cold. Like I said, crazy weather. 

We began birding at the west end of Patagonia Lake where the water was glassy calm. The continuing COMMON LOON was easy to see despite the distance but we missed the Common Goldeneye (seen later by others). Also here were a large raft of EARED GREBES, CINNAMON TEAL, BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERON and the usual ducky suspects. We also had several fly-bys from a BALD EAGLE.

A single BLACK VULTURE was perched near the vehicle as we left to go to the other end of the lake. They typically return to the state park (from far away Nogales!) around the third week in March; and apart from a single sighting here in January, this is my earliest return date by 2 days (previous was March 4, 2002).

Several hours of birding at the east end of the lake were very productive (over 60 species recorded) and very pleasant. Apart from a little effort along the creek trail looking for the wintering trogon (not seen, but seen later by others), we didn't look for anything in particular. Our reward for all this casualness was a serendipitous sighting of male and female BLACK-CAPPED GNATCATCHERS, initially found foraging very close to the ground. True to form, a HUTTON'S VIREO was nearby. The birds were trailside, working the mesquite at the head of the second wash around 10:15am.  

There was a definite feel of spring along the trail this morning. Leaf out is well advanced on many of the willows and there were lots of singing BEWICK'S WRENS and BRIDLED TITMICE. It won't be long now until the first Bell's Vireos and Lucy's and Yellow Warblers arrive (perhaps by the end of this week). VERMILION FLYCATCHERS are now common; other flycatchers today were all three PHOEBES, one HAMMOND'S, numerous DUSKY, a few GRAY and a heard only ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER. Four species of swallows (TREE, VIOLET-GREEN, N. ROUGH-WINGED & CLIFF) worked over the lake along with many WHITE-THROATED SWIFTS. Appropriately enough, a single TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE continues. 

Along the marsh edge we noted numerous singing MARSH WRENS, lots of LINCOLN'S and SONG SPARROWS and a lone SWAMP SPARROW. All rails, snipe and pipits eluded us. Out on the water were scads of COMMON MERGANSERS, a few LESSER SCAUP, BUFFLEHEAD and the usual NEOTROPIC CORMORANTS.

A 90 minute session at the Paton's was also very productive and enjoyable before the weather finally put an end to the fun. Highlights from 35 species included the continuing HARLAN'S HAWK, VIOLET-CROWNED HUMMINGBIRD, a stunning VERMILION FLYCATCHER, WHITE-THROATED SPARROW (initially spotted briefly by Marie and later seen again thanks to Cliff Cathers), a couple of male LAZULI BUNTINGS (one approaching breeding plumage), AMERICAN GOLDFINCH and CASSIN'S FINCH.

Day list (81 species recorded):
Pied-billed & Eared Grebes, Neotropic Cormorant, Ruddy Duck, Gadwall, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Lesser Scaup, Bufflehead, Common Merganser, Great Blue Heron, Black-crowned Night-Heron, Black Vulture, Bald Eagle, N. Harrier, Red-tailed Hawk, Am. Kestrel, Gambel's Quail, Am. Coot, Common Loon, Rock, Mourning, White-winged & Inca Doves, White-throated Swift, Violet-crowned & Anna's Hummingbirds, Acorn, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, Eastern, Say's & Black Phoebes, Hammond's, Gray, Dusky, Vermilion and Ash-throated Flycatchers, Mexican Jay, Common Raven, Hutton's Vireo, Phainopepla, Townsend's Solitaire, Hermit Thrush, N. Mockingbird, Curve-billed Thrasher, European Starling, White-breasted Nuthatch, Cactus, Marsh, Bewick's & House Wrens, Verdin, Black-capped Gnatcatcher, Tree, Violet-green, N. Rough-winged & Cliff Swallows, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Bridled Titmouse, House Sparrow, American & Lesser Goldfinches, Cassin's & House Finches, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Song, Lincoln's, Swamp, White-crowned, White-throated & Chipping Sparrows, Canyon & Abert's Towhees, N. Cardinal, Pyrrhuloxia, Lazuli Bunting, Red-winged Blackbird and Great-tailed Grackle.

Monday, March 3, 2003    Previous Day    Next Day
First of two days with Roger and Jean Leed from Seattle, WA. Yesterday's nasty weather passed through quickly and today was much improved, although far from great. Temperature ranged from 27 to 58 degrees with some thin clouds and a light breeze. We birded at Patagonia Lake State Park, Kino Springs and the Paton's.

Birding at Patagonia Lake wasn't quite as productive today and even though I recorded 14 species that I didn't see there yesterday, overall activity seemed much less (unless you count people, of which there were plenty). I also managed to miss 11 species that I saw yesterday and again ended up with a total in the mid 60s.

Unlike yesterday, I had to work for the pair of BLACK-CAPPED GNATCATCHERS in two sessions. Around 11:00am, I checked BRIDLED TITMOUSE activity for the umpteenth time and finally heard the gnatcatchers calling to each other as they foraged high in a mesquite. One bird was giving its rather harsh call, reminiscent of a Hutton's Vireo, while the other gave the "normal" mewing sound. They were in a fairly dense section of the mesquite bosque in the northeast corner (at the other side of the lake compared to yesterday).  We were able to get a dozen or so other birders on the birds and we stayed with them for a few minutes.

In between gnatcatcher searches we spent some time along the creek looking unsuccessfully for the Trogon. However, I later learned that we gave up a little too early because the bird was seen around 11:00am. 

After missing it yesterday, the west end of the lake produced the continuing COMMON GOLDENEYE, a first for me in SE AZ in March. (Although they are common to the west along the Colorado, they are scarce in the southeast part of the state.) Also present was a flock of 10 AMERICAN WHITE PELICANS. 

At Kino Springs we spent an hour looking for Lawrence's Goldfinch without success. Birding here was quiet between noon and 1:00pm.

Early afternoon activity in the Paton's yard was again high and the birding was productive with over 30 species. Many of the same birds as yesterday were present including at least 2 VIOLET-CROWNED HUMMINGBIRDS, WHITE-THROATED SPARROW, CASSIN'S FINCH and ABERT'S TOWHEE. Among the species not seen yesterday were the SHARP-SHINNED HAWK that has been around all winter, a male BROAD-BILLED HUMMINGBIRD, BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER and GREEN-TAILED TOWHEE. 

Day list (83 species recorded):
Pied-billed & Eared Grebes, Neotropic & Double-crested Cormorants, Am. White Pelican, Ruddy Duck, Am. Wigeon, Gadwall, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Ring-necked Duck, Lesser Scaup, Common Goldeneye, Bufflehead, Common Merganser, Great Blue Heron, Turkey Vulture, Sharp-shinned & Red-tailed Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Virginia Rail, Am. Coot, Wilson's Snipe, Rock, Mourning, White-winged & Inca Doves, White-throated Swift, Broad-billed, Violet-crowned & Anna's Hummingbirds, Red-naped Sapsucker, Acorn, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Say's & Black  Phoebes, Gray, Dusky, Vermilion & Ash-throated Flycatchers, Common Raven, Phainopepla, Hermit Thrush, Am. Robin, N. Mockingbird, Curve-billed Thrasher, European Starling, White-breasted Nuthatch, Marsh, Bewick's & House Wrens, Verdin, Blue-gray & Black-capped Gnatcatchers, Bushtit, Tree, N. Rough-winged & Cliff Swallows, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Bridled Titmouse, House Sparrow, American & Lesser Goldfinches, Cassin's & House Finches, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Song, Lincoln's, Swamp, White-crowned, White-throated & Chipping Sparrows, Green-tailed & Abert's Towhees, N. Cardinal, Lazuli Bunting, Red-winged Blackbird and Great-tailed Grackle.

Tuesday, March 4, 2003    Previous Day    Next Day
Out again today with Roger and Jean. The first completely blue sky day for some time and much warmer than yesterday. This was just as well because we spent the morning in Sulphur Springs Valley where it was very windy.

We began working the Coffman-Lee-Central area looking for thrashers and found CURVE-BILLED, BENDIRE'S and CRISSAL; the latter being particularly difficult today. We didn't see a single Sage Thrasher in an area where I've seen as many as 6 this winter, so perhaps they've already headed north. 

Other species here included GREATER ROADRUNNER, SCALED and GAMBEL'S QUAIL, BLACK-TAILED GNATCATCHER and BEWICK'S WREN (both are quite scarce in the valley, especially the gnatcatcher), lots of LARK BUNTINGS (finally!), both EASTERN & WESTERN MEADOWLARKS and the usual sparrow species including BLACK-THROATED SPARROW. 

It was very windy at Whitewater Draw and an hour there turned up only a measly 17 species. There's some water in two of the impoundments but elsewhere it's down to just a puddle or two. Consequently, ducks are staying away in droves and we noted only 12 CINNAMON TEAL and an AMERICAN COOT. Waders checked in with 15 LONG-BILLED CURLEWS, 35 LEAST SANDPIPERS and a lone AMERICAN AVOCET (a breeder here). A female and two male VERMILION FLYCATCHERS were present, perhaps the same birds that hung in all winter (one male is a first year bird finally starting to fill out with red). The highlight here was a soaring GOLDEN EAGLE.

Raptors added further north in the valley included FERRUGINOUS HAWK on Central Highway and PRAIRIE FALCON on Webb Road (perhaps not coincidentally a location that always has a high concentration of doves). 

Highlights from a mid afternoon visit to the highway 90 area of the San Pedro included -- er, wait, there weren't any highlights and precious few birds at all. Even allowing for the time of day and the strong breeze, results were very poor. A walk from the San Pedro House down to the river, south along the river, a loop around the big pond and back through the field to the SP House yielded 17 species and one sparrow -- not just one species, one individual! Birds at the pond included the usual CANVASBACKS and a couple of VERMILION FLYCATCHERS. Elsewhere, the only bird of note was WHITE-THROATED SWIFT. A flock of 20+ represented only my 6th sighting on the river in 4 of the last 11 years.

Day list (61 species recorded):
Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Canvasback, Great Blue Heron, N. Harrier, Cooper's, Red-tailed & Ferruginous Hawks, Golden Eagle, Am. Kestrel, Prairie Falcon, Scaled & Gambel's Quail, Am. Coot, Long-billed Curlew, Least Sandpiper, American Avocet, Killdeer, Rock & Mourning Doves, Greater Roadrunner, White-throated Swift, Gila &  Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, Say's & Black Phoebes, Vermilion Flycatcher, Chihuahuan Raven, Loggerhead Shrike, Phainopepla, N. Mockingbird, Bendire's, Curve-billed & Crissal Thrashers, Cactus, Marsh & Bewick's Wrens, Black-tailed Gnatcatcher, Tree, N. Rough-winged & Cliff Swallows, Horned Lark, House Sparrow, Am. Pipit, House Finch, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Lark Bunting, Song, White-crowned, Savannah, Brewer's, Vesper & Black-throated Sparrows, Canyon Towhee, Yellow-headed, Red-winged Brewer's Blackbirds, Eastern & Western Meadowlarks, Great-tailed Grackle and Brown-headed Cowbird.

Wednesday, March 5, 2003    Previous Day    Next Day
A good day to be home working at the computer -- cold and cloudy with rain developing later. In fact, my brief visit to Sierra Vista EOP coincided with the start of the rain.

The only birds of note were an unusually high concentration of CHIHUAHUAN RAVENS working the fields, at least until I stopped to photograph them! YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRDS were common as usual.

I recorded the following species in an hour:
Am. Wigeon, Gadwall, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, N. Pintail, N. Shoveler, N. Harrier, Red-tailed Hawk, Am. Kestrel, Am. Coot, Say's Phoebe, Chihuahuan Raven, Marsh Wren, Song, Savannah & Vesper Sparrows and Yellow-headed Blackbird.

Thursday, March 6, 2003    Previous Day    Next Day  
For some time now, a Palm Warbler has been at Kino Springs and even though I've been there working many times during its stay, I've never managed to stumble into the bird. In fact, I've never crossed paths with this bird at all, anywhere. So, instead of staying home and working at the keyboard on stuff that needs to get done, I played hooky and headed over to Kino in search of a lifer. They seem to occur annually in Arizona but I've never looked for them before. 

Today was a  gorgeous late winter day -- clear blue sky and below freezing to start and quite warm by late morning. I started out in ice scraping mode at 6:00am but by 10:30pm the BLACK VULTURES were soaring and I was able to change into shorts. 

From 7:30-9:30am I wandered around carrying my camera looking for the warbler and trying to photograph the wintering YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER (very elusive in the pines and eucalyptus trees). I was unsuccessful with both objectives. However, as soon as I put the camera away, I immediately located the PALM WARBLER working the lowest branch of the 4th pine west of the tank near the club house. Not so often that I get a location bird (#199 at Kino), month bird, year bird, Arizona state bird and a lifer in one fell swoop! 

A singing WESTERN MEADOWLARK was the only other bird of note (I have less than 10 records here).

37 species recorded at Kino Springs (mostly around the club house) from 7:30-10:30am.
Ruddy Duck, Am. Wigeon, Great Blue Heron, Black Vulture, Red-tailed Hawk, Killdeer, Mourning Dove, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Black Phoebe, Vermilion Flycatcher, Common Raven, Hermit Thrush, N. Mockingbird, Curve-billed Thrasher, European Starling, Bewick's Wren, Verdin, N. Rough-winged Swallow, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, House Sparrow, Lesser Goldfinch, House Finch, Yellow-rumped & Palm Warblers, Song, Lincoln's, White-crowned & Chipping Sparrows, Canyon & Abert's Towhees, N. Cardinal, Red-winged Blackbird, Western Meadowlark and Great-tailed Grackle.

I spent the next 1 1/2 hours in the Paton's yard where I was quite surprised (and pleased) to have the place to myself. It was warm here and activity was very much less than on recent visits (only one species of dove!). I enjoyed the comings and goings and practiced digiscoping. Despite working somewhat against the light, I managed a decent shot of my first BULLOCK'S ORIOLE of the season; and in better light an immature WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW.

Although Bullock's Oriole occasionally overwinters, today's sighting was my earliest in SE AZ, 5 days ahead of my previous early date at Peņa Lake on March 11, 2002. 

22 species recorded in Paton's yard from 10:45am-12:15pm.
Red-tailed Hawk, Gambel's Quail, White-winged Dove, Violet-crowned & Anna's Hummingbirds, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, Vermilion Flycatcher, Common Raven, White-breasted Nuthatch, Bewick's Wren, Bridled Titmouse, House Sparrow, Lesser Goldfinch, House Finch, White-crowned & Chipping Sparrows, Green-tailed Towhee, N. Cardinal, Lazuli Bunting, Bullock's Oriole and Great-tailed Grackle.

Friday, March 7, 2003    Previous Day    Next Day
Out today with Bob and Pearl Bergad from Minneapolis, MN. Another great weather day with filtered sunshine and temperature considerably higher than yesterday, at least in the Patagonia area where we spent our time.

Even though the spring conditions have triggered the breeding activity of a number of species (notably BEWICK'S WREN, singing everywhere), overall activity at Patagonia Lake seemed low and our 4+ hour casual birding session produced just over 60 species. Conversely, birders were much in abundance.

We didn't look for the Black-capped Gnatcatchers -- they were seen around 9:30am near the first and second washes. A short session along the creek trail didn't turn up the wintering Trogon and none of the folks that we talked to had seen the bird through noon. 

The lone BLACK VULTURE continues and, right about on time, at least one TURKEY VULTURE has wandered this far east from Nogales. The NEOTROPIC CORMORANT population is approaching 40 birds. Most of the wintering waterfowl are still present, although we didn't see either the Common Goldeneye or Common Loon. No sign of the adult BALD EAGLE today, just an immature. 

Species noted today that I haven't seen or heard in recent visits were SPOTTED SANDPIPER, INCA DOVE, BELTED KINGFISHER, ROCK WREN, OREGON JUNCO and ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER. Although the warbler is normally very common at the lake in winter, they have been relatively scarce here this year (I've recorded them on only 30% of my visits). 

A quick stop at the Roadside Rest area on the way back to town produced many WHITE-THROATED SWIFTS at their traditional cliff nesting location. 

The Paton's yard was also relatively quiet. Four hummingbird species were present -- BROAD-BILLED, VIOLET-CROWNED, ANNA'S and a female BROAD-TAILED. The latter is rare here as a migrant and I only have 8 records from 5 of the last 10 years.

At least one male CASSIN'S FINCH continues and a LAZULI BUNTING made a couple of brief appearances.

Day list (74 species recorded):
Pied-billed & Eared Grebes, Neotropic & Double-crested Cormorants, Ruddy Duck, Gadwall, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Lesser Scaup, Bufflehead, Common Merganser, Great Blue & Green Herons, Black & Turkey Vultures, Bald Eagle, N. Harrier, Sharp-shinned & Red-tailed Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Gambel's Quail, Am. Coot, Spotted Sandpiper, Mourning & White-winged & Inca Doves, White-throated Swift, Broad-billed, Violet-crowned, Anna's & Broad-tailed Hummingbirds, Belted Kingfisher, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, Say's & Black Phoebes, Gray, Dusky & Vermilion Flycatchers, Common Raven, Hermit Thrush, N. Mockingbird, Curve-billed Thrasher, White-breasted Nuthatch, Rock, Marsh, Bewick's & House Wrens, Verdin, Bushtit, Tree & Violet-green Swallows, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Bridled Titmouse, House Sparrow, Am. Pipit, Lesser Goldfinch, Cassin's & House Finches, Orange-crowned & Yellow-rumped Warblers, Dark-eyed Junco, Song, Lincoln's, White-crowned & Chipping Sparrows, Canyon & Abert's Towhees, N. Cardinal, Lazuli Bunting, Red-winged Blackbird and Great-tailed Grackle.

Sunday, March 9, 2003    Previous Day    Next Day  
This morning I made a routine visit to Sawmill Canyon. This was mostly a "due diligence" visit and I didn't really expect any early arrivals, although one can always hope! The temperature has continued to climb over the past couple of days and it was warm enough for shorts even in Sawmill early this morning; becoming very warm in town by mid afternoon.

The most interesting birds in Sawmill were a few PYGMY NUTHATCHES. When I started birding here regularly, 10 years ago, they were a common breeder and continued through 1999. I had a few sightings in 2000 (not enough to indicate breeding) and none at all in 2001 and 2002. Not surprisingly then, I was pleased to see them today. Ironically, I didn't see the normally abundant White-breasted Nuthatch. BROWN CREEPER'S and BEWICK'S WRENS were in full voice. ARIZONA WOODPECKERS were completely silent.

Species recorded in Sawmill Canyon and the drive up through Garden Canyon:
Red-tailed Hawk, Mourning Dove, Acorn & Arizona Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Steller's & Mexican Jays, Hutton's Vireo, Phainopepla, N. Mockingbird, Pygmy Nuthatch, Brown Creeper, Bewick's Wren, Verdin, Bushtit, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Bridled Titmouse, Lesser Goldfinch, House Finch, Dark-eyed (Gray-headed & Oregon) and Yellow-eyed Juncos, Chipping & Vesper Sparrows and Eastern Meadowlark.

Monday, March 10, 2003    Previous Day    Next Day  
The unseasonably warm weather continued today; simply not fair this early in the season. I'll be in the field four of the next five days so I sure hope that it cools down. However, I doubt very much that it will. This morning I spent a couple of hours at Sierra Vista EOP where the temperature was already up to 80 degrees by the time that I left at 12:30pm.

Highlight was a SNOW GOOSE in the south west marsh pond, seemingly a little out of place in the warm conditions. There may also have been a Ross's Goose but the bird moved out of sight before I could confirm (damn the lousy viewing conditions). I wish I could be sure about the Ross's -- I have Snow Goose records at SVEOP through early April, but not a single Ross's beyond the end of February.

Also of note was this MERLIN, escaping from the sun in the pines near the viewing platform. I don't have much of a photography background so trying to figure out how to photograph the bird sitting in the shade with a bright background was somewhat of a challenge. Fortunately, the bird sat still for a long period giving me the chance to fiddle with the camera. Given the conditions I was very pleased with the result, especially since I was over 40 yards away.

Less common species today were PIED-BILLED GREBE and GREAT BLUE HERON. The grebe was actually a breeder at the ponds until 1995 but I noted only a few migrants during the four years from 1996-1999. Plant closures from 2000-2002 prevented me from collecting data. Today's sighting was my first here this year. Although the heron is common on the San Pedro just a few miles away, I've only seen them here several times each year with a total of 24 sightings in almost 800 visits.

LEAST SANDPIPER is common at the ponds but the lack of viewing access now means that sightings are few and far between. Today I saw a flock of 20 or so in flight. The only definite migrants noted were a few TREE SWALLOWS.

26 species recorded at Sierra Vista EOP from 10:30am-12:30pm:
Pied-billed Grebe, Snow Goose, Am. Wigeon, Gadwall, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, N. Shoveler, Ring-necked Duck, Great Blue Heron, N. Harrier, Red-tailed Hawk, Am. Kestrel, Merlin, Am. Coot, Least Sandpiper, Chihuahuan Raven, European Starling, Marsh Wren, Verdin, Tree Swallow, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Song & Vesper Sparrows, Yellow-headed & Red-winged Blackbirds and Eastern Meadowlark.

Tuesday, March 11, 2003    Previous Day    Next Day
First of two days with Michael and Gill Diment from England. On a depressingly warm day for March we birded at Patagonia Lake, Kino Springs and the Paton's yard.

I was hoping for a several new arrivals at Patagonia Lake but we found only two. A calling LEAST BITTERN was near the bridge at the west end of the lake when we arrived at 6:50am. It took some time but we finally managed to see the bird perched in the marsh about 4 feet above the water. At least two more were calling in the marsh at the east end of the lake. Newly arrived YELLOW WARBLERS are already surprisingly common and singing like crazy along the creek trail, especially near the lake end of the trail.

The pair of BLACK-CAPPED GNATCATCHERS were foraging close to the trail in the mesquite bosque near the 2nd wash at 8:10am. The male has developed a significant amount of black and could not now be mistaken for a Blue-gray, even with just a brief look.

Apart from abundant VERMILIONS, flycatchers seemed unusually scarce today with only one singing NORTHERN BEARDLESS-TYRANNULET of note (in the mesquite near the trailhead). I heard only one GRAY and not a single Dusky.

A trip to Kino Springs paid off with YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKER, a GRAY FLYCATCHER not seen at the lake, and the real target -- a pair of LAWRENCE'S GOLDFINCHES (my latest date for Lawrence's at this location is March 16, 2000). All were in the pines around the club house. As we watched the goldfinches, a fly-by male BROAD-TAILED HUMMINGBIRD was species #200 for me at Kino on my 245th visit.

Many WHITE-THROATED SWIFTS were active at the Roadside Rest area.

The Paton's yard was crawling with people and very warm (in the 80s) during our stay from noon until 1:30pm. A total of 33 species provided the masses with entertainment. Five species of hummers visited the feeders -- the number of male BROAD-BILLED has increased considerably; VIOLET-CROWNED were represented by at least 3 individuals (but not the extended tongue bird); rounding out the list were ANNA'S, RUFOUS and a female BROAD-TAILED.

At least one male and one female CASSIN'S FINCH continue as does the WHITE-THROATED SPARROW. A male LAZULI BUNTING made only a brief appearance shortly after we arrived. A male BULLOCK'S ORIOLE spent time at an orange half. From somewhere in the creek bed, a GREATER ROADRUNNER was singing. Several BUSHTITS passed through, a very scarce visitor here.

Day list (77 species recorded):
Pied-billed & Eared Grebes, Neotropic & Double-crested Cormorants, Ruddy Duck, Am. Wigeon, Gadwall, Mallard, Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Lesser Scaup, Common Merganser, Great Blue Heron, Black-crowned Night-Heron, Least Bittern, Turkey Vulture, Red-tailed Hawk, American Kestrel, Gambel's Quail, Sora, Common Moorhen, American Coot, Wilson's Snipe, Mourning Dove, Inca Dove, Greater Roadrunner, White-throated Swift, Broad-billed, Violet-crowned, Anna's, Broad-tailed & Rufous Hummingbirds, Belted Kingfisher, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, N. Beardless-Tyrannulet, Say's & Black Phoebes, Gray & Vermilion Flycatchers, Common Raven, Hermit Thrush, N. Mockingbird, Curve-billed Thrasher, European Starling, White-breasted Nuthatch, Marsh & Bewick's Wrens, Verdin, Black-capped Gnatcatcher, Bushtit, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Bridled Titmouse, House Sparrow, Am. Pipit, Lesser & Lawrence's Goldfinches, Cassin's & House Finches, Yellow & Yellow-rumped Warblers, Song, Lincoln's, White-crowned, White-throated & Chipping Sparrows, Spotted & Abert's Towhees, N. Cardinal, Pyrrhuloxia, Lazuli Bunting, Bullock's Oriole, Red-winged Blackbird and Great-tailed Grackle.

Wednesday, March 12, 2003    Previous Day    Next Day
Out again today with Michael & Gill. On a slightly cooler and breezier day than yesterday (at least in the mountains), we enjoyed good success in the morning and mostly suffered failure in the afternoon. We birded in Sulphur Springs Valley, Mule Mountains and Huachuca Mountains.

The day began well in the Coffman-Lee-Central section of Sulphur Springs Valley with numerous SCALED QUAIL, a BENDIRE'S THRASHER singing from a low perch at close range, a perched up CRISSAL THRASHER being fed by her mate; and a flock LARK BUNTINGS also perched at close range. We avoided a drive further north by finding FERRUGINOUS HAWK in the fields on Central Highway.

A short visit to Whitewater Draw (a.k.a. Low Water Draw) was rather quiet. A dozen or so CINNAMON TEAL, a lone AMERICAN AVOCET and a group of LEAST SANDPIPERS continue. Highlight was a soaring adult GOLDEN EAGLE.

We had to work for the handful of birds that we sought in the Mule Mountains, especially BLACK-CHINNED SPARROW, our main quarry here. Over a period of almost 2 hours, after hearing one sing just a single phrase of song and then briefly and fleetingly see a couple more, we had great views of a bird foraging at close range when we got back to the vehicle!  RUFOUS-CROWNED SPARROWS and CANYON TOWHEES were common as usual after initially being scarce. ROCK WREN and CANYON WREN, both singing in the same binocular view was perhaps the highlight here. Other species included the first SCALED QUAIL that I've recorded in the Mules, BLACK PHOEBE, WESTERN SCRUB-JAY, CACTUS WREN, OREGON JUNCO, LINCOLN'S SPARROW and scads of CHIPPING SPARROWS.

I had expected quiet conditions in the Huachucas in the heat of the afternoon and I wasn't wrong. We really struggled to find birds in Sawmill Canyon, fortunately MEXICAN JAYS found us. A search for woodpeckers produced none at all. The only saving grace was a beautiful adult male OLIVE WARBLER.

We ended the day in Scheelite Canyon where a thorough search of the lower roosting area did not produce a Spotted Owl; and we didn't continue on to the upper area to look there. This situation (it's happened a few times before) leaves me with a dilemma in terms of my owl record keeping. In over 800 visits to Scheelite, I have found an owl on 93% of those visits. When I find an owl, 80% of the sightings are in the lower area and 20% in the middle and upper areas. Would I have found one higher up? Maybe, maybe not. The bottom line in such cases is that I record it as a failure rather than a non-visit.

Day list (67 species recorded):
Ruddy Duck, Gadwall, Green-winged & Cinnamon Teal, Great Blue Heron, N. Harrier, Cooper's, Red-tailed & Ferruginous Hawks, Golden Eagle, Am. Kestrel, Scaled & Gambel's Quail, Least Sandpiper, Am. Avocet, Killdeer, Rock, Mourning & White-winged Doves, Greater Roadrunner, Broad-tailed Hummingbird, Acorn Woodpecker, N. Flicker, Say's & Black Phoebes, Western Scrub-Jay, Mexican Jay, Chihuahuan & Common Ravens, Loggerhead Shrike, Phainopepla, N. Mockingbird, Bendire's, Curve-billed & Crissal Thrashers, Cactus, Rock, Canyon, Marsh & Bewick's Wrens, Bushtit, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Bridled Titmouse, House Sparrow, Am. Pipit, Lesser Goldfinch, House Finch, Olive Warbler, Lark Bunting, Dark-eyed (Gray-headed & Oregon) Junco, Lincoln's, White-crowned, Savannah, Chipping, Brewer's, Black-chinned, Vesper, Black-throated & Rufous-crowned Sparrows, Canyon Towhee, Pyrrhuloxia, Red-winged & Brewer's Blackbirds, Eastern & Western Meadowlarks, Great-tailed Grackle and Brown-headed Cowbird.

Friday, March 14, 2003    Previous Day    Next Day  
First of two days with Robin Procter from England. There was a welcome change in the weather today -- after a pleasant morning and warm early afternoon under thin clouds, heavy clouds rolled in with a strong breeze later in the afternoon making for cooler conditions. We birded at Patagonia Lake, Palo Duro Ponds, Kino Springs, Roadside Rest and Paton's  Yard.

Several more returning breeders were around today -- BLACK-CHINNED HUMMINGBIRD at Paton's, CASSIN'S KINGBIRD and BELL'S VIREO both at Kino Springs, and LUCY'S WARBLER at Patagonia Lake and at Kino. All were a couple of days later than my early dates for these species in these areas (of course, sampling interval is a factor in this).

Highlights of 64 species at Patagonia Lake included an OSPREY eating a fish on a pole near the Marina bridge, continuing COMMON GOLDENEYE, 3 calling LEAST BITTERNS along the east marsh trail, and BLACK-CAPPED GNATCATCHER (near second wash around 8:00am; seen near nest by others later in the day).

[By the way, while I admire the attempt by park staff to protect the nesting efforts of the gnatcatchers, I wonder about the wisdom of how it is being done, alerting all and sundry to its location. The nest is so close to the trail and in the open that it would be found by most birders, especially since the location was posted to the local AZ/NM list. A more subtle rerouting of the trail might have been better. The only way to truly protect it would be to close the trail. Because of the location, I think there's more likelihood of interference from kids and dogs than birders. Just playing Devil's Advocate here. Personally, I wouldn't have disclosed the location or marked it so obviously.]

NORTHERN BEARDLESS-TYRANNULETS (calling but unseen) were more numerous today. GRAY and DUSKY FLYCATCHERS were few and far between. At least one EASTERN PHOEBE continues. ORANGE-CROWNED & YELLOW WARBLERS were fairly numerous.  Less common species for this location were AMERICAN ROBIN and YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRD.

WHITE-THROATED SWIFTS and a BLACK VULTURE were at the Roadside Rest.

The Paton's yard was a little quieter than of late (28 species). BROAD-BILLED HUMMINGBIRD was the most common of four species of hummingbirds followed by VIOLET-CROWNED, ANNA'S and a female BLACK-CHINNED. Most colorful birds were male LAZULI BUNTING and a stunning male BULLOCK'S ORIOLE. A lone PINE SISKIN was a bird that I haven't seen here recently and I initially misidentified it as a female CASSIN'S FINCH. Fortunately, I was able to redeem myself later when a female (and later a male) Cassin's did show up.

Day list (92 species recorded):
Pied-billed & Eared Grebes, Neotropic & Double-crested Cormorants, Ruddy Duck, Am. Wigeon, Gadwall, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Ring-necked Duck, Lesser Scaup, Common Goldeneye, Common Merganser, Great Blue Heron, Least Bittern, Black & Turkey Vultures, Osprey, Sharp-shinned & Red-tailed Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Sora, Common Moorhen, Am. Coot, Spotted Sandpiper, Killdeer, Rock, Mourning, White-winged & Inca Doves, White-throated Swift, Broad-billed, Violet-crowned, Black-chinned & Anna's Hummingbirds, Acorn, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, N. Beardless-Tyrannulet, Gray, Dusky & Vermilion Flycatchers, Eastern, Say's & Black Phoebes, Cassin's Kingbird, Chihuahuan & Common Ravens, Bell's Vireo, Phainopepla, Hermit Thrush, Am. Robin, N. Mockingbird, Curve-billed Thrasher, European Starling, White-breasted Nuthatch, Cactus, Marsh & Bewick's Wrens, Verdin, Black-capped Gnatcatcher, Bushtit, N. Rough-winged Swallow, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Bridled Titmouse, House Sparrow, Am. Pipit, Pine Siskin, Lesser Goldfinch, Cassin's & House Finches, Orange-crowned, Lucy's, Yellow & Yellow-rumped Warblers, Song, Lincoln's, White-crowned, Savannah, Chipping & Black-throated Sparrows, Abert's Towhee, N. Cardinal, Pyrrhuloxia, Lazuli Bunting, Bullock's Oriole, Yellow-headed & Red-winged Blackbirds and Great-tailed Grackle.

Saturday, March 15, 2003    Previous Day    Next Day
Out again to day with Robin. Our itinerary was similar to one that I did last Wednesday, except in reverse. Robin's interest was in seeing members of  bird families and Olive Warbler was a major target today. Normally, when visiting flatland and mountain locations in the same day, it's prudent to do so in that order,  i.e. flatlands then mountains. However, with the emphasis on the warbler, I chose to visit the mountains first. I wasn't looking forward to being in the Sulphur Springs Valley in the heat of the afternoon, however, the weather cooperated and it was a cloudy, breezy and relatively cool day.

Carr Canyon is the best place in the Huachucas for the warbler and that's where we began a little after 6:30am, reaching the 7500 feet level around 7:15am after a brief detour to chase a singing but very elusive HUTTON'S VIREO. Although it didn't take long to track down an OLIVE WARBLER (via calls and partial song), we had to be patient to get a good view of the bird in the upper sections of Pine and Fir trees. Before we left the mountains we had satisfying looks at adult male, sub-adult male and female. Among the other species in the same area were STELLER'S JAY, EASTERN BLUEBIRD, PINE SISKIN, YELLOW-EYED JUNCO & SPOTTED TOWHEE (the latter two both singing).

Driving back down the mountain, I heard an ARIZONA WOODPECKER calling in a fairly treeless location. Consequently, we were soon able to track down what turned out to be a pristinely plumaged individual (I heard 2 or 3 more before we reached the bottom of the canyon). Also singing around the 6500 feet level was a PAINTED REDSTART. However, this time we had to walk and work a while before seeing the bird.

Our next stop was a little further south in the mountains at Ash Canyon Bed and Breakfast -- thanks to Mary Jo Ballator for her hospitality. The feeders here were loaded with LESSER GOLDFINCHES, PINE SISKINS and HOUSE FINCHES. Also present were at least 1 female and 3 male CASSIN'S FINCHES. It's not often that I see BUSHTITS in a feeder situation, although I've seen them here before coming in to the suet. The fun came to an abrupt end when a COOPER'S HAWK (nesting here) came swooping in scattering all the birds. The loud thud of a WHITE-WINGED DOVE hitting a glass door must have been less painful than it sounded because the bird escaped. We had hoped for a couple of new hummers here and we added male BROAD-TAILED and a beautiful male RUFOUS. A female BLACK-CHINNED also made a brief appearance (only my second of the season)

Remembering my experience in the Mule Mountains a few days ago, a quick check as we left the car produced our only BLACK-CHINNED SPARROW. It was quite warm here in the middle of the day and we had to work for all our birds except ROCK WREN which was singing constantly. Even the abundant RUFOUS-CROWNED SPARROWS proved difficult to see and we stuck out completely on Canyon Wren.

I didn't fancy our chances for thrashers in Sulphur Springs Valley in mid afternoon and I consider the couple of BENDIRE'S that we saw and another singing bird as fair reward. Even VESPER and BREWER'S SPARROWS were laying low and not easy to see. Raptor highlights were several FERRUGINOUS HAWKS (Davis and Rucker Canyon Roads), an adult GOLDEN EAGLE on Central highway and a MERLIN at Whitewater Draw.

Although LARK BUNTINGS have generally been scarce this winter, my last few visits to the valley have produced several flocks and today wasn't any different. Some of the birds now have a considerable amount of black. 

The best find of the day was a female MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRD on Coffman Road, a bird that I thought we didn't have any chance at all too see. They are somewhat erratic in SE AZ in winter, abundant some years and scarce in others. This year they were present in numbers in multiple locations but, until today, I hadn't seen one since February 17. I only have a handful of SE AZ March records, with only two later than today's sighting (both in 2001).  

Day list (76 species recorded):
Ruddy Duck, Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Great Blue Heron, Turkey Vulture, N. Harrier, Cooper's, Red-tailed & Ferruginous Hawks, Golden Eagle, Am. Kestrel, Merlin, Scaled Quail, Least Sandpiper, Am. Avocet, Killdeer, Rock, Mourning & White-winged Doves, Black-chinned, Broad-tailed & Rufous Hummingbirds, Acorn & Arizona Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Say's Phoebe, Vermilion Flycatcher, Western Scrub-Jay, Steller's & Mexican Jays, Chihuahuan Raven, Hutton's Vireo, Loggerhead Shrike, Eastern &, Mountain Bluebird, Am. Robin, N. Mockingbird, Bendire's & Curve-billed Thrashers, White-breasted Nuthatch, Cactus, Rock & Bewick's Wrens, Verdin, Bushtit Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Bridled Titmouse, House Sparrow, Pine Siskin, Lesser Goldfinch, Cassin's & House Finches, Olive & Yellow-rumped Warblers, Painted Redstart, Lark Bunting, Dark-eyed & Yellow-eyed Juncos, Song, White-crowned, Savannah, Chipping, Brewer's, Black-chinned, Vesper, Black-throated & Rufous-crowned Sparrows, Spotted & Canyon Towhee, Yellow-headed, Red-winged & Brewer's Blackbirds, Eastern & Western Meadowlarks, Great-tailed Grackle and Brown-headed Cowbird.

Monday, March 17, 2003    Previous Day    Next Day  
Yesterday was a good day to stay home -- cloudy, wet and windy. When I poked my head out the door at 5:00am this morning, conditions looked pretty much the same and I almost decided to stay home again. However, even though I have spent a lot of time at Patagonia Lake over the past few months, almost all my visits have been working visits so, in spite of the grungy weather, I decided to head over there just to poke around and see what I could find. By the time I reached highway 82 and saw the storm clouds to the east, I changed my mind again! Instead, I continued north on highway 90 with the intention of visiting Willcox to look for migrants. As I approached French Joe Canyon, I changed my mind for the third time this morning and it was only 6:30am.

Conditions in French Joe Canyon were cloudy and sunny, windy and calm, and wet and dry -- pretty much all at the same time! After the usual bumpy ride and a brisk hike, I started looking and listening for the warblers around 7:40am. Around 8:05am, I heard the tell tale "hard ticks" from both sides of the canyon that alerted me to the presence of two RUFOUS-CAPPED WARBLERS. For the next 30 minutes I followed both birds around as they foraged and sang, mostly in the bottom of the canyon and ranging only 20-25 yards or so. The birds were extremely close to me on many occasions, almost on my boots at times -- I kid you not.

Of course, I tried to get a photograph. The first thing that I did (or so I thought) was to set the camera to shutter priority mode to prevent the speed dropping below 1/125 second. Unfortunately, I actually set it to aperture mode and I ended up with several great shots of the bird in the open, but taken with a shutter speed of 1/30 second. Of course, hand holding at 465mm produced blurred shots. Needless to say, I was pretty pissed and disgusted with myself. I set the camera to the proper mode and continued to follow the warblers. Eventually, I managed one marginal shot.

Probably due to the lousy conditions, the canyon was about as quiet as I've ever seen it. I recorded just 13 species and the only bird that I saw in addition to the warbler was a perched up and singing CRISSAL THRASHER. The other heard only species were White-winged Dove, Western Scrub-Jay, Cactus, Canyon & Bewick's Wrens, Bushtit, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, House Finch, Rufous-crowned Sparrow and Spotted & Canyon Towhees.

Before returning home I stopped at a very windy and cold Sierra Vista EOP. I held out for only 30 minutes and left as frozen rain started to fall. (It's probably snowing in the Huachucas as I write these notes.) I saw nothing unusual among 18 species and the only birds present that I haven't seen there of late were RUDDY DUCK and CINNAMON TEAL.

Tuesday, March 18, 2003    Previous Day    Next Day  
This is the time when I normally start checking for the arrival of Buff-breasted Flycatcher in Sawmill Canyon (my earliest date is March 16). After yesterday's storm that left snow down to 5000 feet in the Huachucas, any flycatchers returning to Sawmill today were in for a rude awakening. That goes for me too and I decided to pass on a visit into the mountains.

The lousy weather continued today but I headed over to Patagonia Lake anyway. It was cloudy, windy and very cold early on, especially so near the water where I spent the first hour. Despite lots of scanning, I failed to find any new migrant waterfowl and I didn't see the Goldeneye or Loon. I did see the five expected swallow species for this time of year trying to find some insects by working low over the water. VIOLET-GREEN and TREE were the most common followed by my first BARN of the year and a few NORTHERN ROUGH-WINGED and CLIFF.

Landbirds were generally hard to come by until I reached the creek trail where I found some shelter from the wind as well as many ORANGE-CROWNED, LUCY'S and YELLOW WARBLERS. Back near the trailhead (in the mesquite near the bench) I found a BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLER to make this a whopping 5 warbler day.

Despite the windy conditions, migrant BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHERS were conspicuous (calling) and I found them in three locations, including near the BLACK-CAPPED GNATCATCHER nest site where I saw the female of that species. In the first wash I completed the gnatcatcher Trifecta with BLACK-TAILED GNATCATCHER. I know that I've seen all three species on the same day several times in Mexico, but I'm fairly sure this was a first for me in the U.S.

Except for the usual numerous VERMILION FLYCATCHERS, other flycatchers were certainly not conspicuous and I noted only one each of NORTHERN BEARDLESS-TYRANNULET and GRAY & DUSKY FLYCATCHERS.

LINCOLN'S and SONG SPARROWS are normally numerous in the boggy areas next to the marsh but even they were mostly absent today. For the first time that I can remember this season, RUFOUS-CROWNED SPARROWS were singing from the dry hillsides.

I heard an OSPREY calling but couldn't find it. Apart from RED-TAILED HAWK, the only other raptor was an immature GOLDEN EAGLE perched at the very top of a distant hillside.

I was hoping to break 70 species at the lake today but the shitty weather put paid to that. I only stayed 3 hours and managed 64 species.

I found some respite from the wind in the Paton's yard where the activity at the feeders was constant and frenzied, presumably due to the cold conditions. A season first for me here was a male HOODED ORIOLE that made several brief visits to the Orange halves (way too quick for me to photograph). The Oranges were also popular with GILA WOODPECKER and YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER.

At least two male CASSIN'S FINCHES were regular at the seed feeders along with a reticent LAZULI BUNTING.

I noted just 3 species of hummingbirds from a total of 30 species present -- BROAD-BILLED, VIOLET-CROWNED and ANNA'S. 

78 species recorded at Patagonia Lake and Paton's Yard:
Pied-billed & Eared Grebes, Neotropic & Double-crested Cormorants, Ruddy Duck, Gadwall, Mallard, Cinnamon  Teal, N. Shoveler, Lesser Scaup, Common Merganser, Great Blue Heron, Osprey, Red-tailed Hawk, Golden Eagle, Am. Kestrel, Gambel's Quail, Common Moorhen, Am. Coot, Mourning, White-winged & Inca Doves, Broad-billed, Violet-crowned & Anna's Hummingbirds, Acorn, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, N. Beardless-Tyrannulet, Gray, Dusky & Vermilion Flycatchers, Say's & Black Phoebes, Common Raven, Phainopepla, Hermit Thrush, N. Mockingbird, Curve-billed Thrasher, European Starling, White-breasted Nuthatch, Marsh & Bewick's Wrens, Verdin, Blue-gray, Black-tailed & Black-capped Gnatcatchers, Bushtit, Tree, Violet-green, N. Rough-winged, Barn & Cliff Swallows, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Bridled Titmouse, House Sparrow, Am. Pipit, Lesser Goldfinch, Cassin's & House Finches, Orange-crowned, Lucy's, Yellow, Yellow-rumped & Black-throated Gray Warblers, Song, Lincoln's, White-crowned, Chipping & Rufous-crowned Sparrows, Canyon & Abert's Towhees, N. Cardinal & Pyrrhuloxia, Lazuli Bunting, Hooded Oriole, Red-winged Blackbird and Great-tailed Grackle.

Friday, March 21, 2003    Previous Day    Next Day
Several windy days in a row (I hate windy days) have been a good excuse for me to finish planning my annual June escape from Arizona and to add some digiscoping information to this site, something that I've been meaning to do for a couple of months. Although it was still very windy today, it was the first day of spring so I ventured out anyway to Sierra Vista EOP. 

The only real signs of spring that I noted were migrating TURKEY VULTURES and GREATER YELLOWLEGS; and a slight increase in the number of ducks. The MERLIN that I have been seeing regularly is still present -- the bird likes to sit in the pines near the observation platform.

I was hoping to get a good look at the white geese that have been reported by various observers. All except me have reported Snow Geese only. A little while ago I saw a definite Snow and a maybe Ross's (not seen well enough). Unfortunately, I didn't see any geese at all today.

Since the EOP reopened after plant modifications, it's no secret that I have bemoaned the lack of birds here, be it because of lousy viewing facilities or the fact that the birds simply aren't here anymore. I haven't yet been able to quantify this in a meaningful way, but a couple of sightings today of "resident" birds certainly reinforce my feelings. I saw KILLDEER and LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE for the first time since October 2002 in almost 30 visits since the plant reopened. In previous years (dating back to October 1993), I saw Killdeer on 58% of my visits and Loggerhead Shrike on over 50% of visits during the fall/winter/spring months. Draw your own conclusions.

28 species recorded at SVEOP from 8:30-10:15am.
Ruddy Duck, Gadwall, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Ring-necked Duck, Turkey Vulture, N. Harrier, Red-tailed Hawk, Merlin, Am. Coot, Greater Yellowlegs, Killdeer, Mourning Dove, Say's & Black Phoebes, Chihuahuan Raven, Loggerhead Shrike, Marsh Wren, N. Rough-winged Swallow, House Finch, Song & Vesper Sparrows, Yellow-headed & Red-winged Blackbirds, Eastern Meadowlark and Great-tailed Grackle.

Monday, March 24, 2003    Previous Day    Next Day  
My client for today had to cancel her trip at the end of last week because she was snowbound in the Rockies. I took the opportunity to do some routine birding in the Huachucas this morning, primarily to visit Sawmill Canyon to check if Buff-breasted Flycatchers have arrived. This will be my last birding in Arizona for March so I'll completely miss the chance to collect any further week 4 data. For the rest of the month I'll be working in Southern California. 

It was a beautiful early morning in the mountains until a few clouds rolled in and the wind picked up. Even though we've had several consecutive unseasonably warm days, it was a little nippy with frost on the ground when I arrived in Sawmill at 7:20am. While not totally manifested in the birds that I saw, there were definite signs of spring at this elevation.

I waited for the sun to warm the lower part of the canyon and then began listening in earnest. PAINTED REDSTARTS and HUTTON'S VIREOS were singing up a storm and EASTERN BLUEBIRDS were calling. Around 8:00am I heard the unmistakable "pit" calls of BUFF-BREASTED FLYCATCHERS -- I saw one bird at the same time that another was calling so there are at least two birds present. A few PINE SISKINS were milling around as a reminder that winter may not quite be over yet.

RED CROSSBILLS are generally scarce in Sawmill so I was happy to see a pair of them. My records indicate that I've seen them on only 8% of my visits to the canyon with sightings in 5 different years over 11 months of the year. Most, if not all of those sightings have been of small flocks so, hopefully, the presence of just a pair may indicate possible breeding.

I didn't hang around too long because I wanted to visit Scheelite and Sierra Vista EOP and I still have some work to do for my California trip. Even though it's been planned for months, if it wasn't for the last minute nothing would ever get done.

Species present in lower Sawmill Canyon from 7:20-8:50am.
N. Flicker, Buff-breasted Flycatcher, Steller's & Mexican Jays, Common Raven, Hutton's Vireo, Eastern Bluebird, Am. Robin, White-breasted Nuthatch, Bewick's Wren, Bushtit, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Bridled Titmouse, Pine Siskin, Red Crossbill, Painted Redstart, Dark-eyed (Gray-headed) & Yellow-eyed Juncos.

PAINTED RESTARTS and HUTTON'S VIREOS were also singing throughout Scheelite. I had hoped that Black-throated Gray Warblers would be back, however, if present, they weren't singing. Just another case of timing is everything -- they are absent here during the first two weeks of March, rarely present in the third week, and uncommon in the last week. 

ARIZONA WOODPECKERS were calling in a traditional nesting area. A pristine RED-NAPED SAPSUCKER represented my latest "winter" record in Scheelite, although I have records elsewhere in SE AZ through mid April. 

Two SPOTTED OWLS were very easy to find this morning; roosting in separate locations about 100 yards apart. The first owl was uncharacteristically high in an oak tree, completely in the shade and backlit, not exactly a photo opportunity. However, just like Yogi Berra never saw a pitch that he couldn't swing at, I've never seen a bird that I couldn't try to photograph. Since the owl was high up and quite some distance away, in order to get a shot at all I had to lie on my back and futz around with the camera (no wonder the bird looks inquisitive -- "I know you but I've never seen you like this"). The result was relatively clean but almost black. Thankfully, Photoshop came to the rescue and I salvaged something (it's simply amazing what can be achieved with this software), at least enough to document the bird in a tree that represents only 3% of my sightings.

The second owl wasn't really much better; a little lower in an oak tree but at a very acute angle and with weird, mottled light. There was no way that I could get a stable shot by standing and hand-holding the camera and converter upwards. Fortunately, this time it was the swivel body design of the Coolpix that came to the rescue. I was able to use a short branch, lying handily nearby, to rest the camera on while kneeling down and looking downward at the monitor while the business end was pointed upward. You can see how disturbed the bird was by my presence.

More signs of spring were evident at Sierra Vista EOP. The number of CINNAMON TEAL has increased and there were a fair number of LESSER SCAUP present as well as two species of swallows and more individuals than I have been seeing.

CHIHUAHUAN RAVENS were common and feeding in the fields. I normally don't pay much attention to them but today I stopped to look at them. What do you know, a COMMON RAVEN was in with the flock and looking like a giant compared to the smaller Chihuahuan. I have 60+  records of Common in 7 years scattered throughout the months. They would probably prove to be more common than that if I ever decided to pay attention to such matters. Life is too short for that.

Tuesday, March 25, 2003    Previous Day    Next Day  
Today was the start of a week long southern California trip with Floyd and Kathleen Mitchell from Martinsburg, PA and Glenn Mitchell from Boalsburg, PA, all of whom. I've birded with separately before. We'll be working on some of the California specialties, traveling up and down the coast from San Diego to Morro Bay with a couple of inland trips. See summary at the end of the last day and the trip list & itinerary.

I arrived in San Diego this morning around 8:00am to find clear skies and a pleasantly low temperature. However, it was just a tad too windy for my liking. This is a somewhat abbreviated report because there are not enough hours in a day.

We began at Otay Lakes where we immediately found Bell's SAGE SPARROW perched up and singing. The day quickly warmed at this location, away from the immediate coast, and we spent quite some time working on CALIFORNIA GNATCATCHER. After about 40 minutes of searching we heard a bird calling but never tracked it down, drat! Not to worry though -- it was only another 30 minutes before we finally found a courting pair and managed some decent looks until the birds eventually took flight. Other species here included CALIFORNIA TOWHEE and scads of SONG SPARROWS, YELLOW RUMPED WARBLERS and COMMON YELLOWTHROATS.

Back near the coast, just north of Imperial Beach we easily found a fair number of ELEGANT TERNS. Unfortunately, the tide was out and the birds were too distant for really satisfying looks. Other birds here included BRANT, SNOWY PLOVER and LONG-BILLED CURLEW.

In Santee, we struck out on Tricolored Blackbird but added lots of WOOD DUCKS, CINNAMON TEAL, RED-SHOULDERED HAWK, CASSIN'S KINGBIRD and NUTTALL'S WOODPECKER.

We finished the day in La Jolla where we found our three target species in short order on an incoming tide --many BLACK TURNSTONES, 5 or 6 SURFBIRDS and a single WANDERING TATTLER. Also present were PELAGIC CORMORANT, BROWN PELICAN, WHIMBREL, a few RUDDY TURNSTONES, scads of HEERMANN'S GULLS and scads of tourists.

On the day we found 8 target species from a total of 68 species recorded:
Pied-billed & Eared Grebes, Double-crested & Pelagic Cormorants, Brown Pelican, Ruddy Duck, Brant, Wood Duck, Am. Wigeon, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, Cinnamon Teal, Lesser Scaup, Snowy Egret, Great Egret, Turkey Vulture, Osprey, N. Harrier, Red-shouldered & Red-tailed Hawks, Am. Coot, Whimbrel, Long-billed Curlew, Spotted Sandpiper, Wandering Tattler, Willet, Ruddy & Black Turnstones, Surfbird, Western Sandpiper, Black-bellied, Semipalmated & Snowy Plovers, Heermann's & Western Gulls, Caspian, Elegant & Forster's Terns, Rock & Mourning Doves, Anna's Hummingbird, Nuttall's Woodpecker, Black Phoebe, Cassin's Kingbird, Western Scrub-Jay, Am. Crow, Common Raven, N. Mockingbird, European Starling, California Gnatcatcher, Bushtit, Tree & Barn Swallows, Horned Lark, House Sparrow, Am. Pipit, Am. & Lesser Goldfinches, House Finch, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Song Sparrow, White-crowned Sparrow, Sage Sparrow, California Towhee, Western Meadowlark, Great-tailed Grackle and Brewer's Blackbird.

Wednesday, March 26, 2003    Previous Day    Next Day  
Second day with the Mitchell family. We spent the morning in the Laguna and Cuyamaca Mountains east of San Diego where it was windy and relatively cool; and the afternoon at the Salton Sea where the temperature reached 93 degrees. Is this March?

Our birding in the mountains was quite poor and highlights were very few and far between. Among the birds seen were a pair of copulating BAND-TAILED PIGEONS and a pair of OAK TITMICE gathering nesting material.

We fared a little better at the Salton Sea although even here birds were relatively scarce now that many of the winter residents have departed. The temperature climbed steadily as we left the mountains and it was already pretty warm as we began birding at Poe Road. I've seen Yellow-footed Gull at this spot a number of times but there wasn't a single gull of any flavor there today. We soon continued on and resumed birding on Garst Road where we found a first winter YELLOW-FOOTED GULL (thanks to Bob Miller for the tip). We spent a fair amount of time in two sessions looking for an adult in several locations without success. 

Species seen at the Sea included lots of soaring WHITE PELICANS, MARBLED GODWIT, SNOWY PLOVER, CALIFORNIA & BONAPARTE'S GULLS, GULL-BILLED TERN and a FOX SPARROW at Refuge HQ. We ended the day just before sunset by stopping to admire one of the abundant BURROWING OWLS.

A poor day for target birds with only 3 added from our day list of 86 species:
Eared Grebe, Double-crested Cormorant, American White Pelican, Ruddy Duck, Canada Goose, Wood Duck, Mallard, Green-winged, Blue-winged & Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Ring-necked Duck, Great Blue Heron, Great & Cattle Egrets, White-faced Ibis, Turkey Vulture, Osprey, N. Harrier, Red-tailed Hawk, Am. Kestrel, Peregrine Falcon, Ring-necked Pheasant, Gambel's Quail, Common Moorhen, Am. Coot, Marbled Godwit, Whimbrel, Greater & Lesser Yellowlegs, Willet, Least Sandpiper, Black-necked Stilt, Am. Avocet, Killdeer, Snowy Plover, Ring-billed, California, Yellow-footed & Bonaparte's Gulls, Gull-billed & Forster's Terns, Band-tailed Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Common Ground-Dove, Burrowing Owl, Acorn & Nuttall's Woodpeckers, Say's & Black Phoebes, Western Kingbird, Steller's Jay, Western Scrub-Jay, Am. Crow, Western Bluebird, Am. Robin, N. Mockingbird, European Starling, Pygmy & White-breasted Nuthatches, House Wren, Verdin, Bushtit, Violet-green, N. Rough-winged & Cliff Swallows, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Mountain Chickadee, Oak Titmouse, House Sparrow, Lesser Goldfinch, House Finch, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Dark-eyed Junco, Fox, Song, White-crowned, Chipping & Lark Sparrows, Spotted, California & Abert's Towhees, Red-winged Blackbird, Western Meadowlark, Great-tailed Grackle and Brewer's Blackbird.

Thursday, March 27, 2003    Previous Day    Next Day
Day 3 with the Mitchell family was a fairly long travel day. We finished up birding at the Salton Sea then drove north to bird the San Gabriel Mountains, continuing on to Buellton for an overnight stop. The day began quite warm under some thin cloud cover then became windy and very cool in the mountains (40s).

We began by trying to find an adult YELLOW-FOOTED GULL but again only came up with a first winter bird. Next, we checked many LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER flocks looking unsuccessfully for Stilt Sandpiper. We finally had some success looking for a roosting LESSER NIGHTHAWK when a bird flushed and landed on a branch in the open. 

The south east corner of the sea had far more birds (especially ducks) than we saw yesterday in the south west and south central sections. Among the birds this morning that we didn't record yesterday were SNOW GOOSE, REDHEAD, LONG-BILLED CURLEW, DUNLIN, WESTERN SANDPIPER, BELTED KINGFISHER, LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE, AMERICAN ROBIN and CACTUS WREN. 

Although we found numerous WHITE-HEADED WOODPECKERS, our time in the mountains was not really productive and we struck out completely on sapsuckers. Perhaps the cold and windy conditions didn't help our cause.

Day list (85 species recorded):
Pied-billed & Eared Grebes. Double-crested Cormorant, American White Pelican, Ruddy Duck, Snow Goose, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, N. Pintail, N. Shoveler, Redhead, Snowy Egret, Great Blue Heron, Cattle Egret, Black-crowned Night-Heron, White-faced Ibis, Turkey Vulture, N. Harrier, Cooper's & Red-tailed Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Peregrine Falcon, Common Moorhen, Am. Coot, Marbled Godwit, Long-billed Curlew, Greater Yellowlegs, Willet, Long-billed Dowitcher, Western & Least Sandpipers, Dunlin, Black-necked Stilt, American Avocet, Black-bellied, Semipalmated & Snowy Plovers, Killdeer, Ring-billed, California, Western Gull & Yellow-footed Gulls, Rock Dove, Band-tailed Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Burrowing Owl, Lesser Nighthawk, Anna's Hummingbird, Belted Kingfisher, Acorn, Hairy & White-headed Woodpeckers, Northern Flicker, Black Phoebe, Steller's Jay, Western Scrub-Jay, Am. Crow, Common Raven, Loggerhead Shrike, Western Bluebird, Am. Robin, N. Mockingbird, European Starling, Pygmy & White-breasted Nuthatches, Cactus, Marsh & House Wrens, N. Rough-winged & Barn Swallows, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Wrentit, Mountain Chickadee, Oak Titmouse, House Sparrow, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Song & White-crowned Sparrows, Dark-eyed Junco, Red-winged Blackbird, Western Meadowlark, Great-tailed Grackle, Brewer's Blackbird & Brown-headed Cowbird.

Friday, March 28, 2003    Previous Day    Next Day  
Day 4 with the Mitchell family was a more relaxed and very productive day. A mostly sunny, wind free and pleasant day as we worked our way north from Solvang to Morro Bay.

We began by birding along Alisal Canyon Road where I've never failed to see YELLOW-BILLED MAGPIE, and many of them duly obliged us today. Other targets here were CALIFORNIA QUAIL and GOLDEN-CROWNED SPARROW. Other species among 35+ seen here included BAND-TAILED PIGEON, LEWIS'S, NUTTALL'S & DOWNY WOODPECKERS and BULLOCK'S ORIOLE. 

We added a couple more targets in Nojoqui Falls County Park -- PACIFIC SLOPE FLYCATCHER and TOWNSEND'S WARBLER; other species here included many already seen plus WILD TURKEY, PURPLE FINCH. and YELLOW WARBLER.

After a short drive north our next stop was at Oceano, a location that yielded good looks at our target WRENTIT and 5 warblers including BLACK-THROATED GRAY, MACGILLIVRAY'S and WILSON'S. We continued north, seeing WHITE-TAILED KITE along the highway, and resumed birding along the coast where I tried unsuccessfully to make many PELAGIC CORMORANTS and DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANTS into Brandt's Cormorants. A couple of PEREGRINE FALCONS were on the rocks at Shell Beach. 

We spent much of the afternoon in the Morro Bay area where we enjoyed the scenery and birds as well as adding a few more target species -- WHITE-WINGED SCOTER (a male out of the water), several BLACK OYSTERCATCHERS and PACIFIC LOON. While SURF SCOTERS were abundant, I hadn't really expected to see White-winged this late in the season. Although the bird appeared healthy, its demeanor and the fact that it was out of the water is perhaps an indicator that the bird is sick or injured. 

Day list (95 species recorded):
Pied-billed Grebe, Horned, Eared & Western Grebes, Double-crested & Pelagic Cormorants, American White & Brown Pelicans, Ruddy Duck, Brant, Mallard, N. Pintail, Surf & White-winged Scoters, Bufflehead, Red-breasted Merganser, Snowy Egret, Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Turkey Vulture, White-tailed Kite, Red-shouldered & Red-tailed Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Peregrine Falcon, Wild Turkey, California Quail, American Coot, Marbled Godwit, Long-billed Curlew, Willet, Least Sandpiper, Black Oystercatcher, Am. Avocet, Black-bellied Plover, Killdeer, Killdeer, California & Western Gulls, Pigeon Guillemot, Pacific & Common Loons, Rock Dove, Band-tailed Pigeon, Mourning Dove, White-throated Swift, Anna's Hummingbird, Lewis's, Acorn, Nuttall's & Downy Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Pacific-slope Flycatcher, Black Phoebe, Steller's Jay, Western Scrub-Jay, Yellow-billed Magpie, Am. Crow, Warbling Vireo, Western Bluebird, Am. Robin, N. Mockingbird, European Starling, Canyon, Bewick's & House Wrens, Bushtit, Violet-green & N. Rough-winged Swallows, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Wrentit, Chestnut-backed Chickadee, Oak Titmouse, House Sparrow, Lesser Goldfinch, Purple & House Finches, Yellow, Yellow-rumped, Black-throated Gray, Townsend's, MacGillivray's & Wilson's Warblers, Dark-eyed Junco, Song, White-crowned, Golden-crowned & Chipping Sparrows, Spotted & California Towhees, Bullock's Oriole, Red-winged Blackbird, Western Meadowlark, Great-tailed Grackle, Brewer's Blackbird & Brown-headed Cowbird.

Saturday, March 29, 2003    Previous Day    Next Day
Day 5 with the Mitchell family. On yet another beautiful day along the coast, we spent the morning birding in the Morro Bay area then headed south to Los Angeles with a couple of stops along the way in the Santa Barbara area.

We began at Montaņa De Oro State Park which is certainly one of my favorite places to bird in California. Due to the need to head south again, our visit was a little shorter than we might have liked and we didn't have time to fully bird the willows and the campground. Nevertheless, we recorded 50 species here. We had to put in a modicum of effort for our first CALIFORNIA THRASHER but the next four or five came without any effort at all. Isn't that always the way? Another target bird that I hadn't really planned on until tomorrow was a pristine looking ALLEN'S HUMMINGBIRD. Some ocean scanning from the headland produced all three regular loons and another target in RED-THROATED LOON. The great weather conditions including zero wind contributed to a total lack of hoped for Alcids, except for many PIGEON GUILLEMOTS. 

After a short stop at Sweet Springs we drove south and made several generally unproductive stops for Thayer's Gull and another failed attempt for Tricolored Blackbird. All stops had way too many people for my liking (nor surprisingly given the weather and a weekend day). To cap it all off, we then had to fight our way through miles of stop and go traffic in LA on the way to Long Beach. Now let me think, why did I move from California?

Day list (84 species recorded):
Pied-billed, Eared & Western Grebes, Double-crested & Pelagic Cormorants, Brown Pelican, Ruddy Duck, Greater White-fronted Goose, Brant, Am. Wigeon, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, N. Pintail, Blue-winged & Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Greater & Lesser Scaup, Surf Scoter, Bufflehead, Red-breasted Merganser, Snowy Egret, Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Turkey Vulture, N. Harrier, Red-tailed Hawk, Am. Kestrel, California Quail, Am. Coot, Marbled Godwit, Willet, Black Turnstone, Least Sandpiper, Black Oystercatcher, Am. Avocet, Killdeer, Heermann's, Ring-billed, California & Western Gulls, Caspian & Elegant Terns, Pigeon Guillemot, Red-throated, Pacific & Common Loons, Rock & Mourning Doves, Anna's & Allen's Hummingbirds, Nuttall's Woodpecker, N. Flicker, Pacific-slope Flycatcher, Black Phoebe, Western Scrub-Jay, Am. Crow, Common Raven, Am. Robin, California Thrasher, European Starling, Bewick's Wren, Bushtit, Cliff Swallow, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Wrentit, Chestnut-backed Chickadee, House Sparrow, Am. Goldfinch, Purple & House Finches, Yellow-rumped, MacGillivray's & Wilson's Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Song & White-crowned Sparrows, Spotted & California Towhees, Red-winged Blackbird, Western Meadowlark, Great-tailed Grackle, Brewer's Blackbird and Brown-headed Cowbird.

Sunday, March 30, 2003    Previous Day    Next Day
Day 6 and last day with the Mitchell family. The unseasonably warm weather continued today as we traveled from Los Angeles back to San Diego and worked on two final target birds. 

I had originally scheduled a trip to the Palos Verdes peninsula this morning for Allen's Hummingbird, another try for California Gnatcatcher if necessary, and for Spotted Dove. Although we had seen the first two and could get the dove elsewhere, we went ahead with the plan anyway since we were staying nearby. At Point Fermin, SPOTTED DOVE proved a little difficult at first (a calling individual deep inside a dense tree), however, before we left we had seen at least four individuals perched on wires.

We then drove south to the Huntington Beach area and struck out at three regular locations where I have found Tricolored Blackbird over the years, making a total of five failed attempts!. A consolation was that we had another good look at ALLEN'S HUMMINGBIRD. 

In a "Murphy gets screwed moment", we were fortunate to bump into a local birder who gave us a tip where to find the birds. After another drive south, this time to Laguna Niguel, we found a flock of perhaps as many as 30 TRICOLORED BLACKBIRDS with very little effort.  My attempts to get a photograph were mostly an exercise in frustration. Although the birds were tame, they were constantly on the move and a baby crawling around trying to touch them didn't help either! Trying to digiscope a moving bird and keep it in focus is a tough task. When a bird finally decided to stay still for a moment, there was invariably another bird in the way. However, I guess I should just be thankful that we found the birds at the 6th time of asking!  

We made a brief stop at Doheny State Beach to look for gulls, instead finding half the population of Orange County. It wasn't a complete waste of time though, since we did get our best views yet of ELEGANT TERN.

Our final birding was at San Elijo Lagoon, another of my favorite California birding spots. We didn't walk the trails and managed 35 species from the overlooks including OSPREY, BLUE-WINGED TEAL and our first SORA of the trip . 

Day list (72 species recorded):
Pied-billed, Eared & Western Grebes, Double-crested Cormorant, American White Pelican, Brown Pelican, Ruddy Duck, Canada Goose, Am. Wigeon, Gadwall, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, Blue-winged Teal, Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Snowy Egret, Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Green Heron, Black-crowned Night-Heron, Turkey Vulture, Osprey, Cooper's Hawk, Red-shouldered Hawk, American Kestrel, Sora, American Coot, Marbled Godwit, Long-billed Curlew, Willet, Least Sandpiper, Black-necked Stilt, Am. Avocet, Black-bellied Plover, Killdeer, Heermann's, California & Western Gulls, Elegant & Forster's Terns, Rock, Spotted & Mourning Doves, White-throated Swift, Anna's & Allen's Hummingbirds, Nuttall's Woodpecker, Black Phoebe, Am. Crow, Western Bluebird, N. Mockingbird, European Starling, Marsh & House Wrens, Bushtit, N. Rough-winged Swallow, Wrentit, Am. Pipit, House Finch, Orange-crowned & Yellow-rumped Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Song & White-crowned Sparrows, California Towhee, Bullock's Oriole, Tricolored Blackbird, Western Meadowlark, Great-tailed Grackle, Brewer's Blackbird and Brown-headed Cowbird.

Summary:
From March 25 through March 30 we traveled about 1200 miles as we birded mostly along the coast between San Diego and Morro Bay with inland trips to the Salton Sea and the Laguna, Cuyamaca & San Gabriel Mountains. The weather was sunny and clear every day (not even morning marine layer), unseasonably warm almost everywhere that we visited; and breezy at times almost every day. Temperatures were mostly in the 80s along the coast; with a low in the San Gabriel Mountains in the 40s and a high of 93 degrees at the Salton Sea.

We saw a fair number of target birds among our total trip list of 177 species. Perhaps the biggest disappointments were the lack of woodpeckers in the Laguna, Cuyamaca and San Gabriel Mountains; and inshore Alcids. 

Target bird successes were Greater White-fronted Goose, White-winged Scoter, California Quail, Wandering Tattler, Black Turnstone, Surfbird, Black Oystercatcher, Yellow-footed Gull, Bonaparte's Gull, Elegant Tern, Red-throated Loon, Pacific Loon, Spotted Dove, Lesser Nighthawk, Allen's Hummingbird, Nuttall's Woodpecker, White-headed Woodpecker, Pacific-slope Flycatcher, Yellow-billed Magpie, California Thrasher, Pygmy Nuthatch, California Gnatcatcher, Wrentit, Oak Titmouse, Townsend's Warbler, Golden-crowned Sparrow, Sage Sparrow, California Towhee, Bullock's Oriole and Tricolored Blackbird.

Birds that we specifically looked for and did not find were Eurasian Wigeon, Mountain Quail, Stilt Sandpiper, Thayer's Gull, Red-naped, Red-breasted & Williamson's Sapsuckers and Cassin's Finch. Among the "hope to stumble into birds" that we didn't stumble into were alcids and Lawrence's Goldfinch. 

This log is in chronological order and the most recent entries are at the bottom of the page.
The last update was on Sunday, March 30, 2003.

Species List

Stuart Healy Journal - March, 2003 If you use the contents of my journal for commercial purposes, please acknowledge the source to your clients - thanks.

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