Species List

Stuart Healy Journal - September, 2005 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 Friday, September 30, 2005

Thursday, September 1, 2005
Today was my first real chance to get in the field to test the new lens that I mentioned on August 25 (Canon EF 300mm IS that I'm using with a 1.4X extender). Of course, after working 6 sunny and warm days in a row when I would have preferred cool, cloudy days, now that I needed good light it turned out to be a relatively cool and increasingly cloudy day! In fact, we also got some rain for the first time in well over a week. Just as yesterday, I visited Patagonia Lake State Park, Kino Springs and Patagonia Roadside Rest Area; then finished up with a brief visit to Las Cienegas.

Since my main objective today was photography, I'll briefly talk about some of the species that I photographed. I've included low resolution thumbnails showing the original (uncropped, unprocessed) images corresponding to the published photos mentioned in the text that follows. The thumbnail page will remain open until you close it so you can compare the processed image to the original. Note: depending on your browser, you may have to maximize the thumbnail page again after displaying an image to see them side by side.

Patagonia Lake:
I didn't walk the trails and confined my activities to the entrance and exit roads. Consequently,  I shot all images while I was standing on blacktop. I recorded 35 species including a single LUCY'S WARBLER, a bird that will get extremely scarce as September progresses.

Apparently, the breeding cycle of BOTTERI'S SPARROW is still in full swing and many birds are singing in the grassland approaches to Patagonia Lake. I'm guessing that they started breeding a little later this year due to the delayed start of the monsoon season. Even though this species arrives in southeastern Arizona in late April (as early as April 26 by my records but could well be earlier) and starts to sing immediately, this is only to establish territory. The birds then wait until the monsoon rains arrive before commencing breeding.

I worked with an individual that allowed close approach but insisted on staying low in a desert broom making it difficult to get an unobscured view. I shot 40 images of the little bugger trying to get a good pose with only a modicum of success. Photo #1 shows the bird bathed in some weak, low angle early morning sunlight which always produces artificial colors. Photo #2 in flat light (i.e. no light!) perhaps better reflects the real color of the bird (the shutter speed of 1/60s tells me that the image stabilizer on the new lens actually works!). Note that this individual doesn't show much of a pale supercillium (almost blends with the head color) and the yellow upper wing patch is only visible in the first photo. The amount of buff on the underparts is just about typical I think, perhaps slightly richer.

RUFOUS-WINGED SPARROWS are also well into their breeding cycle (I saw a bird carrying food today). Incidentally, since I  hear them singing all year, its actually quite difficult to tell when their year round territorial activity turns into breeding activity. Suffice it to say, sometime during the monsoons. Photo #1 shows the key field marks -- moustachial and malar stripes, gray central crown stripe and the rufous shoulder for which the bird is named. However, note that this area is in shadow (Murphy wouldn't have it any other way). Photo #2 shows this feature clearly and also shows the long tail which is typically broad and flat (not notched).

Today was the first time that I've had a real opportunity to photograph VARIED BUNTING and I was very happy to get some decent results on my first attempt. Also, on such a cloudy day, I was perhaps fortunate to catch a sun break during the photo session since this bird can look completely black in poor light. This is another species that waits for the monsoons to start breeding and the individual that I photographed today was feeding nestlings. Photo #1, Photo #2 and Photo #3 taken from different angles show the reason for the name of this delightfully colorful bird.

Kino Springs:
I spent about 45 minutes at each pond and recorded 40 species.

At the first pond, I was able to photograph a juvenile GRAY HAWK, whining away in disapproval of my presence. Mind you, I think they whine all the time since I usually hear them whenever I drive by the pond. As you'll see at a glance, juveniles are very different from adults and could easily lead the unaware down the garden path of misidentification.

At the club house pond, this twittering TROPICAL KINGBIRD led me to its location, perched in the tree where they nested this year. I can't be certain, but I think this is possibly an immature bird (based solely on the fact that the upper breast isn't yet bright yellow, otherwise it looks like an adult).

Patagonia Roadside Rest Area:
I visited this location for two reasons -- to try for a photo of the Becard and to check on the status of fledging. During a short stay yesterday, I only observed the female make one nest visit. Today I hung around for 90 minutes and saw both male and female multiple times. Over a period of 45 minutes, I noted just a couple of brief visits by the female. At this time I thought I was hearing multiple calls outside the nest and believed that perhaps some of the birds had fledged. However, I soon realized my mistake -- all of the noise that I could hear was coming from inside the nest. During the second 45 minutes that I was present, the male showed up regularly, disappearing for several minutes at a time to forage, sometimes on the south side of highway 82.

Even under ideal conditions, getting a great photo of these birds near the nest with the equipment that I have (too far away) would be next to impossible. However, there came a time when I was able to obtain an image of the male ROSE-THROATED BECARD -- unfortunately, the bird was perched almost directly over my head and horribly backlit. Under such conditions, even after processing with the wonders of Photoshop, images are invariably noisy using ISO 800. Still, it's a start. I also managed a distant image of the female (looking much the worse for wear) as she delivered food to the nest.

Las Cienegas:
I checked the grassland area only (close to highway 82) hoping to find some close Cassin's Sparrows. My arrival coincided with the onset of rain so I didn't stay long. LARK BUNTINGS and GRASSHOPPER SPARROWS were common.

From a roadside location less than one mile from the highway I could hear four Grasshopper Sparrows singing simultaneously. I stopped to photograph a male atop a mesquite and just got done before the rain ruined things.

While messing around taking photos I managed to see the following 74 species:
Pied-billed Grebe, Great Blue Heron, Green Heron, Black-bellied Whistling-Duck, Black & Turkey Vultures, Gray Hawk, Am. Kestrel, Am. Coot, Killdeer, Rock Pigeon, Mourning, White-winged & Inca Doves, Common Ground-Dove, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, N. Beardless-Tyrannulet, Black & Say's Phoebes, Vermilion Flycatcher, Tropical, Cassin's & Western Kingbirds, Rose-throated Becard, Tree, N. Rough-winged & Barn Swallows, Phainopepla, Cactus, Rock, Canyon, Bewick's & House Wrens, Curve-billed & Crissal Thrashers, Black-tailed Gnatcatcher, Verdin, Loggerhead Shrike, Chihuahuan & Common Ravens, European Starling, House Sparrow, Bell's Vireo, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Lucy's, MacGillivray's & Wilson's Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Yellow-breasted Chat, Summer & Western Tanagers, Canyon Towhee, Lark Bunting, Botteri's, Cassin's, Rufous-crowned, Rufous-winged, Chipping, Lark, Black-throated, Grasshopper & Song Sparrows, N. Cardinal, Black-headed & Blue Grosbeaks, Lazuli & Varied Buntings, Red-winged Blackbird, Eastern Meadowlark, Great-tailed Grackle and Bullock's Oriole.

I don't work with clients again until September 5 and may not spend any time in the field until then. Certainly, with gas in Sierra Vista already well above $3 per gallon, I won't be traveling far.

Monday, September 5, 2005
Out today with Craig and Vivian Dodson from Grand Junction, CO. We did the rounds in the Patagonia area and saw many of the expected species. A partly cloudy, moderately warm and humid start to the day with some rain by early afternoon.

Today was my 400th visit to Patagonia Lake but the occasion passed uneventfully without anything special seen. We didn't enter the park proper and focused on sparrows and other stuff along the entrance and one way exit roads. Although BOTTERI'S, RUFOUS-CROWNED and RUFOUS-WINGED SPARROWS are still singing strongly and continue to be easy to detect, we had to work a little for CASSIN'S SPARROW. Of course, resident BLACK-THROATED SPARROWS were also around. Migrant and/or wintering BREWER'S SPARROWS have increased in numbers. Singing from VARIED BUNTINGS has subsided considerably but we still managed to find and have great looks at a close up bird. We also noted ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER, YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO and LUCY'S WARBLER. 50 species recorded.

Kino Springs produced 20+ BLACK-BELLIED WHISTLING-DUCKS, GRAY HAWK, a couple of SORAS out in the open, many COMMON GROUND-DOVES, GILDED FLICKER, a few TROPICAL KINGBIRDS, MACGILLIVRAY'S WARBLER, LAZULI BUNTING and BULLOCK'S ORIOLE. 40+ species recorded.

The ratty looking female ROSE-THROATED BECARD continues to feed young in the nest at the Patagonia Roadside Rest Area. No sign of the male during a one hour visit today. A migrant male NASHVILLE WARBLER was present here.

At least three VIOLET-CROWNED HUMMINGBIRDS were present at Marion Paton's feeders along with many BROAD-BILLED, BLACK-CHINNED and a single male ANNA'S HUMMINGBIRD.

A very brief stop at Las Cienegas easily produced our target GRASSHOPPER SPARROW just 200 yards from highway 82. The bird seemed to be enjoying the rain, singing while perched up on a stump.

[Non bird related rant. What's wrong with this picture? -- cheapest gas in Sierra Vista $3.19; Shell in Sonoita $3.05. My god, Shell are the highest of the high. I urge all locals to boycott Gas City (and tell them you are doing so). Whenever there's a gas crisis, they push, push, push the price as high as possible until someone takes a stand. I haven't bought gas there for a long time.]

Day List (91 species recorded):
Pied-billed Grebe, Great Blue Heron, White-faced Ibis, Black-bellied Whistling-Duck, Mallard, Cinnamon Teal, Turkey Vulture, Gray, Swainson's & Red-tailed Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Gambel's Quail, Sora, Am. Coot, Killdeer, Rock Pigeon, Mourning, White-winged & Inca Doves, Common Ground-Dove, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Greater Roadrunner, Broad-billed, Violet-crowned, Black-chinned & Anna's Hummingbirds, Belted Kingfisher, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, Northern & Gilded Flickers, Western Wood-Pewee, Black & Say's Phoebes, Vermilion & Ash-throated Flycatchers, Tropical, Cassin's & Western Kingbirds, Rose-throated Becard, Barn Swallow, Phainopepla, Cactus, Rock, Canyon, Bewick's & House Wrens, Curve-billed & Crissal Thrashers, Black-tailed Gnatcatcher, Bridled Titmouse, White-breasted Nuthatch, Verdin, Loggerhead Shrike, Chihuahuan & Common Ravens, European Starling, House Sparrow, Bell's Vireo, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Nashville, Lucy's, Yellow & MacGillivray's Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Yellow-breasted Chat, Summer & Western Tanagers, Canyon & Abert's Towhees, Botteri's, Cassin's, Rufous-crowned, Rufous-winged, Brewer's, Lark, Black-throated, Grasshopper & Song Sparrows, N. Cardinal, Pyrrhuloxia, Black-headed & Blue Grosbeaks, Lazuli & Varied Buntings, Eastern Meadowlark, Red-winged & Yellow-headed Blackbirds, Great-tailed Grackle and Bullock's Oriole.

Tuesday, September 6, 2005
First of two days with Grant McCreary from Cumming, GA. We visited Patagonia Lake, Kino Springs and Patagonia Roadside Rest Area. Our birding was quite focused on specific targets and we didn't spend any time looking at the lake and ponds. It was another mostly cloudy, warm (> 90 degrees) and fairly humid day with some rain in the afternoon.

We began with sparrows at Patagonia Lake and had good success with BOTTERI'S (including recently fledged juveniles), RUFOUS-CROWNED and RUFOUS-WINGED SPARROWS. Just as yesterday, CASSIN'S SPARROW took some time to see well. They are still singing but no skylarking behavior was observed. Also, all singing was done from a low perch making them difficult to locate. BLACK-THROATED, BREWER'S and LARK SPARROWS were also present.

VARIED BUNTING continues to be easy to find despite less song with every passing day. BELL'S VIREO remains quite vocal.

We spent some time looking for the gnatcatcher and just when I thought we had success in our grasp the bird turned out to be a dreaded hybrid female BLACK-CAPPED x BLACK-TAILED GNATCATCHER. The bird had the overall size and build of a Black-capped with a long bill, called like a Black-capped, but had a solid black undertail. Another bird was calling nearby but escaped as we viewed the hybrid. Earlier, outside the park proper, we easily saw BLACK-TAILED GNATCATCHERS.

A couple of NORTHERN BEARDLESS-TYRANNULETS and ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER were seen well but DUSKY-CAPPED FLYCATCHER remained a heard only. The only empid noted was a single GRAY FLYCATCHER.

Warblers were not particularly numerous but we did find several target LUCY'S, a few NASHVILLE and one each ORANGE-CROWNED and WILSON'S.

An immature GRAY HAWK was near the pay booth.

The first pond at Kino Springs easily produced LAZULI BUNTING (albeit not in striking plumage) but GILDED FLICKER played a little hard to get. TROPICAL KINGBIRDS continue at the club house pond.

As we left, a stop near the Hwy 82 entrance to get a better look at a singing RUFOUS-CROWNED SPARROW was fortuitous -- the Turkey Vulture overhead turned out to be a ZONE-TAILED HAWK.

At the Roadside Rest, the male ROSE-THROATED BECARD was perched near the nest site but we never saw it visit the nest during the 30 minute period we watched. I'm not sure if the birds have already fledged or the lack of feeding is designed to entice the youngsters out of the nest. There was plenty of noise indicating that other birds were around. We didn't hear any Thick-billed Kingbirds here nor along Salero and Blue Heaven Roads.

73 species recorded:
Great Blue Heron, Green Heron, Turkey Vulture, Gray & Zone-tailed Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Sora, Am. Coot, Rock Pigeon, Mourning, White-winged & Inca Doves, Common Ground-Dove, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Broad-billed Hummingbird, Acorn, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, Gilded Flicker, N. Beardless-Tyrannulet, Western Wood-Pewee, Gray Flycatcher, Black & Say's Phoebes, Dusky-capped & Ash-throated Flycatchers, Tropical, Cassin's & Western Kingbirds, Rose-throated Becard, Barn Swallow, Phainopepla, Cactus, Rock, Canyon & Bewick's Wrens, N. Mockingbird, Curve-billed Thrasher, Black-tailed Gnatcatcher, Bridled Titmouse, Verdin, Loggerhead Shrike, Chihuahuan & Common Ravens, European Starling, House Sparrow, Bell's Vireo, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Orange-crowned, Nashville, Lucy's & Wilson's Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Summer & Western Tanagers, Canyon & Abert's Towhees, Botteri's, Cassin's, Rufous-crowned, Rufous-winged, Brewer's, Lark & Black-throated Sparrows, N. Cardinal, Black-headed & Blue Grosbeaks, Lazuli & Varied Buntings, Red-winged Blackbird, Great-tailed Grackle and Bullock's Oriole.

Wednesday, September 7, 2005
Out again today with Grant. We visited Garden, Sawmill and Scheelite Canyons in the Huachucas. It was a mostly cloudy day with thunderstorms and light rain starting around midday. Much cooler than yesterday (85 degrees in town at 2:00pm).

BOTTERI'S and CASSIN'S SPARROWS were singing in Garden Canyon grassland but we didn't stop until we found a group of VIOLET-GREEN SWALLOWS gathered on a wire near the fishing ponds. At the middle picnic area, a noisy SULPHUR-BELLIED FLYCATCHER cooperated nicely by perching in the open very close to our location. A family of four were further up canyon near the pictograph site. They'll likely all be gone by the end of next week (my latest record in the Huachucas is September 13).

The birding in Sawmill was tough going and it took over two hours to find a BUFF-BREASTED FLYCATCHER. I heard a very weak call from the bird which was enough to give us the incentive to persevere and track it down. Our eventual wonderful views of a very richly colored individual were ample reward for the effort. This is a species that I try to keep close tabs on in terms of arrival and departure dates. They thin out dramatically and become very quiet as September progresses but can still be found with persistence (if you look in the right places). I also have Sawmill records for the first week of October in two of the twelve years that I have been tracking this species.

ARIZONA WOODPECKER was our only other target in the canyon -- we heard two calling birds but were unable to track them down. Other species included a calling MONTEZUMA QUAIL that stopped calling as we tried to approach, a fairly uncooperative HAMMOND'S FLYCATCHER (seen well but not for long), several singing PLUMBEOUS VIREOS, a couple of TOWNSEND'S WARBLERS, calling OLIVE & GRACE'S WARBLERS that we didn't pursue, PAINTED REDSTART and HEPATIC TANAGER.

Back in Garden Canyon, a male ELEGANT TROGON was near the Scheelite parking area and we saw another around the 3/4 mile mark in Scheelite. We had to work really hard for SPOTTED OWL in very humid conditions with eventual rain and ominous thunder. I  checked the lower and upper roosting areas before finding a pair of owls roosting side by side in a new location (for me at least) in the upper part of the middle roosting area. In other words, we walked about as far as you can walk in both forks of the canyon to find an owl; a.k.a. "The Scheelite Slog". However, as with the flycatcher, our reward once again was great looks at a pair of owls -- quite close to the trail but very difficult to see except from a specific vantage point. Screeching MEXICAN and STELLER'S JAYS helped us to find the owls that seemed totally unconcerned by the presence of jays just a few feet away. They've seen it all before, many times.

We also had some bonus birds. RED-FACED WARBLER is by no means guaranteed in September and I was very happy to come across a calling bird about 1/2 mile into the canyon. Super looks at one of my favorite birds. CASSIN'S VIREO near the pools above the lower roosting area was another good find. I've seen them in SE AZ as early as the second week of August but they don't become "regular" until the first week of September.

Among the other species in the canyon were a couple of ARIZONA WOODPECKERS, BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER, SCRUB-JAY, PLUMBEOUS VIREO, a good showing of warblers with ORANGE-CROWNED, NASHVILLE, BLACK-THROATED GRAY, TOWNSEND'S, HERMIT & WILSON'S WARBLER all seen well, and lots of HEPATIC TANAGERS. Approximately 30 species in all.

ROCK WREN is uncommon at best in the Huachucas and a calling bird around 1/4 mile was only my 8th record in Scheelite.

[Non-bird note: I'm happy to report that other gas stations forced Gas City to drop their price by 10 cents to $3.09, but not for long I fear.]

58 species recorded:
Turkey Vulture, Red-tailed Hawk, Am. Kestrel, Montezuma Quail, Mourning Dove, Spotted Owl, Black-chinned & Broad-tailed Hummingbirds, Elegant Trogon, Acorn, Ladder-backed & Arizona Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Western Wood-Pewee, Hammond's, Buff-breasted & Sulphur-bellied Flycatchers, Cassin's Kingbird, Violet-green, N. Rough-winged & Barn Swallows, Cactus, Rock, Canyon & Bewick's Wrens, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Bushtit, Bridled Titmouse, White-breasted Nuthatch, Brown Creeper, Verdin, Loggerhead Shrike, Steller's & Mexican Jays, Western Scrub-Jay, Plumbeous, Cassin's & Hutton's Vireos, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Olive, Orange-crowned, Nashville, Black-throated Gray, Townsend's, Hermit, Grace's, Wilson's & Red-faced Warblers, Painted Redstart, Hepatic Tanager, Canyon Towhee, Botteri's, Cassin's & Rufous-crowned Sparrows, Yellow-eyed Junco, Black-headed Grosbeak and Eastern Meadowlark.

Friday, September 9, 2005
This morning I checked Willcox ponds and Holy Trinity Monastery in St. David. I was hoping for some decent migrants but results were generally poor.

Cool and cloudy conditions with on and off light rain prevailed at Willcox during my visit from 7-9:30am. While this made for pleasant birding, the light was extremely poor. Since this is a great time for shorebirds, it's rather unfortunate that the water level of the main pond remains very high (and water is still being pumped in at a good rate). Shorebird habitat is minimal and I saw less than 10 peeps around the periphery of the pond. The small temporal pond south of the golf course pond continues to have the most action (but still not very much). 

AMERICAN AVOCET and WILSON'S PHALAROPE numbers have dropped off considerably (30-40ish of each) and I saw only one BLACK-NECKED STILT. Peeps were in short supply with about 20 WESTERN, 10 LEAST and 4 SPOTTED SANDPIPERS (no Baird's seen). Highlight was a single SOLITARY SANDPIPER (a photo first for me, shot from 80 feet in crappy light). I also saw a single WILSON'S SNIPE and 2 LESSER YELLOWLEGS.

Landbird migrants were not much in evidence (that downed willow is sorely missed). However, I did pick up two new location birds -- BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAK and half a dozen LAZULI BUNTINGS, neither of which I'd seen at Willcox before. Others migrants/wintering species included BELTED KINGFISHER, my first-of-season MARSH WREN, YELLOW WARBLER and 25+ YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRDS.

43 species recorded at Willcox ponds (2.5 hours):
Eared Grebe (4), Great Blue Heron (10), Black-crowned Night-Heron (6 incl. 2 juv), White-faced Ibis (25), Gadwall, Green-winged & Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler (200), Ruddy Duck, Swainson's Hawk (2), Gambel's Quail, Am. Coot, Black-necked Stilt, Am. Avocet, Killdeer, Wilson's Snipe, Lesser Yellowlegs, Solitary, Spotted, Western & Least Sandpipers, Wilson's Phalarope, Eurasian Collared-Dove (8+), Mourning Dove, Belted Kingfisher, Black & Say's Phoebes, Cassin's & Western Kingbirds, Barn Swallow, Cactus & Marsh Wrens, Curve-billed Thrasher (4), Verdin, Loggerhead Shrike, Yellow Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Song Sparrow, Black-headed Grosbeak, Lazuli Bunting, Eastern Meadowlark, Yellow-headed Blackbird and Great-tailed Grackle.

It was warm and muggy when I got to St. David and I saw little of note at the Monastery from 10:15-11:15am save for BELL'S VIREO, as elusive as ever. HOUSE WREN, WARBLING VIREO and MACGILLIVRAY'S & WILSON'S WARBLERS were the species noted that I could definitely call migrants.

21 species recorded at Holy Trinity Monastery (1 hour):
Am. Kestrel, White-winged Dove, Black-chinned Hummingbird, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, Western Wood-Pewee, Cassin's Kingbird, House Wren, Verdin, Chihuahuan Raven, Bell's & Warbling Vireos, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, MacGillivray's & Wilson's Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Abert's Towhee, Song Sparrow, N. Cardinal and Black-headed Grosbeak.

Sunday, September 11, 2005
Out today with George Reed from Newton, CT. We birded in the Patagonia area in search of a number of target species. A mostly sunny and warm day and quite windy by midday. We had good success with target species and I also saw a few first-of season species -- GREEN-TAILED TOWHEE, VESPER & LINCOLN'S SPARROWS at Kino Springs and SAVANNAH SPARROW at Las Cienegas. Only the Lincoln's was close to my earliest fall arrival sighting date (September 8 on the San Pedro in 1994 and 2003).

We started at Patagonia Lake State Park looking for grassland and mesquite species along the approach roads to the lake. I learned from another birder that a Roseate Spoonbill was present but wasn't able to spend time looking for the bird (would have been a new location species for me). Work is the curse of the birding class. With the exception of BOTTERI'S SPARROW which is still very easy to locate, all of the other target species were noticeably more difficult today. CASSIN'S SPARROW stayed low and took some time to see well. Eventually, we had good looks and even saw some juveniles learning how to sing. BREWER'S SPARROWS were common. RUFOUS-WINGED SPARROW was fairly cooperative after we some showed some patience as was a mostly silent VARIED BUNTING. A little effort produced good close up looks at NORTHERN BEARDLESS-TYRANNULET. Migrants included a "flock" of four WARBLING VIREOS, LUCY'S WARBLER (possibly a local bird), WILSON'S WARBLER and WESTERN TANAGER. 40 species in all without entering the park proper.

Kino Springs was very productive with 50 species noted from 9:00-10:30am. Highlights included 33 BLACK-BELLIED WHISTLING-DUCKS, GRAY HAWK, GILDED FLICKER with NORTHERN FLICKER nearby for comparison, WILLOW FLYCATCHER, several TROPICAL KINGBIRDS, 4 MACGILLIVRAY'S WARBLERS, many (mostly female and immature) LAZULI BUNTINGS and HOODED & BULLOCK'S ORIOLES.

A brief stop at the Roadside Rest area didn't yield sight nor sound of the recently fledged Becards. HUTTON'S VIREO was the least common species noted for this location.

A stop in the Paton's yard produced at least 3 different VIOLET-CROWNED HUMMINGBIRDS and four hummingbird species.

GRASSHOPPER SPARROW has been very easy to find on a couple of recent visits to Las Cienegas. However, today it was very windy and we had to work for well over an hour before even detecting a bird. We found a bird carrying food that decided to wait us out by perching up in a mesquite despite the wind. Initially over 50 yards distant, we inched closer and ended up about 10 yards from the bird. After 5 minutes of staring at us, the bird flinched and flew to another mesquite otherwise we might still be there. A small group of ~6 SAVANNAH SPARROWS and 4 GREATER YELLOWLEGS were present.

EURASIAN COLLARED-DOVES were in Sonoita as was a single GREAT EGRET at the small rainwater pond near the Border Patrol depot.

95 species recorded:
Pied-billed Grebe, Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Black-bellied Whistling-Duck, Cinnamon Teal, Turkey Vulture, Gray & Red-tailed Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Gambel's Quail, Am. Coot, Killdeer, Greater Yellowlegs, Rock Pigeon, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Mourning, White-winged & Inca Doves, Common Ground-Dove, Broad-billed, Violet-crowned, Black-chinned & Rufous Hummingbirds, Belted Kingfisher, Acorn, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Gilded Flicker, N. Beardless-Tyrannulet, Western Wood-Pewee, Black & Say's Phoebes, Willow & Vermilion Flycatchers, Tropical, Cassin's & Western Kingbirds, Horned Lark, Cliff & Barn Swallows, Phainopepla, Cactus, Rock, Canyon & Bewick's Wrens, N. Mockingbird, Curve-billed Thrasher, Bridled Titmouse, White-breasted Nuthatch, Verdin, Loggerhead Shrike, Common Raven, European Starling, House Sparrow, Bell's, Hutton's & Warbling Vireos, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Orange-crowned, Lucy's, Yellow, MacGillivray's & Wilson's Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Summer & Western Tanagers, Green-tailed, Canyon & Abert's Towhees, Botteri's, Cassin's, Rufous-crowned, Rufous-winged, Brewer's, Vesper, Lark, Black-throated, Savannah, Grasshopper, Song & Lincoln's Sparrows, N. Cardinal, Pyrrhuloxia, Black-headed & Blue Grosbeaks, Lazuli & Varied Buntings, Eastern Meadowlark, Red-winged & Yellow-headed Blackbirds, Great-tailed Grackle and Hooded & Bullock's Orioles.

Tuesday, September 13, 2005
Today I invested some gas money in a trip to Whitewater Draw to look for migrants. This is a location that I regularly visit in fall and winter. [By the way, gas has now dropped to $2.99 in Sierra Vista.] It was a pleasant, blue sky day, warming significantly by late morning. One of those June-like days in September.

The habitat at Whitewater Draw (WWD) Wildlife Area is excellent at the moment and I enjoyed several hours of very productive birding. I recorded exactly 60 species within the Wildlife Area boundary. Weeds have grown like, er, weeds in the ponds that have been dry for months and there's now an extensive pseudo marsh of shallow water and weedy stuff. There are some reasonable mud flats, albeit quite some distance from the main viewing areas, and this is where most of the shorebirds were today. Migrant landbirds worked the many willows that are currently very leafy and full of bugs. The only missing habitat is deep water -- hopefully, the ponds will fill up a little before the diving ducks arrive.

I was disappointed to find that a large hole has been dug out in the center of the south willow grove, presumably for a pond. Of course, this meant that the high weeds I was hoping for were non-existent. Nevertheless, if the pond comes to fruition and vegetation grows around the edges, the overall habitat in the grove will be enhanced. The two main landbird highlights of the morning came here -- a singing WILLOW FLYCATCHER (fitz-bew) and a silently foraging, pristinely plumaged CASSIN'S VIREO. Other species in the grove included WESTERN TANAGER, ABERT'S TOWHEE, LINCOLN'S SPARROW, PYRRHULOXIA, BLUE GROSBEAK and LAZULI BUNTING.

Among the species on the water/in the marshes were a lone GREAT EGRET, 50+ WHITE-FACED IBIS, 9 GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GEESE, a couple of BLUE-WINGED and 100s of CINNAMON TEAL, SORA, VIRGINIA RAIL, 5 BLACK-NECKED STILTS and 30+ AMERICAN AVOCETS.

Around the pond edges and out on the mudflats I detected 2 SEMIPALMATED PLOVERS, a single LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER, 2 GREATER and a single LESSER YELLOWLEGS, 20+ WESTERN and a few LEAST SANDPIPERS.

Many hundreds of TREE SWALLOWS worked over the marsh and I also saw 6 BANK SWALLOWS and a few NORTHERN ROUGH-WINGED.

Thrashers put on a good show with several CURVE-BILLED, 2 CRISSAL and one BENDIRE'S THRASHER near the headquarters building (they nest here every year).

CASSIN'S SPARROWS seem to be winding down their breeding activities and I detected just two singing birds on Bagby Road and Central Highway.

I wanted to get home by 11:30am to watch Real Betis (Seville) play Liverpool in the Champions League (Liverpool won 2:1) but I just had time to make a stop at Sierra Vista Environmental Operations Park (SVEOP). A quick visit here turned out to be a good decision. Shortly after driving through the gate I noticed an obviously smaller and different looking bird sitting on the barbed wire fence with scads of WESTERN KINGBIRDS. As I got closer, I realized it was a non breeding plumaged BOBOLINK (yellow-buff underparts with a few streaks and a well patterned back). Apparently, the bird got too close for comfort to one of the kingbirds that actually reached over to bite the Bobolink. I reached for my camera too late and the Bobolink dropped into the long grass, never to reappear.

Bobolinks are a very scarce (perhaps not even annual) fall transient through southeast Arizona and this was only my second record (the first was in October 2003 at Willcox). Obviously, it was also a new SVEOP species for me (#190). Timing is everything.

70 species recorded (* not in WWD proper):
Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Black-crowned Night-Heron, White-faced Ibis, Greater White-fronted Goose, Mallard, Green-winged, Blue-winged & Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Turkey Vulture, Swainson's & Red-tailed Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Scaled Quail, Virginia Rail, Sora, Am. Coot, Black-necked Stilt, Am. Avocet, Semipalmated Plover, Killdeer, Long-billed Dowitcher, Greater Yellowlegs, Lesser Yellowlegs, Western & Least Sandpipers, *Rock Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Greater Roadrunner, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Black & Say's Phoebes, Willow & Vermilion Flycatchers, Cassin's & Western Kingbirds, Tree, N. Rough-winged & Bank Swallows, *Cactus Wren, *N. Mockingbird, Bendire's, Curve-billed & Crissal Thrashers, Loggerhead Shrike, *Chihuahuan Raven, *House Sparrow, Cassin's Vireo, Yellow Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Western Tanager, Abert's Towhee, *Lark Bunting, *Cassin's, Brewer's, Vesper, *Black-throated, Savannah, Song & Lincoln's Sparrows, Pyrrhuloxia, Blue Grosbeak, Lazuli Bunting, *Bobolink, Eastern Meadowlark, Red-winged & Yellow-headed Blackbirds, *Great-tailed Grackle and Bullock's Oriole.

Thursday, September 15, 2005
This morning I made a routine visit to Sawmill Canyon to check on the continuing presence of Buff-breasted Flycatcher and the possible early arrival of sapsuckers. It was another clear blue sky morning and the coolest start so far this season -- 50 degrees just after sunrise, up to 85 degrees by midday.

Something looked wrong as I drove by Garden Canyon fishing ponds and it took me a minute or two to figure out that the large, dead tree used by many a species over the years had fallen down. What a shame. An adult male VERMILION FLYCATCHER was some consolation -- they are scarce here and I barely average one record per year.

BOTTERI'S and CASSIN'S SPARROWS and BLUE GROSBEAK (the late breeding grassland species) were all still singing in the lower canyon but in noticeably fewer numbers. BREWER'S SPARROWS were quite numerous and I saw a few BLACK-THROATED SPARROWS.

HEPATIC TANAGERS were near the middle picnic area and the unmistakable calls of SULPHUR-BELLIED FLYCATCHERS told me that they are still around (I also heard them at the pictograph site). This extends my late date for the Huachucas by two days.

It was quite fresh when I arrived at Sawmill Canyon (7:15am) and I needed to don a sweater for the first time in a while. Activity was a little slow to get going -- perhaps this SHARP-SHINNED HAWK had something to do with that. Sharpies are an extremely scarce visitor (migrant) in Sawmill and 5 of my 7 records are from September.

I spent over three hours searching the canyon and thought that I had dipped on BUFF-BREASTED FLYCATCHER. However, just as I was about to leave, I heard one call below the cabin and soon tracked it down (a bird in heavy molt looking very ratty). If it wasn't for the last minute, nothing would ever get done. I didn't see any other empids, just a lone WESTERN WOOD-PEWEE.

Highlight of the morning was a group of approximately a dozen MONTEZUMA QUAIL. I was walking into strong sunlight and almost stepped on the birds without seeing them. Of course, they exploded in all directions. Damn near fouled my britches. I saw one male very well as it waddled slowly up the hillside -- he was either a little slow on the uptake or a hard case.

Mixed species flocks were present in a few places. Most were comprised of BUSHTIT, BRIDLED TITMOUSE, HUTTON'S VIREO, BLACK-THROATED GRAY, TOWNSEND'S and HERMIT WARBLERS. Hutton's was the best photo of the morning, Townsend's was a photo first and not a great image (poor depth of field).

I also saw a latish (for this location) BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER, my first PINE SISKIN of the season (they normally show up in Sawmill in late September), OLIVE, ORANGE-CROWNED, YELLOW-RUMPED & GRACE'S WARBLERS and PAINTED REDSTART -- not a bad warbler morning.

HEPATIC TANAGERS were fairly numerous; they regularly stay in the canyon until late October and a few sometimes stick around until late November.

A good early fall morning.

[Lowest gas price in town is now $2.95, but I took advantage of the $2.89 price on Fort Huachuca. Still cost me over $60 to fill the tank and it wasn't completely empty. Yikes.]

51 species recorded in Garden and Sawmill Canyons:
Sharp-shinned & Red-tailed Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Montezuma Quail, Mourning Dove, Acorn, Gila & Arizona Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Western Wood-Pewee, Buff-breasted, Vermilion & Sulphur-bellied Flycatchers, Black & Say's Phoebes, Cassin's & Western Kingbirds, Violet-green & Barn Swallows, Bewick's Wren, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Bushtit, Bridled Titmouse, White-breasted Nuthatch, Brown Creeper, Verdin, Steller's & Mexican Jays, Hutton's Vireo, House Finch, Pine Siskin, Lesser Goldfinch, Olive, Orange-crowned, Yellow-rumped, Black-throated Gray, Townsend's, Hermit & Grace's Warblers, Painted Redstart, Hepatic & Western Tanagers, Canyon Towhee, Botteri's, Cassin's, Brewer's & Black-throated Sparrows, Yellow-eyed Junco, Blue Grosbeak, Lazuli Bunting and Eastern Meadowlark.

Friday, September 16, 2005
This morning I made a routine visit to Patagonia Lake State Park to look for migrants and returning winter species. Another clear blue sky day similar to yesterday, although just a little warmer -- up to 92 degrees in Sierra Vista at midday. Cheapest gas in town down to $2.89.

Migrant possibilities are excellent in September and this is a good time to check Patagonia Lake. However, this is probably my least favorite time to be here -- the trails are hopelessly overgrown, bugs are abundant and then there's always the cow shit. Thankfully, the mud problem isn't too bad as the terrain dries out. This was my fifth visit of the month so far (three in week one, one in week two and this the first visit of week three). I toughed it out for about 5 hours this morning and my reward was a total of 82 species and plenty of migrants. I didn't spend much time checking the water areas and I didn't check the west end of the lake at all.

Although I didn't see anything particularly outstanding, the previously reported LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSH was a good bird and reasonably easy to find along the creek (quite close to the lake). Easy, that is, if you don't count negotiating the obstacle course that used to be somewhat of a trail. Louisiana Waterthrush is a fairly early migrant so this bird is either a late migrant or an early wintering individual. In previous years I haven't found one until October (maybe because I haven't looked too hard). I also saw BLACK-CAPPED GNATCATCHER in the third wash.

I started along the approach road where BOTTERI'S & CASSIN'S SPARROWS were still singing (not much heard from the latter although they were still singing at 11:00am when I left). BLUE GROSBEAK was also singing here as well as in the park. Before entering the park proper, additional species included ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER, ROCK WREN, BELL'S & WARBLING VIREOS, LUCY'S WARBLER, BREWER'S, BLACK-THROATED, RUFOUS-CROWNED & RUFOUS-WINGED SPARROWS, VARIED BUNTING and a number of other common species.

WILSON'S WARBLER was the most common migrant with about 30 seen in one location (there must be 100s throughout the park). Half a dozen ORANGE-CROWNED, a few NASHVILLE and just one MACGILLIVRAY'S rounded out the migrant warblers. Migrant flycatchers that I noted were 10+ GRAY and a couple of DUSKY FLYCATCHERS (both fairly common here in winter) and a single WILLOW FLYCATCHER. Other migrants included CASSIN'S VIREO, WESTERN TANAGER and LAZULI BUNTING (the latter two fairly common).

Summer birds still present included 6+ NORTHERN BEARDLESS-TYRANNULETS (sometimes winters here), 3 DUSKY-CAPPED FLYCATCHERS (tough to track this baby down and even tougher to photograph), a few YELLOW WARBLERS, at least 5 YELLOW-BREASTED CHATS, many SUMMER TANAGERS and a couple of chattering BULLOCK'S ORIOLES.

I saw just one RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET; before long they'll be annoyingly abundant. MARSH WRENS are already back in numbers.

My day ended well with a GOLDEN EAGLE on Hwy 82 near Whetstone, between mileposts 47 and 48. This is the second time that I've seen one in this location and there's only six years between sightings, so obviously this is a hotspot for them.

82 species recorded at Patagonia Lake State Park:
Eared Grebe, Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Mallard, Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Turkey Vulture, Cooper's Hawk, Am. Kestrel, Common Moorhen, Am. Coot, Spotted Sandpiper, Mourning, White-winged & Inca Doves, Common Ground-Dove, Black-chinned Hummingbird, Belted Kingfisher, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, N. Beardless-Tyrannulet, Willow, Gray, Dusky, Vermilion, Dusky-capped & Ash-throated Flycatchers, Black & Say's Phoebes, Cassin's & Western Kingbirds, Violet-green & Barn Swallows, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Cactus, Rock, Bewick's, House & Marsh Wrens, Curve-billed Thrasher, Black-capped Gnatcatcher, Bridled Titmouse, White-breasted Nuthatch, Verdin, Loggerhead Shrike, Common Raven, House Sparrow, Bell's, Cassin's & Warbling Vireos, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Orange-crowned, Nashville, Lucy's, Yellow, MacGillivray's & Wilson's Warblers, Louisiana Waterthrush, Common Yellowthroat, Yellow-breasted Chat, Summer & Western Tanagers, Canyon & Abert's Towhees, Botteri's, Cassin's, Rufous-crowned, Brewer's, Black-throated & Song Sparrows, N. Cardinal, Pyrrhuloxia, Black-headed & Blue Grosbeaks, Lazuli & Varied Buntings, Eastern Meadowlark, Great-tailed Grackle, Brown-headed Cowbird and Bullock's Oriole.

Sunday, September 18, 2005
This morning I joined the regular Sunday morning tour of Sierra Vista EOP, which is only practical way to gain access to the interior. Unfortunately, even in the interior, there's very little in the way of open water or shorebird habitat; and marshy ponds, grassy fields and bare dirt predominate. It was a fairly routine outing during which I recorded 44 species. The weather cooperated with mostly clear skies and zero wind (66-91 degrees from 6:45-9:45am).

Definitely not routine and certainly the highlight of the morning was a single fly-by VAUX'S SWIFT seen near the viewing platform -- my second new EOP species in recent days (#191). Vaux's Swift is a rare-very uncommon migrant in SE AZ and, even though they are regular, seeing them obviously requires being in the right place at the right time -- as well as looking skyward!. My few previous sightings, all in different years, are from Kino Springs, Patagonia Lake (2), Sawmill Canyon (2), Willcox Ponds and the Gila river at Winkleman.

Shorebirds were few and far between -- 2 WHITE-FACED IBIS, 1 AMERICAN AVOCET, SPOTTED and 2 BAIRD'S SANDPIPERS and a couple of KILLDEER were all that I noted.

A few first of season AMERICAN WIGEON and many CINNAMON TEAL were the best ducks.

VIRGINIA RAIL and SORA were both seen in the marsh with many more heard, especially the latter. YELLOW-HEADED and RED-WINGED BLACKBIRDS were common in the marshes, MARSH WRENS chattered here and there and a few LAZULI BUNTINGS occasionally popped into view.

There was a decent showing of raptors including a PEREGRINE FALCON (should be a regular here until next spring), a couple of juvenile NORTHERN HARRIERS and at least three juvenile SWAINSON'S HAWKS. A very distant (1 mile) dark morph raptor was puzzling; I now realize it was a dark morph juvenile RED-TAIL (I didn't dawn on me that they don't show the pale scapular marks; "the V on the back" that make Red-tails easy to identify). A soaring bird finally provided a clue.

Most of the swallows were BARN but there were at least singletons of VIOLET-GREEN, NORTHERN ROUGH-WINGED and BANK SWALLOWS.

WESTERN KINGBIRDS were easy to see but I couldn't find a single Cassin's (despite insisting that an obvious Say's Phoebe was one, my clanger for the day).

44 species recorded at Sierra Vista EOP:
White-faced Ibis, Am. Wigeon, Mallard, Green-winged & Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Turkey Vulture, N. Harrier, Cooper's, Swainson's & Red-tailed Hawks, Peregrine Falcon, Scaled Quail, Virginia Rail, Sora, Am. Coot, Am. Avocet, Killdeer, Spotted & Baird's Sandpipers, Mourning Dove, Vaux's Swift, Black & Say's Phoebes, Western Kingbird, Horned Lark, Violet-green, N. Rough-winged, Bank & Barn Swallows, Marsh Wren, Curve-billed Thrasher, Loggerhead Shrike, Chihuahuan Raven, Common Yellowthroat, Brewer's, Savannah & Song Sparrows, Lazuli Bunting, Eastern Meadowlark, Red-winged Blackbird & Yellow-headed Blackbirds, Great-tailed Grackle and Brown-headed Cowbird.

Monday, September 19, 2005
I spent a couple of hours on the San Pedro this morning. It was a good morning to be out -- mostly cloudy and cool with a pleasantly low temperature of 64-75 degrees from 6:30-9:00am. The only downside was poor light. Thunder and light rain began at 10:00am and continued on and off through mid afternoon. In mid September, I'll take it!

My route was south along the Del Valle road, east down Garden Wash then north along the river with a short detour around the big pond, roughly two miles in all. Weedy habitat is excellent at the moment (some years there's hardly any) and the area was loaded with birds. BREWER'S SPARROWS were absolutely abundant and, conservatively, I saw 400. Given the amount of habitat there must be 1000s present. I looked at lots of them searching for Clay-colored without success. It was interesting to note that while many were feeding on the ground, there were also plenty of birds gleaning bugs in the mesquites.

BLUE GROSBEAKS (still singing), LAZULI BUNTINGS and LESSER GOLDFINCHES were all very common. I heard only one singing CASSIN'S and one singing BOTTERI'S near the San Pedro House and saw one juvenile of the latter. A couple of CRISSAL THRASHERS called on the Del Valle road.

The habitat around the big pond continues to deteriorate and today it looked as desolate as I've ever seen it with hardly a tree left standing around the periphery. Absolutely heartbreaking when I think of how it looked in 1993 when I moved to Sierra Vista. The folks who decided to introduce Beavers should be condemned to spend the rest of their days sitting by the pond.

GREEN-TAILED TOWHEES are back in reasonable numbers (at least 20 seen, more heard). The only first of season species noted was a first year WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW. Other sparrows included about a dozen each of VESPER & SAVANNAH and a couple of LINCOLN'S SPARROWS.

I noted a number of continuing summer species (some may be migrants) -- WESTERN WOOD-PEWEE, lots of CASSIN'S KINGBIRDS, 5 VERMILION FLYCATCHERS, YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT, 10+ SUMMER TANAGERS, 6 BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAKS and 4 BULLOCK'S ORIOLES.

The best migrant was a lone PAINTED REDSTART, only my third record on the river and the first in fall. Among the other migrants were GRAY FLYCATCHER and a sprinkling of ORANGE-CROWNED, WILSON'S and MACGILLIVRAY'S WARBLERS.

52 species recorded on the SPRNCA:
Mallard, Am. Kestrel, Mourning Dove, Black-chinned & Anna's Hummingbirds, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Western Wood-Pewee, Gray & Vermilion Flycatchers, Cassin's & Western Kingbirds, Barn Swallow, Cactus, Bewick's & House Wrens, Curve-billed & Crissal Thrashers, White-breasted Nuthatch, Verdin, Loggerhead Shrike, Chihuahuan Raven, European Starling, House Sparrow, Bell's Vireo, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Orange-crowned, MacGillivray's & Wilson's Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Painted Redstart, Yellow-breasted Chat, Summer Tanager, Green-tailed, Canyon & Abert's Towhees, Botteri's, Cassin's, Chipping, Brewer's, Vesper, Savannah, Song, Lincoln's & White-crowned Sparrows, Black-headed & Blue Grosbeaks, Lazuli Bunting, Red-winged Blackbird and Bullock's Oriole.

Tuesday, September 20, 2005
This morning I checked Whitewater Draw and Willcox. What a difference a day makes. Yesterday was cloudy, wet and cool while today was back to sunny skies and 96 degrees in Sierra Vista by mid afternoon.

Whitewater Draw wasn't as productive as my visit a week ago and I didn't see anything unusual among the 60+ species that I recorded. The numbers of ducks and shorebirds have dropped off considerably. Highlights were a couple of SNOWY EGRETS, a juvenile tundra race PEREGRINE FALCON (with very interesting head markings) and one LONG-BILLED CURLEW.

Apart from many hundreds of YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRDS, the most conspicuous species were decent sized flocks of WHITE-FACED IBIS and CINNAMON TEAL, numerous SORAS (calling and wandering around in the open) and 20+ BLUE GROSBEAKS in the south willow grove.

The regular shorebird migrants were present in low numbers -- WILSON'S SNIPE (2), LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER (1), GREATER YELLOWLEGS (3), SPOTTED (2), WESTERN (5), LEAST (2) and BAIRD'S (1) SANDPIPERS. Landbird migrants/returning wintering species weren't much in evidence and included BANK SWALLOW, YELLOW and WILSON'S WARBLERS, GREEN-TAILED TOWHEE, LAZULI BUNTING and the typical sparrows that you would expect to see at this season -- BREWER'S, VESPER, SAVANNAH, LINCOLN'S and WHITE-CROWNED.

The warbler photo is the last that I'll take for a while. The shutter release button has developed a problem (needs lots of force instead of a gentle push) and I shipped the camera to Canon for repair this afternoon.

During the warmer months, I normally don't like to visit two of my key locations in the same day because data collection is less than optimum at the second location (i.e. landbirds are much harder to detect). However, gas prices being what they are means that compromises have to be made. A round trip to Whitewater Draw is 90 miles; Willcox 150 miles; a loop through the valley hitting both is 175 miles, quite a saving versus two separate visits.

It was quite toasty by the time I reached Willcox at 10:30am and (as I expected) activity was minimal. I drove all the way along the entrance road without seeing or hearing a single bird. Eventually, I  managed to rustle up a scant 30 species working my normal route. The only highlight (i.e. less common species) was a single GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE. The only shorebird present in numbers was WILSON'S PHALAROPE with perhaps.150 birds scattered around the main pond.

I've had better days.

76 species recorded at Whitewater Draw WA and Willcox ponds:
Pied-billed& Eared Grebes, Great Blue Heron, Snowy Egret, White-faced Ibis, Greater White-fronted Goose, Am. Wigeon, Gadwall, Mallard, Green-winged & Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Ruddy Duck, Turkey Vulture, N. Harrier, Swainson's & Red-tailed Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Peregrine Falcon, Scaled Quail, Virginia Rail, Sora, Am. Coot, Black-necked Stilt, Am. Avocet, Killdeer, Wilson's Snipe, Long-billed Dowitcher, Long-billed Curlew, Greater Yellowlegs, Spotted, Western, Least & Baird's Sandpipers, Wilson's Phalarope, Rock Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Great Horned Owl, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Black & Say's Phoebes, Vermilion Flycatcher, Cassin's & Western Kingbirds, Tree, Violet-green, Bank, Cliff & Barn Swallows, House & Marsh Wrens, Curve-billed & Crissal Thrashers, Loggerhead Shrike, Chihuahuan Raven, House Sparrow, House Finch, Yellow, Yellow-rumped & Wilson's Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Green-tailed Towhee, Brewer's, Vesper, Lark, Black-throated, Savannah, Song, Lincoln's & White-crowned Sparrows, Pyrrhuloxia, Blue Grosbeak, Lazuli Bunting, Red-winged & Yellow-headed Blackbirds and Great-tailed Grackle.

Thursday, September 22, 2005
This morning I made a routine visit to Sawmill Canyon. It was a fairly warm morning for the first official day of fall -- 90 degrees in town at 11:00am with some high, thin clouds that later built up and brought a little afternoon rain. [I thought gas prices had bottomed out at $2.85 but I saw $2.83 today. The price is hardly right but Gasoline, come on down!]

Breeding bird activity in lower Garden Canyon grassland is now noticeably starting to slow down. I heard just one singing BOTTERI'S SPARROW; many more were giving various chips and sputters down in the grass. BLUE GROSBEAKS were easy to see but I didn't hear any singing. For the first time in a while I didn't hear Cassin's Sparrow (they are resident and obviously still present, very difficult to find when not singing).

CASSIN'S outnumbered WESTERN KINGBIRDS by at least 6:1. BREWER'S SPARROWS were extremely common.

Once I reached the trees, I started listening intently for Sulphur-bellied Flycatchers and heard none. An adult GRAY HAWK was perched in the open at the upper picnic area. PAINTED REDSTARTS called.

My primary objective on this my third Sawmill visit of the month was to confirm the continuing presence of Buff-breasted Flycatcher, especially as it's now getting late in the month. Although September has the potential for many migrants in the canyon, the reality is that most visits at this time of year are not particularly productive. Most of the summer birds have gone and those that remain are generally silent and difficult to detect. Also, it's still a bit too early for the species that winter in the canyon. Consequently, migrants make or break a visit at this time of year and today I saw none.

I was successful in finding a couple of BUFF-BREASTED FLYCATCHERS about a mile into the canyon. I had great close up looks as the birds worked near some pools of water. My previous sightings this month were down near the cabin, as are most late season sightings.

Summer species were still in evidence. HEPATIC TANAGERS remain fairly common (males and females seen, about 10 in all). I heard OLIVE WARBLER and PAINTED REDSTART and saw PLUMBEOUS VIREO and GRACE'S WARBLER. A female MAGNIFICENT HUMMINGBIRD was on the late side for Sawmill, I have one early October record.

Conversely, wintering species are not yet present (or at least I didn't detect them). Still no sapsuckers or kinglets; the only returning species today was YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER. Yellow-rumps are abundant migrants here in October then thin out by early December when the cold weather sets in (you can see this on the Sawmill bar graph).

Resident STELLER'S and MEXICAN JAYS were as noisy and obnoxious as ever. I hesitate to call EASTERN BLUEBIRD a resident but the fact is that I've seen them here in every month of the year and almost every year since 1994. However, today's bird was the first since March 2003 and they haven't been consistent since 2000.

The bar graphs that I produce are very good at determining seasonal abundance and show timing of arrival, departure and migration. However, today I decided to take at look at my data in another way because I wanted to see how the number of species varied throughout the year. It's said that a picture is worth a thousand words so I produced the chart shown below to get a handle on this. Apart from February which has too few visits, I think the data is pretty solid and representative of what I'm trying to illustrate..

The chart shows the high species counts for each of my data "weeks" (same as for bar graphs) as well as the entire month and cumulatively for all months. Using April as an example, a month in which I have 83 cumulative visits, the individual week numbers show the highest species count in the respective weeks -- 30 (week 1), 38 (week 2), 46 (week 3) and 45 (week 4). Note that the high counts didn't necessarily occur in the same year. The month high count of 55 was the highest total for any April during the measurement period. The cumulative high count of 85 was for all April dates during the measurement period.

Like April, September shows a significant difference between the highest monthly high count of 46 and the cumulative high count of 80. The difference, of course, is due to migrants. On any given day, the weekly numbers are much more realistic in terms of how many species one might potentially see (for example, today I saw only 21 species which is on the low side because of the lack of migrants). Note that in June, a month with virtually no migrants at all in the canyon, the species count for the highest month in the measurement period and the cumulative high count are almost identical (56 and 57 respectively).

Numbers, numbers, numbers. Birding is a science as well as an art, at least I treat it as such. Must be the (ex) engineer in me.

45 species recorded in Sawmill & Garden Canyons and on Fry Blvd:
Turkey Vulture, Gray Hawk, Am. Kestrel, Rock Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Magnificent Hummingbird, Acorn, Ladder-backed & Arizona Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Buff-breasted Flycatcher, Say's Phoebe, Cassin's & Western Kingbirds, Canyon, Bewick's & House Wrens, Curve-billed Thrasher, Eastern Bluebird, Am. Robin, Bridled Titmouse, White-breasted Nuthatch, Brown Creeper, Verdin, Loggerhead Shrike, Steller's & Mexican Jays, Chihuahuan Raven, House Sparrow, Plumbeous & Hutton's Vireos, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Olive, Yellow-rumped & Grace's Warblers, Painted Redstart, Hepatic Tanager, Canyon Towhee, Botteri's & Brewer's Sparrows, Yellow-eyed Junco, Blue Grosbeak, Eastern Meadowlark and Great-tailed Grackle.

Friday, September 23, 2005
I gave pride of place to Kino Springs this morning even though it meant getting up early and a drive of 120 miles round trip. Although I bird here regularly (302 visits, 206 species), most visits are for specific target species as well as being at a less than optimum time of day. Today was for the express purpose of "taking inventory" (my fifth visit of the month). It was a sunny and clear start to the day and quite warm by 8:30am. A short report today.

My vehicle wanted to turn into Patagonia Lake but I kept going to Kino. I started birding at 6:30am and worked the first pond and adjacent washes for a couple of hours. I then checked the club house pond, sewage pond and adjacent grassland before I'd had enough at 10:00am. Birds were plentiful and I had a very productive morning recording exactly 80 species despite missing some common stuff.

Highlight was a PAINTED BUNTING  in the dense weeds at the first pond. The bird was a probable first year male (green) but possibly a female -- I only got a few seconds worth and couldn't find it again.

At least one adult GRAY HAWK continues; heard calling at the first pond and seen attacking a COOPER'S HAWK in the club house pines. I didn't find any Tropical Kingbirds; hell I didn't even find Western Kingbird! My latest Kino date for Tropical is October 1 (2002).

Birds at the end of their stay included YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO and VARIED BUNTING (adult male and juvenile).

Migrants and/or wintering species included 5+ SORAS, WILSON'S SNIPE, OLIVE-SIDED and GRAY FLYCATCHERS, a single NASHVILLE and several MACGILLIVRAY'S WARBLERS, WESTERN TANAGER, scads of LAZULI BUNTINGS and a handful of sparrows.

80 species recorded at Kino Springs:
Pied-billed Grebe, Great Blue Heron, Green Heron, Black-bellied Whistling-Duck, N. Pintail, Cinnamon Teal, Turkey Vulture, Cooper's, Gray & Red-tailed Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Gambel's Quail, Sora, Am. Coot, Killdeer, Wilson's Snipe, Mourning & White-winged Doves, Common Ground-Dove, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Broad-billed Hummingbird, Belted Kingfisher, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, Northern & Gilded Flickers, Western Wood-Pewee, Olive-sided, Gray, Vermilion & Ash-throated Flycatchers, Black & Say's Phoebes, Cassin's Kingbird, Violet-green, N. Rough-winged & Barn Swallows, Bewick's, House & Marsh Wrens, Curve-billed & Crissal Thrashers, Black-tailed Gnatcatcher, Verdin, Loggerhead Shrike, Common Raven, European Starling, House Sparrow, Bell's Vireo, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Nashville & MacGillivray's Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Summer & Western Tanagers, Green-tailed, Canyon & Abert's Towhees, Botteri's, Rufous-crowned, Rufous-winged, Chipping, Brewer's, Vesper, Lark, Black-throated, Song, Lincoln's & White-crowned Sparrows, N. Cardinal, Black-headed & Blue Grosbeaks, Lazuli, Varied & Painted Buntings, Red-winged & Yellow-headed Blackbirds, Great-tailed Grackle and Bullock's Oriole.

Sunday, September 25, 2005
Out today with Bill Altmann from the Hartford area of CT. We birded together previously for a few days in California almost nine years ago. Time flies. Circumstances mandated short term, roadside birding only and since Bill was staying in Nogales, I decided that the first pond at Kino Springs was our best bet. I was hoping that we would see a decent selection of species along with the chance of a few new birds for Bill.

The strategy worked well and just two early morning hours spent at the pond produced a total of 61 species and 4 lifers for Bill without leaving the road or moving more than a few yards. Sort of a "little sit". I was interested to see how many species were present today that I didn't turn up among the 80 species that I recorded here on Friday -- that number turned out to be 10. Given that fact, I think that with a modicum of effort and, perhaps more importantly, the desire, it would be possible to find 100 species even at this time of year by working both ponds and the other habitats at the golf course.

The only less common species seen today was an OSPREY circling over the pond at 6:30am. Warblers were few and far between on Friday (3 species) but today we noted 8 species with BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLER being the least common for this location. MACGILLIVRAY'S WARBLERS were easy to see even from the road.

A very enjoyable morning and one that was quite atypical compared to most of my days working with clients.

61 species recorded at Kino Springs first pond (italics not seen Friday):
Great Blue Heron, Green Heron, Cinnamon Teal, Osprey, Cooper's & Gray Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Gambel's Quail, Sora, Killdeer, Mourning & White-winged Doves, Common Ground-Dove, Greater Roadrunner, Belted Kingfisher, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, Northern & Gilded Flickers, Black & Say's Phoebes, Ash-throated Flycatcher, Cassin's Kingbird, N. Rough-winged & Barn Swallows, Rock & Bewick's Wrens, N. Mockingbird, Curve-billed Thrasher, Loggerhead Shrike, Common Raven, European Starling, Bell's Vireo, Lesser Goldfinch, Orange-crowned, Nashville, Yellow-rumped, Black-throated Gray, MacGillivray's & Wilson's Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Yellow-breasted Chat, Western Tanager, Green-tailed, Canyon & Abert's Towhees, Rufous-winged, Chipping, Brewer's, Lark, Song, Lincoln's & White-crowned Sparrows, N. Cardinal, Pyrrhuloxia, Black-headed & Blue Grosbeaks, Lazuli Bunting, Red-winged & Yellow-headed Blackbirds and Bullock's Oriole.

Monday, September 26, 2005
I made my first visit of the season to San Rafael Valley this morning. This is a week or so earlier than I normally start here and it really is a bit early for this high grassland location. My birding season in the valley is October through late March. I left Sierra Vista in darkness to ensure a sunrise arrival in the valley. Heavy cloud cover in town dispersed as I traveled west and it soon became a warm morning, approaching 90 degrees by 9:00am.

The journey through the west gate of Fort Huachuca was relatively birdless and the only birds of note were a few EASTERN BLUEBIRDS in Canelo Hills.

The grasslands of San Rafael Valley are as lush as I've seen them for a few years with an abundance of dense, long grass over a wide area. A wonderful vista from Canelo Pass. Seven of eight stock ponds that I checked had water but almost zero birds, just KILLDEER and a lone GREEN-WINGED TEAL. All the "major" roads are very dry, dusty and unpleasant to drive.

Sparrow activity was initially very high and I saw tons of SAVANNAH (abundant), VESPER (common), 30+ GRASSHOPPER and 2 BAIRD'S SPARROWS. All of the Grasshopper Sparrows were perched up on the fence wires distributed throughout the valley along FR 58. Most of them were juveniles. The Baird's Sparrows were about 0.5 mile from the west end of the valley. This is my earliest fall sighting of Baird's, but then again it's also the earliest date that I've looked for them!

A small group of BREWER'S SPARROWS were of note. San Rafael Valley is not really their kind of place and this was only my second record here.

I cruised around looking and listening but I didn't detect a single longspur. The last week of September is perhaps the earliest that Chestnut-collared Longspur can be expected so it's still on the early side for them. I personally don't have any September records and my earliest fall sighting in SE AZ is at Willcox on October 6.

As is usual with most valley visits, species diversity was very low. In addition to Baird's Sparrow, WESTERN MEADOWLARK and BREWER'S BLACKBIRD were season firsts for me. My earliest fall record for Western Meadowlark in SE AZ is September 7 at Willcox. It's interesting to note that neither of the SE AZ birdfinding guides mention that Western Meadowlarks occur in San Rafael Valley. My records indicate they are fairly common here.

Other species included a few NORTHERN HARRIERS, 20+ CASSIN'S KINGBIRDS at the west end of the valley and the usual plethora of HORNED LARKS. Only 20 species in all.

Not really a fun day, but that's why it's called work. Nevertheless, finding Baird's Sparrow made it a successful day.

Tuesday, September 27, 2005
I checked Whitewater Draw again today, my third (and final) visit of the month. It was a productive morning in terms of number of species but migrant shorebirds and returning waterfowl are still in short supply. Conversely, landbird activity was very good. The weather continues more like summer than fall (as it normally does until mid October). I got started before sunrise hoping to catch the first Sandhill Cranes of the season heading out for the day (no success).

Highlight was a single RED-NECKED PHALAROPE, a first for me at this location (#193). I had trouble deciding if the bird was an adult or a juvenile that had attained winter plumage slightly early (hint of a "gold stripe" in an otherwise grey, black and white bird). Probably an adult.

Shorebird numbers were low with 8 LONG-BILLED CURLEWS being the pick of the bunch.

SORA and VIRGINIA RAIL were easy to see at the marsh margins. It's interesting to note that this past winter was the first time that I detected Virginia Rail at WWD and this fall they are fairly common. Possibly a case of discovering the marsh habitat that has flourished over the past few years. YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRDS numbered well over a thousand, possibly even several thousand, many more than I recollect in previous years. The adjacent fields (both ploughed and irrigated grass) are good for feeding and the marsh provides a place to roost.

Migrants included CASSIN'S VIREO and ORANGE-CROWNED, MACGILLIVRAY'S & WILSON'S WARBLERS. I saw all of them in the south willow grove along with GREAT HORNED OWL, GREEN-TAILED TOWHEE, a couple of PYRRHULOXIAS, lots of BLUE GROSBEAKS and a few LAZULI BUNTINGS.

A couple of ROCK WRENS were a slight surprise (5 previous records in 3 different years); this is the earliest I've seen them here.

Among the raptors noted were a couple of juvenile NORTHERN HARRIERS, 2 adult and 3 juvenile SWAINSON'S HAWKS and an adult PEREGRINE FALCON.

I struck gold on thrashers near the HQ building. I watched a BENDIRE'S THRASHER drive a CURVE-BILLED THRASHER off its tree top perch then pursue it onto a wire; causing it to scoot along the wire and finally fly away. At this point the Bendire's returned to the top of the tree and sang its heart out. Bendire's and Curve-billed both breed here and the Bendire's is obviously maintaining territory even though the start of its breeding season is still three months away. That shady nest site in the juniper up against the side of the house is a prized possession. A perched CRISSAL THRASHER just 100 yards away completed the trifecta. All this at 9:15am and 90 degrees.

64 species recorded at Whitewater Draw:
Pied-billed Grebe, Great Blue Heron, Black-crowned Night-Heron, Mallard, Green-winged & Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Turkey Vulture, N. Harrier, Swainson's & Red-tailed Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Peregrine Falcon, Virginia Rail, Sora, Am. Coot, Black-necked Stilt, Am. Avocet, Killdeer, Wilson's Snipe, Long-billed Curlew, Greater Yellowlegs, Western & Least Sandpipers, Red-necked Phalarope, Mourning Dove, Greater Roadrunner, Great Horned Owl, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Black & Say's Phoebes, Vermilion Flycatcher, Cassin's & Western Kingbirds, Tree & Barn Swallows, Rock, House & Marsh Wrens, Bendire's, Curve-billed & Crissal Thrashers, Verdin, Loggerhead Shrike, Cassin's Vireo, Orange-crowned, Yellow, MacGillivray's & Wilson's Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Green-tailed Towhee, Lark Bunting, Brewer's, Vesper, Savannah, Song, Lincoln's & White-crowned Sparrows, Pyrrhuloxia, Blue Grosbeak, Lazuli Bunting, Red-winged & Yellow-headed Blackbirds and Eastern Meadowlark.

Wednesday, September 28, 2005
Out today with John Allen from Canaan, NH for a late season visit to California Gulch. When John contacted me at the end of August to set up this trip, I told him that our chances wouldn't be good for Five-striped. However, this was the time he had available and he wanted to give it a shot. I'm happy to report (and delighted for John) that we were successful in seeing the sparrow. The weather cooperated and clouds kept the temperature down until we had walked back up heartbreak hill at 9:00am. It was still warm but definitely tolerable. I can't say the same for Sierra Vista at noon (95 degrees). Two more weeks of this and we should be out of the woods (I hope!).

It was a case of déjà vu all over again for me as I left home at 3:15am to meet John in Nogales. After a 3 COMMON POORWILL drive along the Ruby Road, we starting birding at the first stream crossing in California Gulch at 6:30am. It took about ten minutes of listening to detect what I suspected were the calls of a juvenile FIVE-STRIPED SPARROW and a further five minutes to find an adult feeding the juvenile. I'm surmising that the three week delay in the start of the monsoons back in July probably helped us considerably in delaying the breeding activity of the sparrows. We also found a couple of fairly well developed immature birds showing all of the plumage characteristics of an adult, including breast spot, just less obvious (thinner) areas of white that make up the five stripes. At least we didn't get a 4 1/2 striped sparrow -- that would have been a miserable failure.

There was an amusing moment with one of the immatures. We watched a bird fly in and disappear into the grass then reappear foraging in an open area. The bird kept moving closer to us, apparently unaware of our presence. There came a point when the bird finally realized it was being watched (from very close range) and it did an "oh shit" response like a duck rearing up out of the water then diving -- it took a quick upward flight then dropped like a stone into the grass.

Even though our birding was limited to the area around the first stream crossing, we noted a few continuing summer species and migrants. ROCK WRENS were probably the most conspicuous bird of the day both here and along the Ruby Road.  Other regulars including NORTHERN BEARDLESS-TYRANNULET, ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER, SUMMER TANAGER, BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAK, BLUE GROSBEAK (very common), VARIED BUNTING and SCOTT'S ORIOLE. Migrants included HAMMOND'S FLYCATCHER, PLUMBEOUS VIREO, ORANGE-CROWNED & WILSON'S WARBLERS and LAZULI BUNTING. About 30 species in all.

After saying goodbye to John back in Nogales, I started my journey home by driving along the South River Road (the short cut from Ruby Road east of I-19 to Hwy 82 near Kino Springs). The phrase "timing is everything" was perfectly exemplified when I looked up at exactly the right moment to see a VAUX'S SWIFT flying over the road.

A good end to a successful morning (or middle of the night and morning). I then spoiled it by watching Liverpool and Chelsea serve up a disappointing 0-0 draw in the European Champions League.

Thursday, September 29, 2005
I made my fourth and final visit of the month to Sawmill Canyon today. Another fairly warm day as September draws to a close.

Lower Garden Canyon grassland was alive with sparrows this morning. Most were BREWER'S and VESPER with a liberal sprinkling of immature CASSIN'S SPARROWS. I also noted migrant/wintering LINCOLN'S SPARROW and GREEN-TAILED TOWHEE alongside resident RUFOUS-CROWNED SPARROW and CANYON TOWHEE. Many BLUE GROSBEAKS are still present (not singing).

A calling ROCK WREN near the fishing ponds represented a rarity for Garden (I have recorded them here less than annually).

In Sawmill Canyon, I failed to find Buff-breasted Flycatcher for the first time this month. However, knowing how difficult they can be to detect at this time of year, I can't say for certain that they have departed. I saw a typical seasonal mix of residents, migrants, continuing summer and arriving winter species. 27 species in all.

The highlight of the morning was a spontaneously calling NORTHERN (MOUNTAIN) PYGMY-OWL (near the cabin) that I was able to walk right up to and view at my leisure. The bird just glared down at me from its perch in a juniper tree until I reluctantly had to walk away. Places to go, birds to see.

YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS are now present in nuisance proportions. Their "whit" call is not too unlike the "pit" of a Buff-breasted Flycatcher when heard from a distance. Consequently, I needed to pause often to eliminate them. Of course, they flit here, there and everywhere and constantly catch the eye. Working on the principle that they can't all be Yellow-rumps I did lots of checking and eventually turned up several migrant TOWNSEND'S, HERMIT and WILSON'S WARBLERS.

A silent HAMMOND'S FLYCATCHER, a singing CASSIN'S VIREO and a few CHIPPING SPARROWS rounded out the migrants.

Several HEPATIC TANAGERS and a lingering WESTERN WOOD-PEWEE were the only continuing summer species that I detected. Wood-Pewees have generally all gone from Sawmill by the end of September and I have just one October week 1 record; (10 lowland records through October week 3)  Since they are a long distant migrant, I wouldn't expect a wide variation in departure date. 

Resident ARIZONA WOODPECKERS were noisy and conspicuous with at least five seen and others heard.

I finally picked up some wintering species on this my last visit of the month. I broke my seasonal sapsucker duck with 4 RED-NAPED SAPSUCKERS, all interacting in the same tree. Another couple of weeks should see Williamson's arrive. A few RUBY-CROWNED KINGLETS were present; I saw my season first at Patagonia Lake earlier in the month (September 16).

49 species recorded in Garden and Sawmill (italics) Canyons:
Turkey Vulture, Red-tailed Hawk, Am. Kestrel, Mourning Dove, N. (Mountain) Pygmy-Owl, Acorn, Gila & Arizona Woodpeckers, Red-naped Sapsucker, N. Flicker, Western Wood-Pewee, Hammond's Flycatcher, Say's Phoebe, Cassin's Kingbird, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Rock, Bewick's & House Wrens, Curve-billed Thrasher, Am. Robin, Bridled Titmouse, White-breasted Nuthatch, Brown Creeper, Verdin, Loggerhead Shrike, Steller's & Mexican Jays, Common Raven, Cassin's & Hutton's Vireos, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Yellow-rumped, Townsend's, Hermit & Wilson's Warblers, Hepatic Tanager, Green-tailed, Spotted & Canyon Towhees, Cassin's, Rufous-crowned, Chipping, Brewer's, Vesper & Lincoln's Sparrows, Yellow-eyed Junco, Blue Grosbeak and Eastern Meadowlark.

Friday, September 30, 2005
As much as I would have liked to check Willcox this morning (last day of the month), I couldn't justify $20+ in gas for a location that I rarely visit when working with clients. Instead, I made an under $2 trip down to the San Pedro Riparian area. I walked my standard "winter" route south down the Del Valle Road, east down Garden Wash then north along the river. This route puts me in open areas when it's cool and allows time for activity to build up in the shady areas along the river as the day warms. It was a clear morning, very pleasant at 55 degrees when I started birding at 6:30am and up to 92 degrees when I quit at 10:15am.

Like most locations in southeast Arizona at the moment, the grasses and weeds in all areas are extremely healthy. I was last here 10 days ago when I saw hundreds of BREWER'S SPARROWS and, if anything, there are now many more. I could hear their twittering, bubbly song everywhere that I went except immediately adjacent to the river in the cottonwoods. GREEN-TAILED TOWHEES and LINCOLN'S SPARROWS were both very common. Listening for the Lincoln's quiet and subtle, insect-like buzzy call is the key to determining how many are actually present. I stopped counting at 50 seen and/or heard. The towhees were even more numerous.

YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRDS flying south over mesquite along the Del Valle Road were of note. I don't record then on the SPRNCA very often. A calling CRISSAL THRASHER was far more in keeping with the habitat. From the grassy area east of the road, I heard the "chewp" call of a WESTERN MEADOWLARK (second of season for me). It took almost ten minutes to find the bird partially hidden perched in an Agave.

I checked both ponds and walked in the river bed without seeing or hearing the recently found Green Kingfisher. It was about this time last year that a bird showed up and stayed for a couple of months. From what I saw today, there are several areas along the river with clear, shallow, fast running water that seem far better for foraging than either of the muddy and slimy ponds.

By its current standards, the big pond (Kingfisher Pond) had plenty of activity today (I use the word "plenty" in a relative sense). The best bird here was my first of season MERLIN, a fairly scarce species on the river (I only have 8 records). Apart from a very early August record, this was my earliest sighting in SE AZ (previously October 2 at the nearby Sierra Vista EOP). Despite (or because of) the slimy green surface scum, the pond had attracted a regular GREAT BLUE HERON, 2 GREEN HERONS (uncommon here) and an immature BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERON (very scarce here: 6 total records in 4 separate years, 3 records from September).

Summer breeders are dwindling. I noted 25+ CASSIN'S KINGBIRDS (perhaps bolstered by migrants), a couple of singing BELL'S VIREOS, a handful of SUMMER TANAGERS and 40+ BLUE GROSBEAKS.

Apart from sparrows (many of which will winter), migrant activity wasn't particularly evident. LAZULI BUNTINGS were present in several locations but not particularly easy to see because of the dense weeds. CASSIN'S VIREO was singing in Garden Wash but hard to track down. The only migrant warblers that I found were a few ORANGE-CROWNED and YELLOW-RUMPED and just one MACGILLIVRAY'S WARBLER.

Highlight of the morning came when I returned to the San Pedro House. Almost the first bird that I saw was a male RUDDY GROUND-DOVE on the east side of the house. The bird was scratching around in the bare dirt between the house and the propane tank enclosure. This was my earliest sighting in SE AZ (previously October 5, 1999, also on the San Pedro).

Looking for this bird at the moment may be difficult due to the density of the vegetation. Last year a pair hung around the same general area through December. COMMON GROUND-DOVES may also be present to complicate the issue (3 seen today).

60 species recorded on SPRNCA (Hwy 90 area):
Great Blue & Green Herons, Black-crowned Night-Heron, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, Turkey Vulture, Cooper's, Swainson's & Red-tailed Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Merlin, Gambel's Quail, Am. Coot, Mourning & White-winged Doves, Common & Ruddy Ground-Doves, Anna's Hummingbird, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Black & Say's Phoebes, Cassin's Kingbird, Barn Swallow, Cactus, Bewick's & House Wrens, Curve-billed & Crissal Thrashers, White-breasted Nuthatch, Verdin, Loggerhead Shrike, European Starling, House Sparrow, Bell's & Cassin's Vireos, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Orange-crowned, Yellow-rumped & MacGillivray's Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Summer Tanager, Green-tailed & Abert's Towhees, Cassin's, Chipping, Brewer's, Vesper, Black-throated, Song, Lincoln's & White-crowned Sparrows, Pyrrhuloxia, Blue Grosbeak, Lazuli Bunting, Eastern & Western Meadowlarks and Yellow-headed Blackbird.

This log is in chronological order and the most recent entries are at the bottom of the page.
The last update was on Friday, September 30, 2005

Species List

Stuart Healy Journal - September, 2005 If you use the contents of my journal for commercial purposes, please acknowledge the source to your clients - thanks.

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