Species List

Stuart Healy Journal - March, 2006 If you use the contents of my journal for commercial purposes, please acknowledge the source to your clients - thanks.

Bottom of Page

This log is in chronological order and the most recent entries are at the bottom of the page.
The last update was on Friday, March 31, 2006

Wednesday, March 1, 2006
The upcoming month of March is a busy month for me. However, today I had a lazy day with a morning visit to Sierra Vista EOP and then watched an England world cup warm up game in the afternoon. It was a mild and partly cloudy morning with heavy clouds and a few sprinkles in the afternoon. Based on England's lackluster performance against Uruguay (a team that didn't even qualify for the finals), I think there'll be more than just a few sprinkles on their world cup chances in June.

Singing PYRRHULOXIAS and WHITE-WINGED DOVES greeted me as I left the house this morning and a furtive GREATER ROADRUNNER slinked through the yard.

Lots of YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRDS, CINNAMON TEAL and a few RUDDY DUCKS in advanced breeding plumage were the highlights of an otherwise lackluster visit to the EOP. Ducks were in short supply -- perhaps they are taking advantage of the mild winter by getting a head start on their journey north. Conversely, wintering VESPER SPARROWS, LARK BUNTINGS and WESTERN MEADOWLARKS are still present in numbers.

Business Note:
I have a cancellation for August 10-12. I may decide to stay on in the White Mountains for a few more days if the dates are not quickly re-booked.

28 species recorded:
Pied-billed Grebe, Gadwall, Mallard, Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Ring-necked Duck, Ruddy Duck, N. Harrier, Red-tailed Hawk, Am. Kestrel, Sora, Am. Coot, Killdeer, Rock Pigeon, Mourning & White-winged Doves, Greater Roadrunner, Say's Phoebe, Marsh Wren, Verdin, House Sparrow, House Finch, Lark Bunting, Vesper & White-crowned Sparrows, Pyrrhuloxia, Western Meadowlark & Yellow-headed Blackbird.

Friday, March 3, 2006
Out today with Mike & Ray Bryant from New York, NY. We birded in the Sulphur Springs Valley and the Chiricahua Mountains without looking hard for any specific target species (a "guide's choice" day). High clouds ensured a mild start to the day as well as a moderate afternoon temperature (low 70s). However, it was quite windy in the mountains.

We began by checking the fields on the west side of Central Highway -- I decided to check this location first because I knew that heat shimmer would be a problem later in the morning. The strategy paid off and I was again delighted to find that 10+ MOUNTAIN PLOVERS were still present in the second field north of Davis Road. In addition to extending my late date for this species in the valley, it was also my first record for March. A group of 13 LONG-BILLED CURLEWS and a large flock of YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRDS were in the same field. The usual FERRUGINOUS HAWKS were easy to see.

We cruised around the back roads and turned up quite a few birds including adjacent flocks of GAMBEL'S and SCALED QUAIL feeding in the same scrubby field, GREATER ROADRUNNER, singing and cooperative BENDIRE'S & CRISSAL THRASHERS and lots of LARK BUNTINGS.

Our next stop was at Whitewater Draw where we didn't come across Long-eared Owl (seen again yesterday) in the willow grove. However, a roosting BARN OWL was of much more interest to Mike and Ray. A couple of GREAT HORNED OWLS have been regular in the barn so perhaps a single bird today is an indication that nesting is finally underway. An amusing event occurred when a juvenile COOPER'S HAWK, perched in the open, was suddenly bumped by a juvenile SHARP-SHINNED HAWK just as I got the scope on the bird! Eventually, we had scope looks at both and were able to see the differences in breast plumage -- relatively thin, chocolate brown streaks on Cooper's; broader, reddish brown streaks on Sharpie.

The large flock of white geese was again present. Most were SNOW GEESE, of course, although the viewing conditions were such that we were easily able to pick out 6 ROSS'S GEESE. Ducks were quite plentiful and included several male CINNAMON TEAL and equally handsome male NORTHERN PINTAILS along with 5 REDHEADS and a handful of regulars. AMERICAN AVOCET continues; shorebirds noted were a single WILSON'S SNIPE, 20+ LONG-BILLED DOWITCHERS, 3 GREATER YELLOWLEGS and a fair sized flock of LEAST SANDPIPERS.

Landbirds were not much in evidence today. ABERT'S TOWHEE has shown some range expansion by establishing a presence here in recent years. A cavorting pair today was perhaps an indication that they will breed here. Newly returned VERMILION FLYCATCHERS added to the birds that wintered here. Multiple males were competing for the attention of lesser numbers of females. A large flock of AMERICAN PIPITS were a little too far away for satisfactory views as was a distant MERLIN.

Compared to recent visits, birding on lower Pinery Canyon Road was poor and we didn't see a single bluebird of any species. We had better birding higher up the mountain where we eventually encountered a large flock of MEXICAN CHICKADEES. We also had good looks at ARIZONA WOODPECKER, RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH and YELLOW-EYED JUNCO.

78 species recorded:
Pied-billed Grebe, Snow & Ross's Geese, Gadwall, Green-winged & Cinnamon Teal, N. Pintail, N. Shoveler, Redhead, Ruddy Duck, N. Harrier, Sharp-shinned, Cooper's, Red-tailed & Ferruginous Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Merlin, Scaled & Gambel's Quail, Sandhill Crane, Am. Coot, Am. Avocet, Killdeer, Mountain Plover, Wilson's Snipe, Long-billed Dowitcher, Long-billed Curlew, Greater Yellowlegs, Least Sandpiper, Rock Pigeon, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Mourning Dove, Greater Roadrunner, Barn & Great Horned Owls, Acorn,  Ladder-backed & Arizona Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Black & Say's Phoebe, Vermilion Flycatcher, Am. Pipit, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Cactus, Bewick's & Marsh Wrens, N. Mockingbird, Bendire's & Crissal Thrashers, Am. Robin, Bushtit, Mexican Chickadee, Bridled Titmouse, Red-breasted & White-breasted Nuthatches, Brown Creeper, Loggerhead Shrike, Mexican Jay, Chihuahuan & Common Ravens, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Abert's Towhee, Lark Bunting, Chipping, Brewer's, Vesper, Song, Lincoln's & White-crowned Sparrows, Dark-eyed (Gray-headed & Pink-sided) & Yellow-eyed Juncos, Red-winged & Yellow-headed Blackbirds and Great-tailed Grackle.

Monday, March 6, 2006
First of two days looking for a few target species with Ed & Barbara Coyle from Westbury, NY. Today we were successful with Ruddy Ground-Dove, Black-capped Gnatcatcher and Rufous-capped Warbler. The weather cooperated and the wind of recent days wasn't a factor. Low 30s in Sierra Vista when I left at 5:30am and up to 75 degrees when I returned at 2:30pm.

We began in Sycamore Canyon where it was considerable milder than my visit two weeks ago. Nonetheless, it was definitely worth wearing a sweater, long pants and gloves during the first hour. We arrived at the location where most recent sightings have occurred at 8:20am (where Montana/Montaña? Canyon enters from the west). Even though I had delayed our start by an hour compared to my last visit on Feb 25, the bottom of the canyon at this location was still in shadow. I first heard RUFOUS-CAPPED WARBLER fairly high on the slope at 8:30am and a few more times at scattered locations and intervals as the sun crept down the slope. I'd been listening intently and had heard only the soft "tick" calls. Eventually, the welcome sound of the warbler's loud chipping and buzzy song rang out at 9:15am and that quickly led us to the bird in the grassy vegetation at the edge of the creek. We stayed with it for about 15 minutes as it ranged rather rapidly over short distances. Neither I nor Ed were able to get decent photographs. [Heads up for anyone planning a visit -- I'm fairly sure that I heard a second bird "ticking" while looking at the warbler. I know that a pair were deeper in the canyon last year.]

A successful and short visit saw us underway again from the parking lot by 10:15am. We didn't focus much on other species -- I recorded about 30 species including BLACK VULTURE, lots of WHITE-THROATED SWIFTS, several RED-NAPED SAPSUCKERS, ACORN, ARIZONA and LADDER-BACKED WOODPECKERS, HUTTON'S VIREO and CANYON & ROCK WRENS.

Our next stop was at Kino Springs. It didn't take much effort nor time to find the mixed dove flock and around noon we saw 5 RUDDY GROUND-DOVES and a few INCA DOVES in the dry grass opposite the restaurant, between the pond and the lawn  -- a nice shady spot to view the birds under the pines with the cooling effect of the sprinklers. Such decadence. Other species here included GREAT EGRET, a female GILDED FLICKER, a hybrid male RED-SHAFTED FLICKER x GILDED FLICKER, VERMILION FLYCATCHER and a smattering of ducks.

We debated going on to Patagonia Lake where I thought we might have trouble with the gnatcatchers in the heat of the day. It was certainly a little warm there and dicky bird activity wasn't particularly encouraging as we got started. I decided that our strategy should first be to walk along the trail that skirts the edge of the mesquite bosque and then work the washes if that didn't pan out. We were about midway along the section of trail between the 2nd and 3rd washes when I heard the unmistakable sounds of BLACK-CAPPED GNATCATCHER over the incessant twittering of LESSER GOLDFINCHES. We entered the bosque and soon tracked down a male and female foraging fairly close together and calling to each other regularly. Unfortunately, the birds foraged high for much of the time so we didn't have any photo opportunities. Nevertheless, we stayed with the birds for 15 minutes and enjoyed decent views. The male of this pair is starting to get some black on the side of the cap; never did see the top of the cap well.

Nothing else of note on this very short visit, although a couple of beautiful breeding plumaged COMMON MOORHENS with bright red bills were certainly worth the price of admission.

61 species recorded:
Pied-billed & Eared Grebes, Great Egret, Am. Wigeon, Gadwall, Green-winged & Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Ring-necked Duck, Common Merganser, Ruddy Duck, Black & Turkey Vultures, Red-tailed Hawk, Common Moorhen, Am. Coot, Ruddy Ground-Dove, Inca Dove, Greater Roadrunner, Red-naped Sapsucker, Acorn, Gila, Ladder-backed & Arizona Woodpeckers, Northern & Gilded Flickers, Black Phoebe, Vermilion Flycatcher, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Cactus, Rock, Canyon, Bewick's, House & Marsh Wrens, N. Mockingbird, Curve-billed Thrasher, Black-tailed & Black-capped Gnatcatchers, Bridled Titmouse, White-breasted Nuthatch, Verdin, Mexican Jay, Common Raven, European Starling, House Sparrow, Hutton's Vireo, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Yellow-rumped & Rufous-capped Warblers, Canyon Towhee, Rufous-crowned, Chipping, Black-throated, Song, Lincoln's & White-crowned Sparrows, N. Cardinal, Red-winged Blackbird and Great-tailed Grackle.

Tuesday, March 7, 2006
Out again today with Ed & Barbara for a few more target birds. We birded the south end of Sulphur Springs Valley (but not at Whitewater Draw) and in Scheelite Canyon. The weather was considerably more like winter today with heavy clouds, rain and wind for much of the day, clearing later. Temperatures ranged from 50-60.

Despite the inclement weather, we had a productive morning in Sulphur Springs Valley and were able to see 3 of our 4 primary targets. FERRUGINOUS HAWK is pretty much a forgone conclusion at this time of year and we saw at least 10 in several locations. On the other hand, MOUNTAIN PLOVER is decidedly iffy at this time of year and I was delighted to once again extend my late date in the valley for the third consecutive visit (just two birds noted on Central Highway). However, I wouldn't want to push my luck by looking for them again in the near future! Rucker Canyon Road produced a flock of ~100 CHESTNUT-COLLARED LONGSPURS. The birds were fairly close to the road but incredibly difficult to see in the furrows of a recently ploughed field.

On the down side, we covered lots of suitable habitat and checked some regular hangouts and still struck out on Prairie Falcon. This is the time of year that they leave the main valley floor and move closer to the mountains. Consequently, the number of birds present is much lower than in the heart of winter. However, I'm sure that the poor viewing conditions didn't help our cause. Ironically, we found 3 PEREGRINE FALCONS that are much scarcer in the valley (likely migrants) and a total of 4 MERLINS (3 columbarius, 1 richardsonii).

We only saw a handful of SANDHILL CRANES but judging from the calls east of Bell Road, there are still plenty around. Wintering LARK BUNTINGS are still abundant; WESTERN MEADOWLARKS quite common. It's amazing to see how common EURASIAN COLLARED-DOVES have become in the valley. This species first arrived in AZ in 2000.

The highlight for me was a lone AMERICAN ROBIN on Courtland Road near Moore Road. At the time we saw the bird, I thought it was a first in the valley for me and a quick check of my records when I got home confirmed that it was species #255 on my Sulphur Springs Valley list. While fairly common in most of the  mountain ranges, lowland Robins are a rarity in SE AZ.

Other species included GOLDEN EAGLE on Rucker Canyon Road, GREAT HORNED OWL on Jefferson Road, a small flock of LONG-BILLED CURLEWS on Central, SCALED QUAIL, BENDIRE'S THRASHER singing in three locations; and abundant YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRDS in several locations.

We finished the day with a wild visit to Scheelite Canyon. Fortunately, the wind and rain had zero impact on our success and we found a pair of SPOTTED OWLS in the Huachuca Hiking Club tree. This is the highest usage roost location in the canyon (over 13% of my sightings are in this tree) and probably the easiest location in which to see an owl (immediately adjacent to the trail). This particular tree (a dead Douglas Fir) also accounts for much of the Fir usage by the owls (Oak is used most of the time). I suspect that many a birders' lifer has come in this tree. Nevertheless, I've met people in the canyon who have told me "no owl today" and I've gone on to find it here. Moral: be diligent!

Wednesday, March 8, 2006
Out today with Dave and Peggy Heck from Salisbury, CT. We birded at Patagonia Lake and in the Paton's yard without looking for anything in particular. The rain held off but it was a cool day and really windy by mid morning.

The birding at Patagonia Lake was slow but steady and we turned up almost 70 species over a period of 5 hours. We checked the west end of the lake and visitor center area before working the east end of the lake and a short section of the creek. Winter ducks have thinned out considerably but there are still many EARED GREBES, a large flock of COMMON MERGANSERS and a male GREATER SCAUP.

The hillside above the bench was less "sparrowy" than usual. However, BLACK-CHINNED SPARROWS are still fairly numerous and the males are now starting to get some black that gives this species its name. RUFOUS-WINGED SPARROW was nothing more than a brief glimpse.

GNATCATCHER EXTRAVAGANZA
We saw all three species of gnatcatchers and I feel that a few comments are warranted. Based on what I saw today, it's necessary to be very careful in order not to make mistakes with the current set of birds. On the hillside above the bench, a male BLACK-CAPPED is apparently paired with a female BLACK-TAILED. In the mesquite bosque, what first appeared to be a female BLACK-CAPPED was actually a hybrid BLACK-CAPPED x BLACK-TAILED. I've seen this individual before (see journal for September 6, 2005) - the bird calls like a Black-capped, has a very long bill like a Black-capped but has a black underside to the tail like a Black-tailed. The exact male/female mix of parentage that makes these characters I do not know. We saw pure BLACK-CAPPED in mesquite and willow environments (with males sporting some black). However, there were a very high number of BLUE-GRAY working the willows. Blue-gray tend to work faster than Black-capped but, of course, this is only a supporting feature. Look closely at the bill length (noticeably longer on Black-capped, but can be deceptive depending on viewing angle) and bill color (all black for Black-capped, some pale showing on lower mandible for Blue-gray). Voice is perhaps the best way of separating female Black-capped from Blue-gray for those unfamiliar with subtleties of plumage. It's a jungle out there (but if you make a mistake, the sun will still rise tomorrow).

I was hoping for some returning species today but we didn't find any. Although the willow leaf-out is definitely advanced enough to support them, it's still just a tad early for Lucy's & Yellow Warblers and Bell's Vireos at this location (based on my data). WHITE-THROATED SWIFTS, VIOLET-GREEN and NORTHERN ROUGH-WINGED SWALLOWS worked over the lake.

VERMILION FLYCATCHERS are certainly back in numbers now with females checking out potential nest sites. GRAY FLYCATCHERS were very common but we only saw one DUSKY FLYCATCHER.

Marion Paton's yard had plenty of birds as well as birders and here I picked up three season firsts -- males of BROAD-TAILED & RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRDS and BULLOCK'S ORIOLE. Although Broad-tailed is mainly a mountain breeder and migrant, I do have a fair few records in lowland habitats including 11 at the Paton's, mostly in March and April.

Among the other species present from ~30 seen during the hour that we spent were BROAD-BILLED, ANNA'S & VIOLET-CROWNED HUMMINGBIRDS, ABERT'S & GREEN-TAILED TOWHEES, a handful of handsome LINCOLN'S SPARROWS, a couple of PINE SISKINS and a few male and female LAZULI BUNTINGS.

77 species recorded:
Pied-billed & Eared Grebes, Great Blue Heron, Gadwall, Green-winged Teal, N. Shoveler, Greater Scaup, Common Merganser, Ruddy Duck, Turkey Vulture, Cooper's & Red-tailed Hawks, Gambel's Quail, Common Moorhen, Am. Coot, Wilson's Snipe, Rock Pigeon, Mourning, White-winged & Inca Doves, White-throated Swift, Broad-billed, Violet-crowned, Anna's, Broad-tailed & Rufous Hummingbirds, Acorn, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Black & Say's Phoebes, Gray, Dusky & Vermilion Flycatchers, Violet-green & N. Rough-winged Swallows, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Phainopepla, Bewick's,  House & Marsh Wrens, N. Mockingbird, Curve-billed Thrasher, Blue-gray, Black-tailed & Black-capped Gnatcatchers, Bushtit, Bridled Titmouse, White-breasted Nuthatch, Verdin, Common Raven, House Sparrow, Hutton's Vireo, House Finch, Pine Siskin, Lesser Goldfinch, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Green-tailed & Abert's Towhees, Rufous-winged, Chipping, Brewer's, Black-chinned, Lark, Black-throated, Song, Lincoln's & White-crowned Sparrows, N. Cardinal, Pyrrhuloxia, Lazuli Bunting, Red-winged Blackbird, Eastern Meadowlark, Great-tailed Grackle and Bullock's Oriole.

Thursday, March 9, 2006
Out today with Nancy Mathes and Bob Schafer who I've birded with on one previous occasion. Nancy and Bob split their time between Cleveland, OH and Green Valley, AZ. This was the first of four days of general birding without any serious targets (the final two days will be at the end of the month). We started in Sulphur Springs Valley with a check of the fields on Central Highway then spent the bulk of our time at Whitewater Draw before finishing with a short visit to St. David Monastery. The day began cloudy and much colder than of late with clearing skies and pleasant conditions by late morning. The temperature ranged from 27 to 68 degrees in our birding locations.

Once again, I'm pleased to report that ~12 MOUNTAIN PLOVERS continue on Central Highway in the second field north of Davis Road. However, the birds were just about as far away from the highway as they could be and were extremely difficult to see. Had I not seen them flash through my field of view while scoping a FERRUGINOUS HAWK, the chances are very high that I wouldn't have found them today. Even knowing they were present, it still took almost 30 minutes of freezing our asses off before we got just a marginal view of the birds on the ground.

The birding at Whitewater Draw was pleasant and productive and we turned up almost 50 species while meandering around. Normally, when working with clients I don't have time to linger here and enjoy the birds so it was a treat to do just that today. One spot produced great close up views of MARSH WREN, LINCOLN'S SPARROW and SWAMP SPARROW foraging close to each other.

We were fortunate enough to find all three regular owl species -- GREAT HORNED OWL in the parking lot barn; BARN OWL and LONG-EARED OWL in the south willow grove. The light wasn't really good enough for getting an image with much detail but, as you all know, that has never stopped me before. This is a large image and best viewed with

Late morning saw the return of a few hundred SANDHILL CRANES, a far cry from the many thousands just a few weeks ago. I'm sure they'll be gone before too long. I was only able to find a single SNOW GOOSE. The AMERICAN AVOCET population is up to at least 10 birds sporting colorful breeding plumage. Although shorebird habitat is excellent for the upcoming migration, the only shorebirds noted today were 20+ LONG-BILLED DOWITCHERS and a few LEAST SANDPIPERS. A few AMERICAN PIPITS were out on the mud flats.

Other species included ~20 CINNAMON TEAL, 2 BENDIRE'S THRASHERS, TREE SWALLOW, plentiful LARK BUNTINGS and GREEN-TAILED & ABERT'S TOWHEES.

Holy Trinity Monastery was quiet in the early afternoon and we struggled to find birds. Eventually, we managed about 20 species in an hour. WESTERN MEADOWLARKS remain quite common; several VERMILION FLYCATCHERS were fairly active and WHITE-WINGED DOVES were singing.

62 species recorded:
Pied-billed Grebe, Snow Goose, Am. Wigeon, Gadwall, Green-winged & Cinnamon Teal, Mallard, N. Pintail, N. Shoveler, Ruddy Duck, N. Harrier, Red-tailed & Ferruginous Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Sandhill Crane, Am. Coot, Am. Avocet, Killdeer, Mountain Plover, Long-billed Dowitcher, Greater Yellowlegs, Least Sandpiper, Rock Pigeon, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Mourning & White-winged Doves, Barn Owl, Great Horned Owl, Long-eared Owl, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, Black & Say's Phoebes, Vermilion Flycatcher, Tree Swallow, Am. Pipit, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Bewick's Wren, Marsh Wren, N. Mockingbird, Bendire's Thrasher, Loggerhead Shrike, Chihuahuan Raven, European Starling, House Sparrow, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Green-tailed & Abert's Towhees, Lark Bunting, Brewer's, Savannah, Song, Lincoln's, Swamp & White-crowned Sparrows, N. Cardinal, Red-winged & Yellow-headed Blackbirds and Western Meadowlark.

Friday, March 10, 2006
Out again today with Nancy and Bob. What a crappy day to be out birding. It was nice enough when we left Sierra Vista (mild and sunny) and there really wasn't any hint of what was to come. We encountered heavy clouds as we traveled west and our birding at Patagonia Lake, Kino Springs and the Paton's was severely impacted by high winds that steadily increased as the day progressed. As I drove home in the afternoon, some fresh snow was visible on the highest peaks of the Huachucas as a result of recent precipitation (we need it!).

I was hoping for some of the early migrants at the lake today. However, CASSIN'S KINGBIRD was the only species that cooperated and we didn't see Lucy's nor Yellow Warblers (although the latter was seen yesterday). Wintering ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLERS have been scarce in recent weeks so today's birds were obviously a push of migrants. Ditto for BELTED KINGFISHER. The only other migrants/returning residents noted were TURKEY VULTURE, RING-BILLED GULL and VIOLET-GREEN & N. ROUGH-WINGED SWALLOWS.

All three gnatcatcher species were again easy to see, although identification is certainly not easy in some cases (see my notes for March 8). The biggest challenge is provided by BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHERS that are very common at the moment as migrants add to wintering birds. Of course, a pair of BLACK-TAILED GNATCATCHERS on the hillside above the bench were easy enough once the undertail was seen (they are also noticeably smaller which is a good aid). The male of this pair already has an extensive black cap. We saw a calling female BLACK-CAPPED GNATCATCHER in the third wash and a calling male in the willows near the creek (with partial black cap).

A couple of NEOTROPIC CORMORANTS were the first that I've seen of this normally fairly common species since February 2nd (8 intervening visits without a sighting). I've seen a slight decline in this species at the lake in the past couple of years. This can perhaps be explained by their range expansion in other parts of Arizona. EARED GREBES and COMMON MERGANSERS continue on the lake.

Flycatchers probably had a bigger problem with the wind than the many birders present. GRAY and VERMILION FLYCATCHERS and both Phoebes worked close to the ground. The only DUSKY FLYCATCHER that we saw was firmly entrenched in a well leafed-out willow.

The wind was howling at Kino Springs and we stayed for only 30 minutes (and didn't look for the Ruddy-Ground-Doves). Unlike Patagonia Lake where waterfowl were not much in evidence, the larger section of the club house pond had a good selection including CINNAMON TEAL, CANVASBACK, RING-NECKED DUCK and LESSER SCAUP. My first CLIFF SWALLOWS of the season battled the wind. GREAT EGRET continues at the first pond but the group of Hooded Mergansers were either hiding or gone.

Although it was even windier in Marion Paton's yard, birds were plentiful and feeding activity was frenzied. We saw most of the recent regulars including VIOLET-CROWNED & RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRDS, PINE SISKIN, GREEN-TAILED & ABERT'S TOWHEES and LAZULI BUNTING. 30 species in about an hour.

77 species recorded:
Pied-billed & Eared Grebes, Neotropic Cormorant, Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Am. Wigeon, Gadwall, Green-winged & Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Canvasback, Ring-necked Duck, Lesser Scaup, Common Merganser, Ruddy Duck, Turkey Vulture, Red-tailed Hawk, Gambel's Quail, Am. Coot, Killdeer, Ring-billed Gull, Mourning, White-winged & Inca Doves, Broad-billed, Violet-crowned, Anna's & Rufous Hummingbirds, Belted Kingfisher, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Gray, Dusky & Vermilion Flycatchers, Black & Say's Phoebes, Cassin's Kingbird, Violet-green, N. Rough-winged & Cliff Swallows, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Bewick's Wren, N. Mockingbird, Curve-billed Thrasher, Blue-gray, Black-tailed & Black-capped Gnatcatchers, Bushtit, Bridled Titmouse, White-breasted Nuthatch, Verdin, Common Raven, House Sparrow, Hutton's Vireo, House Finch, Pine Siskin, Lesser Goldfinch, Orange-crowned & Yellow-rumped Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Green-tailed & Abert's Towhees, Rufous-crowned, Chipping, Brewer's, Vesper, Lark, Black-throated, Song, Lincoln's & White-crowned Sparrows, N. Cardinal, Pyrrhuloxia, Lazuli Bunting, Red-winged Blackbird and Great-tailed Grackle.

Monday, March 13, 2006
Finally, the first major storm of the winter hit over the weekend and left plenty of snow in the mountains. There was even some snow at street level in Sierra Vista. Unfortunately, it's been a very dry winter and I think it's a case of too little too late compared with what we really need. However, every little bit helps (as the actress said to the bishop).

Today was the first of two days with Mick Walker from Newtown, CT who I've birded with once before in March 2002. After a chilly start, it was  beautiful, blue sky day with pristine viewing conditions and great views of the snow capped Huachuca and Santa Rita mountain ranges. We didn't look for any specific species and had a very enjoyable day with visits to Patagonia Lake State Park (5 hours, 75 species), Kino Springs (2 hours, 60+ species) and Paton's yard (30 minutes, 20+ species). Bird activity was excellent at all locations. Just a short report today, hardly commensurate with everything that we saw.

Highlights at Patagonia Lake were BLACK-CAPPED GNATCATCHER and ELEGANT TROGON, a bird that I thought had already returned to the mountains. I heard the Trogon giving its annoyed "clucking" call in the mesquite between the second and third wash and we were able to track it down quite easily. The bird was very accommodating and I managed a very good photo, although not at the best of angles. Nevertheless, it's certainly the best image that I have of this species (and I'm my own worst critic). I've published a large sized image to do it justice -- best viewed using I wonder why it used to be called Coppery-tailed Trogon?

Among the many other species were several NEOTROPIC CORMORANTS, 4-5 WILSON'S SNIPE, many WHITE-THROATED SWIFTS working quite low over the lake, many GRAY & VERMILION and a single ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER, CASSIN'S KINGBIRD, lots of swallows including perched NORTHERN ROUGH-WINGED SWALLOW, my f-o-s YELLOW WARBLER and plenty of sparrows including RUFOUS-WINGED and SWAMP.

Highlights at Kino Springs were my first of season LUCY'S & WILSON'S WARBLERS. Lots of flicker activity between male GILDED, male NORTHERN and a hybrid female GILDED x NORTHERN. Just one HOODED MERGANSER was on the first pond. A small flock of LARK BUNTINGS continue (first winter that I've seen them here).

Marion Paton's yard had the usual suspects with VIOLET CROWNED & RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRDS being the pick of the bunch.

103 species recorded:
Pied-billed & Eared Grebes, Neotropic Cormorant, Great Blue Heron, Green Heron, Am. Wigeon, Gadwall, Green-winged & Cinnamon Teal, Mallard, N. Shoveler, Canvasback, Redhead, Ring-necked Duck, Lesser Scaup, Hooded & Common Mergansers, Ruddy Duck, Turkey Vulture, Red-tailed Hawk, Am. Kestrel, Gambel's Quail, Common Moorhen, Am. Coot, Killdeer, Wilson's Snipe, Spotted Sandpiper, Rock Pigeon, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Mourning, White-winged & Inca Doves, Greater Roadrunner, White-throated Swift, Broad-billed, Violet-crowned, Anna's & Rufous Hummingbirds, Elegant Trogon, Belted Kingfisher, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, Northern Flicker, Gilded Flicker, Black & Say's Phoebes, Gray, Vermilion & Ash-throated Flycatchers, Cassin's Kingbird, Tree, Violet-green, N. Rough-winged & Cliff Swallows, Am. Pipit, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Cactus, Rock, Bewick's, House & Marsh Wrens, N. Mockingbird, Curve-billed Thrasher, Hermit Thrush, Blue-gray, Black-tailed & Black-capped Gnatcatchers, Bushtit, Bridled Titmouse, Verdin, Loggerhead Shrike, Chihuahuan & Common Ravens, European Starling, House Sparrow, Hutton's Vireo, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Orange-crowned, Lucy's, Yellow, Yellow-rumped & Wilson's Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Green-tailed, Canyon & Abert's Towhees, Lark Bunting, Rufous-winged, Chipping, Brewer's, Vesper, Lark, Black-throated, Song, Lincoln's, Swamp & White-crowned Sparrows, N. Cardinal, Pyrrhuloxia, Lazuli Bunting, Red-winged & Great-tailed Grackle.

Tuesday, March 14, 2006
Out again today with Mick Walker. We spent the morning in Sulphur Springs Valley and a couple of afternoon hours on the San Pedro. Another glorious, mostly clear sky day that began very cold in the valley then climbed into the high 70s on the river by mid-afternoon. Although we couldn't duplicate the diversity of yesterday (nor did we expect to do so), the birding was very productive. Another short report today with "highlights only" as my time gets crunched (a busy week followed by a trip to CA that starts Friday).

I certainly didn't expect to find MOUNTAIN PLOVER today so I was completely gobsmacked to see at least 52 of the little buggers continuing on Central Highway in the second field north of Davis. This is the first year that I've seen them in the valley in March (sightings March 3, 9 and today) and it was my highest daily count this winter. What irony.  A flock of 19 LONG-BILLED CURLEWS were in the same field.

We missed FERRUGINOUS HAWK on an early visit but found one bird later in the morning on Davis Road, just west of Central. We found none at all along Rucker Canyon Road where they are common throughout the winter. I monitor WYObirds and the hawks have already been reported up there. Rucker Canyon Road had a flock of flighty CHESTNUT-COLLARED LONGSPURS.

SCALED QUAIL and LARK BUNTINGS were conspicuous. BENDIRE'S THRASHERS were easy to find (4 birds in different locations) but we had to work before finding a couple of CRISSAL THRASHERS.

Whitewater Draw yielded GREAT HORNED and BARN OWLS but no Long-eared (a tractor was working on the new pond in the willow grove). A couple of hundred SANDHILL CRANES are still hanging around along with a lone SNOW GOOSE. Shorebirds were not plentiful and consisted of the ~10 AVOCETS, 3 GREATER YELLOWLEGS and a few LEAST SANDPIPERS. Shorebird habitat remains very good. A marauding PEREGRINE FALCON kept everybody on their toes.

The best came last as we left the valley -- a low soaring adult GOLDEN EAGLE on Davis Road was a spectacular sight.

It was quite warm on the San Pedro and bird activity was definitely on the low side except for the San Pedro House feeders. Nevertheless, we did find a couple of decent birds. The continuing LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSH was my 40th record in southeast Arizona and extended my late date (previously March 9, 2001 at Patagonia Lake). Even better, a FOX SPARROW was a location first for me (species #222 on the San Pedro). The bird was along the river about midway between the SPH trail and Kingfisher Pond. Surprisingly, to me at least, the bird was a  "Red Fox Sparrow" (iliaca or zaboria?), perhaps the least likely race to winter in SE AZ. I obtained a few poor but diagnostic images.

A good day.

83 species recorded:
Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Snow Goose, Gadwall, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, N. Pintail, Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, N. Harrier, Red-tailed & Ferruginous Hawks, Golden Eagle, Am. Kestrel, Peregrine Falcon, Scaled & Gambel's Quail, Sandhill Crane, Sora, Am. Coot, Am. Avocet, Killdeer, Mountain Plover, Long-billed Curlew, Greater Yellowlegs, Least Sandpiper, Rock Pigeon, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Mourning Dove, Greater Roadrunner, Barn Owl, Great Horned Owl, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Black & Say's Phoebes, Vermilion Flycatcher, Horned Lark, Tree & N. Rough-winged Swallows, Am. Pipit, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Cactus, Bewick's, House & Marsh Wrens, Northern Mockingbird, Bendire's & Crissal Thrashers, Bushtit, Bridled Titmouse, White-breasted Nuthatch, Loggerhead Shrike, Chihuahuan Raven, European Starling, House Sparrow, Hutton's Vireo, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Louisiana Waterthrush, Common Yellowthroat, Green-tailed & Abert's Towhees, Lark Bunting, Chipping, Brewer's, Vesper, Black-throated, Savannah, Fox, Song, Lincoln's & White-crowned Sparrows, Chestnut-collared Longspur, Pyrrhuloxia, Eastern & Western Meadowlarks, Red-winged, Yellow-headed & Brewer's Blackbirds and Great-tailed Grackle.

Wednesday, March 15, 2006
First of two days with Marie & Jim Mullarkey from Helena, MT. On an absolutely gorgeous early spring day (mild am, very warm pm), we birded at Patagonia Lake and the Paton's Yard (ran out of time to visit Kino Springs). 92 species on the day.

Patagonia Lake was again very productive as migrants and returning summer breeders combine with residents and wintering species. Probably the highlight of our six hours at the lake was finding the male ELEGANT TROGON just before we left. We struggled to locate the bird but I ended up finding it in the exact same mesquite where I saw it on Monday. All mesquites look alike in the bosque and I only realized it was the same tree after stumbling into the bird, not by proactively looking there first!

Among the species noted were DOUBLE-CRESTED & NEOTROPIC CORMORANTS side by side in flight (quite a noticeable size difference); a migrant OSPREY; juvenile COOPER'S HAWK; a lone RING-BILLED GULL patrolling the lake; COSTA'S HUMMINGBIRD (regular in spring, mostly in April); RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD (only my third record at the lake); many GRAY and one each HAMMOND'S & ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHERS; four swallow species including BARN (usually the last breeder to return); several BLACK-CAPPED GNATCATCHERS (including a male with partial black cap); LUCY'S & WILSON'S WARBLERS and continuing BLACK-CHINNED SPARROWS among several flavors of sparrows.

Of interest to me in a tree full of RED-WINGED BLACKBIRDS were singletons of STARLING (4, 3), YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRD (22, 6) & BREWER'S BLACKBIRD (20, 6). The numbers show the number of sightings and number of years seen from 423 visits in 13 years. As you can see, all three species are fairly scarce at the lake in the grand scheme of things so to see all of them on the same day was twilight zonish.

79 species recorded at Patagonia Lake (italics=7 heard only): PLSP bar-graph
Pied-billed & Eared Grebes, Double-crested & Neotropic Cormorants, Great Blue Heron, Gadwall, Green-winged Teal, N. Shoveler, Lesser Scaup, Common Merganser, Ruddy Duck, Osprey, Cooper's Hawk, Common Moorhen, Am. Coot, Ring-billed Gull, Mourning & White-winged Doves, Broad-billed, Anna's, Costa's & Rufous Hummingbirds, Elegant Trogon, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, Black & Say's Phoebes, Hammond's, Gray, Vermilion & Ash-throated Flycatchers, Tree, Violet-green, N. Rough-winged & Barn Swallows, Am. Pipit, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Phainopepla, Cactus, Bewick's & Marsh Wrens, N. Mockingbird, Curve-billed Thrasher, Hermit Thrush, Blue-gray, Black-tailed & Black-capped Gnatcatchers, Bushtit, Bridled Titmouse, Verdin, Common Raven, European Starling, House Sparrow, Hutton's Vireo, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Orange-crowned, Lucy's, Yellow, Yellow-rumped & Wilson's Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Abert's Towhee, Rufous-crowned, Rufous-winged, Chipping, Brewer's, Black-chinned, Lark, Black-throated, Song, Lincoln's & White-crowned Sparrows, N. Cardinal, Pyrrhuloxia, Red-winged, Yellow-headed & Brewer's Blackbirds and Great-tailed Grackle.

Activity in Marion Paton's yard was decent considering the afternoon hour and heat of the day. My first BLACK-CHINNED HUMMINGBIRD of the season (a female) joined BROAD-BILLED, ANNA'S and star of the show VIOLET-CROWNED. A couple of BLACK VULTURES were overhead. LAZULI BUNTING put in a late appearance after a one hour wait. PINE SISKINS continue. 25 species.

Thursday, March 16, 2006
Out again today with Marie & Jim. We made a short morning visit to Sulphur Springs Valley and a late morning/early afternoon visit to Carr Canyon. It was a surprisingly mild morning given the clear skies. Clouds rolled in as the day progressed and it was a pleasant 60 degrees in upper Carr Canyon. Another short report today. I'll be on the road starting tomorrow until March 27 and reports may not be daily during this period.

We began on Central Highway where I was once again delighted to find the continuing flock of MOUNTAIN PLOVERS (not counted today). Also present were a single FERRUGINOUS HAWK, the continuing small flock of ~20 LONG-BILLED CURLEWS and perhaps as many as 50 SANDHILL CRANES.

We then cruised around a little and picked up BENDIRE'S THRASHER and EURASIAN COLLARED DOVE before heading to Whitewater. Coffman Road produced a flock of SCALED QUAIL, VERMILION FLYCATCHER, 2 SAGE THRASHERS (presumed migrants, since they were scarce in the valley this winter), HORNED LARK and three flavors of blackbirds.

A shorter than usual visit to Whitewater Draw produced about 35 species including my first WHITE-FACED IBIS of the season (21 birds), 20+ AVOCETS, 2 WILSON'S SNIPE, 3+ GREATER YELLOWLEGS, 25+ LEAST SANDPIPERS, GREAT HORNED OWL (no Barn nor Long-eared), VERMILION & GRAY FLYCATCHERS and a flock of LARK BUNTINGS.

Carr Canyon was a popular destination for many folks today with spring break kids playing in the snow (of which there was far less than I had hoped to see; snow that is, not kids). This date (16th) marks my earliest record for Buff-breasted Flycatcher in the mountains. None seen today and I hope they stay south for a few more days! Flycatcher absence notwithstanding, we enjoyed some decent birding in the middle canyon and at Reef & Ramsey Vista. It was somewhat ironic that we saw GREATER ROADRUNNER near the snow level above 7000 feet after striking out earlier in Sulphur Springs Valley.

Highlights of 30+ species in Carr were RED-NAPED SAPSUCKER, several ARIZONA WOODPECKERS, WESTERN SCRUB-JAY, a beautiful male OLIVE WARBLER, an always spiffy PAINTED REDSTART, numerous singing YELLOW-EYED JUNCOS and a selection of the usual dicky birds including HUTTON'S VIREO and BUSHTIT that were heard only yesterday. SPOTTED TOWHEES were very common.

82 species recorded:
Great Blue Heron, White-faced Ibis, Gadwall,  N. Pintail, Green-winged Teal & Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, N. Harrier, Cooper's, Red-tailed & Ferruginous Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Scaled & Gambel's Quail, Sandhill Crane, Am. Coot, Am. Avocet, Killdeer, Mountain Plover, Wilson's Snipe, Long-billed Curlew, Greater Yellowlegs, Least Sandpiper, Rock Pigeon, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Mourning Dove, Greater Roadrunner, Great Horned Owl, Anna's Hummingbird, Acorn, Ladder-backed & Arizona Woodpeckers, Red-naped Sapsucker, N. Flicker, Say's Phoebe, Gray & Vermilion Flycatchers, Horned Lark, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Phainopepla, Cactus & Bewick's Wrens, Sage, Bendire's & Curve-billed Thrashers, Bushtit, Bridled Titmouse, White-breasted Nuthatch, Brown Creeper, Verdin, Loggerhead Shrike, Western Scrub-Jay, Mexican Jay, Chihuahuan & Common Ravens, House Sparrow, Hutton's Vireo, House Finch, Pine Siskin, Lesser Goldfinch, Olive & Yellow-rumped Warblers, Painted Redstart, Spotted Towhee, Lark Bunting, Chipping, Brewer's, Vesper, Black-throated, Savannah, Song, Lincoln's & White-crowned Sparrows, Dark-eyed (Gray-headed) & Yellow-eyed Juncos, Pyrrhuloxia, Eastern & Western Meadowlarks, Red-winged, Yellow-headed & Brewer's Blackbirds and Great-tailed Grackle.

Friday, March 17, 2006
Today I drove to California in preparation for a job that starts on Sunday. It's a fair drive and I only managed two short birding stops at the Salton Sea and Laguna Niguel Regional Park. I saw quite a variation in weather along the way -- warm and windy at the Salton Sea; chilly in the snow zone in the mountains near Julian (San Diego County); and very wet in Laguna Niguel (Orange County). Trip summary

It's been my experience that YELLOW-FOOTED GULLS are quite common at the Salton Sea in late summer and fall; becoming  fairly rare in winter and often very scarce by spring (presumably because the birds move back to Mexico). I stopped at the sea today just to check if any wintering birds were still around. I found a couple of first year birds at Obsidian Butte and I may also have seen an adult on the open water but the viewing conditions were too poor to be certain. The heat shimmer and scope wobbling in the wind proved too much of an impediment. All I can say is that I saw a large, dark mantled gull which could have been a Western Gull (rare here).

I didn't pay much attention to other species so unless a bird was splashing in the water or waving at me as I drove by, I probably missed it.  CATTLE EGRET, AMERICAN AVOCET,  RING-BILLED GULL, BURROWING OWL and WESTERN MEADOWLARK were among the more conspicuous species. I also saw PEREGRINE FALCON (flushed the Yellow-footed Gulls), LONG-BILLED CURLEW, BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER and CASPIAN TERN

By noon it was way too warm and windy for me. I'd also had plenty of time to savor the distinct aroma that is so characteristic of the Salton Sea and decided it was time to head west. There's cold in them thar hills! In fact, more than I expected. Even though the road through the mountains is not at a particularly high elevation (about the same as Sierra Vista), I encountered some significant snowbanks in the vicinity of Julian. What a difference from the Salton Sea just 50 miles distant. I'll take it.

My next stop was at Laguna Niguel Regional Park where I wanted to look for Tricolored Blackbirds, a bird that I always seem to struggle with. I've seem them at this location in March but I struck out today. Just as at the Salton Sea, the viewing conditions were terrible but for a different reason -- rain! I wandered around and found Red-winged Blackbirds, Grackles and Starlings but no Tricolored. Nevertheless, I did manage to rustle up almost 40 species including ALLEN'S HUMMINGBIRD, NUTTALL'S WOODPECKER, a couple of CASSIN'S KINGBIRDS, WESTERN BLUEBIRD and CALIFORNIA TOWHEE.

Friday night traffic on I-5 in the rain wasn't fun. I've only been here a day but I've already seen enough California traffic and have been reminded of the culture (valet parking at the Mall) to make Sierra Vista seem attractive. How (perhaps more importantly, why) did I live in CA for all those years!

68 species recorded:
Eared Grebe, Am. White Pelican, Double-crested Cormorant, Great Blue Heron, Great, Snowy & Cattle Egrets, Canada Goose, Am. Wigeon, Green-winged & Cinnamon Teal, Mallard, N. Pintail, N. Shoveler, Lesser Scaup, Ruddy Duck, Turkey Vulture, Cooper's Hawk, Am. Kestrel, Peregrine Falcon, Common Moorhen, Am. Coot, Black-necked Stilt, Am. Avocet, Black-bellied Plover, Killdeer, Long-billed Dowitcher, Long-billed Curlew, Spotted Sandpiper, Willet, Ring-billed, California & Yellow-footed Gulls, Caspian Tern, Rock Pigeon, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Mourning Dove, Greater Roadrunner, Burrowing Owl, Anna's & Allen's Hummingbirds, Nuttall's Woodpecker, Black & Say's Phoebes, Cassin's Kingbird, Tree, Violet-green & N. Rough-winged Swallows, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Marsh Wren, Western Bluebird, Am. Robin, Bushtit, Western Scrub-Jay, Am. Crow, Common Raven, European Starling, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, California Towhee, Song Sparrow, Dark-eyed (Oregon) Junco, Western Meadowlark, Red-winged & Brewer's Blackbirds, Great-tailed Grackle.

Saturday, March 18, 2006
Today I focused on two species -- California Gnatcatcher (seen) and Tricolored Blackbird (not seen). I had an extremely pleasant early morning at Crystal Cove, a fairly pleasant late morning in Huntington Beach Central Park and a yucky afternoon as I navigated the Freeways along with most of the population of Orange and Los Angeles counties. The weather cooperated and it was a mostly sunny day with just a tad too much wind by late morning. I took plenty of photographs and I'll publish those that make the cut after I return home.

Last night I stayed in Laguna Hills and it didn't take long to reach Crystal Cove State Park. There are a number of places where gnatcatchers are located and I've never had much of a problem finding them. Consequently, I've neglected Crystal Cove, mostly because the habitat is close to a busy highway (I hate extraneous noise when trying to listen for birds). However, I wanted to compress the search zone for the various species that I need to find over the next few days. I arrived early enough this morning (6:30am) that traffic was very light on PCH and the number of joggers was minimal. After hearing its distinctive mewing call, I found the first CALIFORNIA GNATCATCHER after only 5 minutes and by the time that I left several hours later I had seen 6-8 of them. Here's a few of the many images that I shot -- image #1, image #2, image #3.

Early success allowed me some time to explore the bluff habitat and the rocky shore. "Rockpipers" were easy to see on a high tide and the usual suspects included 6+ BLACK OYSTERCATCHERS, WHIMBREL, RUDDY TURNSTONE, BLACK TURNSTONE and SURFBIRD. There were also a few other shorebirds and gulls including BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER, WILLET, HEERMANN'S GULL and WESTERN GULL. Among the landbirds noted were GREATER ROADRUNNER, ALLEN'S HUMMINGBIRD, BLACK PHOEBE (a.k.a. Robert de Niro "are you looking at me"), ROCK WREN, CALIFORNIA THRASHER, WRENTIT, "tufted SONG SPARROW", CALIFORNIA TOWHEE and ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER.36 species in all.  Based on what I saw, the State Park checklist is in serious need of work, especially in the area of definitions. I've studied  lots of checklists and I know that there's a tremendous variation in abundance definitions. However, to define "occasional"  as "should see on about one-half of visits at the appropriate time of year" is just plain daft. Okay, stepping down from that box of soap.

I moved on to Huntington Beach Central Park and visited several locations where I've regularly seen Tricolored Blackbirds (but not today nor on several of my most recent visits over the past few years). One problem is that the city removed all the reedy habitat from Shipley Nature Center. Not surprisingly, on a nice weather day on a weekend in a heavily populated area, all locations that I visited in the park today had way more people than birds. ALLEN'S HUMMINGBIRDS were very common.

57 species recorded:
Pied-billed Grebe, Double-crested Cormorant, Great Blue Heron, Snowy Egret, Black-crowned Night-Heron, Canada Goose, Am. Wigeon, Mallard, Turkey Vulture, N. Harrier, Cooper's & Red-tailed Hawks, Am. Coot, Black Oystercatcher, Black-bellied Plover, Marbled Godwit, Whimbrel, Willet, Ruddy & Black Turnstones, Surfbird, Sanderling, Heermann's & Western Gulls, Forster's Tern, Rock Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Greater Roadrunner, Black-chinned, Anna's & Allen's Hummingbirds, Nuttall's Woodpecker, Black & Say's Phoebes, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Rock & House Wrens, California Thrasher, Wrentit, California Gnatcatcher, Bushtit, Am. Crow, Common Raven, European Starling, House Sparrow, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Orange-crowned & Yellow-rumped Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Western Tanager, Spotted & California Towhees, Song & White-crowned Sparrows and Red-winged & Brewer's Blackbirds.

Sunday, March 19, 2006
First of seven days with Fr. Tom Margevicius from St Paul, MN. We birded together previously in Arizona back in January 2000. On this trip we'll be looking for some of the typical Southern California specialties as well as (hopefully) enjoying many other birds.

There aren't many more specialties worthy of the name than today's target. We visited Santa Cruz Island for Island Scrub Jay. Planning trips around the boat schedule is always a challenge and I'd already had to switch days due to a cancellation. However, the weather was kind to us and it was sunny all day on the water and on the island. Fairly windy conditions and some significant swell tested my puke resistance (as some of you know, I don't sail well and this was about as bad as it gets for me). Very little chance to see any whales or birds on the journey over.

A 9:00am departure from Ventura and a stop at Scorpion Landing to drop a boat load of  girl scouts saw us on land again at Prisoner's Harbor at 11:00am. Compared to my previous five visits (most in fall), bird activity was minimal and we even had to actually look for ISLAND SCRUB-JAY (a.k.a. "big blue"). In fact, we saw only three of them and met another birder who had not even seen one at all. I attribute their silence and inconspicuousness to the fact that they are breeding. We found a single bird in the willows at the beach and a pair on the trail to Pelican Bay, about 1/2 mile from the lookout. Great views from 30 feet and we witnessed mate feeding.

ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER was by far the most conspicuous bird on the island. Other species included SHARP-SHINNED HAWK, many WHITE-THROATED SWIFTS and a pair of HUTTON'S VIREOS.

Out on the water we managed several COMMON LOONS, lots of WESTERN GREBES, the usual three cormorants, plentiful SURF SCOTERS and a few PIGEON GUILLEMOTS.

A day of few birds and a long, tiring day, but it was successful and I didn't puke!

47 species recorded:
Common Loon, Pied-billed, Eared & Western Grebes, Brown Pelican, Great Blue Heron, Double-crested, Brandt's & Pelagic Cormorants, Mallard, Surf Scoter, Sharp-shinned & Red-tailed Hawks, Am. Coot, Killdeer, Black Turnstone, Sanderling, Western Gull, Pigeon Guillemot, Rock Pigeon, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Mourning Dove, White-throated Swift, Anna's Hummingbird, N. Flicker, Black & Say's Phoebes, Tree Swallow, Am. Pipit, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Bewick's Wren, N. Mockingbird, Hermit Thrush, Bushtit, Island Scrub-Jay, Common Raven, European Starling, Hutton's Vireo, House Finch, Orange-crowned Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Spotted & California Towhees, Song Sparrow, Brewer's Blackbird, Great-tailed Grackle and Brown-headed Cowbird.

Monday, March 20, 2006
Day 2 with Fr. Tom saw us move on from Glendale to El Cajon. We birded in Orange and Los Angeles counties where we picked up four target species and missed one. Another sighting is pending (read on). A mild, partly cloudy morning with increasing clouds and occasional light rain as the day progressed.. Another short report today (send me some extra hours for each day).

We began at Crystal Cove State Park where CALIFORNIA GNATCATCHER was as easy to find as it was on Friday (~5 minutes). A very cooperative CALIFORNIA THRASHER also obliged us. We spent a casual hour meandering around the rocks and saw most of the typical "rockpipers" including 6+ SURFBIRDS.

Our next stop was at Huntington Beach Central Park where we had great looks at ALLEN'S HUMMINGBIRD. Other species included a perched but distant WHITE-TAILED KITE, RED-SHOULDERED HAWK and GOLDEN-CROWNED SPARROW.

We moved on to Palos Verdes Peninsula where we worked long and hard in the drizzle for Spotted Dove without success. We then repeated the dose in Long Beach with the same result. I've seen the birds in both locations many times but it appears they are in decline. We'll try again later in the week. YELLOW-BILLED MAGPIE was a spectacular and bizarre sighting near Point Fermin on PV Peninsula. What's up with that?  I've asked around already about the status of this bird but feel free to chime in if you know anything. How did it end up so far from its rather narrow north-south corridor of habitat to the east? Weird. I think a trip to Solvang is still in our immediate future.

Not many other species seen during our search, although a MERLIN perched on an antenna was a treat.

We finished up our birding by visiting Laguna Niguel Regional Park. After walking around the lake fruitlessly checking all the RED-WINGED BLACKBIRDS, we bumped into a local birder who confirmed that TRICOLORED BLACKBIRDS were indeed around (image #2 with red mostly obscured). A check of the central "green" produced a fair number of them, tame as could be eating handouts from the many people present. They were in the very spot where I had checked countless blackbirds in the rain on Friday. A good save to end the day.

Other species included CASSIN'S KINGBIRD, many CEDAR WAXWINGS, WESTERN BLUEBIRD, WILSON'S WARBLER and AMERICAN REDSTART (in its third year wintering here according to a local birder).

74 species recorded:
Pied-billed & Western Grebes, Am. White Pelican, Double-crested, Brandt's & Pelagic Cormorants, Great Blue Heron, Great & Snowy Egrets, Canada Goose, Am. Wigeon, Gadwall, Mallard, Lesser Scaup, Ruddy Duck, Turkey Vulture, White-tailed Kite, Cooper's, Red-shouldered & Red-tailed Hawks, Merlin, California Quail, Am. Coot, Black-bellied Plover, Marbled Godwit, Whimbrel, Greater Yellowlegs, Willet, Ruddy & Black Turnstones, Surfbird, Ring-billed & Western Gulls, Forster's Tern, Rock Pigeon, Anna's & Allen's Hummingbird, Nuttall's &, Downy Woodpeckers, Black Phoebe, Cassin's Kingbird, Tree, Violet-green & N. Rough-winged Swallows, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Cedar Waxwing, N. Mockingbird, California Thrasher, Western Bluebird, Hermit Thrush, California Gnatcatcher, Bushtit, Western Scrub-Jay, Yellow-billed Magpie, Am. Crow, Common Raven, House Sparrow, House Finch, Lesser & American Goldfinches, Orange-crowned, Yellow-rumped, Townsend's & Wilson's Warblers, Am. Redstart, Common Yellowthroat, California Towhee, Song, White-crowned & Golden-crowned Sparrows, Red-winged, Tricolored & Brewer's Blackbirds, Great-tailed Grackle & Brown-headed Cowbird.

Tuesday, March 21, 2006
Day 3 with Fr. Tom was long, tiring and mostly successful. We picked up three targets (Pacific Golden-Plover, Yellow-footed Gull & Lucy's Warbler) and missed one (Lesser Nighthawk). San Diego was quite cool this morning under partly cloudy skies and we saw on and off light rain. The rain turned to sleet as we traveled east through the mountains. It was windy at the Salton Sea but very pleasant in the low 70s. We ended up in Fontana (San Bernadino County) for an overnight stay.

[Notes regarding yesterday: I was able to confirm that a Yellow-billed Magpie had been seen on the Palos Verdes Peninsula in March, 1999 and in Orange County quite recently. Such birds are considered "assisted" or escapees. I also learned that Spotted Dove is indeed scarce now and it was missed on the most recent Palos Verdes Peninsula CBC. However, I do have a few fresh leads.] 

We began the day at the Tijuana Slough NWR looking for the previously reported PACIFIC GOLDEN-PLOVERS. It took a while before we eventually found 2+ mixed in with a group of BLACK-BELLIED PLOVERS on the sandbar/island NE of the Tijuana river mouth. First, we walked to the river mouth via Seacoast Drive then approached from a different angle via 5th street. Quite a walk I can tell you. The 5th street access proved to be the best (although far from ideal) viewing location. We managed diagnostic but far from satisfying views.

The area was loaded with birds including kiting WHITE-TAILED KITES, 5 species of terns (I'll resist the obvious tern jokes), BLACK SKIMMER and a variety of shorebird species.

We had some early success at the Salton Sea by locating the two immature YELLOW-FOOTED GULLS at Obsidian Butte, in the same spot as I saw them last Friday. After some casual birding, we moved on to the Wister Unit to look for Lesser Nighthawk. I've regularly found them roosting in the mesquites here but not today. We stayed around until dusk hoping to see some birds in flight, again without success. LUCY'S WARBLER was some consolation. ORANGE-CROWNED, NASHVILLE and WILSON'S WARBLERS were also present. CLAPPER RAIL called constantly..

96 species recorded:
Eared & Western Grebes, Am. White Pelican, Brown Pelican, Double-crested Cormorant, Great Blue Heron, Great, Snowy & Cattle Egrets, White-faced Ibis, Am. Wigeon, Green-winged & Cinnamon Teal, Mallard, N. Pintail, N. Shoveler, Lesser Scaup, Bufflehead, Red-breasted Merganser, Ruddy Duck, Turkey Vulture, Osprey, White-tailed Kite, N. Harrier, Cooper's &, Red-tailed Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Peregrine Falcon, California Quail, Clapper Rail, Am. Coot, Black-necked Stilt, Am. Avocet, Pacific Golden-Plover, Black-bellied & Semipalmated Plovers, Killdeer, Long-billed Dowitcher, Marbled Godwit, Long-billed Curlew, Greater Yellowlegs, Willet, Red Knot, Sanderling, Western & Least Sandpipers, Ring-billed, California, Western, Yellow-footed Gull, & Am. Herring Gulls, Gull-billed, Caspian, Elegant, Royal & Forster's Terns, Black Skimmer, Rock Pigeon, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Mourning & Inca Doves, Greater Roadrunner, Burrowing Owl, White-throated Swift, Anna's Hummingbird, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Black & Say's Phoebes, Western Kingbird, Horned Lark, Tree & Barn Swallows, Am. Pipit, Marsh Wren, N. Mockingbird, Black-tailed Gnatcatcher, Verdin, Am. Crow, Common Raven, European Starling, House Sparrow, House Finch, Orange-crowned, Nashville, Lucy's, Yellow-rumped & Wilson's Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Abert's Towhee, Savannah, Song & White-crowned Sparrows, Red-winged Blackbird, Western Meadowlark, Great-tailed Grackle and Bullock's Oriole.

Wednesday, March 22, 2006
Day 4 with Fr. Tom. Today we traveled north as far as San Luis Obispo. We picked up 4 target species (a stakeout Cackling Goose, Nuttall's Woodpecker, Oak Titmouse, Yellow-billed Magpie) and failed on a stakeout Cassin's Vireo. A very pleasant day weather wise.  Short reports are the order of the day until I return home.

We began the day by drag-assing through commute traffic and eventually started birding along Tecolotito Creek in Goleta, Santa Barbara County. We searched in vain at this pleasant riparian spot for a previously reported Cassin's Vireo that has been hanging around here. Among 30 species noted were RED-NAPED SAPSUCKER, BELTED KINGFISHER, CEDAR WAXWING, GOLDEN-CROWNED SPARROW and HOODED ORIOLE.

After a lunch break in the tourist town of Solvang, we resumed birding along Alisal Road where at least 6 "real" YELLOW-BILLED MAGPIES obliged us. OAK TITMOUSE simply couldn't be missed at Nojoqui County park where we also had great views of NUTTALL'S WOODPECKER side by side with DOWNY WOODPECKER. An elusive PACIFIC-SLOPE FLYCATCHER remained unseen.

The CACKLING GOOSE at Waller Park in Santa Maria couldn't have been more cooperative in a pond with many COOTS, MALLARDS and ducks of dubious parentage; along with lots of kids playing. The bird is living the life of Reilly. This is only my second sighting (previously at Kino Springs) and it was a shock to see how really small they are at such close range (close enough to shoot directly at 300mm). An elusive-in-the-trees NUTTALL'S WOODPECKER posed only on a less than photogenic fence post.

55 species recorded:
Great Egret, Cackling Goose, Mallard, Ring-necked Duck, Turkey Vulture, Red-shouldered & Red-tailed Hawks, Golden Eagle, Am. Kestrel, Am. Coot, Ring-billed Gull, Rock Pigeon, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Mourning Dove, Anna's Hummingbird, Belted Kingfisher, Acorn, Nuttall's & Downy Woodpeckers, Red-naped Sapsucker, N. Flicker, Pacific-slope Flycatcher, Black Phoebe, N. Rough-winged Swallow, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Cedar Waxwing, House Wren, N. Mockingbird, Western Bluebird, Hermit Thrush, Am. Robin, Wrentit, Bushtit, Oak Titmouse, Western Scrub-Jay, Yellow-billed Magpie, Am. Crow, European Starling, House Sparrow, Hutton's Vireo, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Orange-crowned & Yellow-rumped Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, California Towhee, Chipping & Song, White-crowned & Golden-crowned Sparrows, Dark-eyed (Oregon) Junco, Red-winged & Brewer's Blackbirds, Great-tailed Grackle and Hooded Oriole.

Thursday, March 23, 2006
Day 5 with Fr. Tom. Today we birded at several locations in San Luis Obispo County then returned to Los Angeles at the end of the day. We picked up two target species (Brant and Wrentit) and failed to find Thayer's Gull and Cassin's Vireo. Another great weather day.

We began at Laguna Lake in San Luis Obispo where I saw Thayer's Gull in January (a bird that had been around for some time). Alas, no sign of the gull today. I haven't seen any recent reports so perhaps it has already left.

Next, we spent a pleasant couple of hours at Oceano where we easily saw WRENTIT along with a variety of species including NUTTALL'S WOODPECKER, CALIFORNIA THRASHER, CHESTNUT-BACKED CHICKADEE, PURPLE FINCH, many TOWNSEND'S and a few WILSON'S  WARBLERS. We checked the Pier Avenue pond for gulls and picked up a surprise BRANT ("hiding" in a flock of COOTS) and a lethargic male COMMON MERGANSER.

We moved on to Montaña de Oro State Park to do some ocean scanning from the bluffs. Unfortunately, the weather was way too calm for any real hope of inshore pelagic species.  Only a few PACIFIC LOONS and a CASPIAN TERN went by as we watched. Many PIGEON GUILLEMOTS (75+) were in the bay below the cliffs and a few investigated nest holes close to the trail. The rocks below held BRANDT'S & PELAGIC CORMORANTS and a couple of BLACK OYSTERCATCHERS.

After birding on the bluffs, we checked the campground which was fairly quiet from both a people and bird standpoint. Nevertheless, our MDO list for a couple of hours worth of effort was almost 50 species including RED-SHOULDERED HAWK, CALIFORNIA QUAIL, RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD, NUTTALL'S WOODPECKER, CEDAR WAXWING, WRENTIT, CHESTNUT-BACKED CHICKADEE, PURPLE FINCH, CALIFORNIA & SPOTTED TOWHEES and GOLDEN-CROWNED SPARROW.

A stop at Sweet Springs in Los Osos was less than ideal at low tide since most of the birds were quite distant. Among those close enough to identify were BRANT, BLUE-WINGED TEAL, SEMIPALMATED PLOVER, GREATER YELLOWLEGS and BELTED KINGFISHER.

We moved on to the rock area in Morro Bay where we found a perched PEREGRINE FALCON, later seen in flight. CANYON WREN duly obliged by singing. The usual cormorants were present along with COMMON and PACIFIC LOONS, HORNED, EARED & WESTERN GREBES and lots of SURF SCOTERS.

As we headed back south, we unsuccessfully checked Tecolotito Creek in Goleta again for Cassin's Vireo. It was less birdy here than yesterday with only PURPLE FINCH being new.

89 species recorded:
Pacific & Common Loons, Horned, Eared & Western Grebes, Double-crested, Brandt's & Pelagic Cormorants, Great Blue Heron, Great & Snowy Egrets, Green Heron, Black-crowned Night-Heron, Canada Goose, Brant, Am. Wigeon, Mallard, Green-winged, Blue-winged & Cinnamon Teal, Surf Scoter, Common Merganser, Ruddy Duck, Turkey Vulture, Cooper's, Red-shouldered & Red-tailed Hawks, Peregrine Falcon, California Quail, Am. Coot, Black Oystercatcher, Am. Avocet, Semipalmated Plover, Killdeer, Long-billed Curlew, Greater Yellowlegs, Willet, Ring-billed & Western Gulls, Caspian Tern, Pigeon Guillemot, Mourning Dove, White-throated Swift, Anna's & Rufous Hummingbirds, Belted Kingfisher, Nuttall's, Downy & Hairy Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Black Phoebe, Tree, Violet-green, N. Rough-winged, Cliff & Barn Swallows, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Cedar Waxwing, Canyon, Bewick's & House Wrens, N. Mockingbird, California Thrasher, Am. Robin, Wrentit, Bushtit, Chestnut-backed Chickadee, Steller's Jay, Western Scrub-Jay, Am. Crow, European Starling, Hutton's Vireo, Purple Finch, House Finch, Lesser & American Goldfinches, Orange-crowned, Yellow-rumped, Townsend's & Wilson's Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Spotted & California Towhees, Song, Lincoln's, White-crowned & Golden-crowned Sparrows and Red-winged & Brewer's Blackbirds.

Friday, March 24, 2006
Last day with Fr. Tom. After doing extensive research during the week (LA county bird list archives) and toughing out a drive into East LA last night, our reward came in the form of at least a dozen SPOTTED DOVES this morning. After figuring out where to go to maximize our chances (and then getting there), very little effort was required! Although the doves are in serious general decline, it appears that they are still quite plentiful in this area. Maybe they like Mexican food (Spanish is the first language in this part of town). We got a weird look or two. As silhouettes on wires, the first level means to differentiate them from Mourning Doves is to look at the tail (which is wider and quite round tipped when folded). A well earned bird.

A bonus about being in the inner city first thing in the morning is that the drive out was easy! We headed north of town and spent the rest of the day in the San Gabriel Mountains. Although highway 2 (Angeles Crest Highway) is typically closed at this time of year, we were able to get into the beginning of the high county a little beyond Cedar Springs. As in Arizona, the mountains are not at their best at this time of year and the birding was a little disappointing (especially at Chilao). However, we did pick up a bunch of trip birds in the snow. We could see the smog for miles from many mountain vantage points and were just about able to make out the downtown skyline.

We birded our way up the mountain by stopping at various pullouts. The best birds were 3+ MOUNTAIN QUAIL at the large pullout just below mile marker 40. Other roadside birds included COOPER'S & SHARP-SHINNED HAWKS, BAND-TAILED PIGEON, PHAINOPEPLA, WRENTIT, CALIFORNIA THRASHER and GOLDEN-CROWNED SPARROW.

It seems that Cassin's Vireo has not yet reached Switzer Picnic Area (at least we didn't find any). FOX SPARROW was among the birds noted here along with NUTTALL'S WOODPECKER, CANYON WREN, OAK TITMOUSE, HERMIT THRUSH and TOWNSEND'S WARBLER.

Not much activity at the Chilao Visitor Center feeders. Among the birds here and in the campground were ACORN WOODPECKER, WESTERN BLUEBIRD, MOUNTAIN CHICKADEE, PYGMY NUTHATCH, PURPLE FINCH, RED CROSSBILL and WESTERN TANAGER.

We continued on into the (plentiful) snow zone where CASSIN'S FINCH was very common and extremely vocal (singing vigorously in multiple locations). We also picked up a pair of WHITE-HEADED WOODPECKERS (drumming and chasing each other around), RED-BREASTED SAPSUCKER and more RED CROSSBILLS.

A day of few birds to end the trip but a very satisfying day nonetheless because of the Spotted Dove success. This ensured that Fr. Tom didn't leave any of his California specialty targets behind.

Trip summary.

48 species recorded:
Sharp-shinned, Cooper's & Red-tailed Hawks, Mountain & California Quail, Rock & Band-tailed Pigeons, Spotted & Mourning Doves, Anna's Hummingbird, Acorn, Nuttall's & White-headed Woodpeckers, Red-breasted Sapsucker, N. Flicker, Black Phoebe, Violet-green Swallow, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Phainopepla, Canyon, Bewick's & House Wrens, California Thrasher, Western Bluebird, Hermit Thrush, Am. Robin, Wrentit, Mountain Chickadee, Oak Titmouse, Pygmy Nuthatch, Steller's Jay, Western Scrub-Jay, Common Raven, House Sparrow, Cassin's, Purple & House Finches, Red Crossbill, Yellow-rumped & Townsend's Warblers, Western Tanager, Spotted & California Towhees, Fox, Lincoln's, White-crowned & Golden-crowned Sparrows and Dark-eyed Junco.

Tuesday, March 28, 2006
Back on duty in good old SE AZ today; the first of two days with Diane and Gary Cavaness from Brookings, OR. We did some light target birding at Patagonia Lake, Kino Springs and Paton's yard. Despite heavy cloud cover and occasional light rain that seemed to keep the birds subdued, we still managed to see plenty of species.

A five hour session at Patagonia Lake yielded 75 species. I fully expected to see my first Least Bittern and Bell's Vireo of the season but that didn't happen. Among the migrants/returning species were OSPREY, LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER (very rare at the lake, my 4th record), 2 RING-BILLED GULLS, NORTHERN BEARDLESS-TYRANNULET, 5+ ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHERS, numerous CASSIN'S KINGBIRDS, five species of swallows, CASSIN'S VIREO (I couldn't buy one last week in CA), plenty of LUCY'S &  YELLOW WARBLERS and a few WILSON'S & ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLERS; LAZULI BUNTING, and a huge flock of BREWER'S BLACKBIRDS and BROWN-HEADED COWBIRDS.

Wintering species still present included EARED GREBE, COMMON MERGANSER, 4 WILSON'S SNIPE, GRAY FLYCATCHER, several BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHERS and 2 SWAMP SPARROWS.

Among the regulars noted  were 3 NEOTROPIC CORMORANTS, many VERMILION FLYCATCHERS and a few BLACK-CAPPED GNATCATCHERS seen in several locations.

Although we failed to find Ruddy Ground-Dove among 50 species seen in the rain at Kino Springs, a recently arrived GRAY HAWK was adequate compensation (also heard in Patagonia). BLACK-CHINNED SPARROW was species #211 for me at Kino.

Marion Paton's yard had almost as many birders as birds. Highlights here were 5 species hummingbirds and a RUDDY GROUND-DOVE in the road by the gate.

97 species recorded:
Pied-billed & Eared Grebes, Neotropic Cormorant, Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Green Heron, Gadwall, Green-winged Teal, Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Ring-necked Duck, Lesser Scaup, Common Merganser, Ruddy Duck, Black & Turkey Vultures, Osprey, Gray & Red-tailed Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Gambel's Quail, Am. Coot, Killdeer, Wilson's Snipe, Long-billed Dowitcher, Ring-billed Gull, Rock Pigeon, Mourning, White-winged & Ruddy Ground-Doves, Inca Dove, Greater Roadrunner, Broad-billed, Violet-crowned, Black-chinned, Anna's & Rufous Hummingbirds, Belted Kingfisher, Acorn, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, N. Beardless-Tyrannulet, Black & Say's Phoebes, Gray, Vermilion & Ash-throated Flycatchers, Cassin's Kingbird, Tree, Violet-green, N. Rough-winged, Cliff & Barn Swallows, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Phainopepla, Cactus, Bewick's & Marsh Wrens, N. Mockingbird, Curve-billed Thrasher, Blue-gray & Black-capped Gnatcatchers, Bushtit, Bridled Titmouse, Verdin, Common Raven, House Sparrow, Cassin's Vireo, House Finch, Pine Siskin, Lesser Goldfinch, Orange-crowned, Lucy's, Yellow, Yellow-rumped & Wilson's Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Green-tailed, Canyon & Abert's Towhees, Rufous-crowned, Chipping, Brewer's, Black-chinned, Black-throated, Song, Lincoln's, Swamp & White-crowned Sparrows, N. Cardinal, Pyrrhuloxia, Lazuli Bunting, Red-winged & Brewer's Blackbirds, Great-tailed Grackle and Brown-headed Cowbird.

Wednesday, March 29, 2006
Out again today with Diane and Gary. Although we got rid of the clouds and rain, wind was the enemy today (have I ever mentioned how much I hate birding in the wind?). The wind wasn't too much of a problem during our early session in Sulphur Springs Valley. Conditions were fairly pleasant and we found a handful of target species. Late morning and early afternoon in Carr Canyon was a different story altogether. The birding here wasn't productive and certainly not very enjoyable.

We had to work for an hour or so to find FERRUGINOUS HAWK. After failing to find any on Central Highway, I was worried that they may have already left (my latest sighting date in the valley is April 10 but most are usually gone by early April). However, a focused search on Rucker Canyon Road eventually turned up two immature birds about a mile from Hwy 191. In contrast to the paucity of Ferruginous, recently arrived SWAINSON'S HAWKS were common throughout the valley. Not so WESTERN KINGBIRD with just one seen.

LARK BUNTINGS and YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRDS remain abundant. We found SCALED QUAIL and BENDIRE'S THRASHERS in a couple of locations; SAGE THRASHER on Coffman and a lone SANDHILL CRANE (after hatch year bird) on Lee Road . Crissal Thrasher eluded us. EURASIAN COLLARED-DOVES continue to increase in numbers and were present in many locations.

Other species noted as we cruised around included COOPER'S HAWK, GREATER ROADRUNNER, HORNED LARK, BREWER'S & SAVANNAH SPARROWS, PYRRHULOXIA and EASTERN & WESTERN MEADOWLARKS.

We had some early success in lower Carr Canyon with ROCK WREN and a couple of HAMMOND'S FLYCATCHERS. Two more Hammond's were at Reef (this is the time that Hammond's number's start to increase as migrants add to wintering birds). After that the pickings became very slim indeed.

I was hoping for some of the early returning species but we had to work just to raise the resident YELLOW-EYED JUNCOS. To give you an idea of how difficult it was in the wind, we saw just one skulking SPOTTED TOWHEE (normally abundant in upper Carr -- the capital of the world for this species). Furthermore, we actually had to look for MEXICAN JAY! I looked and listened for Buff-breasted Flycatcher without success. However, given the conditions, they could easily have been present.

Definitely not a fun day at the office.

61 species recorded:
Turkey Vulture, N. Harrier, Cooper's, Swainson's, Red-tailed & Ferruginous Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Scaled & Gambel's Quail, Sandhill Crane, Killdeer, Rock Pigeon, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Mourning Dove, Greater Roadrunner, Acorn Woodpecker, N. Flicker, Hammond's Flycatcher, Say's Phoebe, Cassin's & Western Kingbirds, Horned Lark, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Cactus, Rock, Canyon & Bewick's Wrens, Sage, Bendire's & Curve-billed Thrashers, Am. Robin, Bushtit, Bridled Titmouse, White-breasted Nuthatch, Brown Creeper, Verdin, Loggerhead Shrike, Steller's & Mexican Jays, Western Scrub-Jay, Chihuahuan & Common Ravens, European Starling, House Sparrow, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Spotted Towhee, Lark Bunting, Rufous-crowned, Chipping, Brewer's, Savannah & White-crowned Sparrows, Yellow-eyed Junco, Pyrrhuloxia, Eastern & Western Meadowlarks, Red-winged, Yellow-headed & Brewer's Blackbirds and Great-tailed Grackle.

Friday, March 31, 2006
Out today with Andy Shell from Redmond, WA and Bob Pietrusiewicz from Sierra Vista, our sixth time birding together. We left Sierra Vista at 5:30am and journeyed swiftly through Sulphur Springs Valley to bird in the Chiricahuas for a few target species. Cloudy and cool during the early hours, fairly warm by early afternoon. Higher elevations locations were quite windy. Not much roadside snow present all the way up to Rustler Park. Based on our results today, migration happenings aren't really happening in the higher elevation locations yet..

Common roadside species noted during our drive through the valley included SWAINSON'S HAWK, EURASIAN COLLARED-DOVE, LARK BUNTING and YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRD.

Reports of TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE'S have been very scarce this winter and a bird perched in the cottonwoods at the first ranch property on Pinery Canyon Road was my first of season.

We succeeded in finding a very cooperative NORTHERN  (MOUNTAIN) PYGMY-OWL at the first time of asking. Although the bird was in a regular location on Pinery Canyon Road, it certainly isn't always the slam-dunk that it turned out to be today. We enjoyed an excellent scope look at the owl and in the end it was a walk away job (criminal!).

MEXICAN CHICKADEES were easy to find on Pinery Canyon Road where we also noted PYGMY & RED-BREASTED NUTHATCHES, BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLER, PAINTED REDSTART and YELLOW-EYED JUNCO.

Rustler Park wasn't very productive, perhaps due to a combination of elevation (still relatively early in the season here) and windy conditions. MEXICAN CHICKADEES and PYGMY-NUTHATCHES were present along with STELLER'S JAY, HAIRY WOODPECKER, GOLDEN-CROWNED KINGLET and OLIVE WARBLER.

The George Walker House was hopping with birds -- thanks to Jackie Lewis for the hospitality. Although we missed Juniper Titmouse and Cassin's Finch during the one hour plus that we spent here, we still managed to record almost 30 species. Highlights were CALLIOPE HUMMINGBIRD and several  resplendent SCOTT'S ORIOLES. The Calliope was my earliest SE AZ sighting by four days. There aren't many more beautiful birds with such a delightful song present in AZ than Scott's Oriole. Other species included MAGNIFICENT & RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRDS, RED-NAPED SAPSUCKER, CEDAR WAXWING, PAINTED REDSTART and scads of PINE SISKINS.

We finished up near the Paradise Cemetery where it only took a modicum of effort to find JUNIPER TITMOUSE (a little bit more effort was required to see the little bugger). Among the other species present in this location were GREATER ROADRUNNER, PHAINOPEPLA, BUSHTIT, HUTTON'S VIREO and BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLER.

60 species recorded:
Turkey Vulture, Swainson's & Red-tailed Hawks, Rock Pigeon, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Mourning & White-winged Doves, Greater Roadrunner, N. Pygmy-Owl, Magnificent, Black-chinned, Calliope & Rufous Hummingbirds, Acorn & Hairy Woodpeckers, Red-naped Sapsucker, N. Flicker, Golden-crowned & Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Phainopepla, Cedar Waxwing, Cactus & Bewick's Wrens, N. Mockingbird, Townsend's Solitaire, Am. Robin, Bushtit, Mexican Chickadee, Bridled Titmouse, Juniper Titmouse, Pygmy, Red-breasted & White-breasted Nuthatches, Brown Creeper, Steller's & Mexican Jays, Western Scrub-Jay, Chihuahuan & Common Ravens, House Sparrow, Hutton's Vireo, House Finch, Pine Siskin, Lesser Goldfinch, Olive, Yellow-rumped & Black-throated Gray Warblers, Painted Redstart, Spotted Towhee, Lark Bunting, Chipping, Vesper, Lincoln's & White-crowned Sparrows, Dark-eyed & Yellow-eyed Juncos, Yellow-headed & Brewer's Blackbirds, Great-tailed Grackle and Scott's Oriole.

This log is in chronological order and the most recent entries are at the bottom of the page.
The last update was on Friday, March 31, 2006

Species List

Stuart Healy Journal - March, 2006 If you use the contents of my journal for commercial purposes, please acknowledge the source to your clients - thanks.

Top of Page