Dec. Species Seen

Stuart Healy Journal - December, 2006 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 Saturday, December 30, 2006

Friday, December 1, 2006
A much better weather day to get the new month underway. Although the day began in similar fashion to yesterday (crystal clear and below freezing), it was a completely calm morning and the temperature climbed to almost 60 degrees by midday. WHITE-WINGED DOVE was again my first bird of the day.

I spent about 4 hours on the San Pedro where I managed to miss a number of good birds seen yesterday, all of which were present again today and seen by Dave Beaudette (Eastern Phoebe & Varied Thrush both seen near trail marker #6 and a late Wilson's Warbler at Kingfisher Pond).

My rewards were a few less common (and less impressive) species for this location or season  -- RED-NAPED SAPSUCKER (Black Phoebe Pond), HUTTON'S VIREO (along river), SWAMP SPARROW (Oxbow) and LAZULI BUNTING (Garden Wash). In terms of the San Pedro Highway 90 area, the sapsucker is a regular but scarce fall migrant; I recorded Hutton's here for the first time last year; I've seen Swamp Sparrow in only 5 of the last 14 years; and Lazuli Bunting usually clears out by November (I have just two other December records).

Despite missing the "good" birds, I was more than satisfied to get this image of a HAMMOND'S FLYCATCHER. Not because of image quality (which is somewhat lacking due to distance), but because it shows all the classic field marks for Hammond's in a single pose. A real "Murphy gets screwed moment" that I treasure so much! Note the well defined contrast between gray head and green back, small bill, eye ring more pronounced behind the eye (although not extensively so on this individual), "no neck" appearance and very long primary extension. As I've mentioned before, I don't find bill color to be useful when it comes to identifying Hammond's. Although the lower mandible is usually dark, you can see that this isn't the case for this individual. You might expect that young of the year would have lost the pale bill color by now but that might not be a dependable fact and may explain this bird's bill color. This is not uncommon -- if you go to the Photo Gallery, you'll see another very similar looking bird photographed in December a couple of years ago.

I tied a record set by many with a 4 towhee species day -- ABERT'S, GREEN-TAILED, SPOTTED and CANYON listed in decreasing order of abundance. I find it puzzling that Canyon Towhees seem to become invisible at this time of year on the river. The small flock of WHITE-WINGED DOVES and the sub adult male COOPER'S HAWK continue near the San Pedro House. PYRRHULOXIAS were extremely numerous, particularly in Garden Wash.

At least two GREEN KINGFISHERS are still around -- I noted a female at Kingfisher Pond and a male working back and forth between Black Phoebe pond and the river. The female was what I'll call female #2 (the heavily spotted individual). Refer to my comments on November 16 for background. A calling CRISSAL THRASHER was just west of Kingfisher Pond. I missed Vermilion so I hope that it's still around.

Monday, December 4, 2006
This morning I checked a few areas at the southern end of Sulphur Springs Valley. After a typically chilly start (albeit a little warmer than of late at 28 degrees when I left home), it was an absolutely beautiful morning in the valley with plenty of sunshine and zero wind.

I started by unsuccessfully checking for Mountain Plovers in the fields at the intersection of Davis Road and Central highway. I scanned all the fields visible from both roads and came up empty. Not only did I not find any plovers, I found only 2 KILLDEER which is an indication that the conditions are less than ideal. Only two of the five fields that I checked looked good to me; the others are getting there. Perhaps this is why the plovers don't typically show up at this location until early December.

Among the species that I did see were 50+ SNOW GEESE, 5 FERRUGINOUS HAWKS and a small flock of LONG-BILLED CURLEWS.

I moved on to Coffman Road where I soon found BENDIRE'S THRASHER in a regular spot. Although this is a nice pose, I was disappointed with the image quality which leaves a lot to be desired because it was taken from within the car with the engine running. As it turned out, I could probably have stopped, poured a cup of coffee and walked up to the bird! The influx of MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRDS continues and further down the road I found a few of them -- almost (but not quite) within my Whitewater Draw measurement area. LARK BUNTINGS and several sparrow species were easy to see.

Species diversity at Whitewater Draw was fairly decent and I spent four very enjoyable and productive hours wandering around. Water levels continue to drop (3 feet in the last two months) and it's now possible to reach the north viewing platform by the short route (as long as you don't mind getting a little muddy). However, the south Willow grove is still not accessible (although it might be possible with tall rubber boots).

After checking the activity in the immediate vicinity of entrance (where I saw FERRUGINOUS HAWK, GREAT HORNED OWL, HORNED LARK, SAVANNAH SPARROW and EASTERN & WESTERN MEADOWLARKS), I started on the berm that leads to the north viewing platform. At the far end I came across a very confiding immature SNOW GOOSE (image #2). While completely aware of my presence (it would retreat if I advanced), the bird walked towards me as it fed and came very close on several occasions when I was standing still.

While photographing the goose (I shot 150 images over a 30 minute period), a flock of 50 calling SNOW GEESE flew in and landed on the main pond (the immature didn't react and kept on feeding). I scanned the flock looking for Ross's without success. The flock was comprised of 30 adults and 20 immatures in various plumages, including one almost  black "Blue phase" immature. A little later, another 60 geese flew in to join the party. The second flock were all adults and included at least 2 ROSS'S GEESE. Elsewhere on the main pond I noted 3 GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GEESE and 5 CANADA GEESE. I guess Christmas is coming.

I walked out on the spit beyond the south viewing platform to check on some distant gulls. Unfortunately, they turned out to be 22 RING-BILLED GULLS. Birds out on the water were scattered and distant. I came up with 50 PINTAILS, 7 CANVASBACKS, 2 BUFFLEHEADS and a smattering of other regulars.

VERMILION FLYCATCHERS were conspicuous today and I noted at least 8 of them (all but one were immature males) including this blotchy, yet attractive immature male.

Q: When is a Tree Pipit not a Tree Pipit? A: When it's an AMERICAN PIPIT in a tree (very common throughout).

After my wanderings, I returned to the north viewing platform via the long route. Exactly two months ago, back on October 4, I recorded location species #198 and #199 and wondered what #200 might be. Well, today I found out -- it was a PALM WARBLER, only my second sighting in Arizona. I was standing on the platform when I heard the warbler's fairly loud chip note then saw it flying directly towards me. The bird landed in a (still leafy) willow and was close enough for a decent view, complete with tail wagging. As soon as I had confirmed my initial identification based on the call note, I reached for my camera. I was taking a break from lugging camera, scope and backpack and had put the camera down on the bench. That little moment of weakness cost me a photo because the warbler dropped to the ground and I never relocated it even though I had looked away for 5 seconds max. Color me pissed off. On the plus side, I saw the bird well enough from underneath to conclude that it was of the eastern race (strong yellow belly and breast not contrasting with the yellow undertail coverts).

Next, I walked the trail south of the willow grove where I added MERLIN, SWAMP SPARROW and CHESTNUT-COLLARED LONGSPUR along with more common species including COMMON YELLOWTHROAT, BLACK-THROATED & LINCOLN'S SPARROWS, LARK BUNTING and PYRRHULOXIA.

SANDHILL CRANES were plentiful near the parking area around noon. I still don't have a good on-the-ground image of this species but I did fluke a flight image as a large flock took flight.

Tuesday, December 5, 2006
Today I headed over to Patagonia Lake State Park where it was quite warm after the usual chilly start. Certainly way too warm for me by noon, although I'm sure that "normal folks" would have considered the temperature ideal.

The day began well with a CASSIN'S SPARROW as I drove along the entrance road (always a good bird outside of the breeding season). I heard its sporadic call notes and started checking the roadside mesquites without success. It turns out that I was making things too difficult for myself -- the bird was sitting on a fence wire looking at me (and perhaps wondering what the hell I was doing).

Once in the park proper, I started by scanning the west end of the lake from the day use area west of the marina. I was immediately delighted to see that an adult BALD EAGLE has returned for another winter. The bird was sitting in its "regular" cottonwood on the small island near the spillway.

After that, I'd have to say that the birding was a little on the slow side. I plodded away for about 5 hours and turned up 67 species.

I haven't spent much time checking on BLACK-CAPPED GNATCATCHER recently so I made a point of doing that today. I worked the washes methodically and eventually turned up male and female (perhaps 2 females) in the fourth wash, a location that has been a regular haunt. I often wonder if these birds will disappear as suddenly as they arrived 5 years ago (a la Rufous-capped Warblers in French Joe Canyon). After almost disappearing during the winter a few years ago, the population seemed to explode. However, I get the feeling that there are now less birds around. Check out this image of an injured female -- the bird has a sizeable piece of something stuck in its side (perhaps mesquite?) and also appears to have a deformed foot. I stayed with the bird for about 15 minutes as it foraged (successfully) and called regularly to the nearby male.

COMMON MERGANSERS were conspicuous out on the water and I counted around 30 of them. Other stuff included 6+ WESTERN GREBES, 1 CLARK'S GREBE, a couple of immature DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANTS and a smattering of ducks including a male BUFFLEHEAD. It's interesting (to me at least) how the numbers of  "regular" Neotropic Cormorants reach a low in December and I didn't detect a single bird today.

I spent a couple of hours along the creek where the birding was enjoyable but extremely unproductive. BELTED KINGFISHER, CANYON WREN and LARK SPARROWS were the only species seen here and not elsewhere. HOUSE WRENS and CHIPPING SPARROWS were abundant. It's that time of year again when the standard greeting is "did you see the Trogon?". A male has wintered here for 8 years now has already been seen along the creek. I didn't have any success today.

DUSKY FLYCATCHER was the most common flycatcher today (6+) and I also saw a few GRAY FLYCATCHERS and a single ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER feeding on hackberries in the first wash (bottom of the steps where the trail drops to lake level).

I noted a couple of RED-NAPED SAPSUCKERS along with the regular woodpeckers. Red-naped seems to be mainly a fall migrant at the lake and I only have a few December and January records.

Wednesday, December 6, 2006
Today's report is short on birds but the day was sweet in terms of return on my investment. I visited San Rafael Valley which is  perhaps the best location in SE AZ to find wintering Baird's Sparrow, but is hardly a hotbed of birds. I consider the valley to be one of few places that I visit routinely to which the term "grunt work" really applies. The birding is difficult, success is far from assured and birds in general are few and far between. Throw in an unpleasant drive (usually in darkness) on rough and dusty roads and you'll start to get the picture. I'd originally planned to do this trip tomorrow but the forecast is for high winds. A cold and windy day in the valley, by choice? I don't think so people. Graders and heavy truck traffic were just a bonus today.

After a couple of early season Baird's successes (September 21 and October 3), I failed to get a sniff of the sparrow on my last visit (November 17). I'm happy to report that today I was successful again. I left home at 6:00am for the drive through Fort Huachuca and Canelo Hills, arriving at my favorite sparrow watching spot at the west end of the valley at 7:15am. Extremely mild (above freezing) and calm conditions were very welcome.

The first rays of weak sunlight hit the area at 7:24am and the first SAVANNAH SPARROWS popped up at 7:30am. I began the ritual of binocular scanning and getting the scope on every sparrow sighted. The amount of variation in Savannah appearance never ceases to amaze me, especially in rich, early morning sunlight. Still and all, false alarms keep you on your toes! At 7:40am I'm pretty sure that I briefly saw a "real" BAIRD'S SPARROW and by 7:50am I definitely saw one. In fact, I managed to get two minutes of great scope views until a truck came blasting by -- then it was a case of  "bye bye Bairdie, bye bye".

As I waited for sparrow action, I checked the distant WHITE-TAILED KITE roost, more than a mile away on the road to Bog Hole. I could definitely make out a couple of kites as well as a number of other "dot birds". I said to myself  "surely, they can't all be kites". I left the sparrows to themselves and headed to Bog Hole. As I got closer to the roost, I realized that all those distant dots were indeed kites -- ten of them to be precise. There are four small trees near the old windmill, two trees had two each and another had six -- here's a documentary quality image of 6 WHITE-TAILED KITES shot from quite a distance.

Although I've seen as many as 17 kites at one time in California (September 23, 1999), 8 was my previous high in Arizona. The majority of today's birds were full adults (red eyes).

I spent an hour or so at Bog Hole where there was plenty of sparrow action -- lots of SAVANNAH and VESPER and a few GRASSHOPPER. Out on the water I noted 2 CANVASBACKS, 10+ RING-NECKED DUCKS and a few RUDDY DUCKS. There was a WHITE-TAILED KITE in the cottonwoods but that may have been one of the birds that I saw earlier. An immature VERMILION FLYCATCHER worked the pond edge and a chattering MARSH WREN remained unseen. A small flock of WESTERN BLUEBIRDS flew overhead. Given the increasing number of sightings of Mountain Bluebirds this season, I was a little disappointed not to see them in the valley today.

A few CHESTNUT-COLLARED LONGSPURS were along FR 58 as I headed back east. Activity in the "forbidden zone" (a.k.a. Vaca Ranch Corral) was much higher than normal due to the presence of cattle. I noted HORNED LARKS, YELLOW-HEADED & BREWER'S BLACKBIRDS and BROWN-HEADED COWBIRDS as I drove by. What a great pity that we have lost this birding location.

A day of few birds but a good day nonetheless It was made even better when I watched Manchester United beat Benfica to qualify for the Champions League knockout stage. Man cannot live by birds alone, although I really try.

Thursday, December 7, 2006
Reports from elsewhere in SE AZ today told of windy conditions but it sure wasn't windy in Sierra Vista. You never know when you can trust a weather forecast (unless it's June). Although I'd planned a day at the computer, I took advantage of the sunny, calm and mild morning and headed down to the San Pedro. This turned out to be a smart move.

After a quick check around the San Pedro House, I decided to check the Oxbow in an attempt to relocate the Swamp Sparrow that I saw there last week. This sweeping arc of cottonwoods (located a few hundred yards north of Kingfisher Pond) faces south and is sheltered from the north by a high bank, cut by the river during the last ice age (well, some time ago at least). As soon as I dropped down into the old river channel I could feel the difference in temperature, perhaps as much as ten degrees. This is always a good place to find sparrows and towhees.

I immediately saw HAMMOND'S FLYCATCHER which was probably the same bird that I saw and photographed here last week. Shortly afterwards I heard the very loud double-noted call of a WINTER WREN. From my time living in the Pacific Northwest, I quickly realized that it wasn't the rather weak kip-kip call of the western race. I stayed in the area for about 30 minutes in an attempt to get a photograph. Typically, the bird was a master skulker and always managed to maintain a fair amount of foliage between itself and the business end of my lens. Although I tried some manual focus shots, I wasn't able to get anything useable. HOUSE WRENS were abundant and didn't made tracking the bird any easier.

This was my first sighting on the San Pedro (location species #226) and my 15th record in Arizona. Better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick and better than sitting at home working on the computer. The bar-graphs of both the TAS and ABA birdfinding guides show Winter Wren as "rare" in winter in southeast Arizona.  However, I'd have to say that the bird is perhaps scarcer than that (all depends on the subjective interpretation of rare I guess). For example, Hammond's Flycatcher is defined as rare and this is a bird that I could have a great deal of confidence in finding on any given day in the proper location in winter. By no stretch of the imagination could I say that about Winter Wren. Having done plenty of work on checklists and bar-graphs, I understand the problem. From a practical standpoint, there aren't enough codes or line thicknesses to cover "somewhat rare", "rare", "vary rare", "super rare", etc., so compromises have to be made. The key to interpreting bar-graphs is to be able to read between the lines (no pun intended) and take other information into account.

I left the Oxbow and headed to Kingfisher Pond where I soon saw male and female GREEN KINGFISHERS chasing each other around. I bumped into Gary Rosenberg and his tour group -- he told me that they had just seen a Sooty Fox Sparrow (Gary also relocated the Palm Warbler at Whitewater Draw yesterday). A Fox Sparrow was seen here a couple of weeks ago and I've tried to relocate it without success. Today I fared a little better. In fact, I located two FOX SPARROWS in the weedy area just southwest of the southwest corner of Kingfisher Pond and managed a documentary quality image of one of the birds, initially thought to be a SOOTY FOX SPARROW.

Fox Sparrow is a rare winter visitor in southeast Arizona (there we go with that word again) and Sooty is the least common of the three major Fox Sparrow groups (Red, Slate-colored and Sooty; all potential full species). When I returned home I did a little book and on line research into the various races within the Sooty group. What an amazing variation there is from almost black to fairly pale birds; with today's bird somewhere in between, tending towards the paler end.

Between the Winter Wren and Fox Sparrow, I didn't get much regular birding done. However, I managed to record about 40 species when all was said and done. The only other photo today was a female NORTHERN FLICKER.

Sunday, December 10, 2006
Out today with Scott Kampmeier from Austin, TX who I've birded with on three previous occasions. The objects of our affection today were Baird's Sparrow and Lawrence's Goldfinch. We had a successful outing and saw both species very well. We couldn't complain about the weather either -- after a mild start it was a mostly sunny day that was just a little breezy at times.

We left Sierra Vista at 6:00am and began sparrow watching at the west end of San Rafael Valley at 7:20am. As usual, SAVANNAH SPARROWS were the first sparrows to show and by 7:45am were enjoying excellent scope looks at not one, not two but three BAIRD'S SPARROWS all perched in a row. Having made a successful trip to the valley last Wednesday, I was very hopeful of success today. However, never in my wildest dreams did I expect to see three Baird's in such a short time. We didn't hang about and after a quick look at 5 distant WHITE-TAILED KITES, we left the valley at 8:00am. A great start to the day.

The drive down Harshaw Canyon produced ~20 common species and we resumed birding at Kino Springs around 9:00am. LAWRENCE'S GOLDFINCHES weren't immediately obvious and we had to work for a while before laying eyes on them well. Between the first and club house ponds, we probably saw 8+ females and two males.

We spent about  2.5 hours wandering around and recorded 50+ species. The hackberry grove at the first pond had AMERICAN ROBIN and MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRD and will be worth checking regularly over the winter for fruit loving species (such as Rufous-backed Robin!). Other species included GREEN HERON, GREAT EGRET, BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERON, BUFFLEHEAD, SHARP-SHINNED HAWK, many COMMON GROUND-DOVES (and one probable Ruddy, just too far away to be certain), GREATER ROADRUNNER, GREEN-TAILED, ABERT'S & CANYON TOWHEES and untold numbers of sparrows -- mostly WHITE-CROWNED & BREWERS with lesser numbers of LARK, LINCOLN'S, SONG & BLACK-THROATED and a singing RUFOUS-WINGED seen well.

We finished up with a short stop at Patagonia Lake State Park, primarily to compare WESTERN (6+) and CLARK'S (2) GREBES which we were easily able to do. The midday hour and breezy conditions translated into low activity and we saw less than 40 species from the trail at the east end of the lake. A couple of ROCK PIGEONS sitting on a spit at the lake edge were a bit of a surprise (only my 4th record at the lake proper on visit #447; rare in other words). Regulars included  fair numbers of COMMON MERGANSERS, CINNAMON TEAL, a few COMMON MOORHENS, vocal GRAY & DUSKY FLYCATCHERS and ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER.

The bird list posted for the regular Wednesday bird walk at the lake listed Cordilleran Flycatcher. I'm not sure how it was differentiated from the much more likely (and still rare) PACIFIC-SLOPE. If confirmed, it would be an excellent bird for the location and season.

Tuesday, December 12, 2006
Out today with Rick & Starr Stevens from Billings, MT who I've birded with once before. We spent all of our time in Sulphur Springs Valley where we visited Whitewater Draw and the Granite foothills. We had a successful and enjoyable day, mostly just seeing whatever crossed our path, although we did look for (and found) Bendire's Thrasher and Black-chinned Sparrow. After the usual chilly start, it was another beautiful sunny and calm day, quite warm in the Granites in the early afternoon.

We had a four falcon day that kicked off with a PRAIRIE FALCON as we entered the valley on Davis Road. Flock after flock of SANDHILL CRANES were streaming north as be began birding on Coffman Road. Here we picked up FERRUGINOUS HAWK, BENDIRE'S THRASHER, several flocks of LARK BUNTINGS, PYRRHULOXIA, WESTERN MEADOWLARK and the usual common sparrows including scads of BREWER'S SPARROWS.

Our time at Whitewater Draw began well with 6 MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRDS (3 males, 3 females) in the yard of the HQ building and a MERLIN perched in a willow visible from the parking area. Generally though, the activity level and species diversity were way less than my visit last week; waterfowl and geese particularly. Birders, on the other hand, were quite plentiful and we eventually cut short our visit.

Best bird (for me at least) was a lingering (and injured) BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER, a first for me in southeast Arizona in December. The bird had gimpy leg but was able to fly short distances. A few LEAST and SPOTTED SANDPIPERS were also about. ABERT'S TOWHEE was noteworthy, further indication of their eastward range expansion -- I've been seeing them here sporadically for four years now.

Other species included a mixed flock of 30+ adult and juvenile SNOW GEESE, 5 CANADA GEESE, 30+ PINTAILS, PEREGRINE FALCON, ROADRUNNER, 8-10 immature and adult VERMILION FLYCATCHERS, plenty of AMERICAN PIPITS and 6 fly-by CHESTNUT-COLLARED LONGSPURS.

Our time in the Granites was pleasant and productive. This is a very scenic area only 8 miles from Elfrida that always has a few species that can't be found on the valley floor. It's also warmer than the valley, presumably due to the rocks. The area seemed complete devoid of birds when we arrived close to midday. However, the first bird that we saw was our target BLACK-CHINNED SPARROW (always a treat to see)

Over a period of two hours (11:45am-1:45pm) we turned up 20 additional species. Best bird was HAMMOND'S FLYCATCHER, a new location species for me. A constantly foraging BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER (regular here in the winter months) put on a good show for us. ROCK WREN and, eventually, CANYON WREN also put on a good vocal and visual show. Other species included CACTUS & BEWICK'S WRENS, CURVE-BILLED THRASHER, VERDIN, LESSER GOLDFINCH, several GREEN-TAILED & CANYON TOWHEES, BLACK-THROATED and LINCOLN'S SPARROWS and PYRRHULOXIA.

A good day. Any day with four falcon species, Mountain Bluebird and Black-chinned Sparrow can't be bad.

Thursday, December 14, 2006
I was scheduled to visit Patagonia and San Rafael valley today but my client had to cancel due to illness. I decided to use the time to visit Carr Canyon, a location where I don't spend much time in the winter months. I couldn't have asked for a better day to visit the mountains -- the overnight low was in the 40s and the daytime high reached the high 60s. Shorts and short sleeves at 7500 feet in December? I'll take it. Of course, there aren't many birds to see at this season but the wonderful views and solitude more than made up for that.

WESTERN BLUEBIRDS were the first birds that greeted me as I turned off Hwy 92 onto Carr Canyon Road. WHITE-WINGED DOVE and MEXICAN JAY were the only other species that I noted in the lower canyon (i.e. between Hwy 92 and the first stream crossing).

I spent the first hour near the creek above the second stream crossing where there was plenty of dicky bird activity. Nothing unusual, just lots of birds coming in to drink, although OLIVE WARBLER was a good bird for this location (they sometimes drop down to lower elevations in winter). CHIPPING SPARROWS were the most common species along with DARK-EYED JUNCOS of three flavors Gray-headed, Oregon and Pink-sided. Other species working this area were LADDER-BACKED WOODPECKER, PHAINOPEPLA, BEWICK'S & HOUSE WRENS, small flocks of BUSHTITS & BRIDLED TITMICE, a few WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCHES, BROWN CREEPERS & LESSER GOLDFINCHES, surprisingly few YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS, SPOTTED TOWHEE and RUFOUS-CROWNED SPARROW.

The drive up the mountain was quiet and the only species that I added was EASTERN BLUEBIRD (a small flock of 6-10 birds).

As I expected, Reef Campground and the various trails in the area were almost devoid of birds -- not a single jay of any species. Although woodpeckers are the "winter staple" in the mountains, even they were inconspicuous and I had to listen and work hard to get my reward. Eventually, I turned up a male WILLIAMSON'S SAPSUCKER, 2 RED-NAPED SAPSUCKERS, 1 HAIRY WOODPECKER, 3 ARIZONA WOODPECKERS and a handful of NORTHERN FLICKERS.

Dicky birds, not so much. I found 3+ OLIVE WARBLERS in more typical habitat; a few HERMIT THRUSHES, just one AMERICAN ROBIN, many SPOTTED TOWHEES and a couple of YELLOW-EYED JUNCOS. I spent some time working the road between Reef and Ramsey Vista trying to raise a Townsend's Solitaire without success.

Not many birds for 6 hours of work but it was certainly a very pleasant outing.

Friday, December 15, 2006
I spent the morning on the San Pedro then made a brief check of Sierra Vista EOP. Weather conditions were very similar to yesterday but it was a tad warmer -- low 70s by midday.

I started out working the sparrows around the San Pedro House. Tedious stuff but my reward was a CLAY-COLORED SPARROW among the many BREWER'S SPARROWS. Good luck relocating that baby. It was pretty chilly in the shade and my favorite image of the day was this fluffed up male HOUSE FINCH. The bird seemed determined not to flinch so I kept my distance. Other species here included the continuing small flock of WHITE-WINGED DOVES, numerous GILA WOODPECKERS, GREEN-TAILED and ABERT'S TOWHEES  and plenty of PYRRHULOXIAS.

This morning was relatively mild compared to the last couple of weeks. I spoke with the site host who told me that overnight low temperatures at the San Pedro House have been in the 14-18 degree range. It's always noticeably colder here than where I live just 7 miles away.

Next, I checked the Oxbow but didn't have any luck with Winter Wren or Swamp Sparrow. HAMMOND'S FLYCATCHER was on duty though. EASTERN MEADOWLARKS and SAVANNAH SPARROWS (the least common of the common sparrows here) were just north of Kingfisher Pond.

A flock of WESTERN MEADOWLARKS were at Kingfisher Pond where I just missed Mountain Bluebirds. The male Vermilion seems to have bailed out. NORTHERN SHOVELER and GREEN WINGED TEAL were two duck species more than are usually present. A male GREEN KINGFISHER was present but I didn't see a female. I followed the Kingfisher around trying to get a photo but the wily bird stayed just ahead of me. I had to settle for a much better than my average image quality shot of a NORTHERN FLICKER. I've made it larger than normal to do it justice. Use to fill as much of your screen as possible.

When I located two Fox Sparrows last week, I picked one to follow (initially thought to be a Sooty) and that bird was the subject of some debate. See journal for December 7 and 10. Today I latched on to "the other bird" which is clearly a RED FOX SPARROW. Location was as before, SW of the SW corner of Kingfisher Pond.

After messing with the sparrow, I headed to the river south of the pond and managed to get a "better than documentary quality" image of the continuing LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSH despite adverse conditions  -- poor light and standing in the water getting wet feet (me, that is). The bird was less retiring than normal, although it did fly away for a short time before returning. The location was south of its "normal" spot -- today the bird was along the river about 100 yards north of Garden Wash. In my short career as a low key photographer, I've really learned the value of shooting as many images as possible. I was able to shoot 80 images of the Waterthrush in two sessions and only one image could be called better than documentary. The light was very poor and the bird wouldn't stop moving. Even with ISO 800, I couldn't get the shutter speed high enough -- the image stabilized lens can only do so much! It might seem like the bird is nicely posed but it only stayed that way for an instant! It was interesting to watch the bird foraging like a Turnstone in the leaf litter.

A male WILSON'S WARBLER was in the same general area as the Waterthrush. The bird only called a couple of times during the 10 minutes that I watched it foraging low in heavy vegetation. There was a late bird in the same location last year (into November). They are no more than casual in winter.

After checking Black Phoebe pond (nothing seen!), I walked back to the San Pedro House via Garden Wash and Del Valle Road. What a mistake that turned out to be. Both locations were almost bird free -- I added GAMBEL'S QUAIL, CANYON TOWHEE and BLACK-THROATED SPARROW. I had planned to walk back along the river and I should have done so. Nevertheless, the overall birding was quite good and I recorded 50 species including a few decent birds.

A 30 minute stop at Sierra Vista EOP produced nothing of note among 20 species. Highlights were SORA and VIRGINIA RAIL foraging out in the open.

59 species recorded:
Great Blue Heron, Am. Wigeon, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, N. Pintail, N. Shoveler, Ruddy Duck, N. Harrier, Red-tailed Hawk, Am. Kestrel, Gambel's Quail, Virginia Rail, Sora, Am. Coot, Rock Pigeon, Mourning & White-winged Doves; Green Kingfisher, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers; N. Flicker, Hammond's Flycatcher, Black & Say's Phoebes; Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Bewick's, House & Marsh Wrens; Curve-billed Thrasher, Bridled Titmouse, White-breasted Nuthatch, Loggerhead Shrike, Chihuahuan Raven, European Starling, House Sparrow, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Yellow-rumped & Wilson's Warblers; Louisiana Waterthrush, Common Yellowthroat, Green-tailed, Canyon & Abert's Towhees; Chipping, Clay-colored, Brewer's, Vesper, Black-throated, Savannah, Fox, Song, Lincoln's & White-crowned Sparrows; Pyrrhuloxia, Red-winged Blackbird, Eastern & Western Meadowlarks and Great-tailed Grackle.

Sunday, December 17, 2006
I headed into the mountains this morning until I realized just how heavy the clouds were in the vicinity of Sawmill Canyon. Shortly after I entered Fort Huachuca I turned around and joined the regular Sunday tour at Sierra Vista EOP. The leading edge of the first winter storm of the season brought windy conditions to the area yesterday and it was windy at the EOP after the first hour. The temperature remained quite reasonable and ranged from 47 to 60 degrees between 7:30am and 10:30am.

I've skipped the last three Sunday tours and a decrease in duck numbers was very noticeable to me today. Only NORTHERN SHOVELER and RING-NECKED DUCKS remained in "normal" numbers. AMERICAN WIGEON, GADWALL, GREEN-WINGED & CINNAMON TEAL, MALLARD and RUDDY DUCK were not plentiful. Best birds were a couple of female LESSER SCAUP, a female BUFFLEHEAD and 2 COMMON MOORHENS (scarce at the EOP).

The only shorebirds were a single fly-by LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER and a handful of KILLDEER.

Apart from numerous NORTHERN HARRIERS, raptors were not conspicuous and only a few RED-TAILED HAWKS, AMERICAN KESTRELS and the regular PEREGRINE FALCON were seen.

SAVANNAH SPARROWS were plentiful but it was slim pickings after that. In decreasing order of abundance were VESPER. WHITE-CROWNED, SONG, 2 BREWER'S and a single LINCOLN'S.

As usual, YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRDS were abundant. BREWER'S and RED WINGED BLACKBIRDS were common. Both EASTERN and WESTERN MEADOWLARKS were present in small numbers.

Highlights were few -- a single EARED GREBE, a/the (continuing?) female BUFFLEHEAD, brief acrobatics by the PEREGRINE, equally brief looks at SORA, a GREATER ROADRUNNER perched on an irrigation rig and a perched up MARSH WREN.

Fairly mediocre birding. The West Ham versus Manchester United game was much more enjoyable. This is a fixture that always gives me problems. I was born and raised in the north of England and was a regular United fan. After I moved down south, I became a regular at Upton Park and a staunch Hammers fan. Both teams needed the points today for very different reasons. It was a good game and in the end I was happy with the 1-0 West Ham win -- United can better deal with the loss than can the Hammers.

Tuesday, December 19, 2006
Although there's been snow and cold temperatures in the White Mountains and further north, the first winter storm of the season has so far been a non-event as far as southeast Arizona is concerned. This morning I visited Willcox hoping to find gulls, geese or the odd decent duck. As it turned out, I was perhaps the only odd duck present. It was quite cold and mostly cloudy when I started birding at 7:30am. Conditions steadily improved and the sunny skies prompted me to change into shorts by 11:00am when I finally threw in the towel. This wasn't a smart move since it was mostly cloudy and cold with increasing wind at my next destination -- St. David.

I did the rounds during my 3.5 hour stay at Willcox and checked the main pond three times as well as checking the golf course pond, surrounding habitat and several side roads a couple of times. That strategy paid off since I was able to find something new each time. SAGE SPARROW was far and away the highlight of the morning; species #186 for my Willcox list. I was able to get quite close with the sun behind me which resulted in a decent image. There's no substitute for being close and having good light (of course, the rest is up to the bird). In this case, Murphy got screwed for a change -- at least one of the three birds that I saw always seemed to be perched up and unobstructed.

Apart from the sparrow I saw nothing unusual, although a couple of  VERMILION FLYCATCHERS (adult and immature males) are certainly uncommon here in winter. Otherwise, I noted  the regular waterfowl, sparrows and other stuff that you might expect at this time of year. AMERICAN WIGEON were abundant. I estimated between 450 and 500 birds; I counted 300 in one group alone. I scanned for Eurasian but came up empty and I didn't even see the hybrid that's been present for a few years now. NORTHERN SHOVELERS and RUDDY DUCKS were both common; after that the numbers dropped of significantly. I noted 13 EARED GREBES, 10+ GREEN-WINGED TEAL, 4+ CINNAMON TEAL, 1 male REDHEAD, 2 RING-NECKED DUCKS, 3 LESSER SCAUP, a female BUFFLEHEAD and 15 COMMON MERGANSERS (9 males). Shorebirds were limited to a handful of LEAST SANDPIPERS and 50+ KILLDEER. I saw perhaps as many as 50 SAVANNAH SPARROWS around the periphery of the main pond.

The grassland, mesquites and marshy habitat around the Golf Course pond supported a fair number of species. In the immediate vicinity of the pond I found a few PIED-BILLED GREBES, 2 immature COOPER'S HAWKS, VIRGINIA RAIL, SORA, several EURASIAN COLLARED-DOVES, BLACK & SAY'S PHOEBES, the previously mentioned VERMILION FLYCATCHERS, 6+ MARSH WRENS and a few SONG & LINCOLN'S SPARROWS.

The road along the north side of the golf course produced BREWER'S, VESPER & WHITE-CROWNED SPARROWS and 80-100 LARK BUNTINGS. Species elsewhere included many HORNED LARKS, a handful of AMERICAN PIPITS, 6 CHESTNUT-COLLARED LONGSPURS and 20+ EASTERN MEADOWLARKS.

All told I turned up 50 species which was a decent return for my efforts.

I took the Sybil Road short cut over to St. David which sometimes has an interesting bird or two. PHAINOPEPLA and BLACK-THROATED SPARROW were all that I saw for much of the journey today. Things improved as I got closer to town -- I was delighted to see a flock of 50 MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRDS working a horse pasture (equal numbers of males and females). That blue is to die for -- any day with this species can never be a failure. LARK SPARROWS, PYRRHULOXIA and BREWER'S BLACKBIRDS were also present.

It was quite windy by the time I reached Holy Trinity Monastery and birding was difficult. All of the Hackberry trees that I looked at had plenty of fruit but very few birds were taking advantage. I stayed an hour and eventually managed 30 species.

I was hoping to find the formerly reliable Wood Duck on the main pond but was unable to do so. In fact, there were very few birds on the water. Ironically, after seeing hundreds of AMERICAN WIGEON at Willcox, I had a photo opportunity here just as a bird realized that I was watching and started to swim away.

I wandered around and saw what I thought was a flock of ~20 CEDAR WAXWINGS in flight. I happened upon them later and counted 25 birds. Even though the back lighting was awful, I was able to get a so-so image of a bird with fruit in its bill.

The small pecan grove near the entrance was loaded with GILA WOODPECKERS, NORTHERN FLICKERS, YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS and WESTERN MEADOWLARKS. This location has been good for wintering Lewis's Woodpecker in recent years. In addition to the pecan grove, I checked the many cottonwoods scattered throughout the area but ended up Lewisless.

Other species not seen at Willcox included WHITE-WINGED DOVE, LADDER-BACKED WOODPECKER, MOCKINGBIRD, HERMIT THRUSH, VERDIN, and ABERT'S TOWHEE.

70 species recorded:
Pied-billed & Eared Grebes; Great Blue Heron, Am. Wigeon, Gadwall, Green-winged & Cinnamon Teal; Mallard, N. Shoveler, Redhead, Ring-necked & Ruddy Ducks; Lesser Scaup, Bufflehead, Common Merganser, N. Harrier, Cooper's & Red-tailed Hawks; Am. Kestrel, Virginia Rail, Sora, Am. Coot, Killdeer, Least Sandpiper, Rock Pigeon, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Mourning & White-winged Doves; Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers; N. Flicker, Black & Say's Phoebes; Vermilion Flycatcher, Horned Lark, Am. Pipit, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Phainopepla, Cedar Waxwing, Bewick's, House & Marsh Wrens; N. Mockingbird, Mountain Bluebird, Hermit Thrush, Verdin, Loggerhead Shrike, Chihuahuan Raven, House Sparrow, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Abert's Towhee, Brewer's, Vesper, Lark, Black-throated, Sage, Savannah, Song, Lincoln's & White-crowned Sparrows; Lark Bunting, Chestnut-collared Longspur, Pyrrhuloxia, Red-winged & Brewer's Blackbirds; Eastern & Western Meadowlarks and Great-tailed Grackle.

Wednesday, December 20, 2006
Following the season's first snowfall in the Huachucas last night and an overnight low near 20 degrees, the day began completely clear and cold (duh!). I spent the morning in Garden Canyon where I found some light snow as low as the fishing ponds (below 5000 feet). The temperature had climbed to 50 degrees when I quit at 1:00pm.

Although I spent most of my time in mesquite-grassland and around a couple of ponds, I ventured up canyon as far as the upper picnic area and invested 30 minutes each at the middle and lower picnic areas. RED-TAILED HAWKS were far more conspicuous than normal today and I saw as many as ten individuals. I also saw 6 GREATER ROADRUNNERS.

Photo note: The image is of an immature bird looking a bit ragged as it battled the wind (which was probably the reason it didn't fly away as they usually do). As I've mentioned before, this is the type of pose that is difficult to keep the entire bird in focus due to low depth of field (a large bird not parallel to the lens). However, I had a couple of things going for me -- I was some distance from the bird and the light was good allowing me to get to an aperture of f/10 (both of which increase DOF). I also cheated a little by focusing on the shoulder and not the eye (evening out DOF, fore and aft). For most birds I can't mess about, I just have to shoot and move on. In this case I had some time to think about what I was doing.

I began birding at the fishing ponds where the temperature was in the low 30s and very little was stirring. I persevered for an hour and turned up 20 species including 4 RING-NECKED DUCKS, a hatch year female VERMILION FLYCATCHER (scarce in Garden Canyon), the usual BLACK & SAY'S PHOEBE'S working low over the water with the Vermilion, all trying to make a living; PHAINOPEPLA, YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER (a good image, even if I do say so myself) and RUFOUS-CROWNED SPARROW.

Lower Garden Pond held some of the same species and I added GREEN-TAILED TOWHEE.

Perhaps the most interesting bird of the morning was a WILSON'S SNIPE along the creek near the upper picnic area. I only have about 10 records for Garden Canyon and all previous records were at the fishing ponds. Generally, there was very little action here.

I fared a little better at the Middle Picnic Area seeing BRIDLED TITMOUSE, WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH, lots of noisy MEXICAN JAYS, HUTTON'S VIREO, a male TOWNSEND'S WARBLER, SPOTTED TOWHEE and GRAY-HEADED JUNCO.

My time at the Lower Picnic Area was well spent even though it produced few birds. Here I added RED-NAPED SAPSUCKER and a very active and vocal PAINTED REDSTART that always stayed too high in the trees. Most winters, there's usually one or more birds at this location and/or at the Middle Picnic Area.

Painted Redstart is one of my three favorite species (the others are Vermilion Flycatcher and Red-faced Warbler). Two out of three on a cold December morning were worth the effort of getting into the field.

Thursday, December 21, 2006
A spectacular weather day to get winter underway. Very cold overnight in Sierra Vista (~18 degrees where I live) then clear blue skies (as you'll see in today's photos) and lots of sunshine. I spent 5 hours birding at Kino Springs where I was eventually able to lose the sweater and don shorts. Welcome to winter in SE AZ!

I delayed my start about an hour beyond what daylight would support to give the birds (and me) a chance to warm up. I worked the first pond and surrounding washes and mesquite areas from 9:00am to noon then continued around the club house area until 2:00pm. Although I didn't see anything super rare, the birding was excellent and there was always something to look at. I wandered around without looking for anything in particular and turned up ~60 species.

Today's Photos Note: Large images are best viewed using Great Blue Heron (large) Great Egret (large) where is the "other leg" on each of these birds? Canvasback male shot from distance, love the golden rippled water Crissal Thrasher Rufous-winged Sparrow Pyrrhuloxia male Pyrrhuloxia female Lawrence's Goldfinch male note the sly sideways look

Highlights
The continuing GREAT EGRET posing nicely; 5 HOODED MERGANSERS -- 1 spiffy male and 4 females at the Club House Pond; a single male CANVASBACK which was a photo first for me; numerous COMMON GROUND-DOVES (no Ruddy candidates today); GRAY FLYCATCHER working the club house pines; a pair of CRISSAL THRASHERS singing in the wash west of the first pond -- 'tis their season (my resident CURVE-BILLED THRASHER was singing when I returned home this afternoon and has been singing all week); lots of delightful LAWRENCE'S GOLDFINCHES in multiple locations; a very cooperative RUFOUS-WINGED SPARROW singing away like it was spring -- I managed better images than the one that I published but they didn't show the rufous wing (Murphy strikes again).

Highlights apart, the most enjoyable aspect was the diversity and sheer numbers of sparrows and towhees at the first pond. With more diligence I could perhaps have found something unusual. However, there's definitely a limit to the number of times that I can raise my glasses to White-crowns and Brewer's.

64 species recorded (6 in italics not at Kino):
Pied-billed Grebe, Great Blue & Green Herons; Great Egret, Am. Wigeon, Green-winged Teal, N. Pintail, N. Shoveler, Canvasback, Redhead, Ring-necked & Ruddy Ducks; Hooded Merganser, N. Harrier, Cooper's & Red-tailed Hawks; Am. Kestrel, Gambel's Quail, Sora, Am. Coot, Killdeer, Rock Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Common Ground-Dove, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers; N. Flicker, Gray Flycatcher, Black & Say's Phoebes; Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Bewick's, House & Marsh Wrens; N. Mockingbird, Curve-billed & Crissal Thrashers; Verdin, Loggerhead Shrike, Chihuahuan & Common Ravens; European Starling, House Sparrow, House Finch, Lesser & Lawrence's Goldfinches; Green-tailed, Canyon & Abert's Towhees; Rufous-winged, Chipping, Brewer's, Vesper, Lark, Black-throated, Savannah, Song, Lincoln's & White-crowned Sparrows; N. Cardinal, Pyrrhuloxia, Red-winged Blackbird, Eastern Meadowlark and Great-tailed Grackle.

Friday, December 22, 2006
Birding on the San Pedro this morning was the antithesis of Kino Springs yesterday with very little early activity and not much improvement as the day warmed. It was warmer overnight than of late due to cloud cover and it was cloudy and 30 degrees when I started near the San Pedro House at 8:30am; up to 50 degrees by 11:00am. Remembering how much time I pissed away processing images yesterday and taking the cloudy conditions into account, I didn't bother to carry a camera today.

In terms of numbers of individuals, I found a large proportion of the birds that I saw around the San House. Species here included an adult COOPER'S HAWK, 10 WHITE-WINGED DOVES, all four regular Towhee species GREEN-TAILED, SPOTTED, CANYON & ABERT'S; the usual BREWER'S & WHITE-CROWNED SPARROWS and numerous PYRRHULOXIAS.

The next busiest spot (some two hours later) was along the river just north of Garden Wash. Here I found 12+ MALLARDS, 6 GADWALLS (uncommon on this section of SPRNCA), a single HAMMOND'S FLYCATCHER flycatching in a different style to the 4 BLACK PHOEBES, a few RUBY-CROWNED KINGLETS and umpteen YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS all working the same spot. It was interesting to watch all except the Hammond's repeatedly darting out over the water catching bugs that I couldn't even see! In typical fashion, the Hammond's worked low-medium height and picked stuff almost off the ground and from tree limbs.

In the same area, I found the continuing LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSH foraging in the leaf litter at the edge of the river (this is the same location as on my last visit on December 15).

Kingfisher Pond was extremely quiet and I found only a GREAT BLUE HERON, a couple each of COOTS and NORTHERN SHOVELERS; and the continuing male GREEN KINGFISHER (I haven't seen a female on my last two visits). If history is any clue, the Kingfisher will possibly leave in January when the cold weather starts to bite and the pond becomes icy. Dicky bird activity was negligible, perhaps due to the presence of an immature SHARP-SHINNED HAWK and a MERLIN, both hanging out in the nearby cottonwoods. I searched the area of recent Fox Sparrow sightings without success.

Back near the San Pedro House I bumped into Dave Beaudette who told me that he had seen a MacGillivray's Warbler in town. Recently, I'd mentioned to him that Soldier Creek was a good place to look for Lawrence's Goldfinches and while looking (unsuccessfully) for them he came across the warbler. I was about to check Sierra Vista EOP but decided to try to relocate the MacGillivray's to determine age and sex. This is an accidental species in winter and a quick check of the information that I have to hand did not show any records for December in SE AZ (although there have been some recent sightings in Tucson).

Soldier Creek starts on Fort Huachuca and meanders its way through several Sierra Vista neighborhoods. This particular location was a small section of creek adjacent to the rather grandiosely named Gateway Park on North Garden Avenue. It took me about 15 minutes to first detect the chipping MACGILLIVRAY'S WARBLER and another 45 minutes before I laid eyes on it (and even then only for a couple of seconds). This species is a well known skulker and this individual was definitely at the top of its game. I had numerous fleeting ventral views and flight views, but nothing substantial. Several times I thought there were two birds because I didn't believe the bird could have traveled from where it was calling to where it had been calling a second ago without me seeing it move! Part of the difficulty was traffic noise around noon -- the bird moved into the parking lot of the old Bella Vista Water Co building (a tiny island of vegetation sandwiched between North Garden Ave and Buffalo Soldier Trail).

Anyway, I finally got my two seconds worth and I believe the bird is an adult male. Certainly a good bird for December -- thanks Dave. My previous late record was on October 25 of this year at Garden Canyon fishing ponds -- not very far away but that bird was a first fall female so it's not the same individual.

Sunday, December 24, 2006
Wonderful weather for the regular Sierra Vista EOP outing this morning. Clear blue sky, minimal wind and a temperature ranging from 32-54 degrees between 7:45 and 11:15am. Birding was decent (as it often is on winter days such as today) and raptors, sparrows and blackbirds were all more conspicuous than in recent weeks.

Highlights were a couple of fly-by SNOW GEESE (adult and immature); a good scope view of a perched PRAIRIE FALCON and an even better close up view of a SWAMP SPARROW. By my records, Swamp Sparrow is very scarce at this location and this was only my 4th record in three different years since I started birding here regularly in1993.

NORTHERN HARRIERS and RED-TAILED HAWKS were probably into double figures but it's hard to get an accurate count with many birds constantly in the air. 

KILLDEER was the only shorebird. Peregrine Falcon was a no-show. AMERICAN WIGEON numbers have dropped dramatically. YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRDS were abundant with one flock alone numbering 1000 or more. It's amazing to watch them swirl in a rolling motion as interior birds move to the leading edge of the flock.

Other species among a total of 47 recorded included a few CINNAMON TEAL, ~10 RING-NECKED DUCKS, ~10 LESSER SCAUP (2 males), the (probable) continuing female BUFFLEHEAD (a bird has been present since last winter); several calling SORAS and VIRGINIA RAILS (the former seen well, latter briefly in flight); 2 GREATER ROADRUNNERS, many calling MARSH WRENS with a couple of sightings, 5+ LOGGERHEAD SHRIKES, decent sized flocks of HORNED LARKS and AMERICAN PIPITS foraging on bare dirt; lots of SAVANNAH SPARROWS and small numbers of the other regular sparrows.

Monday, December 25, 2006
Today I decided to check on Spotted Owl in Scheelite Canyon, something that I haven't done for a while. A group of 4 WHITE-WINGED DOVES greeted me as I left home. It was certainly a pleasure to drive along a traffic free French Fry Boulevard this morning and to be the first one crunching ice on the frozen puddles at Garden Canyon fishing ponds. A similar weather day to yesterday -- clear skies, a slight intermittent breeze; temperature in the low 30s to mid 50s from 8:00am-1:00pm.

I spent an hour at the fishing ponds before heading up to Scheelite. A group of 45 RING-NECKED DUCKS were far and away the highest number that I've seen here. Also present was a female SHOVELER (the male perished, I saw it floating in the water a few days ago). Other species from 20+ seen included PHAINOPEPLA, MARSH WREN, lots of YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS, 2 SPOTTED TOWHEES, a few PYRRHULOXIAS and 10+ SAVANNAH SPARROWS that so far this season have been scarcer than normal at this location.

WESTERN BLUEBIRDS and PAINTED REDSTART were at the lower picnic area.

I parked at the upper picnic area and walked from there to Scheelite. This adds 25-30 minutes round trip (leisurely walking) but it's a safer place to park at this season when there are fewer people frequenting the upper canyon. A couple of HAMMOND'S FLYCATCHERS were the only birds noted on the walk up.

For the most part, Scheelite Canyon showed little evidence of the recent snowfall save for a few patches of snow and ice in the deeply shaded areas. As you might expect at this season, birds were few and far between. While SPOTTED OWL wasn't exactly obvious, I didn't have any real difficulty. Normally, when not with a client, I'd rather have more of a challenge so that I learn something new. The only challenge today was deciding on a strategy. With so many visits to the canyon under my belt and all the data that I've accumulated, it's easy to speculate on where an owl might be based on season and weather conditions. After all, what good is it to collect the data then not use it?

Over time, the law of statistics ensures my data will indicate with some high degree of confidence the general roost area within the canyon and even the specific roost site. Given the cold weather that we've had recently (and it sure gets cold in Scheelite!), it would be reasonable to expect that the owls would be roosting fairly high in the canopy of a tall oak to get some exposure to the sun. However, I've been burned enough times such that I decided to follow my "standard" search pattern and take nothing for granted. That turned out to be a good decision because I found two owls roosting about 30 feet apart in separate trees in a very cold and shady location. Go figure!

I recorded 16 species in the canyon including ARIZONA WOODPECKER, RED-NAPED SAPSUCKER, 5+ CANYON WRENS, ROCK WREN (very rare from fall through spring in Scheelite), SPOTTED TOWHEE, RUFOUS-CROWNED SPARROW and a few DARK-EYED JUNCOS.

The best bird of the morning came as I walked back to the upper picnic area -- AMERICAN DIPPER along the creek. This is a very scarce and irregular winter visitor to the Huachucas with most reports coming from Ramsey Canyon.

Driving back through the grassland, I saw two COMMON RAVENS harassing a GOLDEN EAGLE. The eagle decided that it had enough and landed on a hillside near my location. Almost immediately, 2 RED-TAILED HAWKS materialized and took over the ravens' role as both birds took turns to dive bomb the eagle. I realized the photo opportunity too late and by the time I had found a safe place to park, the eagle was nowhere to be seen.

I could hardly complain about the morning though. Now I can look forward to a Boxing Day full of English Premier League games and I don't have to listen to feliz navidad on the radio for another year.

53 species recorded:
N. Shoveler, Ring-necked Duck, N. Harrier, Red-tailed Hawk, Golden Eagle, Am. Kestrel, Am. Coot, Rock Pigeon, Mourning & White-winged Doves; Greater Roadrunner, Spotted Owl, Gila & Arizona Woodpeckers; Red-naped Sapsucker, N. Flicker, Hammond's Flycatcher, Black & Say's Phoebes; Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Phainopepla, Am. Dipper, Rock, Canyon, Bewick's, House & Marsh Wrens; N. Mockingbird, Curve-billed Thrasher, Western Bluebird, Hermit Thrush, Bridled Titmouse, Brown Creeper, Loggerhead Shrike, Mexican Jay, Chihuahuan & Common Ravens; House Sparrow, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Painted Redstart, Spotted Towhee, Rufous-crowned, Chipping, Vesper, Savannah, Lincoln's & White-crowned Sparrows; Dark-eyed Junco, Pyrrhuloxia, Brewer's Blackbird and Great-tailed Grackle.

Thursday, December 28, 2006
I've neglected Sawmill Canyon recently and after the enjoyable day that I spent in the mountains on Monday it was my intention to head up there today. However, when I saw the Huachucas early this morning (or rather, didn't see them), I changed my mind. Snow level was almost down to city level (a little below 5000 feet) so Sawmill probably got hit pretty hard. High temperature in Sierra Vista today was in the low 40s, some 20 degrees colder than yesterday; not unusual at this time of year.

Plan B was the San Pedro where it was pretty bleak -- heavy overcast, blustery, cold (mid 30s) with a little frozen precipitation. To say that birds were somewhat subdued would be a major understatement and I needed to stick at it just to rustle up 40 species.

Apart from around the San Pedro House, sparrows in particular seemed very hard to come by and I didn't see a single Chipping Sparrow (normally very common). I once again searched for Fox Sparrow without success.

Ducks were represented by five species (unusual since the "habitat changes" at Kingfisher pond). CANVASBACK (4 males) was my first sighting of the season at this location. Normally, this species is uncommon at Kingfisher Pond from as early as late October through March.

Highlights were continuing species -- male GREEN KINGFISHER at Kingfisher Pond and LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSH along the river 150 yards north of Garden Wash. I had excellent, prolonged views of the waterthrush. Also present in this location were 2 HAMMOND'S FLYCATCHERS (foraging on the ground) and a male WILSON'S WARBLER (casual in winter).

A brief stop at a blustery and cold Sierra Vista EOP yielded 25 species from which a male MERLIN was the pick. Unfortunately, I was only able to see the back of the bird and couldn't determine race. RED-TAILED HAWKS were very common (15+).

Friday, December 29, 2006
This morning I spent a somewhat disappointing few hours at Whitewater Draw where species diversity and numbers of individuals continue to dwindle. On the plus side, I left home in darkness to make sure I would get there early enough for the SANDHILL CRANE departure show and that spectacle certainly didn't disappoint.

Heavy clouds kept the overnight temperature from dropping too low at the expense of a seriously iced up vehicle for the first time this season. I encountered freezing fog in the San Pedro Valley and again just before dropping down into Sulphur Springs Valley on the Davis Road. Lots of snow and frost in the grassland between the Dragoon and Mule Mountains was completely gone by 12:30pm. Whitewater Draw was mostly cloudy with a few mid morning sun breaks.

I began birding with a check of the fields on Davis Road where I had immediate success with 60 MOUNTAIN PLOVERS. The birds were in the very first field east of Coffman Road and I didn't check any more fields to look for additional birds. It was cold and a little foggy here at 7:30am so it was fortuitous that the birds were close to the road and in two roughly equal flocks of 30 apiece. Although the plovers were still present when I checked the field again at 11:30am, they were now scattered hither and yon and some distance from the road -- much more difficult to locate. Also present were a couple of FERRUGINOUS HAWKS and lots of MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRDS. It was satisfying to find the plovers in this particular field since it was the only field of five that I checked on December 4 that I considered good for plovers. The birds obviously agreed with me (if only it were always so).

As most of you are probably aware, Sulphur Springs Valley is a good place for thrashers but I dipped on all the regulars today (although I certainly didn't go out of my way to look). That being the case, the irony of 3 SAGE THRASHERS wasn't lost on me (1 at Whitewater Draw and 2 on Coffman Road). Sage Thrasher is very uncommon at best in the valley and in some years there are none or very few present.

In addition to the thrasher, highlights at Whitewater included 100+ SNOW GEESE and at least 2 ROSS'S GEESE (the geese flew in around 10:15am), SHARP-SHINNED HAWK, 4+ SPOTTED SANDPIPERS, 2 GREATER ROADRUNNERS, GREAT HORNED OWL and 4+ VERMILION FLYCATCHERS.

Of note were 2 female COMMON MERGANSERS, only my third record at this location; all in December in three different years. Although common at other (deep) water locations, Whitewater Draw usually doesn't have deep water and explains their absence.

Saturday, December 30, 2006
Out today with Jeff Rusinow and Jen from Cave Creek, AZ. Jeff wanted to make the transition from 498 to 500 ABA species before year end so my task was well defined -- find two new species! We looked for four and found three -- mission accomplished. It was a very nice day to be in the field but very cold early on. I had to scrape ice for the second day in a row and the temperature was only 22 degrees when I met Jeff and Jen in Sonoita.

We began at Kino Springs where I was hoping to find Rufous-winged Sparrow and Lawrence's Goldfinch quickly to make the rest of the day gravy. Unfortunately, it was super cold with a heavy frost cover and very little was stirring. Although we soon had good looks at a briefly singing RUFOUS-WINGED SPARROW, dicky bird activity was minimal and we didn't get a sniff of Lawrence's Goldfinch at the first pond or club house pond. Other species noted were 2 GREAT EGRETS (being harassed by a GREAT BLUE HERON), REDHEAD, CANVASBACK, the continuing 5 HOODED MERGANSERS (1 male) at the first pond and good looks at a preening CRISSAL THRASHER.

We decided to head to Patagonia Lake to look for the gnatcatcher and return to Kino later even though the travel logistics were screwed up. An hour of diligent and methodical searching produced BLACK-CAPPED GNATCATCHER -- a good bird for #500 (now the pressure was off!). We found two calling birds but only laid eyes on a female which, incidentally, wasn't the injured bird that I saw earlier this month on December 5. We didn't look for anything else here and just noted whatever we saw in passing. Species included WESTERN GREBE, lots of COMMON MERGANSERS, COMMON MOORHEN, GRAY and DUSKY FLYCATCHERS, HERMIT THRUSH and BLACK-THROATED SPARROW.

Back at Kino Springs we spent 30 minutes working the weeds at the first pond for the goldfinch, again without success. We were about to head to the club house pond when I checked a dead tree one last time and lo and behold, one male LAWRENCE'S GOLDFINCH front and center. Good deal. Additional species not seen earlier included GREEN HERON, COMMON GROUND-DOVE and many LARK SPARROWS.

We finished up with a brief and unsuccessful cruise along a muddy FR 58 in San Rafael Valley. Chestnut-collared Longspur should have been the easiest bird of the day but we neither saw nor heard anything remotely like a longspur. No matter. PRAIRIE FALCON was somewhat of a consolation.

I saw another PRAIRIE FALCON on Hwy 82 as I left Sonoita for the drive back to Sierra Vista.

This log is in chronological order and the most recent entries are at the bottom of the page.
The last update was on Saturday, December 30, 2006

Dec. Species Seen

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

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