June Species Seen

Stuart Healy Journal - June, 2007 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 Thursday, June 28, 2007

Friday, June 1, 2007
First of two days of general birding with Denise and Darrel Tank from Garden Valley, ID. Today we visited Carr and Garden Canyons in the Huachucas. I struggled with the decision on where to start -- Garden to ensure that we saw a Trogon or Carr for a wide variety of species before activity ceased in the heat of the day. I chose the latter which paid off with all the expected regulars and about 70 species in all. Unfortunately, though, a midday visit to Garden didn't produce a trogon. If anybody ever figures out how to be in two places at once, please let me know forthwith, if not sooner.

We duplicated much of what I did yesterday (slowly birding our way up Carr Canyon, but without the owling session) and saw many of the same species. However, there was one very notable addition. As we stopped at the first stream crossing to check out a COOPER'S HAWK being bugged by MEXICAN JAYS, I heard a song that I recognized immediately even though I hear it less than annually -- NORTHERN PARULA. We soon tracked the bird as it sang and foraged high in a sycamore.

In SE Arizona, Northern Parula is quite rare as a migrant and certainly no more than casual in summer (apparently with more records in recent years). Personally, this was only my fourth sighting in Arizona; previously 5/27/1996 in Ramsey Canyon; August 17, 1998 at Terry Flat in the White Mountains; and June 7, 2000 at Patagonia Roadside Rest. A good bird to get June underway.

The only other bird of note was a poorly seen RED CROSSBILL on the north trail at Reef. This is a scarce and erratic permanent resident in the Huachucas -- I've seen them in 10 of the past 15 years and in every month of the year; most often in May and June.

After working really hard for a mostly silent OLIVE WARBLER yesterday, we came across singing birds twice today and had great views with zero effort. Murphy at his finest once again. We also had a wonderful long looks at a singing and foraging RED-FACED WARBLER, ditto for PAINTED REDSTART; a couple of crowd pleasers to be sure. The only tough bird today was BUFF-BREASTED FLYCATCHER which took about 30 minutes to see reasonably well. However, Murphy struck again when we saw a roadside bird at close range and in good light as we left the canyon.

We patrolled a half mile+ up and down Garden Canyon from 11:30-1:30pm (using the upper picnic area as a base) without finding a definite Elegant Trogon. Denise may have seen one briefly but we couldn't relocate the bird. On Wednesday, I came across five of them in three different canyons without any effort. It was much earlier in the day though.

Saturday, June 2, 2007
Out again today with Denise and Darrel. We visited Patagonia Lake State Park, Kino Springs, Patagonia Roadside Rest Area, Paton's Yard and Garden Canyon. Brief highlights only today:

Patagonia Lake State Park (60 species): many NEOTROPIC CORMORANTS, 4 BLACK-BELLIED WHISTLING DUCKS, COMMON GROUND-DOVE, NORTHERN BEARDLESS-TYRANNULET, BOTTERI'S & RUFOUS-WINGED SPARROWS, YELLOW-BREASTED CHATS calling everywhere, one seen well; great looks at VARIED BUNTING and a displaying  BRONZED COWBIRD.

Kino Springs (40 species): 2 BLACK-BELLIED WHISTLING DUCKS, GRAY HAWK perched and in flight, TROPICAL KINGBIRD (at one point side by side with WESTERN KINGBIRD).

Roadside Rest: THICK-BILLED KINGBIRD (silent)

Paton's: GRAY HAWK in flight, VIOLET-CROWNED HUMMINGBIRD

As yesterday, we spent two fruitless hours in Garden Canyon looking in vain for Elegant Trogon. The only birds of note from 12:30-2:30pm were ARIZONA WOODPECKER and SULPHUR-BELLIED FLYCATCHER.

Today was my last scheduled day of work until July 1 and my annual June escape from AZ starts in a couple of days. Initially, I'll be visiting New Hampshire and Maine for a couple of weeks and then I hope to get up to Wyoming. I may or may not post while on the road. At best, updates will be sporadic.

Tuesday, June 5, 2007
New Hampshire & Maine, Day 1 (Sierra Vista to Franconia, NH): 14 species recorded
As long time readers will know, I regularly bail out of Arizona in June and head for points north, usually Wyoming. For years now, I've procrastinated about visiting New Hampshire and Maine with such excuses as the price of gas, it's a World Cup year and avoiding ABA conventions. However, this year I ran out of excuses and finally got off the dime. I normally prefer to drive and originally, I'd planned a week to drive out, two weeks in NH and ME and a week to drive back. However, I didn't want to miss out on my high country fix so I had no alternative but to fly in order to leave some time to visit Wyoming later in the month (if I have any money left).

[By the way, I'm happy to report that my recent clients, Denise and Darrel, took my advice and returned to the upper picnic area in Garden Canyon early on Sunday morning and had instant success with Elegant Trogon (a bird was calling as they stepped out of their vehicle). I met them for breakfast afterwards and was able to enjoy the moment vicariously via their photos.]

With temperatures bordering on 100 degrees even in Sierra Vista, it's not a moment too soon to be escaping from Arizona. The plan (Version 1.0) is to start in New Hampshire, move on to coastal Maine and then finish up in New Hampshire again, returning to Arizona on June 18.

My experience in both states is very limited -- I visited the White Mountains of New Hampshire about 25 years ago while vacationing in another life (I don't remember much about that trip); and I made a short winter visit to Maine in February 2000 (this I do remember, it was bloody cold!). On the current trip I have about 10 potential lifers, most of them in Maine. Some will require that I grow a pair and take several boat trips (not likely). Actually, I already have one scheduled which should (hopefully) ensure that I at least see a Puffin. Bicknell's Thrush is the main reason that I'm visiting New Hampshire (but, hey, I might just see my nemesis Black-billed Cuckoo at the back end of the trip, if not before).

Today I traveled to Franconia in the White Mountains of New Hampshire where I'll be for the next three days. This year I get to bird in two different White Mountains! Obviously, this was a travel day so I saw precious few birds. I flew Southwest from Tucson to Manchester, NH by way of Chicago. Although the flights were on time, ancillary travel, stopover time, vehicle rental pickup and a 3 hour time loss ensured that the entire day was pissed away.

I chose to stay in Franconia on the quieter, western side of the White Mountains rather than a location with more "amenities" such as Conway, a.k.a. Touristville. This is similar to the situation in the White Mountains of AZ (like comparing the horrible mess of Pinetop-Lakeside to the peace and quiet of Nutrioso). Although this will cost me a few more miles on the road each day while in the White Mountains, the tradeoff is well worth it to me.

I was able to see a few late evening birds in Franconia which, apart from a few roadside species on the drive up from Manchester, pretty much accounted for my day list (such as it is). I saw a hummingbird and thought, gee, I wonder what that could be <grin>? A pair of YELLOW-BELLIED SAPSUCKERS, apparently feeding young, were the best birds.

Wednesday, June 6, 2007
New Hampshire & Maine, Day 2 (White Mountains, NH): 51 species recorded, Trip List: 55 (+41)
I had decided to take it easy today but it didn't quite work out that way. I wanted to calibrate my ears to eastern species that I rarely hear; and to align my sense of abundance with the data published in the rather outdated (1996) "Birder's Guide to New Hampshire" (henceforth BGNH) -- one man's very thick line in a bar graph is another man's medium thick line and so on. My easy day didn't happen and I ended up hiking the Caps Ridge Trail that starts at Jefferson Notch; definitely not a walk in the park.

The White Mountains are notorious for capricious weather so when I saw the reasonably decent conditions this morning (fairly high cloud levels, sun breaks, zero wind) I decided to take my first crack at Bicknell's Thrush. Compared to the hiking that I do in Arizona (most of which is in the 5000-7500 feet level), the Caps Ridge Trail is actually low elevation. The trailhead is just over 3000 feet and Mt. Jefferson summit is a little over 5000 feet some 2.5 miles distant. Fortunately, I only needed to go 1.5 miles with an elevation gain of 1400 feet. The lower part of the trail is currently quite boggy and much of the remainder is steep and rocky with a few areas of flatter terrain to provide a little respite.

For those who know the area, I climbed to the lower cap at 4400 feet. I found two BICKNELL'S THRUSHES in the half mile stretch between the pothole rocks (~3800 feet) and the lower cap. I heard one singing and another giving the "weer" call -- I also got a brief and unsatisfactory glimpse of this individual. Consequently, I'll be trying for the bird again (hopefully, the easy way on the Mt. Washington auto road!).

BLACKPOLL WARBLERS and DARK-EYED JUNCOS were the most common birds along the trail, especially the warbler. Many heard but few seen -- the bird in the photo got sloppy. This rather curious female BLACKPOLL WARBLER may have been an identification problem for me out without the context of location and date. I wouldn't relish trying to figure it out flitting high up in a leafy tree in fall! During my Alaska trip in 2003, I saw lots of males but don't remember seeing a single female. According to Warblers, Garret & Dunn, female Blackpolls are highly variable but the brightly colored feet and head streaking seem reliable marks. Incidentally, you know that your ears still work well if you can hear Blackpoll Warblers singing. As far as I can remember, this is the first time that I've seen the slate-colored form of the junco and it was certainly a photo first (I've now managed to photo document all of the forms).

I also enjoyed BOREAL CHICKADEES (very cute but always on the move); GRAY JAYS that refused to stay back and insisted on coming too close for my lens minimum focus distance; and a SCARLET TANAGER that flew in fairly close, albeit somewhat obscured (I've seen very few of these beauties).

Other species included a wing beating RUFFED GROUSE, several YELLOW-BELLIED FLYCATCHERS, SWAINSON'S THRUSH, PURPLE FINCH, PINE SISKIN, a few EVENING GROSBEAKS, MAGNOLIA, BLACK-THROATED GREEN & PINE WARBLERS and WHITE-THROATED SPARROWS.

I ate lunch along the Zealand Road (which parallels the Zealand River) in the company of a CHESTNUT-SIDED WARBLER. I managed a couple of decent shots and couldn't decide which one I liked best, so I'm publishing both of them -- here's Chestnut-sided Warbler image #2. Among the other species were RED-EYED VIREO and OVENBIRD. I'd originally planned to hike the Zealand trail but after my exertions on the Caps Ridge trail I decided to pass.

I looped back to Franconia the long way via Whitefield and Moore Reservoir near Littleton. The area near Whitefield airport (Hazen Pond & Airport Marsh) was quite productive for low elevation species and a few waterfowl -- I always enjoy seeing HOODED MERGANSERS.

I wasn't expecting much in the way of waterfowl at Moore Reservoir so a flock of 20 BRANT were a pleasant surprise, especially since this was only the second time that I've seen the eastern race. They are noticeably paler than "Black Brant" in the west. This seems a rather late date to see the bird here but I don't have a lot of reference material with me. Certainly, BGNH doesn't not show any  records for June.

Thursday, June 7, 2007
New Hampshire & Maine, Day 3 (White Mountains, NH): 36 species recorded, Trip List: 62 (+7)
A low key day after my exertions of yesterday. I spent the morning on Mt Washington Auto Road, initially looking for Bicknell's Thrush. I then became a tourist for the rest of the day by driving to the summit of Mt. Washington and then visiting Franconia Notch State Park.

The auto road opened at 8:00am (7:30am later in the month) and I was ready and waiting, anxious to get the earliest possible start. I immediately proceeded to the 4000 feet level at mile 4 mile where it was blowing a gale. Since Mt. Washington holds the world record for wind speed (231 mph) and the year round average wind speed is 35 mph, it would be folly to expect a calm day. Otherwise, it was a pleasant morning with very few clouds. Obviously, I couldn't hear a thing so I dropped down a little to an area that was much less windy, approximately at mile 3.5. I listened intently and finally heard the song of at least two BICKNELL'S THRUSHES at 9:15am. One of the birds was very close but the vegetation is really dense with no practical access so there was little chance of seeing it unless the bird perched up (and it didn't). They sang for about 5 minutes then again briefly at 9:30am. Nothing after that through 10:00am when I headed to the summit. A few WHITE-WINGED CROSSBILLS sufficed as entertainment as did the activities of SWAINSON'S THRUSH and WHITE-THROATED SPARROW (abundant and vociferous)

I stopped again at the same location at 11:30am at which time a strong "weer" got my attention. I turned around just in time to see the bird flying away. So, after two days looking for the damn thrush, I've heard as many as 5 and had two marginal looks. However, I may just quit while I'm ahead before my trip is ruined. I certainly wouldn't spend 2 hours at home chasing a bird if I wasn't working, let alone 2 days.

I'll spare you the tourist activities except to say that there was a real icy wind blowing at the summit with beautifully formed wind driven slivers of ice.

Friday, June 8, 2007
New Hampshire & Maine, Day 4 (White Mountains & Connecticut Lakes, NH): 53 species recorded, Trip List: 80 (+18)
After mulling it over, I decided to give Bicknell's Thrush one last chance to show itself to me for more than just a fleeting moment. As my regular readers will know, I hate chasing stakeout birds but I'll work for a ridiculous length of time (years in the case of Black-billed Cuckoo) striving and failing to find regularly occurring birds in their normal location. My decision was based on a couple of factors -- 1) as the song says "I may never pass this way again" and Bicknell's range is very limited; 2) when planning this trip, I had initially allocated three days (although I really expected to be successful in two days). Unfortunately, making another attempt meant that I would have to resign myself to miss out on a trip north to the Connecticut Lakes region. However, as things turned out, I was able to make an all too brief trip.

The first tram up Cannon Mountain is at the very late hour of 9:15am which meant I had some time to go casual birding (what a concept) before "mission impossible". I decided to head northeast of Twin Mountain to spend time in lower elevation habitat near the Pondicherry refuge (which I did not visit). I saw a few interesting birds and was happy to renew my annual acquaintance with BOBOLINKS -- what a great song these birds have.

Some of the species encountered on Hwy 115A, Israel River Road, Whipple Road and Cherry Mountain Road were WILD TURKEY, WILSON'S SNIPE, ALDER FLYCATCHER, EASTERN BLUEBIRD, NASHVILLE, BLACK-AND-WHITE & BLACK-THROATED BLUE WARBLERS and SAVANNAH SPARROW.

I drove back to Franconia Notch State Park and proceeded to the tram terminal. To my dismay, the wind was quite fierce and I feared the worst. Surprisingly, however, I was told that it was calm at the top of the mountain (~4200 feet) and that's the way it turned out -- calm and warm (65 degrees initially). I had the rim trail to myself for a while and it wasn't long before I heard my first thrush. The next 30 minutes were both exhilarating and frustrating. I could hear what sounded like two birds very close but I was unable to determine where the sound was coming from. No wonder -- I eventually found two birds on the ground at very close range. Close enough, in fact, that I saw them cast their beady eyes my way a few times. Thankfully though, they got on with their business. A male was displaying to a female and copulation ensued. The whole thing went on for about 5 minutes. That was the exhilarating part. What a way to end my two days of poor views.

The frustrating part was that I couldn't get a photo. The downside of my 400mm DO lens (with or without the 1.4X converter that I use) is its minimum focusing distance of over 11 feet. I simply could not focus and I couldn't maneuver into a better position. I was literally between a rock and a hard place and could not step back. Oodles of 4 letter expletives deleted.

I continued walking around the rim trail and I estimate that I came across at least four and probably six individuals. As time went by and tourists started showing up in droves (charging around the trail and making lots of noise), I despaired of getting another photo opportunity. However, it ain't over 'til the fat lady sings and she was still on the tram. I came across a very furtive looking individual shown in this image. As you can probably tell, the bird was poised to be on its way. In fact, just microseconds after I shot this, a bunch of school kids came round the corner and that's all she wrote. I managed to shoot just one image and although it's not great, it will remind me of the last three days of effort for the rest of my life. Right now, any image of this bird seems priceless when I review what it took for me to get to this point! A few BLACKPOLL WARBLERS were easy to see in the low vegetation on the open (scenic view) side of the rim and I saw a few BOREAL CHICKADEES in the taller vegetation on the other side.

I reached the bottom of the mountain at 11:30am. Now what to do. I decided on the spur of the moment to drive north to Connecticut Lakes even though I would only have a few afternoon and evening hours to spend up there. Better than nothing. In the afternoon, I birded a few of the areas mentioned in BGNH and found a nice selection of species including my first breeding plumaged COMMON LOONS of the trip. Other species included OLIVE SIDED FLYCATCHER, numerous BLACK-THROATED BLUE WARBLERS and a cracking male BLACKBURNIAN WARBLER.

I ventured out again in the evening and managed to track down a PHILADELPHIA VIREO, an "almost nemesis bird" -- remember my escapades in North Dakota in June, 2005. It was relatively easy to pick out what is, to me, a more subdued song than the constantly singing RED-EYED VIREOS. Unfortunately, it was getting dark, the mosquitoes were in full attack mode and I could heard nearby gunfire. When a cop showed up and the mosquitoes chowed down, I called it quits. Even though I was frustrated, I had planned on getting this species in Maine tomorrow so "don't worry, be happy" I said to myself. Famous last words.

To complete a good day, I saw a BLACK BEAR walk across the road in front of me as I was driving back into Pittsburg. MOOSE? Hey, you've seen one you've seen 'em all.

Saturday, June 9, 2007
New Hampshire & Maine, Day 5 (Connecticut Lakes, NH to Machias, ME): 50 species recorded, Trip List: 87 (+7)
Although I was only able to scratch the surface of what the Connecticut Lakes region has to offer, I reluctantly had to move on early this morning (I left at 4:00am which produced a few dodgy Moose encounters). I needed to get over to the northern section of the Maine coast for a scheduled boat trip tomorrow (a 300 mile drive) and I wanted to bird in the western mountains of Maine on the way this morning. Thus, mostly a travel day but I did manage to vanquish the vireo and nip a potential nemesis bird in the bud. This was the warmest day of the trip so far; close to 80 in Bangor, over 70 even on the coast. Better than the 100 that I left in Sierra Vista don't you think.

Based on my research when planning this trip, I decided that Grafton Notch State Park along Hwy 26 (in Maine but not far from the New Hampshire border) would be a good place to find the vireo; and it was conveniently on my route east across Maine. As I dropped in elevation and left the spruce behind, the birch/aspen habitat that I was looking for appeared and I immediately starting hearing RED-EYED VIREOS. It was very early in the morning and I was able to drive along slowly, listening. Hello, that's not a Red-eyed. I stopped, got out of the car, and immediately saw a PHILADELPHIA VIREO in perfect light perched on a bare branch -- and it stayed there for over a minute! I tried to forget all those "wasted" days in North Dakota two years ago (all part of the challenge and enjoyment in the grand scheme of things). I enjoyed the moment -- a successful conclusion in a nice environment with not another soul around. Shortly after leaving the state park, the sound of BOBOLINKS only added to an already good day.

Earlier, during a pit stop in spruce habitat, a stunning male BLACKBURNIAN WARBLER foraged in the open. For me, this bird is the western counterpart of the adult male "orange-headed" Olive Warbler in terms of its beauty. Hard to beat, although BLACK-THROATED BLUE WARBLER (fairly common) is up there with them. I also found a singing and openly foraging CAPE MAY WARBLER, perhaps one of the less common regulars in this habitat.

Now it was time to pay the piper and put in some driving time. I traveled east on Highway 2 which is a sloooow route through lots of towns. When I reached Bangor, I decided to take Hwy 9 (the "upper road" that goes to Quebec) and then drop down to Machias in order to avoid the coastal route on a weekend day. That plan worked and I arrived in Machias at 3:00pm.

For the remainder of the day, I scouted the route down to Cutler harbor in preparation for tomorrow and checked a few locations here and there. Nothing of any note, just a few coastal species that were new for the trip. Puffins tomorrow.

Sunday, June 10, 2007
New Hampshire & Maine, Day 6 (Machias Seal Island, NB and Lubec, ME): 54 species recorded, Trip List: 101 (+14)
Today was the "Day of the Alcids" (no, not a science fiction movie). Like thousands before me, I took a trip out to Machias Seal Island to witness the puffin spectacle. There are a couple of US boat operators who are able to land on the island (landings are strictly controlled) and I chose Bold Coast Charter run by Captain Andrew Patterson. The boat leaves from Cutler and the journey to the island is only 10 miles as opposed to 20 miles or so with the Norton trip out of Jonesport. Some folks might think the longer trip is an advantage (more chance for seabirds), but not this landlubber.

Before heading down to Cutler, I spent an hour or so birding around Machias. Birds in town included EASTERN PHOEBE and BLUE JAY Among the species that I found on a short loop south of town were OSPREY,  BELTED KINGFISHER, ALDER FLYCATCHER, TREE SWALLOW, my first WINTER WREN of the trip and a few common warblers.

If ever there was a "Murphy gets screwed day", it was today. From what I'd read and been told, many of the trips to the island (and the island itself) are foggy affairs. Moreover, seas are rarely calm and landing via a small skiff is not always possible. Not being able to land means that photo opportunities are limited even though all species are still seen. However, today everything fell into place very nicely thank you. After a sunny start to the day in Machias, it was cloudy with plentiful sun breaks for the entire 5+ hours of the trip; and while the water wasn't "like glass", it was pretty damn close. I was very relieved.

While waiting to depart, birds seen around Cutler harbor (a delightful spot) included COMMON EIDER, BLACK GUILLEMOT, GREAT BLACK-BACKED, HERRING & LAUGHING GULLS, BLUE JAY, CEDAR WAXWING, AMERICAN GOLDFINCH and PURPLE FINCH.

As we left the harbor, an adult BALD EAGLE and a MERLIN posed nicely atop trees on a small island in the harbor. A good start to the proceedings you might say. Once out of the harbor, the journey to the island took about 45 minutes and as was pretty uneventful bird-wise -- COMMON LOON and a few BLACK GUILLEMOTS on the water, RED-BREASTED MERGANSERS in flight; and razorbills and puffins in flight as we got closer to the island.

Visitor activities on Machias Seal Island are well regimented by the Canadian authorities and it's not possible to wander around on your own. Those who wish to do so (almost all of the 14 folks on this trip, 18 max) can spend time in photo blinds. The blinds get you ridiculously close to scads of ATLANTIC PUFFINS (goofy little dudes, my only feasible target on the island) and lots of RAZORBILLS. There were also good numbers of COMMON MURRES, although they can't be seen from the blinds and we viewed them at some distance from the boat. This "crossed swords" image of a couple of Murres was surprisingly good considering the distance and a swaying boat. Note the distinctly brown, not black plumage.

At the blinds, I was close enough to use my 400mm DO lens directly without a teleconverter. In fact, I was wishing that I had brought a 300mm but my backpack was full. If there was a downside, it's that the birds were just loafing and there wasn't any to-ing and fro-ing with food. The puffin image above is the closest to a non-missionary position shot that I managed. I shot hundreds of images -- here are a couple of vertical, larger images of ATLANTIC PUFFIN and RAZORBILL (better viewed using ). A minor disappointment was the lack of any terns nesting on the island (I'll be taking a trip to Eastern Egg Rock later in the week which should rectify that problem).

During a cruise around nearby "Gull Rock" before departing, we added DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT, COMMON EIDER, GRAY SEAL and HARBOR SEAL; plus lots more puffins, razorbills and COMMON MURRE in the water.

Back in Cutler Harbor, I managed a "photo first quality" image of BLACK GUILLEMOT. Four alcid species seen and photographed on the day. Not bad for a landlubber.

An excellent outing -- I can highly recommend Capt. Patterson who runs a good trip and knows the birds. His enthusiasm after 20+ years of doing this still shines through. Much like me really (grin).

In the afternoon, I headed north to bird around the town of Lubec near the border with Canada. I was hoping to stumble into a Bay-breasted Warbler (one of only two regular North American warblers that I haven't yet seen). This trip east is the first time that I've been in their breeding territory but I've been unsuccessful so far. My truncated trip to Connecticut Lakes may cost me this bird unless I can find time to head to interior central/northern Maine or back to Connecticut Lakes; or get lucky further south.

Species in Lubec at Quoddy Head State Park included 10+ SURF and 30+ BLACK SCOTERS, lots of COMMON EIDERS, a few RED-BREASTED MERGANSERS, 6+ AMERICAN BLACK DUCKS, 3+ male WOOD DUCKS and GREATER BLACK-BACKED & RING-BILLED GULLS. Very few passerines in the forested habitat.

Monday, June 11, 2007
New Hampshire & Maine, Day 7 (Schoodic Peninsula & Mt. Desert Island, ME): 47 species recorded, Trip List: 103 (+2)
I scheduled today and tomorrow as sightseeing days in Acadia National Park. I spent this (sunny) morning on the Schoodic Peninsula section of the park which can be classed as the road less traveled. In the afternoon I joined the masses on an eventually cloudy then wet Mt. Desert Island (the first rain that I've encountered on the trip so far). My morning experience was delightful with great views and few people. The afternoon experience on the main park loop (everybody has to do it once) could best be classified as dreadful. This was a weekday in June, I wouldn't want to be here on a weekend in July or August. Hey, if I want to be stuck in traffic I can go to Phoenix.

On the Schoodic Peninsula, I stayed mostly along the coast checking a number of extremely scenic areas. The standard coastal fare at this time of year seems to be that GREAT BLACK-BACKED GULL and HERRING GULLS are guaranteed at every location with DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANTS and COMMON EIDERS at almost all locations. I saw COMMON LOON and BLACK GUILLEMOT at many locations; LAUGHING GULL is far less common and I saw ones and twos at a few stops.

I managed good images of male COMMON EIDER and female COMMON EIDER, especially the male. As the field guides are fond of stating ... and the female is somewhat duller. About 300 eiders were off Schoodic Point and almost all were males. The pair that I photographed had ventured close to shore in a rocky bay. The female was actively feeding for 10+ minutes and the male seem to be guarding her and wasn't at all concerned by my activities. Photographically, there's no substitute for being close and having good light.

Early morning landbird activity at Schoodic Point and nearby locations was excellent and with few people around I was able to pursue a few photo opportunities. Species seen included ALDER FLYCATCHER (second image) appropriately on the Alder trail; CEDAR WAXWING, GRAY CATBIRD, PURPLE FINCH, BLACK-THROATED GREEN (a fair image despite poor light); BLACKBURNIAN & BLACK-AND-WHITE WARBLERS, NORTHERN PARULA, AMERICAN REDSTART, COMMON YELLOWTHROAT (one of my favorite trip photos) and WHITE-THROATED SPARROW (very vocal throughout),

In dense Spruce habitat on the road up to Schoodic Head, I heard what might have been a Bay-breasted Warbler and decided to give chase. The habitat was dense enough that I opted not to take my camera, thus guaranteeing that I would encounter a good photo opportunity. Sure enough, during the pursuit I stumbled into a female SPRUCE GROUSE with 6-8 really tiny grouselets. No camera! I was terrified of stepping on one of the chicks and carefully gave them a wide berth as the adult made threatening runs towards me. I decided to head back to the car for the camera but, of course, by the time I returned the birds were long gone and so was the possible Bay-breasted. But wait, it gets worse. In the process of trying to relocate the grouse, I became hopelessly turned around and didn't have a clue where the car was. My exit strategy was to climb to the summit where I would surely find the road and then walk back down. This worked but I had to scramble around for some time in very tough habitat trying to protect binocular, camera and myself! I was hot, sweaty and exhausted and my pants were a new shade of green. No Bay-breasted Warbler, no Spruce Grouse photo, over an hour of lost time. What a cock up.

By the way, I later learned that Spruce Grouse females have two color morphs -- red and gray; the bird that I saw was red. Having almost no experience with this species (two sightings before today), I don't know if this is a geographic issue or due to some other factor.

In the afternoon I checked Thompson Island where I saw busloads of kids; then I drove around the main park loop along with hundreds of others. I bumped into the same family traveling in separate vehicles at multiple stops. At each stop, the "adult" males would rowdily throw a football around without regard for other people present, as the adult females chastised the kids. Not sure who were the adults and who were the kids. Why bother to come to a scenic National Park for this -- tourists at their finest. To make matters worse, there was on and off drizzle then some real rain later in the afternoon.

The only real highlight was a soaring PEREGRINE FALCON near a nest site at Precipice Rock. While driving the loop, in addition to the "standard" coastal species I also noted BROAD-WINGED HAWK, COMMON RAVEN, YELLOW, BLACK-THROATED GREEN & BLACK-AND-WHITE WARBLERS and OVENBIRD.

Outside of the park, a small group of BLACK SCOTERS were off Hadley Point.

Tuesday, June 12, 2007
New Hampshire & Maine, Day 8 (Mt. Desert Island, ME): 41 species recorded, Trip List: 103 (+0)
I spent a wet morning on the quieter western side of Mt. Desert island (but still fairly busy). I started with checks of Seawall and Ship Harbor then spent some time on Western Mountain Road. This road probably represents my best chance for Bay-breasted Warbler now that I'm so far south. Unfortunately, the road is not open yet so I had to walk (de-winterizing work was ongoing today). I walked five miles in on and off drizzle and saw exactly six species in this heavy spruce environment (and the warbler wasn't one of them!).

Best bird at Ship Harbor was a lone WHITE-WINGED CROSSBILL; other species from about 20 here included a non-breeding plumaged COMMON LOON, the usual gulls, BLACK GUILLEMOT, ALDER FLYCATCHER, GOLDEN-CROWNED KINGLET, BLACK-CAPPED CHICKADEE (no Boreal detected), BLUE JAY, NORTHERN PARULA, AMERICAN REDSTART and PINE SISKIN.

A stop near Pretty Marsh yielded lots of mosquitoes and a very uncooperative MAGNOLIA WARBLER. Although it appears that the bird is posed nicely, it was in a shadowy location quite some distance away and only sat still for a moment. Other than that, perfect!

Wednesday, June 13, 2007
New Hampshire & Maine, Day 9 (Ellsworth to Portland, ME): 57 species recorded, Trip List: 116 (+13)
Although I was certainly happy to be moving on from the human zoo of Acadia NP today, my joy was tempered by the knowledge that I was heading further south where the population and traffic density is much higher. Since I had a boat trip scheduled for this evening out of New Harbor, south of Damariscotta, I dawdled my way south. I was on the road at 4:30am and started with some casual birding in the Rockland area. I spent the bulk of my time at Pemaquid Point (a picturesque spot with far more people than birds, but a good birding spot nonetheless). After the boat trip I traveled to Portland.

Since leaving Machias, mornings along the coast have begun cloudy and drizzly with the temperature a little under 60 degrees, becoming sunny and warm (mid 70s) by late afternoon. Today was cooler, windier, a little wetter and I didn't see the sun until 8:00pm when it finally dipped beneath the clouds. Thankfully, the rain and wind quit by late morning. Noticeable today was a change in habitat type and, of course, the associated bird life. Reduced conifer density, an increase in deciduous trees and more open, scrubby habitat near the coast produced a few new trip birds.

I started birding at Weskeag Marsh near Rockland where I only scanned from the roadside. Although I brought my wellies, I didn't feel like walking into the marsh to feed the mosquitoes. Among the species that I hadn't seen further north were LITTLE BLUE HERON, 2 SNOWY EGRETS,  2 BLACK-BELLIED PLOVERS (one in spiffy breeding plumage) and CARDINAL. I checked a couple of other locations in the Rockland area and added a few more trip birds including CAROLINA WREN, VEERY and TUFTED TITMOUSE. 

The first TURKEY VULTURES of the trip came along Highway 1 near Camden.

My next destination was Pemaquid Point, a small promontory that juts out into the ocean at the end of a long peninsula; a good place from which to scan (I visited here on my winter trip in February, 2000). When I arrived at 10:30am, most of the tourists looked distinctly unhappy with the very windy (but now mostly dry) conditions. However, I was delighted because it meant I had a real chance at my two most feasible off-shore targets. Sure enough, it didn't take long to find at least 12 NORTHERN GANNETS working fairly close to the shore (close enough for a record shot, but photo opportunities were few on this gray day). This was a U.S. bird for me and one that I hadn't seriously looked for before. Great to see them plunge diving. I had to work long and hard to locate (and identify!) a lifer GREATER SHEARWATER. I'm steadily building my pelagic list from shore; every one seen potentially means one less boat journey in my future. I found perhaps half a dozen of them along with a couple of SOOTY SHEARWATERS.

After spending a couple of hours scanning, I took a lunch break then returned when the wind had dropped and the cloud level was much higher. Although the gannets were still around, there was no sign of the shearwaters. Other species at the point were COMMON LOON, DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT, lots of COMMON EIDERS, GREAT BLACK-BACKED, HERRING & LAUGHING GULLS, 20+ COMMON TERNS and a few BLACK GUILLEMOTS.

The Hardy Boat trip to Eastern Egg Rock (6 miles from New Harbor) is billed as a "Puffin Watch" and departs at 5:30pm (30 minutes each way and 30 minutes slowly circling the island); back at 7:00pm. The trip is well run and there's an informative narration by an Audubon employee. For the majority of the participants (not serious birders), I'd have to say it was successful. However, I'm glad that the puffin was not my life sighting. Compared to Machias Seal Island, there are far fewer birds here (10s instead of many hundreds) and the boat only circles the island. Consequently, views are of one or two birds at a time sitting on the water or in flight. My advice -- if you have the time, go to Machias Seal Island.

My main reason for taking this trip was to see terns, particularly ROSEATE TERN which was a lifer. The breakdown of terns nesting on the island is 80% COMMON TERNS, 10% ARCTIC and 10% ROSEATE (70 pairs). Identifying the Roseate was much easier than I had anticipated, although the constantly rolling boat certainly didn't help. They appear larger and much paler than the other two species. Identifying Common and Artic in flight with the boat movement and distance from the birds was far from easy.

Other species seen at the island were COMMON EIDER and BLACK GUILLEMOT (Razorbills don't currently nest here but they are being tempted by decoys). A few NORTHERN GANNETS flew fairly close to the boat and we saw a few on the water.

Tired, I arrived in Portland around 8:30pm at the end of very good day marred only by the knowledge that I had left my debit card in an ATM in New Harbor. There's always something.

Thursday, June 14, 2007
New Hampshire & Maine, Day 10 (Ogunquit & Biddeford Pool, ME): 42 species recorded, Trip List: 124 (+8)
Today I "mostly took a day off" for mundane matters such as catching up on email, laundry and recovering from ATM mishaps. I took a little time to go birding though, but it wasn't an enjoyable day. I remember the area south of Portland down the coast from my 2000 winter trip -- I didn't enjoy it then and I didn't enjoy it today. Wall to wall motels, restaurants and traffic in many places along highway 1. You can only avoid it by using I-95 and the god-awful toll system.-- how do people put up with this major inconvenience, not to mention the cost. But I digress, as I often do.

My plan for Saltmarsh Sparrow had always been to look for the bird when I return to New Hampshire. However, I've often heard of Scarborough Marsh (which was close) so I decided to give it a try. Mistake! From the Maine Birdfinding Guide, I identified Eastern Road as the best access. Unfortunately, since the book was written 10 years ago, this road has been closed to vehicles. Although there's foot access, I couldn't find any close parking. In fact, I found the lack of parking to be a problem everywhere that I went today. I tried to find alternative access to Scarborough Marsh without success and, as the morning wore on and traffic increased (I got stuck behind school busses, garbage trucks, etc.), I gave up. Do you sense my frustration?

Fortunately, a passenger on the boat last night had told me about a place where he had found them recently near Ogunquit (a location I had visited before). I went to the spot and soon heard NELSON'S and SALTMARSH SPARROWS singing. I returned to my vehicle to get scope, folding stool, camera, etc., and lugged them back. Would you bloody believe it, now just 50 yards away were a couple of guys; one washing a house with a noisy portable pump and the other mowing grass. I couldn't have heard a foghorn. You can't make this stuff up people.

I setup shop anyway and, even though I couldn't hear the sparrows, an hour of persistent scanning paid off with great scope views of my lifer SALTMARSH SPARROW. I've now seen all the regularly occurring North American sparrows (where's my prize?). GREEN HERON was a trip bird here as was BONAPARTE'S GULL at nearby Moody Point where I also photographed HERRING GULL.

I've now seen 7 of my 10 target species for this eastern adventure (Greater Shearwater, Northern Gannet, Roseate Tern, Atlantic Puffin, Bicknell's Thrush, Philadelphia Vireo and Saltmarsh Sparrow). The 3 remaining are Glossy Ibis, drum roll please -- BLACK-BILLED CUCKOO and Bay-breasted Warbler. Tomorrow I'll start working on the Cuckoo. I may have to kiss off the warbler unless I decide to haul ass north again.

I finished up with a quick check of Biddeford Pool, another location with poor access as I well remembered from my previous trip. By the way, Hattie's Deli changed ownership a year ago after 28 years. Based on my experience today (mushy Blueberry Pie), it may be on a downward spiral. Birds? Not many at high tide, the worst time to be there. A few NORTHERN GANNETS were off East Point.

Friday, June 15, 2007
New Hampshire & Maine, Day 11 (Southern Maine & Connecticut Lakes, NH): 62 species recorded, Trip List: 137 (+13)
I reviewed my options last night and had a change of heart about the remaining targets. Since Bay-breasted Warbler and Bicknell's Thrush were high priority birds for this trip (given that their range is far from where I live), I decided to "go the extra mile" (figuratively and literally) in order to maximize my chances for the warbler. While it would certainly be nice to see my long time nemesis Black-billed Cuckoo, this is a wide ranging species and is even possible on a future Wyoming trip. Glossy Ibis is also a wide ranging bird that I've never tried for before. There have even been a couple of records in Arizona in recent years but it's against my policy to chase those, especially considering the identification problems (hey, if Jon Dunn can misidentify them, I shouldn't have any trouble at all misidentifying them).

My plan for the day was to spend a maximum of three hours looking for the cuckoo on Kennebunk Plains, a maximum of two hours looking for the Ibis at Webhannet Marsh, then drive to the Connecticut Lakes region in northern New Hampshire to try for the warbler (giving me some late afternoon and evening time). I have two days left after today with the itinerary flexible depending on the results of today. Speaking of results, they went exactly opposite to my expectations -- I dipped on the cuckoo and ibis and found the warbler (something I really didn't expect to do until tomorrow).

It was cool (47 degrees) and foggy on the Kennebunk Plains at 5:30am; clear and 60 degrees when I left at 9:00am. I started on the northern unit (Hwy 99) where I spent 2+ hours and finished up at the southern unit on Maguire Road (1+ hours). Despite not finding Black-billed Cuckoo, I thoroughly enjoyed my time tramping around this open, scrubby area with wooded margins. Plenty of birds to look at and listen to (and to try to photograph!) and the cuckoo suddenly didn't seem important. I heard, tracked down and saw a YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO which I think is a little harder to find in Maine than Black-billed. And so it goes for me with this bird.

PRAIRIE WARBLERS (a poor image) were abundant and vocal but definitely not easy to photograph, especially in the fog. Ditto for EASTERN TOWHEE. Several flavors of sparrows were in full voice -- CHIPPING, FIELD, VESPER, SAVANNAH and GRASSHOPPER. Other field birds included KESTREL, UPLAND SANDPIPER, BOBOLINK and EASTERN MEADOWLARK (sounding quite different from Lilian's Meadowlark back home). Other species included EASTERN WOOD-PEWEE, EASTERN KINGBIRD, BROWN THRASHER (a fairly decent image) seen carrying food to young, EASTERN BLUEBIRD and SCARLET TANAGER.

Webhannet Marsh in Wells is only about 7 miles as the crow flies from Kennebunk Plains but the habitat could not be more different. I scanned the marsh from three different access points without finding an Ibis. The tide may not have been favorable since not many birds were feeding. Some of the birds seen were DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT, SNOWY EGRET, CANADA GOOSE, WILLET and OSPREY.

I left Wells, ME at 11:00am and arrived in Pittsburg, NH at 3:00pm; a drive of about 170 miles. Less than from Sierra Vista to Phoenix but much slower. The temperature in the Connecticut lakes region in mid afternoon was around 80 degrees. The only bird of note on the journey was a COMMON LOON on a nest near the town of Bryant Pond.

After checking in to my lodging in Pittsburg, I headed out to do battle with the warbler. I focused my efforts around East Inlet and Scott Bog a little north of Second Connecticut Lake. I drove slowly and listened (giving the Black Flies a target) and stopped regularly to walk and listen. I did this for hours without even hearing a false alarm, In fact, bird vocalization was minimal. After I'd been at it for about 4 hours, and just as I was about ready to call it quits until tomorrow, my persistence was rewarded. I was driving back along East Inlet access road within 100 yards of Hwy 3 when I heard the high, thin "song" that I had been listening for on and off for over a week. I leapt out of the car, ignored the cloud of Black Flies and starting scanning the tops of Spruce trees. My god, there it is in all its glory -- a male BAY-BREASTED WARBLER. Wow! Olive takes a back seat to this baby. A stunning bird that makes up for in looks what in lacks in voice.

Just a single paragraph to sum up a ton of effort (today and earlier in the trip). A well earned bird. [R.J. -- now I just need to see Connecticut and I get my "all the warblers" prize.]

I saw a number of common species during the search but a female AMERICAN WIGEON at Scott Bog took me by surprise. BGNH shows them as a spring and fall migrant with no records in June.

I finished up at First Connecticut Lake trying to photograph COMMON LOON. Unfortunately, even though a pair of them were swimming quite close to shore, the light was very poor. Loons are to Maine what Trogons are to Southeast Arizona.

Having now seen "the warbler", my plan for tomorrow is to do some casual birding/photography (and try for the Cuckoo) as I work my way south to Portsmouth; then finish up the trip on the New Hampshire seacoast on Sunday where I have a chance for the Ibis.

62 species recorded:
Common Loon, Double-crested Cormorant, Snowy Egret, Canada Goose, Am. Wigeon, Mallard, Osprey, Cooper's Hawk, Am. Kestrel, Upland Sandpiper, Willet, Herring Gull, Rock Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Eastern Wood-Pewee, Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Eastern Kingbird, Tree Swallow, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Cedar Waxwing, Winter & House Wrens; Gray Catbird, N. Mockingbird, Brown Thrasher, Eastern Bluebird, Swainson's Thrush, Am. Robin, Black-capped Chickadee, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Blue Jay, Am. Crow, House Sparrow, Red-eyed Vireo, Purple & House Finches; Am. Goldfinch, N. Parula, Yellow, Yellow-rumped, Black-throated Green, Prairie, Bay-breasted & Black-and-white Warblers; Am. Redstart, Ovenbird, Common Yellowthroat, Scarlet Tanager, Eastern Towhee, Chipping, Field, Vesper, Savannah, Grasshopper, Song & White-throated Sparrows; N. Cardinal, Bobolink, Red-winged Blackbird, Eastern Meadowlark and Common Grackle.

Saturday, June 16, 2007
New Hampshire & Maine, Day 12 (Connecticut Lakes to Portsmouth, NH): 56 species recorded, Trip List: 141 (+4)
Today I took my time driving south with a little roadside birding in northern New Hampshire and an extended stop near Ossipee Lake, southeast of the White Mountains. I was on the road at 4:30am and had to be alert for Moose for quite a while. Hitting one of those suckers can ruin your whole day (or entire trip or entire life).

For the fourth time on this trip, I passed through the town of Errol. This time, however, I headed south on highway 16 and soon encountered an area called  "13 mile Woods" (not even mentioned in BGNH but well worth a visit if you are in the area). This is a very pleasant, wide valley in which the highway parallels the Androscoggin River with plenty of Spruce habitat on both sides. This was a delightful drive in the early morning with lots of birdsong (man, do I need to brush up on eastern warbler song variations). A loudly singing NORTHERN WATERTHRUSH and a female COMMON MERGANSER (nesting along the river perhaps?) were both trip birds. Also seen in this area were a female HOODED MERGANSER, BELTED KINGFISHER, YELLOW-BELLIED FLYCATCHER and a few warbler species including BLACK-THROATED GREEN, NORTHERN PARULA and AMERICAN REDSTART; plus lots of singing WHITE-THROATED SPARROWS.

Leaving "13 mile woods" behind, the dense spruce forest diminishes and there are a series of wide areas in the river (lakes, essentially) and eventually the road passes through town of Milan and then Berlin at the northern edge of the White Mountains. Additional species along this drive included ALDER & LEAST FLYCATCHERS, SWAINSON'S & HERMIT THRUSHES, BLUE JAY and BLACK-AND-WHITE WARBLER.

I journeyed swiftly south through the eastern side of the White Mountains, passing the Mt. Washington Auto Road along the way. The increase in the number of tourists (here and further south) in the space of a week was very noticeable, even at 7:00am. Perhaps due to the later date or just the fact that it was the weekend. Anyway, I was glad to be out of there.

West of Freedom near Ossipee Lake, I spent a few hours at Trout Pond Conservation Area (name?), an extensive area of mixed habitat (pine, deciduous, scrubby stuff, ponds, etc.) that was donated to the state in perpetuity by the land owner. Black-billed Cuckoos have been reported here in multiple years but (you guessed it) I didn't see one today. The area is quite big so I could very well have been in the wrong place (as I usually am for this bird). No matter, I enjoyed wandering around just seeing whatever came my way. I needed plenty of bug juice at this location.

OVENBIRD density was very high (which should not be construed to mean that the birds are particularly stupid). Ain't English grand (I'd hate to have to learn it as a second language). EASTERN TOWHEES were also quite common. I enjoyed seeing my first ROSE-BREASTED  GROSBEAK of the trip (here's a second image). This is a much spiffier bird than its western counterpart Black-headed Grosbeak. The bird was quite confiding as it sang and fed constantly for about 15 minutes. However, whenever it perched in the open, the bird was inevitably in the shade and I had great difficulty getting a decent image. Murphy wouldn't have it any other way.

I encountered a nice variety of  birds along the various trails including RUFFED GROUSE (no chance for a photo!), LEAST FLYCATCHER, EASTERN KINGBIRD, BLUE-HEADED VIREO, RED-BREASTED & WHITE-BREASTED (trip bird) NUTHATCHES, a fairly cooperative BLACK-AND-WHITE-WARBLER (one of many), a decidedly uncooperative NASHVILLE WARBLER (also one of many), several constantly flitting AMERICAN REDSTARTS and a beautiful SCARLET TANAGER.

56 species recorded:
Double-crested Cormorant, Great Blue Heron, Canada Goose, Mallard, Hooded & Common Mergansers; Ruffed Grouse, Herring Gull, Rock Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Chimney Swift, Belted Kingfisher, Yellow-bellied, Alder & Least Flycatchers; Eastern Phoebe, Eastern Kingbird, Tree & Barn Swallows; Cedar Waxwing, Winter Wren, Gray Catbird, N. Mockingbird, Veery, Swainson's & Hermit Thrushes; Am. Robin, Black-capped Chickadee, Red-breasted & White-breasted Nuthatches; Blue Jay, Am. Crow, Common Raven, European Starling, Blue-headed & Red-eyed Vireos; House Finch, Am. Goldfinch, Nashville, Yellow, Black-throated Green & Black-and-white Warblers; N. Parula, Am. Redstart, Ovenbird, N. Waterthrush, Common Yellowthroat, Scarlet Tanager, Eastern Towhee, Chipping, Song & White-throated Sparrows; N. Cardinal, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Red-winged Blackbird and Common Grackle.

Sunday, June 17, 2007
New Hampshire & Maine, Day 13 (Seacoast & Chapman's Landing, NH): 51 species recorded, Trip List: 145 (+4)
Originally, I'd planned to look for Saltmarsh Sparrow today. However, since that was no longer necessary, I decided that a wind down day was in order to complete the trip. I spent a few hours birding along the seacoast and then tried my hand at getting a photo of the sparrow. I started south near Hampton and then worked my way back up the coast as far as Odiorne Point (unsuccessfully checking marshes along the way for Ibis); then finished up inland at Chapman's Landing. It turned out to be quite a warm day so, in retrospect, I should probably have reversed the order of things.

As I mentioned previously, I very much disliked the built up, commercialized southern Maine coast. Well, as I soon found out after leaving the nice homes and gardens inland, the southern New Hampshire coast is every bit as bad, if not worse. There's only 18 miles of seacoast and it appears that a large portion of the population wants to be here. I absolutely hated the Hampton Beach area and couldn't get away quickly enough -- busy even at 6:00am. Species noted on a brief check of a few marshes included GREAT BLUE HERON, SNOWY EGRET, WILLET and COMMON TERN.

The area around Rye was far less commercial and I spent some time there. I stopped at Eel Pond to photograph a MUTE SWAN (2 birds present, I heard them calling as I drove by). While there, I photographed this RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD caught in mid display (my favorite photo of the trip). A few days ago in northern Maine, I noted how white the edges of the epaulets of the Red-winged Blackbirds seemed (not buffy as I'm used to). To a lesser extent this is apparent on the bird in the photo. I can't say that I've noticed this before and wonder if it's an east-west thing. Other typical pond species present included GREEN HERON, SONG SPARROW and COMMON GRACKLE.

It was pretty warm by the time I reached Chapman's Landing at 11am and human activity was high (canoes and what are euphemistically referred to as personal watercraft). Bird activity seemed very low and I was wishing that I'd come here earlier. Nevertheless, I donned my wellies (hell, I'd lugged them with me) and walked out into the marsh looking for sparrows. Surprisingly, given the time of day, they were easy to find and I saw at least 6 Saltmarsh and heard just one Nelson's. While I got many good looks, photographically it was certainly a challenge because of distance and the fact that they wouldn't stay put for very long. I messed around for a couple of  hours before resigning myself to failure. Besides, the temperature at 1:00pm was close to 90 degrees and I wasn't feeling too comfortable. I started walking out of the marsh when a SALTMARSH SPARROW took pity on me and landed in the open (quite far away but at least it wasn't obscured). I struggled to get my camera operational again (it was mounted on my scope tripod) and managed a semi-decent image before the bird realized its faux pas. A nearby RED-TAILED HAWK was my first of the trip.

By the way, of all the marshes that I looked at on this trip, this area has the best access to look for sparrows. It was busy and noisy on this weekend midday but I would expect that an early morning visit would be very enjoyable (and productive).

I made the short drive to Manchester just in time to encounter a cooling rain that dropped the temperature into the mid 70s and made driving very difficult for a few minutes. Appropriately, a large sign for an insurance company proclaimed  "Two words -- Murphy's Law". My kind of sign.

51 species recorded:
Double-crested Cormorant, Great Blue & Green Herons; Snowy Egret, Mute Swan, Mallard, Common Eider, Red-tailed Hawk, Killdeer, Willet, Ring-billed, Great Black-backed, Herring & Bonaparte's Gulls; Common Tern, Rock Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Belted Kingfisher, N. Flicker, Least Flycatcher, Eastern Kingbird, Tree, N. Rough-winged & Barn Swallows; Cedar Waxwing, House Wren, Gray Catbird, N. Mockingbird, Brown Thrasher, Am. Robin, Black-capped Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, Blue Jay, Am. Crow, European Starling, House Sparrow, Warbling & Red-eyed Vireos; House Finch, Am. Goldfinch, Yellow & Black-and-white Warblers; Common Yellowthroat, Chipping, Nelson's Sharp-tailed, Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed & Song Sparrows; N. Cardinal, Red-winged Blackbird, Common Grackle and Brown-headed Cowbird.

Monday, June 18, 2007
New Hampshire & Maine, Day 14 (Manchester, NH to Sierra Vista): Trip List: 145 (+0)
All good things must come to an end and today I traveled home on Southwest from Manchester to Tucson by way of Chicago. I left Manchester at 7:00am and despite a maintenance delay, I arrived in Tucson just a few minutes tardy at 1:40pm (3+ hours scheduled layover in Chicago). At 100 plus degrees in Tucson, it was just a tad warmer <grin> than I saw for much of the trip. In fact, yesterday was the only uncomfortable day.

New in my neighborhood since I returned home is a lone EURASIAN COLLARED-DOVE augmenting the regular WHITE-WINGED & MOURNING DOVES and the not always present INCA DOVES. I haven't seen Eurasian Collared-Dove in my yard since July, 2001.

I've updated most of the daily journal entries and added links to photos that I didn't publish while on the road. I've also put together a trip summary in which I discuss various aspects of the trip. The summary also includes links to a list of all species seen and a list of links to all the bird photos.

Monday, June 25, 2007
If I were not such a pauper, I'd be wandering around the wilds of Wyoming by now. As it is, I've been suffering the triple digit heat of June with the rest of the proletariat. I sure wish that I could have made the New Hampshire and Maine trip during the last couple of weeks of June (I went early in the month to give myself the best chance to find Bicknell's Thrush). Monsoon-like cloud build up occurred on multiple days last week and offered some hope that the monsoon season would start a week or so early. Unfortunately, it now seems clear that we won't see any real rain until after the upcoming holiday. Since there's already been a (thankfully short lived) fire in Madera Canyon, let's hope the weather people are wrong.

I don't resume working with clients until July 1 and I've just about had enough of working on the computer and planning trips for next year. Consequently, I decided it was time to go birding despite the fact that daytime temperatures soon reach an uncomfortable level. Today I opted to take the road less traveled and visited the Pinaleņo Mountains in Graham County (but still in southeast Arizona). I put in a long, hot day and saw a decent selection of birds. I was up at 2:30am, started birding on the Swift Trail at 5:00am and returned home at 7:00pm (still 94 degrees in Sierra Vista) after a round trip of 300 miles. On the way home I visited Dante's Inferno (a.k.a. Willcox) and St. David Monastery. After my eastern sojourn, it sure felt reassuring to be able to instantly put a name to every sound that I heard.

I spent over 7 hours in the greatly under-birded Pinaleņos. Although I very much like the area (the poor man's White Mountains), I haven't birded here very often due to its out of the way location (less than 20 birding days in all). Apart from fire trucks and forest service vehicles, traffic was light and people few and far between. I recorded a total of 60 species and managed to obtain so-so photos of a couple of species that I haven't photographed before. I worked my way slowly from the 3200 feet level in desert scrub to the spruce zone at 9000 feet. I terminated the journey at Columbine visitor center (currently closed) and didn't continue on to Riggs Lake.

SCOTT'S ORIOLES were common up to 5000 feet. CORDILLERAN FLYCATCHERS were very common in the mid level, moister coniferous zone. Since there's more aspen here than in all the other "sky-islands", the song of WARBLING VIREO is virtually constant once in the aspen zone. After listening to lots of Swainson's and Bicknell's Thrushes recently, the haunting, flute-like song of HERMIT THRUSHES swirling around the mountain seemed like hearing the voice of an old friend. MOUNTAIN CHICKADEES were fairly common from the pine zone upwards. GOLDEN CROWNED-KINGLETS were uncommon in the heavier Spruce habitat areas and didn't kick in until  the Treasure Park area and beyond (after the blacktop ends). BROWN CREEPERS were common (I saw fledged young as well as young being fed in the nest).

I began with two stops in desert scrub that I thought would be productive. However, that certainly wasn't the case (it was already above 80 degrees at dawn). Among the few species that I noted were ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER, VERDIN, ROCK WREN, CANYON TOWHEE, BLACK-THROATED SPARROW, BLUE GROSBEAK and SCOTT'S ORIOLE.

In the 5000+ feet zone (mostly oak, juniper, some pine, chaparral), a stop at Noon Creek was productive. As on several previous visits to this location, a WESTERN SCREECH OWL responded to my attempts to rustle up some dicky birds. I stopped whistling immediately and left it in peace. I was hoping to confirm the presence of BLACK-CHINNED SPARROW and I heard one singing from chaparral at the base of a nearby hillside. I caught up with a family of BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHERS, a species that I haven't photographed before. After my efforts today, I now realize why -- they simply would not keep still! In comparison, photographing the rare Black-capped Gnatcatcher is easy. I ended up with "photo first quality" images of an adult BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER in mid song and a short-tailed immature BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER, a sloppy individual that perched in the open for an instant. Other species here included ARIZONA WOODPECKER, ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER, HUTTON'S VIREO, BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLER, RUFOUS-CROWNED SPARROW and SPOTTED TOWHEE.

At the entrance to Wet Canyon, I had my first encounters of the morning with WARBLING VIREO (foraging on the ground!) and CORDILLERAN FLYCATCHER. The flycatcher was on a nest located in the crack of a large boulder behind some vegetation growing there (as you'll see in the inset). This species is often quite creative when it comes to choosing nest sites. Other species noted were ACORN WOODPECKER, BUSHTIT and CANYON WREN.

A stop near mile 126 (heavily burned since my last visit) produced the first PYGMY NUTHATCHES of the morning (many fledged groups). In the past, I've seen Olive and Grace's Warblers here but the habitat has now changed. Also present were many BROWN CREEPERS, several PLUMBEOUS VIREOS, a singing PAINTED REDSTART and a few YELLOW-EYED JUNCOS with streaked youngsters.

A roadside stop near mile 133 at 9000 feet was as interesting for the view as it was for birds (trees on one side and an open aspect to the south with a magnificent, panoramic view of the area far below). A singing RED-FACED WARBLER prompted me to stop and it turned out that two competing males were singing. I tried unsuccessfully for a photo (the birds are probably still laughing at me). Also present in this location were RED-TAILED HAWK, TURKEY VULTURE, a few BAND-TAILED PIGEONS, HAIRY WOODPECKER, singing OLIVE, YELLOW RUMPED & GRACE'S WARBLERS and WESTERN TANAGER.

The area around Moonshine Creek was the most active high elevation area that I visited. It was here that I managed to get another "photo first quality" image of a male GOLDEN-CROWNED KINGLET. I guess there's a good reason why I haven't managed to capture one before. Like the gnatcatchers, these suckers don't sit still except in dark places! However, the best bird for me was a constantly singing RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET, seemingly defending territory. Although a common nester further north in the White Mountains, the Pinaleņos are the only place in southeastern Arizona with confirmed breeding records (according to the Arizona Breeding Bird Atlas). PINE SISKIN was another less common SE AZ breeder present in this location. Other species included CORDILLERAN FLYCATCHER, AMERICAN ROBIN, MOUNTAIN CHICKADEE, STELLER'S JAY, HOUSE WREN, RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH, WARBLING VIREO, OLIVE & YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS and WESTERN TANAGER.

While on the mountain, I was full of good intentions to visit nearby Roper Lake and Dankworth Pond. However, when I reached the flatlands it was really hot and I blew off those locations (probably missing a first state record). Instead, I visited Willcox Pond where it was only a cool 100 degrees at 3:00pm. I didn't envisage staying long but the presence of a few interesting birds kept me busy for almost two hours despite the heat.

First up was a lone CLARK'S GREBE, generally a rare visitor to SE AZ. I had to be content with an image of a moving bird shot from a fair distance (which actually turned out to be quite decent). Next bird of note was an immature DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT baking on the "beach" near the old pier. Although fairly common throughout SE AZ, I don't have too many records at Willcox.

Best birds were a (presumed) pair of NORTHERN HARRIERS. After viewing some poor flight photos, I determined that one of the birds was a sub-adult male. As far as I know, there aren't any documented nesting records for southeast Arizona (although there is one fairly recent and several old nesting records elsewhere in the state). I suppose they could be lingering birds but my gut tells me this is very unlikely at this late date (one bird I'd say maybe, two not likely). Consequently, these birds may be attempting to nest. If so, poor sods. Harrier 1: "You know, the area around Willcox pond is so cold in winter; I had no idea it would be so hot here in June". Harrier 2: "Yeah, but it's a dry heat, suck it up".

It's also possible they could be extremely early returning birds. Generally, the vast majority leave by the end of April with some birds lingering into mid May (and even into June); the early arrivals start to drift back by mid July and become common by mid September. From my own records, prior to today my latest spring record date was May 5 and my earliest fall record was July 23; no personal June records. Interestingly, there have been other sightings this June near the Chiricahuas.

On the main pond, I counted at least 20 CINNAMON TEAL, 1 LESSER SCAUP, 40+ female WILSON'S PHALAROPES, 50+AMERICAN AVOCETS and 10+ BLACK-NECKED STILTS. Also present were lots of RUDDY DUCKS, a ratty looking RING-BILLED GULL and a small (20+) flock of HORNED LARKS. 

A check of the golf course pond wasn't particularly productive. The most interesting sighting was an immature SCALED QUAIL in the marsh. A quail that thinks it's a rail, perhaps trying to stay cool. Also here were SWAINSON'S HAWK, several EURASIAN COLLARED-DOVES, WHITE-WINGED DOVE and BULLOCK'S ORIOLE.

A 30 minute stop at Holy Trinity Monastery in St. David was reasonably productive given the late hour and temperature. MISSISSIPPI KITE near the meditation garden was pick of the bunch from 30 species noted. Others included GRAY HAWK (very vocal and easy to see), GREATER ROADRUNNER, BROWN-CRESTED FLYCATCHER, BELL'S VIREO, YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT, ABERT'S TOWHEE and SUMMER TANAGER.

Thursday, June 28, 2007
Another warm day (gee, you think). The final stretch before the monsoons begin is hard to live with because increasing afternoon clouds bring humidity without the benefit of a cooling rain. This is right where we are now. Swamp coolers don't have much effect and it's pretty miserable.

This morning I visited Carr Canyon without any specific objectives. I started just before sunrise and slowly worked my way from Hwy 92 through the mesquite-grassland; briefly checked  the first, second and third stream crossings then proceeded directly to Reef where I spent the bulk of my time. I also hiked the trail from Ramsey Vista to Comfort Spring.

An hour in the lower part of the canyon was very productive and by the time that I'd reached the 3rd stream crossing I had recorded 40 species. Nothing rare or even slightly unusual, but a nice selection of the expected breeding species. The mesquite-grassland and residential section is a good place to compare common species such as SCALED & GAMBEL'S QUAIL, WESTERN & CASSIN'S KINGBIRDS and ASH-THROATED & BROWN-CRESTED FLYCATCHERS. I was able to enjoy a number of denizens of this habitat zone without any effort at all. I watched a GREATER ROADRUNNER taking its morning stroll along the yellow center line of the blacktop; a CURVE-BILLED THRASHER on a mission zipped across the road in front of my vehicle with a loud "whit-wheet"; a CACTUS WREN scolded as I drove by, BOTTERI'S SPARROW and PYRRHULOXIA sang from the wires. Singing and/or calling out of sight were PHAINOPEPLA, VERDIN and RUFOUS-CROWNED SPARROW. I was surprised not to detect Blue Grosbeak.

Among the species in the wooded section between the first and third stream crossings were a family of COOPER'S HAWKS kicking up a fuss, DUSKY-CAPPED & squawking SULPHUR-BELLIED FLYCATCHERS, a low WHITE-THROATED SWIFT (there were plenty more three thousand feet higher up) and a singing SCOTT'S ORIOLE.

The road up to Reef beyond the third stream crossing is not usually very productive so I didn't linger here, although I did add HUTTON'S VIREO, BRIDLED TITMOUSE, MEXICAN JAY, PAINTED REDSTART and the first of many SPOTTED TOWHEES.

I stopped at the overlook hoping for a Zone-tailed Hawk but had to settle for singing ROCK (seen) and CANYON WRENS.

It was a little cloudy and humid as I wandered the trails around Reef and bird activity seemed very subdued. I came upon a roost of vultures and stopped to try for a photograph. I settled on this TURKEY VULTURE atop a snag at eye level. Whenever the sun poked through the clouds, the bird would spread its wings and I managed to capture this for an interesting image. As soon as the sun disappeared, the bird would lower its wings. This happened multiple times like clockwork. A remote control that works from 93 million miles away.

Throughout the morning I chipped away and eventually recorded most of the "desirables" as well as some "also-rans". I came across several small groups of BAND-TAILED PIGEONS (none greater than six), 2 ARIZONA WOODPECKERS, 2 quietly singing GREATER PEWEES, 6+ calling BUFF-BREASTED FLYCATCHERS (very little singing), a few perched VIOLET-GREEN SWALLOWS, singing GRACE'S, OLIVE & RED-FACED WARBLERS (the latter two seen well), a skulking VIRGINIA'S WARBLER (one of these days I'll get a photo of this species, or maybe I won't), many WESTERN TANAGERS and a handful of YELLOW-EYED JUNCOS. I missed Hepatic Tanager.

My time on the Comfort Spring trail (about 2 hours) wasn't very productive and it was a bit of a slog back to Ramsey Vista in the heat. I was hoping for hummingbirds in a natural environment but came up empty. Despite lots of flowering Penstemmon and other food sources, I didn't see or hear a single hummingbird. I recorded 20 species but only CORDILLERAN FLYCATCHER, HERMIT THRUSH and STELLER'S JAY were new for the morning.

Thunder is rolling around this evening. One can always hope that a little rain will fall.

This log is in chronological order and the most recent entries are at the bottom of the page.
The last update was on Thursday, June 28, 2007

June Species Seen

Stuart Healy Journal - June, 2007 If you use the contents of my journal for commercial purposes, please acknowledge the source to your clients - thanks.

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