Sept. Species Seen

Stuart Healy Journal - September, 2008 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 Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Today I visited Willcox to check on migration happenings. On the way home I also visited St. David Monastery. After a week during which it rained at least part of every day, today was mostly a blue sky day and much warmer that it has been for a while. I think the monsoon season may be over.

My first bird of the day at Willcox was this fearless SCALED QUAIL perched up on a fence post. However, the bird just wouldn't pose nicely while facing the sun!

Although the water level remains fairly high, there's reasonable amount of (patchy) shorebird habitat around the periphery of the main pond. The small temporal ponds also have some habitat. Shorebird diversity was decent today. The most common species were WILSON'S PHALAROPE (perhaps as many as 250) and AMERICAN AVOCET. I think WESTERN SANDPIPERS slightly outnumbered LEAST SANDPIPERS but I didn't count either of them. BAIRD'S SANDPIPERS were just about in double figures. I noted 6 LONG-BILLED DOWITCHERS, 4 RED-NECKED PHALAROPES, 3 GREATER YELLOWLEGS, 2 BLACK-NECKED STILTS and a singletons of SPOTTED SANDPIPER and MARBLED GODWIT.

No gulls but there was a brief appearance by a FORSTER'S TERN. Duck numbers and diversity were very low. I almost missed COOT on the main pond. Amazingly, just one was all that I saw (a few at the golf course ponds though). A few EARED GREBES were present (some still in breeding plumage).

I checked the golf course ponds twice in between checking the main pond. Other than 3 SAVANNAH SPARROWS and a few chattering MARSH WRENS, I failed to find any landbird migrants or returning wintering species. This was my earliest date for Savannah Sparrow at Willcox by a few days (although my sample interval is not significant with only 8 September week 1 visits over the years). Species around the ponds included adult and juvenile BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERONS, SORA, the usual EURASIAN COLLARED-DOVES and lots of YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRDS.

I missed Red-winged Blackbird but did see a small flock of BROWN-HEADED COWBIRDS that are quite scarce at Willcox. SWAINSON'S HAWK near the dump was the only buteo that I saw.

It was already warm when I reached Holy Trinity Monastery in St. David. Activity was very low and I had to work to rustle up birds (26 species eventually). ZONE-TAILED HAWK was an exception because two immature birds were making quite a racket and I could hear them from a half mile away. I was able to get images of a perched bird and a bird in flight. Immature Zone-tailed Hawks show variable white spotting on the underparts. You can see this reasonably well on the perched bird but hardly at all on the flying bird. Note also the multiple thin bands on an mostly light colored tail.

Pick of the rest were YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO (a few calls) and YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT (mostly silent). Other species included SWAINSON'S HAWK, VERMILION FLYCATCHER, BELL'S VIREO, ABERT'S TOWHEE and BLUE GROSBEAK. However, BUSHTIT was the best bird for me -- location species #160 on visit #110.

67 species recorded:
Pied-billed & Eared Grebes; Great Blue Heron, Black-crowned Night-Heron, Mallard, Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Ruddy Duck, Turkey Vulture, Swainson's & Zone-tailed Hawks; Am. Kestrel, Scaled Quail, Sora, Am. Coot, Black-necked Stilt, Am. Avocet, Killdeer, Long-billed Dowitcher, Marbled Godwit, Greater Yellowlegs, Spotted, Western, Least & Baird's Sandpipers; Wilson's & Red-necked Phalaropes; Forster's Tern, Rock Pigeon, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Mourning, White-winged & Inca Doves; Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Gila Woodpecker, Black Phoebe, Vermilion Flycatcher, Cassin's & Western Kingbirds; Horned Lark, Cliff & Barn Swallows; Bewick's & Marsh Wrens; Curve-billed Thrasher, Bushtit, Verdin, Loggerhead Shrike, Chihuahuan Raven, European Starling, House Sparrow, Bell's Vireo, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Common Yellowthroat, Yellow-breasted Chat, Abert's Towhee, Cassin's, Savannah & Song Sparrows; N. Cardinal, Black-headed & Blue Grosbeaks; Eastern Meadowlark, Yellow-headed Blackbird, Great-tailed Grackle and Brown-headed Cowbird.

Thursday, September 4, 2008
Today I decided to be a little ambitious and push the envelope on Baird's Sparrow. For a number of years now, I've tried to improve my personal early arrival date for this species. I've gradually worked back in (roughly) weekly increments starting from November; and in 2006 I established my earliest date of September 21. Published data shows them as rare beginning mid September and casual from mid August to mid September. I'm not aware of anyone who is currently doing any work on this species so early in the season (apart from yours truly), but I figured there most be some chance. Besides, what else am I going to do, chase Sinaloa Wren? I don't think so, mob birding is most definitely not my thing. As most of my regular readers will know, I've managed to wean myself off chasing rarities except when working with clients.

As is the norm for my forays into San Rafael Valley, I left home early and drove through Fort Huachuca west gate in darkness. I arrived at the west end of the valley at 6:20am, not long after the sun rose above the Huachucas. The morning began clear and very mild; and soon warmed up to the mildly uncomfortable level, especially dressed as I was to fend off flying bugs and chiggers.

I was a little dismayed to see cattle grazing in the area where I normally look for sparrows (south side of FR 58 near "Lone Tree") but they soon dispersed after I started walking around. GRASSHOPPER SPARROWS were extremely numerous throughout the valley and many were still singing. At one point I saw well into double figures perched on fence wires at the same time. I really didn't expect much reward for my efforts today but, as I'm extremely fond of saying, "if you don't buy a ticket, you won't win the raffle". I found my first BAIRD'S SPARROW foraging on fairly open ground after perhaps 30 minutes of searching and a second shortly afterwards. To say that I was pleasantly surprised would be a gross understatement. It doesn't seem that long ago (June 28) since I saw them singing on territory in North Dakota. The bird remained a little obscured in the grass but I tried for a photo to document the event. I considered doing this on the last day of August but I relented thinking it was too optimistic. Now I wish that I had tried.

A few SAVANNAH and VESPER SPARROWS were the only other wintering species present (too early for longspurs). HORNED LARKS and EASTERN MEADOWLARKS were both numerous. I missed White-tailed Kite and noted 17 species in the valley over a two hour period.

After a leisurely drive (1 hour, 11 miles) down Harshaw Canyon, I headed west to Kino Springs. Harshaw Canyon yielded over 30 species without doing any foot birding. Nothing of real note though. Highlights for me were GRAY HAWK, YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO and EASTERN BLUEBIRD.

I spent about 90 minutes at Kino Springs, mostly at the first pond. Actually, "pond" is too strong a word because there's only a miniscule amount of water at the east end. However, the habitat is extremely lush with grass, weeds, reeds, willows and cottonwoods creating a dense mass for birds to feed (and hide!). I was dressed appropriately to wade into the jungle of chiggers and with a little effort I was able to find a few migrants as well as a number of continuing breeding species and, of course, residents (duh!). 45 species in all.

RUFOUS-WINGED SPARROWS and BLUE GROSBEAKS were the only species doing any serious singing. I made an effort to rustle up CRISSAL THRASHER and VARIED BUNTING (west side of road, in the wash opposite the pond). Migrants and/or wintering species included WARBLING VIREO, several WILSON'S and NASHVILLE WARBLERS, 20+ MACGILLIVRAY'S WARBLERS, BREWER'S SPARROW and LAZULI BUNTING. The first pond is always a good place for MacGillivray's in fall. Today's showing was exceptional.

Among the other species were BLACK VULTURE, GRAY HAWK, several COMMON GROUND-DOVES, YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO, VERMILION FLYCATCHER, still-singing BELL'S VIREOS, a mostly silent YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT, ABERT'S TOWHEE, LARK SPARROW, many immature BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAKS and BULLOCK'S ORIOLE.

I looked for Tropical Kingbird without success around the club house ponds. The only ducks I noted were 2 BLACK-BELLIED WHISTLING-DUCKS. A fairly-scarce-here immature DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT was wrestling with a fish that seemed way too big for it to swallow, although it eventually succeeded.

Business note: I'll be working in Texas in April and in Colorado, North Dakota and Wyoming during my June escape from Arizona. I'm offering additional guide service in those states as Arizona business permits. If interested, contact me soon before I accept work in AZ.

Saturday, September 6, 2008
This morning I spent some time in Garden and Sawmill Canyons in the Huachucas. My main objective was to check on the continued presence of a couple of breeding species. I was also looking to potentially establish early dates for arriving winter birds and generally to see what migrants were passing through. Most mornings recently have been clear and warm and today wasn't any exception. Apart from June, this is my least favorite time of year from a weather standpoint (but the birding is good). Warm days and lingering humidity often make for uncomfortable conditions and it's usually mid October before a significant change occurs in the Sierra Vista area.

I began at the fishing ponds where I was a little less gung ho than on my visit here last week (the effects of the chiggers from that day are still causing me grief). Highlights were 4 species of hummingbirds including this immature male COSTA'S HUMMINGBIRD (only my second record in Garden Canyon; I know, I need to get out more); GRAY FLYCATCHER and MACGILLIVRAY'S WARBLER. Other species included BLACK-CHINNED, ANNA'S & RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRDS all feeding on flowers; SORA, MEXICAN JAY (not often seen this low in the canyon) and a few YELLOW WARBLERS.

To the extent that my schedule has allowed, over the years I've done a fairly thorough job of tracking the arrival dates of Buff-breasted Flycatcher. As a result, I've managed to get the early date down to March 13 (I was stuck on March 16 for years). Unfortunately, I haven't been quite as diligent working on fall departure dates. The reason is twofold. Firstly, the task of detecting birds at this season is much more difficult as their numbers and, more importantly, their vocalizations diminish. Secondly, I've already established a late date of October 7 and the psychological factor of knowing that date will be difficult to extend plays a part. Obviously, today is way too early a date to start thinking about such matters. However, I wanted to check on how many birds are still present to establish a point of reference. I also wanted to see if any Sulphur-bellied Flycatchers were still around. This is another bird that I haven't tracked very well in terms of departure date (my latest record is September 15 but they are generally tough to find in September).

It's been a few months since I visited Sawmill Canyon and I was looking forward to spending some time in one of my favorite places to bird. Upper Garden Canyon road (from above Scheelite up to the cabin) is currently in fairly bad condition and it needs to be driven with respect even in a high clearance vehicle. I strongly recommend not trying it in a small vehicle. In fact, that's not strong enough advice -- to paraphrase Nike, "just don't do it". The canyon is very lush and it's clear that lots of rain has fallen during the monsoon season; and there's still plenty of standing and running water. In fact, more than I've seen at this time of year over the past 15 years.

Although I was fairly late in arriving (after spending time in the grassland), activity around the cabin and the first 1/2 mile of the canyon was very high. Running water had attracted many birds but by 10:00am most of them had disappeared or, at least, had fallen silent. I noted BROAD-TAILED HUMMINGBIRD, a few NASHVILLE, numerous YELLOW-RUMPED, one BLACK-THROATED GRAY and a handful of GRACE'S WARBLERS; at least 10 PAINTED REDSTARTS, HEPATIC & WESTERN TANAGERS, RUFOUS-CROWNED SPARROW and BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAK.

I was hoping to find a Red-naped Sapsucker or a Ruby-crowned Kinglet, both of which I haven't seen in the canyon until the second week of September. No joy on that. Regular species included ACORN WOODPECKER, at least 4 ARIZONA WOODPECKERS, EASTERN BLUEBIRD, BROWN CREEPER, STELLER'S JAY, HUTTON'S VIREO and good numbers of YELLOW-EYED JUNCOS (some still feeding young).

I counted a minimum of 8 BUFF-BREASTED FLYCATCHERS, most of which were not very vocal or active. Patience in listening for their soft "pit" calls led to success.

In the "you never know what you might see" category, an immature male PHAINOPEPLA was a Sawmill first for me (#119). I'm guessing that the young bird had just worked its way up Garden Canyon.

As I drove back down Garden Canyon, I picked up SULPHUR-BELLIED FLYCATCHER about a mile above the yellow gate. At the upper picnic area I added BROAD-BILLED, BLUE-THROATED and MAGNIFICENT HUMMINGBIRDS and saw more of the same species that I had seen earlier.

Back in the grassland, a lone VESPER SPARROW represented my earliest fall sighting for Garden Canyon (previously September 13). This is a common wintering species that typically arrives in SE AZ in early September (my earliest record is August 20). A perched PEREGRINE FALCON was my final bird of the morning.

All in all, an enjoyable and productive "routine" morning.

Sunday, September 7, 2008
As last Sunday, I joined the regular outing at Sierra Vista EOP this morning. There was a much better showing of migrants today compared to last week. It was a completely clear morning and the temperature ranged from 68-92 degrees between 6:30am and 9:15am.

By far the best bird was a lone SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHER, seen well and heard calling several times for a positive identification. I chose to carry my scope instead of a camera otherwise I would probably have obtained a decent photo. I have one previous record at the EOP from July, 1996. I have a total of 8 definite records in SE AZ; god knows how many more that were passed off as Long-billed because they didn't call. The only other shorebird species was SPOTTED SANDPIPER (5 birds).

Herons are fairly scarce at the EOP so 2 GREAT BLUE HERONS, GREEN HERON and 5 SNOWY EGRETS along with 16 WHITE-FACED IBIS (regular) was an excellent showing.

Marsh birds included a few calling SORAS, one chattering MARSH WREN, many COMMON YELLOWTHROATS and MACGILLIVRAY'S WARBLER (a location first for me, #194).

All six regular swallows were seen with BANK SWALLOW the second most numerous. One clump of marsh alone had over 30 perched birds so it's likely that many more were present.

Raptors were not much in evidence and Swainson's was missed. A perched PEREGRINE FALCON and a juvenile NORTHERN HARRIER scattering a YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRD flock were the best birds.

GREEN-WINGED TEAL have increased in number and a lone first of season NORTHERN PINTAIL was present. CINNAMON TEAL are normally numerous but only a single bird was seen today.

Tuesday, September 9, 2008
This morning I visited upper Carr Canyon, mainly to check on Buff-breasted Flycatcher. It was another fine weather day and the views from Reef looking into the San Pedro Valley were outstanding (at least for a couple of hours). I started early and walked the Sawmill Spring trail that has hosted Aztec Thrush several times in years past. I then worked my way from Reef over to Ramsey Vista.

A stop at Reef Overlook to admire the view and enjoy the solitude also produced a handful of WHITE-THROATED SWIFTS. While common in spring and summer, I usually don't see them at this location after mid September.

Sawmill Spring Trail is a good location for BUFF-BREASTED FLYCATCHER, especially late in the season, and my leisurely walk yielded at least three birds. The upper section of the trail (where the vegetation is taller and denser) was quite active. I found a number of migrants including 6 each ORANGE-CROWNED and NASHVILLE WARBLERS. Among the other species were a few BAND-TAILED PIGEONS, BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER, too many noisy WESTERN SCRUB-JAYS, 4+ PLUMBEOUS VIREOS still singing; a couple of BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLERS, HEPATIC & WESTERN TANAGERS, several singing RUFOUS-CROWNED SPARROWS and many YELLOW-EYED JUNCOS including some well developed juveniles that had attained pale yellow eyes while retaining some breast streaking.

Birding along the Reef-Ramsey Vista road was quite spotty -- quiet for much of the route with a few areas of intense activity. One flock in particular held the usual suspects including warblers and other species already seen plus OLIVE (very numerous and vocal), 6+ HERMIT and a few GRACE'S WARBLERS; and PAINTED REDSTART. I also found ACORN & HAIRY WOODPECKERS;  4 more BUFF-BREASTED FLYCATCHERS and a small group of EASTERN BLUEBIRDS.

LESSER GOLDFINCHES, SPOTTED TOWHEES and YELLOW-EYED JUNCOS were numerous throughout. Even though I saw quite a few today (perhaps 15 total), NASHVILLE WARBLER was the least common location species.

Friday, September 12, 2008
Out today with Gordon Chastain from Indianapolis, IN. This was our fourth time birding together. Our objectives for the day were Sinaloa Wren and Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher. Gordon's previous visits have been outside the time period for the flycatcher and I was concerned that today might be too late again.

We met in Patagonia at 6:00m and began birding on Blue Haven Road not long after that. A few birders were present and the numbers increased over the next hour. The SINALOA WREN first sang around 6:40am and again about 10 minutes later. About 7:25am the bird came quite close to the road and stayed for several minutes. Although it perched up several times, it spent most of it's time well concealed in dense tangles. We both had excellent fleeting glimpses! My longest look was about 2 seconds. I'd have to say not very satisfying if it were a life bird (kind of like my Connecticut Warbler in Minnesota back in June). However, the rarity of the bird (first US record) is certainly a mitigating factor for most folks I think. It's been many years since I last saw this bird in Mexico and, although my recollections are not good, I believe the current Patagonia bird is much duller than I remember (but its song is worth the price of admission). Over the time period mentioned above, the bird ranged only about 200 yards and was southwest of where the creek comes close to the road (perhaps a half mile from the Paton's house). We stayed until 8:30am and the bird didn't vocalize again.

Etiquette note: Although the crowd was well behaved today, parking was piss poor. If you must park along Blue Haven Road, make sure you get well off to the side. I could tell that some of the natives who drove by today were not happy. Birders are often their own worst enemy. I parked in the Paton's "overflow parking" alongside the fence then walked the road.

There were plenty of birds around to look at while waiting for the wren to sing and give away its position. Notables were NORTHERN PARULA (first fall bird, foraging in mesquite) and a singing YELLOW-THROATED VIREO. The vireo would have been a state bird for me had I been able to see it. Other species along Blue Haven Road included YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO (two birds, this one got sloppy and perched in the open); NORTHERN BEARDLESS-TYRANNULET, DUSKY & DUSKY-CAPPED FLYCATCHERS, THICK-BILLED KINGBIRD, LUCY'S WARBLER, YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT, SUMMER & WESTERN TANAGERS, BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAK (abundant) and LAZULI BUNTING.

The end of the second week of September usually signals the end of Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher. To maximize our chances, my plan was to visit as many canyons as necessary in the Huachucas. However, before leaving Patagonia, I decided to check the breeding area along Harshaw Creek Road on the off chance that a bird was lingering. I'm happy to say that the little jaunt of a few miles paid off almost immediately with great views of a SULPHUR-BELLIED FLYCATCHER perched in the open in good light. Gordon is staying in Green Valley so that saved him a long drive!

We noted 20+ species in the vicinity of the flycatcher including ACORN WOODPECKERS clinging to rocks, ROCK & CANYON WRENS and a fleeting look at VARIED BUNTING. Most odd was an OSPREY flying overhead, a new bird for my Patagonia Mountains list. I guess they have to get from A to B.

We used the found time to visit Patagonia Lake State Park where we looked (unsuccessfully) for Black-capped Gnatcatcher, a bird that Gordon has only seen once. Although we didn't see or hear a gnatcatcher, a couple of hours produced a decent selection birds including GREAT EGRET, a good return of flycatchers -- NORTHERN BEARDLESS-TYRANNULET, GRAY, DUSKY, PACIFIC-SLOPE, VERMILION and ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHERS;  LUCY'S WARBLER, BOTTERI'S SPARROW (weak singing from several birds); RUFOUS-WINGED SPARROW (singing strongly) and BULLOCK'S ORIOLE.

Sunday, September 14, 2008
Sunday at Sierra Vista EOP. To paraphrase Robert Duvall; "I love the smell of sewage ponds in the morning". A few out of town visitors joined the die hard locals on a fine late summer morning -- clear sky, zero wind; 63-83 degrees from 6:30-10:00am. A few more signs of the approaching season today.

Since I lugged a camera and a scope around today, it was virtually a given that nothing really special would be seen. The least common species were an immature BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT HERON (6-5) and a GREEN-TAILED TOWHEE (8-5); both birds were seen in the interior marshes. The numbers are my sightings and years seen in the last 16. Also of note was a lone COMMON MOORHEN (21-12); a regular but infrequent visitor as the numbers indicate.

A lone GREEN HERON continues and a flock of 30 WHITE-FACED IBIS were present along with a fairly scarce GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE (32-7). Although September seems to be the best month for the goose in SE AZ, October has been better at the EOP.

Ducks diversity and numbers remain low and a lone FOS American Wigeon was the only new arrival. SPOTTED SANDPIPER and KILLDEER were the only shorebirds.

Raptors were once again in low numbers with 2 HARRIERS, 2 SWAINSON'S, 1 RED-TAIL and the almost always present PEREGRINE FALCON. Not a single Kestrel (perhaps because sparrow numbers are still low).

All the swallows were seen again. However, BANK SWALLOW was tough today after the high numbers last week.

MARSH WREN numbers have increased (0 at the beginning of the month; 1 last week; 3 or 4 heard today). SORAS are already numerous but no Virginia Rails yet.

A few SAVANNAH and VESPER SPARROWS were new arrivals. I've seen both species elsewhere already but they were right about on time for this location

Monday, September 15, 2008
Out today with Jay and Sandra Zahner from Spring Lake, NJ. When this trip was scheduled back in mid July, the plan was to look for a few target birds at Patagonia Lake. Of course, we added Sinaloa Wren and the recently arrived new kid on the block, Plain-capped Starthroat, to the mix.

We started on Blue Haven Road in Patagonia shortly after 6:00am. [By the way, Haven is apparently the correct name, not Heaven as the street sign says.] The SINALOA WREN had already been heard singing and I heard it singing and calling several times over the next hour. The location was where Sonoita Creek comes closest to the road. Compared to last Friday, vocalizations were much weaker today making the bird harder to pin down. We left at 8:00am without even a definite glimpse. As far as I'm aware, the bird was not seen all morning despite (or perhaps, because of) the presence of plenty of birders.

THICK-BILLED KINGBIRD continues. About 30 species noted along the road as we looked for the wren.

We fared much better at Patagonia Lake State Park starting with great views of BOTTERI'S and RUFOUS-WINGED SPARROWS. We saw a fairly washed out adult and a much brighter and colorful juvenile Botteri's at close range, perched in a low bush. We also had the full "bouncing ball" song rather than just chips and sputters that I had expected this late in the season. Rufous-winged was even more cooperative. A bird was singing in the open atop a mesquite as we stepped out of the vehicle. Excellent scope views, rufous wing and all. Unfortunately, Varied Bunting was a no show at a regular spot.

We moved on into the park proper and it didn't take long to locate NORTHERN BEARDLESS-TYRANNULET. Once again we had satisfying views of a (presumed) family group of three birds, foraging silently. Earlier, we heard the typical "eek" call that alerted me to their presence.

While looking at the Tyrannulets at the top of the steps, I heard a BLACK-CAPPED GNATCATCHER calling very close to our location. We gave chase but the bird headed into the first wash and gave us the slip. Although it called strongly for several minutes, we didn't manage a single glimpse. Shades of Sinaloa Wren.  While pursuing the gnatcatcher we came across a couple of juvenile VARIED BUNTINGS but never managed a satisfactory look.

Next, we made the short trip to Kino Springs where we had some quick success with VARIED BUNTING. If there was a downside it was that the bird was perched mostly in shade and only offered us a few colorful views. A calling CRISSAL THRASHER was also present.

Our final stop of the day was back in Patagonia in Marion Paton's yard. It's a rare day when VIOLET-CROWNED HUMMINGBIRD is not the star of the show at this location. Although at least 3 pristine looking individuals were almost constantly in view, on this day they were usurped by a less than spectacular PLAIN-CAPPED STARTHROAT seen shortly after noon. The bird has been present since last Friday. However, even this rarity was not the rarest SE AZ hummingbird present. Perhaps the same RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD that turned up in the Paton's yard last year has made a return visit. We didn't see the bird during our short visit (nor did we look for it) but it was seen by others.

A fairly good day at the office.

Thursday, September 18, 2008
Today I visited Sawmill Canyon to check on Buff-breasted Flycatcher. It took some strong discipline to motivate myself for the trip for a couple of reasons -- the road up to the canyon is currently in very bad condition and the ride up there is thoroughly unpleasant; and birds are generally fairly scarce in the canyon at this time of year. Weather conditions were just about ideal -- clear, calm, mild to warm.

A couple of BOTTERI'S SPARROWS along with a few BLUE GROSBEAKS were perched up and singing in lower Garden Canyon grassland.

A few of the species seen during a brief stop at the Fishing Ponds (plenty of water in both ponds) were SHARP-SHINNED HAWK, several ANNA'S & RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRDS, SORA, NASHVILLE and MACGILLIVRAY'S WARBLERS; and my first of season LINCOLN'S SPARROW.

Activity in Sawmill Canyon has dropped off considerably compared to my last visit on September 6. Water levels have also dropped quite a bit but there's still plenty of flowing water in several locations throughout the canyon. I worked diligently, listening and looking, for over an hour before locating BUFF-BREASTED FLYCATCHER. I had mentioned in my notes for the last trip how difficult it is to detect the birds at this time of year and there was certainly an element of chance about my success today. I stopped to check out an empid that turned out to be a HAMMOND'S FLYCATCHER. While viewing the bird, I looked up to see a completely silent, richly colored juvenile Buff-breasted staring right at me. It didn't vocalize until it flew away at which time I heard a second bird. So, at least two are still present. Next week it will be even tougher! The graphic below summarizes my September records since 1994.

Back in Garden Canyon, I found PAINTED REDSTARTS along the creek at the upper picnic area and MAGNIFICENT, BLACK-CHINNED, ANNA'S & RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRDS at the nearby feeders.

Habitat at Lower Garden Pond is excellent for migrants -- high water in the pond (it's not often that water runs over the spillway here), lots of dense vegetation and abundant bugs. However, I wasn't able to find very much and none could be called migrants -- CASSIN'S KINGBIRD, PLUMBEOUS VIREO, SUMMER TANAGER, RUFOUS-CROWNED SPARROW and BLUE GROSBEAK.

48 species recorded:
Turkey Vulture, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Sora, Rock Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Magnificent, Black-chinned, Anna's & Rufous Hummingbirds; Acorn Woodpecker, N. Flicker, Hammond's & Buff-breasted Flycatchers; Black Phoebe, Cassin's & Western Kingbirds; Barn Swallow, Bewick's & House Wrens; Curve-billed Thrasher, Hermit Thrush, Bridled Titmouse, White-breasted Nuthatch, Verdin, Loggerhead Shrike, Steller's & Mexican Jays; European Starling, House Sparrow, Plumbeous & Hutton's Vireos; House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, Nashville, Townsend's, Grace's & MacGillivray's Warblers; Painted Redstart, Hepatic & Summer Tanagers; Canyon Towhee, Botteri's, Rufous-crowned, Chipping & Lincoln's Sparrows; Yellow-eyed Junco, Blue Grosbeak and Great-tailed Grackle.

Monday, September 22, 2008
Out today with Albert Vrielink and Gilbert Van der Steen from Holland. We spent time in the Patagonia area looking for whatever birds and photo opportunities we could find; no specific targets, anything was good. The day began fairly mild (58 degrees) then became quite warm by midday. As the rainy season ends, June-like weather returns and today was such a day -- the temperature was in the low 90s in Sierra Vista by mid afternoon. The monsoon season is doing its best to hang on but the end is near. Most recent days have been warm with some monsoon pattern cloud build up and last night there was actually a thunderstorm (but very little rain).

BOTTERI'S SPARROW was a tough nut to crack as we got started at Patagonia Lake, but crack it we did. RUFOUS-WINGED SPARROWS were a little more forthcoming. Although the birding was generally quite slow, we eventually turned up almost 50 species.

Flycatchers were the best family on offer and we saw NORTHERN BEARDLESS-TYRANNULET (no singing, just some quiet "eek" calls to get my attention); GRAY (singing and calling), DUSKY (calling), PACIFIC-SLOPE, VERMILION, at least two calling DUSKY-CAPPED & several ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHERS; lots of CASSIN'S and a few WESTERN KINGBIRDS and BLACK and SAY'S PHOEBES.

The only migrant warblers were NASHVILLE and WILSON'S WARBLERS. Other species included a lone NORTHERN PINTAIL,  BELTED KINGFISHER (heard only); many BELL'S VIREOS still singing incessantly; numerous WESTERN and SUMMER TANAGERS and scads of brown BLUE GROSBEAKS.

Activity at Kino Springs was disappointing low. A family of BLACK-BELLIED WHISTLING-DUCKS (2 adults, 4 youngsters) at the sewage pond was the only species of note.

Although Marion Paton's yard was buzzing with hummers, I was really surprised to find that only one other person was present. It was pretty warm around midday but our timing was otherwise just about perfect. Shortly after we arrived I spotted the continuing PLAIN-CAPPED STARTHROAT sitting high in a mesquite. Unfortunately, the bird was in a very shady area and the results of my photographic efforts were quite poor. However, even in full sun this bird wouldn't make the highlight reel. Image #1 gives some idea of the long bill length and shows just a hint of the white area on the flank. Image #2 shows that the wing length is just about level with the tail. It also shows the Olive-sided Flycatcher-like breast and the square tail with extensive white tip and black spots. If there were a movie about this bird and the Sinaloa Wren, I think "Drab and Drabber" would be a good title.

In addition to the Starthroat, there was a pretty good showing of hummers including the continuing male RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD and a scarce here female BROAD-TAILED HUMMINGBIRD. I was pleased to see a full adult male RUFOUS this late in the season (a couple of immatures were also present). Of course, the spectacular VIOLET-CROWNED and colorful male BROAD-BILLED are always great too see. Numerous male ANNA'S and even more numerous BLACK-CHINNED rounded out 8 species of hummers, all of which had just about the same value as the Starthroat for Albert and Gilbert (Holland is not a hotbed of hummingbird activity!).

We didn't look for the Sinaloa Wren. However, I heard that it was well seen and photographed this morning in the "regular" spot on Blue Haven Road where Sonoita Creek comes close to the road.

Thursday, September 25, 2008
It may be fall on the calendar but the weather has other ideas (recent days have been in the 90s). I headed over to Willcox in darkness this morning to try to beat the heat. However, as things turned out, wind was the enemy! I started birding shortly after sunrise and barely managed 30 minutes before the wind became a factor. I had planned to continue on to the Chiricahuas but soon abandoned that idea. Instead, I toughed it out at Willcox for almost 5 hours, splitting my time evenly between birding and photography.

This is the time when one can hope for Dickcissels and Bobolinks but, unfortunately, the wind put paid to any real chances of  landbird migrants. In fact, I struggled to find landbirds of any ilk. Highlights were my season first AMERICAN PIPITS (5 birds) and field guide views of TREE, VIOLET-GREEN, BANK and BARN SWALLOWS lined up on a low fence wire trying to stay out of the wind. The number of VESPER and SAVANNAH SPARROWS has increased considerably compared to earlier in the month. HORNED LARKS were present but not very conspicuous. The only raptors that I noted were SWAINSON'S HAWK (seen perched and soaring) and a PEREGRINE FALCON that made an early pass over the main pond, scattering all the shorebirds.

At the golf course pond I saw 2 SNOWY EGRETS, 1 GREEN HERON and adult and juvenile BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT HERONS. A calling SORA and many YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRDS were in the marsh. I was very surprised not to see or hear a single Song Sparrow or Marsh Wren in the fairly dense marsh habitat. 5 WHITE-FACED IBIS were in the nearby temporal pond.

Ducks remain conspicuous by their absence on the main pond. SHOVELERS and RUDDY DUCKS were plentiful and I also saw a couple of PINTAILS.

Shorebird habitat continues to improve and plenty of birds were taking advantage today. BAIRD'S SANDPIPERS were quite plentiful and they seemed to prefer being on the sand feeding on the many sand flies and other stuff. I shot lots of images (mainly because they were the easiest bird to photograph); none were better than I already have. STILT SANDPIPERS were also plentiful (probably over 30) and I tried in vain to get a decent image. WILSON'S PHALAROPES numbered over 200 but I could only come up with 2 RED-NECKED PHALAROPES. Over 50 AMERICAN AVOCETS, 10+ LONG-BILLED DOWITCHERS and the usual LEAST & WESTERN SANDPIPERS rounded out the waders and sandpipers.

While I was sitting near the shoreline taking shots of shorebirds, this immature GREAT BLUE HERON appeared from nowhere and set down some distance from me. I reacted quickly which was just as well because the bird took off after just a couple of seconds when it realized I was there. I managed just one image! Notice how I have artistically blended the legend with the pile of squished cow shit.

As I mentioned, shorebird habitat is improving and the water level is quite shallow even well away from the shoreline, as evidenced by this image of the continuing AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN.

I finally bailed out around 11:00am by which time I'd only recorded 42 species. I added a few more species at Benson sewage ponds despite very little activity. The main pond had just a few ducks. The large, marshy pond had lots of Wilson's Phalaropes and they were the only shorebirds that I saw. A bright male VERMILION FLYCATCHER made the stop worthwhile.

Business note: I've added a few more client days (in North Dakota) to my June trip in 2009. Practically speaking, I now only have dates available at the back end of the trip.

52 species recorded:
Pied-billed & Eared Grebes; Am. White Pelican, Great Blue & Green Herons; Snowy Egret, Black-crowned Night-Heron, White-faced Ibis, Am. Wigeon, Mallard, N. Pintail, N. Shoveler, Ruddy Duck, Turkey Vulture, Swainson's & Red-tailed Hawks; Peregrine Falcon, Sora, Am. Coot, Am. Avocet, Killdeer, Long-billed Dowitcher, Western, Least, Baird's & Stilt Sandpipers; Wilson's & Red-necked Phalaropes; Rock Pigeon, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Mourning Dove, Gila Woodpecker, Black Phoebe, Vermilion Flycatcher, Cassin's & Western Kingbirds; Horned Lark, Tree, Violet-green, Bank & Barn Swallows; Am. Pipit, Curve-billed Thrasher, Loggerhead Shrike, European Starling, House Sparrow, House Finch, Vesper & Savannah Sparrows; Yellow-headed Blackbird, Great-tailed Grackle and Brown-headed Cowbird.

Sunday, September 28, 2008
Although several waterbird sites in the area are currently hosting plenty of birds and some interesting rarities, "lackluster" best describes the birding at Sierra Vista EOP this morning. The regular Sunday morning outing could well have a set a dubious record low species tally. Ducks, shorebirds and sparrows were all in short supply. Conditions were excellent with clear sky, zero wind and a temperature range of 60-85 degrees between 6:30and 9:15am.

The city's policy of spending taxpayers' money on gasoline and manpower to keep the fields in pristine "golf course'  condition is really paying off (so much for the native grasslands program that was supposed to be in effect here). Buoyed by their successful extirpation of Grasshopper Sparrow as a breeding species, the city is now embarking on a program to rid the area of other grassland species including those pesky wintering sparrows, meadowlarks, etc. It's certainly working and they can also boast the prettiest sewage ponds in the area. Send 'em an attaboy.

Looking on the bright side, the lone GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE continues and we saw 3 species of falcons. My first of season MERLIN (a female/immature columbarius) and several LINCOLN'S SPARROWS were my earliest EOP sightings by a couple of days.

Swallow numbers continue to diminish as September draws to a close and only four species were seen today. A lone BANK SWALLOW was my latest sighting at this location.

Monday, September 29, 2008
For the past month I've been occupied by a major software conversion project that has limited my field time. Although the work is ongoing, I've overcome most of the nasty obstacles and I hope get back to the serious business of birding again. [By the way, if anyone needs to port software written in an old version of Visual Basic to current Visual Studio versions of Visual Basic, feel free to contact me for info about my experiences.]

This morning I spent some time in Garden and Sawmill Canyons in the Huachucas. Unlike yesterday's uninspiring outing at the EOP, today was productive and enjoyable. The weather continues much the same, although I noticed that visibility was very poor as I left the mountains (distant mountain ranges were almost obscured).

Before heading up to Sawmill, I made what has become a customary stop at Garden Canyon fishing ponds where I saw the best bird of the day. While scanning through numerous immature BLUE GROSBEAKS perched on the ridge in the brushy area between the gravel pit pond and the smaller pond, I noticed a slightly smaller bird showing a yellow breast and light supercillium. After a few brain-whirring "does not compute" moments, I shouted out loud -- DICKCISSEL! The bird must have recognized its name and immediately flew straight towards me. Unfortunately, it flew right over my head and continued south across the small pond giving its loud, buzzy call. I tried to relocate it (hoping for a photo) without success.

Dickcissel is a rare fall transient through SE AZ. Although it's probably annual, it doesn't seem to get reported every year. I certainly haven't seen them very often -- 5 records including today (1 at Marana Pecan Grove, 3 at Willcox). This was a new species for me in the Huachucas. A good way to start the day.

Other migrants/wintering species at the ponds included a handful of CINNAMON TEAL, 2 out-in-the-open and easy to see SORAS, a noisy BELTED KINGFISHER (a bird that always seems to be at odds with the world); a singing CASSIN'S VIREO, 2 ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLERS, a male MACGILLIVRAY'S WARBLER, GREEN-TAILED TOWHEE, a few LINCOLN'S SPARROWS, PYRRHULOXIA and 2 BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAKS. 20 species in all.

I continued on up the diabolically rocky road to Sawmill Canyon where my main objective for the day was to see if I could confirm the continuing presence of BUFF-BREASTED FLYCATCHER. Once again, I'm happy to report that I was able to do so. Two previous visits this month (September 6 and 18) yielded 8 and 2 birds respectively. Today I found only one individual (although I didn't earnestly look for more after I found the bird). I heard the bird calling while investigating a mixed flock and hoping for migrants. Today's sighting becomes my third latest record (October 1 and 7 are the other two).

After finding the flycatcher, I turned my attention to arriving species. In particular, I was hoping to find my first of season Williamson's Sapsucker. Several regular sapwell trees are still untouched and I didn't have any success. Although I have some late September and early October records, their average arrival date in Sawmill is not until late October. By November they are fairly regular.

The canyon was generally very quiet and I missed a number of expected species. Even after two hours of wandering around I only turned up 19 species. SHARP-SHINNED HAWK (rare but regular here in September) was the least common species that I noted. Regular resident and seasonal species included ACORN & ARIZONA WOODPECKERS, a latish WESTERN WOOD-PEWEE (normally gone from Sawmill by the end of September, I have one October record); BUSHTIT, RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET, STELLER'S JAY, YELLOW-RUMPED & 2 BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLERS and YELLOW-EYED JUNCO.

Sawmill Bar-graph. To improve readability, I've made some improvements to the bar graphs for all locations for which I publish bar graphs. There are more pixels in the display; a little bit in height but mostly in width. Consequently, viewers with limited width monitors may have to scroll horizontally to see all months.

In Garden Canyon, the hummingbird feeders just above the upper picnic area are no longer operational (two on the ground, the other two empty). Guess what, I didn't see any hummers! At least one PAINTED REDSTART continues at the middle picnic area (one or two usually hang around in winter between the middle and lower areas).

Tuesday, September 30, 2008
This morning I visited the San Pedro RNCA without actually spending any time along the river. I'm told that conditions on the river and at Kingfisher Pond are still quite muddy making access difficult. However, this wasn't a problem for me since my objective was to focus on sparrows in the mesquite-grassland habitat and I probably didn't venture more than 3/4 mile from the San Pedro House. Habitat is excellent this year and, if today is anything to go by, I expect the coming winter to be full of sparrows.

I worked first on finding BOTTERI'S and CASSIN'S SPARROWS and was successful in both cases (one individual of each species seen and photographed). The Botteri's was relatively easy (I stress relatively) while Cassin's took quite a bit of time and effort walking through chiggerville. I wish now that I waited until tomorrow to do this (both species are more difficult to find in October).

BREWER'S SPARROWS were abundant throughout and the area was alive with the sound of their bubbling song. GREEN-TAILED TOWHEES (some singing) and LINCOLN'S SPARROWS were both common and easy to see. I also saw a few BLACK-THROATED and WHITE-CROWNED SPARROWS.

I was a little surprised by the number of ORANGE-CROWNED and MACGILLIVRAY'S WARBLERS that I encountered (both were certainly well into double figures). However, a lone YELLOW WARBLER in the cottonwoods next to the San Pedro House was a much better bird and represented my latest sighting on the San Pedro (elsewhere in SE AZ I have a few October records).

Yellow Warbler is one of the earliest breeding species to arrive and is also early to leave. I think the bar graph in the Tucson Audubon birdfinding guide is incorrect -- the bird is shown as common all the way through September becoming uncommon in October. The ABA birdfinding guide shows them as common through mid September becoming uncommon in mid month and then rare in October. Based on my own data (now 16 years worth), I'd say this is correct. Obviously, September is a time of transition as local breeding birds head south and birds that bred further north arrive in the area as they head south. Nevertheless, there is definitely a significant drop in mid September. This probably falls into the "who cares" category for most folks, but not for me.

Other species noted as I wandered around included a small group of WHITE-WINGED DOVES, a few ANNA'S HUMMINGBIRDS, CASSIN'S & WESTERN KINGBIRDS, a single BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER, scads of LESSER GOLDFINCHES, SUMMER TANAGER, ABERT'S TOWHEE, many BLUE GROSBEAKS (mostly immatures) and a few each PYRRHULOXIAS and LAZULI BUNTINGS.

In the category of birding irony (something I regularly encounter), a short stop at Sierra Vista EOP on the way back to town yielded my first of season BREWER'S BLACKBIRD. We specifically looked for this species on Sunday without success (I normally start seeing them in mid September).

This log is in chronological order and the most recent entries are at the bottom of the page.
The last update was on Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Sept. Species Seen

Stuart Healy Journal - September, 2008 If you use the contents of my journal for commercial purposes, please acknowledge the source to your clients - thanks.

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