Mar Species Seen

Stuart Healy Journal - March, 2011 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, March 29, 2011

Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Out again today with Michigan birder Greg Bodker looking for more target species. We visited Sulphur Springs Valley, the Chiricahua Mountains and the San Pedro River; then Carr Canyon in the evening. It was a warmer than average day for this date with afternoon temperatures in the high 70s with very little wind.

We started in Sulphur Springs Valley where we had good success with thrashers seeing 3 CRISSAL THRASHERS (2 on Coffman Road 1/2m south of Davis; and another on Lee Road); and BENDIRE'S THRASHER on Central Highway just north of Grants Road. Also on Coffman were SCALED QUAIL, CACTUS WREN, PYRRHULOXIA, a few sparrow species and many LARK BUNTINGS.

Next stop was Whitewater Draw Wildlife Area, primarily for VERMILION FLYCATCHER. Somewhat disappointingly, as yesterday, we found only a female. It appears to me that returning Vermilions (although certainly present) are running a couple of weeks behind this year in terms of number of birds normally present at the start of March. This bird is typically a no-brainer in multiple locations by late February.

Species noted at Whitewater included lots of morons standing directly under the GREAT HORNED OWLS; an immature SNOW GOOSE in with the large SANDHILL CRANE flock; a couple of AMERICAN AVOCETS, multiple GREATER YELLOWLEGS, 20+ LONG-BILLED DOWITCHERS, WILSON'S SNIPE, flyover CHESTNUT-COLLARED LONGSPUR and continuing SWAMP SPARROW.  We barely stayed a sacrilegiously short hour and no doubt missed lots of birds.

Next, we continued north to Pinery Canyon Road in the Chiricahuas noting FERRUGINOUS HAWK along Highway 191 near Zuck Farms. Although the trans-mountain road is closed to through traffic, we were able to get up into the snow zone several miles above the Pine Camp turn without much difficulty. Our primary target here was MEXICAN CHICKADEE and we found several about three miles above Pine Camp turn around noon.

While looking for the Chickadees we came across a calling NORTHERN (MOUNTAIN) PYGMY-OWL that won a long battle. The bird tooted continually for almost 30 minutes from a cross-canyon location. Unfortunately, despite much scanning with two scopes we failed to locate the bird. Normally, I would have headed over to the location but the snowy conditions dictated that common sense prevail. Besides, at this point we hadn't seen the chickadee. Other species in the snow zone included STELLER'S & MEXICAN JAYS, lots of RED-BREASTED NUTHATCHES, BROWN CREEPER and YELLOW-EYED JUNCO.

Several miles below the Pine Camp turn we set about finding ARIZONA WOODPECKER. It took a while before we heard a bird call and then we had to work a little to track it down. Others seen during the search were ACORN WOODPECKER, HAIRY WOODPECKER and RED-NAPED SAPSUCKER.

After another brief Vermilion-less stop at Whitewater Draw, we headed over to the San Pedro River (San Pedro House area). A male Vermilion had been reported during the day but we came up empty once again. However, we did see a couple of interesting birds for our trouble. First up was a GILDED FLICKER on the trail from the San Pedro House down to the river. This is a scarce species at this location - I only have 15 records in 9 of the past 19 years at this site; although they are more regular further south along the river. Also of note was an immature GRASSHOPPER SPARROW, another scarce bird at this location. The bird was in significantly less-advanced plumage than I would expect for this time of year, perhaps a late hatching bird last year. The only other birds of note from 30 noted were a couple of LAZULI BUNTINGS.

We finished up in Carr Canyon where prospects for WHISKERED SCREECH-OWL looked decidedly bleak for a while. However, a half-mile change of location did the trick. A bird was spontaneously calling as we stepped out of the vehicle and we soon enjoyed a wonderful eye level view of a very cooperative bird.

A good end to a day that produced 12 targets among 83 species, but not a male Vermilion Flycatcher! (it's that left-hand right-hand thing and Murphy is in there somewhere as well).

83 species recorded:
Snow Goose, Gadwall, Am. Wigeon, Mallard, N. Shoveler, N. Pintail, Green-winged Teal, Scaled & Gambel's Quail; N. Harrier, Red-tailed & Ferruginous Hawks; Am. Kestrel, Am. Coot, Sandhill Crane, Killdeer, Am. Avocet, Greater Yellowlegs, Least Sandpiper, Long-billed Dowitcher, Wilson's Snipe, Rock Pigeon, Eurasian Collared-Dove, White-winged & Mourning Doves; Whiskered Screech-Owl, Great Horned Owl, N. Pygmy-Owl, Acorn, Gila, Ladder-backed, Hairy & Arizona Woodpeckers; Red-naped Sapsucker, Gilded Flicker, Black & Say's Phoebes; Vermilion Flycatcher, Loggerhead Shrike, Steller's & Mexican Jays; Chihuahuan Raven, Tree Swallow, Mexican Chickadee, Bridled Titmouse, Verdin, Bushtit, Red-breasted & White-breasted Nuthatches; Brown Creeper, Cactus, Bewick's & Marsh Wrens; Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Bendire's, Curve-billed & Crissal Thrashers; Chestnut-collared Longspur, Common Yellowthroat, Canyon & Abert's Towhees; Chipping, Brewer's, Vesper, Black-throated, Savannah, Grasshopper, Song, Lincoln's, Swamp & White-crowned Sparrows; Lark Bunting, Yellow-eyed Junco, Pyrrhuloxia, Lazuli Bunting, Red-winged & Brewer's Blackbirds; Eastern & Western Meadowlarks; Great-tailed Grackle, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch and House Sparrow.

Thursday, March 3, 2011
Out today with Lyle and Jonie Paye from Oneida, WI. We birded together on one previous occasion many years ago. On another unseasonably warm day, we visited Patagonia Lake State Park, Kino Springs and Paton's Yard. We didn't look for any specific targets, just whatever came our way. Unfortunately, not much did!

Birding at Patagonia Lake State Park was about as slow as it gets. The only encouraging sign is that willows are just starting to leaf out just in time for the early migrants such as Lucy's and Yellow Warblers. We did not see the wintering Elegant Trogon (seen yesterday) and none of the many birders that we talked with had seen the bird.

Birding at the state park this winter has not been inspiring. In case you think that I'm being unduly critical, let me say that this is perhaps my favorite birding location and over the years I've seen more species of birds here than any other single location that I visit. I feel qualified enough to put the current birding into perspective.

We didn't visit Sonoita Creek natural area so were light on sparrows. As for flycatchers, I had to smile when I saw a male VERMILION FLYCATCHER after missing them in multiple locations earlier in the week. Murphy is one sadistic bastard. Apart from both Phoebes, the only other flycatchers were multiple GRAY FLYCATCHERS and a heard only DUSKY FLYCATCHER.

Two WESTERN GREBES continue and we noted a couple of immature DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANTS. Neotropic Cormorant eluded us despite scans from of the east and west ends of the lake and at Boulder Beach. This species is sometimes absent in January but is usually "guaranteed" in March! We saw 3 very colorful male CINNAMON TEAL, a lone male LESSER SCAUP, a pair of BUFFLEHEADS and 20+ COMMON MERGANSERS (no males noted). Many individuals in the wintering EARED GREBE flock are now in breeding plumage.

Less common species for this location were several COMMON GROUND DOVES, a male LAZULI BUNTING and PINE SISKINS at the campground feeders. At the other end of the spectrum, YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS have become annoyingly abundant. ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLERS are suddenly fairly common and there are certainly more present than what spent the winter. 

At Kino Springs, we didn't see the wintering Williamson's Sapsucker (still present yesterday) despite checking plenty of pine trees. A couple of very close RUFOUS-WINGED SPARROWS foraging on the ground was our best sighting among 30 common species recorded during a one hour midday visit.

Back in Patagonia, BLACK and TURKEY VULTURES at the western edge of town were signs of impending spring.

We finished up in the Paton's yard where we arrived a little too late to see a returning Violet-crowned Hummingbird. Among the new birds for the day were ANNA'S HUMMINGBIRD, EURASIAN COLLARED-DOVE, CANYON TOWHEE and PYRRHULOXIA.

Friday, March 4, 2011
Out today with Rick & Starr Stevens from Billings, MT, who I've birded with on three previous occasions. We enjoyed good birding and splendid weather in Sulphur Springs Valley and at St. David Monastery.

We started in Sulphur Springs Valley looking for thrashers and found a total of four BENDIRE'S THRASHERS -- three on Coffman Road near the property on the west side about 1/2mi from Davis Road; and another on Central Highway between Lee and Bagby Roads. We found three CRISSAL THRASHERS -- one on Bagby Road and two on the south dike at Whitewater Draw Wildlife Area.

At Whitewater, I estimated the dwindling and soon-to-be-departing flock of SANDHILL CRANES at less than 2000 birds around midday. In with the loafing flock were about 70 SNOW GEESE. The geese were close and I could see them well enough to check for Ross's Goose without success.

Also at Whitewater were a male MERLIN, SORA, VIRGINIA RAIL, a couple of AMERICAN AVOCETS, multiple GREATER YELLOWLEGS & LONG-BILLED DOWITCHERS, a small flock of LEAST SANDPIPERS, several WILSON'S SNIPE, plentiful common sparrows and a few LARK BUNTINGS.

We saw a subadult BALD EAGLE (Basic III or IV) on Coffman Road as we departed around 12:30pm. This is close to the latest date that I've seen this species in Sulphur Springs Valley (previously 3/8/01).

At St. David Monastery we first detected the continuing RUFOUS-BACKED ROBIN at 1:45pm. The bird was on the ground in the "hackberry strip" on the west side of the (dry) main pond, a few yards north of the large tree stump. Plenty of fruit remains to keep the bird around. Also feeding in this area were AMERICAN ROBIN, HERMIT THRUSH and several PHAINOPEPLAS.

For the second time this week, I encountered a GILDED FLICKER in an unexpected location (only my second sighting at the monastery). The bird was seen in the thicket northwest of the dry pond.

After viewing the Robin we spent an hour wandering around looking for whatever came our way. BREWER'S SPARROWS were absolutely abundant throughout and singing their bubbly song. Also present were SHARP-SHINNED HAWK, INCA DOVE, VERMILION FLYCATCHER,  ABERT'S TOWHEE and plenty of LARK SPARROWS and LARK BUNTINGS. A few RING-NECKED DUCKS were on the sewage pond.

[Murphy note: After struggling to find male Vermilion early in the week when out with Greg Bodker, I've now seen them at Kino Springs, Patagonia Lake and St. David.]

Friday, March 11, 2011
Temperatures have been running well above average for a week and I was happy to stay at home catching up on record keeping, email, trip planning and home projects. I also completed the journal entries for my Texas trip last month (Feb 8 through 19). See last entry for trip list.

I was back in the field today with Dean and Joan Luehrs from Sun City, AZ, who I've birded with on eight previous occasions. In addition to some low key birding in Patagonia and at Kino Springs, we looked for a couple of rarities -- Red-breasted Sapsucker (not seen ) and Palm Warbler (seen). It was another warm day that reached the 80s in Sierra Vista -- way too warm for early March.

We started by looking for the Red-breasted Sapsucker that has been regular in the cottonwoods along Pennsylvania Avenue in Patagonia (this is the road that leads to the Paton's). We were unable to locate the bird and it may have departed or relocated  since it hasn't been reported since March 3. There was plenty of activity along the stretch of road between 4th Avenue and the Paton's with the best birds being PLUMBEOUS & CASSIN'S VIREOS, LUCY'S WARBLER and a beautiful male BULLOCK'S ORIOLE. The latter three were season firsts for me as migration starts in earnest.

Among the other species present were EURASIAN COLLARED-DOVE, WHITE-WINGED & INCA DOVES, BRIDLED TITMOUSE, a small flock of CEDAR WAXWINGS, PHAINOPEPLA, ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER, PYRRHULOXIA and PINE SISKIN. There were also lots of common sparrows including a VESPER SPARROW in the Paton's front yard, a new location species for me (the 141st species that I've seen in the yard).

We only spent a short time at Patagonia Lake State Park and were unable to walk the trail at the east end of the lake. Consequently, our tally here was a rather low 30 species (mostly birds seen on the water) including GADWALL, AMERICAN WIGEON, CINNAMON TEAL, 3 male LESSER SCAUP, male and female BUFFLEHEADS, COMMON MERGANSER, EARED GREBES in breeding plumage and 2 WESTERN GREBES.

At Kino Springs we saw the continuing PALM WARBLER (eastern race) in the area of the swimming pool behind the restaurant around 11:30am and again at 12:30pm. Both times I detected the bird by first hearing its subdued chip notes and both times it stayed in the lower branches of leafless trees, particularly near mistletoe. We initially found the bird while waiting after we ordered lunch then saw it again as we left.

Additional species recorded at Kino included a lone female CANVASBACK, multiple RING-NECKED DUCKS, COOPER'S HAWK, a pair of VERMILION FLYCATCHERS at the clubhouse pond, a heard only GRAY FLYCATCHER and my second LUCY'S WARBLER of the season. After these birds arrive in early March they become common in a matter for days.

We finished up in Paton's yard where a female BLACK-CHINNED HUMMINGBIRD was another season first (and the only hummer seen during a short early afternoon visit). 

Sunday, March 13, 2011
This morning I joined the regular Sunday outing at Sierra Vista EOP for the first time in over a month. I only participated in the main portion of the walk and skipped the eastern side of the property. The species list below is just what I recorded, not the complete group list for the entire walk.

By my records, the least common species were BEWICK'S WREN (11/6, seen near the Animal Shelter close to Hwy 90) and a pair of WOOD DUCKS (15/5) visible from the viewing platform. The numbers represent my own sightings and years recorded over the past 19 years. The marsh habitat has been severely trimmed back recently making it possible to spot the ducks on this occasion and I suspect that they may be present more often than actually recorded.

Although duck numbers are down from winter highs, diversity is still very good with only Pintail not recorded among the expected species. Pintail become sporadic as March progresses and are typically not seen after early April. Less common ducks were ~10 BUFFLEHEADS (4 males) and about the same number of LESSER SCAUP. Several EARED GREBES were present.

The only shorebirds were many KILLDEER and 2 LONG-BILLED DOWITCHERS. Rails were far less conspicuous then normal (none heard) and I assume that most left due to the marsh burn. We saw just one SORA in an area that had not been trimmed. Interestingly, though, MARSH WRENS appear not to have been impacted and continue quite numerous. COMMON MOORHEN was of note since there are rarely seen at the EOP.

A lone MERLIN was the pick of very few raptors noted. The bird was seen in shadow and at a distance and I almost passed it off as a Kestrel. Fortunately, due diligence won out over laziness. Two RED-TAILED HAWKS and a handful of NORTHERN HARRIERS rounded out the raptors.

I was hoping that today would bring my first Kingbird of the season but the only flycatchers were the regular BLACK & SAY'S PHOEBES and a migrant male VERMILION FLYCATCHER.

I was a little surprised to find that the wintering ROCK WREN is still around (it's about time for this bird to move back to breeding habitat). Just when it appeared we were going to miss the bird, I heard some brief song that forced me to keep looking.

Sparrows were far less numerous than they have been throughout the winter and only SAVANNAH SPARROWS could be considered common. Wintering YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRDS numbers have also dropped dramatically but the large WESTERN MEADOWLARK flock continues.

46 species recorded at Sierra Vista EOP (7:40-10:15am 55-73 degrees; clear and calm):
Wood, Ring-necked & Ruddy Ducks; Gadwall, Am. Wigeon, Mallard, Cinnamon & Green-winged Teal; N. Shoveler, Lesser Scaup, Bufflehead, Pied-billed & Eared Grebes; N. Harrier, Red-tailed Hawk, Merlin, Sora, Common Moorhen, Am. Coot, Killdeer, Long-billed Dowitcher, Rock Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Black & Say's Phoebes; Vermilion Flycatcher, Tree Swallow, Verdin, Rock, Bewick's & Marsh Wrens; Curve-billed Thrasher, Common Yellowthroat, Canyon Towhee, Brewer's, Vesper, Black-throated, Savannah & Song Sparrows; Red-winged, Yellow-headed & Brewer's Blackbirds; Western Meadowlark, Great-tailed Grackle, House Finch and House Sparrow.

Wednesday, March 16, 2011
This morning I visited the San Pedro River (highway 90 area) to check if any early migrants were in evidence. If there were, I didn't find them. Some of you may be aware that the leaf out on the San Pedro significantly lags the leaf out along the Santa Cruz river approximately 45 (straight line) miles to the west. Consequently, the timing of migration for some species (i.e. the early migrants) is noticeably delayed on the San Pedro.

The only migrant warblers that I found were a couple of WILSON'S WARBLERS and a single ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER (a little early for this location). Neither of these species normally winter on the river so I'm pretty sure they are migrants. I didn't detect any returning Lucy's or Yellow Warblers. The only other definite migrants noted were a sub-adult BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERON (rare here) and 20+ TREE SWALLOWS at Kingfisher Pond.

Ducks seen on the pond were ~20 GADWALL, 3 CINNAMON TEAL and a few pairs each of SHOVELER and MALLARD.

I came across scads of WHITE-WINGED DOVES and at least 13 male VERMILION FLYCATCHERS on breeding territory along the cottonwood gallery between the San Pedro House trail intersection and Kingfisher Pond (plus 2-3 Vermilions at the pond). Both species were singing strongly and constantly.

Sparrows were the most conspicuous species. In order of decreasing numbers I saw WHITE-CROWNED (abundant); BREWER'S (very common, singing their bubbly song); BLACK-THROATED, SAVANNAH, LARK, VESPER, LINCOLN'S, SONG and CHIPPING. Also present in the abundant weedy habitat were GREEN-TAILED & ABERT'S TOWHEES, LARK BUNTING and PYRRHULOXIA. 47 species in all.

Thursday, March 17, 2011
This morning I visited Sawmill Canyon in the Huachuca Mountains for the first time since mid January, primarily to check on Buff-breasted Flycatcher. This species is one of my "project birds" and over the years I've tried to keep track of their arrival and departure dates to the extent that my schedule has allowed. Some years I've started early in the month and "crept up" on their arrival date. Although this method offers the best accuracy in determining arrival date, it's time consuming and tedious work that requires multiple visits before a bird is detected. This year I waited a few days beyond my earliest detected arrival date. It was a good morning for my first attempt with mild conditions and very little wind, at least through 9:15am when the wind picked up and it was already quite warm.

Today I struck gold on the first visit and found at least two singing BUFF-BREASTED FLYCATCHERS. When they first arrive, the birds can often be found in the wet, grassy area near the former cabin site. Shortly after I parked I thought I heard a bird singing despite the raucous calls of many jays. I returned to my vehicle for my camera and set about tracking the bird. While searching I could hear a second bird singing which, in a way, was bad news. Both birds moved around a lot, presumably competing, and it took me twenty minutes to catch sight of one. Although I wasn't able to get close (the bird stayed relatively high in a juniper), I managed to obtain a low quality image to document the occasion. Today's bird is earlier than my average detected arrival date by one week and four days later then the earliest date that I have detected. I wonder when these birds actually arrived?

My records since the spring of 1994 show an average arrival date of March 24 with an early date of March 13 and a few 16, 17 and 18 arrivals. Of course, my visit intervals affect the accuracy of the detected first arrival date. Nevertheless, the overall trend shows that these birds arrive much earlier than was thought for many years (take a look at the bar graphs in the older birdfinding guides). I don't know if this is due to better tracking efforts or because the birds are actually arriving earlier. Perhaps a combination of both?   

After I found the flycatcher I didn't spend much time in the canyon looking for other species. Additional highlights of interest to me were:

NORTHERN PYGMY-OWL - I came across an owl on two occasions. Both times it was calling spontaneously and both times it was immediately surrounded by STELLER'S & MEXICAN JAYS that caused it to stop calling and, eventually, to fly away. Although the owl is resident in Sawmill, my records show that spring and fall are the best times to actually detect and have a chance to see the bird (see bar graph).

WILLIAMSON'S SAPSUCKER - the Sapsucker is an uncommon winter resident in Sawmill (I've seen as many as four birds in the canyon) and is usually much harder to find in March; typically gone by mid April. I checked a couple of regularly used "sapwell trees" and found both glistening with fresh running sap. I also found one bird. Timing is everything.

BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLER - this warbler is an uncommon breeder in Sawmill, mostly in the upper part of the canyon where oaks outnumber pines. They typically don't arrive here until April and today was only my second March sighting in the canyon.

Other regulars among 20 species noted were ACORN & ARIZONA WOODPECKERS, BUSHTIT, HERMIT THRUSH, AMERICAN ROBIN, SPOTTED TOWHEE, HUTTON'S VIREO, several BROWN CREEPERS and many YELLOW-EYED JUNCOS (the latter three species were singing).

[Road note: The unpaved section of Upper Garden Canyon road (above the upper picnic area) is in "average" condition. This means that although the surface is rutted and littered with rocks in places, none are large enough to prevent all except the smallest of vehicles from traveling to Sawmill Canyon. Simply drive slowly and use common sense.]

Earlier in the morning I made a short stop at Garden Canyon Fishing Ponds. Water levels have dropped from the fall-winter high and the larger (Gravel Pit) pond now has an island again. The cottonwoods and willows here are much greener than on the San Pedro and I found YELLOW and LUCY'S WARBLERS (both singing). RED-WINGED BLACKBIRDS have returned to the smaller, marshy pond and will likely attempt to breed (some years this pond is dry and the blackbirds are absent). I also found a pair of VERMILION FLYCATCHERS.

Other species among 30 recorded were RING-NECKED & RUDDY DUCKS, PIED-BILLED GREBE, COOPER'S HAWK, ANNA'S HUMMINGBIRD guarding a regular territory; BELTED KINGFISHER, a few NORTHERN ROUGH-WINGED SWALLOWS, continuing MARSH WREN (sometimes winters here); and lots of sparrows -- mostly CHIPPING and WHITE-CROWNED with a few LINCOLN'S & VESPER.

An interesting and productive morning.

Sunday, March 20, 2011
This morning I joined the regular Sunday outing at Sierra Vista EOP. A total of 14 birders (mostly visitors) turned up on a beautiful, sunny morning that started calm and ended very windy. I once again skipped the eastern section of the walk.

Highlights for me were a lone female GREATER SCAUP, 2 RING-BILLED GULLS in flight and a MERLIN seen perched and in flight. The female scaup was seen twice, both times alone (a mixed group of 3 male and 3 female LESSER SCAUP were seen on another pond); the two gulls were seen separately (one had a dark band on the tail which makes it a first winter bird; the other was second winter I think). The Merlin was probably the same female/immature male columbarius individual that was seen last week.

Duck diversity remains about the same although we missed Wood Duck. Highlights were multiple male CINNAMON TEAL and a mixed male/female group of 14 BUFFLEHEADS. Both SORA and VIRGINIA RAIL were vocal but didn't reveal themselves. Continuing wintering species seen included AMERICAN PIPIT and WESTERN MEADOWLARK.

Not much in the way of migrants/new arrivals except for VERMILION FLYCATCHER and NORTHERN ROUGH-WINGED, TREE & BARN SWALLOWS. Some saw LUCY'S WARBLER.

Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Out today with Sandy Pepin from Albany, OR. We birded at Patagonia Lake State Park, Kino Springs and Paton's Yard and had a very birdy day tallying 94 species. Thankfully, the extremely strong winds present earlier in the week had disappeared (I was scheduled out with a client on Monday but we had to cancel due to the wind). Today was a beautiful spring day with a temperature range of 35-80 degrees and very little wind until early afternoon.

I'm short of time ahead of a trip that starts tomorrow and this very brief report doesn't do justice to the day. Highlights at Patagonia Lake included a pair of BLACK-CAPPED GNATCATCHERS in Nutting's Wash. After first hearing their calls, we followed them around for 30+ minutes as they foraged high in Hackberry trees. Eventually, we saw multiple field marks including a developing black cap on the male.

WESTERN GREBE continues but we missed the Pelicans seen by others. Other birds among 70+species noted included NORTHERN BEARDLESS-TYRANNULET, GRAY, PACIFIC-SLOPE and plenty of VERMILION FLYCATCHERS; WESTERN & CASSIN'S KINGBIRDS, ORANGE-CROWNED, LUCY'S, YELLOW, BLACK-THROATED GRAY & WILSON'S WARBLERS; PAINTED REDSTART and SWAMP & RUFOUS-WINGED SPARROWS.

The Pacific-slope was just beyond the "big willow" area after dropping down the steps on the birding trail; Painted Redstart was in the second wash; Swamp Sparrow was at the edge of the marsh near the big willow and Rufous-winged Sparrows were singing on the one way exit road.

Kino Springs was very quiet by comparison in the early afternoon with nothing of real note. Highlight in the Paton's Yard was a beautiful male LAWRENCE'S GOLDFINCH, yard bird #142 for me. I found this quite ironic in a year when few of these birds have been reported.

Thursday, March 24, 2011
California Trip Day 1: Sierra Vista - Buellton (Trip list: 42)
Today I started a trip to California where I'll be until the end of the month. I have three days of work scheduled starting on Saturday; the rest of my time will be spent looking for typical southern California specialties as well as expanding my knowledge of California birds and birding locations. I was on the road early so I could spend some time looking for Le Conte's Thrasher in Buckeye. After working on the thrasher, I drove to Buellton in Santa Barbara County with a brief stop at Lake Cachuma. It was a relatively cool day for the AZ part of drive (something I always appreciate); cool and cloudy for the most part in CA; with light rain in Ventura County and especially in Santa Barbara County.

I arrived at "the thrasher spot" (at the intersection of Baseline and Salome, west of Buckeye in Maricopa County) shortly after sunrise at 6:30am. Some ten minutes later I walked into the scrub and by 6:45am I was scoping a very cooperative LE CONTE'S THRASHER. After seeing the thrasher I set about finding Sage Sparrow and failed to detect a single bird. Perhaps they have already headed north? My time wasn't wasted though and I found a total of 5 LE CONTE'S, 2 SAGE and 1 CRISSAL THRASHER (dipped on Bendire's).

The Le Conte's were all perched on low vegetation and ranged from 100 yards to 300 yards west from Salome; and from very close to Baseline (along the line of the heavy fence posts that define Baseline on the west side of Salome) to about 300 yards south of Baseline. I saw three singles and a presumed pair. I didn't hear any singing but I did hear plenty of "(t)weep" calls from additional unseen birds on the ground. The Sage Thrashers were about 300 yards due west of the intersection while the Crissal was in the first wash close to the intersection and singing in plain view from 7:40-8:10am.

On this short visit I noted a total of 15 species including BLACK-TAILED GNATCATCHER, HORNED LARK, LUCY'S WARBLER and BREWER'S SPARROW.

Having spent less time looking for thrashers than I expected, I headed south a few miles to old US 80 and checked the section that runs east from the end of Salome almost to Hwy 85. I was successful in locating the continuing ROSEATE SPOONBILL and the bird was even close enough to the road for a documentary shot. I saw the bird on the edge of the irrigation canal? on the north side of Old 80 about 0.3 mile east of Palo Verde Road at 7:40am. I initially drove to where Old 80 dead ends without seeing the bird and found it on the way back. Perhaps it was down in the water with the egrets.

Now came that long drive. After clearing LA traffic, I encountered light rain in Ventura that became heavier beyond Santa Barbara. The scenic drive along 154 to Lake Cachuma was anything but scenic today (just heavy clouds and brake lights). I stopped at the Bradbury Dam Overlook and picked up WESTERN & CLARKS GREBES, OAK TITMOUSE, WRENTIT, CALIFORNIA THRASHER and a handful of other common species.

Not bad for a 730 miles driving day -- and there was delicious pea soup at the end (at Pea Soup Andersen's in Buellton).

Friday, March 25, 2011
California Trip Day 2: Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties (Trip list: 99; +57)
Today I birded mostly in Santa Barbara County looking for a number of typical southern CA species. I had intended to get as far north as Morro Bay in San Louis Obispo County but the birds had their own agenda. I started near Solvang then headed north to Santa Maria; west to Guadalupe; south to Lompoc; and finally south to my overnight destination of Ventura. The first couple of hours were cloudy and wet then the day became sunny without getting much higher than 60 degrees - my kind of weather. Wind was only a problem late in the day. The effects of recent rains were evident in every SB Co. location that I visited.

I began on Alisal Road south of Solvang looking for YELLOW-BILLED MAGPIE. Although this is a very reliable spot close to the southern edge of their range, today I needed to spend a little more time than usual, perhaps because of the weather. I broke up the search with a visit to Nojoqui Falls Park and eventually found a couple of birds on my return pass along the road near Alisal Ranch.

Other species in the rain included CALIFORNIA QUAIL, 20+ BAND-TAILED PIGEONS, PACIFIC-SLOPE FLYCATCHER, HUTTON'S VIREO, WESTERN BLUEBIRD, OAK TITMOUSE and numerous CALIFORNIA TOWHEES.

My next stop was at Waller Park in Santa Maria where I spent some time trying to photograph geese. The long staying SNOW & ROSS'S GEESE and CACKLING GOOSE have been joined this year by a GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE and they must be the best fed "wild" geese in the area (local families regularly feed the domestic geese here). I managed photos of all four species despite difficulties of isolating birds in the frame while following them around at feeding time! I spent way too much time on this endeavor which is why I didn't travel further north.

While in the park I looked for CHESTNUT-BACKED CHICKADEE (also near the southern edge of its range at this location). They seemed more numerous today than on past visits. Among the other species noted were RED-SHOULDERED HAWK (very noisy and hard to miss); BELTED KINGFISHER, NUTTALL'S WOODPECKER, AMERICAN CROW, WESTERN SCRUB-JAY, GOLDEN-CROWNED SPARROW and BREWER'S BLACKBIRD. 35 species in all.

My only "failure" of the morning came in Guadalupe where I was unable to locate Tricolored Blackbird.

An afternoon visit to Ocean Park west of Lompoc was less productive than I had hoped. I arrived on an incoming tide and lots of debris was being washed down the river. Species here included AVOCET, lots of BLACK-BELLIED PLOVERS, scads of SANDERLINGS; thousands of TREE SWALLOWS, a lone GLAUCOUS-WINGED GULL among the more common gull species; ROYAL TERN and WRENTIT.

In Ventura I met with my clients for the next few days and we spent a late afternoon hour casual birding at Marina Park. It was very windy here and scoping was difficult. I was shocked to see how few birds were in the channel -- no loons nor scoters. We were able to see and compare CLARK'S & WESTERN GREBES and we found a few BLACK OYSTERCATCHERS and SURFBIRDS, the latter after much scanning. Also seen were PELAGIC CORMORANT, BROWN PELICAN, plenty of WILLETS and WHIMBRELS; BLACK TURNSTONE and AMERICAN PIPIT.

A very pleasant day.

Saturday, March 26, 2011
California Trip Day 3: Ventura County (Trip list: 126; +27)
Today is the first of three days with Bill and Colleen Lindley from London, Ontario. Bill and Colleen were one of my earliest clients back in the 90s and I've since birded with Bill on six occasions in Arizona prior to this trip. He has seen lots of ABA birds and our main target this time is Island Scrub-Jay. We'll also be looking for several "non-countable" targets -- California Condor, Nutmeg Mannikin and Yellow-headed Parrot.

Our plan for today was a visit to Dough Flat viewing area at the Sespe Condor Sanctuary north of Fillmore, a plan that was quickly dashed when we found the road closed just a few miles north of Fillmore. Instead, we decided to visit nearby Lake Piru where I've seen some Condor reports in years past.

Although the road to Dough Flat is named Goodenough Road, it apparently isn't good enough at the moment. A couple of impromptu stops as we drove back into Fillmore produced a few interesting birds including a couple of WHITE-TAILED KITES and excellent views of a singing RUFOUS-CROWNED SPARROW very close to the road. In the same spot we also found RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD, CASSIN'S KINGBIRD, singing SPOTTED TOWHEE and HOODED & BULLOCK'S ORIOLES.

We arrived at Lake Piru at 9:30am. After talking with a ranger, we headed to a picnic area about 1/2 mile north of the ranger station. The picnic area is open and has an excellent view of the surrounding mountains to the north. It was initially very cloudy and cool and my expectations were not high. Early scanning produced only TURKEY VULTURES and an OSPREY then nothing new for a while. As the sun broke through a little and activity picked up, success came at 10:20am when a lone CALIFORNIA CONDOR appeared over the north ridge, soon to be joined by a second bird. By 11:00am we were even more delighted to see a total of 7 birds in view at the same time, including 5 in one group. The birds eventually soared over the picnic area low enough to see some binocular detail. I didn't fare so well photographically, just good enough for a record shot). Other raptors noted were COOPERS, RED-TAILED and RED-SHOULDERED HAWKS and an unidentified small falcon.

Among the other birds that entertained us were CALIFORNIA QUAIL, NUTTALL'S WOODPECKER, WESTERN BLUEBIRD,  PHAINOPEPLA, LARK SPARROW, BULLOCK'S ORIOLE and a pair of PURPLE FINCHES. Also at the lake were WESTERN GREBE, CASSIN'S & WESTERN KINGBIRDS; TREE & VIOLET-GREEN SWALLOWS and heard only OAK TITMOUSE & WRENTIT.

Incidentally, the road to Lake Piru north from the town of Piru is freshly paved and a much easily drive than the road to Dough Flat would have been. It's a journey of less than an hour from Ventura and might be a better place to go if you're looking for Condors. I don't have any idea of how regularly they are seen here but for me it's a 100% reliable location!

From the lake we headed over to Holiday Beach in Oxnard where 3 LONG-TAILED DUCKS have been present for some time (fairly scarce this far south). We soon found the birds despite the presence of several jet skiers. Other birds here included BLACK SCOTER, PACIFIC & COMMON LOONS; 2 SNOWY PLOVERS, LONG-BILLED CURLEW, MARBLED GODWIT and HEERMANN'S GULL.

We finished up in Camino Real Park back in Ventura where people outnumbered birds on this weekend day. We found just a few common species including ANNA'S and RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRDS and some that had to be left as RUFOUS/ALLEN'S; peek-a-boo views of several BUSHTITS; ditto HOUSE WREN; and excellent views of a foraging TOWNSEND'S WARBLER.

A very successful day with good weather that never broke 60 degrees. Dinner at Acapulco restaurant in Ventura was excellent and highly recommended.   

Sunday, March 27, 2011
California Trip Day 4: Santa Cruz Island (Trip list: 139; +13)
Day 2 with with Bill and Colleen Lindley. On a perfect weather day for a boat trip, we visited Santa Cruz Island for the primary target of our three days together -- Island Scrub-Jay. It was mostly sunny all day and the sea was fairly calm in both directions. The only minor downside was that it was quite windy on the island.

We found two pairs of ISLAND SCRUB-JAYS just a few minutes after we started birding at Prisoner's Harbor (one bird was carrying nesting material). We only heard one brief call during the entire time we spent on the island (about 4 hours) and we didn't see a bird again until it was time to leave (nor did we look for them again). We had excellent views of a very cooperative individual and noted the larger size, larger bill and deep blue color. Unfortunately, the bird was perched in a very "twiggy" location and I managed just one rather poor image for posterity (note the bands on both legs). With this sighting, I'm happy to say that I have never missed the bird on 10 trips.

Birds were generally hard to come by on the island, probably due to the wind and the fact that the creek was running very high which limited the scope of our birding. ALLEN'S HUMMINGBIRD was the pick of 35 species recorded on the island and near shore. Others included PACIFIC LOON, BRANDT'S CORMORANT, OSPREY, BALD EAGLE, SPOTTED SANDPIPER, lots of BEWICK'S WRENS singing a very different song than mainland birds (I've noticed this before); HERMIT THRUSH, ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER, SPOTTED TOWHEE and lots of LESSER GOLDFINCHES.

The Island Packers boat journey yielded less marine life and pelagic species than I've encountered in previous years in late March. A few California Sea Lions, Dolphins and a several Gray Whales (briefly) were seen. Leaving Ventura Harbor we noted a lone WANDERING TATTLER at the end of the breakwater and a ROYAL TERN. Both CLARK'S and WESTERN GREBES were common. Most of the more interesting birds were seen on the return journey and included 100s of SURF SCOTERS, 12 COMMON MURRES, plenty of PIGEON GUILLEMOTS (most between Scorpion Landing and Prisoner's Harbor); 4 XANTUS'S MURRELETS and a single CASSIN'S AUKLET.

The return journey had a bit of a hiccup to put it mildly. About 15 minutes after leaving Scorpion Landing the captain announced that we had to go back to the island. It turned out that a guy had just realized his young daughter wasn't on the boat!  That cost us at least 30 minutes and produced a fast, rough and wet ride back to the island. However, the silver lining was that we probably picked up the Xantus's due to the delay.

We pulled into our overnight destination of Irvine at 8:45pm, pretty tired after a long but successful day. 

Monday, March 28, 2011
California Trip Day 5: mostly Orange County; some LA County (Trip list: 166; +27)
Today was the third and last day with Bill and Colleen Lindley. Our targets for the day were Nutmeg Mannikin and Yellow-headed Parrot. Although both are currently not countable from an ABA listing standpoint, their status could easily change, especially in the case of the Mannikin. We started at Laguna Niguel Regional Park for the mannikin and finished in Pasadena for the parrot. In between we enjoyed some casual birding at Crystal Cove State Park and at Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve. It was a perfect weather day with plenty of sunshine after the early morning fog burned off and a temperature that reached the mid 60s.

Birding at Laguna Niguel Regional Park was very pleasant early this morning and our 2.5 hours of effort were very productive. After hearing the distinctive calls of several NUTMEG MANNIKINS on two occasions without being able to lay eyes on them, we eventually found a (presumed) pair of birds gathering nesting material. I have very little experience with this bird having only seen them a few times at central park in Huntington Beach and at the San Pedro House in AZ. They are certainly different and probably established enough in CA to be deemed "countable".

I've visited the park quite a few times in the past, primarily for Tricolored Blackbird. However, like many other locations in southern California, the blackbirds seem to have abandoned this location. Species that we enjoyed today during the mannikin search included WHITE-FACED IBIS, RED-SHOULDERED HAWK, soaring WHITE-THROATED SWIFTS, ALLEN'S HUMMINGBIRD, NUTTALL'S & DOWNY WOODPECKERS; CASSIN'S KINGBIRD, HUTTON'S & WARBLING VIREOS, multiple pairs of WESTERN BLUEBIRDS and many CEDAR WAXWINGS. 40 species in all without visiting the lake.

Our next stop was at Crystal Cove State Park on the coast just south of Newport Beach. This is a pretty reliable spot for CALIFORNIA GNATCATCHER and we saw a pair of them in the coastal scrub atop the bluffs. Also on the bluffs were ANNA'S HUMMINGBIRD, BUSHTIT, CALIFORNIA TOWHEE, many SONG SPARROWS & COMMON YELLOWTHROATS; and a very cooperative WRENTIT that provided uncharacteristically clear views. As we dropped down to the beach, we noted a COMMON RAVEN at a nest with three youngsters.

Lots of "tidepoolers" were on the beach but the birds didn't seem to mind. Among the typical species frequenting the rocks were WHIMBREL, RUDDY & BLACK TURNSTONES and 10+ SURFBIRDS. I usually see Oystercatchers here but we missed them today (perhaps the low tide was responsible). Also present were RED-BREASTED MERGANSER, EARED & WESTERN GREBES, BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER and multiple LONG-BILLED CURLEWS and MARBLED GODWITS.

Lunch at Ruby's Diner in Newport Beach was excellent. Good food in a pleasant environment. I've eaten here a few times and the burgers put places like McDonald's to shame. Give it a try after seeing your California Gnatcatcher.

Bolsa Chica Reserve north of Huntington Beach was loaded with shorebirds and we probably missed a bunch of stuff during a brief one hour visit. The numbers of birds here are always impressive. We failed to detect Least Terns so they may not have returned yet. The most enjoyable birds for for me among 30 species recorded were BRANT, OSPREY, SEMIPALMATED PLOVER, DUNLIN, calling LONG & SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHERS and CASPIAN & ELEGANT TERNS.

We finished up our birding on residential streets in Pasadena (and aroused a little interest from the locals who wanted to know what we were doing -- in a friendly way). We first noticed parrots about 45 minutes before sunset and eventually saw RED-CROWNED as well as our target YELLOW-HEADED PARROT. The difference in calls between the two species is easily discerned.

Thus came to an end three successful days with Bill and Colleen with all four targets seen (and seen well). I'd like to thank California birders Robert McNab and Mary Freeman for up to date info on the Nutmeg Mannikin and Yellow-headed Parrot.

Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Today I drove home from California despite the fact that I had planned to stay until Thursday. Although the day began well enough, a site closure frustrated me and I threw in the towel.

Last night I stayed in Bell Gardens (LA) so I could look for SPOTTED DOVE in the nearby city of Huntington Park this morning. This species has declined dramatically over the past 10 years and I wanted to check if I could reliably find the bird. A quick check of Salt Lake Park turned up a singing bird as soon as I parked and opened the door. I was on the road again in no time.

For years now I've promised myself a visit to San Jacinto Wildlife Area and never managed to get there. I was determined to give it a try on this trip, especially now that Tricolored Blackbird has become very difficult to find reliably in many southern California Locations. About 1 hour 15 minutes after leaving the Spotted Dove site I started to head north on Davis Road off Ramona Expressway, a few miles west of San Jacinto. Imagine how I felt when I found out that the road was closed due to flooding. Murphy strikes again with a vengeance!

It was also extremely foggy so I couldn't even explore the surrounding agricultural areas to look for Tricolored Blackbirds. I'd planned to head to San Diego after I was done at the wildlife area then on to the Salton Sea on Thursday. However, at this point I was so bummed out that I just decided to head home. Several mountain locations that I wanted to visit were closed and I was already more than an hour east of LA so it was really a no-brainer decision. A small group of CATTLE EGRETS seen through the gloom was the final species that I recorded.

I've added a few photos to the journal entries for March 25, 26 and 27. They can also be viewed in the trip photo list and the trip species list.

This log is in chronological order and the most recent entries are at the bottom of the page.
The last update was on Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Mar Species Seen

Stuart Healy Journal - March, 2011 If you use the contents of my journal for commercial purposes, please acknowledge the source to your clients - thanks.

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