Species List

Stuart Healy Journal - April, 2002 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, April 30, 2002.

Monday, April 1, 2002    Previous Day    Next Day
Out today with Don and Michelle Darnell from Evanston, IL. On a slightly cooler day (low 90s in the afternoon) we birded at Patagonia Lake State Park, Patagonia Roadside Rest and the Paton's yard.

Birding at Patagonia Lake was very good this morning and we recorded 69 species in a little over 4 hours. In fact, one might say it was "raptorous" since we saw OSPREY, NORTHERN HARRIER, COOPER'S HAWK, GRAY HAWK and ZONE-TAILED HAWK. The park is not noted for raptors so this was a particularly good day. Ironically, we didn't see a Red-Tail here.

Warblers were represented by tons of LUCY'S, YELLOW and YELLOW RUMPED, a couple of ORANGE-CROWNED drinking from the creek, single NASHVILLE and BLACK-THROATED GRAY and COMMON YELLOWTHROAT. Flycatchers checked in with N. BEARDLESS-TYRANNULET investigating nest locations, a single HAMMOND'S, a couple of DUSKY and a calling ASH-THROATED plus the usual scads of VERMILIONS.

Among the birds on and around the water were the usual NEOTROPIC CORMORANTS, a small group of EARED GREBES, CINNAMON TEAL, REDHEAD, LESSER SCAUP, BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERON, LEAST BITTERN and RING-BILLED GULL.

Other species included 4 species of swallows, BLACK-TAILED GNATCATCHER, abundant PHAINOPEPLAS, BELL'S & PLUMBEOUS VIREOS, a flock of 20 or so AMERICAN PIPITS and several ABERT'S TOWHEES.

A stop at the Roadside Rest produced the expected WHITE-THROATED SWIFTS -- many of them were soaring over the cliffs. Others species seen here during a short visit were CASSIN'S KINGBIRD, ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER and a soaring GRAY HAWK.

The Paton's Yard was very quiet in the early afternoon and the only hummers we saw during our 45 minute stay were BROAD-BILLED, BLACK-CHINNED and a female BROAD-TAILED HUMMINGBIRD. Broad-tails are scarce here and I only have 6 previous records. A couple of male LAZULI BUNTINGS continue. 

Day list (83 species recorded):
Pied-billed & Eared Grebes, Neotropic Cormorant, Ruddy Duck, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, Cinnamon Teal, Redhead, Ring-necked Duck, Lesser Scaup, Great Blue Heron, Black-crowned Night-Heron, Least Bittern, Turkey Vulture, Osprey, N. Harrier, Cooper's, Gray, Zone-tailed & Red-tailed Hawks, Gambel's Quail, Am. Coot, Ring-billed Gull, Rock, Mourning, White-winged & Inca Doves, White-throated Swift, Broad-billed, Black-chinned & Broad-tailed Hummingbirds, Acorn, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, N. Beardless-Tyrannulet, Black Phoebe, Hammond's, Dusky, Vermilion & Ash-throated Flycatchers, Cassin's Kingbird, Chihuahuan & Common Ravens, Bell's & Plumbeous Vireos, Loggerhead Shrike, Phainopepla, N. Mockingbird, Curve-billed Thrasher, White-breasted Nuthatch, Cactus &  Bewick's Wrens, Verdin, Black-tailed Gnatcatcher, Tree, Violet-green, N. Rough-winged & Barn Swallows, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Bridled Titmouse, House Sparrow, Am. Pipit, Lesser Goldfinch, House Finch, Orange-crowned, Nashville, Lucy's, Yellow, Yellow-rumped & Black-throated Gray Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Song, Lincoln's, White-crowned, Chipping & Black-throated Sparrows, Canyon & Abert's Towhees, N. Cardinal, Lazuli Bunting, Red-winged Blackbird, Eastern Meadowlark and Great-tailed Grackle.

Tuesday, April 2, 2002    Previous Day    Next Day
Out today with Mike and Nancy Boyce from Bellevue, MI. I last birded with Mike back in November, 1995 and Nancy in March, 1999. Today the three of us spent the entire day in the Huachuca Mountains where we saw a mix of permanent residents, returning summer residents, migrants and lingering winter species. 

We took an hour to drive slowly up Garden Canyon, pausing occasionally on the way up to Sawmill Canyon. Some of the 20+ birds along the route were SAY'S PHOEBE, NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRD, PHAINOPEPLA, BULLOCK'S ORIOLE & EASTERN MEADOWLARK in the mesquite grassland; MEXICAN JAY, BUSHTIT, SPOTTED TOWHEE and RUFOUS-CROWNED SPARROW in the oak-juniper areas; and an excellent look at ARIZONA WOODPECKER near the pictograph site.

Sawmill Canyon was a little quieter than of late but we did find my season first GRACE'S WARBLER. Seeing the bird was another matter! We tracked a lone male that led us in circles, singing only sporadically, and we easily spent an hour before getting a decent view. We had similar problems trying to see a pair of PAINTED REDSTARTS that simply wouldn't stay put long enough to get a good look, but we triumphed in the end. BUFF-BREASTED FLYCATCHERS were singing throughout but we had to be content with some rather distant views of birds perched high, albeit in good light showing the breast color very well. ARIZONA WOODPECKERS were surprisingly numerous and vocal. Other species included WILD TURKEY, CASSIN'S KINGBIRD, STELLER'S and MEXICAN JAYS, AMERICAN ROBIN, GRAY-HEADED and YELLOW-EYED JUNCOS and the usual common pine-oak birds.

Heading back down Garden Canyon, we noted a NASHVILLE WARBLER foraging in the streamside willows. A stop at the rappel cliffs produced good looks at a couple of CANYON WRENS but the overhead WHITE-THROATED SWIFTS remained unseen. We spent some time at the upper picnic area where a TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE stayed perched long enough for me to retrieve my scope from the car. We also managed to track down a singing BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLER and a silent PLUMBEOUS VIREO. Other birds here included a singing BUFF-BREASTED FLYCATCHER (perhaps they will nest here again this year), HAMMOND'S FLYCATCHER, HOUSE WREN and PAINTED REDSTART. 

After lunch we visited Beatty's Guest Ranch and Orchard in Miller Canyon where we spent a pleasant couple of hours. Thanks to Tom Beatty for his hospitality and current info on the birds. As might be expected, hummingbird activity was only moderate in mid afternoon and we didn't see too many individuals. However, species diversity was very good and we saw 7 of the 8 species currently present. We spent time at the Public Viewing Area (which had the most action) and at the controlled access site. A male BLUE-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD was dominant at the CAS and wouldn't let other birds get much of a look in, although once or twice a MAGNIFICENT HUMMINGBIRD would manage to sneak in.

While waiting for hummers I snapped this Western Tiger Swallowtail butterfly. Without warning and ever so briefly, a male CALLIOPE HUMMINGBIRD zipped in and was gone almost before I realized. Calliopes don't hang about much as they pass through heading north, and I have far more fall records than I do for spring. This was the earliest of my 11 spring records.

A stop at the cabin on the way back down to the PVA didn't produced any hummers, but we did see lots of Ramsey Canyon Leopard Frogs. A transplant breeding program was started here in 1999.

Hummers visiting the PVA feeders were male and female MAGNIFICENT, male ANNA'S, lots of BLACK-CHINNED and BROAD-TAILED, a second male (or the same?) CALLIOPE and two male RUFOUS. Among the other species seen were a couple more season firsts for me -- DUSKY-CAPPED FLYCATCHER and VIRGINIA'S WARBLER.

A lone EASTERN BLUEBIRD was on a wire as we headed back down Miller Canyon.

We recorded the following 63 species:
Turkey Vulture, Cooper's & Red-tailed Hawks, Wild Turkey, Rock, Mourning & White-winged Doves, Greater Roadrunner, White-throated Swift, Blue-throated, Magnificent, Black-chinned, Anna's, Calliope, Broad-tailed & Rufous Hummingbirds, Acorn & Arizona Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Say's & Black Phoebes, Hammond's, Buff-breasted & Dusky-capped Flycatchers, Cassin's Kingbird, Steller's & Mexican Jays, Chihuahuan & Common Ravens, Hutton's & Plumbeous Vireos, Phainopepla, Eastern Bluebird, Townsend's Solitaire, Am. Robin, N. Mockingbird, Curve-billed Thrasher, White-breasted Nuthatch, Canyon, Bewick's & House Wrens, Verdin, Bushtit, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Bridled Titmouse, Lesser Goldfinch, House Finch, Nashville, Virginia's, Yellow-rumped, Black-throated Gray & Grace's Warblers, Painted Redstart, Dark-eyed (Gray-headed) & Yellow-eyed Juncos, Chipping & Rufous-crowned Sparrows, Spotted & Canyon Towhees, Bullock's Oriole, Eastern Meadowlark, Great-tailed Grackle and Brewer's Blackbird.

Wednesday, April 3, 2002    Previous Day    Next Day
I had planned to travel to the White Mountains today but at the last minute I decided to delay my trip for a few days in order to test and get used to new optics. Last week I took out a second mortgage and ordered a Swarovski ST-80 HD glass scope and EL 10x42 binocular. They arrived on Monday but I didn't want to risk using new bins for the first time on a day that I was working. The new scope replaces an ST-80 regular glass that I've had since 1993. The new bins replace B & L 8x42 Elites that have been unable to stand up to everyday use since April 1997. Only 5 years of use but they're in pretty sorry shape.

I began birding on the San Pedro River at 7:00am starting at the San Pedro House feeders; then walked south on the Del Valle road, east down Garden wash to Black Phoebe pond, south on the river for a little way then back north along the river with a stop at Kingfisher pond. It was a pleasantly cool and calm early on but by the time I left at 10:00am it was warm and quite windy. 

Activity around the feeders was high and I was able to see GREEN-TAILED, CANYON and ABERT'S TOWHEE in view at the same time along with other regular feeder moochers such as GAMBEL'S QUAIL, LESSER GOLDFINCH, HOUSE FINCH, WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW and RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD.

Along the Del Valle road I picked up a few desert scrub species including VERDIN, a perched up and calling CRISSAL THRASHER, a couple of singing and chasing BELL'S VIREOS, PYRRHULOXIA and numerous BLACK-THROATED SPARROWS.

Along the river, YELLOW and LUCY'S WARBLERS were both common as were VERMILION FLYCATCHERS. I also saw one each of HAMMOND'S, DUSKY and ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHERS as well as calling GRAY HAWKS and more singing BELL'S VIREOS. Kingfisher pond was pretty much devoid of waterfowl except for RUDDY DUCK and COOT.

A few wintering species including LARK BUNTING, BREWER'S and VESPER SPARROWS continue in low to moderate numbers.

I recorded the following 50 species from 7:00-10:00am:
Ruddy Duck, Mallard, Cooper's, Gray & Red-tailed Hawks, Gambel's Quail, Am. Coot, Mourning & White-winged Doves, Black-chinned Hummingbird, Say's & Black Phoebes, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Hammond's, Dusky, Vermilion & Ash-throated Flycatchers, Chihuahuan Raven, Bell's Vireo, Loggerhead Shrike, Curve-billed & Crissal Thrashers, European Starling, White-breasted Nuthatch, Marsh, Bewick's & House Wrens, Verdin, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Lesser Goldfinch, House Finch, Lucy's, Yellow & Yellow-rumped Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Lark Bunting, Song, Lincoln's, White-crowned, Brewer's, Vesper & Black-throated Sparrows, Green-tailed, Canyon & Abert's Towhees, Pyrrhuloxia, Red-winged Blackbird and Eastern Meadowlark.

I stopped on Moson Road to scan the fields at the sewage ponds and test the scope. I saw soaring NORTHERN HARRIERS, CASSIN'S and WESTERN KINGBIRDS sitting side by side on the fence, and YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRDS feeding in the fields.

Although I had tried the Swarovski EL 10x42s before buying, I was a little apprehensive about a couple of things -- (1) the much mentioned "slow focusing" in all the reviews that I've read and (2) the fact that I was switching to 10 power after many years of using 8 power (I was concerned about image stability as well as getting used to increased image size). Happily, my fears seem to be unjustified (although admittedly after only a few hours of use).

The binocular focus is definitely slower than what I am used to (i.e. more turns of the focus wheel are required) but it only seems to be an issue when viewing at close range. At distances that I'm normally viewing at it only takes a couple of finger rolls over the focus wheel to get to either extreme of normal viewing. The "problem" is also alleviated by the tremendous depth of field of this model, especially between middle distance and infinity, something that really surprised me. Brightness is excellent and the increased image size was welcomed by my aging eyes -- and, more importantly, I didn't get faked out by false impression of bird size. The main problem that I encountered was in keeping the rain guard from hitting my chin, especially when looking up at a steep angle. I'll need to work on this. All in all, a good first experience. I do have one complaint -- a hard metal case is supplied (which I don't think I'll ever use, perhaps when flying) as well as a soft "bag" slyly not called a case by Swarovski. The bag is barely big enough to hold the binocular when the strap is fitted and there is no strap/handle on the bag. A serious oversight on a simple component.

I didn't get much testing done on the scope because, amazingly, the zoom lens was damaged. The end that fits against the scope body had multiple scratches on the interior glass. Was ist los mit diesem bild? (I've forgotten all my German grammar). So much for that renowned Austrian quality -- I was shocked by such lousy quality control, especially since I've owned a Swarovski scope for 9 years. I was treated well by Christopher's (where I bought the scope) and Swarovski; and after a few emails and phone calls I was able to return the lens. However, I'm definitely pissed since, of course, I had to pay shipping and insurance to return it and I'll be without it for at least a week, probably longer. Not what you expect when buying top of the line stuff from a reputable manufacturer. The old scope will have to do duty for a little while longer. 

Thursday, April 4, 2002    Previous Day    Next Day
Today I trekked up French Joe Canyon to search for "the warbler". On my last three trips, dating back to October 2001 and as recently as last month, I have failed to find the slightest indication that a bird was in the canyon. However, I'm happy to report that today I found two RUFOUS-CAPPED WARBLERS at the upper spring. Did they winter here without detection or have they returned since my previous visit on March 13? Who knows. Will they stay to breed this year even though the canyon is very dry? Let's hope so.

I entered  the canyon at 6:10am, parked at 6:30am, and arrived at the upper spring at 7:20am having seen 20 species as I hiked. I stood quietly taking in the sights and sounds of spring until 7:40am when I heard a RUFOUS-CAPPED WARBLER singing from the stream bed about 50 yards above the spring. I was pretty confident that I heard a second bird responding from the south slope but couldn't be 100%. That became moot at 8:00am when I finally tracked down one warbler foraging in the grass at the spring while at the same time hearing another bird singing some distance down canyon, probably a little below the (dry) pools. I stayed near the spring until 9:00am without seeing or hearing the warblers again.

There was plenty to keep me busy near the spring including a couple actively foraging and vocalizing HAMMOND'S FLYCATCHERS, one DUSKY FLYCATCHER and my season first CASSIN'S VIREO and BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAK. 

Many BLACK-CHINNED SPARROWS were singing throughout the canyon and SCOTT'S ORIOLES were also numerous and in good voice. I only heard a couple of HOODED ORIOLES. The only other warbler I that saw was a singing BLACK-THROATED GRAY near the parking area.

The canyon is almost bone dry and the only significant water is at the upper spring and in the trough in the lower canyon, although this was only half full and not overflowing as it usually is. The dryness will probably have an impact on breeding activity/success this season and is perhaps why I didn't see an single hummingbird during my 4+ hours in the canyon. I recorded the following 39 species from 6:10-10:15am.

Cooper's Hawk, Mourning & White-winged Doves, White-throated Swift, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, N. Flicker, Say's Phoebe, Hammond's, Dusky & Ash-throated Flycatchers, Cassin's Kingbird, Western Scrub-Jay, Chihuahuan Raven, Hutton's & Cassin's Vireos, N. Mockingbird, Crissal Thrasher, Cactus, Rock, Canyon, Bewick's & House Wrens, Bushtit, Violet-green Swallow, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Bridled Titmouse, House Finch, Black-throated Gray & Rufous-capped Warblers, Chipping, Black-chinned, Black-throated & Rufous-crowned Sparrows, Spotted & Canyon Towhees, Black-headed Grosbeak, N. Cardinal and  Hooded & Scott's Orioles.

It was a mild and calm evening so I decided that a little scouting for the upcoming owling season was in order. I headed into the Huachucas and about 15 minutes after sunset I positioned myself at the center of a normally "owly" spot and waited. At 6:52pm a pair of GREAT HORNED OWLS started to call back and forth to each other and this continued for the next 30 minutes. I thought that might be the kiss of death for other owls but that wasn't the case. The first bats became active at 6:56pm and at 7:00pm a number of WHISKERED SCREECH-OWLS started calling. I heard the first ELF OWL at 7:01 pm but it wasn't until about 10 minutes later that I saw a pair of them fussing around in a Sycamore as a couple more called nearby. 

Friday, April 5, 2002     Previous Day    Next Day
This morning I visited Holy Trinity Monastery in St. David and the ponds at Willcox. It's become standard operating procedure for me to visit St. David on the way to Willcox, but this morning I almost went directly to Willcox. For much of the year, the time of day is not very important for birding at Willcox. However, during spring migration, birds often drop in for an overnight stop and leave early the next morning - hence my desire to get there early before any  potential good stuff had left.

My decision to go to St. David was rewarded with a few migrants. As I stepped out of my vehicle at the Monastery, I heard and soon found a singing CASSIN'S VIREO for the second day in a row. Shortly afterwards I found a singing PLUMBEOUS VIREO. This is not the first time that I have seen both together during migration. By far the best migrant, however, was a pristine looking male MACGILLIVRAY'S WARBLER. Apart from a single mid March record on the San Pedro, this was my earliest spring sighting date.

Other highlights included WOOD DUCK, a pair of GRAY HAWKS, the over wintering LEWIS'S WOODPECKER still hanging around, and a singing NORTHERN BEARDLESS-TYRANNULET that I as able to get very close to

I recorded the following 49 species from 7:10-9:10am.
Wood Duck, Am. Wigeon, Gadwall, Ring-necked Duck, Turkey Vulture, Cooper's & Gray Hawks, Am. Coot, Mourning & White-winged Doves, Lewis's, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, N. Beardless-Tyrannulet, Say's & Black Phoebes, Vermilion & Ash-throated Flycatchers, Cassin's & Western Kingbirds, Chihuahuan Raven, Bell's, Cassin's & Plumbeous Vireos, Curve-billed Thrasher, European Starling, Cactus & Bewick's Wrens, Verdin, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, House Sparrow, Lesser Goldfinch, House Finch, Lucy's, Yellow, Yellow-rumped & MacGillivray's Warblers, Song, Lincoln's, White-crowned, Chipping & Lark Sparrows, Green-tailed & Abert's Towhees, N. Cardinal, Red-winged Blackbird, Western Meadowlark, Great-tailed Grackle and Brewer's Blackbird.

I arrived at Willcox shortly before 10:00am just as a flock of 15 FRANKLIN'S GULLS took flight and headed off to the northeast. Timing is everything as they say. However, instead of being chuffed, I was left wondering what I might have missed! Other migrants included a flock of 30 WHITE-FACED IBIS and 16 WILSON'S PHALAROPES.

The main pond was covered with ducks, most of which were AMERICAN WIGEON, NORTHERN SHOVELERS and RUDDY DUCKS. At least 12 BUFFLEHEADS are still present and I saw a few CINNAMON TEAL, 10+ LESSER SCAUPS, many RING-NECKED DUCKS and one each of CANVASBACK, NORTHERN PINTAIL and AMERICAN AVOCET.

The golf course pond had COMMON SNIPE; HORNED LARKS were common on the nearby sandy flats, and a SWAINSON'S HAWK was on the fence north of the golf course. Wintering sparrows are still around in good numbers, especially BREWER'S singing their bubbly twittering song, and SAVANNAH all along the periphery of the main pond.

I recorded the following 41 species from 10:00-11:40am.
Eared Grebe, Ruddy Duck, Am. Wigeon, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, N. Pintail, Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Canvasback, Ring-necked Duck, Lesser Scaup, Bufflehead, Great Blue Heron, White-faced Ibis, N. Harrier, Swainson's Hawk, Am. Coot, Common Snipe, Wilson's Phalarope, Am. Avocet, Killdeer, Franklin's Gull, Mourning Dove, Say's Phoebe, Western Kingbird, Chihuahuan Raven, Loggerhead Shrike, N. Mockingbird, Horned Lark, House Sparrow, Lesser Goldfinch, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Song, White-crowned, Savannah, Brewer's & Vesper Sparrows, Pyrrhuloxia, Eastern Meadowlark and Great-tailed Grackle.

Saturday, April 6, 2002    Previous Day    Next Day   
On this very weird weather day, I did some routine birding in Garden, Sawmill and Scheelite Canyons in the Huachucas. It was calm as I left home at 6:30am with a temperature of 55 degrees under clear skies. However, I could see heavy clouds over the mountains and by the time I reached Sawmill it was cool and very windy. The wind increased as the day wore on and we had some rain in the afternoon.

Driving up Garden Canyon I saw a small group of WESTERN KINGBIRDS, my first Huachuca sightings of the season. A few wintering PHAINOPEPLAS were still guarding "their" mistletoe -- I normally don't see them in Garden after the first week in April. LUCY'S WARBLERS were singing.

The temperature in Sawmill Canyon was very pleasant when I began birding shortly after 7:00am, however, the wind was a major pain and I only stayed for an hour, just long enough to confirm the presence of some key species. I watched a GREATER PEWEE sitting on a conspicuous perch in typical fashion, giving some shortened phrases of its Jose Maria song followed by few peek peek calls. GRACE'S WARBLERS were singing their less than musical song and BUFF-BREASTED FLYCATCHERS were there usual noisy selves. CASSIN'S KINGBIRDS are now present in numbers and they were very noisy near the cabin. ARIZONA WOODPECKERS, PAINTED REDSTARTS and YELLOW-EYED JUNCOS were not as vocal as usual but still quite easy to locate. I also saw WILD TURKEY, AMERICAN ROBIN and the regular jays, titmice, etc.

Conditions were very calm when I started hiking up Scheelite Canyon but it didn't take long for the wind to become a problem. Thankfully, SPOTTED OWL was very easy to find this morning and I didn't have to spend much time looking for it. This sleepy looking individual was roosting right next to the trail in a very obvious location within feet of where every person visiting the canyon today will pass by. Almost 15% of my sightings are in this tree, christened by Smitty as the "Huachuca Hiking Club Tree".

DUSKY-CAPPED FLYCATCHER and VIRGINIA'S WARBLER have returned to the canyon and both were vocalizing. Among other vocalizing species were ARIZONA WOODPECKER, WHITE-THROATED SWIFT, all three regular jays, BROWN CREEPER, HUTTON'S VIREO, BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLER and PAINTED REDSTART. I also tracked down a calling HAMMOND'S FLYCATCHER, a fairly common migrant in the canyon from mid-March to mid-May. 

Back in Garden canyon I stopped at the upper picnic area to listen for trogons (although it's still a bit early). I was wandering around, having a drink of coffee and enjoying the fact that I had the place to myself, when I spotted a raptor perched in one of the leafless sycamores. After a quick binocular look to determine that it was a MERLIN, I rushed back to the car to grab my scope to try some digiscoping. I need not have hurried because this was a very cooperative bird and I would have had time to get a haircut, take a shower, make a sandwich and still get some shots. The bird was still sitting there when I left.  

This was a very interesting bird for a couple of reasons. Firstly, I only have three previous records for Merlin in Garden Canyon from October 1997, December 1999 and February 2000. All of them were much lower in the canyon in more expected grassland habitat. Secondly, the plumage of the bird suggested that it was an eastern columbarius (taiga) race which is much darker than the western form. [Columbarius is the most common race in Arizona, with richardsonii (prairie) being uncommon but regular, and suckleyi (black) very rare.] 

None of my reference material show this plumage very well and, in looking around, I realized how "wooden" and artificial looking the plates are in the Peterson Hawks guide. (I'm sure that the artist speaks well of me, too). The best representation I could find was the adult female in Sibley, page 130. If you think about it, if they are darkest in the east and palest in the west, most field guides will show some sort of "average" plumage that most people may never see!

Sunday, April 7, 2002    Previous Day    Next Day
Today I started a short trip to the White Mountains where I'll be for the next few days. I've never had the chance to be up here during spring migration, so this year I made a point of scheduling time to make the trip. I'd really prefer to do this at the end of April when migrant activity in the mountains will be much greater, but work is the curse of the birding class and duty calls. 

Willcox is right on my way to the White Mountains so I took the opportunity to stop by even though I was here just a couple of days ago. It was cloudy and breezy with a few sprinkles as I began birding at the main pond at 7:00am. Little did I know that this was the best weather I would see all day! 

A calling SCALED QUAIL was perched on a fence post near the golf course as I arrived and a GAMBEL'S QUAIL was calling nearby. Also calling was a NORTHERN FLICKER, my first at this location. Among today's migrants were 4-WHITE-FACED IBIS, 1-GREATER YELLOWLEGS, 17-WILSON'S PHALAROPES, 9-RING-BILLED GULLS and 1-FRANKLIN'S GULL. 

The Ring-billed Gulls were at one of the new interior ponds on the golf course, the water of which cannot be viewed from a distance. Fortunately, the gulls were up on a berm. The large wintering flock of AMERICAN WIGEON were feeding nearby, undisturbed by any early morning golfers. I also saw the "pure enough for government work" EURASIAN WIGEON. Both WESTERN and CASSIN'S KINGBIRDS were common and vocal.

I recorded the following 50 species from 7:00-8:15am.
Pied-billed & Eared Grebes, Ruddy Duck, Eurasian Wigeon, Am. Wigeon, Gadwall, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Canvasback, Ring-necked Duck, Lesser Scaup, Bufflehead, Great Blue Heron, White-faced Ibis, N. Harrier, Swainson's Hawk, Scaled & Gambel's Quail, Am. Coot, Greater Yellowlegs, Wilson's Phalarope, Killdeer, Ring-billed & Franklin's Gulls, Mourning Dove, N. Flicker, Cassin's & Western Kingbirds, Chihuahuan Raven, Loggerhead Shrike, N. Mockingbird, Marsh Wren, Tree & Barn Swallows, House Sparrow, House Finch, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Lark Bunting, White-crowned, Savannah, Brewer's & Vesper Sparrows, Pyrrhuloxia, Red-winged Blackbird, Eastern Meadowlark, Great-tailed Grackle and Brewer's Blackbird.

As I headed north through New Mexico on highway 180, the clouds steadily built up and as soon as I reached higher elevation the rain began. The rain turned to sleet when I reentered Arizona and by the time I arrived at Luna Lake at 11:30am it was snowing. A sharp reminder as to why I wanted to do this trip later in the month. On the plus side, the crowds stayed away in droves. In fact, there was only one other person present, someone apparently monitoring the Bald Eagle nest site on the other side of the lake. The eagles seem to use the same nest every year. Visibility was so poor at times that I could hardly see anything at all. Amazingly, an OSPREY swooped down out of nowhere and nabbed a fish. Unbelievable eyesight! 

I normally check the pines around the lake but the weather was too lousy for that so I just scanned the water. I could see some white blobs at the western end so reluctantly, with a sense of obligation, I drove over there to discover 4 RING-BILLED and 1-FRANKLIN'S GULL. Also present among a total of 25 species were a WESTERN GREBE, several DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANTS, many BUFFLEHEADS, 2-AMERICAN AVOCETS, a lone SANDHILL CRANE (presumably the same one that's been around for several years), a few WESTERN BLUEBIRDS and a number of "singing" YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRDS already on territory.

The weather worsened as I continued north towards Springerville and it was snowing heavily at Alpine Divide (8550 feet). However, as I dropped down into Nutrioso the snow turned to very light sprinkles and even a little sunshine, so I was able to check Nutrioso Reservoir and Creek without problems. The reservoir had plenty of common ducks, a few COMMON MERGANSERS and at least 70 BUFFLEHEADS, perhaps more than I've seen at one time in AZ before. A forlorn looking SAY'S PHOEBE was working the fence line as PYGMY NUTHATCHES chattered in the pines. EASTERN and WESTERN MEADOWLARKS were singing side by side along the creek.

A little further north I stopped at a cold and windy Nelson Reservoir where the only species new for the day were NORTHERN ROUGH-WINGED and CLIFF SWALLOWS.

After checking into a motel in Springerville I headed out to Becker Lake just as the weather turned nasty again. I felt sorry for the TREE, BARN and CLIFF SWALLOWS flying low over the water trying to come up with insects. The SAVANNAH SPARROWS working the edge of the water were probably wondering why they came north so soon (come to think of it, so was I). About 20 species on the water with only  6-10 COMMON GOLDENEYES and 7 FRANKLIN'S GULL'S of note. I was a little surprised to see a WESTERN SCRUB-JAY on Becker Lake Road, although they are regular not too far away.

I didn't get much land birding done to today but I'm hoping the weather will allow that tomorrow. Today's stops at Luna Lake, Nutrioso Reservoir, Nutrioso Creek, Nelson Reservoir and Becker Lake & vicinity produced the following 56 species in the White Mountains.

Pied-billed, Eared & Western Grebes, Double-crested Cormorant, Ruddy Duck, Canada Goose, Am. Wigeon, Gadwall, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Canvasback, Redhead, Ring-necked Duck, Lesser Scaup, Common Goldeneye, Bufflehead, Common Merganser, Great Blue Heron, Turkey Vulture, Osprey, Am. Kestrel, Am. Coot, Sandhill Crane, Am. Avocet, Killdeer, Ring-billed & Franklin's Gulls, Mourning Dove, N. Flicker, Say's Phoebe, Steller's Jay, Western Scrub-Jay, Am. Crow, Common Raven, Western Bluebird, Am. Robin, European Starling, Pygmy Nuthatch, Marsh Wren, Tree, N. Rough-winged, Barn  & Cliff Swallows, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, House Sparrow, Pine Siskin, House Finch, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Dark-eyed (Gray-headed) Junco, Savannah Sparrow, Yellow-headed & Red-winged Blackbirds and Eastern & Western Meadowlarks.

Monday, April 8, 2002    Previous Day    Next Day
What a difference a day makes! A fairly heavy thunderstorm passed through the White Mountains early last night and took yesterday's nasty weather with it. Skies were clear this morning and the temperature was a brisk 35 degrees when I left Springerville at 6:30am, climbing into the mid 60s in the afternoon with some cloud build up. 

I started birding at Sipe Wildlife Area at 7:00am and spent a very pleasant 3 hours there. Conditions were calm and bird activity was reasonable, although I didn't see much in the way of migrants. I recorded 40 species and saw small herds of PRONGHORN and ELK with a backdrop of some great snowy views of Green's Peak and Escudilla. 

It was fast and furious as I got started -- a RED-NAPED SAPSUCKER was drumming on a pole near the headquarters buildings, PINYON JAYS were calling from all directions on the juniper hillsides, a VIRGINIA RAIL called for over an hour on Rudd Creek, and a SPOTTED TOWHEE was perched at the top of a pine singing its heart out. I guess it must be spring. 

Several pairs of MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRDS were easy to see, as well as a few WESTERN BLUEBIRDS. The WA manager informed me that bluebird boxes have been erected for this year. Other species included STELLER'S and WESTERN SCRUB-JAYS, ROCK WREN; several sparrows that could be considered migrants or returning breeders -- SONG, LINCOLN'S, WHITE-CROWNED, CHIPPING and VESPER; and EASTERN and WESTERN MEADOWLARKS singing side by side.

I headed over to Luna Lake where conditions were much better than yesterday. I birded the pines with disappointing results -- I saw very few birds with only a few RED CROSSBILLS of note. I chatted with the lady monitoring the BALD EAGLE nest and she informed me that there are two eaglets about one month old. I only saw one adult during my time there today. I recorded a total of 37 species here but activity on the lake was way down from yesterday.

I checked Nutrioso Creek and Nelson Reservoir on my way back to Springerville and after a short break I headed out to Wenima Wildlife Area. The willows haven't leafed out yet and there was very little action. Only a migrating RED-NAPED SAPSUCKER was of note.

I finished up at Becker Lake where the highlight was a lone BONAPARTE'S GULL -- no sign of yesterday's Franklin's Gulls. An OSPREY was watching over the lake, perhaps roosting there tonight. A group of 9-COMMON GOLDENEYES continue. 

Day list (70 species recorded):
Pied-billed & Eared Grebes, Double-crested Cormorant, Ruddy Duck, Canada Goose, Am. Wigeon, Gadwall, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Canvasback, Redhead, Ring-necked Duck, Lesser Scaup, Common Goldeneye, Bufflehead, Common Merganser, Great Blue Heron, Turkey Vulture, Osprey, Bald Eagle, Red-tailed Hawk, Am. Kestrel, Virginia Rail, Am. Coot, Killdeer, Ring-billed & Bonaparte's Gulls, Mourning Dove, Red-naped Sapsucker, N. Flicker, Say's & Black Phoebes, Pinyon & Steller's Jays, Western Scrub-Jay, Am. Crow, Common Raven, Loggerhead Shrike, Western & Mountain Bluebirds, Am. Robin, European Starling, Pygmy & White-breasted Nuthatches, Rock & Marsh Wrens, Bushtit, Tree, N. Rough-winged & Barn Swallows, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Mountain Chickadee, Horned Lark, House Sparrow, Pine Siskin, Red Crossbill, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Dark-eyed (Oregon & Gray-headed) Junco, Song, Lincoln's, White-crowned, Chipping & Vesper Sparrows, Spotted Towhee, Yellow-headed & Red-winged Blackbirds and Eastern & Western Meadowlarks.

Tuesday, April 9, 2002    Previous Day    Next Day
Another great day in the mountains -- sunny and clear for much of the day with clouds developing later; and just a little breezy at times. I covered quite a bit of ground today birding at Green's Peak, Sunrise Lake, West Fork in Greer, Greer Lakes, Lyman Lake State Park and Becker Lake.

I started in the Green's Peak area where it had been below freezing overnight. The recent snow has melted from the open areas of Green's Peak but the snow in the treed area below the fire lookout tower was still heavy on the ground, from 10-18 inches in places. The mile long road that winds from the base to the top was mostly clear of snow but I had to use 4 wheel drive in one shady and slippery spot. 

MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRDS were already active along Forest Road 117 that had frozen puddles along the edges. PYGMY NUTHATCHES and MOUNTAIN CHICKADEES were chattering from the roadside trees. I was surprised to find that VESPER SPARROWS were already back on territory. 

After I reached the top, I spent a minute or two admiring the magnificent views on this crystal clear and windless morning -- ideal conditions for looking and listening for Blue Grouse. My viewing was cut short when I heard a THREE-TOED WOODPECKER drumming not too far away. To say that I gave chase was a little bit of an exaggeration. It's impossible to move fast at 10,000+ feet on a steep slope at the best of times and with deep snow on the ground it was an impossibility. Fortunately, I was headed downhill so I was able to make decent progress and I soon caught up with the bird working at the base of a tree, just a few feet from the ground. I tried to take a couple of photos but I was so out of breath and shaking that they were not publishable, even by my standards. 

I heard a distant grouse and the chase was on again, unfortunately, now I was headed uphill. When I reached the area that I thought the bird was in I slowed down and tried to keep the noise down. My snow crunching and out of breath panting was apparently too much for the BLUE GROUSE because as I stumbled across it, the bird rocketed off the ground and into the trees with a great whirring of wings which scared the you-know-what out of me. Anyone who has experienced this will know what I mean. I was able to relocate the bird high in a tree but because of the steepness of the slope it was close to eye level. The bird actually displayed while walking around on the tree branch, quite a sight. 

After slogging through the snow back to the top, I took a breather back at my vehicle and chatted with the lady in the fire tower. I was surprised to see her here so early in the season but she's already in her third week on duty because of the relatively dry conditions. I starting driving back downhill and spotted a couple of small birds feeding on the ground. I stopped the vehicle and, of course, they promptly flew high up into a tree. It just wasn't my day for seeing birds on the ground -- they turned out to be male and female RED CROSSBILLS.

Next, I headed over to Sunrise to check the lake. Driving down Sunrise Highway (Hwy 273) I spotted a raptor sitting on the low roadside fence. I stopped to check before getting too close and found it was a nice looking ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK. It was just as well that I stopped because the bird took off as I got closer.  

The lake was a little disappointing in terms of waterfowl but an adult and an immature BALD EAGLE mitigated my disappointment. I saw about 30 species including lots of BUFFLEHEADS and COMMON MERGANSERS, a few CINNAMON TEAL, MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRD, HORNED LARK, VESPER SPARROW and my first VIOLET-GREEN SWALLOWS since arriving in the mountains.

I drove over to Greer for breakfast at the Country Cafe, after which I headed down to the West Fork of the Little Colorado where it didn't take long to find a singing AMERICAN DIPPER. In fact, I saw four of them chasing each other back and forth up and down the river. Other birds included HAIRY WOODPECKER, RUBY-CROWNED and GOLDEN-CROWNED KINGLETS and PINE SISKIN. 

Next I checked Greer Lakes that normally have far more people than birds, although I knew there wouldn't be many people around today. Bunch Reservoir had a few DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANTS and a GREAT EGRET; River Reservoir also had cormorants, COMMON MERGANSERS and CANADA GEESE; at Tunnel Reservoir I picked up RED-NAPED SAPSUCKER.

After a short break back in Springerville, I headed 15 miles north to Lyman Lake State Park -- not part of the White Mountains, at least not in my list keeping. A very pleasant surprise here was a female HOODED MERGANSER that almost tempted me to fudge and lump the lake into the White Mountains. 

I'm sure that you've often heard the expression in jest "count the legs and divide by two" when counting birds. Well, it worked for me today. I spotted a flying group of WHITE-FACED IBIS and counted 10 of them. Later, I spotted the birds huddled closely together along the shore and, try as I did, I could only come up with 9 birds. However, I could see their legs clearly and counted 20!

I had to make a trip to Show Low to pick up a few items and decided to take Hwy 60 because I didn't want to drag through traffic in Pinetop and Lakeside. This turned out to be a big mistake because 17 of the 45 miles had stop and go roadwork (expletive deleted). On the return journey, I decided to tough it out through Pinetop-Lakeside -- wouldn't you know it, in addition to the normal slow traffic there was more roadwork, thankfully not quite as bad as my outbound journey (expletive deleted again). For the triple whammy, I discovered that I had accidentally erased all the days notes from my micro-recorder (many expletives deleted). I was thinking about the time it was going to take me to reconstruct the data.

Driving through Eagar, I was (un)fortunate to see the first ROCK DOVE of the trip. Back in Springerville as darkness approached, I finished the day at Becker Lake. The only bird of note from 20 seen was a lone BREWER'S BLACKBIRD, the first I have seen since arriving in the mountains. Very soon they'll be abundant. COMMON GOLDENEYES continue, although I could only find 6 of them.

Day list (65 species recorded):
Pied-billed & Eared Grebes, Double-crested Cormorant, Ruddy Duck, Canada Goose, Am. Wigeon, Gadwall, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Canvasback, Redhead, Ring-necked Duck, Lesser Scaup, Common Goldeneye, Bufflehead, Hooded & Common Mergansers, Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, White-faced Ibis, Turkey Vulture, Bald Eagle, Red-tailed & Rough-legged Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Blue Grouse, Am. Coot, Killdeer, Rock & Mourning Doves, Red-naped Sapsucker, Hairy & Three-toed Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Steller's Jay, Am. Crow, Common Raven, Am. Dipper, Western & Mountain Bluebirds, Am. Robin, European Starling, Pygmy & White-breasted Nuthatches, Rock Wren, Violet-green & Barn Swallows, Ruby-crowned & Golden-crowned Kinglets, Mountain Chickadee, Horned Lark, House Sparrow, Pine Siskin, House Finch, Red Crossbill, Dark-eyed Junco, Chipping & Vesper Sparrows, Yellow-headed & Red-winged Blackbirds, Eastern & Western Meadowlarks and Brewer's Blackbird.

Wednesday, April 10, 2002    Previous Day    Next Day
The forecast was for windy conditions this afternoon so I decided to bird in the morning and head home in the afternoon, a day earlier than planned. Guess what, the weather guys were wrong (now there's a surprise) and it was windy in the morning too! I started at a fairly quiet South Fork and finished my White Mountain birding at a fairly active Luna Lake, with stops in between at Nelson Reservoir, Nutrioso and Hulsey Lake. Back in southeast Arizona I checked the ponds at Willcox .

HORNED LARKS and VESPER SPARROWS were along the approach road and WHITE-THROATED SWIFTS were soaring over the cliffs when I arrived in South Fork 6:30am. That was the good news because it was still shady and cool in the bottom of the canyon and very little was stirring along the river. I spent some time looking and listening for dippers but all I found was fresh dipper doop, so they must be present. I had BLACK PHOEBE and a flock BUSHTITS to keep me company and many VIOLET-GREEN SWALLOWS were soaring overhead. Appropriately, a lone TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE was perched up surveying the scene. PINYON JAYS were fairly common and noisy (when aren't they noisy?).

My next stop was at Nelson Reservoir where I was greeted by a ROCK WREN, bouncing up and down on the parking lot wall. I watched an OSPREY make six unsuccessful attempts to catch a fish before it moved on to the other end of the lake. Perhaps I was putting the bird off. In the marsh, YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRDS were making a quite a racket (if only it were musical) drowning out a singing MARSH WREN. Waterfowl numbers have diminished considerably over the past four days although a few species were still common, including BUFFLEHEAD and, of course, AMERICAN COOT. Among the other species on the water were CINNAMON TEAL, REDHEAD and CANVASBACK.

Further south I checked the cottonwoods in Nutrioso for Lewis's Woodpecker (as I have done the past few days). The birds are common here but the trees are barely starting to leaf out and it certainly seems like they are not around yet. I also looked at the reservoir, where I found the typical waterfowl, and along the creek where I saw a TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE carrying nesting material.  

I was pleased to have Hulsey Lake to myself and I spent a pleasant 30 minutes here enjoying the solitude and, apart from bird song, the silence. I was intrigued by the song of a constantly singing BROWN CREEPER because it was slightly different than the SE AZ version. PINE SISKINS were calling from the tree tops and PYGMY NUTHATCHES chattered as they flitted in and out of their nest cavities. 

At Luna Lake, I checked the pines at the east end of the lake hoping to confirm the arrival of Grace's Warbler but didn't see or hear any. While searching I heard a tremendous commotion coming from the area of a small water impoundment, a place where I often find the most activity. The noise was mainly coming from a large flock of RED CROSSBILLS, some of which were feeding on the ground. However, mixed in with them were a small group of mostly male CASSIN'S FINCHES, one of which sang continuously for about 10 minutes as he flitted from tree to tree. NORTHERN FLICKER, STELLER'S JAYS and PYGMY NUTHATCHES were the other contributors to the din. WESTERN BLUEBIRDS were sedate by comparison.

I pulled into the central viewing area at the lake only to turn around and immediately drive to the west end to check out some distant gulls. They turned out to be 6-FRANKLIN'S and 2-RING-BILLED GULLS. Also present in the same location were 4-AMERICAN AVOCETS. Back at the main area, the gal monitoring the eagle nest got me on a couple of COMMON SNIPE, very hard to see on the far shore (a first for me at the lake). She also mentioned having seen a pair of BLUE-WINGED TEAL that I was later able to relocate (I've seen them here a couple of times before). I recorded 40 species at the lake, none better than a close fly-over by an adult BALD EAGLE just as I was leaving. A fitting end to my short 4 day trip to the White Mountains.

As I had suspected, this trip was too early in the month to see any significant migration. All the riparian areas that I visited have barely started to develop their growth, while in the mountains the Aspens do not have any leaves at all. Other than Yellow-rumped, I didn't see a single warbler. Due to the shortened trip, I never made it down to the Blue River where I'm sure migration would already be well advanced. Nevertheless, I was able to confirm the return of a number of breeding species and see a number of the area specialties (see trip list). I wish that I could spend more time here in April and May (I guess that's what retirement is for).

About 3 1/2 hours after leaving Luna Lake I arrived at Willcox where it was much warmer and almost as windy. As I started the loop road around the main pond, I was confronted by a flock of 40 or so WHITE-FACED IBIS blocking the road. Further along the road, I inadvertently flushed a small flock of shorebirds. The birds all looked the same size and because of this I assumed they were all the same species -- wrong!. They resumed feeding and a scope look revealed a mixed flock of 6-WESTERN SANDPIPERS and 8-LEAST SANDPIPERS. As the master of double entendre Benny Hill once said -- "never assume, because when you do, you make an ASS out of U and ME".

Elsewhere, I saw a single LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER to round out the shorebirds. Sadly, shorebird habitat here remains very poor due to high water and it's pitiful to watch these birds trying to find a spot to put down. Other migrants included a lone SNOWY EGRET, 17-WILSON'S PHALAROPES (same birds as Sunday?) and 26-RING-BILLED GULLS.

Several wintering species continue, some in numbers -- LARK BUNTINGS and BREWER'S SPARROWS were very common in the fields east of the golf course, the latter singing away in the heat of the afternoon. MARSH WREN, SAVANNAH and VESPER SPARROWS were also present. Because of the warm weather, there's almost a subconscious feeling that "these birds are here late". In fact, all are well within their normal departure dates and some individuals of all these species often stay into mid-May. 

I recorded the following 40 species in about an hour:
Eared Grebe, Ruddy Duck, Am. Wigeon, Green-winged Teal, Mallard, Cinnamon Teal, N. Shoveler, Redhead, Ring-necked Duck, Lesser Scaup, Bufflehead, Snowy Egret, Great Blue Heron, White-faced Ibis, Swainson's Hawk, Scaled Quail, Am. Coot, Long-billed Dowitcher, Western & Least Sandpipers, Wilson's Phalarope, Killdeer, Ring-billed Gull, Mourning Dove, Black Phoebe, Cassin's & Western Kingbirds, Chihuahuan Raven, N. Mockingbird, Curve-billed Thrasher, Marsh Wren, Barn Swallow, Horned Lark, House Finch, Lark Bunting, Savannah, Brewer's & Vesper Sparrows, Eastern Meadowlark and Great-tailed Grackle.

Saturday, April 13, 2002    Previous Day    Next Day   
Today I broke my own rules and decided to chase a stakeout bird, or go on a "twitch" to use the vernacular of my countrymen. A couple of years ago I stopped doing this in order to maintain my enthusiasm for, and enjoyment from, personal birding. Since I'm either chasing birds or tracking seasonal movement when working, I wanted my non working birding to be casual, just seeing what I see and stumbling into whatever comes along. However, the chances of stumbling into a Snow Bunting in Southeast Arizona in this and many more lifetimes are probably billions to one. Consequently, I indulged myself and engaged in the guilty pleasure of  looking for the bird.

The bird was discovered on Wednesday at Reay Lane Sewage Ponds in Thatcher, near Safford. Ironically, I was just a couple of miles from that location on Wednesday when I stopped for gas and lunch in Safford on my way home from the White Mountains. Little did I know! Who'd ha' thunk it, a Snow Bunting in Southeast Arizona. As I understand it, there is one previous record (a specimen) from Northern Arizona.

I rose early to make the two hour journey and arrived at the sewage ponds just after dawn. I expected to see lots of birders but only one Phoenix birder was present, and he left minutes after I arrived. The SNOW BUNTING was in the southwest corner of the dry northwest pond, very close to the berm separating the ponds. I put the scope on bird, enjoyed it for a minute, and then reached for my camera which was the kiss of death -- it was now nowhere to be seen. I relocated the bird 40 minutes later, shortly after a group of Tucson birders arrived. With more eyes on the job we were able to track the bird over the next couple of hours, although it was amazingly easy to lose sight of as it foraging in the dirt furrows. The bird mainly stayed in the southwest quadrant of the dry pond, feeding in a confined area for a while and then flying to a new location.

Yesterday, a replacement eyepiece arrived from Swarovski so I was finally able to test my new scope, practice digiscoping and, of course, see the bunting. Killing three birds with one bunting, so to speak. While I was obviously delighted to see the bird, I was very disappointed with my digiscoping efforts. I was very pleased with the Swarovski ST-80 HD scope which performed very well. I thought I was getting the hang of digiscoping but after shooting 120+ shots today that only yielded 4 usable photos, I realize how hit and miss it really is (at least for me). Almost all the rejects were out of focus. There are actually four problems: 1) getting on the bird, i.e. when the bird is perfectly centered in the scope, holding the camera to the lens doesn't consistently acquire a centered image in the viewfinder. 2) avoiding vignetting (keyhole effect) which is a function of eye relief on the scope and zoom (magnification) on the camera. The new scope/zoom combo is much better than my previous one. These two problems I think I can overcome with understanding and practice. The other two problems have to do with photography, something that I have no background in. 3) Focusing is the biggest problem that I have -- I've tried auto focus and manual focus with fine tweaking using the scope. Even though the image looks OK in the dinky sized viewfinder, most shots are out of focus. 4) Over exposure (I think) -- shots with way to much white in them. I can see that I need to buy a book on photography and do some research on this stuff. 

Even with all the above problems, I did manage to salvage a usable documentary shot. Although the quality leaves a lot to be desired, it's more than adequate to document the bird. 

The bird: I have minimal experience with Snow Bunting, having only seen birds in Minnesota in winter at some distance. I can't decide whether this bird is a female or male, either way it's holding winter plumage quite late. Sibley's representations of winter males and females appear very similar, differing only in the amount of white in the wings, and are of little value. Plate 27 in Rising's book is much better and from this I would conclude that it's a male. In truth, I have to say "I don't really know".

I didn't do much other birding at this location but I did notice that BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERONS were common. Other birds present included SNOWY EGRET, WHITE-FACED IBIS, COOPER'S HAWK, LEAST SANDPIPER, RING-BILLED GULL, AMERICAN PIPIT and the usual common ducks.

On the way home I checked Willcox ponds (4 birds with one bunting!). Shorebirds/waders noted were 12-WHITE-FACED IBIS , GREATER YELLOWLEGS, 19-WILSON'S PHALAROPES, AMERICAN AVOCET and LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER (seen by others). 

At one point I saw a "EURASIAN WIGEON" from a fair distance on the other side of the pond and thought that it was the "good", i.e. quite pure bird. Others that saw it closer weren't as impressed so maybe it was the more obvious hybrid. I didn't see it well enough to be sure and couldn't relocate it. 

I recorded the following at Willcox from 9:40-10:50am.
Eared Grebe, Ruddy Duck, "Eurasian Wigeon", American Wigeon, Gadwall, Green-winged Teal, N. Pintail, Cinnamon Teal, Ring-necked Duck, Bufflehead, Great Blue Heron, White-faced Ibis, N. Harrier, Am. Coot, Greater Yellowlegs, Wilson's Phalarope, Am. Avocet, Killdeer, Mourning Dove, Western Kingbird, N. Mockingbird, Cactus Wren, Barn Swallow, Horned Lark, House Finch, Common Yellowthroat, Savannah, Brewer's & Vesper Sparrows, Eastern Meadowlark and Great-tailed Grackle.

Monday, April 15, 2002    Previous Day    Next Day
Out today with Bud Jackson and Ross Allan from Ontario. I've birded with Bud on two previous occasions and both times we had lousy weather with snow on one day and rain and hail on another. Today we had to contend with high winds as we spent about 8 hours birding in the Huachucas. I'm sure it cost us quite a few birds but under the circumstances we did OK, although most of what we saw was seen briefly. We had intended to go owling tonight but we cancelled that.

Driving through lower Garden Canyon grassland I was surprised to see that PHAINOPEPLAS are still present here. Perhaps the drier than usual conditions are changing their breeding habits this year. Also in the grassland were WESTERN KINGBIRDS, ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER and VESPER SPARROW. It's interesting to note that some Vesper Sparrows have returned to their breeding grounds in such places as Green's Peak in the White Mountains while others still linger in the Huachucas. 

It was very windy in Sawmill Canyon and initially we had difficulty in tracking anything down. At one point we had ARIZONA WOODPECKER, BUFF-BREASTED FLYCATCHER, GRACE'S WARBLER and HEPATIC TANAGER all calling at the same time and managed not to see any of them. Too many cooks spoiled the broth. Later we saw all of them, although only a flying view of the tanager. Buff-breasted Flycatchers became very vocal and common as the day warmed.  

At one point I was trying to point out a GREATER PEWEE when the bird suddenly launched itself after an insect and came flying right at us, and then perched immediately above our heads. At the same time we picked up a couple of HERMIT WARBLERS foraging nearby, my first of the season. I thought at the time that it seemed a little early, but after checking my records I found the that my average first sighting date in Sawmill is April 18, with the earliest being April 13 in 1996.

Other species included 5 flyover BAND-TAILED PIGEONS, HAMMOND'S & DUSKY-CAPPED FLYCATCHERS, CASSIN'S KINGBIRD, HUTTON'S and PLUMBEOUS VIREOS, BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLER, PAINTED REDSTART and several singing YELLOW-EYED JUNCOS.

Back in Garden Canyon we stopped at the upper picnic area where it was also very windy. Here we had some difficulty tracking down a pair of somewhat subdued and secretive DUSKY-CAPPED FLYCATCHERS. They are normally quite conspicuous but I think the wind kept them low and hidden. During the search we stumbled into a very cooperative TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE in the same location that I saw one a couple of weeks ago. Also around were ACORN WOODPECKER, BUFF-BREASTED FLYCATCHER and LINCOLN'S SPARROW.

Next stop was Scheelite Canyon where SPOTTED OWL was extremely easy to find today. The bird was roosting in the most obvious (and most used) tree right next to the trail. The canyon was fairly quiet in the heat of the day and we noted only 10 species; among which were BROAD-TAILED HUMMINGBIRD, HAMMOND'S & DUSKY-CAPPED FLYCATCHERS (now common everywhere) and WILSON'S WARBLER.

Heading back to town through Garden Canyon we added a COOPER'S HAWK that flew across our path and several WHITE-THROATED SWIFTS soaring over the cliffs. Surprisingly, STELLER'S JAYS continue at the middle picnic area, a very low elevation for this time of year.

Day list (46 species recorded):
Turkey Vulture, Cooper's & Red-tailed Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Band-tailed Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Spotted Owl, White-throated Swift, Broad-tailed Hummingbird, Acorn & Arizona Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Say's Phoebe, Greater Pewee, Hammond's, Buff-breasted, Dusky-capped & Ash-throated Flycatchers, Cassin's & Western Kingbirds, Steller's & Mexican Jays, Common Raven, Hutton's & Plumbeous Vireos, Phainopepla, Townsend's Solitaire, Am. Robin, White-breasted Nuthatch, Brown Creeper, Canyon & Bewick's Wrens, Bushtit, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Bridled Titmouse, House Finch, Black-throated Gray, Hermit, Grace's & Wilson's Warblers, Painted Redstart, Lincoln's Sparrow, Yellow-eyed Junco, Vesper Sparrow, Hepatic Tanager and Eastern Meadowlark.

Wednesday, April 17, 2002    Previous Day    Next Day
Out today with Lud Deppisch from Tucson, AZ who I've birded with on 7 previous occasions.  Today we had but one target bird, the Flame-colored Tanager that has been seen in Miller Canyon for the past week. It was a very windy morning and the wind plus my choice of strategy almost combined to foil our efforts. We met in Sierra Vista at 5:30am and by 6:30am we had hiked up Miller Canyon as far as Split Rock, the lowest area in the canyon where the bird has been reported from. Thanks to Tom Beatty for leaving the gates to his property open to shave some time and effort off the walk. For those that don't know Miller Canyon, the trail above the Beatty property is one of the steepest in the Huachucas so every little helps (as the actress said to the bishop).

I decided to stop and listen at Split Rock for some time and then we moved higher and did the same thing again, repeating a few times until at 7:30am we reached the area of the old mine shaft, generally the upper range of sightings of the bird. Here we met someone who had seen the bird as early as 6:45am and as recently as 10 minutes ago. He told us the bird had moved up canyon which, in retrospect, I don't think was the case. We headed up canyon and back down again -- around 8:30am I briefly heard the FLAME-COLORED TANAGER calling just above the mine, but not enough to pinpoint its location. At 8:40am the bird called again and then began singing from an area of tall firs in the bottom of the canyon. Due to the wind it was hard to determine its exact location, so I scrambled down into the canyon in an attempt to find it. By this time a larger group of birders had gathered. In my haste to get down there and my desire to avoid falling, I lost concentration and latched on to a singing PLUMBEOUS VIREO, a dumb shit move if ever there was one. The bottom line was that we lost the bird.

It was time to get serious -- we synchronized radio channels and one group headed up canyon, I headed down canyon and Lud stayed by the mine. The bird showed up just above the mine shortly before 10:00am and sang continuously from some maples where it was able to remain remarkably well concealed. However, over a period of 20 minutes we managed some excellent views at a beautiful and pristine looking male as it popped into view from time to time. Of course, I got the short end of the stick because I was down canyon and had to struggle up the steep trail once again. The canyon was loaded with RED-FACED WARBLERS this morning, I on the other hand was a Red-faced Wobbler. On the plus side, I was able to inform other birders down canyon that the tanager was present and, in the end, a large group got to see it. All's well that ends well.

Despite the windy conditions, the canyon was quite active and there was plenty of calling and singing from a number of species. For those not familiar with Flame-colored song, several singing HEPATIC TANAGERS could have been a source of potential confusion. Thankfully, however, Western Tanagers have not yet arrived here because their call is close enough to the Flame-colored call to definitely cause confusion. We heard much more than we saw although we did have good looks at HAMMOND'S FLYCATCHER and RED-FACED, VIRGINIA'S & WILSON'S WARBLERS. I was surprised to hear a singing BUFF-BREASTED FLYCATCHER in the heart of the canyon.

Back in the lower canyon we spent an hour at Beatty's Guest Ranch and Orchard, mostly at the controlled access site. We managed 8 out of the 9 hummers present (missed Blue-throated, although we saw it in the canyon). Highlights were a male LUCIFER HUMMINGBIRD and a female CALLIOPE HUMMINGBIRD.

We recorded the following species from 6:00am-12:00pm (species in italics were seen at Beatty's only).
Cooper's Hawk, Broad-billed, Blue-throated, Magnificent, Lucifer, Anna's, Calliope, Broad-tailed & Rufous Hummingbirds, Arizona Woodpecker, N. Flicker, Greater Pewee, Hammond's, Buff-breasted, Dusky-capped & Ash-throated Flycatchers, Mexican Jay, Common Raven, Hutton's, Plumbeous & Warbling Vireos, Hermit Thrush, White-breasted Nuthatch, Brown Creeper, Canyon & House Wrens, Bushtit, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Bridled Titmouse, Pine Siskin, Lesser Goldfinch, Virginia's, Black-throated Gray, Grace's, Wilson's & Red-faced Warblers, Painted Redstart, Flame-colored & Hepatic Tanagers, Black-headed Grosbeak and Scott's Oriole.

Thursday, April 18, 2002    Previous Day    Next Day
This morning I made a cursory check of the San Pedro River at the highway 90 crossing. The area has a more summer like feel since my last visit here a couple of weeks ago -- the cottonwoods and willows are now quite green (not the mesquites yet) and some of the summer birds have arrived/increased in numbers. The number of wintering sparrows has decreased significantly.

Migrant WILSON'S and breeding YELLOW and LUCY'S warblers were all common, the latter two singing constantly. CASSIN'S KINGBIRDS have increased in numbers and are now fairly common; I heard their harsh calls throughout. ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHERS, SUMMER TANAGERS and BULLOCK'S ORIOLES have arrived and all were well represented today. 

When I first started birding on the San Pedro in 1993, BELL'S VIREOS were fairly common along the river and then went into decline for several years. It appears that something has changed because today I found them singing in four separate locations.

The most interesting birds were NORTHERN BEARDLESS-TYRANNULET (5th), WHITE-THROATED SPARROW (2nd) and BREWER'S BLACKBIRD (2nd). The numbers represent my personal sighting records (including today) at the highway 90 area of the San Pedro. Northern Beardless-Tyrannulet becomes much less common the further east and north that you go in southeast Arizona. I'm not sure what to make of my 5 records spanning April, May and June in 1998, 2000, 2001 and now 2002. Certainly, I haven't seen them often enough to indicate breeding here. White-throated Sparrows winter scarcely but regularly in southeast Arizona. My records indicate a slight peak in sightings during the latter part of April, presumably as the birds are moving out. Brewer's Blackbirds are a very common wintering species in southeast Arizona, especially so in parking lots in Sierra Vista. Today's sighting was a flyover near Kingfisher Pond and was within one day of my only other sighting here -- after going 8 years without seeing one, I saw a lone bird on April 19, 2002, also a flyover near the pond. Coincidence or the same bird? Very intriguing,

I recorded exactly 50 species from 6:00-8:00am
Mallard, Great Blue Heron, Cooper's, Gray, Swainson's & Red-tailed Hawks, Gambel's Quail, Am. Coot, Mourning & White-winged Doves, Great Horned Owl, Black-chinned Hummingbird, Belted Kingfisher, Gila & Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, N. Beardless-Tyrannulet, Gray, Dusky, Vermilion & Ash-throated Flycatchers, Cassin's Kingbird, Bell's Vireo, European Starling, White-breasted Nuthatch, Bewick's & House Wrens, Bushtit, N. Rough-winged Swallow, House Sparrow, Lesser Goldfinch, House Finch, Lucy's, Yellow & Wilson's Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Song, Lincoln's, White-crowned, White-throated, Chipping, Lark & Black-throated Sparrows, Green-tailed, Canyon & Abert's Towhees, Summer Tanager, Bullock's Oriole, Red-winged & Brewer's Blackbirds and Brown-headed Cowbird.

Friday, April, 19, 2002    Previous Day    Next Day
First of four days with Mary Anne Auer from St. Louis, MO. On another annoying and frustratingly windy day, we birded in the Huachucas visiting (in order) Garden, Sawmill, Scheelite and Miller Canyons.

A slow drive through lower Garden Canyon grassland yielded typical species such as RED-TAILED HAWK, SAY'S PHOEBE, WESTERN KINGBIRD, NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRD, singing LUCY'S WARBLER, PYRRHULOXIA, CANYON TOWHEE, BULLOCK'S ORIOLE and EASTERN MEADOWLARK. Reaching the tree line we added ACORN WOODPECKER, MEXICAN JAY, BEWICK'S WREN and a singing SCOTT'S ORIOLE. 

I was hoping that today would be the day that trogons would appear at the upper picnic area (I saw one here on March 31 but nothing since, so that bird might have been passing through). Just as we passed the stream crossing above the picnic area I heard the unmistakable barking that passes for an ELEGANT TROGON song. The bird was fairly high in a sycamore but we enjoyed some decent looks. A good start to the day! Their average arrival date here is April 19, so this bird was certainly punctual. Singing and/or calling nearby were HAMMOND'S FLYCATCHER (common everywhere today), BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER, HUTTON'S VIREO and BLACK-THROATED GRAY-WARBLER.

High winds made birding in Sawmill Canyon a challenge to say the least. However, a couple of hours of persistence and effort produced most of the expected species except Arizona Woodpecker. Among the regulars  from 25 species seen were WILD TURKEY, GREATER PEWEE, BUFF-BREASTED, HAMMOND'S & DUSKY-CAPPED FLYCATCHERS, CASSIN'S KINGBIRD, STELLER'S JAY, BROWN CREEPER, BRIDLED TITMOUSE, PLUMBEOUS & CASSIN'S VIREOS, GRACE'S & HERMIT WARBLERS, PAINTED REDSTART and YELLOW-EYED JUNCO.

In Scheelite Canyon, SPOTTED OWL was again ridiculously easy to find, roosting next to the trail in perhaps the most obvious of all roosting spots. Among the other species from 20 recorded in the canyon were HAMMOND'S FLYCATCHER, VIOLET-GREEN SWALLOW, CANYON WREN, HERMIT THRUSH. BLACK-THROATED GRAY & VIRGINIA'S WARBLERS, PAINTED REDSTART, SPOTTED TOWHEE; and great looks at a male HEPATIC TANAGER.

Leaving Fort Huachuca we could see the beginnings of a fire located on the west side of the mountains, north of Huachuca Peak. As the afternoon wore on, the fire spread very quickly fanned by the high winds. Let's hope that it doesn't burn as long as the fire in early March (that fire took almost two weeks to get under control).

We finished the day with a two hour session at Beatty's Guest Ranch and Orchard, spending all of our time at the controlled access site where we saw all 9 hummer species that are currently present. Highlights were a brief visit from a male LUCIFER HUMMINGBIRD (30 seconds worth in 2 hours!) and regular visits from female CALLIOPE with several visits from a male. BROAD-TAILED and BLACK-CHINNED were very common with MAGNIFICENT perhaps the next most common. Non hummers were remarkably silent although I did hear an ARIZONA WOODPECKER.

We recorded the following 64 species from 6:15am-3:15pm.
Turkey Vulture, Red-tailed Hawk, Am. Kestrel, Wild Turkey, Mourning & White-winged Doves, Spotted Owl, Broad-billed, Blue-throated, Magnificent, Lucifer, Black-chinned, Anna's, Calliope, Broad-tailed, & Rufous Hummingbirds, Elegant Trogon, Acorn & Arizona Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Greater Pewee, Say's Phoebe, Hammond's, Dusky, Buff-breasted, Dusky-capped & Ash-throated Flycatchers, Cassin's & Western Kingbirds, Steller's Jay, Western Scrub-Jay, Mexican Jay, Chihuahuan Raven, Hutton's, Cassin's & Plumbeous Vireos, Hermit Thrush, N. Mockingbird, White-breasted Nuthatch, Brown Creeper, Canyon & Bewick's Wrens, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Bushtit, Violet-green Swallow, Bridled Titmouse, House Sparrow, Lesser Goldfinch, House Finch, Virginia's, Lucy's, Black-throated Gray, Hermit & Grace's Warblers, Painted Redstart, Yellow-eyed Junco, Spotted & Canyon Towhees, Hepatic Tanager, Pyrrhuloxia, Bullock's & Scott's Orioles, Eastern Meadowlark and Great-tailed Grackle.

Saturday, April 20, 2002    Previous Day    Next Day
Day 2 with Mary Anne was a long day with many miles traveled -- in order we visited "the thrasher spot" west of Phoenix, Slate Creek Divide, Sunflower, Roosevelt Lake and Aravaipa Canyon. It was also a successful day with all primary target birds seen -- Clark's Grebe, Common Black-Hawk, Zone-tailed Hawk, Le Conte's Thrasher and Gray Vireo, as well as a number of secondary targets.

A 2:00am departure and a couple of brief stops put us at the thrasher spot at the intersection of Baseline Road and Salome Highway at 6:00am. My previous visits here this season have produced LE CONTE'S THRASHER fairly quickly and close to the road. Today we had to work for over an hour to find a lone singing bird, about 1/2 mile from the road. However, the bird perched very cooperatively and we enjoyed scope views for as long as we wanted. In the end we had to walk way with the bird still perched. The area was generally very quiet today and we neither saw nor heard any other thrasher species and less than 20 species in all. Among them were COOPER'S HAWK, ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER, several LOGGERHEAD SHRIKES, NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRD, VERDIN, BLACK-TAILED GNATCATCHER, WILSON'S WARBLER, BREWER'S SPARROW and GREEN-TAILED TOWHEE.

After a cross town drive we headed north to Slate Creek Divide, arriving there at 9:30am. I expected the area to be quite warm but conditions were just the opposite, very cool. In fact, almost cold with the wind. Just as at our first stop, activity here was also low and we had to work a little to rustle up a GRAY VIREO. By their standards we had a cooperative bird that flitted from bush to bush at a tolerable pace, and we enjoyed some fairly close looks. 

Next, we worked along the now isolated old section of Beeline Highway that runs along the creek (between mile marker 218 and Sycamore Spring exit of the new road). Upon arrival we detected movement on the traditional COMMON BLACK-HAWK nest, but it wasn't until an hour later that we determined it was an adult on the nest, not a young bird. We saw both birds soaring over the nest as well as enjoying a perched view. Other interesting raptors here were a perched MERLIN and a soaring PEREGRINE FALCON.

The area was quite birdy and we had plenty to look at while waiting for the Black-Hawks to put in an appearance. Probably the best birds were a couple of CASSIN'S FINCHES -- they have been scarce in the south this winter. Also present among 20+ species were HAMMOND'S & DUSKY FLYCATCHERS, WESTERN SCRUB-JAY, a small group of CEDAR WAXWINGS, LAZULI BUNTING and BULLOCK'S ORIOLE. 

Now that it isolated by the new road, this area is a pleasant and productive place to bird although, unfortunately, not for long. The road is now a private road with lots of land for sale. A resident told us that very soon the road at the mile marker 218 end will be gated, although he did say that access should be possible by calling ahead to a resident. Note: The road is temporarily blocked  in the middle (soon to be permanent) and it is necessary to use the Sycamore Spring exit to reach Slate Creek Divide.  

Next, we checked Roosevelt Lake where we easily picked out numerous CLARK'S among the WESTERN GREBES. The water level is very low but a short session at Bermuda Flats yielded 25 species included DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT, CANADA GOOSE, BUFFLEHEAD, SNOWY EGRET, AMERICAN AVOCET, RING-BILLED & FRANKLIN'S GULLS and ROCK WREN.

Heading south we saw a flying COMMON BLACK-HAWK along the river north of Winkleman. Our birding day ended in Aravaipa Canyon where a short vigil at the traditional ZONE-TAILED HAWK nest produced both birds soaring close by, just when it looked like they wouldn't put in an appearance. Our day ended when we rolled into Sierra Vista at 7:30pm.

Sunday, April 21, 2002    Previous Day    Next Day
Day 3 with Mary Anne started surprisingly cold and it was only 30 degrees as we left town at 5:00am. Later, however, the temperature rose considerably and it was a warmer day than of late. We visited Miller Canyon, Sulphur Springs Valley and several locations in the Chiricahuas.

Despite the cold morning in town, the temperature in Miller Canyon was fairly mild. We left highway 92 at 5:15am and reached the area above the abandoned mine shaft a few minutes after 6:00am. The FLAME-COLORED TANAGER was already active and singing and, generally, the bird was easy to pick up by sound. However, several WESTERN TANAGERS and a couple of HEPATIC TANAGERS working the same group of trees made it difficult to get on the "correct" bird. All three species were constantly on the move flying from tree to tree. We stayed in the same spot for an hour and eventually managed to see all key field marks.

Even though we didn't spend much time in the canyon, we recorded 35 species including GREATER PEWEE, HAMMOND'S, BUFF-BREASTED & DUSKY-CAPPED FLYCATCHERS, GRACE'S, VIRGINIA'S & RED-FACED WARBLERS, PAINTED REDSTART, YELLOW-EYED JUNCO and SCOTT'S ORIOLE.

Heading east on highway 92, a WHITE-TAILED KITE was working the fields on the north side of the highway near the Coronado Memorial Road. They are generally scarce in SE AZ and this area is one of the most reliable places to find them. 

At Whitewater Draw, we needed a couple of bites at the cherry to get satisfactory looks at a very cooperative BENDIRE'S THRASHER. In between attempts we checked the water (what's left of it) and came up with 35 species including several BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT-HERONS, circa 70 WHITE-FACED IBIS, 1-LESSER YELLOWLEGS, 1-SPOTTED SANDPIPER and 2-WESTERN SANDPIPERS.

After an unsuccessful attempt for Crissal Thrasher, we headed north through the valley to the Chiricahuas. Roadside birds included several SWAINSON'S HAWKS, lots of WESTERN KINGBIRDS and LOGGERHEAD SHRIKES and a flock of LARK BUNTINGS nearing full breeding plumage.

Pinery Canyon Road was a little on the quiet side in the early afternoon, however, I was pleasantly surprised to find MEXICAN CHICKADEE here at a relatively low elevation, the only flock of chickadees that we came across. At higher elevation we had to work a little to find a couple of OLIVE WARBLERS and even PYGMY NUTHATCHES were somewhat scarce. Back at lower elevation we didn't have any trouble finding JUNIPER TITMOUSE along the Paradise Road. A couple of birds not seen that I had hoped to find were Band-tailed Pigeon and Cordilleran Flycatcher. 

Day list (96 species recorded): 
Cinnamon Teal, Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Black-crowned Night-Heron, White-faced Ibis, Turkey Vulture, White-tailed Kite, Coopers, Swainson's & Red-tailed Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Scaled Quail, Am. Coot, Lesser Yellowlegs, Spotted & Western Sandpipers, Killdeer, Rock, Mourning & White-winged Doves, Greater Roadrunner, White-throated Swift, Blue-throated,, Magnificent & Broad-tailed Hummingbirds, Acorn, Ladder-backed, Arizona & Hairy Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Say's & Black Phoebes, Greater Pewee, Hammond's, Buff-breasted, Dusky-capped & Ash-throated Flycatchers, Cassin's & Western Kingbirds, Steller's & Mexican Jays, Chihuahuan & Common Ravens, Hutton's, Plumbeous & Warbling Vireos, Loggerhead Shrike, Phainopepla, Hermit Thrush, N. Mockingbird, Bendire's & Curve-billed Thrashers, Pygmy & White-breasted Nuthatches, Brown Creeper, Cactus, Canyon, Bewick's & House Wrens, Bushtit, Violet-green, Barn & Cliff Swallows, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Mexican Chickadee, Bridled Titmouse, Juniper Titmouse, Horned Lark, House Sparrow, Pine Siskin, House Finch, Olive, Orange-crowned, Virginia's, Black-throated Gray, Grace's, Wilson's & Red-faced Warblers, Painted Redstart, Lark Bunting, Yellow-eyed Junco, Song, White-crowned, Brewer's, Lark & Black-throated Sparrows, Canyon Towhee, Flame-colored, Hepatic & Western Tanagers, N. Cardinal, Pyrrhuloxia, Bullock's & Scott's Orioles, Red-winged Blackbird and Great-tailed Grackle.

Monday, April 22, 2002    Previous Day    Next Day
Day 4 and final day with Mary Anne. After a pleasant blue sky morning followed by afternoon high clouds, the temperature reached 90 degrees in Sierra Vista today. We birded at Patagonia Lake State Park, Kino Springs, Paton's Yard, the San Pedro River and in the Huachucas. 

We began the day with 3 hours at Patagonia Lake looking for a few target species. The morning started well shortly after we left the car with a MACGILLIVRAY'S WARBLER foraging in a mesquite with ORANGE-CROWNED, LUCY'S, YELLOW RUMPED and WILSON'S (abundant everywhere) WARBLERS. We then spent most of our time looking for Northern Beardless-Tyrannulet and Pacific-slope Flycatcher, the latter unsuccessfully. 

Now that nesting is underway, NORTHERN BEARDLESS-TYRANNULETS are far less vocal and harder to find. However, at the second attempt, our short vigil at a nest site paid off with views of one bird's head peeping out of the nest entrance followed by both birds interacting in a nearby tree. 

As we prepared to leave, I thought I had seen a couple of Yellow-headed Blackbirds so we left the car to investigate. Instead, we found a RUFOUS-WINGED SPARROW that popped up out of the grass and posed for a short period. One of those serendipitous moments that produced a lifer for Mary Anne and a new bird at the state park for me (#236). Someone else had seen the bird here in a previous year, but to date I had been unable to find any. Even better was the fact that it saved us some miles and time.   

The park is now looking very green and both bird and people activity was fairly high today. We recorded over 60 species -- among the less common were DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT with the regular NEOTROPIC CORMORANTS; a calling LEAST BITTERN (a nester here); and PINE SISKIN which is very scarce here (I have 7 records total, 2 in spring). Summer birds that have returned since my last visit were YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT and SUMMER TANAGER. Migrants/wintering species recorded included GRAY and HAMMOND'S FLYCATCHERS, PLUMBEOUS VIREO, LARK SPARROW, GREEN-TAILED TOWHEE and SCOTT'S ORIOLE.

As is usually the case, GRAY HAWK was easy to find at Kino Springs -- at the club house pond (that continues to get drier) we saw 2 birds at a nest site and heard a third, another bird was at the first pond. A lone BLACK-BELLIED WHISTLING-DUCK was at the club house pond. Others from 30+ seen during a short visit included a well camouflaged GREEN HERON, calling COMMON GROUND-DOVES and oh, did I mention, WILSON'S WARBLER. 

A stop at the Roadside Rest area in Patagonia quickly produced an immaculate looking THICK-BILLED KINGBIRD in pristine plumage.

In the Paton's yard, we had several good looks at VIOLET-CROWNED HUMMINGBIRD, but Costa's was a no-show during our one hour stay. BROAD-BILLED and BLACK-CHINNED were both abundant; we also saw a female ANNA'S and a beautiful male RUFOUS. Many BULLOCK'S and a single HOODED ORIOLE took advantage of the orange halves. A male BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAK was at the seed feeders along with continuing LAZULI BUNTINGS and an AMERICAN GOLDFINCH. As usual, GILA WOODPECKER was hard to miss.

Our next stop was Sawmill Canyon where we only need 30 minutes to track down an ARIZONA WOODPECKER that had thus far eluded us. It was very quiet here and in Garden Canyon in the early afternoon.

After a break we resumed on the San Pedro River to pickup ABERT'S TOWHEE and look for PACIFIC-SLOPE FLYCATCHER. Although we managed to locate the flycatcher calling high up in a leafy cottonwood, we were unable to see it in the failing light. Among the 30 species noted in an hour or so just before dark were GRAY and DUSKY FLYCATCHERS, at least 2-CASSIN'S VIREOS and YELLOW-BREASTED CHAT.

Back in the Huachucas, our evening owling session was a mixed bag. Although conditions seemed excellent -- mild temperature, long calm periods between wind gusts, and a half-moon, our target Whiskered and Western Screech-Owls apparently didn't agree. After some initial interest from a couple of WHISKERED SCREECH-OWLS, we had to work several more regular spots before getting a good look at a bird that came in to check us out without vocalizing, while another bird called softly nearby. At no time during our 90 minute session did we even hear a Western Screech-Owl. Even so, half a loaf is better than none. Ironically, ELF OWLS were chattering away at every stop that we made.

After four days, Mary Anne left with 49 lifers and we recorded 178 species in the process of looking for them. I had thought at the start of the trip that we would get 50, but it didn't quite happen!

Day list (102 species recorded):
Pied-billed Grebe, Neotropic & Double-crested Cormorants, Black-bellied Whistling-Duck, Ruddy Duck, Mallard, Ring-necked Duck, Great Blue & Green Herons, Least Bittern, Turkey Vulture, N. Harrier, Cooper's, Gray & Red-tailed Hawks, Gambel's Quail, Am. Coot, Killdeer, Rock, Mourning, White-winged & Inca Doves, Common Ground-Dove, Greater Roadrunner, Whiskered Screech-Owl, Elf Owl, Broad-billed, Violet-crowned, Black-chinned, Anna's & Rufous Hummingbirds, Acorn, Gila, Ladder-backed & Arizona Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Say's Phoebe, Hammond's, Gray, Dusky, Pacific-slope, Vermilion, Dusky-capped & Ash-throated Flycatchers, Cassin's, Thick-billed & Western Kingbirds, Steller's & Mexican Jays, Chihuahuan & Common Ravens, Bell's, Cassin's & Plumbeous Vireos, Phainopepla, N. Mockingbird, Curve-billed Thrasher, European Starling, Canyon & Bewick's Wrens, Verdin, Bushtit, Tree, N. Rough-winged & Barn Swallows, House Sparrow, Pine Siskin, American & Lesser Goldfinches, House Finch, Orange-crowned, Lucy's, Yellow, Yellow-rumped, Grace's, MacGillivray's & Wilson's Warblers, Common Yellowthroat, Painted Redstart, Yellow-breasted Chat, Song, Lincoln's, White-crowned, Chipping, Brewer's, Lark & Rufous-winged Sparrows, Green-tailed, Canyon & Abert's Towhees, Summer Tanager, Black-headed Grosbeak, N. Cardinal, Pyrrhuloxia, Lazuli Bunting, Hooded, Bullock's & Scott's Orioles, Red-winged Blackbird, Eastern Meadowlark, Great-tailed Grackle and Brown-headed Cowbird.

Wednesday, April 24, 2002    Previous Day    Next Day
Today I visited French Joe Canyon to check on Rufous-capped Warbler and migrant activity. I left home early enough to pick up Common Poorwill on the drive in, but I was disappointed to see another vehicle in front of me which put paid to any chance that I had of seeing one. I entered the canyon at 5:10am, parked at 5:30am, and after some vigorous speed hiking I reached the upper spring at 6:05am. Not bad for an old fart. I wanted to get up there quickly so that I'd be able to listen for the warbler without the noise and distractions of other birders.

My strategy paid off at 6:10am when I located the RUFOUS-CAPPED WARBLERS singing near the dry waterfall. Their singing only lasted a couple of minutes. I stayed in the upper canyon until 8:00am without seeing or hearing the warblers again. Others were still looking when I left.

The canyon was fairly active today and I saw nice mix of migrants and returning summer breeders along with the regular residents. Shortly after I arrived near the upper spring I heard several MONTEZUMA QUAIL calling from multiple locations high up on the south slope. A lone BAND-TAILED PIGEON was perched in the canopy of an oak tree.

Newsworthy for one day a year was my season first WESTERN WOOD-PEWEE, very soon they'll be annoyingly common and vocal. The bird was my earliest spring sighting in SE AZ by one day. Other summer/resident birds included CORDILLERAN FLYCATCHER, lots of singing BLACK-CHINNED SPARROWS, SUMMER & HEPATIC TANAGERS, BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAK and SCOTT'S and HOODED ORIOLES.

Among the migrants were many HAMMOND'S FLYCATCHERS, 2 DUSKY FLYCATCHERS, 2 CASSIN'S VIREOS, and TOWNSEND'S,  HERMIT and many WILSON'S WARBLERS.

I recorded the following species in the canyon from 5:10-9:30am.
Montezuma Quail, Band-tailed Pigeon, Mourning & White-winged Doves, White-throated Swift, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Western Wood-Pewee, Say's Phoebe, Hammond's, Dusky, Cordilleran & Ash-throated Flycatchers, Cassin's Kingbird, Western Scrub-Jay, Mexican Jay, Hutton's, Cassin's, Plumbeous & Warbling Vireos, N. Mockingbird, Rock, Canyon, Bewick's & House Wrens, Verdin, Bushtit, Violet-green Swallow, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Bridled Titmouse, House Finch, Orange-crowned, Virginia's, Lucy's, Black-throated Gray, Townsend's, Hermit, Wilson's & Rufous-capped Warblers, Chipping, Black-chinned, Black-throated & Rufous-crowned Sparrows, Green-tailed, Spotted & Canyon Towhees, Hepatic & Summer Tanagers, Black-headed Grosbeak, N. Cardinal and Hooded & Scott's Orioles.

Thursday, April 25, 2002    Previous Day    Next Day   
First of two days with Jim and Eloise Gunter from Houston, TX. On this mostly cloudy and relatively cool day we spent all of our time in the Huachucas.

After seeing some typical species in lower Garden Canyon grassland we stopped at a fairly active lower picnic area. Among the species present here were WESTERN WOOD-PEWEE, ASH-THROATED FLYCATCHER, HEPATIC & WESTERN TANAGERS, SCOTT'S ORIOLE and my first mountain BROWN-HEADED COWBIRD of the spring. They normally move into the canyons in mid April and become very common in May. 

Two male ELEGANT TROGONS were dueling by song at the upper picnic area and the closest bird was relatively easy to locate. However, we had to work hard on difficult terrain to get a scope on it, although in the end we committed the cardinal sin of walking away, leaving the bird still singing perched atop an oak. Also here were HAMMOND'S & DUSKY-CAPPED FLYCATCHER, CASSIN'S VIREO and BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLER.

Initially, Sawmill Canyon was a little quiet under overcast skies (except for MEXICAN and STELLER'S JAYS) and we had to work for our birds. After a couple of hours we had weeded out 20+ species including WILD TURKEY, ARIZONA WOODPECKER, GREATER PEWEE, BUFF-BREASTED FLYCATCHER, GRACE'S WARBLER, PAINTED REDSTART, HEPATIC TANAGER and YELLOW-EYED JUNCO. A singing HERMIT THRUSH was somewhat of a surprise -- although they winter in Sawmill, they usually move to denser and more moist canyons to breed.

Next stop was Scheelite Canyon where SPOTTED OWL was again very easy to find. However, today the bird was in a very infrequently used tree a little off the trail. I have seen an owl in this tree only 6 times, most recently in May 2001. Our midday visit time ensured very little activity. Among the species seen were BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER, CASSIN'S VIREO and BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLER. The gnatcatcher was my first in Scheelite this season (average date here is April 18).

We finished up at Beatty's Guest Ranch and Orchard in Miller Canyon. Most of the activity was at the controlled access site where we saw 6 species of hummers - BLUE-THROATED, MAGNIFICENT, BLACK-CHINNED, ANNA'S, CALLIOPE (male and female) and BROAD-TAILED. At the public viewing area, a beautiful male LAZULI BUNTING was at the seed feeder with several BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAKS.

We recorded the following within the Huachucas:
Turkey Vulture, Cooper's & Red-tailed Hawks, Am. Kestrel, Wild Turkey, Mourning Dove, Spotted Owl, Blue-throated, Magnificent, Black-chinned, Anna's, Calliope & Broad-tailed Hummingbirds, Elegant Trogon, Arizona Woodpecker, N. Flicker, Greater Pewee, Western Wood-Pewee, Hammond's, Buff-breasted, Dusky-capped & Ash-throated Flycatchers, Cassin's & Western Kingbirds, Steller's Jay, Western Scrub-Jay, Mexican Jay, Common Raven, Hutton's, Cassin's & Plumbeous Vireos, Loggerhead Shrike, Hermit Thrush, Am. Robin, White-breasted Nuthatch, Brown Creeper, Canyon & Bewick's Wrens, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Bushtit, Bridled Titmouse, Lesser Goldfinch, House Finch, Lucy's, Black-throated Gray, Grace's & Wilson's Warblers, Painted Redstart, Yellow-eyed Junco, Lark Sparrow, Spotted Towhee, Hepatic & Western Tanagers, Black-headed Grosbeak, Lazuli Bunting, Bullock's & Scott's Orioles, Eastern Meadowlark and Brown-headed Cowbird.

Friday, April 26, 2002    Previous Day    Next Day
Out again today with Jim and Eloise. We spent the day in the Patagonia area visiting Patagonia Lake State Park, Kino Springs, Patagonia Roadside Rest and the Paton's yard. Apart from the first couple of hours, it was a very windy day and birding was definitely a challenge. Nevertheless, we did OK.

Patagonia Lake was fairly active and our 4 1/2 hour session produced 65 species without birding along the creek. Highlights for me (although I didn't realize it at the time) were a flock of 35 AMERICAN AVOCETS and a female RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD. Both were new species for me at the state park bringing my list here to 238. If I live long enough perhaps I'll see most of the birds of SE AZ here!

Along the east marsh trail, LEAST BITTERN was singing constantly as we watched NORTHERN BEARDLESS-TYRANNULETS at the nest; chased a BELL'S VIREO that was unrelenting in its efforts to avoid us, all the while singing its "where did the little shit go, what did the little shit do" song; watched several species of swallows battling the wind; watched a GREAT-TAILED GRACKLE chase a BELTED KINGFISHER across the lake; and checked countless WILSON'S WARBLERS that all turned out to be Wilson's Warblers. An eventful walk!

SUMMER TANAGERS are now abundant, calling, singing and chasing, BULLOCK'S ORIOLES are also common but were hard to see, while VERMILION FLYCATCHERS are now much less conspicuous. NEOTROPIC CORMORANTS continue to increase in numbers. We noted a single BLACK-BELLIED WHISTLING-DUCK. Migrants included WHITE-FACED IBIS, PACIFIC-SLOPE FLYCATCHER, PLUMBEOUS & WARBLING VIREOS and LARK SPARROW.

It was blowing a gale at Kino Springs and for a while it looked like we would have difficulty in finding a GRAY HAWK. However, we did find one individual kind enough to perch in the clear despite the wind.

We checked the Roadside Rest, Salero Road and all along Blue Heaven Road without seeing or hearing a Thick-billed Kingbird. They normally choose conspicuous perches but I'm sure that today's windy conditions caused them to make a few adjustments.

An hour in the Paton's yard was very productive and yielded over 30 species. VIOLET-CROWNED was a regular visitor to the feeders along with mostly female BROAD-BILLED and BLACK-CHINNED HUMMINGBIRDS. Highlights were good numbers of BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAKS, BULLOCK'S ORIOLES and LAZULI BUNTINGS. Also present were BELL'S VIREO, SUMMER TANAGER, at least one AMERICAN GOLDFINCH and GREEN-TAILED & ABERT'S TOWHEES. A Western Screech-Owl has returned for another year although we didn't see it today.

Saturday, April 27, 2002    Previous Day    Next Day
Out today with Owen & Pam Laugharne from Middleton-on-Sea, England. A very cool start to a day that began calmly then became windy later, although thankfully not as windy as yesterday. We spent our time in the Huachucas.

In Garden Canyon, ELEGANT TROGON was much harder to find this morning and it took almost two hours before we saw one. In recent days, birds have been calling regularly just above the upper picnic area and we initially focused our attention in that area. We met someone who had seen one near Scheelite so we drove up there then walked back down to the picnic area -- still nothing. After a while I decided to walk down canyon to where a bird had nested last year, even though I hadn't seen or heard one there yet this year. The move paid off and I heard a bird calling just as someone walking up canyon said a bird was present. We were soon able to see the bird well, perched completely in the open, probably because I left my camera in the car.

Garden Canyon was quite birdy in the sunny spots and we recorded over 40 species while driving through the grassland and looking for the trogon. Highlights were HAMMOND'S (very common), BUFF-BREASTED and CORDILLERAN FLYCATCHERS and a pair of HEPATIC TANAGERS seen several times. After seeming a little scarce recently, ARIZONA WOODPECKERS were very noisy and conspicuous today. HUTTON'S VIREOS were singing throughout from concealed locations and were very hard to see. Less of a problem was a singing WARBLING VIREO that we were able to track down. WESTERN SCRUB-JAYS called from a hillside but remained unseen.

In Scheelite, the tone for what was to follow was set as soon as we entered the canyon and embarked upon a fruitless scramble to track down a singing SPOTTED TOWHEE. Spotted Owl was very hard to find today, so hard in fact that I failed to find one at all, despite a thorough search of the lower and upper canyon. My first miss since early January. After a period of seeing two birds, I've been consistently seeing a single bird in the same general area leading me to believe that the other bird is on a nest. I'm guessing that yesterday's high winds caused the bird to make a change today, although I could easily have walked past it, something that I've done from time to time. Owen & Pam are heading to Miller tomorrow for the tanager so perhaps they'll see the pair of owls that are being seen there.

Next, we headed to Beatty's Guest Ranch and Orchard in Miller Canyon for some less vigorous birding, or "birding by rear" as I like to call it. As we drove down there, the highlight of the day for Owen and Pam was a GREATER ROADRUNNER that scurried across the road in typical fashion, across a busy highway 92 no less. This was a bird that they really wanted to see and one that had eluded them for the past week. Some slight redemption for missing the owl, although I can claim no credit at all. Like most of my Montezuma Quail sightings, Roadrunner sightings almost always seem to occur in serendipitous circumstances.

Despite the wind, hummingbird activity at the controlled access site in the early afternoon was quite good and we managed seven species -- male & female BROAD-BILLED, male BLUE-THROATED, male & female MAGNIFICENT, male & female BLACK-CHINNED, male ANNA'S, female CALLIOPE and male & female BROAD-TAILED. Non hummers included ARIZONA WOODPECKER and HEPATIC TANAGER that both flew into the same tree, an ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER at the small pool, and LAZULI BUNTING, BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAK and PINE SISKIN, all at the lower seed feeders.

Monday, April 29, 2002    Previous Day    Next Day   
First of three days with Steve Bobonick (who I've birded with once before) & Dave Helm, both from Cincinnati, OH. A 4:30am start and some cloudy and relatively cool weather allowed us to quit at midday after seeing all six of the target birds that we sought.

We entered French Joe Canyon shortly before 5:00am and found two RUFOUS-CAPPED WARBLERS at 6:05am. Both birds were singing from the north slope about 100 yards below the (dry) pools. A little patience resulted in one of the birds coming down slope and perching on an Agave not too far from our location -- a satisfying view. By 6:20am they had moved up canyon to the area of last year's first (failed) nest site and ten minutes later were 50 yards above the spring in the bottom of the canyon, heading towards the dry waterfall. Sneaky little buggers.

The overcast skies and lack of sunshine caused the canyon to be somewhat subdued this morning. One of the few vocalizing birds was SCOTT'S ORIOLE, which was just as well since it was a target bird. BLACK-CHINNED SPARROW was another target and we only heard one sporadically singing bird in the upper canyon. Normally they are very common  and vocal. At one point we attempted to give chase up a thorny and steep slope but soon abandoned that idea. Again, this was just as well because about an hour later we had excellent looks at a very close bird in the lower part of the canyon.

Less common species seen were a migrating NORTHERN HARRIER, a couple of  BROAD-TAILED HUMMINGBIRDS (presumed migrating since I have no summer records, although quite a few in fall migration) and a LINCOLN'S SPARROW at the upper spring (they are uncommon here in winter).

Later, I was surprised to find that we had recorded the following 44 species by the time we left, having spent roughly 4 hours in the canyon:
N. Harrier, Band-tailed Pigeon, Mourning & White-winged Doves, White-throated Swift, Black-chinned & Broad-tailed Hummingbirds, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Say's Phoebe, Hammond's, Dusky, Cordilleran & Ash-throated Flycatchers, Cassin's Kingbird, Western Scrub-Jay, Mexican Jay, Hutton's & Plumbeous Vireos, Hermit Thrush, N. Mockingbird, Rock, Canyon & Bewick's Wrens, Bushtit, Violet-green Swallow, Bridled Titmouse, House Finch, Orange-crowned, Lucy's, Black-throated Gray, Wilson's & Rufous-capped Warblers, Lincoln's, Black-chinned, Black-throated & Rufous-crowned Sparrows, Spotted & Canyon Towhees, Hepatic, Summer & Western Tanagers, Black-headed Grosbeak, N. Cardinal and Scott's Oriole.

We were selected for a spot check at Fort Huachuca main gate which was only a minor inconvenience considering what such checks might prevent. Once we reached Garden Canyon it didn't take very long to find a vocalizing ELEGANT TROGON. Of course, I left my camera in the car which was probably the reason we were getting fantastic views. I hurried back down canyon to get the camera and noticed a tour group -- I did my civic duty and informed them of the bird which probably cost me some good shots. Not to worry, everybody saw the bird well and I'll have plenty more opportunities for photos. By the time I returned, I had to settle for rear views. 

In the same area, I heard our target CASSIN'S VIREO singing in the background above the sound of several singing PLUMBEOUS VIREOS and we were soon able to track it down and get a good look. Other species here included a calling but unseen ARIZONA WOODPECKER, BUFF-BREASTED FLYCATCHER and BLACK-THROATED GRAY, TOWNSEND'S, HERMIT & WILSON'S WARBLERS.

So far so good. We headed up to a somewhat warm and windy Sawmill Canyon where we again had success in finding a singing GREATER PEWEE despite the late morning hour. Not much else was active although we did see my first Sawmill WESTERN WOOD-PEWEE of the season. 

At this point we thought that owling would have to be cancelled due to the wind, but as evening rolled around conditions were calm. However, our owling session was largely unsuccessful. It began well enough under very calm conditions with GREAT HORNED OWL, ELF OWL and COMMON POORWILL all calling as we stepped out of the vehicle. Our first target was WHISKERED SCREECH-OWL and it only took about 15 minutes to find a cooperative bird. Next, we worked on WESTERN SCREECH-OWL that proved difficult to find. Eventually, we located what first appeared to be a cooperative pair of birds. This wasn't the case and they led us quite some distance before disappearing completely at the critical moment. We turned our attention to Flammulated Owl and climbed higher into their habitat. Unfortunately, the wind was now a major factor and it didn't take long before we abandoned the proceedings. A rather inauspicious end to a mostly successful day.

Tuesday, April 30, 2002    Previous Day    Next Day
Out again today with Steve and Dave. Boy, am I sick and tired of the windy conditions, an ear birder's nightmare. Today was another very windy day making it difficult for firefighters working on yet another fire on the west side of the Huachucas. Our problems with the wind were of a less serious nature as we worked on finding a couple of target birds.

We began early for the hike up Miller Canyon and reached the old mine shaft area just before 6:00am. Although we located the FLAME-COLORED TANAGER after only a few minutes, it took over 1 1/2 hours before we all had decent looks. The bird sang often, enabling us to stay with it, but was very flighty, moving constantly over an area +/- 100 yards up and down canyon from the mine shaft. The bird seems to be holding its own defending this rather small territory. It was relatively easy to obtain brief glimpses of the bird but long satisfying looks were hard to come by. Numerous WESTERN and HEPATIC TANAGERS flying every which way and the wind blowing the trees around certainly didn't help our cause. Nevertheless, we prevailed in the end and left the area around 7:45am after helping a few members of the same tour group that we bumped into yesterday.

General bird activity was a little less than on recent visits, probably due to the wind. Even so, RED-FACED WARBLERS were easy to come by and GREATER PEWEES sang constantly. Other species included ARIZONA WOODPECKER, BUFF-BREASTED FLYCATCHER, PLUMBEOUS and WARBLING VIREOS, VIRGINIA'S WARBLER and PINE SISKIN. Among the birds in the lower canyon were CASSIN'S VIREO and numerous singing BLACK-THROATED GRAY WARBLERS.  

Next, we headed to Carr Canyon where it was blowing a gale as we started out on the Comfort Spring trail. I didn't hold out much hope for success but was pleasantly surprised when we were able to find a very cooperative NORTHERN PYGMY-OWL in a location that has been reliable for the past few years. Despite the high wind, the bird stayed perched in the clear in a pine tree for quite a while. With the exception of a high elevation LAZULI BUNTING, most of the species seen were the same as those seen in Miller Canyon. 

This log is in chronological order and the most recent entries are at the bottom of the page.
The last update was on Tuesday, April 30, 2002.

Species List

Stuart Healy Journal - April, 2002 If you use the contents of my journal for commercial purposes, please acknowledge the source to your clients - thanks.

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