Sunday, November 30, 2014

Black Friday Birding Specials

Crested Caracara-we counted 26 of them! 
Oh there's nothing like waiting until the last minute for those special items......


The stress.  The mad rush to get those last minute birds before that big day arrives. 

Juvenile Crested Caracara
To find them, you have to get a little down and dirty.

Red-breasted Sapsucker-snapped this past week in Madera Canyon 
I can't order these specialties online nor do I seem to find them anywhere on the racks.  "Limited edition!" I'd say.   
A favorite!  The Arizona Woodpecker.  
But I got up early before everyone else did!  Not fair.  Who cut the line?

Sexy sexy Lark Bunting
Did I go to the wrong place?  But the advertisement said......

A common color for birds out in the Flats is yellow.  Western Meadowlarks(above), Savannah Sparrows, Horned Larks, etc are just some examples.  All were in great numbers on this trek. 
.....there'd be one available down this way!  I even had the right GPS coordinates!

American Pipit
Well I guess I'll do the best I can. That's really all I can do to get ready for the big day. 

Last week after school I went to capture a shot of the geese near my school.  Snow Goose(left) with Greater white-fronted Goose
Thankfully we all teamed up and switched to Plan B.  It's always good to have a Plan B even if you didn't know you had a Plan B. Luckily we found some Mountain Plovers together.  
Mountain Plover!  We counted 6 of them.  A much needed "new" bird for the year. Nothing like waiting until the last minute:)
Better to team up and share the experience!


December 31st is approaching quickly.  Just how many more birds can I find before the year is over?  This has been an amazing experience.  Part of me just wants to bird like a normal person again.  The other part wants to keep going.  And the other part worries that I might be obsessed with birds:) A special thank you to Magill Weber for driving and suggesting a trip out to the Santa Cruz Flats. Laurence Butler also joined in on the fun and together we conquered the Flats. (Or so we thought.  A group of wise ancient birders covered the same area and found a rare gem to AZ known as a Black-throated Blue Warbler!) I swore I wouldn't go out there again unless I had to!  I even tried to get my Mountain Plovers in Colorado but that plan didn't work out.  So back to the dirty Flats it was. Even if you bird from the car, you will get dirty! But I will say that the Flats have one of the best raptor shows in Arizona during the winter. Just be prepared to take a shower when you get home:) More next week.....


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27 comments:

  1. GigaNovember 30, 2014 at 9:38 AM

    Beautiful birds you show a feeder for them is very ingenious. Regards.

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  2. GaelynNovember 30, 2014 at 5:07 PM

    This sure beats the hell out of shopping.

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  3. IdaNovember 30, 2014 at 9:00 PM

    Wow you keep busy with all these birds shots. How fun that must be and I'm so glad I get to see them as well through your wonderful photos.

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  4. IdaNovember 30, 2014 at 9:00 PM

    Wow you keep busy with all these birds shots. How fun that must be and I'm so glad I get to see them as well through your wonderful photos.

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  5. IdaNovember 30, 2014 at 9:01 PM

    Wow you keep busy with all these birds shots. How fun that must be and I'm so glad I get to see them as well through your wonderful photos.

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  6. EG CameraGirlNovember 30, 2014 at 9:55 PM

    You were very wise to spend Black Friday looking for rare birds rather than shopping for items you probably don't really need. :)

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  7. ThérèseDecember 1, 2014 at 1:36 AM

    I simply love your "limited editionS"
    I never wanted to re-experiment a "black Friday" in a store after the unique time I did when we were trying to stick to the traditions the first year we lived in the States in 1988.
    Short before we left for Europe, we drove up to a store in the late evening only to take a picture of the waiting line in front of my favorite store (T).

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  8. Ragged RobinDecember 1, 2014 at 4:55 AM

    Great post and wonderful thoughts for Black Friday :) Good Luck with birding between now and the end of the month.

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  9. JeanneDecember 1, 2014 at 11:41 AM

    I think there is more sanity in being obsessed with birds than shopping on the Friday after Thanksgiving. (I refuse to even say the word.)

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  10. mickDecember 1, 2014 at 1:17 PM

    A great series of special birds - and I am sure much more fun chasing them than chasing shopping specials. Good luck for all the birds you need to see before the 31st!

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  11. Richard PeglerDecember 2, 2014 at 2:37 AM

    I can think of no better way to beat the pre-Christmas blues than to do what you did here, Chris. What an amazing and rewarding adventure! And you recorded it so beautifully with your camera too!

    I'm pleased to say that I managed to completely ignore 'Black Friday' and 'Cyber Monday (whatever will they think of next??!!) - refused even to open e-mails which mentioned either of those two.

    Best wishes - - - - Richard

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  12. David M. Gascoigne,December 2, 2014 at 5:48 AM

    Great job. Very creative and humorously done - a few great birds don't hurt either!

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  13. UnknownDecember 2, 2014 at 11:40 AM

    I like these specials a lot better than anything you can find shopping!

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  14. eileeninmdDecember 2, 2014 at 12:40 PM

    Great outing, Chris! I would rather go birding than shopping any day!

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  15. TexWisGirlDecember 2, 2014 at 1:36 PM

    awesome caracara shots! good luck finishing the year!

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  16. A Colorful WorldDecember 2, 2014 at 8:12 PM

    Oh, what a great post! Now that's my kind of black Friday! Wow! You are seeing so many interesting birds...I haven't been getting out to find them, and I feel like I am SOOO missing out! Great photos! Wonderful birding venture, that's for sure.

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  17. NatureStopDecember 3, 2014 at 12:04 AM

    Greetings from Dubai and I just loved your write up and sure you did get some great images.Have a great day!

    Shantana

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  18. Margaret Birding For PleasureDecember 3, 2014 at 12:06 AM

    Shopping - I HATE! Birding wins every time. All these shots are lovely.

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  19. Hootin AnniDecember 3, 2014 at 2:07 AM

    First, good luck with your year end quest for more bird sightings!!

    And with your images and narration, I really, REALLY enjoyed your post.

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  20. Red Nomad OZDecember 3, 2014 at 2:58 AM

    Black Friday's always been lucky for me, so I let the whole drama pass me by. So you think you're becoming a bit obsessed by birding? That means it's too late because once it's there, it'll stay with you to the end!!

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  21. BumbleVeeDecember 3, 2014 at 10:11 AM

    Yeh....you're obsessed..... so what? It's not a horrible thing really...is it?.... hahahah.... oh, and... I have magpies over at my place for you ....again...... I had them last week too..... and, we don't have to drive anywhere to see them...they come to us whether we want them or not....

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  22. Phil SladeDecember 3, 2014 at 10:32 AM

    Seriously better than shopping either online or for real Chris. Nice shots of the caraca and I'm hoping to see a whitefront in with our pinkfeet very soon.

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  23. Sharon WagnerDecember 4, 2014 at 7:11 AM

    The Arizona woodpecker is a beauty. Anything that gets a person out in nature is a good hobby. And a healthy obsession!

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  24. Stewart MDecember 5, 2014 at 6:16 PM

    Nicely done - all those birds would be special to me!

    Cheers - Stewart M - Melbourne

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  25. Wally JonesDecember 8, 2014 at 12:54 PM

    Now, that's the way to handle holiday shopping!

    Very nice series of images, Chris!

    Certainly worth getting dirty for!

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  26. Sallie (FullTime-Life)December 8, 2014 at 2:55 PM

    I'd rather spend Black Friday with your birds than in a shopping mall any time! (Actually I'd rather go birding than shopping on any day!!). Lovely pictures .... I don't think you're obsessed. Just talented!

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  27. Kathie BrownDecember 9, 2014 at 10:05 PM

    That place is so wild. It always wears me out, yet makes me glad I went! It is a full day of birding, however! I am glad you went and met Mister Laurence Butler finally!

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