Turkey Invasion

Tradition dictates that we walk the Proctor Trail up to the Whitehouse Picnic area of Madera Canyon each year. 

It was just the two of us strolling along the empty trail early in the morning.  We found ourselves walking with the deer. And eventually....

.....among a lot of Gould's Wild Turkeys!!!  Chicken birds have always captured my interest, even if I've seen them over and over again.  I am still fascinated by the Wild Turkey.  

I took videos of them scratching the dirt.  I can't believe how fortunate we were to be in the middle of the rafter(flock) observing these birds just inches from our bodies. They were not skittish at all. 

There were turkeys along the creek, in trees, resting in the grass, on the trail and around the feeders further up. 

Gould's Wild Turkey

I discovered by accident last year that there is a good spot for small flocking birds like Bridled Titmouse, Townsend's Warbler, the Ocotero(or Olive Warbler) and Elegant Trogon. 

Townsend's Warbler

It was a lovely morning stroll out full of wildlife. Celeste even mentioned that it was like being at a Wildlife Park.  The secret?  Go slow and go before people destroy the magic.  There are so many loud people with annoying kids who chase the wildlife further back into the forests along the hills. On this day though, we didn't see many wild and young human banshees . 

We sat and waited for our male friend, the Elegant Trogon to show up.  It was a lifer for Celeste.  It's amazing how many people dip on this bird.  And in my humble opinion, trogons are much easier to spot in the winter than in the summer when they are on nests. In winter, you don't have to get up early to see them.  But in the spring and summer, it's an early rise for the birder in the dark driving to the canyons to hear them bark out their territories first thing in the morning. 

Elegant Trogon, male

I did a social experiment to really get a feel for how hot certain Arizona species can be for the public.  This above pic received close to 500 likes on a popular Arizona birding fb page while my personal favorites like the Bell's Sparrow or Northern Beardless Tyrannulet got a little over a 100 likes. It just keeps me in check with what bird enthusiasts want to observe.  

Mexican Jays

As we left for the day, we had a pair of Mexican Jays say good-bye.  It was a lovely walk full of beautiful sightings.  Until next time.....