Her Maiden Voyage

Black Rosy-Finch

With one semester completely and successfully finished, it was time to get back on the road again.  During our holiday luncheon, all I could think about was the break.  And the birds. 

Good people working together to help enrich the lives of young people. It's never easy keeping a smile but break gives us that much needed downtime to recharge our batteries. 

Now that the holidays are here, CBC(Christmas Bird Count) counts are happening all over the country. I mentioned to you all last weekend that I was supposed to do a count up on Mt. Lemmon for our local CBC.  Unfortunately, my car of 10 years had other ideas and her power steering went out early in the morning.  I promptly cancelled my participation and spent the day buying a new vehicle.  Ah the joys of new car payments!  She's a white SUV that goes by the name of Betty White.  Her code name is Manakin.  

a wintering Greater Pewee in Reid Park continues

Feeling bad about my failed CBC count on Mt. Lemmon, I helped with the Tucson count at my local patch.  Then it was off for some amazing Arizona birds!

The USS Betty White made her maiden voyage up to the northern boundaries of the state just outside of the North Rim of the Grand Canyon to search for 2 new Arizona birds, the Black and Gray-crowned Rosy-Finches.  It was a 2-for-one journey with friends Gordon Karre and Barb Meding.  

Just part of one of the flocks that zipped up and down.  They reminded us of our wintering lonspurs in the grasslands

For several years, I've always gone with Gordon in his vehicle because my car wasn't big enough to carry all of our equipment.  I should note that I purchased that car before I was a birder.  And I'm not one to sell it off because it didn't fit my needs right away.  She was a good car.  The Bea Arthur was a reliable vehicle that gave me many years of joy. 

A birder has to be careful observing birds.  With this location, I had a little vertigo.  The hillside was quite steep!

I was sad to let her go. Why name the vehicle?  I don't know.  It's what I've always done.  Plus I love/d what Bea Arthur and Betty White stand/stood for in their lives.  Not only are/were they great actresses, but Bea served in the military as a young person. And Betty White continues to be a champion for animals.  Barb thought she had passed and I thought I was going to have a heart attack.  Betty is a national treasure! She is immortal!

The very tricky Gray-crowned Rosy-Finch was a skulker for us and did not like to pose on the ground for the camera so I had to catch it in flight.   Fish or bird?  You tell me. 

Anyhow, it was so much fun.  And I was a proud driver taking my friends up to the top of the Echo Cliffs searching for these beautiful birds.  I felt like an adult!  I laughed when Gordon spilled black coffee over my place mat.  Having been an owner before of a new vehicle, I laugh at those first "oh no's!"  The first ding, the first spill, the first scratch etc.  At what point, do we let that OCD nature go?  With Bea, it was after a pork green chile incident that leaked out into my seat(and stained it forever!) because my friend didn't cap her tupperware container properly.  And then it happened again when a friend was backing out and rubbed against my car giving it a "cute" little dent.  So now, I'm a little more relaxed with everything.  Just no dents, dings or scratches on Betty for awhile please:)

A nice side-by-side comparison of the two species. They are similar and were tricky to pick apart. 

It was an incredible morning out.  Not only was the landscape gorgeous, but so were the birds!  Rosy-Finches in Arizona are a treat!  The challenging part was picking out the one Gray-crowned in the bunch.  They can look similar together. 

There were 2 large flocks that would rotate in and out of the area we were standing.  I think we got to observe both flocks twice with a 5 minute interval between their visits. I'd move once they flew to a new spot to get different angles of the birds.  

They feed from the Russian Thistle on the hillsides.  But to keep these beautiful birds there for birders to observe, people are continually throwing oilseed sunflower seeds to keep them around a little longer.  These birds love cliffs and as you can imagine, they can make it difficult for birders to get a good view.  So we employ our own tactics that keep them around a little longer.  

What a thrill to see these birds up close!  My first time was also with Gordon during our Sandia Crest journey to New Mexico.  In fact, that's where most people go to see all three species.  While we are in the southern most range for Black Rosy-Finches, they are not commonly seen like this for birders.  There's usually a once-a-year sighting by a couple birders.  However, a Gray-crowned Rosy-Finch is RARE!  Their range is the largest of all the Rosy-Finches but it doesn't dip quite down into AZ. However, they are suspected to enter the state in areas that are difficult to reach for birders. With that said, there are a few historical records including one from 2013 in a remote area of the state. The area we visited was much more accessible!

After we had that amazing observation, we went for the California Condors of Marble Canyon on the Navajo Bridge. I wanted to see the rare wild born California Condor in the area!  There was a Condor volunteer there monitoring the four birds in the canyon.  With his scope, he pointed it in the direction of the wild born bird and I was super excited!  It made me so happy.  I love condors.  Their location is also quite beautiful. And seeing a wild born one on the cliffs and not from a zoo gives me hope. As long as hunters use lead bullets, these birds will have to be monitored for lead poisoning.  Hunting for food is fine, but it's gross to think of lead in your own food.  Why not use copper bullets if you like to kill things for pleasure?  The Condors eat the lead filled carcasses left behind by the hunters.  There are 3 major threats to Condors.  1. Lead poisoning  2. Golden Eagles/Coyotes 3. Telephone Wires

Then, in a random twist for our trek back home, we took a ride to Winslow, Arizona where we had to take it easy.  

The USS Betty White promises many more treks.  Our next trek will take us into California but until then, I wish everyone a wonderful holiday season.  Until next time!

The Arizona 400 Club

Prothonotary Warbler

Well, life is good when you first begin birding.  It seems like everyday is a new bird day.  And for two years, it's pretty easy stuff. Then you hit the 300 wall.  In Arizona, it's easy to get over 200 birds for your state list.  But it's not so easy going from 300 to 400 birds.  Today's post is about the spectacular journey that took a difficult two years to achieve.

California Condor

It happened on April 30th, 2016.  A random Prothonotory Warbler had been migrating through one of our desert washes.  I was in my pajamas watching Game of Thrones.  My friend Magill texts me and tells me to get off my butt and go get the warbler.  I was playing with my cats and quite honestly had no desire to chase a warbler.  They are so hard to spot and always give me a headache.  But it would be a lifer and help me enter the 400 club for Arizona. So I reluctantly got into my car and went to the wash.

During my drive, I remembered my 300 start that began back on September 17th, 2013 with a Black-bellied Plover. I thought, "I'll never make it to 400.  Who cares, why try?"  I forgot about the number, yet curious birders would ask me what my state total was often and I'd reply, "I don't know."  The birds in the 300 category are majestic, difficult(to find and ID sometimes) and mostly in areas outside of my Southern Arizona birding zone.

The California Condor for me is THE bird of my 300 list.  It's the one I love the most.  It's the one Micheal loved.  And it's in the area furthest away from civilization......the North Rim of the Grand Canyon.  One of the most beautiful places on this planet.  And I'll be honest.  This bird made me cry. The sighting gave me goosebumps and made my eyes water up.  I always dreamed of seeing these birds in Arizona and around the Grand Canyon as a child. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I'd get the chance to see them in my lifetime. They were near extinction and I remember in 8th grade that I felt incredibly sad after our Biology teacher's lesson. I have always loved nature as a child, but today I have fully accepted it into my life. My life's work is only getting started. Thanks to many hard working people, these birds are slowly making a comeback today. 

Blue-footed Booby

Stranger things have happened.  A juvenile Blue-footed Booby made it into the Patagonia State Park. Kathie was still living in Arizona and we stood there marveling at this incredible ocean bird in the desert.  How in the world??!!!!

Eventually the list narrowed and the really difficult chases had to happen.  The Ridgway's Rail is one of the trickiest birds to find.  Not so hard to hear, but I wanted to SEE the bird.  When I finally saw my first one, I felt a heavy weight lift off of my shoulder. 

Ridgway's Rail

And then it came time for Mountain Plovers in dusty fields along junky roads that were tough on tires. And with Kathie again I spotted my first Mountain Plovers.

Mountain Plover

Then swifts.  Yuck.  They are sooo fast and give me headaches as well.  It required alone time without the pressure of other birders around me to find this lifer.  After two hours alone in Tucson, I was able to call my first Vaux's Swift.  But it took two years to get this photo below!

Vaux's Swift

Then it was time for the Grosbeaks.  One of my favorite group of birds. Searching for the beautiful Evening and Pine Grosbeaks are often difficult to find in the state....especially the Pine Grosbeaks because they are in a very tight habitat. And yet, they do live here.  Evening Grosbeaks are more common in Arizona BUT I have had to drive into higher elevations further north in Arizona to find them.  However, my first poor looks at one happened in Summerhaven up on Mt. Lemmon.

Evening Grosbeak

A several mile hike lead us to an amazing Mexican migrant. The Tufted Flycatcher.  Sore bodies healed over the week:)

Tufted Flycatcher

There were easy ones. Not always.  But they were a welcome break from the intense hours of chases. 

Greater White-fronted Goose

Some required us to work together.  After waiting a couple hours, a tropical Purple Gallinule would appear. 

Purple Gallinule

Some birds required us to find specific habitat in the state that attracted birds.  Lily pads(rare for Arizona)= Purple Gallinule  

American Dipper

Moving stream at the right speed(rare in Arizona)=American Dipper

Red-breasted Sapsucker

Drippy sappy mesquite tree during winter=Red-breasted Sapsucker

Elusive American Bittern

And sometimes you gamble.  And often you can lose, but sometimes you strike it big and find a rare American Bittern in a small area of wetlands.

Chestnut-collared Longspurs

If you REALLY want to get to the 400 club in Arizona, you have to know your longspurs.  More headaches BUT I honestly love these birds.  After a blowing dust storm and major headache, I found my McCown's Longspurs among the many hundreds of brown and yellow ground birds. 

McCown's Longspurs

Sometimes, you get shot at by stupid hunters, or nearly trampled by horseback riders or find fish hooks embedded to the bottom of your shoes.  Such was the case with the amazing Rusty Blackbird.

Rusty Blackbird

And then there are stupid ideas.  Black-billed Magpies.  We were camping near the beautiful town of Greer during the summer and decided to go chase down these birds. We thought it was a "closer" drive but it turned into HOURS!  We finally get to this weird town known as Teec Nos Pos on a practically empty reservation near the 4 corners and attempt to look for the birds. It was ugly. What did we find?  Shattered glass bottles, needles and oh.....a drug user. There were disagreements and discussion.  How far does a birder go if it jeopardizes their safety? We never did find the birds and it was the biggest fail ever.  

Later on, I returned with Micheal to visit our family in Colorado.  We tried once again to find these birds on an amazing road trip into Gunnison, Colorado. I decided to make the route go through Teec Nos Pos, AZ for a quick check.  Turned out to be the right idea and one of the most beautiful western routes to take during fall. And voila!  3 were hanging out along the highway.  All I can say is NEVER AGAIN!

I have great pics of these birds BUT I wanted to show my AZ friends that they really do live in Arizona:) And in that weird town of Teec Nos Pos!  I swear it's a Klingon Settlement.

The 400 list can also be based on hunches.  During a "hunch", I followed my heart to a nearby park in June and discovered an Elegant Tern for my birding peeps.  Never in my life did I expect to find this beauty.  I expected something.  Just not this very cool tern. 

Elegant Tern at Lakeside Park

As I finally arrived to my destination, I stood near the Tanque Verde wash full of Cottonwoods. It was all rather uneventful.  No one knew but me what this bird meant. A yellow caught my eye.  Western Tanager.  Another golden flash.  Yellow Warbler.  Female Summer Tanager.  Yellow-breasted Chat.  Black-headed Grosbeak!  Of course!!, I told myself.  This was after all a warbler.  Then I spied a chunky lemon throw itself into the tree in front of me.  I saw the butt of this bird and knew that Arizona number 400 was about to happen. I predicted where the bird would perch and focused my lens.  Experience paid off and I got my shots of the amazing Prothonotary Warbler.  It was about a 2 minute observation but it was one of those wonderful moments that seem to last forever.  

During the weekend, I glowed.  What a very special bird to mark my entrance into the AZ 400 club.  This year I have some truly special places that I will be sharing with you all.  I can't wait to visit them and report back. The life bird quest is about to begin again! Until next time......

Mukuntuweap

The Paiutes called it Mukuntuweap. It is a park known for its beautiful vistas.  And we were there. Micheal wanted to climb the difficult Angel's Landing and I was looking for....birds:)

Together, we hiked 10 grueling miles that day up a steep and often scary trail:)  It was worth it. 

Lincoln's Sparrow

Along the way, I found cool sparrows like this Lincoln's Sparrow(above).  Sometimes, I would keep my head down on the path because I am not a fan of heights. If you look closely at the pic below, you'll notice the "little dots" climbing up several rock edges! 

Then I had to look down to show you the view from that top spot to give you an idea how steep this hike was! Yes, I got a little vertigo. And why was I doing this crazy hike?  Well to support Micheal of course!:)  Or maybe it was to find a rare California Condor in Utah?  I get my priorities mixed up sometimes:)

But hey, you only live once so make the most of it.  We had a great time climbing to the top. 

Plateau Lizard

There were SO MANY people at the park that it was difficult at times safely crossing narrow paths without bumping someone.  But it was at the top where my birding adventures began......

There was a Park Ranger at the top doing a Condor presentation for the folks.  I spoke with him one-on-one about the details of the nesting pair of Condors at this national park.  So far, it has not been successful because of the lead poisoning.  In fact, the two Condors who had the chick a couple years ago both have passed away.  So I was a bit bummed. He had seen a condor about two weeks ago but there weren't any sightings since that time.  Did I hike for nothing?:)  I watched him present to a couple French tourists before moving to another location on the cliff.  There I sat in the shade watching the skies. I was not giving up.  

And then it happened!  I saw a large bird swing from out of nowhere next to a cliff!  I made out the ID tag as J6 and watched for awhile.  There was a group sitting around me and I quickly got their attention on the bird in the sky.  One of the tourists asked me about the tag on the wings and before I knew it, I was "acting" park ranger!  Someday I will wear that awesome cap and uniform. Anyhow, I saw that the Park Ranger hadn't seen the bird so I carefully ran along the cliff to get his attention.  

Everyone at his presentation was super excited to see the bird and before I knew it, there were click click clicks.  I gave the ID to the ranger knowing he'd probably know the condor's info.  When I did, he said to me, "How in the world???!!!"  I'm a serious birder and this is a cool bird:)  He told us all that the 6 year old condor was a female who had been released into the wild during the 2011 year.  I believe this bird also laid a egg in the wild but it never hatched.   

So after a successful hike and bird find, it was time to find the American Dipper hanging out along the river of the Mukuntuweap lands. We watched couples along the river help one another cross the rocky river. 

Rock Squirrel

It took us another 2 miles of a walk to locate the bird, but when we did, it was amazing.  We had very satisfying views of the Dipper doing what Dippers do best......hopping and swimming around the rocks. 

By the time we had found the dipper, the light in the canyon had already begun to diminish. 

It was a fantastic trek discovering these beautiful canyons of Southern Utah. 

I can see why the Paiute Indians made this place home.  Our adventures into rock and canyon continue.  Until next time friends....