Revisiting Old Friends

Montezuma Quail

This past week, after the onslaught of birders searching for the Eared Quetzal without any luck, they abandoned their hopeful searches and turned their eyes to our other specialties. It was mayhem.  They still continue to search.  And a few birders have reported a female now.  So it's possible the Eared Quetzals are nesting somewhere on the mountain. Whatever the case, birders need to be aware that covid has spread among the community AND birders need to follow ethical protocols. There are times when some things should be kept secret, especially during their breeding season. Playback is terrible during this time of year and people should refrain from using it. 

I was back in those old birding routes that every new hopeful birder visits.  It was rather strange.  With covid abound everywhere, I was forced to stay home during this very nasty time in Arizona.  Many of us locals leave Arizona to go birding in cooler temps.  Guides, generally, don't offer their services during this month due to nesting conditions and of course, that sweltering heat.  Everything picks up again in July when our monsoon gets into full swing and bird life is ALIVE!  

Painted Redstart

There are still windows of opportunity to bird.  Early mornings are best.  Evenings are second best. Afternoons are a no no unless you are at higher elevations but one of my favorite places to take people is currently on fire.  And it's a tragedy. So many nesting birds gone, many of them warblers.  Between crazy birders chasing that quetzal, covid closures and covid in general, the heat and the fires, it is a bit too much to take.  I regulated my outings with my friend because I can't do those extreme chases anymore for an entire day.  One of the days, I felt heat exhaustion coming on in the 104 degree temps.  Yes, I wore sun screen, a hat and drank plenty of water, but there comes a point when your body just shuts down.  Words get blurry, that little headache begins and birds become a second thought.  

Lucifer Hummingbird

There were also flashbacks during our treks.  A sadness that only one would know had they grown up as a birder with the people they once knew.  Take for example the Lucifer's Hummingbird.  Nearly every birder has gone to Mary Jo's Bed and Breakfast for their lifer Lucifer's Hummingbird.  Mary Jo passed away a little over a year now.  I haven't gone back because there are a lot of fond memories with that lady.  But we went because it's the one reliable place for birders who like photography, such as myself, to observe the secretive Montezuma Quail and of course that very special hummingbird.  Her place is now a sanctuary and it's still very special.  But I sat and looked at her home where the volunteers stay now. And it was a different experience.  The volunteers were wonderful, but Mary Jo wasn't there.  Or her African Gray Parrot. 

Least Tern

I took a day off to just work on house stuff and hang out with my neighbors.  On that day, a Least Tern showed up at Canoa Ranch.  It was a fun and fast trek to see the bird fly over the waters there. The following day, we went to search for some difficult birds.  You have to prioritize your birds.  So you choose your targets carefully.  Sometimes you spend an entire morning on ONE bird.  And that's what we did.  Anything after that window is a gift.  We achieved our targeted goals.  We stopped at another great birdy area, the Holy Trinity Monastery.  Another formerly owned Catholic property and magnet for incredible birds like the Gray Hawk, Mississippi Kite, Tropical Kingbirds and other special birds. But on the day we went there, the place looked unkept.  The shop was closed.  The pond was overgrown with algae. Broke my heart.  I sat in the meditation garden and noticed several of the wonderful shady trees were gone.  

Lesser Nighthawk

During our travels, we noticed Lesser Nighthawks hunting in broad daylight.  'Tis the season for feeding babies.  Normally these birds are only seen at dawn or dusk and at night around lights catching bugs. 

Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl

There are several birds in Arizona that are well protected and kept secret.  However, those secrets get leaked and then coordinates appear.  Such is the case with the Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl, a very sensitive species in AZ.  The species is another Holy Grail for birders, ABA'ers, state listers, county listers, etc.  There are few spots in the US that you can see them.  Texas is the best place for them.  Arizona has many but they are located in VERY difficult access places far away from civilization. The best place for these owls is still Organ Pipe National Monument in a VERY accessible place.  And that's all I will say:)

Scaled Quail

I think the most exciting part of our journeys came from observing all three quail species.  It was a lot of fun revisiting these old sites for some great birds.  Currently my plans are on hold.  As we see a spike in covid around the country, it has once again messed with travel plans.  Testing in this country is a joke. I'll leave it at that.  

juvenile Gambel's Quail

Stay cool everyone. And stay safe! Until next time....

GIANT Expectations

White-nose Coati at Zoomat

After a long stressful week of intense birding, we ended it all with the Wonder Team, Matt Hale and Francesca Albini.  They worked so well together that I had thought they were married! Their amazing teamwork made the last day very special.  

Matt sets up the scope to begin the search for buntings

Out of the 10 participants scheduled, 4 of us remained.  It was by far the easiest and best day for birding and photography.  I had been looking forward to this day since we arrived.  Why?  Well, I have never birded the Pacific Lowlands before.  And even though there were birds I had already observed, I wanted to see them again!  It was a magical day out for our group.  The heat was oppressive but the birding and crew were some of the finest!

We spot our first White-nosed Coati in the wild.  There are several in the background. 

We headed into the protected Sepultura Reserve which is southwest of Tuxtla Gutierrez.  And then, the show began. White-nosed Coati walked out on the limbs of trees.

White-throated Magpie Jay

At sunrise, we stopped at a great overlook area with a beautiful view of protected rain forest that went as far as the eyes could see.  A gentle breeze blew through the canyon. I also saw dinosaurs, but I'm keeping their gps location secret.  However, I will report some very special bird sightings.....:)

La Sepultura at dawn

Even in the darkness, I could make out something blue and pink flitting around the leafy canopy. Francesca silently moved towards the bird and pointed.  Matt directed the scope towards her aim.  And then.....

The majestic male Rose-bellied Bunting(formerly named Rosita's bunting) made an appearance!  People just dropped their jaws and uttered things like "WHOA!", "That is one beautiful bird.", "#%^!", or "My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard, and they're like..." Just kidding on that last part. It was a real make out session with this bunting. 

Rose-bellied Bunting(formerly called the Rosita's Bunting)

I wished this moment would last forever.  Gorgeous weather.  Beautiful views.  Fascinating wildlife. And wonderful people. Yeah, I'd like to write, "Perfect moment."  There.  I just did it:)

But it wasn't just enough to find one group of gorgeous buntings.  We had to find ANOTHER!  Both were in the same area.  As a birder, I can tell you that I've never had a "Bunting Day" like this one.  We went down the slope further and there, from within the forest, a gorgeous Orange-breasted Bunting appeared. 

Orange-breasted Bunting

As a child growing up, these bunting's colors were my personal favorites.  And if I had to choose between the two, I think I like the color scheme better on this one.  But it's a hard call.  Both were very beautiful birds. 

Great Egret

I knew water was near when the group had an unexpected flyover by a Great Egret. It just came out of nowhere.  But it was hanging out somewhere, I imagine, near a hidden stream. 

Bare-throated tiger heron

As we moved further down into the lowlands, I could feel the steamy oppressive heat that made many locals shed their clothes.  My skin had a beautiful shine to it from all the sweat.  I engaged my "water pack". As an Arizonan, I am familiar with this nasty type of heat.  Me and the Gordon filled up our packs with ice in the morning and were refreshed the entire trip.  I'm glad we brought our camel packs with us on this trek.  It felt good observing awesome birds without feeling heat exhaustion. Ice and a water pack. They are the answer to all of your hot travel woes my friends. 

We stopped at a local pond and had the most amazing show of birds and reptiles. 

Ruddy-breasted Seedeater

There were so many awesome birds in one spot that it made it difficult to focus. It was a bird bonanza and we stayed here for a long time soaking up all the incredible that was this pond.  Rose-throated Becards, Ruddy-breasted seedeaters, Groove-billed Ani's, Crested Caracaras, and Northern Jaçanas.  Finally, I got my answer to how one pronounces this last bird's name.  I always pronounced the word in Spanish as Ha-Ka-Na.  But Mr. Matt said it was a Portuguese word and that would mean it was pronounced Ja-Sa-Nah. 

Of course, life would not be complete without a gnatcatcher sighting.  They are another favorite of mine. 

White-lored Gnatcatcher

No such thing as Mallards down there.  I put one into ebird just for fun to see if the bird was rare.  And indeed it was!  So who was the duck-of-the-day?  Well, the Black-bellied whistling duck took their place:) Not a bad duck to see over and over again:)

Black-bellied whistling ducks with Bare-throated tiger heron

We had a couple of friendly local people warn us not to get into the water because there was a family of caiman swimming around the pond.  I would never enter any water near mangrove areas because I learned the hard way in Panama, thanks to Tito, a Saltwater Croc, who decided to interrupt my birding session on the beach.  That's when I learned that there were bigger reptiles out there who wouldn't mind the taste of "gringo". 

Gordon could've taken this caiman on:) 

In time, I knew I would eventually see the Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl.  They barely make it into Southern Arizona and the ones that do are kept secret.  This owl is considered rare in our state and is protected by law.  I know a couple sites but they are located in several sketchy areas that are several hours away from Tucson.  For now, our sightings of this bird in Chiapas will suffice. 

Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl

Finally today, I'd like to introduce the bird that brought us here on this trek, the Giant Wren.  It is a large and spectacular wren that is endemic(there's that word again) to this region. 

Giant Wrens

Eventually it was time to turn around and go back home.  I didn't want to return.  I wanted to stay in Puerto Arista and see the estuary that had Roseate Spoonbills, Magnificent Frigatebirds, Tricolored Herons, Wood Storks, etc flying over the waterways.  It. Was. Incredible. 

Wood Stork

While not the greatest collage I've put together, here's a Magnificent Frigatebird going after a Great Egret for dinner.  The bird is trying to get the Egret to spit out or vomit whatever it has in its' gullet. They are known as the pirates of the sea. Sorry about writing the word "vomit".  It sounds vile, but the Magnificent Frigatebird loves it:)

Unfortunately, this day had to come to a close, but there were still many adventures ahead for us that we would take on our own.  As the group tours ended, we took to the trails ourselves and came up with some great birds on our last two days.  Stay tuned for more.