The Rubberband

Oh trouble was brewing at the Rohrer household.  A little demon child known as J-man kept his Uncle and Grandparents busy. His ailing grandfather needed some quiet time to heal after his heart surgery. And so his uncles and grandma kept both he and his adorable baby sister busy. 

Baltimore Oriole

Birding with family can often be difficult. Still, it can be done, but it requires careful planning.  Here are some things I've learned from over the years to accomplish my birding goals while spending that quality family time that is much needed. 

Family fun at Bay Beach.  Also near the site of secret breeding Piping Plovers!

1. Find ways to include light birding while spending quality time with family.  My personal goal is to blend birding into the outdoor activities.  We have to begin somewhere and teaching our young minds is important to the future of birding. It starts off with curiosity.  A trip. A pair of binoculars and some hands on experience with birds. Toddlers are tactile.  So are Canada Geese. 

Over a hundred Canada Geese overtook J-man and one gave him a little nibble. The child who caused terror to others was terrorized himself, for a moment. There was a scream and then some crying involved. He flew up to Grandma for protection and for fun, I threw a little more corn around Grandma's feet to hear her yell out. I'm terrible.  I know:)

2.  Stay close to home. You never know when you will be needed for.....
a. family pictures  b. family dinner  c. babysitting
d. running errands or e. all the above:)

A fledged Chipping Sparrow

3.  Be clear on what you want to accomplish.  You can't do it all, BUT you can knock off some birds from that much wanted list. 

So many nephews and nieces

During my trek home, I was only focused on warblers and sparrows.  There was a possibility of adding two new lifers to the list. The Hooded Warbler was one of those warblers.  It was only 10 minutes away from my parent's home. 

Hooded Warbler

4.  Do your birding in the morning or early afternoon.  Birding is best in the morning, but sometimes there are errands that have to be run.  Most people work during the day.  Family generally meets at night or on the weekends.  If you can't go in the morning, try for the early afternoon when the grandkids or nephews/nieces are down for their nap. 

Family photos are NEVER easy. 

But they are always memorable and a necessary evil:) Never take those moments for granted because you don't know if you'll get the same opportunity again.  So much can change in a short time. 

My lifer Hooded Warbler in the dark forest of Point Beach State Forest

5.  Challenge yourself and stay within your own county.  You may have seen a Wild Turkey a million times in a million other places, but did you see one in your hometown? Be a kid again and play detective working on hunches.  

Wild Turkey

6.  Remember to stop birding as well. I speak to the choir here when I say it's hard to turn off the birding gene, but try and do it.  I was proud of myself this summer when I could completely let it go and not keep looking at every bird flying past my radar. 

I feel like Cambrie in this shot.  Trying to get that perfect family pic is NO easy task. 

7.  Carefully choose the places you'd like to bird. Keep the family in the loop where you plan on birding.  Keep it a half hour or so, no more, from home. 

American White Pelicans hang out near the Manitowoc Marina

8.  On occasion, treat yourself to a full day of birding.  Don't feel guilty.  It's your holiday and you deserve some quiet time away from the family. 

Cerulean Warbler

Even though I had seen the Cerulean Warbler once before, I wanted to see it again.  It's one of my favorite warblers.  And it was on my short list of birds I wanted to see while back home. 

Purple Martin

9. Let yourself just flow with the family plans.  Ebird wherever the family goes.

My brother Adam bought a pontoon and it allowed us to count birds along the river in his backyard.  We discovered several new bird species breeding along the river like Spotted Sandpipers. 

10. Create new hotspots for the public. You know your hometown best. 

When I was home, I discovered this beautiful rare Horned Grebe(below) near my brother's cabin.  There was no ebird hotspot so I created one. We can discover new birds by just paying attention.  This Horned Grebe completed an atlas block for someone. They were thrilled. 

A rare Horned Grebe!

I am more aware now of the world around me. Birders can make anything work with a little ingenuity. I use the word "rubberbanding it".  I'm never too far from home and if I'm needed back home ASAP, I am able to "snap back" in a second. I don't see it as limiting in any way.  It just makes me a little more creative with my birding. 

Who added the dog?!  

Hope you found these tidbits useful. Everyone has a different situation so do what's best for you.

Until next time.....

Las Aventuras: Arizona Grebes and Loons

One of my all time favorite movies, On Golden Pond, uses the Common Loon as a back piece to the beauty and sadness of growing old together

It's time again to cover Arizona's birding world.  This time we'll focus on the grebes and loons in this state.  While it seems unlikely that this state could even have loons here, we have to remember that these birds do migrate south into the Sea of Cortez and Pacific Ocean. Often times these birds are found in deep bodies of water. Pacific storms are also responsible for their appearances in the state. Without further ado, here are the grebes and loons that can found this time of year in our state. 

Pied-billed Grebe are common and widespread in Arizona all year round.  They even make some fun sounds.

Beginning with the grebes. The first and most common of grebes found in Arizona is the Pied-billed Grebe.  They can be seen all year round in our natural or artificial watering holes in the state. This is one bird you don't really need to chase.  

Note the darker overall tones of the Eared Grebe, which is the default grebe for the state during our winter months and migration

So let's get to the other grebes that birders in this state like to chase.  Two similar looking grebes, the Eared and Horned Grebes can be found in many areas around the state during the winter months.  The Eared Grebe is the default grebe of the state.  BUT there are a few Horned Grebes swimming around the deeper lakes and ponds.  Learn their winter plumage to help ID these often tricky birds.  They have beautiful summer plumage but when we see them here, they usually look like these pics above and below. 

Note the overall whiter tones of the Horned Grebe.  Rare but a regular rarity during our winter months.

Another similar looking grebe species, the Western and Clark's Grebes, are also found in this state.  The Western, again, is usually the default grebe for Southern Arizona BUT if you carefully look through each and every one of those Western Grebes, you might find a Clark's Grebe in the mix:)  

Western Grebes are the default for the state.  But don't assume that they are all Western Grebes

During the winter months, Clark's Grebes usually migrate to deeper waters in concentrated numbers around the Phoenix area and up around the Lake Havasu border. Western Grebes have a weak bill with black below the eye.  Clark's Grebes have a bold bright yellow bill with their dark plumage ABOVE the eye.  They too can be difficult to ID. They even hybridize!  There is still a lingering question in the birder's world.  Are these two species really just one species?

Bright strong yellow bill and black above the eye with lighter plumage make this a good ID for the Clark's Grebe

All of these grebes can be seen in the state every year.  There is a little driving involved but overall, they are not difficult to find.  HOWEVER, the gems of all grebe gems, if such things existed, would be the Red-necked Grebe and Least Grebe.  The Least Grebe is the crowning jewel of Arizona birding.  Red-necked Grebes are common birds for the ABA listers but the Least Grebe is the one that can only be seen just slightly north of the US border. 

Rare and accidental now in the state of Arizona, the Least Grebe. THE grebe high on many birder's lists. 

Several years ago, Least Grebes were common and often found breeding in a place called Peña Blanca Lake.  They are a smaller grebe and can be predated on by bigger fish.  The fisher people of the area, and the state, decided to add Bass to the lake.  By doing so, these fish ate all the little grebes up and today, this bird is very difficult to find.  It is now uncommon to see one.  If they are spotted somewhere, it's often in a remote and far away grassland watering hole.  The grebe usually doesn't stay long and flies off.  If you do spot a Least Grebe, you are fortunate!

Common Loon

Now.  Let's talk about one of my favorite group of birds, the Loons!  "Look Norman, the loons!  The loons!!!"  Growing up in the Midwest, I remember the haunting sounds of the Common Loon on our lakes right at sunset.  It was chilling and quite beautiful.  The first time I heard that there was a Common Loon in Tucson, I nearly messed myself!  Well come to find out, during the months of November, December and January, loons can often be seen in various parts of the state.  Some stay all winter long!  Most require a scope.  There are 5 loon species and 4 of them have been seen in this state.  Let's take a look. 

Unfortunately, this Pacific Loon didn't live long.  It was caught up in storm and was forced to land in this artificial lake in Tucson.  It starved to death.  Today its' body can be seen at the UA's bird collection for record keeping. 

The Common Loon is common.  The second most common?  The Pacific Loon!  So keep your eyes open for this random visitor, especially after a good winter storm! 

Last year, I saw my first Yellow-billed Loon and Red-throated Loon.  These two birds are super rare to the state.  They are really good birds.  If you are a state lister and there's a report on one of these birds, go:)  As far as I know, there hasn't been a confirmed report of an Arctic Loon in Arizona.  But I'm sure one of these days, one will show up:)

Katherine's Landing is a real birder's treat near the border of Nevada and Arizona.  The water is deep and good for Red-necked Grebes and exotic loons:)

I have always enjoyed our searches for these birds because they usually involve water and cold windy days.  These birds aren't usually associated with Arizona but they do occur during migration.  As mentioned before, some even winter briefly in our state.  Until next time.......

Bill Williams National Wildlife Refuge near Lake Havasu is a great spot for Clark's Grebes and Barrow's Goldeneyes during the winter months. 

The Olympic Sports

An easy gull to ID.  Yellow legs and smaller?  Black and red dip?  The California Gull

Warning!  This post is about gull ID.  I'll try to make it as interesting as I can. But you've been warned! So here goes......

This gull is definitely a Heinz 57.  An Olympic for sure!

Some species of birds can hybridize freely in the right habitat.  There aren't really any clear examples of this in the human population since we are all human of various colors and sizes. Although, I have heard that the Andean people are unique to the human population as they are shorter with more blood vessels(to keep them warm) due to the higher and colder elevations of the Andes mountains. 

I took this photo from the high elevations of Lake Titicaca on the floating islands of the Uros in the Andean mountain chain.  

I was a terrible birder even in 2008.  A Great Egret 

There may be a secret population of tiny people, about the size of hobbits, somewhere in Asia. Scientists have found bones to back up their claims and some locals even claim to have seen these tiny people in the dense Asian forests. I think I read this from Breitbart News, the world's leading source of fake news. However, last I checked, we are all still human, extra blood vessels and all. 

Dark eye, shading on the head but an all gray back????  Yeah.  An Olympic Gull, a hybrid

 Could humans hybridize with gorillas? Is Bigfoot a hybrid of a man/bear?  I don't know.  Even the thought is disturbing, but I did see some creepy mountain people in Oregon outside of Portland. I'll geek out with some Star Trek examples instead.  

With Leonard Nimoy before his passing who portrayed the popular character Spock

An example of hybridization of the human species would be like Vulcans and Humans having babies.  Spock is the offspring of these two species.  B'elanna Torres is the hybridization of a Klingon and Human.  So, what does this have to do with gulls?

Surf Scoter

 OH LOOK!!!  It's a SURF SCOTER!!!  Anything to distract from the monotonous ID work. It's like a student being forced to do classwork against their will until someone shoots a spit wad across the room at his friend's head. It misses his head and hits the quiet girl in the back row. Now that's WAY more interesting....and funny! And so I have observed that most birders get easily distracted by the other birds popping out of the ocean water. I stand my ground. Gulls are cool! #gullsmatter

I do have moments like this often in class.  While school has changed, the human dynamic is still the same. Information is quicker now with SMART technology 

I have now become the eager "A" student in class raising his hand all the time.  I like this subject. No.  I LOVE this subject. So I try connecting the dots in this simple brain of mine. 

Here's what I know. Gulls can interbreed freely if their habitat ranges overlap.  Some more than others.  And apparently the Pacific Northwest is a hotbed for gulls to hybridize! In the desert southwest, Costa's Hummingbirds can breed with other hummingbird species like the Lucifer Hummingbirds.  Their hybrids are called Costifers. The simple fact is that nature is constantly evolving and that our understanding of the biological world isn't so black and white.  

Is this gull trying to be a Thayer's?!

So it's only logical that hybridization occurs in the gull world.  My issue?  Finding a "pure" Glaucous-winged Gull.  I found my searches to be kinda frustrating at first.  And I discovered that Oregon, Washington and British Colombia are some of the most difficult places to find a "pure" gull.  I love gulls and I've come across a few hybrids here and there, but nothing like this! Most hybrid gulls found along the Pacific coastline are known as "Olympic Gulls".  Apparently, the Glaucous-winged and Glaucous Gulls can hybridize with Herring and Western Gulls.  And they especially hybridize with Western Gulls. This makes gull ID VERY difficult!

a Horned Grebe is a nice distraction

 HORNED GREBE!!!  Oh.  Yeah.  The gulls. So what did I have to do?  Well.  The GWGU is a large all gray bird.  No black on the feathers.  No black on the bill.  No shading on the head.  And pink legs. Easy right? So I'd find a good candidate and then spot black somewhere on the bill or on the wing.  

Too black!  Those end tail feathers should be ALL gray

 Or I'd find one with all the right markings but the head shape and size were all wrong.  With persistence and determination, I found several "pure" Glaucous-winged, NOT Olympic, gulls. 

All glaucous but what's with the shading on the head and the black on the bill???  GRRRR!!! Another Olympic Gull. 

I'll be honest.  The search for this life bird felt dirty.  Only humans can make the natural birding world feel like a segregated nightmare. For those listing in the ABA world, they have to make sure they've got the right gull or they could lose their tick. The challenge and search for this bird gave me a better cultural understanding behind the hybridization of gulls in this area.  It still doesn't shake that nagging question inside my head, "What makes a species a species?"  And why is that question so important to me?!

We've got a winner!!!!!  My lifer Glaucous-winged Gull.  It just took awhile to figure it all out. 

 We are still discovering so much about birds.  Many of the pink-legged gulls share 98 percent of their DNA.  Nature is messy.  It's also fascinating. 

At the end of the day, I've added a new species of bird on that slowly growing life list. The experience behind this gull taught me a lot but there is still so much more to learn. Until next time.....

Winter Has Come

Verdin

It is now a quieter time of birding here in Arizona. This is not to say that there isn't any great birding.  Far from it!  But with most people distracted by the holidays, many public and natural areas have less human traffic thanks in part for their need to shop. 

Great deal on Friskies Pate!

For birders, we just need to keep our eyes on the road for erratic driving.  I already have had someone dent my car from the Black Friday madness.  All I wanted was some pate for my cats!:) We, of course, forgot it was Black Friday and by that time, it was too late for us to escape. 

Lesser Scaup

The cooler temps and storms begin to usher in a new group of wintering ducks, cranes and raptors. 

Canvasback

Birders change their focus from mountain tops to water areas. We begin to head to local watering ponds to search for such rarities as Long-tailed Ducks or Horned Grebes. Maybe even a rare gull?

Cooper's Hawk

Some birds that are naturally difficult to see during the summer become a bit more visible as they feed from seed that has fallen to the ground. 

One of my favorite bird groups, the sparrows, begin to arrive back in great numbers.  This Brewer's Sparrow(below) is so plain and yet I think it's a gorgeous bird. 

Brewer's Sparrow

We also begin to scour the ag fields in places like Avra Valley or the infamous Santa Cruz Flats.  When I first began birding, these places were intimidating to me because their areas were so vast.  Today, it's all second nature. 

A random Osprey at the sod farm of Tweedy and Pretzer roads

As we comb the sod farms, groves of pecan trees, cattle ranches, drainage areas and barren desert expanses, we discover that all of our regular wintering guests such as the Mountain Plovers and Crested Caracaras have come back. 

Northern Harrier

We also note that there are several hundred Lark Buntings feeding from the miles of sorgum along the stretches of dirt roads.  

Crested Caracara

Cotton trucks cover us in layers of dust as we try to get a fix on the nearly invisible Mountain Plovers zig-zagging on the sod farms.  They are perfectly camouflaged as they feed from the lingering green vegetation. 

Mountain Plover

 As we exit the Santa Cruz Flats, we stop at Arizona City Lake.  Over the years, I have tried to figure out this strange community.  It is built around an artificial lake. The homes all looked rather nice at one time, but there appears to be some wear and tear now.  The fountain at the center of the lake no longer sprays regularly and now acts more like a desert island for cormorants, gulls and pelicans.  Yes, this is a great birding hotspot. 

A rare Horned Grebe. Normally rare, but this year it seems like there are more Horned Grebes than the similar looking  winter molts of the Eared species

 It's a fantastic spot for lots of rarities such as this Horned Grebe above.  Every time I see the now defunct fountain, I imagine it's where the residents bury their dead.  

The Arizona City Lake fountain used to look like this.....but not anymore.  Now it just sits like an ancient pyramid where they bury their dead. 

Well.  I do have an active imagination. The truth? It was too costly for them to run all this water all the time. Plus it's a waste of water. If residents individually want the fountain to run, they can pay for it themselves and will sporadically do so.  But I think, burial ground makes it more interesting:)

Yes, winter has finally arrived here in Arizona.  Joggers can jog.  Bikers can bike. Birders can bird. And everyone can smile and not worry about dying from heat exhaustion after 15 minutes of outside exposure:) Birders can sleep in late until 7 AM(when the sun rises) and bird until 5(when the sun sets). With a little more than a month to go before the year ends, Las Aventuras will try to make it to the 500 bird mark.  I'll leave you all with some recent visits to three of the places we visited this past week.  

Count 1. The Avra Valley area

Snow Goose in Blue Molt

Count 2.  The Santa Cruz Flats

A stunning male Vermilion Flycatcher

Count 3.  Arizona City Lake

Until next time........