The US holidays have arrived. All the chaos is human caused. So I recommend that we all take the time to just BE.
A gentle stream flows along a trail in the Santa Rita mountains
Even if for a moment from our often stressful lives. I will never buy into the "we have to do this because it's what we do" mentality. That's all a bunch of crap.
A Brown Creeper finds a spot full of insects
Last weekend, we spent a moment on the trails watching birds along a lovely stream in the Santa Rita mountains of Southern Arizona.
A Townsend's Warbler is seen in a warbler flock
After the hike, we went to the Santa Rita Lodge and watched their thirsty male Coati get a sip from the hummingbird feeders.
Well. It was more like a long sip.
After he was finished, he headed off into the forest for a break.
It's often common in winter to find a solitary male Coati roaming trails where there are opportunities for food along riparian corridors
The world is changing. With our warmer temps, we are seeing more and more Broad-tailed Hummingbirds sticking around for the winter.
A rare Broad-tailed Hummingbird
It was a beautiful morning out.
Painted Redstart
It felt more like fall than winter. The canyon trees are in the middle of their autumn colors.
Mexican Jay
During this time of year, there is a "lull" in bird numbers as many of the northern birds are still migrating south. However, it's also the time of year when random birds begin to show up.
Hepatic Tanager at a feeder at the Santa Rita Lodge
The bird of the week is this juvenile Yellow-bellied Sapsucker(below) hanging around a Tucson neighborhood. It's a rarity that shows up during this time of year. Our most common wintering sapsucker in Tucson is the Red-naped Sapsucker. The second likely choice for sapsuckers if it's not Red-naped would be Yellow-bellied. And the rarest, but also seen during most winters here, is the Red-breasted Sapsucker. And in Tucson, it's possible to add Williamson's Sapsuckers to your county list as several hang out on Mt. Lemmon OR in our parks around areas of old growth. Imagine! 4 species of sapsuckers! If you're lucky:)
Look for holes on trees to find sapsuckers. A good birder listens for tapping and drill holes on trees to find sapsuckers
Next week we chase a gull outside of Phoenix and play around in the grasslands. I celebrate a state milestone while planning for another trek to Sonora, Mexico. Until next time....
She emailed me and asked if I would be around to bird. I never met her but I had heard so many wonderful things about this lady. Facebook may not be for everyone, but it can and does connect us with some of the most amazing people. Over time and through the birding community, we find out who is legit, mass murderer or authentic:) I knew I would be meeting a legit person thanks to word of mouth by my birding friends. And so at the brilliant hour of 6 AM, I met the woman who loves to put a Blue Mug in her pictures on FB. This mug represents a happy moment or highlight from the day. For Kathleen Cameron, it would be her first trek into Southern Arizona. She brought a companion by the name of Zeke(or was it the other way around:)? Together we scoured the road up Madera Canyon.
Painted Redstart
I am a natural birder with targets in mind but if I don't find them for the day, I'm ok. But when birders come to get life birds and ask for help, the pressure is on! I want to get them all of their lifers, but sometimes the birds have other ideas.
Canyon Wren
Thankfully, it was a great day out and every bird cooperated! Timing is another thing. Some windows are better than others. For example, we dipped on the Elegant Trogon in the afternoon. The best time for this bird is EARLY in the morning. Most Trogons around the world are easy to find, but I have to admit that our Elegant Trogon can be a stinker to find for many visiting birders.
Rufous-crowned Sparrow
We began our fun at the Santa Rita Lodge and did a stationary count. Later we hiked a trail to find the Trogons. During our observations at the Santa Rita Lodge, I was fascinated by all the birds chowing down on the white moths hanging out near the lodge. It was like popcorn for them. There were 5 different species of bird all feasting on the same moth.
Bridled Titmouse
Over the years, I have witnessed the increased sightings of Plain-capped Starthroat hummingbirds here in Southern Arizona. Their populations seem to continue to grow. This once very rare bird is still considered rare but not RARE like it used to be. For Zeke, it would be a lifer. Thankfully, the bird showed up!
Left to right, Broad-billed Hummingbird and Plain-capped Starthroat
This photo below was taken last year. One of the field marks to look for on this large hummer is their vertical white stripe on the back. It's also the largest hummingbird of the charm. Even larger than the Magnificent Hummingbird featured above!
While we were there observing lots of awesome birds, I learned much about this place known as Idaho(pronounced Eye-dah-hoe). Apparently they have birds there that include the ones I need! From what I understood from our conversations, Idaho is a beautiful place full of fantastic creatures. However, it's about a thousand miles away and a FULL day of driving to get there. I know this only because this is what these two crazy birders did! They got up at 4:30 AM and arrived into Southern Arizona at 9 PM!!!!! Now that's dedication!
We went up to Bog Springs and they set up camp for a few days. While we were there, I knew of several places where Whiskered screech owls like to hang out when they are not nesting. Of course, they are never there when I take birders to see this would-be-lifer. So I was just going to tell them to keep an eye out in a certain area for this pretty awesome owl. As I pointed to the hole, everyone just dropped their jaw with several indiscernible words coming out of our mouths. This was a moment! Quietly, we all took our photos from a distance careful not to disturb this beautiful creature.
We spent a longer while observing this often-heard-but-rarely-seen owl. Talk about luck! This was a Christmas miracle especially now that their nesting has finished. Many will begin their migration back south during the month of August.
Whiskered-screech Owl
We continued on after seeing an increase in people around the canyon. Owls make people crazy and even if a person isn't a birder, they still go bananas for them. So to keep the owl safe and protected, we casually moved up the trail not attracting attention.
As for that blue mug? Well, I got to hold it with my new friends!
Photo by Zeke Watkins-an ebird reviewer in Idaho
Here's a little info on Kathleen Cameron. She is a birding guide based out of Idaho. Founder of her company, Majestic Feathers Birding Tours, she leads tours into wonderful places like Peru, Costa Rica, Panama, etc etc! In fact, Colombia is on their agenda for next year. Over the past couple of years, Colombia has really become a safe place for birders and tourists to travel. In fact, this year I have been getting many positive reports from birders and travelers alike about the country. For birders, this is an AWESOME opportunity to explore one of the birdiest countries in the world. After spending the day with Kathleen and Zeke, I can say I would love to bird again with them both. My trip to Mexico zapped a lot of my bird energy. With the temps rising and my energy levels disappearing, I had to return home to regenerate again:)
Kathleen also produced a documentary called Connecting With Owls. This is a great DVD full of owl info and fun. To purchase her DVD, you can click here. The Whiskered screech owl, a bird that only makes it up into Southern Arizona during the spring and summer, was a new owl for Kathleen which made the day a whole lot more special. Maybe it was her blue mug that brought us such fortune? Anyhow, birding is awesome and so are the people.
And speaking of owls, here is the lastest update on the ones I've seen this year. It has been a good year indeed! For more fun about birds, check out I'D Rather B Birdin' over at Anni's blog! Until next time friends.....
L to R
Barn, Western screech, Ferruginous Pygmy Owls
Northern Pygmy, Great Horned, Burrowing Owls
Long-eared, Whiskered screech, Snowy Owl(in WI this year)
Spotted, Elf and Great Horned Owlet
Southern Arizona is a great place to experience a new adventure every day. Today, we visit the Santa Rita Lodge in beautiful Madera Canyon.
While I was doing my 85 minute sit, I was shocked by all the blue birds around me. Many times, I hear people asking, "Why are our birds in North America so drab and brown?" I suppose when compared to our tropical neighbors, the birds tend to be more brown. But I wouldn't say drab. Perhaps they weren't looking in the right place?
Blue Grosbeak male; female is yellowish-brown
It was a cool and breezy afternoon at the benches. While I was there, I noticed several birders who were intent on finding birds. We started speaking and I gave them the rundown on what birds could be seen here. I told them I was looking for a Varied Bunting on this stationary count. And they told me that they needed a Blue Grosbeak. Together, we put our eyes to the task and teamed up.
male Varied Bunting
As I sat there thinking about the "brown bird comments", I began to question it. I didn't see many brown birds on this visit but I did notice a color theme for the day. Among the blues and purples and lavenders, there were Mexican Jays, Broad-billed Hummingbirds, Black-chinned Hummingbirds, Magnificent Hummingbirds, Varied Buntings and scads of Blue Grosbeaks.
Mexican Jay-the jay that I am most familiar with except perhaps the Stellar's Jay. These two birds are the most common jays for Southern Arizona birders.
I also began to think about hummingbirds since Santa Rita Lodge is known for their summer hummer fun. Almost every hummingbird known to the US comes to their feeders except the Ruby-throated Hummingbird and a couple hummingbird species from Texas. In my yard alone, I've had 5 different species visit!
Black-chinned Hummingbird
My work is about to begin. I have spent a lot of time reading and researching for my trek into southern Mexico this summer. This chart below shows my work on hummingbirds over the past 4 years. I have only been able to photo document 24 of the 25 hummingbirds seen.
The only hummingbird I have not been able to capture on camera is the Sparkling-tailed Hummingbird. The conditions were terrible when I saw this beautiful hummer in Guatemala. There are 356 hummingbirds in the world which means I have a lots of fun trips to plan:) The Americas are exciting for me. I could focus my lifetime in these places and be happy.
Top to bottom and left to right. I have many of the male species here as they are very distinct from each other.
Rufous Hummingbird, Rufous Sabrewing, Violet-bellied, Rufous-tailed, Broad-tailed
Mountain-gem, Broad-billed, Snowy-bellied Hummingbird, Lucifer, Blue-chested Hummingbirds
White-eared, Plain-capped Starthroat, Anna's, Allen's, Costa's Hummingbirds
Violet Sabrewing, Black-chinned, Long-billed Hermit, Violet-crowned, Blue-throated Hummingbirds
Magnificent, Lucifer(again:), Ruby-throated, Azure-crowned, Calliope
Here is a video from my treks around North America. Excuse the shaky camera. My cell phone is MUCH better with movie clips than my actual camera....but my camera can get closer to the birds. Stay tuned for more fun. Until next time, happy birding!
Elegant Tern at Lakeside Park in Tucson
This week's rare bird alert. We had yet another rain storm blow in this past Tuesday. On a hunch, I went to check out the same place where I found a second Least Tern for Tucson and discovered yet another great tern! This Elegant Tern made its' way to Tucson and hung out at Lakeside Park. Normally this bird is found along the Pacific Ocean. This year is the year of terns in the Old Pueblo! Pretty exciting stuff.
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