From Out of Nowhere

Northern Harrier

Whether it be with another birder like Kathie or alone, I sometimes think to myself that it won't be very "birdy" when I first arrive at my destination.   Thankfully, I have lots of experience to suggest that giving "it time" will be full of great reveals.

The Whitewater Draw

The scenery, of course, is gorgeous and can draw your attention away from the action.  But I listen carefully for bird sounds and wait.  A burst of bird energy will surface and then all birds will be up in the air at once!

Blackbirds

These Blackbirds for example came in droves by the hundreds and then quickly disappeared.  I snapped as many shots as I could get so that I could ID them at home.  The flocks were full of Yellow Headed Blackbirds and Red Wing Blackbirds.  But there were others mixed in as well:)

Yellow Headed Blackbirds in flight

And so on this day at the Whitewater Draw, I thought I may not get a new lifebird until a group of birds came at me from out of nowhere!  Finding lifebirds is incredibly exciting and when that moment happens, all I do is snap pictures with an incredible focus.  I don't necessarily know what they are specifically at first but I have my bird guide close by after the shoot to research.

Eared Grebes in flight

Today it would be birds from the "Grebe" family.  Were they Western or the Eared Grebe?  Great question.

Eared Grebes

The first thing I do is check the Whitewater Bird List and write down the Grebes reported in the area.  Then I open my bird book and study the pictures both in the bird guide and on my camera.

For these birds, it took the markings on the wings to help me ID.  These were the Eared Grebes.  I observed for about 40 minutes as they dove in and out of the water.  They were quite cute and "playful".

Afterwards, I felt satisfied leaving the area knowing I added a new bird to my list. Several birders from Vermont were looking at a bird up in the rafters.  The woman declared it was a Western Kingbird and argued strongly with her mates.

Is this a Say's Phoebe or Western Kingbird?  What say you?

The men stood their grounds and thought it was a Say's Phoebe.

Can you tell which bird this is?

The Dark Side

Yellow Headed Blackbirds

Just how many black birds are out there??!!!!  Well on this day with Kathie, we'd discover every type of black bird and then some at Lakeside Park!!!!  There were some incredible surprises in the mix as well....rarities.  I love my birding buddy.  She's not only a cool person, but I now miss her when I'm birding alone.  Birding anytime is great but it's better when we work together as today would prove.

Great Tailed Grackles

And of course there were those that stood out from the "black feathers" only club.  But Kathie's careful eye discovered Cowbirds!!!  She was in awe and when it's something big, she says things like, "Oh my gosh Chris.  Oh my gosh! That's a...."  And we both get excited over the discovery.  

Wigeon

First, she documents and by the time she gets that camera ready, they've taken off on her. Birds are fast so I usually snap the shot and ID later.

Mallards landing

Now to be honest, blackbirds or sparrows scare me and can be difficult to ID. Or maybe it's just in my mind.  But they are birds and they are cool.  I just don't know why I feel that way because the blackbirds are incredibly interesting behavior wise.

American Coots

But inevitably, my eye is attracted to the raptor sitting in the tree.  I'm fascinated by them. Or how the above Coots gathered in a big group to have breakfast.

Red Tailed Hawk

But something captured both Kathie and my eyes.  Yellow.  WTH?!  There were two yellow headed blackbirds on the grass!  If you've ever tried taking shots of these birds, you know how difficult it is to get them on camera as they like to hang out in the reeds around water areas.  But here out in the open, there were TWO Yellow Headed Blackbirds.  And these birds do grab my attention and it was one of the many personal thrills for this day. The Vermilion Flycatchers and Herons being the other exciting finds...

But this sequence here of shennagins really got me excited and was thrilling to get on the camera.

Like hummingbirds, there was a pecking order and someone crossed the line......it was the female Grackle.

What a ^%&#!  She had to get her bill into the fold but thankfully the two young ones stood their ground......until 2 Kestrels presented themselves up in the airwaves and then all hell broke loose.  Everyone and their mother goose got up and flew the coup!

Well except for this cute adorable little White Crowned Sparrow.  They're back!

White Crowned Sparrow

The shot below of the Cowbirds REALLY got Kathie jumping up and down.  Luckily I was able to capture the two together.  It's important to note that they are two completely different Cowbirds hanging out on the same branch.   The trees were full of Brewer's, Grackles, etc etc.  And these two were cleverly disguised in the mix. And while the Bronzed Cowbird wasn't a lifer for me, the Brown Headed Cowbird was.  It was an unusual find in Tucson.  I saw my first Cowbird in Madera Canyon.

Male Bronzed Cowbird and a Brown Headed Cowbird

Kathie told me that this would happen.  She said that many times there are different birds hiding in the mix.  But my eyes were pulled to the Vermilion Flycatchers, Egrets, Herons, Raptors, Hummingbirds, etc etc.

And lately the Warblers have grabbed my full attention.  Coming up, I'll present several from my Portal visit. It was a fun day, as always, with Kathie.  But most importantly, I learned the very important lesson of looking closer.  Not everything is as it appears.  And then I joined the Dark Side of the force:) And it's appropriate.  Kathie would be the Emperor and I would play her henchman Darth Vader.  That Yellow Rumped Warbler never had a chance:)  More tomorrow.....

Yellow Rumped Warbler

After School Special

I had been trapped.  So trapped by all of this....this stuff we call life.  I was tired of the heat, the crazy of my work and the do this and do that!  Constant and nonstop.

Verdin

And that's when I booked it after the last school bell of the day.

Bullfrog

I had to get on the road before the traffic got crazy.  And boy did I get out in a hurry.

Gambel's Quail

I felt a lot of stress inside.  I won't go into details but I will say this.  We need to stop making excuses for our youth and we parents need to hold them accountable for their actions.  We're heading down a strange road. And I'll leave it at that.

Go go go!!!  And then I arrived.  It had been two weeks since I last went out with the camera and that was with Kathie!!  For you, that post would have been yesterday.  For me it was nearly 2 weeks later!

I was alone and with my camera.  And as soon as I hit the trail, my anxiety and stress evaporated and I felt calm inside again.

The signs of fall all around me.  While subtle in the desert, they are noticeable after years of living here.  The ducks are back again in large groups.

Mallard Duck

And it was nice to see them again.  I got so used to their presence last winter that I took them for granted.  During the summer, many disappear and the ponds around Sweetwater are quiet. Not anymore:)

Northern Shoveler

And the Yellow Headed Blackbirds are back!!!!!  They flew in great numbers above my head and I smiled.  Last year at this time I was asking myself what these birds were.

Yellow Headed Blackbirds

The Dragonflies will disappear as will most of the hummingbirds.  But I'm excited for our winter guests to arrive.  And that includes several new birder friends that I met on my walks before summer.  And I can't wait to see their faces again.

Recently, I had a week off to explore Southern Arizona.  I went alone this time.  And it was incredible.

I went to Portal and I'll have all my discoveries and so much more coming up from that trip.

You'll see what I find on my adventures soon.  But like this Harris Hawk.....

.....I'm just going to be exploring all over this fall.

Harris Hawk

Who knows what tomorrow will bring?  I write this post wondering what things I'll discover.  Everyday is like that for me when I don't have to work.  Routine is good, but sometimes no routine is even better.

And I will migrate my way......somewhere exciting. But for today, this walk cured me of my stress.  While it was hot, it still relaxed my mind from the troubles and anger of our society.

"You Just Missed It!"

Pied Bill Grebe with exuvia (dragonfly larvae)for the baby chicks.  Thanks to Ragged Robin! for the ID

"You just missed it!", exclaims an excited birder in the muggy and super moist environment.  I think to myself, "Damn you Mr. Yellow Bill Cuckoo. Damn you Green Heron."  Like every birder with a report, you run off to find those little gems hiding in the reeds, tree branches, or rocks.

Today I went to find the Green Heron, the Pied Billed Grebe, and the Yellow Bill Cuckoo.  I found one of them:)

Mourning Dove

Which isn't bad at all.  But when you consider, "You just missed it!"  Well that can make it frustrating:)  It was so muggy.  We were all wiping our brows from the moisture dripping off our faces.  I was a mess.  And it was only 7 AM!!!  No joke about our desert.  It's a hot one here.  Afternoon is off limits and the mornings are sometimes barely acceptable:)   From sun up +2 hours, you have to bird.  So that means you have to get up early in the morning.  No shower for me until I get back.

Gila Woodpecker

But I am always rewarded with unique views of birds.  I did find the cormorants.  They flew off later and I thought the below shot was nice.

Neotropic Cormorants

Yellow Billed Cuckoo?  No.  A Yellow Headed Blackbird. Still a nice find:)

Yellow Headed Blackbird(female)

Oh and this Moorhen was needing a little photo attention.  "Look at me!  Look at me!"  It's still hard to believe, for me, that this bird is related to the Purple Gallinule.

I snapped a shot of this bird last year in Panama.  There are some similarities.

And dragonflies.  No matter how much I try to resist taking their pictures, I can't help but snap one more shot.

The good news is that I did find the parent Grebe with some food for the little ones.  They were hiding in the reeds and it was fun watching the parents get the food.  And on top of that, I met another really nice birder who shared her observations on this day.  I was in a chatty mood.  Until next time...:)

Pied Billed Grebe