Arizona 2013 - May 22nd (Day 1)

 May 22nd - Day 1

Sweetwater Wetlands 

  

We arrived in Tuscon on May 22nd after an hour and half long flight. Tired from travel we went to bed early, ready for the following day.

Tuscon from the plane

The next morning we got up early and drove to the well known Sweetwater Wetlands. Due to construction, it took quite a bit more time than expected to get there. After a few U-turns and detours we finally made it to Sweetwater.

Sweetwater Wetlands

Right off the bat we noticed lots of bird activity. Singing Common Yellowthroats, Yellow Warblers, a Phainopepla, numerous Verdin, and many more birds.

Verdin. A tiny desert bird with a bright yellow head. 

We walked around the trails picking up Abert's Towhee, Wilson's Warbler, Western Wood-Pewee, and my lifer Curve-billed Thrasher. The Curve-billed Thrasher was my first of many lifers on the trip. 

Distant picture of my lifer Curve-billed Thrasher

 After the run in with the Thrasher, we walked over the the water basins. There wasn't much going on here, but we did see 3 duck species, a few Killdeer, Am. Avocets, and Black-necked Stilts.

Killdeer in flight

Feeding ducks in the recharge basin

Also in the area were lots of swallows and swifts, flying over the water. We saw many Northern Rough-winged and Cliffs, as well as a few Barn swallows.

White-throated Swift

 On the way out we saw another Curve-billed Thrasher, two Common Gallinule (or Moorhen), and my second life bird of the trip. A Tropical Kingbird. We identified this bird by its big, thick bill, brown tail (no white on the edges), greenish mantle, very yellow belly, and the call.  Apparently there were a few of them hanging out there while we were there.

Life bird #2. Tropical Kingbird

Complete Ebird check list here: http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S14296623

Roger Road WRF

We drove down the road from Sweetwater, arriving at the Roger Road facility. We checked in with the guard and he let us in to bird. Inside the gates we were welcomed by a cooing Inca Dove on an over hanging power line. 

Poor shot of an Inca Dove

There were more doves in this area than I had seen in a long time. Mourning, White-winged, and Inca Doves were around in good numbers. They littered the grass and trees in the surrounding area.

Doves at Roger Road WRF

We walked into the wooded area by the two ponds and looked around. We found a few Yellow Warblers, a Green Heron, two Black-headed Grosbeaks, a Cassin's Kingbird, another Tropical Kingbird, and a little flock of 6 goldfinches. In this flock there were 4 Lesser Goldfinches and two American Goldfinches, which were very uncommon for the area.

Cassin's Kingbird.

Right after viewing the goldfinches we both heard an unfamiliar bird. It was a loud, almost laughing like sound. We followed the call until we found the culprit. High on a palm tree we found a pair of Gila Woodpeckers. These flicker like birds were my third life bird. It was fun to watch them fly back and forth between trees, calling back and forth. These would turn out to be quite common throughout the rest of the trip.

Gila Woodpecker

After watching the woodpeckers, we got in the car and began the long drive to the Chiricahua Mountains.

Complete Ebird check list for Roger Road: http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S14296679

Along the way we picked up new trip birds like Ash-throated Flycatcher, Cactus Wren, and a beautiful adult Harris' Hawk.

We took a stop in between Tuscon and Portal at the Cienega Creek Preserve. This place was hopping with birds. This was a very cool spot to bird. Right when we got out of the car we could hear singing Black-throated Sparrows from the desert surrounding the wash and the pit-tic calls of both Western and Summer Tanagers coming from the tall Cottonwood Trees.

Cienega Creek Preserve

Cienega Creek

We walked down the steep hill from the road into the wash. There were lots of birds about in the mid-morning sun. Warbling Vireos and Black-headed Grosbeaks sang from the top of the cottonwoods. Also around were Lucy's, Macgilivray's, Orange-crowned, and Yellow Warblers, Bell's Vireos, Bewick's Wrens, numerous Tanagers and Towhees, and a pair of Vermilion Flycatchers.

Abert's Towhee - Very common around the preserve.

Near the creek I found my first Broad-billed Hummingbird. These are really awesome birds, probably the most colorful of the hummingbirds. I wish I had those at my feeders...

Bright colored birds were everywhere along the creek. We saw Black-headed Grosbeak, Northern Cardinal, Pyrrhuloxia, Summer and Western Tanager, and Bullock's Oriole, all in good numbers.

Here's a small taste of the colorful birds we saw on the preserve:

Summer Tanager - These birds stood out very well against the green of the leaves.

Northern Cardinal

Male Vermilion Flycatcher

As we were walking back to the car we saw our fifth life bird of the trip. A female Gray Hawk. It flushed out of a large cottonwood above us and flew through the trees and out of sight before I could snap a picture.

Other birds of interest included a male Bronzed Cowbird, Pacific-slope Flycatcher, and a single Purple Martin.

Ebird Checklist: http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S14477193

After birding the preserve we drove straight to Portal, Arizona, where we would spend the next two days.

We arrived at Sunny Flat Campground in the Chiricahua Mountains that night at around 8:30 p.m. This would be our camping spot for the next couple of days. We set up camp and went owling. At first there was very little bird activity, but after a while the first Elf Owl called. Soon 4-5 of these little owls could be heard at once! When I finally found one with the flashlight, I was amazed at how tiny they were!

Elf Owl on xeno-canto: http://www.xeno-canto.org/species/Micrathene-whitneyi

I couldn't wait for the next morning. Tomorrow would be my first real day of birding in South East Arizona. I fell asleep listening to the Elf Owls and a "Mexican" Whip-poor-Will trilling.

Harris's Sparrow -- Utah County

Harris's Sparrow

Lower Provo River Parkway in Lakeshore 

12/10/13

Harris's Sparrows are annual in Utah with 3-4 sightings a year. A first-winter bird was reported on the 9th, found by Eric Huish and Carlos Caceres.  It was seen near the Lower Provo River Parkway on Lakeshore Drive. My dad and I went down right after school in hopes of seeing this bird. I had seen one 5 years ago along the Skipper Bay trail, which is ironically just down the road from where Eric found the bird. If we found the sparrow it would be a lifer for my dad and only the second time I had ever seen one. 

Despite the the cold, the area was pretty birdy. Numerous California Quail scampered around, American Wigeon, Gadwall, and Mallards floated on the river, and Spotted Towhee's called from the dense cover.

California Quail

 After a few minutes my dad spotted our first Zonotrichia Sparrow on top of some dense brush. White throat bordered by black, splotchy black breast, pink bill, white belly, black crown, and brown head. Perfect match! It was the Harris's! I fumbled for my camera, looked up, and it was gone. 

I continued looking in the same area as our initial sighting while my dad walked farther down the road. While looking for the sparrow I noted other birds such as a good looking female Belted Kingfisher, American Tree Sparrow, Great Blue Heron, and a flyover Mallard. 

Female Belted Kingfisher

Drake Mallard in flight

After looking for another 10 minutes I went back to the car and as soon as I got in my dad waved for me to come over. He had the bird! I drove over to him and hopped out. Sure enough it was right there feeding in a little open patch of dirt. I got my camera out and snapped a few pics. 

1st Winter Harris's Sparrow

Right as we were about to leave, it flew up not 10-15 feet away from us into a Russian Olive. These were the best looks I've ever had of this bird and probably the best I'll ever get. 

Harris's Sparrow

Harris's Sparrow

Staring Contest!

This was bird 292 on my quest for 300 this year in Utah and number 393 in my attempt to get 400 ABA birds this year.

Antelope Island Causeway -- Long-Tailed Ducks and Other Good Birds

Antelope Island Causeway

November 23, 2012

Me and my dad decided to head out to Antelope to see if we could find the two Long-Tailed Ducks that were being reported along the causeway. When we arrived it was about 8:00 AM. We started out on mile marker 5 looking for any shorebirds and very surprisingly we couldn't find any (The only shorebirds we saw that day was a lone American Avocet and a group of Killdeer). Our next stop was the Second Bridge. On the way we saw numerous Bonoparte's, Ring-Billed, and California Gulls, a few Eared Grebes, lots of Common Goldeneye and Shovelers. At the bridge we were in for a very nice surprise. We first looked on the North side and found a very late Franklin's Gull mixed in with a group of about 80 Bonoparte's.

 Franklin's Gull

The next good find was 3 Surf Scoters and a Harlequin Duck on the south side of the Bridge.

Grainy Picture of the Harlequin Duck (right) and the Surf Scoter (left)

Also at the second bridge were 2 Horned Grebes and a Greater Scaup. After scanning the rest of the duck rafts to the South (mostly Common Goldeneye, Lesser Scaups, and Redheads), we moved on a little ways down the road by the Marina Parking lot. We got out the scope out and scanned the Goldeneye far out to the North. The first bird I put the scope on just happened to be a Long-Tailed Duck.

This was only my second Long-Tailed Duck ever and a first for the causeway.

This was only the beginning of the Long-Tailed Ducks that day. We went out on the Marina road and scanned the ducks, this time with a much closer view. We turned up 5 more Surf Scoters and 4 more Long-Tailed Ducks. Two of the ducks were males (one immature and one an adult) and the other three were females. (Sadly I spaced getting pictures of the Scoters in the good light because I was so into the ducks)

Three Long-Tailed Ducks 

(The two females right and the immature male left)

We then headed over to Lady Finger point and found yet another male Long-Tailed Duck. 

This was the 7th and Final Long-Tailed Duck of the day.

 All in all, a great day it was at the causeway. A total of 8 Surf Scoters, 7 Long-Tailed Duck, a Greater Scaup, Franklin's Gull, and a Harlequin Duck.

Powder Mountain Ski Resort

Powder Mountain Feeders

November 23, 2012

After Antelope Island, my dad and I decided to go to Powder Mountain. We arrived at about 3:00 PM and first thing, we found a good looking Clark's Nutcracker perched in a tree above the feeders.

  Clark's Nutcracker

At the same time a big flock of Gray-Crowned Rosy-Finches were associating with each other all around the feeder and in the trees. (No Black Rosy-Finches mixed in)

Interior Gray-Crowned Rosy-Finch

 The best bird of the day was for sure the Common Redpoll. This was a lifer for me and a Rare bird for the state of Utah.

Common Redpoll

              Common Redpoll with Interior Gray-Crowned Rosy-Finch

 Common Redpoll

Common Redpoll

It was seen with the Rosy-Finches at the feeder and surprisingly was not very shy. It gave great looks and picture opportunities.

Another Good bird at the feeders was this Stellar's Jay.

Provo City Cemetery - Northern Parula

Provo City Cemetery - December 22, 2012

Northern Parula

We arrived at the cemetery at about 9:00 A.M. and immediately we saw another birder down the road. We stopped and asked him if he had any luck on the Parula. He said it was last seen about 30 minutes before with a group of Yellow-rumped Warblers, Chickadees, and Kinglets. We drove a little farther down and parked. As soon as we got out we heard a few Chickadees doing their alarm call. We went over to the spot and started scanning birds for the Parula. In this flock there were 2 Mountain Chickadees, Numerous Black-capped, a few American Robin, 5 Red-breasted Nuthatch, and 8 Ruby-crowned Kinglets, but no warblers. Also a Northern Flicker flew over and landed in a pine above.

American Robin

Northern "Red-shafted" Flicker

Red-breasted Nuthatch

Ruby-crowned Kinglet

 By then we were joined by two other birders that were also looking for the Parula. We split up and searched the cemetery. Through the rest of the searching we found a few more Flickers, Nuthatches, Rock Doves, and an American Kestrel.

I was just about to give up when I heard a whistle from one of the other two birders we had met up with. I hurried over and sure enough the Parula was right there. Bright yellow chest and throat, two white wing bars, and a grayish-blue head. This was a Utah first for me having seen a few in other states before. If accepted, this will be the 19th record for Utah. A very pretty bird and well worth the time.  (see pictures below)

Northern Parula

Northern Parula

Northern Parula

 After watching the Parula, I noticed a bird up in a tall pine. I put my binoculars up and to my surprise I saw a pair of Evening Grosbeaks. This is only the second group of Evening Grosbeaks I have seen this year. They're pretty uncommon in Utah and their numbers are steadily declining. (Also a very pretty bird)

Evening Grosbeak Pair

Female Red Crossbill

 Another highlight from the same area was a flock of 12-15 Red Crossbills. These flew in just after we lost the Parula. They stayed out for a while providing great views before flying off.

 While heading back to the car we heard a flock of Waxwings. We looked up and sure enough about 25 Waxwings were flying over. I put my binoculars up and was sure glad I did. There were at least 3 Bohemian Waxwings with the flock of Cedars. This was another first of year for me, the 2nd of the day.

All in all it was a great day at the cemetery with a Utah first.

Highlights:

• Red Crossbills
• Evening Grosbeaks
• Mountain Chickadee
• Bohemian Waxwings
• *Northern Parula*

September 13th and 14th -- Davis County Birding

 DAY 1

My dad and I started out the weekend birding at Bountiful Pond on Friday evening. My goal here was to pick up Common Tern and try to find any rare, migrating passerines.

Bountiful Pond

Highlights here included a Common Tern, Gray Catbird, and 5 species of Warblers (Orange-crowned, Wilson's, Macgilivray's, yellow-rumped, and a single Yellow).

Common Tern

Orange-crowned Warbler

Sunset at Bountiful Pond

 No rare migrants, but plenty of the common ones. We saw good numbers of Song Sparrows, White-crowned Sparrows, Macgilivray's, Yellow-rumped, and Wilson's Warblers, Hammond's and Willow Flycatchers, and Forster's Terns. The Common Tern was a nice addition to the list as my first of the year.

Before it was completely dark, we swung over to Glover Ponds to try and find the reported Sabine's Gull and Pectoral Sandpipers. No Sabine's Gull, however I did get a quick look at one Pectoral Sandpiper. Not a satisfactory look for a year bird, but I hoped to see one the next day on the AI
Causeway.  

 DAY 2

Our plan was to camp, but due to the heavy rain we decided to stay in a hotel near Willard Bay. Our first stop the next morning was the Willard Spur (or West Willard Bay). This was 99% dry and only had a few birds around, which were mostly ducks. The only shorebirds we saw were a small group of American Avocets. It's amazing to think that just a few weeks ago there were hundreds of thousands of shorebirds there and now, just a few ducks and Avocets.

The next stop was at the Willard Bay Campground. It started out slow with a single Macgilivray's Warbler, a couple Yellow-rumped Warblers, and an American Robin.

Willard Bay Campground

A few minutes later things started to pick up. We started seeing migrants in good numbers. The most abundant bird was the Wilson's Warbler. In the hour we spent there, we saw at least 30 different Wilson's. Also in good numbers were Gray Catbirds, Yellow-rumped Warblers, and Empids. Most of the Empids were either Dusky or Hammond's Flycatchers, but we did see one Willow.

Willow Flycatcher

Gray Catbird

After the wooded section of Willard Bay we walked over to the dike area. Scanning the lake I was amazed at the shear number of Western/Clark's Grebes on the lake. I stopped counting at 170 something and I still wasn't even close to being done. Other birds on the lake included a small group of Pelicans, 3 Common Terns, and many Forster's Terns.

Distant Common Tern

Forster's Tern

A miniscule portion of the grebes on the lake.

Antelope Island was next. The previous day a Black-and-white Warbler was reported at the ranch and we had high hopes of finding it. We arrived on the causeway at around 9:30. No Pectorals, but we did see a fairly large group of Western Sandpipers on the south side of the causeway just before the no swimming bridge. I looked through and counted the whole flock twice and couldn't find any other species mixed in. Also in the area were 4 Snowy Plovers all at the no swimming bridge where they have been hanging out for the last couple of weeks. On the "bend" (where the causeway curves) we had a group 5 Sanderling flyby. Out on the water we saw a mix of both Red-necked and Wilson's Phalaropes, Eared Grebes, Am. Avocets, and Franklin's Gulls.

Snowy Plover blending in at the NO Swimming Bridge

Distant Flock of Western Sandpipers (158 in total)

While watching the Western Sandpipers I saw a very large bird flying towards us heading south. It turned out to be an early Bald Eagle.

Early Bald Eagle

Not even a minute later, another fish-eating bird of prey flew over. An Osprey.

My first Osprey for the Antelope Island Causeway

After arriving at the ranch we could tell that the Black-and-white Warbler was a no show. All of the disappointed faces showed it. Sure enough it hadn't been seen since the day before when it was reported by the Sommerfields. There sure were a lot of birds around though. Numerous Cassin's and Warbling Vireos, Townsend's, Yellow-rumped, Macgilivray's, Wilson's, and Orange-crowned Warblers, a single Swainson's Thrush just in one little area.

First of Year (FOY) Cassin's Vireo

Cedar Waxwing

Orange-crowned Warbler - Seen in a mixed flock of birds soon after our arrival at the ranch.

Swainson's Thrush - This bird doesn't have the bright spectacles normally expected for a Swainson's Thrush, but I did for sure note that it did not have a rusty tail like a Hermit Thrush. I compared it to a couple of Hermit Thrushes, which were in close proximity.

Townsend's Warbler in bad lighting.

One by one, the birders started to leave due to an ominous thunderstorm. My dad and I decided to stick it out. Sure enough, 5 minutes later it started to pour. 

Oncoming Rain Storm

We sat under the shelter of the ranch house until the rain was just a drizzle. I got up and wandered around the spring area and was amazed at the numbers and diversity of birds in the area. It was amazing. Lincoln's Sparrows, Green-tailed and Spotted Towhees, White-crowned Sparrows, Townsend's, Wilson's, a single Yellow, 20+ Yellow-rumped Warblers, lots of orange-crowned warblers, a Merlin, Western Tanagers, Flycatchers galore, and many, many other migrants loaded the trees in the light rain.

Lincoln's Sparrow

First of Season (FOS) Merlin in the rain

Townsend's Warbler

Group of Western Tanagers (5) and a Savannah Sparrow (top left). Part of the large group of migrants that came in during the storm.

Close up female/young Western Tanager

I wandered out to the woodpile and found a scolding and out of place Bewick's Wren and both a Calliope and Broad-tailed Hummingbird. I had almost forgotten how small Calliope Hummingbird are. It was so small that my camera couldn't focus on it. I called my dad over and we were able to refind the Calliope Hummingbird, but not the wren or the Broad-tailed Hummer. After looking around the main part of the ranch for a little longer, we walked out to the second spring just south of the green gate. In the past this place has been a pretty good spot for birds. Here we found our first Nashville and Virginia's Warblers for the day, Gray, Hammond's, Cordilleran, Willow, and Dusky Flycatchers, a W. Wood-Pewee, numerous Western Tanagers, and interesting vireo (turned out to be a bright Warbling Vireo), and a porcupine.

Nashville Warbler

Another Orange-crowned Warbler

Porcupine

Very bright Warbling Vireo. At first it struck me as a Philadelphia Vireo, but the lores aren't dark, making this a bright fall Warbling Vireo.

Willow Flycatcher

On our way back from the second spring, we decided to split up. I'd go around the marsh area, while my dad would go through the heart of the ranch. Here I ran into a little family of Pewees and a Savannah Sparrow.

Savannah Sparrow

I met up with my dad along the fence by the spring. Right where we met we found a fairly large flock of mixed birds. This flock included 5 Townsend's Warblers, 3 Cassin's Vireos, numerous Wilson's Warblers, a Macgilivray's Warbler, and the highlight of the day, a RED-EYED VIREO. This bird gave me a jump start. It was sitting still right in the middle of a large tree eating a caterpillar of some sort. Its dark gray cap and lores, greenish wings, large bill, and prominent, white supercilium caught my attention. We watched it for about 12 minutes before leaving for lunch. This was a Utah first for me and a cool bird to see in general.

Cassin's Vireo - Part of the large mixed flock with the Red-eyed Vireo.

RED-EYED VIREO

RED-EYED VIREO - Note the dark, contrasting cap and lores, greenish wings, and large bill. Red eye is not apparent in the photos.

Semi-cooperative Wilson's Warbler. My first decent picture of this species. 

 A great two days of birding!