[wisb] AZ Trip Rpt...lions, mules, and banditos, oh my

From: "Seegert, Greg" <gseegert@xxxxxxxxx>
To: "wisbirdn@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <wisbirdn@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Sun, 6 Dec 2009 16:12:41 -0500
Hello Wisbirders
I made my last major trip of the year this past week.  I assembled a list of 10 
birds I needed for my year list and saw 9.  Here's my report.

Wed (Dec 3)---Near the top of Mt Ord about 60 mi NE of Phoenix, I saw at least 
3 Lewis's woodpeckers.  An hour's stakeout of a corral and water tank near the 
base of the Mt yielded 2 sage thrashers, a Townsend's solitaire, all 3 bluebird 
spp (many westerns, a few Mt, and a couple of easterns),  W scrub jay and 
several other spp.  At the Baseline Rd LeConte's thrasher spot W of Phoenix, I 
saw 10-15 sage sparrows and a few black-tailed gnatcatchers.  I finished the 
day in the Santa Cruz Flats area looking for Mt plover but dipped.  I saw one 
ferruginous hawk and several Mt bluebirds.

Th---I started the day at Sweetwater Wetlands in Tucson.  The target here was 
Lawrence's goldfinch of which I saw about 15 near the entrance bridge (killer 
looks).  Also present were Harris's hawk and Gambel's quail.  Next stop was 
Santa Gertrudis Lane by Tumacacori to look for rufous-backed robin.  I watched 
it for 20-30 min in a dense pyracantha bush.  Although it periodically 
stretched out to grab a berry it didn't move more than 6 inches the whole time 
I was watching it.  Numerous other birds were also feeding on the berries 
including my only phainopepla of the trip.  The Santa Cruz R was at the end of 
the lane so I decided to walk along it for a while because a varied thrush and 
rose-throated becard had been reported there a week or so ago.  A Mt lion was 
also seen there also so I tried to look like I was not edible.  Mt lions are 
roaming around SE AZ now.....Patagonia Preserve was closed all week and will be 
next week also due to lion activity in the area.  As I was walking along the 
pathway I encountered a Border Patrol agent on his way out.  He stopped to warn 
me about illegal activity in the area.  It seems they've made several arrests 
of people (mules) carrying in marijuana packs.  He said each person carries a 
bag with about 50# in it.  Actually, he continued, those folks are mostly 
harmless, it's the banditos who rob the mules at gunpoint that I should be on 
the lookout for.  I told him that it would make everyone's life easier and 
safer if Feds just legalized marijuana....plus the Feds could make a lot of 
money taxing it.    His reply?..."I can't dispute that."  Anyway, I saw no 
mules, no banditos, no lions, no becards, and no varied thrushes.  A brief stop 
at Kino Springs didn't yield anything of note.  Next I drove to Pena Blanca L 
to look for Montezuma quail.  No quail but many red-naped sapsuckers.  I 
continued down Ruby Rd to the trailhead for Sycamore CYN.  I went off the trail 
a few feet to get a better look at some sparrows and had 3 M quail erupt at my 
feet.  I'm always amazed how small these guys are.

Fri----I began in the San Rafael Valley.  Normally I cover a lot of territory 
looking for Baird's sparrow but reports this year indicate that it's even 
scarcer than usual so I spent 2.5 hr staking out a water hole at the W end of 
the valley.   Hundreds of sparrows came in to drink but 99.99% were savannahs.  
But I saw 2 grasshopper and one Baird's.  Chestnut-collared longspurs came in 
occasionally but they were VERY flighty, never staying more than a few seconds. 
 From there it was nearly a 3 hr drive to Bisbee where I staked out another 
pyracantha bush looking for a varied thrush that had been there about a week 
ago.   A 1.5 hr vigil did not yield the thrush, perhaps it has moved on.

Sat----I had about 3 hrs to bird before I needed to be to the airport.  I went 
back to Santa Cruz Flats and after about 30 min of looking found 2 Mt plovers 
at the Evergreen turf farm.  I spent about an hr in Scottsdale checking out 
some areas that in the old days yielded E wigeon....no such luck today.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

I saw about 110 sp, including 9 year birds taking me to 566 for the year.

Greg Seegert
Deerfield,IL

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[wisb] AZ Trip Rpt...lions, mules, and banditos, oh my

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