[wisb] AZ trip Rpt
- From: "Seegert, Greg" <gseegert@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: <wisbirdn@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 7 May 2009 23:18:37 -0400
Wisbirders
Well, my AZ report can't top that of Daryl and Mark, but then they had
me outnumbered two to one.
Here's my report. Sorry it's a little late but I've been trying to
catch up at work since I've gotten back.
Tuesday, April 28----I got to Tucson about 3 pm. One of the birds that
always seems rather hard for me to find, especially for one that is
fairly common, is gilded flicker. I decided to try a new spot, Honeybee
Canyon off Tangerine Rd just N of Tucson. A one hr hike there yielded
one G flicker, a couple of rufous-winged sparrows, ash-throated
flycatcher, and phainopela. I then drove up Mt Lemon, but by the time I
got up there it was late, cloudy and very windy. Except for W bluebird,
I didn't see much in the couple of spots I tried. Fortunately, the wind
went down after dark and I heard whiskered screech owl, common poorwill
and whip-poor-will.
Wed----I started at FL CYN looking for the rufous-capped warblers. I
failed. Of the 7 people looking, two got a brief look at them...the
rest of us dipped. In the misery likes company category, after I got
back, I read a post that 2 out-of-state birders spent 3 days and 14 hrs
looking for them and failed. I did see my only Cassin's kingbird of the
trip in FL CYN, otherwise it was slow. In FL Wash, I saw bell's vireo,
black-throated sparrow, Lucy's warbler, rufous-winged sparrow, and
Pacific-slope flycatcher. In Madera CYN, I saw AZ woodpecker, painted
redstart, hooded oriole, several common warbler spp, and MacGillivray's
warbler. Along Rico Rico Rd, I saw many B-bellied whistling ducks, one
WF ibis, and the only bullock's oriole of the trip. At Kino Springs, I
got a nice look at some Lucy's warblers, but only stayed there a few
minutes. At the fabled Patagonia Roadside Rest, I saw W tanager,
hooded oriole, and thick-billed kingbird. At the Patton's feeders were
6 or 7 spp of hummers with Costa's and violet-crowned being the best.
Also present were many lazuli buntings. Along Blue-Haven Rd (the road
where the Sinaloa wren has been hanging out), I saw a pr of perched
zone-tailed hawks and a gray hawk.
Th----I started the day by working my way up Carr CYN. I hoped to find
VA warbler on the way up but dipped. Reef Townsite at the top was one
of the birdiest places of the trip. Here were many band-tailed pigeons,
yellow-eyed junco, Cassin's, plumbeous, and Hutton's vireo, greater
peewee, 6-8 warblers spp with Townsends and Hermit predominating,
dusky-capped flycatcher, and quite a few empid FC. Actually, this trip
yielded more empids than any I've been on. Here I saw a couple of
buff-breasted, many "husky" FC (dusky/Hammonds), a couple each of
Hammond's and dusky. I checked out Comfort Springs at the end of the
road but found little along the trail. Next thing to do was change a
flat tire....apparently a common problem in AZ. Next stop was the
feeders at Beattys' where I saw about 7 spp, with magnificent and
white-eared being the best. At Ash-CYN B&B, there were the usual 6-7
hummer spp, with the best here easily being both male and female
Lucifer's. Also present were the only Scott's orioles of the trip. I'd
have spent more time at the two hummer places but I wanted to get into
Sierra Vista by around 6 so I could get my flat repaired. After that
was done, I drove out to Mosoon Rd and right at dusk, as expected,
several L nighthawks came cruising by.
Fri---I decided to try another new place, Huachuca CYN. I heard one
elegant trogon....that was about it. In the grasslands below Garden CYN
still on Ft Huachuca, I saw a sparrow perched up near the road. I got
the scope on it and confirmed my suspicion that it was a Botteri's
sparrow. In Scheelite CYN, I looked for the spotted owls. I dipped on
them but got a nice look at a male trogon....otherwise not much was
going on there. Further up at Sawmill CYN, things were a little better
although the birds were flocked so I walked quite a while between
finding much. There were 6 or 7 warblers, with, as usual, the most
common being Townsend's and hermit, with a few BT gray, Grace's,
Y-rumped, and painted redstarts thrown in. There were a couple of
buff-breasted FC and quite a few bushtits. In Miller CYN above
Beattys', I saw spotted owl (almost certainly the same one Daryl and
Mark saw) and several spp of warblers with the best easily being
red-faced. I stayed in the parking lot just below Beattys' til after
dark, then started heading down. About half way down I stopped for
owls. Exiting the car, I heard several turkeys gobble. I had my W
screech tape. Every time I played it, a turkey gobbled. I tracked one
gobbler to a roost about 30' up in a sycamore. I didn't get any
responses to my tape from western screech, but I heard elf and whiskered
screech owls in this area long with a couple of poorwills. Further
down, I got a western screech to respond to my tape and heard a pr of
elf owls.
Sat----I went back to FL CYN to look again for the rufous-capped
warblers. Today there were 8-10 people looking....same result, nobody
saw the warblers. In Madera CYN at Madera Kubo, I saw the recently
arrived flame-colored tanager, along with hepatic, western and summer
tanagers so it was a 4 tanager morning. Then it was back to Mt Lemon
where it was very windy, just like the first day I was there. I saw a
VA warbler in Bear CYN and various standard warblers in Rose Lake CYN,
along with pygmy nuthatches there. At quick stop at Sweetwater Wetlands
yielded a Harris' hawk.
Sun---Along Rt 77 N of Catalina I had another Harris' hawk. At MP 145
on Rt 77, a female common-black hawk is on the same nest she used last
year. Nearby was a circling juvenile C-black hawk. At Winkleman Flats
in (surprise) Winkleman, there was a brown-crested FC. At about MP 158,
I saw ash-throated FC, black-chinned sparrow, Bell's vireo, bushtits,
and W scrub jay. At MP 162, black-chinned sparrows, gray vireos, and W
scrub jays were on both sides of the road. On the W side of the road, I
also found juniper titmouse. It was now about 1230 and time to head
for the airport, thus ending another series of successes and failures
for your traveling hero.
Greg Seegert
Deerfield,IL
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