Sunday, June 24, 2012

A Good Take at Woods Canyon Lake

Arizona is a large state and there's lots of empty space. At first glance, it seems like much of it is hot, uninhabitable stretches of desert. This may actually be the case, but Arizona is also flush with birding hotspots. The southeast corner is known worldwide for drawing a great variety of rare birds. The northwest corner of the state also has some great locations such as the Bill Williams Wildlife Refuge, one of the few places in the U.S. where one can find Nutting's Flycatchers. The White Mountains provide some excellent spots to the east, and Boyce Thompson Arboretum is a great spot down south.

The north central portion of the state also has some good birding, but it's not nearly as publicized as the top-notch locations. A lot of the birds in north central Arizona, around Payson, Strawberry, and Sedona, can be found elsewhere in the state, but these birding sites along the Mogollon Rim (pronounced muggy-own) do have an appeal. They offer cool temperatures, great scenery, and unlike the White Mountains or the Chiricahuas, they're within a two-hour drive of Phoenix.

And there's lots of other neat stuff too, like this Swallow Tail.

Maria and I recently spent some time with my family up at a cabin in Strawberry, AZ. From Strawberry we could easily reach other spots along the Mogollon Rim, such as Kehl Springs, Blue Ridge Reservoir, and Woods Canyon Lake. Woods Canyon Lake is about 30 miles east of Payson, off the SR 260 highway. It's an old favorite of the Butler brood. Many summers we'd camp and fish along its rocky shores, but this was my first time returning to focus on the birds.

Woods Canyon Lake offers the best birding in the area and is the most accessible of the reservoir lakes along the rim. It has been the preferred spot for a pair of nesting Bald Eagles the last 5 years, and is also a popular roosting spot for Osprey and Great Blue Herons.


There's a 3 mile loop trail around the lake, parts of which is paved for the less mobile folks. The loop trail is definitely the best way to explore the surrounding pine forest for its feathered residents, and it provides some excellent views of the lake as well. Of course, with a pair of eager eyes one can find lots of other critters too. The Bald Eagle nesting site is protected from the public, and hikers have to take a detour to give the area its proper clearance. Along the way, we got some very distant views of the Eagle couple and their chick, as well as a very close view of this Horny Toad on an old fence post. His pink skin, though pretty, inhibited his camouflage.

 "Ugh! Foiled Again!"

Luckily for the Horny Toad we weren't hungry, having previously filled up on turkey sandwiches and strawberries (score!). It was lunchtime though for some of the more conspicuous critters. Woods Canyon Lake groundsquirrels are very tame. Having conducted a thorough study of the human camping habits, they often conduct daring daylight raids into campgrounds and picnic areas, taking chips and leaving no prisoners.



The best birding is on the north side of the lake. If one feels like hauling a scope that far, the north shore provides some clear views of the Eagle nest, and seems to have higher concentrations of songbirds too.

One of the target birds of this WCL expedition was the Red-faced Warbler. These little dynamos are definitely high-elevation highlights in Arizona. Even though they're not overly common, they can be found pretty regularly, if sporadically, in the Mogollon pine forests. Unfortunately, the little bugger below eluded my manual focus, leaving me with some in-focus pine needles at the center and a blurry bird off to the side. Argh, I've been warbled!


Though they're the most striking, the RFWA is not the only pretty face around the woods. Western Tanagers have a much larger range than their red-faced companions, and are more common, but I've still never heard anyone complain when a Tanager flies into view. They can be found all along the Mogollon Rim in the summer months, and provide an unmistakable flash of color as they dart through the trees.


Like the Red-faced, the Grace's Warbler is another specialist of the high altitude pine forests. Like the Summer Tanager, they turn up in the summer months and fill the woods with their warbling songs and flashes of yellow. This particular bird had been singing with much gusto until a cloud briefly blocked out the sun. With his spotlight gone, the warbler became very shy, one might say red-faced. Here he is anxiously awaiting its return.


Warblers and Tanagers supply the color around Woods Canyon Lake, while the Eagles and Osprey supply a little majesty. Mountain Chickadees and Dark-eyed Juncos play the role of filler-bird. They're a common sight all along the lake, with the Chickadees occupying the tree canopies and the Juncos foraging along the needle-laden floor. 


Since they're unusual at the lower elevations, the Juncos and Chickadees are a welcome sight. Their fluttering feeding frenzies often rope in other birds too, such as this Plumbeous Vireo. The Vireo was having a hard time keeping up with the Chickadees, but still tried its best. It paused only a moment to catch it's breath, and I paused to catch a photo. 

Kinda like a tiny Mockingbird with glasses.

The Plumbeous Vireo was pretty sweet, but the sighting of the day was definitely a pair of Townsend's Solitaires. This was a new bird for me, one I should've seen by now and one I was very glad to put to rest. They're by no means unusual for the area, but they're not exactly common or easy to find either. In this case, there was one adult bringing food to a recent fledgling, and since both were pretty distracted by this endeavor they paid me little mind. 

The Solitaire isn't the most colorful bird around, but there's something extra satisfying about finding a bird that occupies its own group in North America, like the Phainopeplas or Verdins--something that's totally unique. It's hard to pinpoint, but there's something very impressive about these birds in person. At any rate, it's the only bird of which I am aware that has inspired a famous card game.


Alas, there were no Three-toed Woodpeckers or Northern Pygmy Owls to report, but they're also possibilities for the area. While recording my sightings, I noticed there are very few eBird submissions for the area. In my experiences, it's a rich but under-appreciated birding spot, with Grosbeaks, Titmice, and lots of migrants also common to the area. Woods Canyon Lake doesn't have the name recognition or established credentials of the other big hotspots--and it probably never will--but it's a great relief from the hot city, and at only an hour and a half away, it's a a great day trip, especially if one wants to fit in a little kayaking or fishing on the side. 

20 comments:

  1. Great post and a great place to visit! Was there a couple of years ago and got several new birds myself. You saw some nice birds and I am well aware how hard it is to capture some of those warblers; you did well! I think your rodent might be a Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel, not a chipmunk. My understanding is that chipmunks have stripes on the face and head, but squirrels do not. I could be wrong as I am not an expert on these by any means. Enjoyed your post very much!

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    1. Thanks Gordon. WCL is a bit of a hidden gem.

      I appreciate the correction on the rodent too. We've called em' chipmunks since forever and I never really bothered to look up their real name.

      Stay cool this week!

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  2. I don't know what I want more - your birds or your lizards (your birds... definitely your birds). All our best lizards in Florida were invasive exotics, like the Knight Anole, Iguana, Northern Curly-tailed Lizard, etc. And nothing quite so rough and nasty-looking as the Horny Toad.

    Sounds like a pretty incredible outing. Glad you're getting in some good birding before the heat makes you evaporate.

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    1. Thanks Nicholas. I didn't know that Florida's herpes were invasive; that does diminish the fun a fair bit.

      I'm running out of places to go before I eventually just ditch and make a break for the southeast corner (a tricky thing to manage since I must be back to Phoenix by 4 pm so Maria can take the car to night school) but yes, there's still some good stuff out there.

      When I evaporate, I will re-congeal into a cheerful cloud and come rain on all my buddies--keep an eye out for that in the future. I will be offended if you use an umbrella.

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  3. Wow, your posts keep tempting me to make a trip to AZ again Laurence, your birds are tantalyzing!

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    1. Yay! Thanks Mia, I'm hoping to tempt someone. And hey, if you're coming down from Utah, this would just be a quick stop on the way down south to the birding meccas in the southeast corner of the state...

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  4. Cool! There were a couple more birds in there that I have yet to see. I regret not having birded those areas enough during my Arizona days.

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    1. It's funny ho that goes. There are so many great spots around AZ, I think the mentality often is that if one is going to drive for a while to go birding, might as well drive the extra hour and get down into the Chiricahuas or something, or else just stay in Maricopa (for those of us that live(d) in Maricopa).

      It makes sense too, since there's very little a place like WCL offers that can't be found along with lots of other stuff at some of the more famous birding hotspots. Might as well go there. But hey, if you're looking for a little fishing or camping, it's good to know that you'll get some good birding as well with 2 hours of Phoenix.

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  5. Very nice blog and of course Great Images!!

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    1. Thanks Cynthia--always great to have you stop by; thanks for commenting.

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  6. Well, now, didn't you have a wonderful day!! I think I want to go there! I'd add a ton of birds to my lifelist.

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    1. I certainly recommend it, and it could only be one stop out of several worthwhile in the area!

      Over thee year sI've gotten lots of new birds there, and the hikes don't get any less nice or exciting even as the birds become more familiar.

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  7. Holy cow! Red-faced and Grace's warblers, Plumbeous Vireo...super envious - all would be lifers for me! What an awesome Townsend's money shot, such cool birds, haven't seen 'em since my MT days and your photo made me vividly recall the few times I saw them. Good stuff!

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    1. Thank ye Lauren. I'll trade you some of these western warblers for a few Black-billed Cuckoos, since you might have some spares soon, and maybe a few wood warblers?

      Anyhow, birding in Montana sounds fabulous. I haven't done nearly enough traveling in that portion of the country.

      If you ever make your way down to AZ, Woods Canyon isn't a bad stop. I've been thinking lately how curious it is that there aren't any big birding festivals in southeast Az given all the different birds it pulls in around spring time.

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  8. Now I've not heard about some of these bird places...I'm going to have to check them out if we head north. I was birding in one of the canyons down here and a woman asked me about Phoenix and I thought....gosh, I wish Laurence were here because he'd know.

    It has been sticky out. I only went birding yesterday for the first time because of cooler temps and rain. It has been really bad here to get out and do anything productive. And it shows because a lot of birders felt the same way.....most of been locked up in their homes......yesterday everyone was exploring:)

    Great pics.....even if that one is out of focus. It's nice to see a Western Tanager:)

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    1. It's been a harsh week all over the country it seems, and yeah the listserv reports are definitely down for the week, lots of people staying in doors.

      If you all ever head north of Phoenix than Woods Canyon Lake is worth a stop, but I do believe you all have plnety going on down there too. I read a report today of 6 Trogons in Huachuca canyon! Yowzaa! I gotta get down there...

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  9. Laurence, I am so glad that you not only went to take photos but that you submitted a bird count to eBird! I love to bird in the under-birded and unexpected places! BTW, I have been "warbled" myself before! Glad you still got some nice shots and had a fun day! YOU make me miss AZ! Oh, and BTW, I had the hardest time seeing my first Townsend's Solitaire too! I would be on birding expeditions and everyone else but me would see the bird. I finally found one all by myself down near Rio Rico. I haven't seen one again since! So, congrats!

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    1. Ha! I'm glad you finally found the Townsend's too. I especially enjoy birding in new/underreported places--It makes me feel like I'm part of a Lewis & Clark style expedition...not that I've discovered new species...yet : )

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