Roger Wilco Foxtrot Willcox: More Chasing (...and a bit too fast)

One of my only and best streaks was broken on Sunday. A Red Phalarope was phalaroping in Willcox, about three hours east and south of Phoenix, and this would be both a lifer and a pretty sweet bird to pick up in the middle of not-the-coast land. Alas, I also had some time constraints, which meant this had to be a quick chase, leaving Phoenix at 5:00am and returning at 11:30am. The streak was that despite 9 different warnings in 7 different states in the last 10 years, I had not received a speeding ticket directly from a police officer (those unconstitutional cheating speed cameras in AZ were another story). That ended a bit south of Tucson on Sunday, where the speed quickly dips from 75 to 65 and yours truly was still cruise controllin' at 80mph, just minding his own business, which in this case was seeing good birds. So, that was a bit of a spoiler, as will the weekend traffic school likewise be. Anyhow, the trip was worth it. 

The first bird of the morning--after the obligatory highway birds--was a shady female Pyrrhuloxia who was demonstrating the truly bizarre mandible shape and configuration of this species. Great bird though, great bird...way better than Cardinal. 

Lake Cochise in Willcox is a modest body of water but it's one of very few in a pretty busy flyway, so it has had its share of rarities over the year, and is about the only place in Arizona to get White-rumped Sandpipers in spring. It also has more than its fair share of the common and expected birds.

Coming soon, to a parking lot near you...

Lake Cochise is a small drainage basin from the nearby Twin Lakes golf course, and it is surrounded by the otherwise natural desert grasslands, punctuated here and there by sprouts of wiry mesquite. The habitat and geographic location make it one of the best spots in Arizona to pick up Eastern Meadowlark, and several species of Sparrow, as well as some Longspurs, winter here with great success. There are also Lark Buntings, a bird I hope to see some day in sexy plumage--maybe this summer in Montana or North Dakota.

The golf course area itself provides some foreign habitat in the form of pine and willow trees, along with rushy reedy stuff on its derivative golf course ponds. The pond cover suits Teal species and maybe even an American Bittern if one is very lucky, while the ornamental pines make appreciated perches for   talon-less birds of prey. 

P.S. Why is no gang or sports team given the collective name "The Shrike." It sounds totally badass. 

"My favorite car is the Chevy Impala."

I know what you're thinking: "Quit stalling and just show the damn Phalarope or admit that you busted again and quit wasting my time you mook. Also, your casserole sucks and the only reason your mother hasn't publicly admitted that you were her least favorite child is because she knows she'll have to rely on you for drawn-out hospice care in 30 years." 

Well geez man, that was pretty harsh and personal, but I take your point. Here's the rub though, not only was the REPH in its expected non-breeding plumage, it was also pretty far away, so enjoy this for all of your impatient degradation!

Yeah, not great looks or really much else, but a great tick for Arizona. I should be thankful that this bird was so reliable and easy to spot with only binoculars (and I am; thank you, hopelessly lost Red Phalarope). Also of interest in the area were a pair of corvids that look pretty good for Chihuahuan Raven. They were smaller/more delicate than what I'd expect for CORA, and the nictal bristles on this bird seem to extend all the way to the downward curve of the culmen. The tail is also pretty flat across the edge of the primaries, less 'wedged' than I'd expect on CORA.

Why am I saying all of this out loud? Because CHRA is usually a bird I only count when I've got other people backing me up in the field. This prudence stems not only from my generally conservative birding nature and lack of ID skill, but also from a deeply ingrained belief that the less of anything 'chihuahua' in the world, outside perhaps that region in actual Mexico, the better.

(I kid I kid, CHRA is a cool bird, but I surely do dislike those little rat dogs).

Birds n' Booze: A Classy Weekend in Southeast Arizona

By now everyone's heard of the birding attractions in Southeast Arizona. Every little mountain range has its own specialities and rare species, whether it's Mexican Chickadees and Hummingbirds or Spotted Owls and Montezuma Quail. Too often I launch into panegyrics on the region, and more than a few bird bloggers have filed for restraining orders against my continual ramblings about the place.

But most recently when I travelled down to the Sonoita area, on the southeastern foothills of the Santa Rita Mountains (home of the famous Florida and Madera Canyons), it wasn't with the birds in mind (ok, they're always in mind), but for the wine. 

Yes indeedy, with their predominantly spanish varietals, the Arizona wine circuit is booming, and some outstanding, award-winning wines are being produced down at the Callahan, Doz Cabezas, Sand Reckoner, and Lightning Ridge wineries. It was early February, and the plan was to stay in the area at a friend's house for the weekend and soak in the scenery, along with gallons of adult grape juice, before heading over to the famous Whitewater Draw near Willcox to observe the massive flocks of noisy Sandhill Cranes and the marshy entourage that can be found nearby. 

Before we made it to the vineyards or the Whitewater Draw, we made a stop and explored the oldest standing Spanish mission in America, founded in 1691a.d. at Tumacacori. 

Set against the gloomy winter skies that dominate southeastern Arizona in February, the mission was splendidly emanating with that irreplaceable aura of historical worth. Nonetheless, after about ten or fifteen minutes of sight-seeing, I was drawn back outside by the sounds of Sparrows and their ilk.

Chipping and Lark Sparrows were all around the grounds, while Mockingbirds and Phainopeplas dotted the craggy tree tops. The occasional Brewer's and Vesper Sparrow was mixed in with the bunch, along with some other cruelly ambiguous birds like this buffy first-year Chipping Sparrow, which dared me to call him Clay-colored. Nice try young Chipper, nice try...

There is substantial delight to be had simply in driving through the grassy, rolling hills of Sonoita and Patagonia, especially with overcast skies. The pasture fences are strewn with Lark Buntings and Red-tailed Hawks, while patient Harriers soar ever-present in the foreboding skies.

After visiting the old mission and some other fun sites in the Tumcacori area, we drove to the Sonoita wine circuit for an afternoon of semi-refined revelry.  We had a marvelous time visiting the Callahan and Dos Cabezas tasting rooms, hob-knobbing with winos and growers and generally doing our best to make Bacchus proud. Forgive the grainier phone photos. Saturday was overcast and the day for the Grapes; Sunday was the day for Birds.

There's nothing like right out of the barrel!

Unhappy weather was brooding in Arizona all weekend, and we were regularly rained on throughout our travels. This all made for an absolutely stunning drive out to the Whitewater Draw on Sunday morning, as the thick clouds just started to break up and let in the light. The golden plains were so saturated with color and the sky seemed to hold every hue of blue and then purple as the sun finally had its way and reasserted itself in the sky.

The Whitewater Draw, located about thirty minutes northeast of Bisbee and Douglas in the southeast corner of the state, is one of the state's most famous birding sites as it pulls in thousands of wintering Sandhill Cranes every year. As we were approaching the preserve we saw hundreds of skeins spreading out over the farm fields in search of fresh grazing grounds. We arrived at the Draw a bit too late for the grand dawn take off, but there were still plenty of chatty birds lingering in the shallow waters. From miles out the cacophony of honking Cranes echoed in our ears. The anxious, somewhat abrasive honk of the Crane is a very endearing sounds, one I regret not recording.

With the waters being pretty far removed from the pedestrian areas (that's half the appeal for the Cranes), the opportunities for up close viewing are pretty rare. Every once in a while though some Cranes would fly by close overhead, or off into a rainbow. There's got to be more than one pot of gold hidden out there.

While the Cranes are the main attraction, they're not the only birds on display. The tall marsh grass around the inundated lowlands is teeming with Sparrows, and smaller groups of Waterfowl also ply their trade in the shallows. Smaller birds like these Northern Pintails and Green-winged Teal cling to the underbellies of the Cranes and clean them of parasites. Scientists call it a symbiotic relationship.

 

As one might guess, the Draw is also bubbling with raucous Marsh Wrens. These birds are often a torment for photography, but with so many around the odds are finally in the photographer's favor. The Whitewater Draw allows one distant looks at huge birds, and up close views of tiny birds. 

Meadowlarks and Thrashers inhabit the surrounding Grasslands, and with a little bit of luck one might hear the trill or catch a glimpse of a Grasshopper Sparrow. While pausing to scrape some mud (there's plenty of that too after some rain), I even noticed a delightful ruddy little rump slouching down from a  

scraggily bush. The black spots were promising too. We had gone to the Draw simply to see and hear the Crane spectacle, and we would also be heading back to Phoenix loaded up with wine (Callahan Tempranillo and Back Lot 10'...mmmmmm). Now there was a potential Lifer bird here to ice the cake.

Ice the cake it did! Ok, it didn't actually ice a cake, but I did see it poop. A pair of Ruddy Ground Doves, though not overly splendid or charming in their appearance and demeanor, were arguably the highlight, and an unexpected one at that, of an already amazing trip.

With all the birding, scenery, and now fantastic vineyards, there are too many reason to be in southeast AZ. Why anyone lives anywhere else (myself included) is beyond me. Birding is fun, and then there's birding with wine fun...

Birding Synchronicity

It strikes again! You can go for years without seeing a bird, or never see it at all. Then, as the British say, you finally break your duck (an awkward expression for birders, to be sure) and the sightings come left and right. It was just a few days ago that I was perusing through some old blurry photos and I realized I had a new bird on my hands, the Vesper Sparrow. This weekend I'm on a trip down to some of the fantastic Tucson birding hotspots with BiF  Editor Robert Mortensen and BiF Author Jeremy Medina, and one of the first birds Robert and I saw on the drive down was, of course, the Vesper Sparrow!

You can find Sparrows in a variety of habitats, and that's part of their appeal. But I think one of my favorite things about the Sparrows is how they can really enliven and transform a landscape. We can be observing a simple arid dirt lot on the side of the road, much like this one. All of the sudden we notice movement, dare we say a little bit of color. It's not a barren strip of land after all. There are intricately patterned and determined wee birds flitting all over. The Sparrows bring liveliness to these desolate places, and where there is life there is beauty.

This was only the beginning of some excellent birding Robert and I fit in on the way down to Tucson. Soon after the Vesper Sparrows we found Chipping Sparrows, Western Meadowlarks, and the first Lifer of the trip, a flock of Lark Buntings!

We stopped around the Picacho Peak area to scan for some Crested Caracaras. While these regal buzzards were nowhere to be found, the Red-Tailed Hawks and Loggerhead Shrikes were out in force. We also came across Western Bluebirds, Yellow-Rumped Warblers, and some lovely Lark Sparrows.

But best of all, the best birding is yet to come.