Pima Canyon Wash - 2 June 2013

Well, today it was back to my usual haunt.  The desert heat has arrived and when that happens, my birding around the Phoenix area greatly subsides.  When the morning temps can be 90° at 5:00 AM, then you might as well stay home or head to higher elevation spots.  Today, I decided to get in a good hike before the sun came up and the heat set in, so I made it a point to arrive at the trail head at 5:00 AM.  Was so early I had to wait for the gate to open and I was the second vehicle in line to enter.  Today when I started my hike, I decided to keep track of birds that I could identify by song or call as I made my way around.  At 5:00 AM, it is still fairly dark and many of the birds are hard to see and are not yet very mobile.  The whole experiment actually turned into an enlightening fact for me.  In my 2 hour hike I counted 16 species of birds and 13 of those birds I identified by song before I actually saw the bird.  The other 3 birds were birds that I found and were silent, so I did not know they were there until I actually saw them.  And those 3 species are also birds that I can easily identify by song or call.  So the reality of this experiment, was that I knew every species today by song or call.  2 years ago I was not even close to identifying that many species audibly.  Guess my knowledge of the avian life is getting better.  I do know that the more a person spends observing birds and their habitats, the easier identification becomes.

Since I was trying to beat the heat, I did not spend long periods of time photographing birds, but I did capture a few images and for the most part they are birds I have photographed many times in the past. One of the most interesting scenes was my photographs of a Canyon Towhee.  It was sitting on a branch in a tree, which is a bit unusual as they prefer being difficult to see and near the ground as most towhees are.  So I was trying to get some decent photos of this one singing and did not notice until I got home and started processing my photos that a Black-tailed Gnatcatcher was photo-bombing my photos in the background.  Guess it was trying to get noticed as well.  Kind of nice to see some birds can be comics!

 Canyon Towhee

 Canyon Towhee;  photo-bombed by a Black-tailed Gnatcatcher

Canyon Towhee;  photo-bombed by a Black-tailed Gnatcatcher

Later down the wash, another Black-tailed Gnatcatcher took front and center stage and left no doubt who I was supposed to be shooting.

Black-tailed Gnatcatcher

Very near my turn around spot of the hike, I turned a corner and was surprised to find a Canyon Wren.  This is bird that I normally hear long before I see it and its song is so unique and an easy one to remember.  Here is a link to to the Cornell University site where one can listen to its call:  http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/canyon_wren/sounds

This was a nice find as it stayed fairly close and allowed a couple of decent photos.  Many times this bird is seen from a distance on rocky slopes of canyons.  In my opinion, it is one of the prettiest of all the wrens.

 Canyon Wren

Canyon Wren

Other photos include an Ash-throated Flycatcher, a Cactus Wren and a Mourning Dove.

  

 Ash-throated Flycatcher

 Cactus Wren

Mourning Dove

And just so you know I am not stretching the truth about the early starting time, I took a photo of the moon at 4:30 AM just a few minutes before I left the house to go hiking this morning.  Actually turned out better than I thought it would.

Moon over Mesa, AZ

Pima Canyon Wash, South Mountain Park - 26 May 2013

After surviving my more strenuous hike to Tom's Thumb on Saturday, I decided to head out to one of my regular spots, Pima Canyon Wash in South Mountain Park.  But this time I added a variation and once the wash came to the CCC structure and the beginning of the National Trail, I ventured up to higher elevations to try and locate a back trail down into the wash area.  I found one, but it is not one that I would recommend to most people as I found a couple of spots where I was not sure how I was going to make it down the huge house sized boulders into the valley below.  This hike totaled 5.6 miles of hiking and an elevation gain of about 600', but what a beautiful canyon to be hiking in and I only found 1 other person in the canyon.  

Since my hike started at 5:30 AM the first part was right at sunrise and one of the first birds I was able to photograph was an Ash-throated Flycatcher, fledgling/juvenile.  There were 4 of these birds in the wash area and it appeared to be 2 adults and 2 offspring from this year's first breeding as they followed the parents and were constantly begging.  I was able to only get one photo when one of them landed in a bush for a brief moment with the sunlight creating an interesting background color.

Ash-throated Flycatcher

A bit further up the wash I encountered one of my favorite resident birds for this spot, the Black-tailed Gnatcatcher.  There were actually 2 of these birds in this bush; a male parent and a fledgling/juvenile.  I tried my usual pishing, as this species will sometimes react to that and come closer for a better view.  Well the young one was quite receptive and came out to the front of the bush to really check me out.  Apparently, dad has been fooled more than once as he was not going to have any of this and stayed fairly well hidden in the branches of the bush.

 Black-tailed Gnatcatcher

Black-tailed Gnatcatcher

Up on the upper ridge a Curve-billed Thrasher landed on a Saguaro and as I was trying to focus in on it, a White-winged Dove landed on another arm of this same Saguaro. 

 Curve-billed Thrasher

White-winged Dove

The White-winged Dove is quite a handsome dove when compared to its more common cousin the Mourning Dove which is probably the 2nd most common dove in the United States. Most of the time I do not bother with photographing the Mourning Dove as most people see them on a daily basis.

Mourning Dove

A female Ladderback Woodpecker made her presence know by calling and then showing herself on a branch of a tree.

Ladderback Woodpecker

Non-avian species included a Harris's Antelope Ground Squirrel and a pair of Rock Squirrels.  

 Harris's Antelope Ground Squirrel

Rock Squirrels

It almost amazes me to see some of the plant growth in the inhospitable places such as these 2 cacti growing out of a crack in a rock.  Always wonder how 2 seeds got dispersed into a small crevice and then had just the right conditions to germinate and sprout and then grow into a substantial plant.

Will end the post with a couple of scenic photos; one looking through a saddle between a couple of mountains at a small portion of the great city of Phoenix in the far background.  The other is a ravine full of boulders and rocks and somewhere far in the distance is the parking lot where my car is parked.  This is the ravine that took me back to the start and required a bit more serious hiking and maneuvering between the rocks.

 View of a bit of Phoenix in the far background

Somewhere in the far distance and to the right my car is parked.

Red Mountain Park - 12 Feb 2013

The day after returning from Rocky Point, I just could not sit home all day, so ventured out to Red Mountain Park in Mesa, AZ with one bird in particular that I was looking for.  This was the Bendire's Thrasher, which is not a new bird for me, but since it is not that common in Maricopa County, it is always nice to see one.  I found the target bird right where others had been seeing it, on the east side of the lake and near the restrooms.  This is a heavily used park, so this bird is used to seeing humans and did not flee.  This bird has a straighter and a bit shorter bill when compared to the similar Curve-billed Thrasher.  Also note the triangular spots on the chest, whereas the CBT has round spots.

Bendire's Thrasher

While walking the sidewalks, a Cooper's Hawk flew in from the right not more than 25' from me and made an attempt to capture a Mourning Dove.  This time the doves were lucky, and the hawk stood on the ground looking around wondering what went wrong before it took to the air again and headed to the island.  Another couple was nearby and witnessed this event and wondered what kind of hawk it was and it was enjoyable to share the experience with them and visit with them about it.

 Cooper's Hawk

 Cooper's Hawk

Cooper's Hawk

And here is a photo of one of those Mourning Doves that were everywhere in this park.  Probably a great place for the Cooper's Hawk to hang out with a bountiful food supply at hand.

Mourning Dove

This park also has its regular human providing hand outs for the birds because right in this area the Mourning Doves and Gambel's Quail were congregating and sure enough, the seed was being scattered and the birds were flocking in.  This photo shows several doves and quail and a lone House Sparrow.

Feeding Frenzy-Gambel's Quail, Mourning Doves, and House Sparrow

Abert's Towhees are very common in Arizona, but very rare outside of this state, but oftentimes are difficult to photograph as they like to scurry into the shade and brush on the ground.  But this one preferred to perch in full sun on a branch for me.

Abert's Towhee

And then to add some mammals to the post, we have 2 different ground squirrels.  I think I have them identified correctly, but could be mistaken.  We have a pair of Rock Squirrels that was pretending that February 12th was actually February 14th.  (♥)  And we also have a couple of Round-tailed Ground Squirrels sticking close to their den.

 Rock Squirrels

Round-tailed Ground Squirrels

If someone reads this and can give me a better ID on the squirrels, please let me know.

South Mountain Park-Javalina Trail

Had the option today to tackle a trail in South Mountain Park, or head home and put some time in on the old treadmill.  Well let me tell you, 3½ miles on a hiking trail at 90° was a whole lot more fun than 1½ miles on the treadmill at home.  This was not the first time I had been on this trail, but it was close to where I work and stopping here was an easy choice.  It is a trail that ventures through some very dry areas of South Mountain Park.  Not a hot spot for birding by any means, but our avian friends are there, but you have to listen and look for them.  Came home with photos of a bunch of brown birds; not what most people would consider as an exciting bird outing.  The nicest bird that I saw but was not able to capture a photo was a Greater Roadrunner.  Always nice to find them.  So my photo album consists of common brown birds of South Mountain Park.

 

First 2 birds that I encountered was a Curve-billed Thrasher and a Mourning Dove.  The thrasher just did not want to come out in the open, so I had to settle for an 'under the bush' shot with bad lighting.  Even though they are a 'brown' bird, their gold eyes are very captivating.  The Mourning Dove is a bird that I rarely photograph, we see them on just about every birding trip and they are also common backyard feeders at my home.  Plus they are found just about everywhere in the US.

 

 Curve-billed Thrasher

 

Mourning Dove

 

Near one of the washes, I was observing a couple of Black-tailed Gnatcatchers, but got side tracked when a couple of Black-throated Sparrows flew into the base of the shrub.  So I was torn between the 2 species and what I should try to capture with the camera.  Neither one was offering me great views, but nevertheless, I attempted to capture photos anyway.  So these are the best of my feeble attempts to photograph both species.

 

 Black-tailed Gnatcatcher

 

Black-throated Sparrows-note there are 2 in this photo

 

The last birds that I was able to shoot with my camera were a Rock Wren and a female House Finch.  Sad to say, but I can't really recall ever photographing a female House Finch; usually spend more time focusing on the males.  But in reality, this female today actually presented my best bird pose of the day and in the right lighting.  So it is about time I added the female House Finch to my photo albums.  The Rock Wren was a featured bird for me sometime back on my blog.

 

 House Finch-female

 

Rock Wren



So ends my saga of 'boring brown birds' for the day.  They may be boring in coloration, but they are far from being boring when one is watching them to learn behavior or listening to them to become familiar with their calls.  They are just as fascinating as the brightly colored birds.