San Carlos Reservoir, Gila & Pinal Counties, Arizona

Monday, September 18, 2017
Having already secured our permits*, Hinde Silver and I entered the road leading to San Carlos Memorial. 

What?? Since when is this road not bladed and smooth? Again, I had traveled out to the San Carlos Reservoir for some good birding in my own little hybrid car and come face to face with deep gully-like ruts in deep sand on a road that had always been bladed and easy driving before. Having learned from my last experience out there that my vehicle is no match for sandy, deeply rutted roads (from summer rains and winds) I needed to turn back to the main road (Coolidge Dam Road a/k/a IR3). Bummer.

Having intended to spend at least two hours or more at the flat Memorial site, I could only imagine the sparrows I was missing in the grasses and weeds around the place. The Memorial itself is a reminder of the dislocation of the tribe from beside the Gila River when the Coolidge Dam was built and their previous village submerged. Being unable to proceed on the deep-sand road was nothing compared to what they experienced.

Being fed by the Gila River, San Carlos reservoir (lake) is about 23 miles long and is home to waterfowl, raptors and birds that we don't always see near our more developed cities and towns closer to Phoenix. So, I re-adjusted my thinking, picked up my notes from my last exploration there and found a more stony dirt road that carried us all the way to this north side of the lake in Gila County. With coves on both sides, I hoped to find some sandpipers or long-legged water birds but none were present. Spotting scope got a good work out here.

The reservoir was filled with many many grebes, both WESTERN and CLARK'S GREBES.
Difficult birds to identify when new to birding, the two grebes appear to be very similar but can be discerned by several differing characteristics. In mating plumage, identification is easier than right now when they are in basic or winter plumage. The red eye of the WESTERN GREBE is surrounded by its black head feathers while the CLARK'S GREBE (in basic plumage) has its black cap run right up to the mid-red eye; it doesn't come below the eye. Details, details. The WESTERN'S bill is a more olive and duller yellow than the CLARK'S GREBE - second photo below. 

WESTERN GREBE 

CLARK'S GREBE - note the brighter yellow bill

It looks simple when you see the photos of the differences but its a stretch to call them correctly in the field when they swim about in shade and sun light.

Although we had counted a couple LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE on utility wires as we drove toward the lake, one flew into a bushy shrub at cliff's edge directly in front of us and started calling. Heard it immediately, swung around and snapped a few photos. 

LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE

A few sparrow were active here, too: VESPER, BREWERS and BLACK-THROATED, the latter being one of my favorites and it was the most prevalent sparrow of the day.

BLACK-THROATED SPARROW (2)

After two hours along the lake, still enjoying clear skies and light breezes, we moved along to the Coolidge Dam area where we found more WESTERN and CLARK'S GREBES, a DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT and a GREAT BLUE HERON.

DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT

GREAT BLUE HERON far below us from our perch on the road above

My photography moment of the day occurred near the dam. First, I found a ZONE-TAILED HAWK flying with a small group of TURKEY VULTURES. Somewhat smaller than the vultures, the Zonie stood out despite its similarly bi-colored underwing. The one white band showing across its tail screamed ZONE-TAILED. 

ZONE-TAILED HAWK - two above photos. This one is crossing under a utility wire

When an OSPREY flew in and perched on a utility pole not far distant, I laughed because it looked as if it had cupped feet.

OSPREY close to insulators on utility pole

While I was attentive to the OSPREY above, another flew in across the road from this one and gave it a look.

OSPREY

OSPREY (same bird as above with head turned opposite direction)

Pursuing, then, more passable roadways into the lake from its south side (Pinal County), we lucked out with two roads that got us somewhat close from where we spotted a BALD EAGLE flying overhead but, try as we did, no shorebirds, gulls or terns materialized. 

Our final stop on the dividing line between Pinal and Graham counties (the Campground road) delivered a whole string of black and white birds bunched together along a narrow sand spit: DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANTs and AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN. There were more of each along the spit and across the lake's center line placing some of them, uncounted on the list, in Gila County.

DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT (larger than Neotropic Cormorant) and AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN

By day's end, we were thrilled with the results of our explorations but I'll definitely find someone with a higher-clearance vehicle with all-wheel drive the next time! Including our drive time, it was a ten-hour day!

* * *

* 24-hour Recreation Permit is required to bird on San Carlos land. Can be purchased for $10 per person at the new gas station (Chevron?) on the north side of the road just prior to McDonald's on the south AND right before Rt. 60 turns north toward the Salt River Canyon. Permits can also be purchased at the Circle K (also on north side) when you continue forward (instead of turning on Rt. 60) directly toward San Carlos on Route 70.

To view our bird lists, click the links below:

View this checklist online at http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S39262333

View this checklist online at http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S39262594