What Would I Do Without the Lower Salt Rivet Recreation Areas?

 Thursday, June 24, 2021

    This morning I had planned to drive up to the White Mountains to do some birding. How could this go wrong?  

    A notification had landed on my computer yesterday announcing CLOSURE of the Apache-Sitgreaves Forest for the immediate future as a fire prevention measure.  With 15 forest fires already going strong in the State of Arizona, I could understand the move and sullenly supported it.  

    But I can't even go birding? . . . I gave that some thought trying to figure out how a birder could accidentally start a wildfire. Unfortunately, I came up with a scenario that gave me pause. Suppose I'm driving a rugged dirt road and the undercarriage of my high-clearance vehicle strikes a rock, creates a spark that catches to some dry grass on the roadway that then finds its way over to an open field and. . . wildfire. And, I've gone on down the road not even aware.

     I needed that image to calm my displeasure.  I'll stay alert to possible changes if our tinderbox state gets some decent monsoon rains this year instead of a repeat of last year's "nonsoon."  Covid ..... local extreme heat conditions with temps reaching 117°F . . . followed by many wildfires..... we're fighting our way back to dramatic more ancient times, it seems.

    Up early, I decided to visit my stand-by river spot at Coon Bluff in Mesa. Normally a twenty-minute drive, I managed to stay calm behind a slow-moving truck, but still arrived by 5:17 a.m. with a healthy temperature of 68°.  Mine was the first car in the parking lot this weekday morning, so I spent a good twenty minutes right there trying to catch up with the birds behind all the songs I was hearing. I need to fess up that there are few photos.  I dropped my camera the other day and it's giving me some very shaky shots that normally wouldn't be so. I'll give it a few more tries to right itself before I take it in for a check-up.

    With a list of about twelve species, it was time to walk down the dirt road toward the River beyond the Bluff. Reaching the river, I turned onto that narrow dirt path below the bluff, where the first thing I noticed was NOT A BIRD. It was a happy-go-lucky STRIPED SKUNK prancing toward me as if I was its long-lost friend.  No, no, no!  Stuck between the bluff and the edge of the cliff above the river, I really had no place to go. The skunk looked way too happy. But it had the solution. . . when it got within about five feet of me, it dipped down holding onto vegetation at the top edge of the cliff. I shot off a few quick photos without expecting to catch anything as I walked forward really really fast.

    Maybe it just wanted its picture taken. Having never seen this kind of skunk until I came to live in Arizona, it's the largest in the State and the most common one - often seen as roadkill. Take a look at the tail on this one. And follow the white stripe on its back down to the top of its head where it then becomes a thin line running down its face.  That was my last look at it. Never saw it again.

    There were plenty of birds but not many in the mood to pose for photos. HOUSE FINCH were busy going hither and yon taking time to perch and sing.    

House Finch

    LESSER NIGHTHAWK were numerous but seemed to divvy up the river among themselves with a constant 8-10 always beside me but not necessarily the same birds.

    A quick catch of a GREAT BLUE HERON searching for breakfast in a wavy backwater of interesting colors fascinated me.

    Several bands of feral horses were spread out in various places.  Sometimes, I would hear a snort, hoofbeats, and see dust flying when something went awry either among themselves or photographers getting too close for comfort.  They swim from the north to this south side of the river to wander, graze or stand in the river to keep cool. Often they show a wariness of me at first but as soon as I talk to them or make hand motions, they relax. 

    For instance, I was on a horse trail walking east when several horses came my way.  The trail is theirs. Otherwise, it's deeper sand and, for me, harder to walk through. As two of the horses approached and stopped, I said, "Hey! Come on. I'm stepping off the trail here."  And, I did, waving them forward with my arm. They took one step, two steps, watching me closely, then relaxing and just walking. Backing up far enough to not alarm them, I squeezed off a photo

.    At one opening in the thick shrubs/trees along the river, I spotted a young woman standing on her paddleboard taking photos of horses enjoying the cold-water river current...including one, below, just standing still.

    Farther along the river, I came upon a whole band of horses crowded along the shoreline, some standing in the shallow sides.

        Ordinarily, VERMILLION FLYCATCHERs are not so abundant as they were today. In combination of male and female, I took many photos of each.  Fortunately, I have one good one to share.

        Hopefully, our hottest days are behind us. (Joke). Whenever the temperature at 4 a.m. is lower than 80°, I'll be heading out to another local birding spot.

        Maybe, I'll see you along the way.

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S90691444

    

Local Birding in Maricopa County, Arizona

 Saturday, June 5, 2021

        When I heard friend, Ann R. mention that she had never seen a Tri-colored Heron, I offered to do a quick run over to The Riparian Preserve at Gilbert Water Ranch with her early Saturday morning.

        Since the previous day's reports had located it at Pond 1, Pond 4, and Pond 6, we followed those sightings since the earliest reports came from Pond 1. 

        Finding not the Tri-colored Heron but a ROSEATE SPOONBILL on Pond 1, this, too, was a rarity but not a Lifer for Ann. A Spoonbill had visited the Water Ranch for many months before departing a few weeks ago and now is apparently back unless this is a different bird.

Rear View of ROSEATE SPOONBILL taken from 1/7 Trail

    For this quick visit, we became quick counters of other species that brightened the morning:

51 BLACK-NECKED STILT, 5 each of SNOWY and GREAT EGRET, 2 GREEN HERON and 1 BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT HERON to go along with the single TRI-COLORED HERON we found far out on Pond 6 - a Five-Heron Day!!

Snowy Egret 

Rare TRI-COLORED HERON (left) and BLACK-NECKED STILT (right) negotiating foraging rights

TRI-COLORED HERON - mostly blue upperparts and neck, white belly and underwing coverts.

Note dagger-like bill

Note length of neck on the TRI-COLORED HERON - appears much longer than its body

    With under an hour of walking and birding, we both felt refreshed and very glad we had taken the time from our schedules to check out the mostly east-coast TRI-COLORED HERON

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S89649268

FRIDAY, JUNE 11, 2021

    Arriving at Granite Reef Rec Area along the Lower Salt River minutes after 5 a.m., birds were already singing to welcome us to their space. Although we gather our gear quietly, the birds here know me, so one look and they need not stay hidden. 

    Almost too dark for photos, the VERMILLION FLYCATCHER posed between flights out for a good insect breakfast. 

Vermilion Flycatcher: two photos above

        Out the western trail along the Salt River to the dam, we spotted 6 ANNA'S HUMMINGBIRDS but only 1 BLACK-CHINNED HUMMINGBIRD.

        Large insects were thick over the river drawing in a large number (43 conservative count) of LESSER NIGHTHAWK busy hawking them up.

Lesser Nighthawk perched at Red Mountain (from my files as is the photo below)

        Other very distant sightings included 3 BLACK VULTUREs perched on a snag across the river, their long white legs and short squared-off tail helping with the ID. Of course, having a gray head and face rather than red, was also helpful in discerning they were not Turkey Vulture.

        Distant on the water was a single male RING-NECKED DUCK who, apparently, missed the flight call to migrate.  Another great sighting was the male WOOD DUCK in basic plumage first reported by Diana Spangler out with other ducks on a spit slightly above the rivet water in the vicinity of the dam.

        Closer by in the reeds, a male RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD displayed for a female, also present.

        Also in the nearby reeds, we heard two LEAST BITTERN.  I played their call briefly for Lois to hear so she could appreciate what was hidden from us. I didn't want to call them out even though I think their nesting time is past.

        LUCY'S WARBLER (16), YELLOW WARBLER (2), and a COMMON YELLOWTHROAT (1) were our only warblers.

        We didn't find the BULLOCK'S ORIOLE until we returned from a short hike out the trail along the river to the east. A male and female were heading in our direction from the picnic area!

        In 2.5 hours of birding, together we spotted 43 species, a nice variety of birds for that habitat.  Even with our 63°F early start, the temp had climbed to 85° by the time we finished walking 1.85 miles. The parking lot was full of water-sport vehicles carrying kayaks, paddleboards, and canoes. 

        Hope to see you in the field...these early summer days.

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S89991445

Saturday, June 12. 2021

       Waking quite early, I decided to head out to Coon Bluff before our daytime temperatures become too hot for good health. With the Salt River running high as it is now, temps there are about 10° cooler than where I live in the east Phoenix valley (desert).   57° when I began birding felt almost chilly and 67° when I finished was much cooler than the 85° at home. 111° forecast for today in Phoenix.

        Arriving at dawn, I was puzzled by a chip call I didn't recognize. I was standing below the mesquite I thought it was coming from when out from a nest flew a male VERMILION FLYCATCHER giving me a look that said, "You didn't know that was ME?"   

    That proved to be a good start to an interesting day. Along with expected species at this location, I found some ground foraging birds that were difficult to ID from where I stood. Not wanting to flush them, I slipped around behind a tree with a larger trunk and bore down on them with my bins to discover quite a find.  

        A male BRONZED COWBIRD was obvious by his raised neck feathers as he pecked about in the packed sandy soil.  When he began displaying to a light brownish female bird nearby, I figured it was his mate. Well, not exactly!  She moved closer to her mate, the male BLUE GROSBEAK. This species was present last season as well, but certainly not a reliable place to find them.

Three photos below: BRONZED COWBIRD

The above photo shows its display toward a BLGR female

The three black-ish birds on the ground consisted of the One male BRONZED COWBIRD and two BLUE GROSBEAK, a male and female, shown below.

    LESSER NIGHTHAWK provided a winged ballet over the river. It is hard to capture even the birds, let alone the music of their flight.

        Many feral horses were ambling about among the mesquite beyond the fenced picnic area.  

      Although I'm not out as frequently as I was prior to Covid, I've developed some alternative habits for indoors that also fulfill me. 

        So, until I venture out again, maybe really early on these upcoming hot days, I wish you all a happy birding experience wherever you might have escaped the heat.  Hopefully, I'll get to join you a few times in higher elevations, too.

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S90044496

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Beeline Highway - Sunflower and Bushnell Tanks, Maricopa County, Arizona

Thursday, June 3, 2021 

    Having rounded up a couple birding friends to check out two eBird Hot Spots along the Beeline Highway (SR 87) between Mesa and Payson, Arizona, we started birding at 5:45 a.m.   The small unincorporated community of Sunflower stretches out along a cut-off portion of the original two-lane Beeline Highway. At an elevation of about 3,400 feet, it was refreshingly cooler at 60°F. here than in the Phoenix Valley’s fast-rising morning temperatures.  

With the sun just reaching into the tall Arizona sycamores, Lois L., Jane B., and I were able to criss-cross the little-used highway as our trail. Finding singing birds in the thick green foliage of the sycamores was a challenge. Juniper trees were thick enough to hide the songbirds that dived into them, too.

Fortunately, the birds were active early, flitting from limb to limb within a tree; chasing one another from one side of the road to the other or just working a limb for insects until they came into open view.

The easiest bird sightings to photograph were on open snags.  I couldn't believe the one-frame photo provided by the male SUMMER TANAGER that flew into an open branch above an already preening male HOODED ORIOLE!  (below)

      Being more accustomed to desert birding than this high-canopy challenge, Jane found the overall experience a worthy one. Collecting at least two Life Birds, she was thrilled with the adult COMMON BLACK HAWK she saw as it flew above us. And, I believe the perched INCA DOVE may have been her other "Lifer."

                                                               COMMON BLACK HAWK.                          [perched: Sunflower 2014]

INCA DOVE

    A ZONE-TAILED HAWK flew high overhead but did not circle back to get its picture taken.

And, a COOPER'S HAWK flew around and perched throughout the trees several times while we were there.

    Blooms along the old highway caught my attention. 

    As usual with fast-moving songbirds, good photographs are few. CASSIN'S KINGBIRD (4) was active but usually far out, as shown below.

    Both ASH-THROATED and BROWN-CRESTED FLYCATCHERs were moving about throughout our 1.2-mile walk to the blockade.

Poor photo, but good enough to ID the bird as the Brown-crested, not the Ash-throated Flycatcher.

      Having seen many more birds than photographed, we had birded slowly and as thoroughly as possible for almost three hours before moving on to our next stop, less than a mile farther along the modern 4-lane highway of SR87.  

Click on the eBird link below to view our entire list:  

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S89541964

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 BUSHNELL TANKS:  One hour (9:13-10:13 a.m.). 84°F., gathering clouds, light breeze.

      For being located so close to Sunflower, the trail and cottonwood trees along the Sycamore Creek provided some different bird sightings.

    Among them were LADDER-BACKED WOODPECKER, NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRD, WILSON'S WARBLER, HEPATIC TANAGER, and WESTERN TANAGER.  

    And, "warbler neck" from our continual looking high into the canopy of more trees!  

    Getting warm, we didn't stay long even though the cottonwoods along the creek provided some respite from the sun on the open trail.

     Since Lois has retired, her birding skills have sharpened. She contributed many of our sightings but each of us spotted more than a few birds to add to our lists.

    May our paths cross in our next birding adventure!

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View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S89547020