Bird of the Week 25

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YfBd41hRPSg

I may have said that I was going to go easy on sparrows because so many of them look similar and are pretty hard to tell apart even for experienced birders.  However this is a pretty easy one and again, I thing a very beautiful bird.  Not only is it a sharp looker, they fill the spring air with their songs.  We were camped at Seminole Canyon State Park that borders the Rio Grande River in South Texas.  This clip shows a bird in the late evening as he quietly preens and softly sings and then the next morning as we walked out of our trailer to watch the sun come up there were several of these little guys filling the desert morning with their song.  If you listen carefully in the first half of the video, you can hear a recent Bird of the Week calling, can you remember what he is by his call?  This species can be found in parts of south east Oregon, the range map shows them ranging in most of eastern Oregon during the summer.  Enjoy this weeks bird and happy birding. 

The Anatomy of a Chase Day

Targets for today


Montezuma Quail
Whiskered Screech Owl
Eastern Screech Owl
Cassin's Kingbird
Hutton;s Vireo
Baltimore Oriole
Rosy-faced Lovebirds


It has now been six months since I started the quest to find a minimum of 500 bird species in twelve months. At the half way mark, I am at 415 species. I am not sure if that is really good or just average. Only 86 to go to break 500. That doesn't seem like very many however you have to consider that most of the easy, most common birds have been found. But there are still many fairly common North Western birds I don't have so it will be interesting to see how much past 500 I can go.


As you know, we have been in the deserts of Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona and I have seen most of the common birds in this region and many rare ones as well. It is now down to chasing specific species. These are birds that are either hard to find or have eluded me. They often don't share habitats so I can't go to the same place to find them all. Thursday the 26th was our last day in Southeast Arizona so I needed to do some mop-up and hopefully get lucky. I thought it might be interesting to chronicle a chase day so here goes...


Western Screech Owl
Whiskered Screech Owl


I arose at 4:00 AM, showered, grabbed a bite of breakfast and was in the car by 4:45. WHISKERED SCREECH OWL is a neo-tropical Owl found mainly in Mexico and Central America but strays into the canyons of Arizona and New Mexico near the border. They nest in some cavities near the San Rita Lodge in Madera Canyon, one of the most birded places in North America visited by well over a million birders every year. They are not nesting this time of year so my only hope was to hear one calling in the early morning which is often the case. After stopping briefly for the WESTERN SCREECH OWL on the roads leading to the canyon, without luck, I drove to the top of the canyon and worked my way down listening for the Owl's call. By daylight I reached the bottom of the canyon and struck out on hearing any owls.


It was now 7:00 AM and I started to hike the trail up the stream for the next target, the MONTEZUMA QUAIL. Again we are talking about a neo-tropical species that ranges mostly in Mexico but can be found in Southern Arizona and New Mexico if one is lucky. They are very beautiful and a desired bird for anybody's list. They are often seen in the early morning along this creek and I have seen them once here years ago. After about a mile hike and then back to the car, I again had no luck. I stopped over at the nearby Florida Canyon because someone had heard them there two days ago but again, I struck out.


It was time to head back to the RV park and hitch the trailer because we were on the move again and had to be out by noon. On the way back to the park, I stopped behind the Medical center to search for LAWERENCE'S GOLD FINCH, eight were seen here yesterday. This would be a life bird for me. Struck out again. The entire morning I have been keeping my eye out for HUTTON'S VIREO, and CASSIN'S KINGBIRD, both birds I should have seen by now but they continue to elude me. It's probably a little early for the Kingbird, they are mostly south for the winter but some have been reported. The vireo will have to wait till I get to the Oregon/California coast where they are found year around.


I have now spent the morning with no new birds for the list. So we packed up and hit the road. Tuscon was not that far and we were going right by their Sewage Treatment Reclamation Ponds and these are particularly great for attracting large numbers of birds. Known as Sweetwater Wetlands, it is another favorite haunt of birders and this winter, a BALTIMORE ORIOLE, whose range is not usually much past the Mississippi River,  has be foraging in the trees above the ponds so why not stop in, it's just off the freeway.


I had no idea where the pond was that has been harboring the oriole, and the marque map did not name the ponds, so knowing the name of the pond was not going to help me. I headed down the first trail I saw and after two tenths of a mile or so I encountered two very intent birders who informed me they were on a BALTIMORE ORIOLE! Finally some luck. I got some great looks and mediocre pictures and was back in the car in less than half an hour.


Our destination for this evening is an RV park west of Phoenix so I can't resist stopping at a park in the middle of the city that is purported to have a large flock of ROSY-FACED LOVEBIRDS a tropical escapee from Africa. Since they have now established a breeding population in Phoenix, the American Birding Association this year put them on the countable list so this is a life bird and another year bird. We found the park easily and after making the mistake of hauling the trailer into a very small parking lot that was a dead end, I finally got turned around and parked on the street. By the time I got my camera vest and binoculars on, I could hear them singing and within twenty minutes I had some decent photos and we were on our way. Some days you can bird all day and not find any target species so I was pretty satisfied in spite of the no shows from the morning. Some birds are just not going to make it on the list.

Baltimore Oriole

Rosy-faced Lovebird

The list is over 400 now so it is time to catch you up. I will be talking more about the impact of a big year on the birding experience so stay tuned.This is half the remaining birds to get the list up to date and I will post the rest in my post next week.....


332 White-tailed Hawk, Hwy 77, south Texas
333 Harris's Hawk, Hwy 77, south Texas
334 Clapper Rail, Goose Island State Park, Texas
335 American Oystercatcher, Goose Island State Park, Texas
336 Piping Plover, Goose Island State Park, Texas
337 Red-crowned Parrot, Brownsville, Texas
338 Great Kiskadee, Falfarrious Rest Area, Hwy 77, Texas
339 Green Jay, Falfarrious Rest Area, Hwy 281, Texas
340 Painted Redstart, Falfarrious Rest Area, Hwy 281, Texas
342 Yellow-throated Warbler, Falfarrious Rest Area, Hwy 281, Texas
343 Grasshopper Sparrow, Kingsville, Texas
344 Phrrhuloxia, Kingsville, Texas
345 Yellow-crowned Night-heron, Cameron County, Texas
346 Eastern Screech Owl, Resca de la Palma Stat Park, Texas
347 Nashville Warbler,  Resca de la Palma Stat Park, Texas
348 Olive Sparrow, Resca de la Palma Stat Park, Texas
349 Altamira Oriole,  Resca de la Palma Stat Park, Texas
350 Common Pauraque,  Resca de la Palma Stat Park, Texas
351 Lark Sparrow, Resca de la Palma Stat Park, Texas
352 Tropical Parula,  Resca de la Palma Stat Park, Texas
353 Black-headed Grosbeak,  Resca de la Palma Stat Park, Texas
354 Painted Bunting, Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge, Texas
355 Greater Roadrunner, Kleberg County, Texas
356 Long-tailed Duck, Cameron County, Texas
357 Gull-billed Tern, Cameron County, Texas
358 Aplomado Falcon, Cameron County, Texas
359 Green Parakeet, Mission, Texas
360 Ringed Kingfisher, Bentsen State Park, Texas
361 Cave Swallow, Bentsen State Park, Texas
362 Hook-billed Kite, Bentsen State Park, Texas
363 Clay-colored Thrush, Quinta Mazatlan Park, McAllen, Texas
364 Prairie Warbler, Hildalgo, Texas
365 Burrowing Owl, Granjeno, Texas
366 Bronzed Cowbird, Hildlgo County, Texas
367 Black-chinned Hummingbird, Estero Llano Grande State Park, Texas
368 Gray-crowned Yellowthroat, Estero Llano Grande State Park, Texas
369 White-throated Thrush, Estero Llano Grande State Park, Texas
370 Summer Tanager, Estero Llano Grande State Park, Texas
371 Orchard Oriole, Estero Llano Grande State Park, Texas
372 Northern Beardless Tyrannulet, Anzalduasz Park, Hildalgo County, Texas

Bird of the Week 24

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ba_uVYqHLVg&feature=youtu.be

By this time next week, we will be home in Bend. This part of the Amazing Bird Race, has been great with dozens of colorful, interesting birds that are not found in our state. This week's Bird of the Week is dear to my heart because I have put in a lot of  time and some hard hiking to get a great look. By now, I hope your birding skills are such that when you see him, you will know what family he belongs in. But here's a hint. Most of them are small, mostly yellow, insect eating birds that love to sing. I consider this to be the holy grail of this family because it has only recently started nesting in North America and there are less than half dozen pair known to be here, most of them in Arizona. And they are a challenge to find.  I know of three places they are being seen in Arizona and we went to two of those places. The first place was an easy quarter mile hike along a lake but it started raining and we had to call off the search. So that left me with the challenge of hiking yet again, Florida Canyon in search of the pair that has been up there for several years. I went up there three times last year and did not find them. On other years, I have had very fleeting glances. The canyon is very narrow and steep and the trail is non existent in some places. But I persisted and hiked farther than I have every hiked up there. I arrived at a spot that opened up a bit and had lots of trees and immediately I heard him singing. He gave me five minutes which is more than all the previous sightings combined. It was a great morning. I hope you like this guy as much as I do. 

Bird of the Week 23

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvYRbyoSw70&feature=youtu.be

Hello again, we have been cruising around the deserts of the Southwest for almost two months now and this bird is often present.  His call is unique and in fact movie producers love his sound and you will find his call in the background of many movies that have nothing to do with the desert. 

A prolific breeder, they often have three clutches a year and many were busy building nests at Seminole Canyon State Park where we stayed about a week ago.  I found a pair hard at work on a nest in a bush near our campsite.  Here's an extra point situation, in one of the clips, a sparrow flies in and lands right next to our bird of the week.  This sparrow is wide spread across North America and winters in most of the states but breeds in the north.  They can be found in Deschutes County year around. Do you know what he is?

Good luck with this great bird and happy birding.

Bird of the Week, 22

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Gk36oFYpRA

Howdy students, we are winding our way across Texas and will be heading north and west to New Mexico in the next couple days.  We can't leave Texas without sharing this wonderfully gregarious bird.  He is a tropical flycatcher that is found throughout the Rio Grande Valley and if he is present, you will know it.  And they are usually present as they are pretty common.  The video is a bit long but I just wanted to share his antics.  At least one clip has him saying his name his name.

Although he is classified as a flycatcher, I have seen them eating berries, lizards, and diving for fish in the water like a kingfisher.  I even saw a picture of one with a snake in his mouth.  So have fun with this guy and Happy birding. 

Bird of the Week 21

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sghg07Ohqtw&feature=youtu.be

I think you will agree that the bird IDs up to now have been fairly easy.  I am hoping you have learned to look for the field marks that help distinguish one bird from another.  This week we have a sparrow.  These birds present a challenge to birders because, as we discussed in a previous post, they are ground feeders and most of their time is spent on or near the ground. Many of them nest on the ground.  So they all have that camoflague plain brown look that causes some bird watchers to throw up their hands and just say, "I really don't care about the little brown jobbies."

So let's review the things we look for to separate one bird from another.

Does it have a distinctive crown marking such as a solid cap or stripes
Does it have an eye-ring
Does it have lines above, through, or below the eye
What color is the throat
What color is the chest or does it have distinctive markings
What color is the belly
What color are the wings and do they have wing bars.
What is the shape and color of the tail, is it round, flat or notched on the end.

These are the most helpful thing so look for to begin to separate all birds but when it comes to plainly colored birds it is really important to go through the check list.

This bird  barely makes into the US on the Texas border and can be commonly found in most of Central America.  It is a very plain bird and many of the markings you will look for on the above list will not be present.  The other way that you can easily tell sparrows apart is if they are singing because each has a distinctive song and this guy is no exception.  Good luck and happy birding.

Bird of the Week 20

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBcdMoiH5m8&feature=youtu.be 

Our next Bird of the Week is a really interesting seabird similar to a Tern. This bird lives in North and South America and in winter is found along the gulf coast and most of Florida. I went out to South Padre Island last week and filmed a series of clips that show its behavior, hanging out with the Laughing Gulls,  you can hear them calling in the background. There are also clips of it bathing and preening and you get brief glimpses of a pair of American Wigeon ducks and an immature White Ibis preening and in the last clip the bird flies in and you get a glimpse of some Least Sandpipers. The last few clips show the bird feeding which is where it gets its name. Have fun with this weeks bird and happy birding.