The Great Basin- Nevada and California

For the past couple weeks, I've been working on butterfly surveys and my grad project in the Great Basin of Nevada and California. The birds and butterflies have both been spectacular! This area is host to a whole new suite of birds that I had yet to see this year.

Some of the more common birds out here are Mountain Chickadee, Spotted Towhee and MacGillivray's Warbler. They are in seemingly every canyon we survey and are very vocal.

Mountain Chickadee

MacGillivray's Warbler

Spotted Towhee

Swifts are tough birds to get a decent picture of. White-throated Swifts can be seen flying high around the steep canyon walls. I had the opportunity to watch as some descended early one morning.

White-throated Swift

There is plenty of Sage out here, the preferred nesting habitat of Brewer's Sparrows. They are also abundant. However, I have yet to see a Sage Sparrow...

Brewer's Sparrow

We pass by the Bridgeport Reservoir just across the border from Nevada. This place is loaded with close grebes. I think this is a much "cleaner" Western Grebe than the one I posted about earlier.

Western Grebe

Because some of the canyons are high in elevation, we are treated to Cassin's Finches regularly.

Cassin's Finch

Below are more of the regular breeding birds that we run into while camping or out surveying.

California Quail

Virginia's Warbler

Western Meadowlark

Canyon Wren (with nesting material!)

Western Scrub-Jay

Sage Thrasher

Lazuli Bunting

While driving to a new field site the other day, this Golden Eagle was soaring above the little-used road.

Golden Eagle

One of the coolest birds (in my opinion) that I have seen while in the basin is this Calliope Hummingbird. It was patrolling a small area of aspens, but would always return to this same perch. I never see many Calliope Hummingbirds, and finding this one in the "wild" away from feeders was very cool!

Calliope Hummingbird (male)

I've only had one day off since I've been here, but used it to visit Mono Lake with the rest of the western Great Basin crew. Here I added California Gull and Virginia Rail.

California Gull

Virginia Rail

I have two more days of butterfly surveys this week. Kevin and I will leave right after field work on Friday (6/14) and head for the Kern River Valley of California. These are old stomping grounds for me. My first field job was with the endangered subspecies of Willow Flycatcher that nests in the valley, so I know the area well. We will have two full days to go birding. Hopefully another update soon(ish).

Also, I recently learned that there is another birder doing a "photographic big year" this year! He is at least 20 species ahead of me. Just the kick I needed to get myself in gear, and I'm already looking into pelagics... The above pictures will be posted to the Flickr webpage when I get better internet.

Update

I'm rushed for time, so will update the Flickr page and an update with pictures from Nevada soon. Cheers!

Arizona- Final Few Hours

May 27^th, 2013- Our last few hours in Arizona. After camping along Proctor Road, we drove up to check out Madera Canyon. On the way I heard a Varied Bunting singing along the road. These birds are stunning, especially in the morning light!

Varied Bunting

Madera Canyon was quiet, so we didn’t spend much time there. However, on our way out, we heard a Botteri’s Sparrow singing. This was another bird I figured I would miss. It sang from the fence and allowed stunning looks! It was also accompanied by a few Black-throated Sparrows.

Botteri's Sparrow

Black-throated Sparrow

We had one more stop to make as we worked our way north to Nevada. We stopped at Encanto Park, a place I had seen Rosy-faced Lovebirds. The ABA checklist committee recently decided they are established and now countable. It didn’t take long to find our target, and my 700^th ABA area bird. This was a huge milestone for me. I just wish it wasn’t Rosy-faced Lovebird, but what can ya do.

Rosy-faced Lovebird

It was time for Kevin and I to start driving toward Fallon, Nevada which was a solid 12 hour drive. A whole new suite of birds were waiting in the Nevada mountains.

If you are enjoying the blog, please remember that the goal of this photographic big year is to raise awareness and pledges for the conservation work that the American Bird Conservancy does in Hawaii. Every little bit helps. See here for more details.

Arizona Day 2

May 26, 2013- Our second and last full day in Arizona. Having birded so hard the day before, I thought seeing new birds would start to get a little tougher. It seems I forgot just how diverse the avifauna is in Arizona during the summer!

We descended from Carr Canyon without seeing much new. A distant back-light Rufous-crowned Sparrow was the only thing of minor interest. We headed for the Ash Canyon Bed and Breakfast where a very well maintained feeding station hosts hummingbirds, woodpeckers, sparrows and more. I always make a point to visit this location when I am in the Huachucas. As always, this place did not disappoint.

The woodpecker diversity consisted of Gila, Ladder-backed and Acorn. I had failed to photograph any of these earlier in the trip, so it was nice to run into them again. 

Acorn Woodpecker

Gila Woodpecker

Ladder-backed Woodpecker

A Canyon Towhee was busy scratching under the feeders.

Canyon Towhee

We had hoped the Lucifer Hummingbirds would show, but it seems they are an evening bird. We decided it was time to move on. There were still plenty of birds to be seen in Patagonia. Along the way, I finally got a Swainson’s Hawk photo. 

Swainson's Hawk

Yet another feeding station, this time in Patagonia, yielded even more new birds. One bird stands out among the others, though. These feeders are famous for their reliable Violet-crowned Hummingbird!

Violet-crowned Hummingbird

 Abert’s Towhees and Inca Doves also patrol the grounds.

Abert's Towhee

At this point, we were about to leave, when we realized someone locked the keys in the car. I’ll give you a hint, it wasn’t me. Anyway, it turned out that this was a “blessing” as it got me to search the surrounding areas for new birds while we waited for someone to pick the lock. This is where I turned up a few new species like Black Phoebe, Bewick’s Wren and Lark Sparrow.

Bewick's Wren

Black Phoebe

Lark Sparrow

When I returned to the car, it still hadn’t been unlocked, so more exploring I did. I finally had a close encounter with a Phainopepla.

Phainopepla

I then heard a singing Rufous-winged Sparrow. I thought this to be a very unusual spot for one (basically in the town of Patagonia). I wasn’t complaining, and it was very cooperative.

Rufous-winged Sparrow

An AAA employee finally showed up to pick our lock and we were back on our way. The next stop was the famous Patagonia Rest Stop. I knew there had been reports of Thick-billed Kingbird here, but I wasn’t sure exactly where. It was a small area, we would run into one eventually, right?

Right as we pulled up, Kevin got on a perched young Gray Hawk. It was a bit surprising we hadn’t seen one until this point, but we weren’t exactly in great habitat either. It hung around the hillside the entire time we were there.

Gray Hawk

We walked the entire length of the rest area and came up kingbirdless. We decided to walk along the road on the way back for a different angle. Wouldn’t you know it, perched on a snag not visible from the rest area side, was a Thick-billed Kingbird. Score!

Thick-billed Kingbird

We moved off the road, started walking back, but I stopped dead in my tracks as I heard the unmistakable song of a Northern Beardless-Tyrannulet. It was close. We eventually got the best looks I’ve ever had as the bird investigated our presence. The rest area was good (perhaps too good) to us...

Northern Beardless-Tyrannulet

Patagonia Lake State Park provided similar habitat that we had already been through, but it is always worth a stop. We saw a smattering of Lucy’s Warblers, a few Neotropic Cormorants, and a lot of bovine. I could have done without the latter.

We checked the AZ Listserve earlier in the day and to our extreme surprise, a Buff-collared Nightjar was reported from Proctor Road near Madera Canyon. Since we didn’t have a place to camp picked out, why not camp near the Nightjar. We got to Proctor Road a little early, but that was part of the plan as I still hadn’t seen a Verdin. This just wouldn’t do. I spent a while unsuccessfully chasing down some calling Verdin with no success. Then, while setting up my tent, one came right in to the tree next to me. Go figure.

Verdin

As darkness fell, night birds began to awaken. First were the Lesser Nighthawks. Next were the Common Poorwills. Then a distant Western Screech-Owl. Finally, the Buff-collared Nigthjar started calling non-stop for the next couple hours. We were able to sneak up on it a few times. Most of the time all I saw was eyeshine, but one viewing was of the bird singing from the ground, lit by a spotlight. It wasn’t super bright, but it was bright enough that I could see the entire bird, including the collar, as it sang away.

This was my 699^th ABA area bird. As exciting as that was, one of my worst fears became realized. My 700^th would turn out to be an exotic. Worst yet, I had already seen them before they were “established”, so it wouldn’t even really be new. What is the bird you ask? Stay tuned…

Arizona Keeps Giving

May 25, 2013- Our first full day in Arizona. We camped the previous night at Barfoot in the Chiricahua Mountains. After packing up camp at first light, we moved to Rustler where we had a taste of some of the Southeast Arizona specialties. Almost immediately after stepping out of the car, a Greater Pewee was heard singing insistently. This is a bird I missed last year, and hadn’t seen since 2006!

Greater Pewee

As we were watching and listening to the Pewee, a Red-faced Warbler began singing. Then a Grace’s Warbler. Then a Yellow-eyed Junco at close range! It kept getting better and better.

Red-faced Warbler

Yellow-eyed Junco

Grace's Warbler

We spent a while with these wonderful birds, but it was time to move down canyon. On our trip down we kept the windows open. This is how we got our first singing Townsend’s Warbler of our trip.

Townsend's Warbler

We moved further down and kept flushing Steller’s Jays. Finally one posed for a moment.

Steller's Jay

At the intersection that leads to Paradise, we had a tip that a pair of Mexican Chickadees were setting up territory. We missed them the day before, but eagle-eye Kevin spotted the pair as I was busy photographing a cooperative Painted Redstart.

Mexican Chickadee (look at the size of that black "bib"!)

Painted Redstart

It seemed like everything was going our way. However, we still had a lot of specialties we wanted to see. We decided the South Fork area would be our best bet. It soon became obvious why this is one of the premier birding locations in all of Southeast Arizona. First, an Arizona Woodpecker joined a Hairy right along the road.

Arizona Woodpecker

A little further up, a rustle in the understory turned out to be three Montezuma Quail! How lucky can you get!? This is a bird I figured I would miss this year as they can be extremely hard to find and we didn’t have much time to search. I scrambled to get a few shots off as they scrambled up the hillside. I’m glad one turned out to be identifiable… barely.

Montezuma Quail

As we were watching the quail, an Elegant Trogon started calling a little up the canyon. This was getting ridiculous. We walked up the canyon but the Trogon fell silent. Finally, seemingly out of nowhere, the bird appeared. It couldn’t have provided any better views!

Elegant Trogon

The last bird I had really hoped for on the trail was Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher. There were plenty of sycamores around, the preferred tree of the Flycatcher. A pair finally sounded off, blowing their cover. They were a bit far, but I had no complaints.

Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher

Having pretty much cleaned up in South Fork, Kevin and I decided it was time to move on. There were a few goodies recently reported at Willcox, including a would-be lifer Franklin’s Gull for Kevin, so this was our obvious destination. One can bird Willcox relatively quickly. The Franklin’s Gull(s) did not disappoint while the Baird’s and White-rumped Sandpipers did.

Franklin's Gull (again sorry for the quality; heat haze, distance, excuses)

Besides the gulls, Willcox was dead. And the Huachucah Mountains were calling. We could get there with a solid few hours of daylight left. This meant we could visit Beatty’s in Miller Canyon where we would hope to catch up with the continuing White-eared Hummingbird or the cooperative Spotted Owls. We got to the feeders and watched Broad-tailed, Magnificent, Black-chinned, Broad-billed and a female Blue-throated Hummingbird all fight for possession of the nectar. Finally, the White-eared Hummingbird fought for control over a feeder right in front of us. Now that is a snazzy hummingbird!

Blue-throated Hummingbird (female)

Broad-tailed Hummingbird (notice the rufous in the tail)

Magnificent Hummingbird

White-eared Hummingbird

On our way down from the feeders, before heading towards the canyon where the Spotted Owls lurk, a family of Rock Wrens with at least 4 recently fledged young were roaming the area. They weren’t shy either!

Rock Wren

Up the canyon we went, attempting to follow the very detailed (almost too detailed?) directions we received for the Spotted Owl location. After much trial and error, we found a silent, sleeping Spotted Owl snuggled next to a pine tree trunk. This wasn’t the greatest spot for a nap as a gang of Mexican Jays later found and harassed the owl.

Spotted Owl

We had one more bird we could hope for in this area. We heard that a Northern Pygmy-Owl nest had been found further up the canyon, but we weren’t sure where. We gave it our all, but came up empty. As we were heading down, a photographer promised to show us the nest location. Back up the canyon we went. We waited and waited by the nest with no sign of the owls. I spied movement from up the canyon wall, behind the nest tree, but a ways back. I couldn’t believe it when it turned out to be one of the Pygmy-Owls. It never came closer while Kevin and I were there. I can’t even believe this picture turned out at all! As if location wasn’t enough, the spotted sides of the breast rule out Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl.

Northern Pygmy-Owl

Having enjoyed some incredible birding, mixed with a lot of luck, we decided it was time to set up camp. We chose Carr Canyon and our campsite became even nicer when a Buff-breasted Flycatcher started singing before dusk. Then, a chorus of Greater Pewees sang us to sleep. Oh how I miss Arizona.

Buff-breasted Flycatcher

More pictures from this day can be found here.

I’ll do at least one more update from our trip to Arizona. Then, I’ll attempt to update with all the pictures I’ve taken from Nevada and eastern California. I have a few days off coming up, which may be spent in the Kern River Valley (California)… The birds (and butterflies) are great right now. Keep checking back.