Wings Over Willcox

I led the two Southwest Winter Specialties tours during the 08 Wings Over Willcox festival, as I have mostly done since at least 1998.  The tour is taylor-made for those who wish to see as many birds as possible during a day of sampling the Sulphur Springs Valley’s different habitats.  This year’s birding was what I would term “below normal” in overall numbers (i.e. Ferruginous Hawk and Lark Bunting).  However there is usually a species or two, or more, which are more abundant than usual.  This year it seemed to be Red-tailed Hawks, Owls and Sandhill Cranes.  You just never know who is going to be the star of the show!

As usual, the number and diversity of birds observed differed between the Saturday and Sunday tours even though they essentially cover the same terrain.   Both tours start out with an hour or so of viewing bird feeders in the grasslands of Sunsites.  The common species, such as Brewer’s Sparrow, House Finch, Lark Bunting, Brewer’s and Red-winged Blackbirds are observed as a group, so their identities become routine.  While Scaled Quail are the main stars, this year’s supporting cast included Bendire’s and Curve-billed Thrashers, Black-throated Sparrow, Northern Harrier, Cooper’s Hawk and White-winged Dove.  Sunday’s tour was fortunate to get great looks at a Prairie Falcon.

 The next stop was the usually birdy Cochise Stronghold, but other than a few birds in the crowded campground, and the restroom, there wasn’t much of a reason to linger there.  Birds seen in the campground and walk down the canyon included Phainopepla, Juniper and Bridled Titmice, Bewick’s and Canyon Wrens, Hermit Thrush, Gambel’s Quail, Acorn Woodpecker, Red-naped Sapsucker and Lesser Goldfinch.

From the Stronghold we visited the Essary Hay farm, and hay fields north of Davis Road and Central Highway.  These areas are usually teeming with raptors, and other wintering birds, but this year the numbers were way down, except for the Red-tailed Hawks.

 White Water Draw Wildlife Management Area was a good place to visit this year, especially if you are a tour leader trying to show a group some birds.  Species easily seen here included Great Horned, Long-eared and Barn Owls, Vermilion Flycatcher (always a birder favorite), White-fronted, Ross’s and Snow Geese, Bald Eagle, and a multitude of ducks, sparrows and Pyrrhuloxias.

 The trip back north through the Valley always seems to be hurried, and this year was no exception.  We spent time at a pond NNE of Elfrida looking at various birds come to water including Chestnut-collared and McCown’s Longspurs, Horned Larks, American Pipits, all three blackbirds, as well as a great study of Vesper and Savannah Sparrows.

 The ponds along the Kansas Settlement Road at the Faria Dairy offered a good sample of waterfowl this year, including Canada and Cackling Goose, Canvasback, Redhead, Bufflehead, Gadwall, American Wigeon, Pintail, Shoveler, Common Merganser, Mallard, and Ruddy Duck.

 The participants of both tours seemed to be fully satisified with the tour and species totals, which averaged about 80. However, only the trip evaluations, and perhaps additions to this blog from some of them, will verify my wishful thinking.

 Bill Grossi

I was thrilled to fill in as tour leader for Bill Grossi and guide the Chiricahuas montane trip again. After a fun and successful trip yesterday with a great group today’s trip would be just as good! Another full tour with 12 birders and we set out with excitement and gazed at the snow-capped mountain range looming before us, knowing there were plenty of great birds awaiting us and it would be another great day in the higher elevations. As on Friday’s trip, we started at Massai Point in the Chiricahua National Monument and enjoyed the panoramic views of the bizarre rhyolite rock towers in the glowing morning light. Cameras were clicking away amid many oooooohs and aaaaaahs, exclamations worthy of this specatcualar place! The noisy group of Mexican Jays greeted us as soon as we stepped off the bus, soon to be followed with incredible up close scope views of a stunning pair of male and female Arizona Woodpeckers right in the parking lot! A lifer for almost all in the group and a great start to another great day in the mountains. Dark-eyed Juncos flitted under manzanita bushes in the morning chill as we headed down the road to the sunlit slopes for another mix of birds.

The mixed bluebird flock from yesterday was in the same spot along the road and this time contained more Westerns than Easterns, which was good since Western was a life bird for most. Scope views of vibrant males perched atop yucca and agave stalks were breathtaking, and careful studies of the drab females and immatures were worthwhile when seeking out the few Easterns in the group. A male Sharp-shinned Hawk began soaring from the valley below and put the bluebirds in nervous flight as two Mexican Chickadees materialized in the oak just at the road’s edge and offered great brief looks to those lucky enough to get on them before they moved downslope, calling incessantly. A male Red-naped Sapsucker in the same oak did not disappoint and made up for the narrow chickadee miss. Spotted Towhees, Bewick’s Wrens and Rufous-crowned Sparrows were flitting further downslope in the warming morning light, and we’d catch up with these later in the day.

Off to the visitor’s center we went, eagerly scanning both sides of the creek for the coati we saw yesterday. We weren’t as lucky this time but the bird activity at the parking lot was frenzied with flocks of Dark-eyed Juncos, gangs of Mexican Jays, noisy groups of Acorn Woodpeckers, ground-feeding Red-shafted Flickers and stealthy Hermit Thrushes all vying for attention at the sunlit road’s edge. Ruby-crowned Kinglets nervously flitted from the oaks, occasionally flaring their brilliant red top crests. We hiked down the Faraway Trail which proved to be just as birdy as yesterday but the main highlight this time was a lone male coati along the rocky outcrops near the trail! What a stroke of luck to see the same male back to back in broad daylight in such close quarters. The entire group was elated, a lifer mammal and great looks as it scampered amongst the large boulders and even climbed into a small oak to peer out at us in curiosity. Apparently, it even followed us for several hundred yards according to some birders lagging behind to photograph it! Several Coues’ White-tailed Deer were also close enough to photograph and a few bucks sported impressive racks. The trail also yielded the same vocal young male Olive Warbler in about the same spot as yesterday and a lone Juniper Titmouse was also present in the same area. What great birds, lifers for most and much sought after species on this tour. Bridled Titmice were all around us in noisy flocks, offering great views and photo opportunities as charming as they are. A bold Hutton’s Vireo foraged so low in the pines that it almost descended onto a participant’s hat! Too close for binoculars to focus, now that’s a great look at a great bird. A pair of Spotted Towhees glared and scolded at us from a grape vine tangle and noisy flocks of Mexican Jays seemed to follow us along the trail as they did yesterday. Clearly they were a group favorite. Acorn Woodpeckers and Red-shafted Flickers were numerous as were Ruby-crowned Kinglets which always entertain with their nervous demeanor. They also made for great comparisons with the very similar Hutton’s Vireo nearby.

A nice picnic lunch at the Faraway picnic area drew in several noisy and bold Mexican Jays eager for a handout of sandwich spoils and a few even hopped right onto the tables! Rufous-crowned Sparrows chattered from the nearby brush piles and occasionally showed themselves but the jays stole the show. We were all eager for our Pinery Canyon drive towards Rustler Park and a change in scenery filled with new birds but unfortunately the large yellow school bus alloted to us today was in no way capable of making the exciting but hairy, narrow, winding dirt road up and we had to settle for birding the canyon’s lower reaches among the small pine groves below Methodist Camp, a disappointment for some but due to our driver’s caution and large vehicle, we had to settle for such a compromise. Nonetheless, we still had some great birding along the road and soon were face to face with a pair of glaring Yellow-eyed Juncos staring us down at five feet in a small oak! What a bird, some exclaimed and yes indeed, what a bird it is! This was another lifer for most and what great views of the pair actually walking and not hopping around. as their dark-eyed counterparts do. Scope views of the tiny and adorable Cliff Chipmunk barking at us with its tail pumping was very amusing as well!

Birding our way back towards the main road, we stopped frequently to explore the oak-dotted hillsides and sycamore-lined creek beds and were rewarded with brief looks of a vocal Western Scrub-Jay that was heard more often than seen, but this was a bonus as we didn’t encounter it yesterday. Also present were more Western Bluebirds with a few Easterns mixed in for comparison and a stunning male Phainopepla atop a nearby oak which filled up the scope with great views of it’s silky and glossy black plummage and striking beady red eye complete with its pointy crest. Acrobatic Bridled Titmice surrounded us and a small group of noisy Bushtits came through briefly, not stopping to wow us as they usually do but were still identifiable for most. Acorn Woodpeckers and Mexican Jays were everywhere as we birded a few more stops before loading up and heading back to town. Great looks at the endemic Apache Fox Squirrel in a leafless sycamore tree were unmatched and a final highlight was a small group of quail consisting mostly of Gambel’s that scurried across the road but several birders in the group also caught sight of the lone Scaled Quail in with them, noticing its “cotton top” before it dashed into cover.

Another great day of  birding in the montane highlands with another fun group of eager birders! Despite not being able to drive up to Rustler Park, we did very well and scored almost all the species we did on yesterday’s tour, and even notched up a few that we didn’t have yesterday. Many thanks to the fun group for their understanding and for their enthusiasm on this successful tour!

Moez Ali

I filled in as backup guide for Mike McGee who fell ill the night before, and together with experienced driver/guide Tom Wood and keynote guest speaker Rick Wright along with 12 excited and warmly bundled up birders, we had a fantastic day’s birding in the highlands despite the frigid temperatures and scored several key target species amid the spectacular mountain scenery. Sunrise found us taking in the majestic vistas and towering rhyolite formations at Massai Point in the Chiricahua National Monument as we enjoyed our first birds of the day. A handsome male Arizona Woodpecker basked in the sun high atop a pine snag, offering great scope views and a small group of Band-tailed Pigeons zoomed past at eye level, both species lifers for most in the group. Two target birds in one spot, a great start! A noisy and comical group of Mexican Jays endlessly entertained in the parking lot and the warm sunlit slopes below the road were quite active with a mixed flock of Eastern and Western Bluebirds, offering great comparisons of these two similar species while vocal Bewick’s Wrens and Spotted Towhees played hide and seek in the dense manzanita clumps.

On the drive down to the visitor’s center, we were thrilled to spot a very cooperative coati foraging in the creek bed beside the road, giving great up close looks through the large windows of the van. This was a special treat, a daytime sighting of a lifer mammal for almost all in the group! Bird activity was frantic at the visitor’s center with large groups of Dark-eyed Juncos represented by Oregon, Pink-sided and Gray-headed races which made for good studies. Several clown-like Acorn Woodpeckers vibrantly glowed in the morning light, groups of Mexican Jays were conspicuous, a few Hermit Thrushes skulked in the oaks and a camouflaged male Red-naped Sapsucker silently tapped at its wells, wowing the group in the scope. A surprise here was a brief flyover of a Prairie Falcon which cruised past in a matter of seconds. The endemic Apache Fox Squirrel foraging among the birds was another highlight as were several close ups of Coues’ White-tailed Deer. We then enjoyed a very birdy hike along the Faraway Trail, exploring the mixed oaks, junipers, sycamores and pines which yielded the best bird activity of the day. Chattering flocks of charming Bridled Titmice also held several Ruby-crowned Kinglets and a lone Hutton’s Vireo, another lifer for some. Red-shafted forms of Northern Flicker were common atop the snags, Acorn Woodpeckers and Mexican Jays seemed to follow us around and we also enjoyed up close looks at a pair of Spotted Towhees. A calling Hammond’s Flycatcher showed well while foraging in the open, giving a good opportunity to study its subtle fieldmarks notorious for identification challenges of this dreaded empidonax group.

A mixed flock of frenzied activity produced the star bird of the day, Olive Warbler! It was a vocal young male foraging low in the oak and juniper canopy which certainly eased the neck tension that is usually associated when viewing this much sought after specialty of the high treetops. Another good lifer for the group which was immediately followed with 3 Juniper Titmice a few trees further along the trail, another great bird for the trip! Although drab and plain, the titmice are a thrill to encounter in these parts and their dullness was enjoyed  with much excitement which certainly was fitting. Their association with the flock of Bridled Titmice also made for good vocal comparisons. A Yellow-eyed Junco was briefly seen here but was completely ignored during the warbler and titmice action, only to be caught up with later in the day.

We drove up the scenic and winding Pinery Canyon road high towards Onion Saddle where en route a perched Merlin at the road’s edge offered great close looks as it sat in a large snag in the warm sunshine. We braved the snowy and icy road curves towards Rustler Park for our picnic lunch where we had scope views of a male and female Cassin’s Finch, another high elevation target for the day. Soon after, a noisy flock of curious Pygmy Nuthatches drew closer and contained a single Mexican Chickadee, another highlight species which was seen by some. The coniferous forest was very scenic with its blanket of snow and produced more Pygmy Nuthatches before we birded the road down towards Pinery Canyon campground where we scored a few more good species. A nice group of 5 Golden-crowned Kinglets showed off at eye level and a Brown Creeper was another hit with the group as it vertically spiraled up the tree trunks. A Steller’s Jay briefly called up canyon but declined to show itself while Red-breasted and White-breasted Nuthatches completed the clean sweep of nuthatches for the day, a charming group of admirable little birds.

Our last stop along the Pinery Canyon road below Methodist Camp was very birdy and a great end to a great day of birding. Scope looks of the glaring Yellow-eyed Junco mixed in with a Dark-eyed flock was a highlight as some had missed it earlier and an eye level Mexican Chickadee came in to wow the group and cap off a fantastic day’s birding on this great tour!

Moez Ali

Homer Hansen and I scouted the Owls by day tour this weekend. A local hunter tipped us off to a new Barn Owl spot and we got good long non-intrusive looks at them and manged a few photos in the process. I was amazed when I downloaded my photos for the day and found there was a third owl that we never saw perched on one of the other rafters! It was like seeing a ghost in the photo. I’m really looking forward to sharing this great spot with those on the tour this year!

-Gene Brosseau 

Early this Tuesday morning I helped the Arizona Game & Fish conduct their annual count of the Sandhill Cranes in the Sulphur Springs Valley.   The sandy road leading to Crane Lake was still wet from the night’s rainfall and a light fog hung over the valley, but soon that faded away leaving us with optimal viewing for the cranes.   The sound coming from the lake was tremendous with thousands of cranes waking and greeting the day.  By 8:06 am they had started to lift off, in groups of 10, 15, and upwards of 75 birds - not as many in the individual groups as we had seen in previous counts - but they kept coming.  Over an hour later more than 7,000 cranes had left Crane Lake and headed to the fields to forage.  Jim Hefflefinger  and I tallied the cranes still standing in the water of the lake, then headed back to Willcox to meet with the rest of the group, have breakfast, and total the numbers from the different locations.  At Crane Lake we totaled 8,078 Sandhill Cranes, the AEPCO viewing area had 1,727 cranes, Cochise Lake had an estimated 500 cranes, and Whitewater Draw came in the highest with 22,364.  Adding these key roosting locations with other outlying areas the grand total number of Sandhill Cranes was 36,418!  A new record by nearly 5,000 cranes!  Looks like a great time to see Sandhill Cranes in the valley!

-Homer Hansen

Cranes flying over Sulphur Springs Valley