My World: Birds Small and Large

Plumbeous Vireo 1-14-09 by Kathie Brown

My World is a world of birds and birding. In quest of Big January I have gone birding almost every day this month. Last Wednesday I decided to visit Sweetwater Wetlands where I hoped to pickup some new species of birds. Sweetwater is undergoing some maintenance right now, so the main parking lot and front ponds are closed, but the County has set up temporary parking down the street with an alternative access to the back ponds. Most people come to Sweetwater to see ducks and the resident family of Harris Hawks, but many smaller species live in the cattails, rushes and willows. When I arrived the heavy machinery was right near the road and I had to walk past it to access the trails. I wondered how there could be any bird here, but I was pleasantly surprised. The ponds are full of hundreds of Northern Shovlers as well as Wigeons, Mallards, Ruddy Ducks and Coots. Around the edges of the ponds today a display is set up with a group of school children learning about the wetlands and how they work. I walk the perimeter quietly and wait for the silence to come. Soon the school children leave and most of the early birders. I am almost alone here now and the birds emerge from their hiding places to feed in safety once again.

It is now that I find this Plumbeous Vireo flitting about in the branches of a willow. While photos of ducks are much easier to capture, finding and getting close to these smaller birds is the real challenge. Vireos are very active insect eating birds closely related to shrikes. Their thick bills are hooked at the ends and this Plumbeous Vireo has white "spectacles" and wing bars.

I was delighted to catch this small song bird in the act of feeding. I watched from below as it captured...

...and gobbled up an insect. It ripped the legs off to swallow first...




..then repositioned the bug...

...and gobbled it up!

Like any well mannered bird, it cleaned its beak on a limb...

...before continuing the hunt once again. You can see the white spectacles and double wingbars in this photo as well as the hooked beak.

And while I am watching the Plumbeous vireo, this little yellow-rumped warbler is watching me. Yellow-rumped warblers come in two varieties: Audubon's with the yellow throat, and the more eastern Myrtle with a white throat. Once considered separate species,the two were combined into one currently called Yellow-rumped for the bright yellow rump they both sport. Many birders call them "butter butts" which is an easy distinguishing field mark.

Most of the ducks are napping at this time of day with their beaks tucked into their downy feathers. A few float serenely on the pond, but they keep their distance. However, when this female Ruddy Duck came close, I couldn't resist snapping her photo. Ruddy ducks are small diving ducks and the males are quite colorful and clownish looking when they are in breeding plumage.

Here is what winter looks like in Arizona. It is 71 degrees today and I am in a T-shirt and Capri's. The warm sun beats down on me, and I am thankful for the shady paths in Sweetwater Wetlands.

Apparently this Ruby-crowned Kinglet likes them as well as it creeps along a willow twig looking for lunch. To me it looks like a birdy bouncing ball along a willow musical staff with green-leafed notes hanging down in some woodsy song. Do you know the melody perhaps?

I have seen the resident family of Harris Hawks hunting over my head since I arrived. One has finally landed close enough for me to get a shot with my Nikon D80 and 300mm lens. I zoom in as it looks over its red shoulder with the sun glinting in its dark eye.

These tall eucalyptus trees along the Roger Road Waste Treatment Plant are their favorite lookouts. The family of five nests in one of them. Harris Hawks are unique in that they hunt cooperatively as a family. I have seen at least 3 of them today with one carrying a twisted stick into the tree to replenish the nest.

But this one has had enough of me photographing it and takes off. This photo shows the best field marks with the dark body, red shoulders, white base to the tail and the white terminal band. You can also see the formidable talons used to capture prey. I saw 33 species of birds at Sweetwater and added 7 new species to my Big January Count. I thought I was done for the day, but then I decided to stop at Lakeside Park.

Lakeside Park is located off Golf Links Road on 8299 East Stella Road between Kolb and Sarnoff. It is a lovely small park with picnic areas, ball fields and a man made lake. While ducks, grackles and blackbirds frequent this body of water, I know it is also a reliable place to see Spotted Sandpipers.

And sure enough I find on in winter plumage on the far shore. I have to hike all the way around to get close enough for a picture, but it is well worth it. There are always fishermen here trying their luck in the well stocked pond. But as I walk the edge of the lake counting mallards and wigeons I round the curve of the shoreline to discover a fisherman I never expected to find here.

This large bird silhouetted on the rusting sign warning people not to swim is unmistakeably a Brown Pelican! But what is it doing here?

I snap a few shots, then walk farther down the shore to get the bird in better light. The bird doesn't seem to care at all as it sits atop its chosen perch and preens away in the sunlight.

I finally sit myself down on the curbing and snap to my heart's content. The sight of this bird is a gift in more ways than one. I smile at its comical appearance and enjoy this special moment. I wonder if anyone else knows about this bird and when I am home once again I find it has already been reported on the Southeast Arizona Rare Bird Alert.

I am birding at breakneck speed and spend the weekend couting birds. Now, on Monday morning it was 59 degrees at 6:00 a.m. In the past 50 minutes it has dropped to 56, but as soon as the sun rises the temperature will soar rapidly and by this afternoon it will be in the mid 70's once again in My World. I am going back to Madera Canyon today to meet a fellow blogger named Kathy from Kentucky. Perhaps we will spot that Black-throated Green Warbler again today and one of us will capture its picture! Her blog is Life, Birding, Photos and Everything and she and her husband are out here for the Wings Over Wilcox Festival. She has a really beautiful blog and her photography is excellent. She also visited Sweetwater Wetlands recently as well as The Sonoran Desert Museum where she witnessed Raptor Free Flight. If you have the time, take a look.

For now, here is my Big January Update:

75. Cinnamon Teal; Sweetwater Wetlands 1-14-09

76. Harris Hawk; Sweetwater Wetlands 1-14-09

77. Yellow-headed blackbird

78. Marsh wren

79. Common Moorhen

80. Sora

81. Great Blue Heron

82. Spotted Sandpiper; Lakeside park 1-14-09

83. Brown Pelican; Lakeside Park 1-14-09 (New Arizona Life List)