Birding in Rio Rico

Gray Hawk at the De Anza Trailhead in Rio Rico 6-12-09

It has been longer than 2 months since Gus and I have visited Rio Rico. We first took a trip down to this small town last September. We have never been here at this time of year. I am wondering what birds will be there now, so early on Friday morning we hop in the car and head south. It is 6 a.m. when we stop in Green Valley at the McDonald's on Continental Road for a quick breakfast sandwich and some coffee. By 6:30 a.m. we are standing on the side of the San Cayentano Mountains overlooking the Rio Rico Valley below. From here you can see the green stripe of vegetation that grows wide along the banks of the Santa Cruz river. From here we can see Nogales, Mexico and the Tumacacori Mountains. From here, high on the side of the mountain the world is spread out below us with the sun at our backs and the wind blowing wild over the mountain ridges.

Ash-throated Flycatcher San Cayentano Mountains 6-12-09

While Gus is enjoying the view and forming a dream in his mind I am counting birds. I see my first Phainopeplas at this location as well as white-winged doves and a pyrrhuloxia. I wander about for an hour counting birds, then Gus comes and gets me with the car and we drive farther up the mountainside where the view is even more spectacular. Suddenly an ash-throated flycatcher lands on the mesquite about 10 feet away from me. I carefully raise my camera and snap off a few shots before it flies away.

Ocotillo glow 6-12-09

Behind me the rising sun back lights the ocotillo causing it to glow lime green against the shadowed mountain. Though I have thought of this plant as a cactus, I recently learned it belongs to the Candlewood family of plants. It looks like a flaming candle when it is in bloom and numerous birds and insects are drawn to the bright orange blossoms for nectar and food. Recent rains have made the plant put forth leaves but if new rains do not fall soon the tiny green leaves will turn yellow and drop like golden coins to the desert floor. When the monsoon comes this drought deciduous plant will flush with green once again.

Black-bellied whistling ducks at Rio Rico Pond 6-12-09

We leave the mountainside and drive down to Rio Rico Pond on Rio Rico Drive. This small pond sits alongside the road in a mesquite bosque bordered by pasture. Everytime I come here I see different birds and today is no exception. Gus pulls the car off onto the dirt shoulder and I am excited before I even leave the car for I see a snowy egret feeding in the shallow pond. As I draw near it flies a bit farther off revealing the yellow feet that are distinctive for this bright white bird. And then, I start to shake with excitement for there at the far end of the pond is a species of bird I have never seen before. A flock of 35 Black-bellied whistling ducks is feeding and roosting in the shade of the mesquite trees. This is Life Bird number 348 for me. After I calm down a bit I count the rest of the birds I am seeing, including a green heron and numerous barn swallows. We stay at the pond about 20 minutes before we move over to the De Anza Trailhead just around the corner.

Gray hawk 6-12-09

Gus rests in the shade of a picnic ramada while I wander off to see what I can see. I am hearing all kinds of birds down by the river but the thick green foliage is preventing me from seeing most of them. I spot a family of black phoebes in the trees along the bank, but I hear more birds than I can see. I start searching for a way to get down to the river bank which is 3 feet or more below me down a steep rock wall. I spot a young Inca dove in one of the trees along the bank. Its scaly feathers still have a bit of down fluffing out in spots. It watches me with dark red eyes and flies away before I draw too near. I finally find a place where I can climb safely down and and right away I start seeing birds. I spot a song sparrow along the shore and a vermilion flycatcher on the opposite bank. It is a young male all blotched red and white as it gains its adult plumage. A female vermilion flycatcher flits from branch to branch nearby and another black phoebe flies onto a branch right in front of me, but I am quickly distracted by the call of a hawk. Eee-o-0-0 it cries to me. Eee-o-O-O! I scan the sky looking for it. It lands on a dead snag nearby high above me. I try to focus through the sticks and twigs as it calls and flies away. The barred gray body and white bands in the tail tell me what I am hoping is true. This is a gray hawk, a species of raptor many people travel to Southeast Arizona to see. It is only my third time seeing this species of hawk and I am thrilled! I have to tell myself to keep my feet in place and watch where I am steppig for I do not want to step off the bank and into the river below which is flowing with treated effluent from the Nogales wastewater treatment plant farther south. The Santa Cruz River flows north from here to Tucson before turning south once again. This water will never reach Tucson, however, but here in Rio Rico it turns the landscape green.

I think that I have seen my fill, but then it flies by again, over and over my head. But now the towering trees along the river bank obstruct my view as I get glimpses between the trees. I try to focus in the small blue patches of sky where it flies into the open but soon it dips below the treeline again. Then I see another smaller falcon chasing this larger bird of prey. An American kestrel is trying to chase the gray hawk from its territory! Around and around the two birds circle, the kestrel diving at the larger bird. The gray hawk lands in the nearby tree again, then lifts off on broad barred wings.

I climb up out of the river bank into the open parking area and now I can see it easily as it circles overhead. My heart is pounding with the views I am getting and the excitement of witnessing this battle between hawk and falcon. Finally I walk away, back to the car where Gus is waiting to go home. He has been very patient with me, but the sun has risen higher and with it the temperature. His hand and elbow are getting tired from his recent carpal tunnel and ulnar nerve surgery and he is ready to go home. I climb into the car reluctant, but happy. It is only 10 a.m. as we head home, but I have had such a fun day! Later on when I submit my bird counts to eBird I discover I have added 1 new species to my life list, 2 species to my Arizona Life List, and 6 species to my Rio Rico list! I discovered that birding is very good in Rio Rico at this time of year.

And that is My World Tuesday. I hope you can come see it for yourself!

Birds seen in Rio Rico 6-12-09

1. Black-bellied Whistling Duck*
2. Gambel's Quail
3. Gray hawk
4. American kestrel
5. Black Vulture
6. Turkey Vulture
7. Mourning Dove
8. White-winged dove
9. Inca dove
10. Green heron
11. Snowy Egret
12. Gila woodpecker
13. Barn Swallow
14. N. rough-winged swallow
15. Vermillion flycatcher
16. Ash-throated flycatcher
17. Dusky-capped flycatcher
18. Western kingbird
19. Black Phoebe
20. Phainopepla
21. Verdin
22. Cactus Wren
23. Curve-billed thrasher
24. Starling
25. Song Sparrow
26. Rufous-winged sparrow
27. Black-throated sparrow
28. Red-winged blackbird
29. Brown-headed cowbird
30. Great-tailed grackle
31. Pyrrhuloxia
32. House finch
    
    

*Life Bird (first time I have seen this species of bird)

What Can Happen in a Week?

Ash-throated flycatcher 6-7-09

The sun shines brightly over Sycamore Canyon when I awake on Sunday morning. I fell into bed exhausted last night but woke early with the sun. Now I am sitting out on my patio enjoying the cool temperature as I try to process the events of the past week. It is 6:30 a.m. MST and the birds are all around me fluttering and singing, eating and flying. My yard and the wash around me is a very active place. Could it really be that just a week ago my youngest child got married?

Diane, the bride 5-31-09

Diane made a beautiful bride as she walked down the aisle. Alex and Diane asked me to be their photographer, so I was preoccupied with trying to make sure I got all the shots they would want. Now as I look through and process the photos it brings tears to my eyes. What a beautiful day it was. What a beautiful bride.

Alex and Diane say their vows 5-31-09

I use to wonder if Alex would ever take this step, but now, here he was promising to love another woman for the rest of his life. When he was 4 years old, he insisted he would marry me when he grew up. Now my baby has a new love for the rest of his life. We left the wedding reception around 5:30 in the afternoon. After a 2 1/2 hour ride home we barely made it in time to let the poor dog out before turning around and heading back to Tucson to pick up my brother Stephen at the airport.

Stephen working on his webpage 6-4-09

This is my brother Stephen's first time visiting me in Arizona. As the owner and writer of the American Triathlon Calender he is a busy man. He brings his laptop everywhere to keep up with his website. Stephen grew the Calender from a small web page he wrote using Web TV to the largest Triathlon Calendar in the world. On his way to visit me he stopped off in Boise, ID to run a duathlon with his new business partner. Stephen will be here for a week before returning to CT.

Stephen runs up the mountainside in Sycamore Canyon 6-4-09

He wants to do some high altitude training, so he maps out a mile course up through the new Sombra neighborhood. Here the road is paved, but there are no houses yet, so it is a peaceful place to run with views of the mountains and birds and wildlife all around. The jackrabbits and cottontails watch as Stephen runs up....

...and Stephen runs down.



Gus shows off his stitches 6-4-09

When we first made these plans for Stephen to come, there wasn't any wedding planned, nor any surgery for Gus, but on Tuesday Gus had surgery for his carpal tunnel syndrome and ulnar neuropathy. Both of Gus' wrists and elbows bother him. It got so bad that he could no longer hold the camera up to shoot pictures. We got him the smaller Cannon, which is what he uses now. Since then I have taken primary control of the Nikon D80. He wanted to have this surgery done months ago, but it was delayed by the need for an angiogram first. Finally he got the all clear and the surgery was scheduled. They did the left hand first and when that heals up they will do the right hand. He came home the same day groggy and in pain. On Wednesday he got worse and on Thursday he ran a fever. It was our anniversary this day, but it went unnoticed. I just wanted Gus to get well. We had all planned on going out for dinner on this day, but those plans had to be scrapped. Meanwhile, a new idea was born...

Stephen observes saguaro ribs 6-5-09

... Stephen would run a race in Arizona! He looked for races nearby and the only one we could find was in Ft. Huachuca on Saturday, the day he had to leave. Thankfully, he didn't have to leave until the evening, so he signed up. But first I take Stephen for a walk through my beautiful desert. Everyday I live here I love it even more. The weather is so wonderful. I can be outside almost any day of the year. On Friday our skies were overcast allowing for a comfortable stroll through the desert. for the first time since he arrived, Stepehn got up close to a saguaro. Farther down the path I showed his the ribs of a dead saguaro. He found this plant fascinating with its inner support system and outed pleated skin. We could hear the wind whining as it blew through the saguaro spines and we watched as the giants cacti swayed gently like a tree in the wind. the saguaros we walked past were probably close to 200 years old with their large size and many arms. It takes anywhere from 40 to 60 years for a saguaro to even begin to sprout arms!

Lizard 6-5-09

Since it was windy and the middle of the day we did not see a lot of birds but, but the lizards scampered everywhere. We also saw cottontails and giant jack-rabbits. We had a pleasant walk.

Xavier meets his uncle Stephen 6-5-09

Later on Friday afternoon Trish and Xavier arrived to meet my brother. Though G and Trish have been married for over 5 years now, this is the first time that Trish has met my brother and the first time Stephen has seen his new nephew. I think they have the same eyebrows! Then, while I watched Xavier, Trish drove Stephen off to pick up a racing bike he rented to use in the Fort Huachuca Duathlon the next day!

Yep, my brother Stephen is participating in a duathlon! While he has run a triathlon before, this will be his second duathlon in a week! He found the race online because he wants to run a road race in every state. So, early on Saturday morning we got up and drove to Sierra Vista where Ft. Huachuca sits at the base of the Huachuca Mountains. Ft. Huachuca is a well known birding destination, but we are not going to the canyons where the best birds are, we are going to the corner of Site Monitor Road and Whitside, where the race begins.

Stephen sets up his bike 6-6-09

It is a sunny and windy day in Sierra Vista. The road is blocked off for the run and the nearby music speakers blast a song with lyrics that say "running with the devil..." don't ask me who sings it, but it was perky enough and loud enough to scare away almost all of the birds! Yes, I brought my bins and camera with me. I had my notepad and pen in my back pocket, just in case I got the opportunity to count birds!

Before the race begins the national anthem is played and everyone places their hands over their hearts or salutes. I see people of all ages here, from old veterans to young children. All are ready to run 2 miles, bike 10 and then run 2 more miles. Me? I'm just here to observe people and birds! The race is put on by Thunder Mountain Running Club and the Army's MWR which I find out stands for Moral, Welfare and Recreation. Before the race we meet Lynn Jones, Vice President of The Thunder Mountain Running Club who is a triathlete herself.

They're off!



Stephen waves as he runs past.


As if on cue a roadrunner runs down the same street! I hope he read the sign first!


In the distance the Huachuca mountains rise.



Turning the corner to mount the bikes...

I watch as my brother rides off and wait anxiously for his return. He is so competitive and so fast I am sure he will be returning soon, but rider after rider passes me and still no brother. I walk about 1/2 mile down the road to get farther away from the blaring music in hopes of seeing some birds, but all I see are mourning doves and ravens and another road runner hiding in a tree. Finally I see Stephen and he comes riding up to me. He has a story to tell of a popped tire and a good Samaritan who helped him change it so he could finish the race!

We never got his name but he had the best smile!

Thank you whoever you are!

Though Stephen's time is way off now, he does the best that he can...

...and burns it up at the finish line at 8:30 a.m.!



40 minutes later the last runner crosses the line. Everyone cheers her on...

...then it is time for the awards. There are trophies and medals in every category. This young man poses for a photo for his beaming parents.

Stephen and Greg McQuaide 6-6-09


While we wait, we make new friends.

Then we head home to return the bike. Stephen has to leave tonight. I will be sad to see him go. We are both exhausted since we have been awake since 3 a.m. and up since 4 a.m. for the race. However, I take Stephen by Saguaro National Park East's visitor center so he can buy a couple of gifts for his grandchildren. While we are there I look out the picture window and for the first time since I moved here over 2 years ago I see...

Javalinas!

There, napping in the shade by the building! And they have babies! Cute babies! So cute I want to run out and pick one up, but I don't, because that would be really stupid! Javalinas can give a nasty bite and will defend their young viciously. So, instead I rush excitedly over to Stephen who is browsing the gift shelves and drag him to the window. What a way to end the day!

Kathie and Stephen 6-6-09

We return home where Stephen takes a shower while Gus orders pizza. We have just a short time to eat before I have to take him to the airport. Due to Gus' surgery we didn't do half of the things we had planned on, but we still had a really good time. I had so much fun at the duathlon. I hope my brother will return and do it again next year! He is trying to get me to do it with him, but I don't know... can I count birds and run at the same time?

As I drive Stephen to the airport we talk about the Adams Road Race which is coming up later this month. In a little more than a week I will be boarding a plane for Connecticut where Stephen will pick me up at Bradly International Airport and I intend to count birds all over New England and in New York City!

The birds are visiting me in large numbers here this morning. I had not intended to count birds today as I sit here on the patio recalling the events of this week, but as species after species flies by I can't resist. Soon I am glad I did, for in the 2 hours I sit outside I see over 20 species of birds, including 2 Ash-throated Flycatchers! I have also had black-throated sparrows on a reagular basis lately. I can only assume that they are feeling more comfortable as the vegetation fills in from the original construction. I think this may be the largest yard list I have ever recordeded in one day.

Birds seen from my yard on Sunday, June 7, 2009

1. Turkey Vulture (1)

2. Gambel's Quail (9 adults + 5 juveniles = 14)

3. Mourning Dove (13)

4. White-winged dove (2)

5. Pigeon (30)

6. Gila Woodpecker (3)

7. Gilded flicker (5)

8. Costa's hummingbird (5)

9. Purple martin (1)

10. Say's Phoebe (1)

11. Ash-throated Flycatcher (2)

12. Raven (2)

13. Cactus Wren (3)

14. Curve-billed thrasher (3)

15. Canyon towhee (1)

16. Black-throated sparrow (2)

17. Northern Cardinal (1)

18. Brown-headed Cowbird (1)

19. House Finch (15)

20. Lesser Goldfinch (12)

21. House sparrow (29)

Apparently a lot can happen in a week!

(I hope you will return to read further adventures in Sycamore Canyon. Plus, I will post a New River Wrap-up later on this week.)

Skywatch: Ash-troated Flycatcher in Flight

(Photo taken by Kathie @ 9:30 a.m. MST on May 22, 2008 with a Nikon D80)

I took this photo of an Ash-throated flycatcher today right after it gobbled up a huge bug it had caught mid-air. The flycatcher landed in this nearby creosote bush to finish off the meal. I don't know what kinds of insect it was, but it was a mouthful. The bird tossed the bug around trying to reposition it until it got it just right, then GULP!, it was gone. Look below for the rest of the series. This photo fits between "What are you looking at?" and the burp!

Settling down after capturing the insect.

The toss to reposition (Look above the bird's beak between the twigs and you can see the bug mid-air.)

What are you looking at?

BURP! Now leave me alone and let me digest!

Ash-throated Flycatchers live here in the desert southwest and hunt from the mid to upper levels of the trees and scrub. They usually fly out to grab an insect mid-flight then return to a branch or twig to consume their meal. They also feed on berries.

To see other Skywatch Friday photos please visit our gracious host old Tom Wiggly at Wiggers World. To see my husband, Gus' Skywatch photos please visit his new Blog Gusto!