The Good-bye Chronicles Chapter 5: A Return to the Beginning

Saguaro National Park Rincon Mt. Unit 7-18-10

July 18, 2010

Sunday morning. It’s hot. It’s humid, but we decide to take a drive anyways. I want to drive through Saguaro National Park’s Rincon unit, for it is where it all began. When we first moved here 3 years ago I used to come here all the time. We were staying in the studio apartment then waiting to find someplace to live. One day while Gus was at work I drove over to Saguaro National Park and bought a National Parks pass. This allowed me to go in as often as I wanted to without paying each and every time.

Saguaro NP 7-18-10

Saguaro National Park is divided into two separate units. The Tucson Mountain Unit sits on the west side of town and it was the first part of the park we visited before we even moved down here. It was while we were visiting our kids for Thanksgiving in 2006 that Gus decided he wanted to live where he can wear shorts in the wintertime. We went home to Utah from that trip and Gus started applying for jobs. Within three months we were living here. The eastern portion of Saguaro National Park is actually the largest, but very few people make it into the back country. I must say that I never have. However, the park is still quite enjoyable from the 7 mile loop road and the few trails I have accessed from below. Now, as we drive through the gate this Sunday morning memories of those other visits come rushing back and as we drive I am well aware that this might be the last time I get to do this.

Saguaro and Ocotillo 7-18-10 

We have both cameras with us, but I am using my binoculars and counting birds as we go. For once Gus is stopping without me having to ask him. He is taking pictures of everything. I can tell that he is well aware of the fact that it could be a very long time before we see any of this again. Whenever he stops to take pictures I count birds. Suddenly we are like tourists once again and every cactus seems amazing to us.

Saguaro Blossom 7-18-10

Prickly Pears 7-18-10

Cholla Cactus 7-18-10

Prickly pears 7-18-10

Prickly pear cactus 7-18-10

Flowering Pincushion Cactus 7-18-10

Though it is only around 9:30 a.m. the temperature has started to rise. Accompanied by the humidity, it’s quite uncomfortable out there. Thankfully we are in an air-conditioned car, though the sound of the motor running drowns out the birds. At our next stop I shut the car off and Gus wants to know why. I tell him I cannot hear the birds. He goes back to photographing a cactus and I listen and watch. White-winged doves are everywhere, but I have seen a few purple martins, a couple of flycatchers and some Gila woodpeckers. Turkey vultures circle above in the clear blue sky. Will they find anything that has died on this hot day? I suspect they will.

The road winds up through a cactus forest. The Rincon Mountains loom before us. We stop at a favorite overlook, then get back in the car and drive as the road bends back toward the city. Soon all of Tucson is spread before us. In the distance the Tucson Mountains punctuate the skyline. It’s almost noontime now and the heat makes it impossible to drive with windows open. We view the world from within this steel and glass air-conditioned cage. It is not quite how I would choose to experience the park, but I am not in favor of passing out from the heat and humidity.

 

Gus seems obsessed with dead and dying saguaros on this day. I wonder if he is making the connection between his subject matter and the end of our life here in Tucson. I certainly do.

Old man cactus with arms 7-18-10

After an hour and 40 minutes and 6.5 miles of driving I counted 18 species of birds on this day. The most numerous species were white-winged doves. I counted at least 40 of them. Our days here are probably limited. I am torn between wanting to visit old haunts to say good-bye and trying to see other places that I never got to. How will I choose what to do? Will I have time to do any of it? I will not have any answers until later on this week. How does one say good-bye to the land and the place they love?

Saguaro NP Rincon Mountains 7-18-10

(All of today’s photos were taken by Gusto! with the Nikon D90)

Birds Seen Today In Saguaro National Park Rincon Mt Unit

Location: Saguaro NP--Rincon Mt Unit
Observation date: 7/18/10
Notes: Drove through the park slowly with Gus. Stopped a few places along the way.
Number of species: 18
Gambel's Quail 4
Turkey Vulture 6
White-winged Dove 40
Mourning Dove 2
Gila Woodpecker 12
Gilded Flicker 4
Ash-throated Flycatcher 2
Brown-crested Flycatcher 3
Purple Martin (Desert) 2
Verdin 2
Cactus Wren 3
Northern Mockingbird 2
Curve-billed Thrasher (Western) 4
Rufous-crowned Sparrow 2
Black-throated Sparrow 4
Pyrrhuloxia 2
Brown-headed Cowbird 2
House Finch 2
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)

The Good-bye Chronicles

Kathie’s Poet Tree 

Sycamore Canyon Birds

Today in Sycamore Canyon

View from my front yard. Could these clouds be a promise of things to come? 7-9-10 @ 9:52 a.m. MST

Blue skies and a few puffy clouds greet me this morning. A hot wind is blowing strongly from the east, a good sign that there could be rain coming. My plan was to turn on the computer and start writing right away, but then I notice a couple of bird feeders are empty, and those flowers over there look like they could use a bit more water, and, oh look! juvenile Scott’s orioles in my yellow bells bushes in the front yard and you know I have to stop and watch them, and so, it is now 11 a.m. and I have not even eaten breakfast yet!

Yellow bells tecoma stans in my front yard 7-9-10

If you want to attract wildlife to your yard, these bushes are perfect.  This morning when I went to open the front bedroom shutters I found 8 to 10 lesser goldfinches perched in the branches and gleaning some sort of tiny insect of the leaves, flowers and seed pods.  Then I noticed a pair of juvenile Scott’s Orioles were in the bushes with them, along with a few house sparrows.  I frequently find desert cottontails napping beneath these bushes or coveys of Gambel’s Quail.  Hummingbirds are attracted to the tubular yellow flowers as well as orioles, and it is not unusual to find cardinals and pyrrhuloxoias seeking shelter in the branches either. This plant is deciduous, drought tolerant and it likes heat. However, it does need a regular watering.

With all the birds and wildlife I’ve attracted to my yard some of my plants have not fared so well. I wrote about the purslane that I fenced off in a previous post. Well, that one is starting to come back, but…

…now the larger plants are suffering and I fear I will have to fence them off also.  I can’t help but think that as soon as the monsoon arrives and the rain waters the desert it will bloom so richly that my garden plants will finally be spared.

I am trying to enhance this bird feeding area on the north side of my house. This is the view I have when I look out the den window. The den is where I do all my blogging and writing. Plus, by encouraging the birds to feed over here, it keeps my backyard cleaner and it doesn't disturb the birds when we go outside.  However, I still keep birdbaths, thistle seed feeders and nectar feeders in the backyard.  I try to attract the more gentle birds there and keep the raucous guys over here. Since curve-billed thrashers often come to the feeders I prefer to attract them on this side as they will kill hummingbirds. By feeding the hummingbirds in the backyard they can feed in peace and relative safety.

Meanwhile, in the front and side yard my cacti are doing really well and this one in particular has sprouted some new growth.  I do not know what this one is called, but it is my favorite. Gus, however, likes the bunny ears prickly pear cactus he planted. 

The Bunny ears is up in far left corner of this photo, the poor struggling purslane are just beyond the golden barrel cactus. We planted 3 small saguaros which are doing really well, but we will be long gone before they ever get tall. Planting a saguaro is something you do for future generations and the life and health of the desert. It is like believing there will be a future and that it will be good. It is a spiny hope.

This morning’s clouds have started to thicken. Perhaps we really will have rain today!

 

Turkey Vulture flying over my head in Sycamore Canyon 7-9-10 @ 11:50 a.m. MST taken with the Nikon D90 18-200mm lens.

Meanwhile, a Turkey Vulture drama has been developing outside my den window.  I have been popping up and down while writing this post to get pictures with both the D80 and the D90. It is not over yet but I will be posting that story next instead of what I intended to!

Cloudy Skies, Clear Thoughts: A Sycamore Canyon Update

Sycamore Canyon Sky 5-20-09 by Kathie Brown

I awake to cool gray skies and bolt out the door as soon as possible. It’s been days since I have had a moment to myself since my son broke his ankle last Thursday night and I have been watching my grandson. Yesterday he returned to his parents but Gus came down with a sore throat Monday and he has been home sick since yesterday. I know I have so much writing to do, but I need to see the Canyon. I need to see if the Purple Martins have returned.

Desert Willow Blossoms 5-20-09 by Kathie Brown

It is a short walk up to the top of the cul de sac. On my way I pass numerous desert willow trees, which are now in bloom. Their sweet blossoms fill the air with a tender fragrance. Their blossoms vary from pink, to red to lavender.

Saguaro Sentinals 5-20-09 by Kathie Brown

I enter the trail system on Saguaro Loop Trail. Here I stand on the precipice of the canyon and gaze off to the south, where the Santa Rita Mountains loom, and the west towards Green Valley and Sahuarita. A thick steel wool blanket of clouds covers the earth around me lending a coolness and softness to the day. Bird song fills my ears as I stand on what I call “Lookout Point.” Here the view is expansive and it fills my heart with joy. I glance immediately to the right where the Saguaro sentinels stand. Perched on the edge of the canyon, the vast desert spreads out below them in the wash and beyond. On the east side of the trail that passes by them the boundary of human habitation is demarcated by tan painted view fence which allows homeowners to see beyond their tiny yards to the desert beyond.

Purple Martin Pair 5-20-09 by Kathie Brown

As I look towards the tops of the saguaros I see a purple martin pair. They are here! And my heart leaps with pleasure. One pair is perched in a nest of saguaro blossoms atop the tallest saguaro. A lone male circles the sky, then returns to a different saguaro. I don’t see any others and I am concerned. Two years ago when I moved here there were at least 4 pairs here. What has happened to my purple martins?

Saguaro Arms 5-20-09 by Kathie Brown

I stand in one spot for 15 minutes or more and count the birds around me. Then, as I wander down the trail I can hear tiny bird cheeps coming from one of the holes in the saguaro. Could there be babies in there? I hope with all my heart there are. These saguaros are home to so many birds. Like a high-rise in the city, the many holes in these old sentinels are doors to different nests. The Gila woodpeckers and Gilded Flickers nest in the same saguaros as the purple martins. House sparrows will occupy empty nest holes also, but thankfully I do not see any of them going in or out of the holes.

As I wander down the trail watching birds I consider the plight of the birds here since human beings have moved into this fragile desert habitat. I have noticed the decline in insect eating birds since moving here two years ago and I am concerned it may be due to the use of pesticides by my neighbors. I can only assume that some people don’t think things through and they don’t realize that when you poison the insects, you can poison the birds and lizards that feed on them. The day before I left for the New River Birding and Nature festival I watched in horror as the Terminex man pulled up to a house across the street from me and commenced spraying the perimeter of the house. To make matters worse, I could see a bird bath and/or feeder up on the block wall. It was around 11 a.m. and I watched as mourning doves, finches and sparrows flew off as he walked around the house. He was protected by rubber boots and other gear. The poor birds had no such protection and once he left, they moved back into the poisoned area.

Saguaro Blossoms 5-20-09 by Kathie Brown

I do not want insects in my home either, but it seems there must be another way to deal with the problem. We have so many insect eating birds in this place, as well as lizards and bats. When we kill of the insects we remove a food source for these beneficial animals. When we poison the bugs, we poison the birds and other animals that make Sycamore Canyon a delight to live in. If the lizards get poisoned, then we poison the Road Runners that eat the lizards. If this continues to happen, we may not see these creatures here any longer.

Even the tiny hummingbirds are affected by the use of pesticides. Though a large part of their diet comes from nectar gathered from blooming flowers, they also eat tiny insects and spiders. When you poison the spiders, you are poisoning the hummingbirds that feed on them. While I like the birds that come to my bird feeders, I also enjoy the insect eating birds that I see around me in the desert.

So, this is a plea to my neighbors and others, no matter where you live, please consider carefully the use of pesticides in your yard. Consider spraying only inside your garage where the birds do not go, or using an environmentally safe product. I know there are companies out there that can help. I have a grandson and I don’t want him to be bitten by Black widow spiders or stung by a scorpion either.

Here is a list of some of the insect eating birds I have identified here in Sycamore Canyon. Many of them breed here and feed insects to their young. Lets help keep Sycamore Canyon Safe for the wildlife that most of us moved here to enjoy!

1. Hummingbirds
2. Nighthawks
3. Flycatchers
4. Wrens
5. Vireos
6. Road Runners
7. Swallows
8. Purple martins
9. Verdin
10. Gnatcatchers
11. Warblers

On a hopeful note, on My 12 I counted my first Peregrine Falcon here in Sycamore Canyon as it flew over my yard on pointed wings and disappeared into the noontime sky. The Peregrine Falcon is a species brought back from the brink of extinction when the populations crashed in the 1950 and the 1960’s when the eggs of the falcon became too fragile for their young to hatch due to the use of the pesticide DDT. Used on a regular basis by farmers and homeowners alike, DDT moved through the food chain through insects and the animals that eat them until it reached perilous concentrations in these birds. DDT was banned in 1972 and the Peregrine Falcons rebounded allowing all of us to enjoy this magnificent raptor and the fastest animal on earth. This Peregrine Falcon sighting makes species number 77 on my Sycamore Canyon Bird List (see side bar)!

Birds Seen on my short .2 mile walk this morning:

1. Gambel's Quail
2. Mourning dove
3. white-winged dove
4. Costa's Hummingbird
5. Gilded Flicker
6. Gila Woodpecker
7. Nighthawk species
8. Verdin
9. Ash-throated Flycatcher
10. Cactus Wren
11. Curve-billed thrasher
12. Purple martin
13. Rufous-winged sparrow
14. House Finch
15. House sparrow

I also saw 2 jack rabbits and 1 desert cottontail!

I love living with nature!

The adventures of the New River Birding Festival will continue tomorrow!

(All photos click to enlarge for the best view)

Skywatch Friday: Monsoon Saguaro Sunset

Photo taken by Kathie July 22, 2008 after a thunderstorm that caused a flash flood in Sycamore Canyon. Click on image to enlarge for best viewing.

Shooting Data: Nikon D80
2008/07/22 19:29:33
JPEG (8-bit) Normal
Lens: 18-70mm
F/3.5-4.5 G
Focal Length: 70mm
1/60 sec - F/4.5

Click on the button to view more Skywatch Friday photos.

View my other Skywatch entry at Kathie's Poet Tree.

An Early Walk and a Mystery Bird

Long shadows lay across the desert on Saturday morning, June 14, when Gus and I entered the big wash across the street. We got up early to beat the heat and were out the door by 6:30 a.m. Gus carries the camera and I have my binoculars harnessed to my chest. We both have hats and bottles of water hooked to our belt loops. While there air is still cool in the shadows, one only has to step into the sun to feel the coming heat of the day.

To the south the jagged peaks of the Santa Rita Mountains loom against the pale blue skies. A few wispy clouds float above the mountains, hinting of the monsoon just south of the border. A cactus wren flies up cackling to a nearby rooftop as we pass through the block walls that define our neighborhood. The tall saguaro condo greets us on the left—a home to woodpeckers and martins. A small flock of rufous-winged sparrows seeks shelter in the desert scrub beneath the saguaro. The song of a curved-billed thrasher follows us as we pass through the barbed wire gate into the wash.

Here we head north so the sun will be at our backs, better for identifying birds and taking photos. We keep to the wide sandy bottom of the wash but scan the Palo Verde, mesquite, acacia and creosote bush along the edges for signs of life. The wild cotton is blooming again, while the dried bolls from the last season still cling to leafless twigs. A lesser nighthawk flutters overhead searching for breakfast in the ever warming day. Gila woodpeckers chatter as they cling to nearby saguaros. White-winged doves call out, “who cooks for you, who cooks for you?” over and over again. The air is full of bird sounds.

The Santa Rita Mountains look so lovely in this morning light. They have a bluish cast as the sunlight plays along the gentle slopes casting purple shadows. Nestled along the canyon rim the saguaro sentinels reach for the sky with purple martins circling like satellites around their desert homes.

As we progress farther downhill the side of the canyon becomes narrow and steep. Soon tall red banks loom over us and we can see the layers upon layer of gravel and rock that have been laid down and then carved through by the force of water. It’s always hard for me to imagine water rushing down this dry bed with crunching sand beneath my feet. I have yet to see this wash flowing fast and deep enough to have carved this canyon out. I wonder as I’m walking if millions of years ago the Grand Canyon started as something like this.

Most of the vegetation is up on the canyon rim now, or growing along the edges of the wash. Huge roots lie exposed in the steep bank in their search for water.

Their twisted shapes look muscular and thick as they grab onto the eroding soil of the red caliche walls. The wash curves left, then right, then flattens out again before it reaches the newly constructed bridge that will bring people and cars to the new neighborhood on the west side of the wash. At this point they are only putting in roads, but someday the pounding of hammers will be heard as more human homes invade the desert. For now, the birds and wildlife are the only residents here.

High on the east bank we spot a female hummingbird gathering nectar from a saguaro blossom. Her tiny size is emphasized by the large green cactus. With her tiny feet extended, she looks like a helicopter coming in for a landing on a frilly helipad.

An ash-throated flycatcher hunts from a nearby mesquite tree. Then a Gila woodpecker decides the flycatcher is too close to home, and chases the intruder away in a blur of black and white wings and chestnut tail feathers. We watch a canyon towhee fly to the center of the wash, then skulk along the bottom as it proceeds to walk to the opposite side. Once there it alights in a tree before turning and flying into deeper cover.

We listen as a male Gamble’s quail calls from the west bank.

He walks out into the center with his questioning “whoop? whoop?” When he is halfway across we spot the female at the edge of the bank.

She looks out, gauges the danger, and decides to head back into cover. The male turns around and crosses the wide expanse of gravel, then disappears into the brush with her. I guess we know who’s in charge in that family!

So far I have been able to keep to the shadows of the eastern bank where it is cooler. Now the cliffs have flattened into low banks and Gus and I pass through the large cement openings of the new bridge. It is the gateway to a different world.

A deep basin filled with riprap is on the north side of the bridge. I can only guess that it is to hold the water and debris before it overflows and continues on its way downhill. We skirt the edge of the basin and re-enter the wash again.

I have never been north of the bridge before. This is all new territory for me. Gone are the step banks and cliff edges we have just walked past. Now it feels more like an alluvial fan as the gravel spreads out into various channels before us. There is more vegetation here and suddenly we hear the whirr of cicadas in the brush around us. One insect starts to whine on the left, then another picks up the chorus on the right. The insects sing us down the dry gravel bed while the sun beats down and cooks us. I am vigilant in my lookout for snakes, but all we are seeing are lizards. I glance back towards the mountains and see the bridge we have just walked under set against the beautiful Santa Ritas.

I don’t find this flat place quite so interesting. We aren’t seeing many birds anymore. The heat is making us tired and we are both hungry since we haven’t eaten breakfast. So, we decide to head for the big saguaro to our right which we know is at the edge of Sycamore Canyon Park. As we walk cautiously through cholla and prickly pear we see birds all over this old man cactus.

A Gila Woodpecker and Gilded Flicker cling to separate arms of this green monster. The spiny flesh is pocked with holes. Still, this ancient giant produces blossoms in an ever hopeful attempt to reproduce.
We step out of the desert and onto the pavement of the track that encircles the park. After the dry sand and gravel and sparse vegetation of the desert the large expanse of lush green grass is a cool feast to our eyes.

Along the edges of the park a few scrubby shrubs and trees still grow, though many have been removed to make way for the community center and neighborhood swimming pool that is under construction. A little gray birds flits among the twigs of an acacia tree. I have seen several of these birds in the canyon today but I have not been able to identify them.

They are a plain gray with no wing bars or eye rings, but they have this distinctive yellow base to their lower mandible. Gus snaps off a few photos for me in hopes that I will be able to identify the bird at home.

Just as we are about to leave the park area and head home I spot a kestrel atop a distant saguaro. Gus walks back to get a photo as purple martins dive bomb the bird. Irritated, the kestrel flies off with a lizard in its talons in search of a more peaceful place to consume its breakfast. Speaking of breakfast, it’s 8:15 now and our stomachs have been growling for at least an hour. We stride home in the heat and cook up a feast to consume in our air conditioned home.

As for the mystery bird, well, I searched three bird guides and numerous web pages without success. While I hoped it might have been a gray flycatcher, it didn’t have that silhouette or behavior. Also, a gray flycatcher is about 6 inches and this bird seemed smaller. I considered the blue-gray gnatcatcher but that wasn’t it. No eye ring, no black tail, not the right profile or behavior. Was it a vireo? I checked those out also, but still the shape of the beak was not vireo like, nor did it have the eye lines or spectacles of the gray vireo. On Tuesday one landed in the Palo Verde tree in my backyard. I quickly grabbed the camera and stepped out the door. The bird didn’t seem to mind my presence but as soon as it heard the camera click, it flew off. On Wednesday it came around again at about the same time. This time I stayed inside and clicked off about 100 shots through the glass windows and doors. I off-loaded the pictures, enlarged them and examined each one. Its shape and behavior suggested a Verdin, but there was no yellow head, no red shoulder patches. Could it be a juvenile? Perhaps, but none of my bird guides had a good picture of one. Off to the internet again where finally I found a photo and a description on the 10,000 Birds Clinic page. Apparently I was not the only one stumped by trying to identify this bird, for it stumped these guys too. But in the end it was confirmed: Juvenile Verdin!

(Note: All of today's photography is by Gus except for the 2nd photo of the juvenile Verdin which was taken by Kathie on June 18th.)

I counted 22 species of birds in the canyon today:

1. Kestrel (1)
2. Turkey vulture (3)
3. White-winged dove (4)
4. Mourning Dove (4)
5. Gambel's Quail (6)
6. Gila woodpecker (5)
7. Gilded Flicker (4)
8. Ash-throated Flycatcher (2)
9. Canyon towhee (1)
10. Lesser nighthawk (2)
11. Purple martin (19)
12. Barn Swallow (1)
13. Cactus wren (4)
14. Curve-billed Thrasher (7)
15. Verdin (6)
16. Black-tailed Gnatcatcher (3)
17. Pyrrhuloxia (1)
18. Rufous-winged Sparrow (6)
19. Great-tailed grackle (2)
20. House Finch (7)
21. Common raven (1)
22. Hummingbird species, female (1)