Last Tuesday seemed to mark the first day of Autumn. Although it was only the 10th of September, it was the first time I did not hear Purple Martins calling at the lake. The normally boisterous Tropical Kingbirds were noticeably absent as well and haven't been heard since. A lone Lesser nighthawk hunted in the dim early evening light, and a Rufous-winged Sparrow gave weak, barely discernible peeps, seemingly too tired to give its entire bouncing ball
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| Rufous-winged Sparrow (from previous wanderings) |
repertoire. A single Mallard duck swam on the seeming immense, yet empty lake. The summer varieties were leaving, yet migrants were still few due to the lack of rainfall in our "desert within the desert". Hopefully the rains from the week before would help spur plant growth and bird activity. It was the first time the wash had run this summer, and the rainy season was about to end. Even our desert toads were mostly silent this monsoon season.
There was a silver lining on this waning moon of a season. My friend Paul Suchanek had spotted a juvenile Mississippi Kite just a mile from our neighborhood, and it had been heading in our direction. His Ebird documentation photo was outstanding as well as his write-up. Oh, to see such a sight in our neighborhood! I was quite envious of his find. And to think I had birded that area just a few days before and could have missed this gem! At least its nice to have an expert birder focusing on this rich ecosystem, discovering species I've missed in my amateur forays.
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| Vesper Sparrow (from previous wanderings) |
On Saturday I had some consolation to my doldrums. As I watered our backyard plants a Warbling Vireo hopped through our mesquites, then investigated our Arizona Ash, paying little heed to my close presence as I curiously watched its behavior. I'd seen them in other areas nearby but this was a first for the year in the yard and neighborhood! Later on a short walk in the wash a Vesper Sparrow was a first for the season. and Brewer's Sparrows were becoming slightly more numerous. Green-tailed Towhees were also easy to find.
On my early Monday morning commute I saw a large raptor with crooked wings fly over our transit bus. "Osprey!" I found myself calling out to the non-birding commuters. A couple of passengers were actually interested and tried to find it before it soared out of sight. Tonight on my bike ride home I stopped by the lake to scan for any activity. Three swallows passed in a tight knit group, and I pegged two to be Barn Swallows. The third, even though obviously flying with the others, was too dark and heavy. I followed them with the bins and confirmed the male Purple Martin, silently flying with his new friends despite their biological differences. Both parties seemed content with the arrangement regardless of what caused this interspecies bond of friendship. I was concerned with a couple missing flight feathers on the martin and wished him happy travels on his upcoming journey. Thank you for appreciating our other-specie-al friends, our community wildlife!
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| Zone-tailed Hawk juvenile |
The walk up the wash to the survey start point was active with song this early morning. I almost wished I could have "started in the middle of the route," when the noises of traffic would not be a factor. The walk seemed slow not from the loose sand my feet trudge through but the pulling of my senses toward the variety of birds calling from every direction. When I did reach my destination I was given a sweet surprise in the form of a juvenile Zone-tailed Hawk sitting in a cottonwood along the edge of the wash!
I skewed my starting point slightly just so this magnificent raptor would not be disturbed. Zone-tailed Hawks are a rare sight around the city, but are most often seen during spring migration and late summer during post nesting dispersal. As mentioned in a previous post, their similarity to Turkey Vultures in flight is uncanny despite the size difference. Later in this survey another Zone-tailed would circle over, its rattier tail distinguishing it from the first.
The birds were outstanding along this stretch of wash with its new growth from the recent monsoons. Although only a mile from our neighborhood the change is significant, and I'm guessing this stretch received some storms which just missed our neighborhood. A singing Northern Beardless Tyrannulet lifted my spirits with its descending whistled tune. Five Harris's Hawks circled about along with two American Kestrels. Two Nashville Warblers flew into the lower branches of a small cottonwood as I passed. Although no snakes were seen a Clark's Spiny Lizard (based on horizontal bars on forelimbs) clung to the bark of a mesquite.
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| Bobcat camouflaged within brushy understory |
I was trudging back up the wash after the survey when a rustling sound came from the elderberry I had just passed. At first I saw nothing through the maze of branches. As my focus shifted left my eyes met the warm slanted eyes of a bobcat, just a human length away. We stared, and I smiled, yet neither moved from this magical moment. She may have had kittens close by since she did not appear to be the one rustling about. I moved out of her space before trying a couple photos, and, though she was most accommodating, the brightness of the sun obliterated any attempt to focus into her shady abode. My eyes are opening with each of these wonderous encounters with our wild neighbors, and any allusion to potential danger would be a misstatement on my part.
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| Bobcat-digiscoped |
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| Male Blue Grosbeak |
A raptor circled the wash, and closer inspection revealed its identity as an adult Gray Hawk! Incidentally a Gray Hawk had used the same cottonwood used by the Zone-tailed today, and it may have been the same perch! As I neared the car a male Blue Grosbeak came out in the open for a bit. As I drove home the two Zone-tailed Hawks circled over the east end of our neighborhood along the Agua Caliente Wash. It was another exciting morning along the Tanque Verde Wash! Thank you for appreciating our wild and friendly neighbors who share our space so generously with us.
My friend Kirk and I surveyed the far east end of the Tanque Verde Wash today. Almost the entire first half of the survey was relatively quiet except for the constant calls of Purple Martins overhead, for which over 3 dozen were about. An interesting find were raptor feathers strewn about one section of the wash. The edges were frayed which would indicate an owl, and a google search on "barn owl feather identification" shows similar feathers (showing more white than a Great Horned Owl flight feather ). What do you think? Here is another link to a feather ID site http://www.fws.gov/lab/featheratlas
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| Barn Owl Feather? |
The birds were so quiet compared to other excursions. As we neared the halfway point a large brownish snake
