It was one O'clock AM as I parked by the recreation center pond. As my eyes adjusted to the darkness a meteor streaked across, slicing through the handle of the Big Dipper. A Great Horned Owl called, then another. It was a good start. I played a tape of a Western Screech Owl. Western Screech Owls are like meteors when they approach in that you ask yourself, "Did I just see that or was it my imagination?" But the branch twitches, and you know he's there, camouflaged by the darkness and his gray, tree bark-like plumage. Then it sings its melodic bubbly repertoire of whistled notes, a slow trill in response to your imitation. You freeze, holding onto this unique experience, unforgettable no matter how many times it is replayed in your life. You realize you have received a gift this peaceful moonlit night.
My first few stops did not have any responses. I started playing the song at a reliable location along Speedway, and had an immediate response just as the eighth meteor passed overhead. Seven more screech owls would be counted that night along with another 30 or so meteors. The most special screech owl was behind the cattail pond since I hadn't heard one there in years, despite the appropriate habitat. The first the calls were non-typical, and foreign, but soon the small hunter changed to the familiar trilling so musical to my ears.
When I met up with Jake at 7:00 only one other Great Horned Owl had called in the night, but we would find four additional owls roosting on our wanderings that day. We scanned the big pond for ducks, counting good numbers but lower than usual diversity. We had missed the influx of rarities a few days earlier which included 3 merganser species. As we drove off a raptor stood out on the magical Eucalyptus in our neighborhood. Closer inspection unveiled a Peregrine Falcon, arguably the fastest animal on earth. It a good sign to find this tough bird early, for it can be a very rare sight. Before leaving the neighborhood we parked at the gate and walked to a hidden pond, where a female Bufflehead was a nice surprise.
Each birding stop had some nice sightings. La Mariposa resort was going green with a Green Heron and Green-winged Teal on its tiny pond. Western Bluebirds sat on the wires over the wash. and a Prairie Falcon sat on a tall power pole over Speedway Blvd. A House Wren, uncommon in the lowlands, was another good find.
A walk at the cattail pond produced our best bird of the day, a juvenile Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. One of the keys to distinguishing the rare Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers from its cousin, the Red-naped is that the latter only retains juvenile plumage until late September, whereby the former slowly attains adult plumage over the winter. 2 Northern Pintail ducks were on the pond as well, a bird often missed on this Christmas Bird Count. The somewhat dense cover on the back side of the pond held an Orange-crowned Warbler, and the normally musical Hermit thrush only gave a one-noted "chuck," which was enough to alert us to its presence.
A walk in the field west of the pond yielded five Lincoln's Sparrows and our only Green-tailed Towhee for the count. As we walked through the mesquite bosque an Ash-throated Flycatcher called, and an American Pipit flew overhead. As we walked the wash back past the big pond highlights included Black-tailed and Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, 2 Brewer's Sparrows, and a couple Rufous-winged Sparrows. A Pyrrhuloxia found along the walking path by the road would also be the only one for our area.
A walk along Woodland Road added our third falcon species, an American Kestrel. Chipping Sparrows and a few Lark Sparrows foraged in the grass, and a small group of seven meadowlarks (probably Western) were visible a hundred yards off the road. Among the Brewer's and Red-winged Blackbirds were two Brown-headed Cowbirds, the only two found in our count circle. Nine White-winged doves were an uncommon sight in a mesquite, and a brilliant male Red-naped Sapsucker helped round out our woodpecker totals.
My friend Paul and his friend covered the eastern part of our route, and had tremendous success as well, having seen a Magnolia Warbler, a first ever for the entire count circle (which has been in existence for about 85 years). They also found a Black and White Warbler, two Gray Flycatchers, the striking and scrappy Loggerhead Shrike, a Sharp-shinned Hawk, and a White-breasted Nuthatch, which is uncommon in the lowland habitats.
The day ended with 85 species seen or heard by our two teams along this small yet ecologically diverse dense riparian area along the Tanque Verde Wash. Twenty of these would not be seen by any other group in the circle! Sunday would be a day of rest, having only had two hours of sleep the night before. But the adventure was well worth the sacrifice, and I'm already looking forward for next year's Christmas Bird Count adventure. Thank you for appreciating our diverse native wildlife.
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