A Christmas Miracle on the Tanque Verde

I felt like I was in a slump, that I had lost what little birding Karma I once had.   It wasn't that I wasn't seeing good birds.   It was just that the looks were too brief to call definitively.   The day before leading a bird trip I scoped out a prime riparian area with my friend Paul.  A brilliant male Summer Tanager came into the open for a moment, a nice rarity to show birders the next  day.

  Another warbler caught my eye with a yellow chest but disappeared before I could place its identity.   All I knew was that it was not one of our normal occurring varieties.   A scan afterward had me thinking best prospects to be Tennesee Warbler or Northern Parula.  
The next day the Summer Tanager hid for the trip.  So did the rare Black and White Warbler which had been seen, yet not by myself.   The trip still went well due to the enthusiasm of the participants including a 95 year old with the refreshing curiosity of a youngster.  A Peregrine flew by twice to excite the crowd, a Prairie Falcon perched nicely for scope views, and Hermit Thrushes were found at two lowland locations.   I counted 48 species in a few hours seen and heard myself, but not all could be shared visually with the nature enthusiasts.  
The next week my friend Paul rediscovered the warbler, a female Northern Parula, and found a brilliant male as well.   I went searching for the rarities without success, but heard a chip coming from some dense foliage along the road.   As I found the warbler with my bins it turned to face me and I saw dark stripes on a buffy background.  "Worm-eating Warbler!?" I exclaimed, to myself since I was alone.  It disappeared too quickly though, so I was not able to confirm with a second look, or better yet, photos.   I cursed my mixed fortune.    Was it the moon?
Weeks passed without another look at these rare gems along the Tanque Verde.  Even the Black and White Warbler was hidden from my clouded eyes.   I had a week off from work so set to work on a few bird surveys with Paul's help.   An unusually persistent rain  postponed one survey spanning the Tanque Verde wash west of the "bridge.".  
The next day we missed on all rare warblers and the tanager while walking by the loop road, but did see a Prairie Falcon and over 30 White-throated Swifts just before the survey ended.   I hoped my luck was not spreading to Paul's birding Karma, which is usually exceptional.   Could it have something to do with my close companions, who may have used my heavy shirts as a warm comforter lately?

Lilly, Scout, Sassy, Hadley

Deebs, Pickle, Sassy

I surveyed a short western section of the Tanque Verde alone.  I watched a Woodpecker with an all dark back and white wing bars as it flew across the wash into a pecan grove and disappeared from my view. Gila Woodpeckers fussed about, disturbed by this hidden competitor..  My gut and the field marks pointed to Acorn Woodpecker, a first for our neighborhood, even without seeing the clown-like face.   But, then again, Williamson's Sapsucker males have a solid dark back with white on the wings (and white rump too).   Gila Woodpeckers are territorial with sapsuckers as well.   I surmised that I had seen an unknown woodpecker, that would have been a new sight record for our neighborhood regardless of which specialty it turned out to be.  The mystery still continues as even numerous returns to the area has not yielded another sighting.    Were our cute feline family having an influence on my birding?  Or is that question just an excuse to show off our kitties again!  Aren't they cute!

Some Western Bluebirds along the woodland road gave me cause to cheer. It was also a treat seeing an Orange-crowned Warbler and Green-tailed Towhee feasting in our backyard on Thanksgiving day.  The Friday after Thanksgiving was too windy for surveys so Paul and I rescheduled for Saturday for our last survey along the Tanque Verde.  

A Prairie Falcon in the first two hundred yards was a nice find, and some Rufous-winged Sparrows were calling.   As we passed the lake I realized we had just passed our best chance for a rarity on this survey.   The wind had not brought in any unusual ducks, and the Snowy Egret seen recently must have already left for the cattail pond.     But birds were still active, with Lincoln's Sparrows and a Bewick's Wren calling as we walked the banks of the wash.   
We had just passed the midpoint when Paul casually mentioned a raptor in the air.   He mentioned that it looked dark, and then called out words foreign to my ears on my neighborhood birding trips.   "Bald Eagle!"    
"What?" I thought as I ransacked my pack for the camera.  Paul was retrieving his from his fanny pack as well.   I had only heard of one Bald Eagle sighting in eastern Tucson, seen during a Christmas Bird Count in Redington Pass.  This bird had originally been flying low and slow, possibly indicating it had just taken flight from a roost.  We snapped away as the juvenile eagle circled us, climbing higher as it slowly headed east toward the Rincons.   One or two photos actually came out legibly;

 I thanked Paul for his incredible find in our neighborhood.   As we moved on an Ash-throated Flycatcher called, and as we came into a small clearing another Prairie Falcon perched, unafraid of these curious humans.  

The next day I finally found the Black and White Warbler at the loop, a first for this species since a trip to Ecuador years ago.   Who knows what else may show up in our neighborhood in the next weeks or month.   But I feel lucky because I received my Christmas miracle, soaring over the desert on long wings which pierced my soul with its majesty.   Thank you for sharing with me the bewilderment of our amazing neighborhood wildlife.