Comparing My Yard Lists

House Finches in Sycamore Canyon, Corona de Tucson, AZ 2009

Since moving to Maine my yard list has grown faster here than in any other location I have lived. I thought it would be fun to compare the yard lists to see what species I have seen in each yard. I first started eBirding and keeping a Yard List back in 2007 when I lived in Sycamore Canyon. It’s hard to believe it has been 7 years since then and I have moved 3 more times for a total of 4 yard lists! Take a look if you are interested! Bird species seen in only one yard are in color and italics.

Kathie’s Yard Birds Lists

	Sycamore Canyon May 2007-August 2010	Andover, MA September 2010-August 2012	Tucson, AZ September 2012-January 2014	Mere Point Cottage  2014-present
1.	Gambel’s Quail	Canada Goose	Gambel’s Quail	Canada Goose
2.	Turkey Vulture	Mallard	Great Egret	Greater Scaup
3.	Northern Harrier	Wild Turkey	Turkey Vulture	Common Eider
4.	Sharp-shinned Hawk	Great Blue Heron	Osprey	Bufflehead
5.	Cooper’s Hawk	Black Vulture	Sharp-shinned Hawk	Common Goldeneye
6.	Harris Hawk	Turkey Vulture	Cooper’s Hawk	Red-breasted Merganser
7.	Zone-tailed hawk	Sharp-shinned Hawk	Harris Hawk	Common Loon
8.	Red-tailed Hawk	Cooper’s Hawk	Swainson’s Hawk	Double-crested Cormorant
9.	Killdeer	Red-shouldered Hawk	Zone-tailed Hawk	Great Blue Heron
10.	Rock Pigeon	Red-tailed Hawk	Red-tailed Hawk	Turkey Vulture
11.	White-winged Dove	Ring-billed Gull	Rock Pigeon	Osprey
12.	Greater Roadrunner	Herring Gull	Band-tailed Pigeon	Cooper’s Hawk
13.	Greater Roadrunner	Rock Pigeon	White-winged Dove	Bald Eagle
14.	Great Horned Owl	Mourning Dove	Mourning Dove	Red-tailed Hawk
15.	Burrowing Owl	Black-billed Cuckoo	Greater Roadrunner	American Woodcock
16.	Lesser Nighthawk	Eastern Screech Owl	Great Horned Owl	Herring Gull
17.	Common Nighthawk	Great Horned Owl	Lesser Nighthawk	Great Black-backed Gull
18.	Magnificent Hummingbird	Chimney Swift	Vaux’s Swift	Mourning dove
19.	Black-chinned Hummingbird	Ruby-throated Hummingbird	Black-chinned Hummingbird	Chimney Swift
20.	Anna’s Hummingbird	Red-bellied Woodpecker	Anna’s Hummingbird	Red-bellied Woodpecker
21.	Costa’s Hummingbird	Yellow-bellied Sapsucker	Costa’s Hummingbird	Downy Woodpecker
22.	Broad-tailed Hummingbird	Downy Woodpecker	Broad-tailed Hummingbird	Hairy Woodpecker
23.	Rufous Hummingbird	Hairy Woodpecker	Rufous Hummingbird	Northern Flicker
24.	Calliope Hummingbird	Northern Flicker	Broad-billed Hummingbird	Eastern Phoebe
25.	Broad-billed Hummingbird	Eastern Wood Pewee	Gila Woodpecker	Blue Jay
26.	Gila Woodpecker	Blue-headed Vireo	Ladder-backed Woodpecker	American Crow
27.	Gilded Flicker	Blue Jay	American Kestrel	Fish Crow
28.	American Kestrel	American Crow	Merlin	Common Raven
29.	Peregrine Falcon	Fish Crow	Peregrine Falcon	Tree Swallow
30.	Say’s Phoebe	Common Raven	Black Phoebe	Black-capped Chickadee
31.	Ash-throated Flycatcher	Black-capped Chickadee	Say’s Phoebe	Tufted Titmouse
32.	Brown-crested Flycatcher	Tufted Titmouse	Vermillion Flycatcher	Red-breasted Nuthatch
33.	Western Kingbird	Red-breasted Nuthatch	Ash-throated Flycatcher	White-breasted Nuthatch
34.	Loggerhead Shrike	White-breasted Nuthatch	Warbling Vireo	Brown Creeper
35.	Bell’s Vireo	Brown Creeper	Common Raven	Carolina Wren
36.	Warbling Vireo	House Wren	Northern Rough-winged swallow	Golden-crowned Kinglet
37.	Chihuahuan Raven	Carolina Wren	Purple Martin	Ruby-crowned Kinglet
38.	Common Raven	Golden-crowned Kinglet	Verdin	Hermit Thrush
39.	Purple Martin	Ruby-crowned Kinglet	House Wren	American Robin
40.	Violet-green Swallow	Veery	Cactus Wren	European Starling
41.	Barn Swallow	Wood Thrush	Curve-billed Thrasher	Cedar Waxwing
42.	Verdin	American Robin	Northern Mockingbird	Black and white Warbler
43.	Rock Wren	Gray Catbird	European starling	Northern Parula
44.	House Wren	Northern Mockingbird	Phainopepla	Yellow Warbler
45.	Bewick’s Wren	European Starling	Tennessee Warbler	Palm Warbler
46.	Cactus Wren	Cedar Waxwing	Orange-crowned Warbler	Pine Warbler
47.	American Robin	Northern Waterthrush	Lucy’s Warbler	Yellow-rumped Warbler
48.	Curve-billed Thrasher	Yellow-rumped Warbler	Yellow Warbler	Eastern Towhee
49.	Northern Mockingbird	Black-throated Green Warbler	Yellow-rumped Warbler	American Tree Sparrow
50.	European Starling	Chipping Sparrow	Wilson’s Warbler	Chipping Sparrow
51.	Yellow-rumped Warbler	Field Sparrow	Green-tailed Towhee	Savannah Sparrow
52.	Black-throated Gray Warbler	Song Sparrow	Spotted Towhee	Fox Sparrow
53.	Green-tailed Towhee	White-throated Sparrow	Brewer’s Sparrow	Song Sparrow
54.	Rufous-crowned Sparrow	Dark-eyed Junco	Lark Sparrow	Lincoln’s Sparrow
55.	Canyon Towhee	Northern Cardinal	Savannah Sparrow	White-throated Sparrow
56.	Rufous-winged Sparrow	Red-breasted Grosbeak	Song Sparrow	Dark-eyed Junco
57.	Chipping Sparrow	Red-winged Blackbird	White-crowned Sparrow	Northern Cardinal
58.	Brewer’s Sparrow	Common Grackle	Western Tanager	Red-breasted Grosbeak
59.	Black-chinned Sparrow	Brown-headed Cowbird	Northern Cardinal	Red-winged Blackbird
60.	Lark Sparrow	Baltimore Oriole	Pyrrhuloxia	Common Grackle
61.	Black-throated Sparrow	House Finch	Black-headed Grosbeak	Brown-headed Cowbird
62.	Lark Bunting	Purple Finch	Great-tailed Grackle	House Finch
63.	Lincoln’s Sparrow	Pine Siskin	Brown-headed Cowbird	Purple Finch
64.	White-crowned Sparrow	American Goldfinch	Hooded Oriole	American Goldfinch
65.	Dark-eyed Junco	House Sparrow	Bullock’s Oriole
66.	Western Tanager		House Finch
67.	Northern Cardinal		Pine Siskin
68.	Pyrrhuloxia		Lesser Goldfinch
69.	Black-headed Grosbeak		House Sparrow
70.	Blue Grosbeak
71.	Brewer’s Blackbird
72.	Great-tailed Grackle
73.	Bronzed Cowbird
74.	Brown-headed Cowbird
75.	Hooded Oriole
76.	Bullock’s Oriole
77.	Scott’s Oriole
78.	House Finch
79.	Cassin’s Finch
80.	Pine Siskin
81.	Lesser Goldfinch
82.	Lawrence’s Goldfinch
83.	House Sparrow

As you can see from these lists I have only been here for 3 1/2 months and I have almost caught up to all my other yard lists! I do think I will reach over 100 yard birds here at Mere Point Cottage!

Northern Cardinal in Andover, MA June, 2012

Field Sparrow in Andover, MA 10-19-2010

Tucson Yard 2-11-2013

Mere Point Cottage Yard

 Fox Sparrow at Mere Point Cottage

Savannah Sparrow at Mere Point Cottage

Notes from my Nest-Moving

mourning dove nest building 4-13-13 

I have just ended a five day birding spree with friends from all over. My 2014 Year List has grown from 86 species on January 19^th to 131 species by January 27! I awoke this morning knowing that the end is near. In four more days I will be gone. Though I have delayed this reality as long as possible, it is time to take the feeders down and wash them so they can be packed all together. I want to be able to find them and hang them as soon as I arrive in Maine.

The yard has been fairly quiet lately with the same 8 species returning on a daily basis: Rock Pigeon, Mourning Dove, Anna’s Hummingbird, Gila Woodpecker, Yellow-rumped Warbler, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, and House Sparrow. Sporadically I see Cooper’s Hawk, Costa’s Hummingbirds, Common Raven, Say’s Phoebe, and Verdin. Once in awhile I hear a distant Cactus Wren or a Curve-billed Thrasher. Sometimes I see a Red-tailed Hawk circling overhead, but that is all for now, and I will be gone before it gets exciting once again.

I am trying not to think about what this move means to my life, for I know it will change. The birds and the habitat change are obvious, but the change in relationships is what I am finding hard. I will not have my little grandson running downstairs every morning calling out “meme!” in a joyful voice, arms open wide. I will miss him asking me, “meme, can I help you?” when he sees me baking in the kitchen or filling bird feeders in the backyard. It will be a long time before he snuggles with me in a rocking chair at night while we watch nature shows together. And before long, he will be too old to snuggle.

I will not be here to greet my dear friend, Celeste each time she returns. I will miss Earl Grey tea and bird watching on the patio with her.

I will miss the daily interaction with my son, his sense of humor and his insights about life and people, and the most obvious person I will miss I can barely talk about. What will I do without Chris?

Chris Rohrer in Empire Gulch 9-16-12 

When I first met him 18 months ago I knew he would be a friend, but I could not have predicted this kind of friendship. I try to relate it to another relationship in my own life and all I can compare it to is my birding mentor, Trudy. She not only taught me about the birds, but she taught me about Life and she loved me unconditionally. Wherever I moved in the United States she stayed in contact with me; first through letters, and then through email. When she was in her late 90’s and I started my Sycamore Canyon Blog she was thrilled. She followed my birding escapades with longing and she would write me long and enthusiastic emails encouraging me to get out and see the world as much as I could and while I still could. To her dying day she loved birds and nature and longed to be outside immersed in it all. I tease Chris that one day I will be the old lady birder and he will have to call me and tell me all his birding stories and adventures and as I grow older he will have to come and get me and take me on birding walks and I will always love him.

Kathryn Kelly and I birding Ft. Frederick in Maryland 8-22-12

I know this trip across the country with Gus will be different. We will not be stopping to watch birds like I did with Kathryn 18 months ago. This time it will be all about the weather and trying to beat the storms or drive around them! But once I get to Maine, watch out birds, because Kathie’s Birds is coming and I am going to count you all! I do look forward to living near the ocean. It will be a new life experience for me and I am ready to embrace it and all there is to see.

Links:

• A Bright Beginning
• A Parting of the Ways- Celeste’s Post
• Las Aventuras
• My Backyard
• My Mountain Green
• From Andover to Tucson

Shorebirds in Maine 8-7-2012

Harris’s Sparrow in Tucson

 Harris’s Sparrow in Oklahoma 3-18-2010

It’s been a busy holiday season and Chris and I had not been able to go birding together even though he has time off from work. So, with my guys busy watching football on Sunday Chris and I made arrangements to go birding together that morning. We talked about driving out to Arivaca Cienega since I have not been there since moving back to Tucson, but we changed our minds that morning when we both realized we were too tired to go that far. Instead we opted to drive to Montosa Canyon in the Santa Rita Mountains to see if we could find the Black-capped Gnatcatcher, which would be a Life Bird for both of us.

While the rest of the United States is freezing beneath a blanket of snow, ice and arctic cold, we are enjoying glorious blue skies and soothing warm temperatures that are ranging from the mid 60’s to the low 70’s here! Though there is a bit of a chill in the air as we set out, it isn’t long before the blazing sun is driving the temperature ever higher. As we turn onto Elephant Head Road the sun is almost blinding, but I pull off the road and park the car when we see birds everywhere on both sides of the road. Car after car goes racing by as Chris and I stand there with bins and camera counting rufous-winged sparrows, white-crowned sparrows, lark sparrows, pyrruloxias, 2 red-tailed hawks, and a Gila woodpecker and a black phoebe in the trees over a farm pond. Our 26 minute stop netted us 134 species of birds in that location alone and we are just getting started!

Black-tailed Gnatcatcher 12-29-13 Montosa Canyon

The heavy traffic on Elephant Head Road finally causes us to drive on, but all along the way we continue to count birds. I am pleased when we turn onto Hopkins Road and the traffic diminishes greatly. Now I drive slowly up the mountainside stopping whenever we see birds. We spot a greater roadrunner alongside the road and drive by slowly hoping for a photo op. The bird is on Chris’ side of the car, so he takes the shot. We are seeing and hearing Rufous-winged sparrows and Black-throated sparrows everywhere. With the knowledge that I will be moving back to Maine soon, I look at each bird with a bit of sweet sadness knowing that it may be a very long time before I ever seen them again.

Hooded skunk in Montosa Canyon 12-29-13 by C. Rohrer

When we arrive at the canyon we pull into the observatory parking lot where there is a picnic area and nature trail. there is also a restroom here with flush toilets, a luxury for me when we are out birding in the back of beyond like this. I do not think we will be here long, so I leave my camera in the car and head for the restroom while Chris walks around with his camera in hand to check things out. The restroom is lower than the parking lot and down some steps to the nature trail, so when I come out, Chris is already checking out birds which seem to be everywhere! I quickly join him and we start counting as sparrows and canyon towhees are everywhere! Ruby-crowned kinglets are bouncing in the trees as well as a pair of Bewicks wrens! We hardly know where to look first when suddenly i see a skunk ambling along through the brush. The skunk is now between me and the parking lot where my car and my camera are! I curse myself for not bring it with me because the photography opportunities are everywhere! While we are fairly close to the skunk, it pays us no mind as it scampers into a culvert under the trail and disappears. Chris and I both watch for it to come out the other end but it never does. We continue around the loop trail and come up the other side and back to the parking lot.

Chris got this perfect shot of a rufous-winged sparrows in the loop trail. You can even see the rufous on its upper wing coverts as well as the double-whisker marks which are the field marks of this species. After getting back in the car we continue up the road in search of the Black-capped Gnatcatcher.   About a half-mile up I pull off the road and we get out and start walking. This is the area where the gnatcatchers have been seen before. In fact, according to the info Chris has, someone saw them in this exact location yesterday! But, in stark contrast to the lower nature trail and picnic area, today all is quiet. At first we do not see ANY birds. We walk along a dirt road watching and listening, but all we find are a few hunters or campers picnicking in the mesquite woods.

We emerge back onto the paved road near the Elephant Head trail. We are just starting to see a few birds when a pair of hikers come up the trail with their dog. When the dog sees us it starts to bark. Loudly. There go the birds! The women hesitate and are apologetic. We take it all in good stride and continue on our way. But, all our seeking and searching only yields us a pair of ladder-backed woodpeckers. while we are busy looking at them I hear a strange and loud scream. I know it sounds familiar, but its been awhile. I gaze around, then look overhead to find a pair of Red-tailed hawks flying close together overhead. Chris and I finally decide to cash it in and with our stomachs rumbling we head down the mountain.

It is our plan now to head straight to town and get something to eat! We have not eaten since 8 AM and it is now almost two, but as we are heading down the mountain Chris start to read the latest info from the rare bird alert. he tells me that a Harris's sparrow has been spotted in Tucson near Himmel Park and it was seen just a half hour ago! We have a quick discussion and decide to head for the park. Our tummies can wait! When we arrive we drive around the park to Forgues road where we park on the street. As son as we exit the car we are greeted by another birder who just saw the sparrow 10 minutes ago! It is a short walk to a nearby alley way where some local Tucson Birders are gathered looking for the bird. Mark Stevenson and Molly Pollock are there and have already seen the bird. Andrew Core soon shows up and we spend the next hour and a half looking and searching for it. We know it is nearby, but where will it pop up next! Mark and Molly soon leave as they have already seen the bird. It is Andrew who finally spots in on the corrugated rooftop of a car port! Chris has his camera ready but I am looking through my binoculars. I get a quick look, then raise my camera and the bird ducks down and disappears from view! No picture for me! But Chris kindly lets me use his.

This is the Harris’s sparrow seen by Chris and I and many others near Himmel Park in Tucson on December 29, 2013. It is a first winter sparrows and does not show the dark throat or black and gray feathers seen in my photos of adult breeding birds at the top and bottom of this post. I took those photos in Oklahoma back in 2010 while visiting T.R. Ryan. That was the only other time I have seen this species of sparrow. This bird was hanging out with a mixed flock of House sparrows and White-crowned sparrows. At first glance it could easily be mistaken for one of them, but note the pinkish conical beak and the warm brown cheek of this bird. It is also larger and longer-tailed than either of those species. Still, I am not sure I would have realized what I was looking at if Andrew Core had not seen it first and alerted the rest of us, so Thank You Andrew! This is a First of the Year for my 2013 Year List and a new species for my Arizona Life List but for Chris Rohrer it is a Life Bird! congratulations Chris! What a way to wrap up the year!

Harris’s Sparrow in Oklahoma 2010

Happy New Year Everyone!

Note: Today’s post is a mixture of my photos and Chris Rohrer’s photos. I am hoping to get more of my photos processed and posted soon, hopefully before I move and get out of sync once again!

Morning Notes: The Beginning of December

It’s 6:20 a.m. and the sky is just starting to lighten to a soft shade of gray. A few minutes ago when I stepped out the door I could still see stars shining brilliantly in a clear, dark sky. Though there is a bit of a chill in the air, it still feels soft and welcoming. We have had a few days of high, thin clouds with higher humidity and mild temperatures. I have not had to use neither heat nor air conditioning, but that will soon change as cooler temps are predicted for later in the week with much colder nights. Even here in the desert, winter does come.

I am up early this morning with so much on my mind. Yesterday Chris Rohrer and I went birding at Whitewater Draw in southeast Arizona. It is one of my favorite places to bird, and he and I started our birding year there on January 3^rd. How can it be that it is already December 2, 2013? But it is and before I know it these last few days of 2013 will be gone and a New Year will be upon us. Change is underway and who knows what the New Year will bring.

Yesterday at Whitewater was a soft, gray day. It took us over an hour just to drive the two and a half mile road into Whitewater Draw since we kept stopping to count birds. All along Coffman Road we saw sparrows, doves, a couple of kestrels, a covey of Gambel’s Quail, and surprisingly, a pair of Bendire’s Thrashers! There were so many birds to see out both sides of the car. We would drive a few feet, then stop, then drive somemore. At times Chris would get out of the car, but I stayed inside and scanned the grasses and scrub bushes for more birds. By the time we got to the entrance to Whitewater draw it was almost 10:30 a.m. and we had counted 19 species of birds! But that was just the beginning. By the time we left Whitewater Draw seven hours later we had counted 48 species of birds, with a few yet to be identified. After a full day of birding we ended up with a current trip list of 62 species on our first day of December birding! It will take awhile before I have pictures to show you, but I can tell you it was a fun day. Yesterday’s birding added 8 species to my Cochise County Life List; 13 species to my Cochise County Year List; and 1 species to my Arizona and United States Year List with the addition of a White-throated Sparrow I found in a brush pile near the Owl Roost Area. Note, we did not enter this restricted area but walked the perimeter peering into the willows hoping for an owl. We never found any but we did find the White-throated sparrow along with four Northern Flickers and a family of Pyrrhuloxias!

In the evening the sun briefly slipped from behind the cloud bank and turned the grasses golden. The Sandhill Cranes which had dropped in waves earlier in the day continued to arrive with a loud garrooing. Thousands of them filled the sky and lined the shore of the ponds. The birds that had been grazing in the distant farm fields now lifted off and resettled in the water. You cannot imagine what it looks or sounds like. It is one of those things you just have to be there to experience.

The sun is up and now I can see that we still have a few high, thin clouds, though mostly the sky is a pale blue. While it’s currently 45 degrees F, it is suppose to warm into the 70’s once that sun sails up from behind the Rincon Mountains.  More bird blogging coming soon! Time to count my yard birds!

Happy Monday everyone!

Whitewater Draw January 3, 2013 Post

Note: All photos are cell phone pics I took yesterday while at Whitewater Draw

Notes from my Nest: New Yard Birds and other Backyard Dramas

 Spotted Towhee 10-2-2013

Last month was an interesting month in my back yard with several new species added to my Tucson Yard List. I was surprised to find a Western Towhee when I was leaving my house on October 2nd. It was kicking up the duff underneath a front yard bush. I did not have my camera or bins in hand but it was so close that I clearly saw it. I also quickly went back inside to grab both and re-found the bird in the backyard under the orange tree. The bird was in the shade which made for poor photos. This is the best of the lot.

 Chris Rohrer and I went birding one Saturday morning and when I came home I was surprised to discover this big pile of dirt in the back yard. It had not been there earlier in the day when we sat outside watching birds and drinking coffee on the patio, so whatever creature created this monstrous excavation did it in a very short time!

What lives in here???

I found out a few days later.

It’s a Rock Squirrel!

This creature is very shy and very fast and runs for cover at the slightest sound or motion. I did see it climb the orange tree one day to nibble on a seed cake I had hung for the birds but I have never seen it up there again. I hadn’t seen it for days, then one day I saw it disappear into its den once again.

Black Phoebe 10-10-13

The morning of October 10th was wild, windy and stormy. Heavy gray clouds hung over Tucson and a wild wind blew strong over the town. I went out on my balcony to count the birds and watch the wind and was so surprised to see a trio of Vaux’s Swifts riding the wind currents! A few minutes later a rough-winged swallow flew overhead. Then I heard a new bird call and looked to see a Black Phoebe in my yard! I got three new yard birds in one day! Later in the day I went out to do errands and found White-throated swifts flying over the parking lot at Spouts on Broadway and Pantano as well as at Michael Perry Park where I stopped to count birds on my way home. Later I found another White-throated swift flying over a friends house. Storms are known to blow in all kinds of birds.

These pigeons used to hang out on this roof and catch the morning rays all the time but since the Cooper’s Hawks have been hunting my yard on such a regular basis I rarely see them here anymore, though they are still in the neighborhood. I see Cooper’s hawks so often that I almost never stop to photograph them anymore. One day recently I had two adults and one juvenile in my yard all on the same day!

Cooper’s Hawk in my yard 10-5-13

Cooper’s Hawk in my neighbor’s mesquite tree 11-8-13

But then, on October 30th I was sitting outside on my patio with finches and doves feeding serenely and hummingbirds buzzing around. suddenly there was a bird explosion and I saw a small raptor drop, twist and turn and snatch a finch out of mid air! It landed on the ground not more than six feet behind me, but when it turned and saw me it took its prey and flew up into the same mesquite tree in my neighbor's yard. I managed to sneak back inside and grab my camera and s-l-o-w-l-y open the sliding door. I stepped out cautiously and found the bird in the foliage and was able to snap off a few shots before it got nervous and moved to a different tree. I though sure it was a merlin, but after offloading these photos I am having my doubts.

Though you can see the eye line in this shot, the bird does not look dark enough or compact enough. If you look closely you can see the dead finch hanging down from the branch where the bird has it clutched in its talons.

In this shot I do not see the faint “whisker marks” that are usually seen on a Merlin, plus, this birds legs look long and skinny. Merlins are compact birds with short legs. In the photo below you can also see the white eye lines which is what throws me off, but it seems that juvenile Sharp-shinned hawks can have this eyeline. The vertical stripes on the breast indicate this is a juvenile or a juvenile in transition to adult plumage. Adult Sharp-shins and Cooper’s Hawks have horizontal barring on the breast. If you have any opinions one way or another I would love to hear them!

 

The cooler Autumn temperatures have caused my roses to bloom once again. Their color and beauty are a welcome sight in the back yard!

 

I have been birding, birding and birding. While it’s fun to go out and find the birds, it’s also fun to see new species in my own back yard. On November 6 a couple of Savannah Sparrows stopped by the backyard briefly in the morning. Just two nights ago I couldn’t sleep and was up watching TV around 2 AM. Suddenly over the sound of the TV I heard a pair of Great Horned Owls calling to each other in the night. This is their mating season and they love a full moon. I muted the TV and listened to them call for over 10 minutes. I did grab my bins and try to see them on the rooftop but my the birds were somewhere out front and my view was mostly blocked by the mesquite trees in the front yard. The Yellow-rumped warblers have returned and I see at least one every day and once in awhile I see a kestrel hanging around. But, those darn Cooper’s Hawks render my back yard silent at times and I miss the happy chatter and twitterings of my regular yard birds.

New Yard Birds since the end of September:

• Spotted Towhee 10-2-13
• Western Tanager 10-5-13
• Vaux’s Swift 10-10-13
• Black Phoebe
• Northern Rough-winged Swallow
• Ladder-backed Woodpecker 10-14-13
• Savannah Sparrow 11-6-13
• Great Horned Owl 11-18-13

You can see the complete list of My Tucson Yard Birds in the side bar.

I’m Not Hiding

 1.

I’m not hiding out in a tree…

 2.

Or lost among the rocks…

 3.

I’ve just been in a contemplative mood…

 4.

And lost in the details of Life…

 5.

I’ve also been hanging out with a few friends,

 6.

So don’t squawk! I’ll be back to blogging soon…

7.

‘cause I’m jumping with joy over all the new birds I’ve seen!

Note: All the above pictures were taken on a November 7th visit to Reid Park here in Tucson except for the last shot, which was taken in Madera Canyon while searching for the Red-breasted Sapsucker. I’ve just offloaded over 600 photos and will be cranking out blog posts as fast as I can process the photos and write them! Meanwhile I keep on counting birds while trying to get ready for the holidays! I hope you’ll come back and visit me again! (Below is a list of the birds seen in the above photos.)

1. Black-crowned Night Heron in tree near Reid Park Pond
2. Black-crowned Night Heron in rocks along creek at Reid Park
3. Female American Widgeon in Reid Park Pond
4. Male Mallard napping on shore of Reid Park Pond
5. Female Hooded Merganser with male Ring-necked Duck and domestic ducks in Reid Park Pond
6. Snowy Egret in Reid Park
7. Ruby-crowned Kinglet in Madera Canyon

These Autumn Evenings

 

These Autumn evenings

when the light is soft and low

and birds wait in the trees

for that clarion call, that inner urging

to move on, fly south, fly free…

 

In dark silhouettes they settle in silver water

black capes, long beaks, long legs

at rest for tonight

at rest for now,

yet always inner restlessness

denying them permanent peace.

 

I see the ducks take to the sky,

I hear the rustle of their beating wings,

I feel my own restless heart pulling me onward

to some unknown place I have not been,

or a return to one I have loved before.

These autumn evenings bring restlessness

and sunsets of such wild beauty

to break your heart.

Photos taken at Sweetwater Wetlands in Tucson, AZ on September 17, 2013