Birds of Arizona: Glendale Recharge Ponds – Pt. 2

Note – If you missed part 1 of this story, you can find it here:

Birds of Arizona: Glendale Recharge Ponds – Pt. 1

As we continued our walk and circled around the pond, we came across several Cormorants sunning themselves. I usually associate these birds with shorelines, but they were probably just passing through.

cormorants

closer view of cormorants

As we returned to the parking area where our car was located, this Black Phoebe was sitting on top of a no fishing sign. It didn’t say he couldn’t catch flies!

Black Phoebe

The southern boundary of the recharge pond park, had a nice wide path for walkers and bikers.

walking path near parking area

Having had enough gnats and/or flies, we headed back to our car. We did not anticipate that a good number of the annoying recharge pond denizens would want to hitch a ride with use, but pack into the car they did.

The morning was moving on and the prime bird watching window was closing, so we decided to head to the Tres Rios Base & Meridian Wildlife Area which often attracts a variety of birds. Our GPS led us a bit off course, but we finally made it.

It is located very near the ISM Raceway, South Phoenix.

ISM Raceway, Phoenix

There was no event at the racetrack so parking was wide open. We parked along the side of the road and walked through the gate toward the river inlet.

Tres Rios Sign

While the water was not “raging,” it was moving well. Several people were fishing as we walked along the riverbank looking for birds.

Wide area of the river

We could see movement in the trees and we knew there were birds in the distance, but I am not skilled enough to be able to identify them by song. I would need a relatively good visual sighting to confidently ID a bird.

As we walked under the roadway overpass, we could see the Swallow nests

Swallow nests under the bridge

swallow nests under the bridge

I did spot another Phoebe waiting in the tall, dried grasses.

Phoebe waiting on a reed

Not having much success finding birds to identify, we decided to leave. As we made our way to the parking area, we spotted a Cormorant sunning on a partially submerged log.

Sunning Cormorant

He wasn’t alone long as a “buddy” also thought this would be a good location for sunning.

Second Cormorant heading for the perch

Two Cormorants sitting on the log

What is it they say about “birds of a feather?”

It was an interesting day and we enjoyed finally visiting the areas to see what they had to offer.

The Tres Rios Base & Meridian Wildlife Area hosts a number of events including nature awareness and bird watching opportunities. You can follow the along on their Facebook page to see what the upcoming functions offer.

See previous JBRish posts about birds HERE


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All original content on this blog is copyrighted by Jeffrey B. Ross with ALL Rights Reserved. While reference links back to JBRish.com are appreciated and encouraged, please acquire approval for any reproduction of original content from this website.

©Jeffrey B. Ross – 2018


Hassayampa Preserve Bird Walk – 20180203

It was quite a while since we had a good dose of nature and the warmer than usual winter has given us added impetus to “go outside!” An opportunity presented itself which allowed us to combine two of our interests, bird watching and hiking. As I have explained on these pages before, I am an “occasional birder.” I enjoy birds and bird identification, but I am not ardent. I take it as it comes and it adds enjoyment to my wanderings.

We registered for a guided bird walk at the Hassayampa River Preserve in Wickenburg, AZ. This is riparian zone that has running water all year long; a rarity for the desert. As such, many birds are attracted to this wooded environment. The warmer temperatures have brought featehred visitors that don’t usually come this far south during February.


The inviting ponds at the Hassayampa River Preserve

The inviting ponds at the Hassayampa River Preserve

If you have never done bird watching, then it may be difficult understand the highs and lows of the experience. There will be those in the group who see so many birds while you might be gazing at the leaves and branches and wondering: “What do they see?” or “Where is that bird?”

Below is an example of one of the frustrations. This bird appeared on the top of a nearby Cottonwood tree. It was vey much in view although quite a distance away. Unless an observer knew this bird from previous experience, it would be difficult to identify.


Phainopepla hard to identify from a distance

I had seen this bird several times before so I knew it was a Phainopepla. One distinguishing characteristic is its red eye which, because of the distance and lighting, was not visible. The black tuft on top of the head is also a distinguishing feature. I was able to get my best picture to date of this bird in November. You can see it HERE.

When I attended my first guided bird walk, I was surprised to learn that most birders don’t rely on sightings to identify the bird at first. They identify the call or song and then look for the specific bird. I must admit that this is a skill which mostly eludes me. I do know certain very defined bird calls like the Mourning Dove, Cactus Wren, Curve-billed Thrasher, etc., but all those chip-chip-chips and too-wees just escape my grasp. This is one reason I greatly appreciate having a guide.

The bird in the picture below, for example, was identified as a Ruby-crowned Kinglet. The birds are particularly difficult to identify and even more so to photograph. They jump around incessantly. Although this bird is totally shaded, the guide followed it from several trees and was able to identify it for us. I take her word for it!


Flitting Ruby-crowned singled silhouette

Another photo of the Ruby-crowned Kinglet. The most distinguishing mark of this bird is a red tuft on the top if the head. The angle, lighting and other factors did not capture this marking.


Better view of the Ruby-crowned Kinglet

You can see much better photos of this bird HERE.

There were some birds that were more conveniently situated and thus more easily identifiable such as this Hermit Thrush. The problem here is that the bird has very distinctive spots on its whiteish underbelly, but as you will note, that characteristic was not clearly visible from the back.


Hermit Thrush

The lesser Goldfinches were a bit more cooperative once the morning warmed a bit. They would cling to the thin branches of a nearby bush and pose for a while. The trick here is to take a number of pictures as the autofocus (which I use for birding*) will sometimes choose to focus on a foreground branch and render the bird out-of-focus.


Lesser Goldfinch


Lesser Goldfinch

Black Phoebes often will flit away and then return to the same branch from which they flew so it may be easy to wait a moment while gaining focus on the perch and then snap the shot once the bird returns. The first shot has only the back of the bird, but it later turned sideways for a profile shot.


Black Phoebe


Black Phoebe

The next series is of a Ladder-backed Woodpecker. Woodpeckers, creepers and other similar birds cling to the side of trees and climb upward. They will then fly to a nearby tree and begin to hop while ascending that tree. It appears to me that they know when they are being watched and they scoot to the side of the tree away from the viewer so they can hide. At least it seems that way!

While the pictures are a bit blurry because the bird was madly pecking away, the distinctive markings are visible.


Ladder-backed Woodpecker


Ladder-backed Woodpecker


Ladder-backed Woodpecker

One last sighting before we left revealed three Western Bluebirds sitting on the same branch. They were catching the mid-morning rays of the sun. The blue of their backs does not show that well, but the rufous color of their underside is clearly visible.


Western Bluebirds

 
Additional sightings by me and others, but not photographed:

  • Abert’s Towhee
  • American Coot
  • Brown Creeper
  • Canyon Wren
  • House Finch
  • Lincoln’s Sparrow
  • Plumbeous Vireo
  • Verdin

* NOTE – The only camera I used during this bird walk was my Canon SX50 HS which is a bridge camera with a telephoto zoom lens. Pictures are best at low ISO (200 and below) which limits the aperture and shutter speed. The aim of these photographs was not to capture beautiful pictures of birds, but to take pictures that would enable identification. Of course it would be wonderful to have an excellent photo along the way!

 
See previous JBRish posts about birds HERE


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All original content on this blog is copyrighted by Jeffrey B. Ross with ALL Rights Reserved. While reference links back to JBRish.com are appreciated and encouraged, please acquire approval for any reproduction of original content from this website.

©Jeffrey B. Ross – 2018