Ash Canyon - December 9 & 16, 2025

 Another batch of the "oldies, but goodies".  No wonder some of our regular "watchers" are taking birding tours to places like Ecuador and Costa Rica.  


Acorn Woodpecker (F)

 
Chipping Sparrow

Bridled Titmouse

White-winged Dove

White-crowned Sparrow

Mexican Jay

House Finch (M)

Inca Doves

Lesser Goldfinch (F)

Lesser Goldfinch (M)

Yellow-rumped Warbler

Ladder-backed Woodpecker (M)

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Ash Canyon - June 17, 2025

Image
 When I arrived , there were already three cars in the parking area, so I knew this would be a more social day than last visit.  Not long after getting there, a woman approached me and said there was a Diamondback Rattlesnake near the water feature along the main path.  I went with her to check it out while she told me the snake had crawled under her bench on his way to the rocky water feature.  She was alerted by numerous birds gathering around the area and chirping like crazy.  The woman said she is from Denver, but grew up in Tucson, pointing out she had never seen snakes in Tucson, but sees them frequently in Colorado.  Our snake was partially hidden, so these are the best photos I could get. Western Diamondback Western Diamondback      As far as the birds go, it was pretty much the same group we've been seeing the past few weeks. Brown-headed Cowbird (M) House Finch (M) House Finch (F) Anna's (F) Bullock's Oriole (M) Bullock's Oriole (J)...
Read more

Ash Canyon - July 16, 2025

Image
 Back in Ash Canyon, it was obvious that the number of hummingbirds is on the rise.  More than just the overall numbers, the number of species is growing.  I'm hopeful that even more species will show up before the summer is over.  Monsoon rains have started and the desert is green from all the water.  I think we've had at least six good rains so far this month, with no significant flooding. The Lucifer Hummingbird is primarily a Mexican resident, but a few sneak over the border to visit SE Arizona, SW New Mexico and West Texas.  It's one of the birds that attracts birders from all over the US to this region, and Ash Canyon is probably the most reliable place to see them. Lucifer (M) Sacred Datura Anna's (M) Brown-headed Cowbird (M) House Finch (F) House Finch (M) Inca Dove Broad-billed (M) Lesser Goldfinch (M) Lesser Goldfinch (F Anna's (F) Curve-billed Thrasher Black-headed Grosbeak (M) Black-headed Grosbeak (F) Black-headed Grosbeak (J) Gila Woodpecker (...
Read more

Box Canyon & Madera Canyon - June 26, 2025

Image
 Seeking a change of scenery and a different selection of birds, I set off to visit Madera Canyon.  The 1.5 hour drive goes through Box Canyon, a beautiful gorge with  a winding and unpaved road.  This little-visited canyon is home to the rare Five-striped Sparrow, which I've never seen, as well as several uncommon birds.  However, on this day, there was minimal bird activity and I photographed only a Red-tailed Hawk. Red-tailed Hawk   Madera Canyon has always been good to me, with a variety of birds that don't appear, or not often, on our side of the mountains.  On past visits, I've gotten photos of Rivoli's Hummingbirds, Beryline Hummingbirds, Hepatic Tanagers, Arizona Woodpeckers, and others.  All of those birds were here today, but stayed far away, or in the trees, or in the shade.  Bottom line, I didn't get acceptable photos of any of those cool birds.  I had to remind myself that birding is like golf: It's the bad days that make yo...
Read more