From a small town to a big city...
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A Birding Blog
By Jared Conaway
From a small town to a big city...
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I'm baaaaaack! Lightroom is up and running, photos are on their way to being situated, so now it's time for me to work on post after post after post. Pup turned 1 year old yesterday. My Dad and I hiked up Wilson Mountain in Sedona on Dec. 22nd. The majority of habitat consisted of Colorado Pinyon, Oneseed Juniper, Redberry Juniper, and some Alligator Juniper. Towards the peak on the northern slope there was lots of Gambel Oak mixed in with Ponderosa Pine & Douglas Fir. Bird activity was very slow until we were towards the peak. At first many male Anna's Hummingbirds were present, then a few juncos and a kinglet here and there. Juniper Titmice were calling frequently on the way up, Canyon Wrens were giving their loud "zreet" vocalizations from the steep rocky slopes. Once entering the pine stand, a Hairy Woodpecker actively foraged, releasing a loud "peek!" once. Mountain Chickadees were there in numbers, along with a couple Red-breasted, White-breasted, and Pygmy Nuthatches, juncos and Brideled Titmice. There was one OLIVE WARBLER, heard only. OLWA was a lifer on the 19th of November, I will describe it in that post. The view was beautiful, that's for sure. Almost all birds were heard only, so there isn't much to say about them, and the number of species was low. We did see a soaring Bald Eagle, which is interesting to see away from water in Arizona, especially in the mountains. It was refreshing to walk in snow again after almost a year, and I saw my second Tarantula. About half size of the last one. I wanted to hold it, but we had move some logs out of the way to get it in the open, which agitated it. It bared its fangs, so at that point, I backed down. The first time I saw one I did not want to hold it, but Caleb wanted me to, you'll find out if I held it or not in that post. Both of us were exhausted, as the hike was difficult and decently long. However, I was determined to see my 3rd Eurasian Wigeon: There was one found a couple days prior at Poco Diablo Resort, Chavez Crossing. He was in a huge flock of American Wigeons. This resort happened to be in Sedona, 1 minutes away rom where we hiked, on the way back. So I thought, 'what the heck? Convenience.' Both my previous sightings were brief, and without photos. Additionally, outside of Alaska, EUWI is very rare, especially inland. Fortunately we made time for the rare wigeon. At first we were in the wrong area of the resort, but then I checked where it was at a second time to find out it was specifically at Chavez Crossing. So we found that place, and found out it was a golf course. Golf courses can be a problem because- while they usually receive epic birds- golfers can be needlessly harsh, and if you ask me, selfish. Some courses don't allow people who aren't paying customers. So I stayed off the course but worked myself into a good viewing spot. From there I could see that this flock consisted of a lot of wigeons, about 300. So I worriedly thought, 'this could be hard'. I raised my binos, and: There it was, immediately. "Oh wow, uh, that was easy.." I snapped a couple quick pics in case my experience with this neat duck was cut short. I looked past the apartment complex to see there was another viewing point off the course, closer. So I went ahead through the complex to the other side of the park. Again, I found it right away, actively preening while the rest of the wigeons made their distinct rubber-duck calls, splashed, and attacked each other. There was also an aggressive female Mallard that went after them. those ducks aside, here's how my EURASIAN WIGEN photos turned out: Oh, and don't worry: I enjoyed this beautiful waterfowl thoroughly through my binos in between pics. Now here's a question for you: Can you find him in the first pic? It's actually pretty easy. This one's harder. Find him.
That raps up this post, Merry Christmas, Merry CBCs, and God bless all of you guys! Enjoy the last bit of 2018 before it comes to close. I'm hyped for 2019, so much fun in store! Lastly, I promess to get this blog back on track. Stay tuned. #likecommentshareplz.
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So y'all remember that New Mexico/Texas itinerary I announced in my previous post. Well, things have chanced, massively. Instead we are focusing on Texas, birding in NM on the way there & back. Josh has already created a detailed itinerary for it, which is amazing! The 4 sheets of paper represent- for me- about 130 regular-occurring lifers (that's a lot in 10 days!!!), and 375 state birds for all 4 of us. The plan does not include minor vagrants such as Crimson-collared Grosbeak, but does include so many epic birds like: Altamira Oriole, Audubon's Oriole, Yellow-throated, Prothonotary, and Gloden Cheeked Warblers, Brown-headed Nuthatch, Red-cockaded, Golden-fronted, Red-bellied, Red-headed, and Pileated Woodpeckers, White Ibis, Roseate Spoonbill, Yellow-crowned Night-Heron, Barred Owl, Ferruginous Pygmy Owl, Purple Gallinule, White-tipped Dove, Red-billed Pigeon, Clay-colored Thrush, Buff-bellied Hummingbird Black-crested Titmouse, Aplomado Falcon, and so much more! Whoa, I'm hyped.
I really want to post again soon. I just need Lightroom back... Stay tuned for late may! |
About meJared Conaway Month Archives
December 2019
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