July 02: Skye Haas reports from the Arizona Owls & Warblers 2024 tour
The spring 2024 Arizona Owls & Warblers tour was a rolicking grand time through the always beautiful painted rock canyons of southern Arizona. It was a late spring to Arizona and we even discovered a patch of snow in the shaded dells of upper Mount Lemmon! These conditions made for a slightly different mix of species then the previous few years; certain breeders like hummingbirds and flycatchers were a little sparse in their typical haunts, yet northbound migrants were plentiful and there were even a few wintering species not normally still present by this date made for quite a diverse array of species for the trip list totals. We logged in 183 species of birds, with six species of owl, 11 species of hummingbird and 12 species of warbler observed. Highlights were too many to list in full, but some memorable sightings include Montezuma Quail, Lucifer, White-eared and Berylline Hummingbirds, Snowy Plovers, Common Black Hawk, a pair of Elf Owls at the nest, and Crested Caracaras (first ever for this tour!). Highlgihts for all on tour also included some of our easier to find species such as the stunning Red-faced Warbler:
... and the Mexican Chickadee, found easily on this trip in the Chiricahuas.
Our group was excited to find the more rare Berryline Hummingbird...
... and the Elegant Trogon, too!
The Arizona Woodpecker is a specialty, with it's soft brown coloring...
...and the Virginia's Warbler is sometimes difficult to get a good spot on, but we had great looks on this tour!
A Western Screech-Owl relaxing in it's roost is always a sight to see:
Posted: July 02, 2024