BIRDING ARIZONA IN AUGUST:
SUMMER MONSOON AND SPARROWS
2010
Saturday August 7 to Sunday August 15
Guided by Gary Rosenberg
Price: $1800
Short tour to Southeastern Arizona from Saturday to Sunday. August typically cooler and wetter after the onset of summer monsoon season. Tour begins in Tucson. Visits Madera Canyon, Huachuca Mountains. Sonoran Desert, and Chiricahua Mountains. Multiple night stays in Sierra Vista, Portal, and Tucson. Concentrates on breeding birds of the desert Southwest. Excellent for breeding and migrant hummingbirds. Desert-Grassland sparrows breeding, including lots of Cassin’s and Botteri’s. Specialty birds such as Elegant Trogon, Common Black-Hawk, Sulfur-bellied Flycatcher, Black-capped Gnatcatcher, Red-faced Warbler, Painted Redstart, and Varied Bunting. Relaxing hummingbird watching at feeders. Excellent time of year for a Mexican stray. Comfortable accommodations. Staying at Portal Peak Lodge.
Southeastern Arizona is a birdwatchers paradise, and early Augustis a wonderful time of year to visit the desert Southwest. All of the summer residents have bred, so there are numerous young birds about. Plus the summer monsoon season is typically in full swing, which translates to cooler and wetter weather, particularly in the mountains. It also signifies a “second spring” in the desert, with renewed breeding activity, especially among the desert-grassland sparrows. Hummingbird watching is usually very interesting at this season, with southbound migrants augmenting the already rich assortment of species. Early Augustis often an excellent season for rare Mexican hummingbirds, especially White-eared and Berylline Hummingbirds. Our tour is designed to sample the best birding areas, which will include Aravaipa Canyon, Madera Canyon, the Patagonia-Nogales area, the Huachuca Mountains, and the lovely Chiricahua Mountains. The tour begins in Tucson, then travels to Sierra Vista for a three night stay (an excellent location to base ourselves), and then visits the beautiful Chiricahua Mountains with a two-night stay at Portal and Cave Creek Canyon. The really nice aspect of Southeastern Arizona is the diversity of different habitats and elevations, from the rich lowland Sonoran Desert around Tucson, to the lush sycamore-lined canyons in Madera and Cave Creek Canyons, to the cool boreal pine forests at the tops of the “Sky Islands” in the Santa Rita, Huachuca, and Chiricahua Mountains.
Beginning in Tucson, we’ll venture north to the lovely Aravaipa Canyon, where Common Black-Hawks nest, and the Sonoran desert specialties are at their richest. When the day heats up we’ll climb up to the boreal coolness on Mount Lemmon and search for many of the breeding warblers, such as Grace’s, Olive, Red-faced, and Painted Redstarts. The Nogales/Patagonia area has beautiful Riparian habitat that is home to great birds such as Gray and Zone-tailed Hawks, and Topical and Thick-billed Kingbirds. We’ll relax and watch hummingbirds at the famous “Paton’s” feeders where Violet-crowned is regular. Basing ourselves in Sierra Vista for three nights, we’ll have ample time to visit wonderful birding locations in the Huachuca Mountains, such as Garden, Ramsey, and Miller Canyons. Many specialties can be found in these mountains, including the amazing Elegant Trogon, and the very local Buff-breasted Flycatcher. We’ll also bird along the lovely San Pedro River, one of the last intact stretches of lush Riparian lest in the Southwest. The grasslands around Sierra Vista will be alive with Cassin’s, Botteri’s and Grasshopper Sparrows. The tour will conclude with a two night stay at Portal Peak Lodge, at the mouth of beautiful Cave Creek Canyon. Everyone will be enthralled by the Chiricahua Mountains, from the lovely sycamore-lined canyons to the high spruce-fir forest at Rustler Park. We’ll have additional chances for Elegant Trogons here, as well as virtually all of the montane specialties. The tour will conclude back in Tucson.
