Twitching for Black-throated Green Warbler in Pasadena

“Are you going to try for the Black-throated Green?” my fellow sapsucker-searcher asked. I had seen the reports, but hadn’t thought it would be possible, so hadn’t made note of the specifics. However, the day was still young, so why not?

The Black-throated Green Warbler, that breeds from the central plains east, should be south of the border at this time of year. A year ago I was observing them in Costa Rica. It must have strayed north in the prior week’s storm that streamed into California from Mexico.

“I don’t know where the location in Pasadena is,” I replied.

He whipped out his iPhone where he had programmed the location into its GPS. After looking at it, it seemed easy enough to find – so off I went. He was going to tarry at Veteran’s Park awhile longer and hope to see the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker.

The Panda Inn where the bird had been seen turned out to be an upscale northern Chinese restaurant, not a motel. I parked in the back and started hunting for warbler habitat. Out front another birder was peering into one of the large trees along the street.

“All I’ve seen are kinglets, yellow-rumps and Townsend’s,” he reported, “but it is quiet for the moment.”

Before long the other birder arrived, and the three of us strained our necks following movement in the trees. We must have provided quite a spectacle. As people approached the restaurant’s door, they stopped to find out what was so intriguing. Each conversation went something like this:

“What are you looking at?”
“A bird,” one of us would answer.
“What kind of a bird?” they would respond as they gazed into the green leaves not seeing anything.
“A little one.”
“Why are you looking here?”
“It’s not supposed to be here.”
“Why?”

It sounded like a conversation with my three-year old grand-daughter. They then shook their heads and walked on.

“We need to come up with a more creative answer,” I laughed.

A waiter walked out. “Is it here today? There have been bird watchers out here every day for a week.” He explained that it was a restaurant patron – a birder – who first spotted it. “Let me know if you see it,” he asked as he returned to the restaurant.

“My neck will ache tomorrow,” the San Pedro birder commented.

“Just consider it a warm-up for spring migration,” I responded. We were following flashes of yellow, straining to follow the flitting movements to determine whether it had the yellow face of a Black-throated Green or the black mask of a Townsend’s, the clear distinguishing difference between the two species. All three we spotted had black masks.

“I almost called the police. You looked suspicious,” a patron said as he was leaving. “When we mentioned it to our waiter, he explained.”

My legs were aching after standing on the sidewalk for an hour and I wished I had taken time to use the restroom at Veteran’s Park. It would be just my luck to leave and have it appear. I had missed birds before from taking a potty break.

At 2:00 the two of us who had some distance to drive called it quits. The Pasadena birder stayed on.

When the L.A. Rare Bird Report came out two days later, it stated that the stray warbler had not been reported since January 31. We had looked for it on February 2, so it must have gotten enough sustenance to head south where it belonged.

Even though the bird never appeared, the twitch was an interesting experience.

Sapsuckers at Veterans Park – Los Angeles

Red-breasted Sapsucker – the word caught my eye as I started checking L.A. County Birds sightings reports a week before I left for California. It continued to be seen at Veteran’s Park, in the NE corner of San Fernando Valley, an easy drive from Encino where I would be visiting. The Red-breasted Sapsucker was one of the birds on my Southern California wish list. It was being seen with a Yellow-bellied and a Williamson’s Sapsucker. It was the Williamson’s that L.A. county birders were most excited about. While I see the Williamson’s regularly in the mountains of New Mexico, the Red-breasted would be new for me. Strictly a coastal species, it migrates from the mountain ranges of Washington, Oregon and California to the lowlands during the winter.

The night before I set out for Veteran’s Park, one of the sighting’s reports provided directions for locating the sapsuckers within the park: “It is frequently seen at the sap wells on the 4th pine tree from lamp post #20.” Another report talked about “walking briskly up a hill.”

Once in the park, I followed the road to a parking area where I saw walkers ambling down a slight hill. The lamp post at the beginning of the path was #40. It seemed like it would be a long walk to reach #20. When I arrived at the next pole, it was #39, so figured I must be walking in the right direction. I heard tapping at the edge of a nearby ravine – a Hairy Woodpecker. The lam posts and path seemed to end at #32 – hmmm. I noticed another path and more lamp posts below, so headed down the grassy hill – and found myself right at lam post #20!

There were two species of pines. Were the sapsuckers in the long-needle pines along the path or in the shorter-needle pines clustered between the path and the playground? I checked out the ones bordering the path and found a small set of sap wells, but no sapsuckers.

While I was waiting for their return, I wandered over to the edge of the park where a California Towhee was working the edges of a ticket and a Ruby-crowned Kinglet buzzed in the bushes. A tsick-a-dee-dee call alerted me to an Oak Titmouse – always fun to see. An Allen’s Hummingbird was performing U-shaped display flights between two small trees.

When I turned back towards the pine trees, I noticed another birder and walked over to confer with him. He thought perhaps we should check out the other pins, since the bark resembled what he remembered from a friend’s photo of one of the sapsuckers. He had driven from San Pedro to see them.

We searched the trees, but no sign of sapsuckers. As he walked back to the path, a male Williamson’s flew in and then worked its way around the back. When I circled the tree, the Yellow-bellied landed on the trunk. I caught the San Pedro birder’s attention and beckoned him over. He arrived in time to watch the Williamson’s fly to a nearby tree, light briefly in plain view, and then zoom off again. The Yellow-bellied had disappeared.

“Now you need to find the Red-breasted for me,” I laughed.

Red-breasted Sapsucker

We heard a steady drilling noise in a clump of pines a short distance away, so walked in that direction. All of a sudden, I caught a glimpse of a bobbing red head, half-hidden behind some lower limbs.

I took a couple of steps closer and checked it through by bins. Its bright red head and breast were amazing. I kept inching closer. It continued to drill and seemed unperturbed by our presence and by the clicking of our cameras.

As I walked along the path to the parking lot, Western Bluebirds danced on and off the trees and Oregon Juncos, Yellow-rumped Warblers and a few Chipping Sparrows scrounged in the grass. Lesser Goldfinches bleated from the tops of some bare branches.

It had been a wonderful morning of birding – and ABA life bird #496.

White-tailed Kite Bird of the Day at Bosque del Apache

While a bank of dark clouds hugged the horizon west of Albuquerque, the weather report had promised a snow-free day for the Central New Mexico Audubon Thursday Birder trip to the Bosque del Apache. The sky kept getting clearer as we headed south; however, as we approached the hill over-looking the Socorro-valley, it was hidden under a cloud. After a stop to refresh and pick up others who were joining us, we headed towards the refuge in a fine mist of snow.

Our caravan spent an hour wandering the back roads of San Antonio, where the snow was short-lived. Our first sightings were of White-crowned Sparrows and Western Bluebirds.

“We need to check this field for possible Horned Larks or pipits,” I told those in my car. As if they heard us, a flock of Horned Larks swirled up – and a little further on were several meadowlarks.

On the western edge of San Antonio we paused by a house with several feeders. American Goldfinches clung to the tube feeder, while other birds foraged below it. Some of the cars ahead of ours saw Pine Siskins in addition to the goldfinches.

“A Phainopepla,” Sarah announced to those in our car. I had seen it fly across the road. Unfortunately, it had moved on before the other two in our car could spot it.

“Yellow-headed blackbirds in the flock,” came the message over the two-way radio. Several fields were covered with feeding blackbirds. I kept scanning the flocks, but couldn’t spot any yellow heads until one group rose up and flew to another part of the field. As they streaked past my binoculars, I could catch several yellow heads.

Back on NM-1, we stopped at a stock pond where Sonja, riding with trip leader Sei Tokuda, had seen a Common Golden-eye the prior weekend. There were several Mallards, a Gadwall and a Lesser Scaup, but we didn’t spot the golden-eye.

Just as we crossed the refuge boundary, Cindy reported a group of Western Scrub Jays perched on a bush alongside the road.

We stopped to peruse the seasonal ponds along the highway and spotted the first Northern Harrier – of the eight we would see – making sorties over the field just beyond one of the ponds. There was a preponderance of Northern Shovelers and Pintail in the wetlands.

“I like to call the pintails ‘butler birds,” Sarah told us. “They look so prim and proper, just like butlers.”

On the far side of the 2nd seasonal pond was an American Eagle sitting on the branch of a cottonwood. We would see two more eagles during the day, one of them a juvenile.

Further down the road, a flock of Mountain Bluebirds flew into a small tree on the left. Although the snow had stopped, the sky was still so gray, it was difficult to catch their brilliant color.

The lead cars signaled that a flock of Eastern Bluebirds were in a tree almost to the Visitor Center. By time our car, which was bringing up the rear of the caravan, arrived, a Red-tailed Hawk had flown into the next tree and the bluebirds had disappeared. We spotted a total of eight Red-tailed Hawks during the day, including a dark morph.

One of the large trees near the Visitor Center was filled with American Goldfinches and another tree was laden with blackbirds.

A female American Kestrel was perched on top of a sign along the highway. Before long it was doing its helicopter hover nearby.

A covey of Gambel Quail scurried across the parking area as we were getting ready to head out to the tour route.

“Neotropical Cormorant,” the lead car alerted. It had its head tucked under its wing. Trolling nearby was a Canvasback. Its head was under the water and I could only glimpse a snatch of its red head. Its light gray back feathers made it look like a slow-floating turtle.

Two Greater Roadrunners seemed frozen in the weeds next to the road – their feathers fluffed out. We couldn’t figure out what caused them to act that way until we spotted a Cooper’s Hawk waiting patiently in the tree above them. As soon as I took a photo of the one next to my car and drove on, they both ducked into the weeds and disappeared from sight. Marge, who will be moving to Florida soon, was delighted to get good looks at the roadrunners.

“Yellow-legs,” called out Rebecca over the radio. Its yellow legs glistened as it foraged in the shallow water along the Marsh Loop.

Common Mergansers – 16 of them – and a few Ruddy Ducks – were resting in the Boardwalk Pond. On the far side of the boardwalk, a Great Blue Heron stood in its watchful pose.

As we drove along the Farm Loop, we could hear Song Sparrows and Yellow-rumped Warbler. I caught sight of the warbler when it popped up on the limb of a bush near our car. Killdeer flew into a small spit along the edge of the wetlands.

Sandhill Crane

The seasonal wetlands off the Coyote Deck were swarming with activity. Several Sandhill Cranes pranced through the water close by. Two of them called loudly and then approached to each other. “Pair bonding,” Donna explained.

“Rebecca, can you get your scope on one of the American Wigeons?” Sei asked. One of the group had never seen them before. Six of them were swimming lazily a short distance out.

“Just a minute and I will,” Rebecca replied. I am scanning for Ross’s Geese. A few minutes later, she reported that she had found one and refocused her scope.

A Sharp-shinned Hawk winged its way across the end of the farm loop as the final three cars rounded the bend.

“I think I see turkeys walking in the trees beyond the fields,” Sarah reported. I got out my scope – there were 12 Wild Turkeys!

“That is the first time I have seen them here,” Jeane said.

Near the trail to the Norton Blind was a tree full of Mountain Bluebirds. Their iridescent blue really popped in the mid afternoon sun that had peeked through.

Loggerhead Shrike

A Loggerhead Shrike was perched just past the Flight Deck. I tried to back up slowly; however, it flew across the road, landing first on a swig and finally on a sign, giving me the perfect photo opportunity – even through the passenger car window.

White-tailed Kite - Photo by Rebecca Purvis

Since it was mid afternoon, we didn’t stop at the Flight Deck and instead headed south on NM-1 to the spot where Sonja had spotted the White-tailed Kite a few days earlier. As we gathered at the edge of the road, Sonja gave a blow-by-blow of the kite’s flight to help those who had not yet spotted it. It was careening and diving over the fields on the far side of the irrigation ditch, while two Northern Harriers were engaging in the same flight pattern just below the cliff. Even though it was some distance away, Rebecca got a photo of it. We agreed that the kite was the Bird of the Day.

We gathered back at the Visitor Center to go over the list. We had seen 73 species for the day.

As we drove back to Albuquerque and the rain, we all agreed the weather had been our favor and it had been a wonderful day of birding.

Bald Eagles along the Rio Grande in Albuquerque

“Is that a Raven?” Jeane asked as we were heading towards the river at the Shining River Open Space trailhead. I had been delayed because of an appointment and we were hoping to catch up with the Thursday Birders. It looked like an eagle wing-beat to me, but it went behind a barrier and seemed to disappear.

Dark-eyed Juncos kept popping up along the trail. When we reached the river, all we could see were Mallards. As I looked down river, I could spy a single Common Merganser.

“Let’s head south and get beyond the island. It often is a good place to find waterfowl,” I suggested.

There was no opening to get to the edge of the river for over a mile. As we stood on the water’s edge, a Spotted Towhee was working the underbrush. In addition to Mallards, Canada Geese also rested in the shallow water beyond the island, but nothing else of interest.

Crows were calling excitedly.

There’s a large raptor in the tree just beyond us,” I alerted Jeane. “It’s a juvenile eagle and there’s a parent perched next to it.” The eagle looked like a first year juvenile. I inched closer hoping to get a vantage point that was not obstructed by branches so I could take a photo. I held my breath as I gingerly took a step at a time. It was the closest I had ever come to a perched Bald Eagle! It was so magnificent.

It must have sensed my presence, even though it was looking out over the water. It silently glided out over the water, the juvenile following a short distance behind.

Porcupine

As I turned around I spotted what looked like a large ball of mistletoe in the top of a cottonwood. “Look,” I said. “There is a porcupine right above where we were standing when we were looking out over the river.” It was nestled in a tangle of branches, making it difficult to get a good picture.

“I can just barely see its nose,” I commented as I checked it out from another angle. “I am going to go up on the levee trail and see if I can get a better view.”

Great Blue Heron

We headed back towards the car along the drainage ditch. At one point we spotted a Great Blue Heron perched on the limb of a tree across the ditch.

As we walked along, we saw Northern Flicker, Yellow-rumped Warbler and Song and White-crowned Sparrows. A small flock of Sandhill Cranes called as they flew overhead.

We never did catch up with the Thursday Birders; however, it was a delightful morning to explore along the Rio Grande.

Intrepid Birders at Coronado State Park

The cold grabbed us as we eased ourselves out of our warm cars at Coronado State Park. Eight intrepid birders braced the mid-20’s temperature – which was probably colder with the wind chill – the Central New Mexico Audubon Thursday Birder’s trip.

“There’s a Canyon Towhee posted on the top of the fence post next to the entrance,” someone pointed with their thickly-gloved hand. The towhee flew off, and then two more paused there and then joined the leader.

Candada Geese on Rio Grande River

As we headed along the trail on the bluff over-looking the river, waves of Canada Geese flew in and landed on the water – flocks of nine, then 37 and finally 75. They seemed unperturbed by the cold water as they clustered in groups.

American Robins glided in and perched in the bare branches on a cottonwood – fourteen of them. They hop-scotched up river from tree to tree.

An American Wigeon arrived on the river and appeared to be floating backwards in the current. “Oh, and there’s a Ring-necked Duck,” trip leader Rebecca signaled. “I will get it in the scope.”

“And, I saw a Mallard,” reported Robert, who had drive through the snow from Cedar Crest to join us.

From time to time pairs of American Crows flapped across our path.

A small group of Dark-eyed Juncos, most appearing to be females of the Oregon race, flitted in the branches of a tree below the bluff.

Bald Eagle

After about an hour we turned back towards the Visitor Center. As we scanned the river one last time, we spotted our ‘bird of the day’ – a Bald Eagle sitting majestically in the top of some cottonwood branches across from the bend in the river.

As we approached the Visitor Center, we spotted two White-crowned Sparrows. There were more in the piñon pines near the center’s feeder. Lesser Goldfinches called as they indulged on the thistle sock.

“I’m not going to stand out in the cold and go over the list,” Rebecca stated as she scurried towards her car. “We saw 11 species.”

Top Wildlife Highlights of 2009

To continue the tradition started last year – the following are my 10 top wildlife highlights of 2009 – listed chronologically.

1. Watching a Golden Eagle at close range as it sat on the top of a power pole across the road from where we were parked.

2. It was hard to choose which of the birds and mammals in Costa Rica were most memorable. I decided the bird had to be the Resplendent Quetzal because of its brilliant colors, and the White-faced Capuchin Monkey takes top mammal billing.

Cactus Wren - Embudo Canyon

3. Cactus Wrens in the Sandia foothills – spring nest-building and fall roost nest-building.

4. Watching the flocks of White Pelicans circle over the Bosque del Apache NWR during spring migration.

5. Watching Painted Buntings with their multi-colored, iridescent plumage visit the feeders at Los Maples State Park in the Texas Hill Country.

6. Having two Clapper Rails copulate right below me as I walked along the boardwalk on South Padre Island, Texas at dusk.

7. A Scott’s Oriole that landed on a bush near where I was exploring the Copper Trailhead Open Space doing research for the book.

Rufous Hummingbird

8. The Rufous Hummingbird that set up a migration territory in my yard for a week in September.

9. Avocets and Black-necked Stilts in the Los Angeles River.

10. Evening Grosbeaks – at a feeder in the Jemez Mountains, feeding young at Capulin Spring and a flock gorging on berries observed on the Christmas Bird Count.

Lots of Unusual Sightings on the Sandia Christmas Bird Count

The breast of the Red-tailed Hawk stood out in the early morning sun as it perched atop a pinion pine on the bluff above the road. It was the first bird for our segment of the Sandia Christmas Bird Count.

While it was clear and sunny, the temperature as we started the count hovered around 15 degrees. I was glad that we could do most of our route from the car and kept thinking about those who were trekking the foothills.

“Bluebirds,” Bonnie called from the back seat. We were driving slowly along the frontage road near the Zuzax exit off of I-40. The cobalt blue of the Western Bluebirds flashed as they flew from bush to bush. We also picked up our first Robin, a Northern Flicker and several House Finches.

As we headed up Gutierrez Canyon, Rebecca stopped the car along side a juniper. “I hear a titmouse,” she said. And, then a Juniper Titmouse popped into view – the first of 16 we would see during the seven and a half hours. A little further on, we spotted a Townsend’s Solitaire and our first Hairy Woodpecker.

“There’s a raptor on the power pole behind us,” Laura called through the two-way radio from the car behind us. It was a Cooper’s Hawk.

The white tail feathers of Dark-eyed Juncos flashed as a small flock flushed from the bushes and flew to another shrub. Most these were the Oregon race. Juncos were everywhere along our route and we would end up counting 250 of them during the day – Gray-headed and Pink-sided, in addition to the majority of Oregons.

As we started north from I-40 on Magic Valley Road, Rebecca pulled the car over on the shoulder. “There’s a Merlin on the top of that power pole,” she reported. She hopped out of the car to get a better look. When it flew off, she was able to see the baring on the tail. It was the only Merlin seen during the count.

Mountain Bluebird

The terrain in this part of the route was flatter. In the grassy areas of a new development we spotted our first Mountain Bluebirds. We would end up counting 77 of them during the day.

Western Scrub Jays and Northern (red-shafted) Flickers seemed to be everywhere. Our count of 26 Northern Flickers was triple the number seen the past few years.

Evening Grosbseak

As we headed through a rural neighborhood, we stopped and got out to check out a flock of birds in a New Mexico olive tree. At first we thought they were Cedar Waxwings. “I think I see white wing patches,” Rebecca commented. We inched closer – Evening Grosbeaks were feasting on the tiny berries.

“I counted fifteen,” Amber stated, as I tried to capture a picture of one of them.

By time we had finished our route about 3:30, we added American Kestrel, Canyon Towhee, American Crow, Common Raven and European Starling.

The teams began drifting into Dion’s for the compilation party around 5:00. Most of the 40 participants made it.

“There were very few birds on our route along the Sandia Crest Highway,” Marcus commented. “However, there were tons of people sledding – even under signs prohibiting it. We did get a Pygmy Nuthatch for the count when we hiked into Cienega Canyon, but we didn’t get the Pine Grosbeak at the 10 K trailhead.”

When everyone gathered, Rebecca started reading down the list of species so everyone could share. “We had a Bald Eagle,” Roger reported. “I saw it from the trail at the top of Embudito Canyon just before dark. It was a mature adult, so there was no question about ID.”

Andrew Rominger’s group was excited to report their Northern Goshawk sighting in Cedar Crest.

Hal Wagnon’s group spotted the only Greater Roadrunner for the day while walking in Bear Canyon.

Dustin Huntington had a Western Screech Owl on his property in Tablazon, and Raymond Van Buskirk, Robert Munro and Bill Talbot got both Northern Saw-whet and Great-horned Owls on their trek to the mountains at 4:30 a.m.

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker was spotted in Tijeras by Raymond’s group, and Lannois and her crew got the Red-naped Sapsucker and Pinyon Jay

Nick Pederson’s group spotted the only Black-chinned Sparrow in the foothills.

While Randy Floyd and Elaine Edmond saw all three species of Rosy Finch, they were unsuccessful in locating the American Three-toed Woodpecker or Red Crossbills when they snow-shoed along the trails at the Crest.

As we munched our pizza we all were exuberant about our sightings for the day and 67 species for the count.

“See you next December 26,” Rebecca called as we departed.

Sage Sparrows and Crissal Thrasher at Rinconada Canyon

Dry grasses flanked the trail into Rinconada Canyon as 10 Central New Mexico Audubon Thursday Birders started onto the trail in the Petroglyph’s National Monument. The Rinconada Canyon Trail, on the south end of the national monument, traverses sand dunes, and winds through an eroded canyon at the edge of a basaltic lava flow originating from five extinct volcanoes.

Two American Ravens cruised above us.

“Our target bird is the Sage Sparrow.” trip leader Rebecca told us before we started out.

This is the only sure location for finding these wintering sparrows in Albuquerque.

“Look for them on the ground under bushes,” Rebecca advised.

“They often will pop up on top of a bush to check things out,” I stated. “But they appear only momentarily.”

there is quite a bit of bird activity along the tumbled rocks of the basalt outcropping. Today, we walked quite a ways before we heard and then spotted our first bird: a Canyon Towhee. It would pop into view and then drop down behind a rock and was fun to watch.

A little further on someone noticed a Rock Wren who obligingly sat on top of a large boulder for quite a while. “Definitely a Rock Wren,” Rebecca pronounced. “Watch how it bobs.”

It looked like a raven in flight.

A large flock of House Finches flushed from several four-wing salt bushes, and nearby we spotted a petroglyph of a bird.

The trail looped back, was further from the rocks and the area was more open.

“There’s a bird,” Marge called. It was foraging on the ground between some bushes.

“It’s a Crissal Thrasher,” I stated. “See the rusty under-tail coverts.”

We beckoned the rest to turn around and join us. Finally it cooperated and hopped up on top of a bush.

“Look at its nice long tail,” Sally stated.

A little further on, we spotted another one on the other side of the trail.

We were almost back before we encountered some Sage Sparrows. It was Larry, who was hurrying back to the parking lot, who spotted them and then waited for us to catch up with him and point them out before he went on his way.

True to form, two of them were foraging under some sand sage and we had a hard time catching a glimpse. With patience we all had a chance to see them when they came out into a clearing. Finally one popped up.

“It’s cleaning its beak,” Abby exclaimed.

Nearby we heard a Bewick’s Wren.

As we approached the trailhead, Donna noticed a Say’s Phoebe hovering. It would fly in place like a helicopter, and then darted down to capture an insect.

After a slow start, we were delighted that we saw both the Crissal Thrasher and the Sage Sparrow.

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker at Cedro Peak Campground

“Look,” someone called, “there’s a Juniper Titmouse in that tree over there.” It posed momentarily with its jaunty crested head cocked to one side. An American Robin perched on a wire over the arroyo and seemed to be talking to us. In addition to the titmouse and robin, we also spotted Western Bluebirds,White-breasted Nuthatch, Northern Flicker, Dark-eyed Juncos and a House Finch.

Twenty Central New Mexico Audubon Thursday Birders had gathered at the Sandia District Ranger Station in Tijeras before carpooling to Sabino Canyon, one of Bernalillo County’s Open Spaces on the east side of the Manzanita Mountains.

We wound our way on several forest roads to reach the parking area of the 116 acre Open Space. We crossed the road and headed up the trail. It was a clear and crisp morning, and no wind – yet. Our first bird was a Townsend’s Solitaire. We would see several on our walk.

Both a Gray-headed and Oregon sub-species of Dark-eyed Junco foraged in the grass. “Notice how they walk around in the grass and then jump up to get seeds,” trip leader Karen pointed out. “The Gray-headed are year-round residents that nest in this area; however, the Oregon only is a winter resident.

As we started further up the trail, those in the back were fortunate to see a Cassin’s Finch.

At the crest of the hill, a number of abandoned buildings dotted the landscape. Rebecca had researched the history of the area and reported to us before we started out that the area was originally farmed for pinto beans and potatoes until the late 1800s. In the 1920’s the property was sold and converted into a fur farm – first silver foxes and later mink and then rabbits. The farm was abandoned in the late 1930’s.

There was a dilapidated caretaker’s cottage and several different types of animal pens scattered about.

We walked for a ways along a trail that eventually leads to Cedro Peak where we observed numerous Western Blue Birds, as well as a couple of Mountain Bluebirds. In addition to Scrub Jays we had seen walking up the trail, there were several Steller’s Jays.

“There are not many birds here,” Karen reported, “since there is no reliable water source.”

“When I came up here on a horse trail ride, the ride’s sponsors had to cart in water for the horses,” Donna shared.

Our next stop was the Cedro Peak Group Campground. It was closed for the season, so we birded from the area just outside the gate. Primarily we had the same assortment of birds we had seen at the Open Space – only more of them: Townsend’s Solitaire, juncos, robins, Western Bluebirds, and Stellar Jay.

Our attention was drawn to a strange call. When we investigated, we discovered a sapsucker ‘mewing’ as it drilled holes in an elm tree. It clearly was an adult male.

And then it flew off. We began to notice how many of the elm trees had the symmetrical sap holes that encircled the trunks.

And then it was back. This time it stayed long enough for a definitive ID. We consulted a couple of different field guides and began clicking off field markings to determine whether it was a Red-naped or Yellow-bellied Sapsucker.

“The black line goes all the way around its nape,” Rebecca commented.

“There is none on the nape,” Dave noted.

Pat, visiting from Vermont, told us the mewing call was what she heard from Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers in the east.

Sei pulled out his iPod and played the calls of both the Red-naped and Yellow-bellied. That clinched it. Only the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker made the mewing call. It is an occasional visitor in the Manzanitas during fall migration. It was a life bird for me!

We proclaimed the sapsucker as the Bird of the Day.

Warm and Golden at Bosque del Apache

Luis Lopez chile fields

We stopped to peer at a flock of wild turkeys wandering through one of the farms along the Farm-to-Market Road between Socorro and San Antonio. Most of the 25 Central New Mexico Audubon Thursday Birders had drive straight to the Visitors Center at the Bosque del Apache; however, my car and one other decided to take the “scenic route” through Luis Lopez – and we were not disappointed.

Beyond the turkeys was a Loggerhead Shrike. A Greater Roadrunner pranced along a berm. Further along flocks of Western Bluebirds flew off from their perch on a power line as we approached. Beyond them three Sandhill Cranes foraged serenely. Pine Siskins gorged themselves on dry sunflower seed-heads, while a Red-tailed Hawk sat majestically on the top of a snag across the road. Say’s Phoebes and American Kestrels patrolled the fields.

We were stunned when we approached a field full of red jalapeno-sized peppers.

When we joined the others at the Visitors Center, they were focused on the trees just off the viewing porch. I later learned that several had seen a White-throated Sparrow foraging with the White-crowned Sparrows.

We headed into the refuge and started exploring the two-way road between the Marsh and Farm Loops. It was a beautiful fall day and warm enough that we didn’t need a jacket. Everywhere we looked were the shimmering gold leaves of the cottonwood trees. In fact, it was warm enough that a few mosquitoes had come out of hibernation and an occasional yellow jacket buzzed uncomfortably close.

We saw the first of many Northern Harriers coursing over the marsh. Two Great Egrets stood in frozen watch on the edges, while Mallards, American Wigeons, Gadwalls, American Coots and Buffleheads swam lazily.

“There are some gulls in the middle of the waterfowl,” someone said. After studying them, we determined they were Bonaparte’s Gulls – eight of them.

“There is a large raptor down at the end of the service road,” someone alerted us. All the scopes focused on it. A Golden Eagle – enjoying a mid-morning meal.

A Marsh Wren called from the underbrush.

We ate lunch on the Eagle Scout Deck while we watched the Snow Geese, waterfowl and Sandhill Cranes just below. A few of the cranes flew in closer offering us a better look.

Immature Bald Eagle

Our next stop was the Marsh Deck, where we gazed at an Immature Bald Eagle perched mid-pond on a bare snag.

“Probably a 2nd year,” Rebecca offered, referring to her identification guidelines for eagles at each step of maturity.

Northernn Pintails, Northern Shovelers, Green-winged Teal, and more Buffleheads and Gadwalls occupied the pond below the eagle.

“I hear a flicker,” Sondra stated.

We next stopped at a break in the foliage to check out some grebes – Westerns.

Further along, we walked out onto the Boardwalk. Red-winged Blackbirds were silhouetted against the dry cattails. Painted Turtles basked in the sun.

The group got a better view of the grebes.

Ross's Geese

Just beyond the bend, we stopped at one of the seasonal ponds crowded with light geese.

“Definitely, Ross’s Geese,” trip leader Sei told us. They definitely were smaller and lacked the black lips. A few gray juveniles and blue morphed adults were part of the flock.

Two Ring-billed Gulls swam nearby and three Cattle Egrets were in the tall grass just beyond.

This year’s tour route followed the alternative route that is more in open country. Just before the road rejoined the regular route, we stopped to search for pipits in some freshly plowed fields. The area was just beginning to fill with water and there were both Killdeer and American Pipits.

“Ring-necked Pheasant,” Lou signaled through the two-way radio a little further along.

There was not much activity along the Farm Loop. A couple of Sandhill Cranes tiptoed across the edge of an irrigation ditch. Northern Flickers flashed their red feather shafts as they flew between the trees.

The cranes at the north end of the farm loop foraged way out, while a flock of mule deer grazed nearby.

We gathered on the Flight Deck in mid-afternoon where hundreds of dabblers were feeding – all with their heads under water. We went over the list for the day and were delighted that 75 species had been seen.