Arizona Trip ~ February 4, 2008

Since rain showers were predicted for Monday, we decided to drive up to Casa Grande and look for the Northern Jacana that had parked itself at some ponds on the Dave White Municipal Golf Course. This way we'd be close to the car if the weather got really ugly. We drove to the spot and, within minutes, Babe spotted the bird working the edge of the back pond. During the hour or so we were there, it came fairly close to us, allowing me to get several mediocre photos of it in the rainy, overcast weather. It was a 'lifer' for Babe and an 'ABA bird' for me.

Northern Jacana at the Dave White Municipal Golf Course. Note the distinctive yellow and chestnut wing pattern, dark body, and yellow bill.

Northern Jacana at the Dave White Municipal Golf Course. Note the distinctive yellow bill and frontal shield and the extremely long toes.

While there, we saw Pied-billed Grebe, one immature Snow Goose, American Wigeon, Northern Shoveler, Ruddy Duck, Killdeer, American Coot, Belted Kingfisher, Northern (Red-shafted) Flicker, Say's Phoebe, Verdin, Orange-crowned Warbler, and Abert's Towhee. Along the road, we spotted Northern Harrier, American Kestrel, Loggerhead Shrike, Chihuahan Raven, and Great-tailed Grackle.

We left there and made a stop at the Red Rock feedlot on the way back towards Tucson, looking for a Ruddy Ground-Dove for Babe. There had been very few reports of it from this area this year and we were not able to find one while we were there. While looking, we found a few Eurasian Collared-Doves, White-winged Doves, several Inca Doves piled together to stay warm, a Black Phoebe, Horned Larks, dozens of Brewer's, Lark, and White-crowned Sparrows, several hundred Lark Buntings, Red-winged and Brewer's Blackbirds, and several meadowlarks that were most likely Westerns.

Inca Doves at the Red Rock feedlot. These seven doves were all huddled together, apparently to keep warm on this cold and dreary day.

Over 300 Lark Buntings perched on the wires along the road by the Red Rock feedlot. The white wing patches can be easily seen on the bird taking off from the lower wire, just left of center.

White-crowned Sparrow along the road by the Red Rock feedlot. This adult is of the 'gambelii' race. It doesn't have the black line between the eye and the bill like our 'leucophrys' race does that we see here in the East during winter.

We then headed for Madera Canyon where we were surprised to find the upper areas of the canyon had received an inch or two of snow! Thoughts of an insect-eating warbler in the snow made us wonder if the bird had been pushed out or, worse yet, had died from a lack of food. We happily spent the next four nights at the Santa Rita Lodge.

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