Hey Readers!
Early
this last summer, my friend Caleb Strand informed me that the AZFO offered a youth
scholarship to the 2016 State Meeting in Yuma.
Upon confirming that I would be attending the event, I applied for the
scholarship. Soon after I had submitted
my application, AZFO Scholarships Chairperson, Lauren Harter, sent me a
congratulatory email to let me know that I had, indeed, earned the
scholarship! I highly anticipated
meeting the other scholarship recipients who would all be young birders as
myself. I left for Yuma on Friday
immediately after my college classes had concluded for the day. Caleb Strand (who also earned the scholarship)
rode with my family and I. At the Youth
Scholarship Recipient's dinner I finally met Lauren; we spoke briefly about
Nutting's Flycatchers as she knows the species quite well. I also discussed interests,
experiences, and future plans with the other scholarship recipients who were present
that night. I was impressed by their
knowledge.
As a frequent user of both eBird and
the AZ/NM Listserv, I have learned quite a bit about other birders in
Arizona. I had many opportunities to
meet and speak with some of these people (including Troy Corman and Felipe
Guerrero). Some of my favorite memories
of the meeting were those times spent getting to know my fellow Arizona birders. Out of the dozen or so presentations we were
treated to, a few stuck out from the rest.
In the California Condor Recovery presentation, it was fascinating to
see how telemetry was used to create condor 'pathways' for various months. In the presentation on Hummingbird Coloration
and Courtship, the differences between various hummingbird species' courtship
flight patterns and signaling tactics were stunning. Another study of interest was Gray Hawk Expansion in the San Pedro River Valley.
I had never heard of the model that was used to measure the colonization
of new areas by Gray Hawks. This model
suggested that a species uses the best habitat until all territories are full
and that subsequent populations will move into less-optimal habitat over time.
In addition to networking and
learning, I was able to enjoy some excellent birding in a corner of the state
which I had never visited before. At
Mittry Lake, Caleb Strand, Gordon Karre, Jenny MacFarland and I heard the
muffled call of a reclusive Black Rail from the imposing sea of reeds and grasses! Black Rail was a first for me and I never really expected to hear one knowing their secretive nature. At the Yuma East Wetlands, Caleb and I sifted through a sizeable flock
of Yellow-rumped and Orange-crowned Warblers and found a vagrant
Black-and-white Warbler! We birded these
two spots before the first presentation and during lunch break, respectively. In the AZFO room, there was a book sale and
souvenir table. There was also a large
poster board covered with birds for the identification quiz. I enjoyed attempting to determine the
identity of each species on the board.
Another exciting group activity was the audio quiz; different bird
vocalizations were played over the PA system and we had to figure out what
species produced the sound. It was quite
difficult!
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| The dense and expansive habitat of the shadowy Black Rail |
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| A lone Eared Grebe which flew into a canal near Mittry Lake |
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| A view of Mittry Lake |
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| Later in the day at Yuma East Wetlands... who might this be? |
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| Aha! It's a vagrant Black-and-White Warbler! My first. |
At the end of the day - after a
lengthy afternoon break - our special guest speaker (Dr. Osvel Hinojosa Huerte)
arrived at the meeting to share his story with us. Dr. Huerte, a good-natured man who is greatly
concerned for the future of the Colorado River Delta, manages wetland
restoration on behalf of the Mexican conservation agency, Pronatura Noroeste. It was absolutely incredible to
see what he has accomplished.
Essentially, Dr. Huerte reopened stretches of the Colorado River in
Northwest Mexico in order to restore the river and wetlands to their natural
states. I was pleased to learn that his
team has recorded Yellow-billed Cuckoos along these reopened stretches. Dr. Huerte's work appears quite beneficial to
these birds (which are of special concern).
After our special guest's presentation had concluded, several birders
and I shared stories and laughs around a table outside. Although I could have talked all night, I
certainly needed some sleep if I wanted to be fully functional for the next
day...
Just before 5:30 am on Sunday
morning, Caleb and I met our trip leader, AZFO president Kurt Radamaker, at a
predetermined meeting place for our half-day field trip. We and nine other birders departed for the
Salton Sea promptly at 5:30. Caleb and I
rode along with Kurt and Doug Jenness; I truly enjoyed hearing Kurt's many
tales of past birding in the area. Doug,
who served as the AZFO treasurer, was very kind and knowledgeable. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that Doug
and I were both Eagle Scouts and Order of the Arrow members. Arriving at the Sonny Bono National Wildlife
Refuge, we scanned through scores of gulls and shorebirds. I was probably the only birder who got their
lifer Herring Gull that day (yes, it's ok to laugh). A great surprise came in the form of a Lesser
Black-backed Gull which we separated from the similar Western Gull by a variety
of features including the presence of pointed primaries and yellow legs. Although late October isn't the best time of
year for Yellow-footed Gulls, we still managed to locate four individuals
further north along the Salton Sea! As
someone who has very limited experience with gulls, this field trip was an
invaluable learning experience. I learned
some of the finer details of larid identification and also practiced
recognizing rails and Least Bitterns by ear.
The Herring, Lesser Black-backed, and Yellow-footed Gulls were my three
lifers of the day. Other species of
interest included a Neotropic Cormorant, Horned Grebe, and some Snow Geese.
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| A Ladder-backed Woodpecker at Sonny Bono. Sonny Bono is a fantastic place in California to find birds that are more often found in Arizona. |
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| A Black-crowned Night Heron |
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| A Herring Gull; officially my first. |
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| The noticeably long and pointed primaries combined with the yellow legs indicate that this is a Lesser Black-backed Gull |
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| The bird's smaller size when compared to the Great Black-backed Gull along with its dark mantle (back feathers) validate its name. |
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| A small flock of Snow Geese that surprised us as they flew overhead |
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| A nice Western Grebe which wandered within camera range for me! |
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| These small, pink-tinged Common Ground Doves were very nice to see up close. |
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| Our group scanning the Salton Sea |
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| A Western Grebe swims against the current in a narrow outflow channel |
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| Both species of North American pelican in the same frame; my life's work is complete. haha |
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| A nice flyover Cooper's Hawk |
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| A single Neotropic Cormorant flanked by Double-crested Cormorants. To the bird on the right: have you no shame?! |
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| Finally, a decent photo of a Herring Gull! |
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| What's this huge, dark-mantled gull? |
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| These are both Yellow-footed Gulls; a species that is essentially restricted to the Gulf of California and reaches its northernmost range at the Salton Sea. |
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| A plethora of Western Grebes loiter around an outflow channel that is probably attracting a lot of fish. |
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| Ryan O'Donnell photographs a Western Grebe |
As we were headed back to Yuma after
our Sunday field trip, Kurt stopped at the edge of a seemingly barren expanse of
desert dunes and sparse creosote. He
told us that he was in search of a lizard - the Yuman Fringe-toed Lizard to be
exact. As we walked into the desert,
Kurt pointed us towards some tiny tracks which were imprinted along the rippled
surface of the sand and ended abruptly in different areas. Kurt explained that these locations are areas where the lizards have
buried themselves underneath the sand.
After finding a suitable stick, Kurt probed the sand until a small lizard
burst out and furiously ran to the shelter of a creosote. We were ecstatic to have found our target so
quickly! After thoroughly photographing
the reptile and observing its specially-modified hind toes, we watched in awe
as it sprinted across the dune and out of sight.
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| lizard tracks... |
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| A Yuman Fringe-toed Lizard; hard to find unless you know where to look! |
As
my first experience with the Arizona Field Ornithologists, I was impressed by the
level of organization and quality that was upheld throughout the event. In addition to being a time of fellowship and
storytelling, it was also a valuable learning experience for me. The presentations, photo and audio quizzes,
and birding trips were all very memorable and informative. I would like to personally thank Lauren
Harter for extending this scholarship opportunity to me. I would also like to thank Doug Jenness for accompanying us on the field trip and for managing the AZFO's funds so that I
could have a scholarship in the first place.
President Kurt: thank you for driving us around the Salton Sea and for stopping
to find the Yuman Fringe-toed Lizard. It
was quite the experience! Finally, I
would like to thank my good friend Caleb Strand for your undying enthusiasm
throughout the course of this event and for "birding hard" as always!
Godspeed and good birding,
- Joshua
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