The Return To SoCal--The Quest For #400!

    This fall I have been really busy! With me having more school, going camping every other weekend, chores, and a bucket-full of other things I just haven't had much time to blog. In the midst of my fall craziness I found out that my family and I were going to Los Angeles, California to visit my Grandparents! I was shocked that we were going to make a second trip to SoCal in the last few months! Once I surpassed the shock I immediately started thinking of potential lifers, but a problem arose, I had seen almost all of the Southern California specialties! However, the was one that I hadn't seen, and that was the California Gnatcatcher. On top of this being one of the last SoCal specialties that I have not seen, the CAGN was also the only gnatcatcher in the North America that I hadn't seen (North American gnatcatchers include: Black-tailed, Blue-gray, Black-capped, and California).

After the seemingly speedy six hour drive from Buckeye, AZ to Pasadena, CA, we arrived at my grandparents house to find that it was hotter there then it was in Phoenix! Maybe we brought the heat with us? But 90+ degree heat isn't the most pleasing weather to be welcomed by! After keeping an eye out on the local RBA (rare bird alert) I saw that a Canada Warbler was spotted near Long Beach, at West San Gabrial Park along a nice nature trail. However, the park wasn't too far from another crazy-good birding hotspot called Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve. So after running the plan of hitting both of these places by my parents and getting the okay, I found myself at West San Gabrial Park before the sun had even risen! I thought that the Canada Warbler was just hanging out in a few trees in a small area and that it would take me maybe a half hour to locate this bird but I was wrong! It turns out that The CANW was known to cover about a quarter mile stretch of a LONG tree line! A bit overwhelmed at the fact that this bird was gonna take longer to find then I thought, I started birding hard!!! While I was scanning the long stretch of trees a group of birders appeared and we all started scanning the trees. Finally, while I was talking with one of the local birders I noticed a warbler fly into a magnolia tree and once I lifted my binocs to the bird I was pleased to see that it was my lifer Canada Warbler! I then directed the other birders to the bird and for the first fifteen minutes of watching the warbler we had okay but fairly distant views.

Canada Warbler--Life Bird #396

After losing the bird for a few minutes I relocated it down lower in a nearby sycamore tree.

Canada Warbler

Getting to show the group of birders this awesome vagrant was awesome, and I even pointed out where the warbler was to Kimball Garret (one of California's best birders). After San Gabrial we drove over to Bolsa Chica where we birded for a few hours. As soon as we drove up to the parking lot I could see that this birding hotspot was crawling with birds! One of the first birds I saw was my lifer Parasitic Jaeger!

Parasitic Jaeger--Life Bird #397

Forster's Terns were one of the most abundant species of birds I saw at Bolsa Chica.

Forster's Terns

While we continued hiking between the many ponds I spied my third lifer of the day, one of two Reddish Egrets that have been spending the last couple years at this amazing spot.

Reddish Egret--Life Bird #398

As you can see in the photo, this bird was very far! But fortunately REEGs are distinctive at all distances. Even though we weren't at Bolsa Chica at the most bird-active time of day, this place was crawling with birds! Once we reached the area where California Gnatcatchers have been seen before I waited and waited and nothing but a flock of Bushtits came out. On our way back to the car I kept an eye out for the endangered Light-footed Ridgway's Rail, and thanks to awesome directions from fellow bird-hard-blogger, Walker Noe, I got amazing looks at these seemingly trashy birds!

Ridgway's Rail

The Ridgway's Rail is one of my favorite species of bird and to have seen both the Light-footed and Yuma subspecies is awesome! After a very productive day at Bolsa Chica we were on our way to get lunch when I spotted a Reddish Egret fairly close to the highway, so I asked my my to pull over so I could photograph it. Once I walked towards the egret I noticed that there was my fourth lifer of the day, a Red Knot!

Red Knot--Life Bird #399

Life bird #399! One more! After observing my last life bird in the 300s I went on to scanning along the shore and photographed the fallowing species.

Black-bellied Plover (top left) and Ruddy Turnstone (bottom right)

Surf Scoter

Snowy Egret

Reddish Egret

After getting a bite I found a location called the Montobello Hills where people seem to have seen California Gnatcatchers at before. However, once we drove up to where the GPS took us I noticed that the whole area was fenced off and surrounded by houses! I had to think fast, and thinking fast is what I'm good at! I decided that we could hit all of the Cul de sacs that backed up to the hills and I could listen and wait. On about the fourth and last cul de sac that we tried I could see that there was a gap between two houses and I decided that this would be a good place to listen and wait. The pressure was on! Not only was this now the only gnatcatcher of which I hadn't seen in North America but this would probably be my only chance to get life bird #400 during this trip! I started pishing and owl-whistling and I got a Bewick's Wren to start calling but no gnatcatcher. Finally after waiting for about ten minutes I was starting to walk back to the car and call it quits but then a gnatcatcher popped out of a hedge and into the scrub! I then ran back to the car which was only about 40 feet away and grabbed my binocs and camera. Sure enough the bird had a nearly all black under tail with a few white edges on some of the feathers and it had quite a bit of brown in its back!

California Gnatcatcher--Life Bird #400!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

After observing life bird #400 on the fence for a while it started giving its very unique mewing call which I'd say is hands down the most awesome call of the North American gnatcatchers! Eventually the CAGN flew back into the hedge and gave me one more look before disappearing into the rolling hills.

California Gnatcatcher

 This California trip was a huge success especially with the fact that nearly all of my birding was done in half a day! I look forward to my next trip to SoCal, but in the mean time, birding in AZ has been really good so far!

Baseline and Meridian Wildlife Area

The Baseline and Meridian Wildlife Area is one of my favorite places to go when it comes to birding. "Why?" you might ask, well way back when I was a beginning birder I was introduced to this under-birded hotspot at a festival called "The Tres Rios Festival". Now don't let that name fool you, this is not the big Tres Rios site that you need a permit for, the B and M is about five miles west of Tres Rios. When I started birding around this area I was fortunate to be accompanied by Mr. Joe Ford, and we guided people around the marshy riparian area all day. That day I fell in love with this area! From then on I have been doing Important Bird Area (IBA) counts 3-5 times a year at the B and M. Away from IBA counts, I come to this spot anywhere from 12-22 times a year. The B and M has an amazing diversity of bird life. One of the most abundant habitats that the B and M offers is its marsh, which of course attracts large numbers of marsh birds. As a matter of fact, this very spot is one of the very few places in Maricopa County where you can find the endangered Yuma Ridgway's Rail. The marshy habitat also attracts large numbers of Virginia Rails, Soras, and Least Bitterns, it has also had American Bittern a few times! The second best habitat that the B and M offers are its many riparian stands of Fremont Cottonwoods and Goodding's Willows.

 Here is a map on how to get to the B and M from 91st Avenue, as well as another map of the B and M.

Map courtesy of Tommy DeBardeleben and Google

(The green highlighted path shows some of the trails, the car shows where to turn off, and the "P" stands for parking)

Here is one of the maps that I enhanced.

Below I explain what all of the colors are for.

Ridgway's Rail

Out of all of the awesome birds that can be observed at the B and M the most sought after would be the endangered yumanensis (Yuma) Ridgway's Rail. For those who are unfamiliar with the Clapper Rail split, the Clapper Rail was split into three species in 2014: Mangrove Rail which is found in Venezuela and Brazil, the Ridgway's Rail which is found from northern California down along the Colorado River, into a few spots along the Gila River and down along the Pacific Coast into Mexico, and the Clapper Rail who is found throughout the United States from Texas up to New York. The subspecies of Ridgway's Rail that is found in Arizona is the yuma or yumanensis which reaches its furthest west on the Salton Sea and goes as far east as the B and M. There are 2-4 pairs of RIRAs that breed at the B and M every year arriving by late March and staying until late September. The only pair that can be viewed without spending hours out, are seen along the tall bank which on the map is highlighted as a red trail, one must scan the reed-line often to make sure not to overlook any Ridgway's Rails or Virginia Rails, Soras, Least Bitterns, and possibly an American Bittern. All of the other red dots that are shown on the map are places where I have heard or seen RIRA. Using playback for Ridgway's Rail is strictly illegal because the yumanensis subspecies of the Ridgway's Rail is considered endangered. If searching for the RIRA one must have alot of patience, even though the RIRA stay in the reeds or sometimes along the reed-line they can also be seen on dry ground, but they are never far from water. Here is a photo of what I call the "Rail Pond" which is viewed by the tall bank. To listen to the Ridgway's Rail calls click here.

Rail Pond

Make sure to especially keep an eye on the end of the pond (top right part of photo) because the rails seem to favor that end, but they can also be seen on the other end or along the reed-line.

Sora

Virginia Rail

For those who like marshbirds the Sora and Virginia Rail are a little easier to view than the Ridgway's Rail, and they can be seen almost anywhere where there are reeds. The Sora and Virginia Rail are secretive birds that won't come out unless they think there are no threats (in other words people), and it can be pretty hard to dodge the eyes of a bird. So, for the best chance of seeing either of these rails one must be very quiet, patient, and should try not to make any sudden movements. To listen to Sora calls click here, and to listen to Virginia Rail calls click here.  

Least Bittern

The Least Bittern (like the rails) is a marsh dweller. But to add to its difficulty in viewing, the LEBI will not just flush or retreat into the reeds, it will sometimes just stay still until you are within a few feet and then it will flush in front of your face! To avoid such frustration, try scanning all marshy habitat from down to the base of the reeds all the way to the top because these birds can be at any elevation. I have even observed a LEBI climb 30 feet up a willow! To listen to Least Bittern calls click here.

Yellow-billed Cuckoo

Unfortunately I have not been able to see any Yellow-billed Cuckoos at the B and M, but I have been able to hear them a couple times. The Yellow-billed Cuckoo is another breeder at the B and M, with at least 1-2 breeding pairs making the B and M their nesting grounds. The YBCUs is the latest breeding bird to arrive, as they don't start showing up until early June. As shown on the map in white, the YBCU covers a lot of the river but in very low numbers. The best spot to find them is in the large stand of willows that are found just east of the bridge and on the northern half of the riverbed. But they can also be found on the west side of the bridge or I have actually heard them on the south side of the riverbed east of the bridge in the tamarask forest. Yellow-billed Cuckoos are hard to detect unless they are flushed or heard calling, because of their unique feeding techniques of sitting motionless until they find their prey. To listen to Yellow-billed Cuckoo calls click here.

Barn Owl

Great Horned Owl

The Barn and Great Horned Owls at the B and M are usually easy to locate. As shown on the map by purple. Both of these owl species can be found under the northern half of the long Avondale Bridge but they will not always be under the bridge because they will usually leave for the day if disturbed. Both species are known to nest at this spot and they might be harder to locate during the winter months.

Riparian Habitat

The riparian habitat (highlighted in yellow on the map) is well worth checking out at the B and M. All of the riparian areas that I have highlighted have had or I suspect to have good potential for rarities. The riparian stand that goes under and across the bridge on the northern side of the riverbed (known as "The Stand") is one of the best spots at the B and M to find rarities. In the past it has had Winter Wren, White-throated Sparrow, American Redstart, Eastern Phoebe, Orchard Oriole, Northern Parula, and more! Other than rarities The Stand has many birds nesting in it like a pair of Yellow-billed Cuckoos! Checking these riparian areas is always different but they are productive year-round.

Eastern Phoebe

 White-throated Sparrow

More birds that can be found around the B and M

During the Winter months at the B and M keep an eye out for Northern Shoveler, American Wigeon, Gadwall, Cinnamon, Blue-winged, and Green-winged Teals, American White Pelican, Northern Harrier, Cooper's and Sharp-shinned Hawks, Peregrine and Prairie Falcons,Virginia Rail, Sora, Greater Yellowlegs, Spotted Sandpiper, Wilson's Snipe, Belted Kingfisher, Red-naped Sapsucker, Northern Flicker, House and Marsh Wrens, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Orange-crowned, Yellow-rumped, and Black-throated Gray Warblers, Spotted and Green-tailed Towhees, Lincoln's, White-crowned, and Brewer's Sparrows, Dark-eyed Junco, and Western Meadowlark . The more uncommon to rare birds that can be seen in the Winter at the B and M include: Common and Hooded Mergansers, Western Grebe, Brown Pelican, American Bittern, Ring-billed Gull, Eastern Phoebe, Winter Wren, Black-and-white and Chestnut-sided Warblers, American Redstart, Northern Parula, Swamp and White-throated Sparrows, and American and Lawrence's Goldfinches. During the hot Summer months keep an eye out for Ridgway's Rail, Lesser Nighthawk, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Black-chinned Hummingbird, White-winged Dove, Western Kingbird, Cliff Swallow, Lucy's Warbler, Yellow-breasted Chat, Lazuli Bunting, Blue Grosbeak, Summer and Western Tanagers, Brown-headed Cowbird, and Bullock's and Hooded Orioles. In Spring (April-May) and Fall (late August-early October) migration the B and M is an exiting place to go birding because you never know what you might see! Swainson's Hawk, Caspian and Black Terns, Willow Flycatcher, Cassin's Kingbird, Bells, Plumbeous, Cassin's, and Warbling Vireos, Tree, Violet-green, Barn and Bank Swallows, Nashville, MacGillivray's, Yellow, Townsend's Hermit, and Wilson's Warblers, Chipping Sparrow, Black-headed Grosbeak, Indigo Bunting, and Pine Sisken can be seen if one selects the right rout. Birds that tend to stay around the area year-round include: Black-bellied Whistling-Duck, Mallard, Gambel's Quail, Pied-billed Grebe, Neotropic and Double-crested Cormorants, Great Blue and Green Herons, Great and Snowy Egrets, Black-crowned Night-Heron, Least Bittern, White-faced Ibis, Black and Turkey Vultures, Red-tailed Hawk, American Kestrel, American Coot, Common Gallinule, Black-necked Stilt, Killdeer, Rock Pigeon, Eurasian Collared, Mourning, and Common Ground-Doves, Greater Roadrunner, Great Horned and Barn Owls, Anna's and Costa's Hummingbird, Gila and Ladder-back Woodpeckers, Gilded Flicker, Black and Say's Phoebes, Ash-throated Flycatcher, Common Raven, Northern Rough-winged Swallow, Verdin, Black-tailed Gnatcatcher, Crissal Thrasher, Northern Mockingbird, European Starling, Common Yellowthroat, Abert's Towhee, Song Sparrow, Northern Cardinal, Red-winged Blackbird, Great-tailed Grackle, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, and House Sparrow.

During all times of the year make sure to drink lots of water as it is very dry out here in Phoenix Arizona! The Baseline and Meridian Wildlife Area is sadly under-birded and I need your help to give this birding hotspot the attention it deserves. So please bird the B and M and enjoy the awesome wildlife that it provides!

Birding With The Pro's

On July 15th I took a trip out to the Baseline and Meridian Wildlife Area, (also know as the B and M) with my friends Mr. Joe Ford, and Mr. Tommy DeBardeleben. Mr. Tommy was having trouble finding the Ridgway's Rails, as I was having trouble finding the Yellow-billed Cuckoos, so we decided to join forces and try to get them both. Mr. Ford however, had been on an out of state trip while these birds were being reported so he would be satisfied with any rails, bitterns, or cuckoos.We started out on the tall berm where we looked and listened for the clappers but came up empty, we then headed over to the Virginia Rail pond where we quickly found the young rail out in the open. The rail was to far for me to take any photos, so I just observed it through my binocs instead. A couple of Least Bitterns were also around the pond and one of them even gave us close up views!
                                                                        Least Bittern

While we were watching the bitterns Mr. Tommy and I heard the Yellow-billed Cuckoo call from behind us in the the thick forest of tamarisks, but once we walked over to the area where we heard the bird we had nothing notable except for a couple of male Lazuli Buntings.
                                                                      Lazuli Bunting

We then walked over to where the cuckoos used to be, near the north side of the river, but came up empty. But we did see a Lesser Nighthawk, a single Barn Owl, and many Blue Grosbeaks. We tried long and hard for those cuckoos but just could not find them. We then walked back to the Ridgway's Rail pond to look for the rails one more time. We sat down for about five minutes when Mr. Tommy and I both looked down at the same time and spied the rail. Can you find the bird in the following photo?
                                                              "Yuma" Ridgway's Rail

Once Mr. Tommy and I took a couple of shots we ran down to a small clearing in the reeds, but by the time we got down the tall berm and to the clearing Mr. Ford said he saw the bird pass the clearing. Mr. Tommy and I knelt down on the dead reeds where we waited for a good three minutes, we knew the bird should come back out at any time so we waited a bit longer, when we saw the bird come out right in front of us!! The rail was only about 18 feet from where we stood and our nerves took over, but the bird stayed out long enough for us to get a couple of decent shots.
                                                              "Yuma" Ridgway's Rail

All three of us were stoked! After the bird disappeared into the cattails it was a time of high-fives, fist-bumps, and fist-pumps. Thank you Mr. Tommy, and Mr. Ford for the awesome trip and memories, and congrats on getting your "B and M Big Five" Mr. Tommy.