Sweetwater Wetlands and Christopher Columbus Lake

I had a late start yesterday, so didn't arrive at Sweetwater Wetlands until 11:00 -- or more importantly until it was 104 degrees. The consequence was a very quiet visit. I did see a Green Heron fly in a weed bed and a Belted Kingfisher heading somewhere cooler. Probably my best photos were a Savannah Sparrow and a couple of Mexican Mallards:

Savannah Sparrow

Mexican Mallard

Juvenile Green Heron

 I didn't fare any better at Christopher Columbus Lake. The few birds there were stayed pretty much deep inside the trees where they were foraging. The best there was this Yellow Rumped Warbler:

Yellow Rumped Warbler

Dabbling Ducks

A "Dabbling Duck" is a shallow water duck that feeds primarily along the surface of the water or by tipping headfirst into the water to graze on aquatic plants and vegetation. These ducks are infrequent divers and are usually found in small ponds, rivers and other shallow waterways. Dabbling ducks also forage on land for seeds and insects. Physically, they have flat, broad bills and float high on the water while swimming and they tend to be very vocal birds. Some of these Dabbling Ducks seem to "dabble" more often than not. The Northern Shoveler for example is usually got his head under water so you only see his tail. In terms of distribution, the Fulvous Whistling Duck is only found in the southernmost parts of Arizona, Texas, Louisiana, and Florida. The Mexican Mallard is only found in Southern Arizona, New Mexico, and Mexico. The Eurasion Wigeon is only found in the northern Pacific. The Cinnamon Teal is only found in the Western United States. All others (Mallard, Gadwall, Northern Pintail, American Wigeon, Northern Shoveler, Blue Winged Teal, and Green Winged Teal are found throughout North America.

American Wigeon

photo taken at Harriett Lake, Oregon

Eurasion Wigeon

photo taken at Union Bay, Washington

Blue Winged Teal

photo taken at Mercer Slough

Cinnamon Teal

photo taken at Sweetwater Wetlands, Arizona

Green Winged Teal

photo taken at Padilla Bay, Washington

Mallard Duck

photo taken at Mercer Slough, Washington

Mexican Mallard

photo taken at San Pedro River, Arizona

Fulvous Whistling Duck

photo taken at San Pedro River, Arizona

Gadwall

photo taken at Union Bay, Washington

Northern Pintail

photo taken at Davis Lake, Oregon

Northern Shoveler

photo taken at Sweetwater Wetlands, Arizona

San Pedro - Part II

I visited several birding spots yesterday: San Pedro, Miller Canyon, Ramsey Canyon, and Garden Canyon (in Fort Huachuca). Yesterday, I showed you three birds from San Pedro. Here are three more: First, Cassin's Kingbird. Unlike its' cousin the Western Kingbird which occupies the entire western US, the Cassin's is restricted to Arizona and New Mexico. It is slightly larger and darker than the Western. The second photo is a Mexican Mallard. The Mexican Mallard is also only found in Arizona and New Mexico (in the US). It has a olive drab bill as opposed to the orange bill of its cousin. You can also see that its' breast is spotted. The third photo is a Yellow Rumped Warbler. This is the adult female with its' breeding plumage. Tomorrow I'll show you so results from Garden Canyon.