Flycatchers: Part I

Continuing with the series from my new book on Birds of the Western United States, we come to the Flycatchers.

First up the Ash-throated, Brown-crested, and Dusky-capped Flycatchers. These three flycatchers are very similar in plumage and they overlap in terms of range and habitat. This can make identifying them a bit tricky when all you get is a "glance." 

The Ash-throated has the widest range extending from west Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, California,   Utah, Nevada, and Oregon. It is larger than the Dusky-capped, but slightly smaller than the Brown-crested.  It is a little paler in color than the other two:

Ash-throated Flycatcher

The Brown-crested is the darkest of the three, but it's most distinguishing characteristic is its larger bill. It's range is the southern most tip of Texas and souther Arizona:

Brown-crested Flycatcher

 The Dusky-capped is the smallest of the three with a finer bill and brighter yellow in the belly and flanks. It also has the narrowest range of the three, only to be found in southeast Arizona:

Dusky-capped Flycatcher

More from Huachuca Canyon

Here are a few more photos from Huachuca Canyon:

Dusky Capped Flycatcher

Dusky Flycatcher

Painted Redstart

Wild Turkey

 I did stop by the Gift Shop at San Pedro National Conservation Area and picked up a couple photos there as well:

Western Screech Owl

Blue Grosbeak

Huachuca Canyon Birding: Part II

And lots of Flycatchers in the Canyon as well:

Dusky Capped Flycatcher

Western Wood Pewee

Birding Madera Canyon

Wednesday and Friday of this past week I got a chance to bird Madera Canyon. Wasn't the best time of day 11:00 am to 2:00 pm. Both days I started at the Whitehouse Picnic area and hiked up the trail to the Amphitheatre (about a mile each way).

Nothing unusual, but some nice photos:

Bridled Titmouse

Dusky Capped Flycatchder

Hepatic Tanager

Plumbeous Vireo

Acorn Woodpecker

Arizona Woodpecker

Black Throated Gray Warbler

Mexican Jay

Western Wood Pewee

White Tailed Deer

Florida Canyon, Arizona

A quick trip yesterday to Flor --- ee -- da Canyon in the Santa Rita Mountains got me a little excited. I went because there had been reports of  Rufous Capped Warblers. These would have been a wonderful find. Like some of the small flycatchers, many of the warblers have very similar plumage and can only be correctly identified by their song. However the Rufous Capped Warbler is unmistakable. This is a rare visitor to the US with only occasional sightings along the Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico borders with Mexico.

It reminded me of the movie The Big Year (2011) which is about birders and birding. I could just see Owen Wilson hearing about the Rufous Capped Warbler and immediately dropping whatever he was doing, drive to the Minneapolis Airport, taking the next available plane to Tucson, renting a Jeep, driving to Florida Canyon, getting out of his Jeep, finding the Rufous Capped Warbler before reaching the trailhead, taking a photo, jumping back in the Jeep, driving back to the Tucson Airport, taking the first flight back to Minneapolis, driving to his office, and updating his bird finding list   --- all in the course of two hours. But, as any birder would tell you, IT'S JUST NOT THAT EASY!!!!!!!!!!! The Tucson Audubon Rare Bird list comes out weekly. There are other birding lists that are updated daily, but often a sighting is at least a day or two old -- maybe a week old. And usually they don't tell you precisely where the bird was sighted, or what time of day it was sighted. And, even if it did, birds often don't hang out in precisely the same spot every day all day long. They often move around and often move up canyon as the day gets warmer.

So, it wasn't the first time I went out looking for a specific bird and not finding it. Reminds me of another quote from the movie Zero Effect:  "When you go looking for something specific, your chances of finding it are very bad. Because of all the things in the world, you're only looking for one of them. When you go looking for anything at all, your chances of finding it are very good. Because of all the things in the world, you're sure to find some of them."

So, I didn't come home without any photo.  Here are a few photos from Florida Canyon:

Dusky Capped Flycatcher

Gray Flycatcher

Arizona Thristle

Ladderback Woodpecker

Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge - IV

Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge has three components. The largest is right along the Mexican/US border where the Visitor's Center is. This is the grassland I mentioned in Friday, Saturday, and Monday's posts. It's Pronghorn and Deer country with a wide variety of raptors usually present.

But there are two other sections of BANWR that shouldn't go unnoticed. One is along Arivaca Creek just West of the town of Arivaca. Just east of the town of Arivaca is Arivaca Cienega (also part of BANWR).

These two areas are the better birding spots. Here are a few photos of Arivaca Cienega:

Horned Lark

Vermillion Flycatcher

Dusky Capped Flycatcher

Thick Billed Kingbird

Western Kingbird