Birding Sweetwater Wetlands - Part II

Another nice find at Sweetwater Wetlands was a Black Crowned Night Heron. The most reliable place for the BCNH is Lakeside Park on the Eastside of Tucson. Out of the 80 or so times I've been to Sweetwater I've seen a BCNH there less than 5 times, so it was a nice treat. It was very difficult to seen him so I'm guessing many birders missed it. 

Just beyond the BCNH was a Sora out in the open for 20 seconds. Soras are even more secretive so I was happy to see one -- especially at midday.

Black Crowned Night Heron

Sora

Whitewater Draw in Early Morning

Getting an early start at Whitewater Draw can sometimes pick up birds that haven't left for the day yet. Such was the case last week. I arrived at dawn and found 20 or so Yellow Headed Blackbirds which were gone within an hour. I also found several Soras that were feeding in more open areas. An hour later they were back in the weed beds and no longer seen. And there were three Black Bellied Whistling Ducks that left within 15 minutes of my arrival.

Here then some photos from Whitewater Draw:

Anna's Hummingbird

Very poor photo of the three Black Bellied Whistling Ducks

Black Crowned Night Heron

Blue Grosbeak

Cassin's Kingbird

Green Heron

Green Heron

Killdeer

Pied Billed Grebe with little ones

Sora

Swainson's Hawk

Vermillion Flycatcher

Yellow Headed Blackbirds

Birding Patagonia - II

Next up Patagonia Lake:

American Avocet

Black Phoebe

Killdeer

Ladder Backed Woodpecker

McGillivray's Warbler

Sanderling

Sora

The Elusive Sora

The Sora is one of those birds much more often heard than seen. Sometimes frustratingly so. 

Yet, occasionally, one seems not to care if people are around. At the Kingfisher Pond (San Pedro River) last week, one was visible for a few minutes, sometimes on the edge of the weed bed, and sometimes a bit out in the open:

Sora

Sora

Sora

Best Wildlife Photos of 2016: Sora

Soras are one of those secretive birds that are heard but seldom seen. And usually, if seen, not for long. Yet, here again at Sweetwater Wetlands, an opportunity to "sneak-up" on this little girl un-noticed provided several wonderful photos. I love the green water as a background for the bird:

Sora

New Photos: Sora

Yesterday I went to Sweetwater Wetlands to see if I could find the Purple Gallinule that has been there for the past week or so. I arrived around 6:00 am. While I didn't find the Purple Gallinule, I did come across two Soras that were out in the open of a "mostly" hidden pond in the East Settling Basin.

I had to find a spot where I had a clear view as the cattails were very thick. But when I did I got some very nice photos. The first is my favorite.  Kind of looks like a painting.

You can see the difference in the two birds. The one in the second photo is in breeding plumage, while the other photos are of the second bird, not in breeding plumage:

Sweetwater Wetlands, Tucson, Arizona

Finally a swing through Sweetwater Wetlands produced a variety of birds including an assortment of ducks including the less frequently seen ruddy duck pied billed grebes, ladderback and gila woodpeckers, verdins, button's vireos, black phoebe, common yellowthroat, and sora. The last three I have photos of although the yellowthroat and sora didn't turn out as well as I had hoped:

Black Phoebe

Common Yellowthroat

Sora