Las Cienegas National Conservation Area - Part I

There are three large (hot) deserts in North America (Sonoran, Chihuahuan, and Mojave). Deserts are defined as areas with less than 10 inches of rainfall per year. There are cold deserts as well, the Great Basin being the largest in North America. Las Cienegas is 45,000 acres where the Sonoran and Chihuahuan Deserts meet. 

Empire Ranch, part of Las Cienegas, began in 1871 with 160 acres and grew to over 180 square miles. It was the site of over 50 films with a wide range of stars like John Wayne, Gregory Peck, Burt Lancaster, and Steve McQueen. It remains a working ranch today as part of Las Cienegas in a cooperative agreement with the US Bureau of Land Management.

Las Cienegas is a diverse wildlife area with a stable population of Pronghorn (often seen), Javelinas, Gray Foxes, Coyotes, White Tailed Deer, and the endangered Black Tailed Prairie Dog among other animals. As far as birding it has a wide range including many of Arizona's sparrows, all four Kingbirds, both Meadowlarks -- and several raptors.  There is also a spring in Empire Gulch which provides water above ground for a hundred yards or more. This creates a diverse riparian area with warblers, grosbeaks, cardinals, tanagers, and other birds.

I'll spend the next few posts sharing photos from Las Cienegas. First, the Pronghorn:

Gorgeous Photo of a Killdeer

After Lake Cochise, I went down to Whitewater Draw wondering what I might find (during its "off-season). The short answer is not much as there was only a small amount of water. But I did find four Javelinas, and a Killdeer. 

Admittedly, I don't usually get excited about Killdeer. (They are NOT a hard find). But, what the hey, I wasn't finding much of anything to photograph. I did get glimpses of a few warblers but they just weren't very sociable that day.

As a Wildlife Photograph you have to make the best of what you have. So, it was Killdeer. I was able to get quite close to the Killdeer by talking with it. When I mentioned how beautiful he was, he spread his wings so I could see the color. Wow! And what a photo. Turns out to be one of my favorites of the year:

Killdeer

Lake Cochise

In addition to the four Herons seen at Lake Cochise (and shared in the last two posts) here are a few other finds:

American Avocet

Black Necked Stilt

Loggerhead Shrike with catch

Western Meadowlark

White Faced Ibis

Yellow Headed Blackbird

Four Heron Day

Lake Cochise in Willcox, Arizona provides respite for waterbirds in search of --- well, water.

In the last post I shared photos of the Little Blue Heron that was at Lake Cochise. But I also found three other herons: the Great Blue, Green, and Black Crowned Night Heron. 

Here then are some of those photos:

Two of Eight Black Crowned Night Herons at Lake Cochise 

An adult BCNH in flight

I just missed getting these four adults and one juvenile standing on the rock.

I've not often seen a heron actually swimming but here is the evidence.

Great Blue Heron

Green Heron atop a willow tree

Little Blue Heron at Lake Cochise, Willcox, Arizona

As a Wildlife Photographer I'm always interested in rare birds that have made an appearance in Southern Arizona. So I check ABA's Birding News for sightings in Arizona on a daily basis.

Two days ago there was a report of a Little Blue Heron at Lake Cochise in Willcox (about an hour and 15 minutes southeast of Tucson). 

The Little Blue Heron is a "coastal" bird primarily along the Gulf of Mexico including the US, Mexico, Central America, and further south to Uruguay. It is also found on both sides of the Gulf of California and south to Peru.

Where did this little guy come from? Hard to say for sure, but most likely the Gulf of California since it is much closer.

Juvenile Little Blues are white and very similar to Snowy Egrets. As such they sometimes "flock" together. The juvenile then turns dark blue as an adult and becomes more solitary.

When wading it is in search of small fish and crustaceans. Along the shore its diet is mainly grasshoppers and other insects. 

My trip was successful as I did find the Little Blue. In fact, it was a "Four Heron Day": Little Blue, Great Blue, Black Crowned Night, and Green Heron. I will show the Little Blue today, with photos of the others next.

Today, the Little Blue Heron

Here he is on a small "island" in the middle of Lake Cochise with some American Avocets and a Black Necked Stilt:

 Here he is along the lakeshore looking for grasshoppers:

And here he is flying back to the other side of the lake: 

Dawn at Sweetwater Wetlands - Part IV

More from Sweetwater Wetlands this week:

Red Winged Blackbird

Red Winged Blackbird

Green Heron

Green Heron

Verdin

Common Yellowthroat

Dawn at Sweetwater Wetlands: Part II - Common Gallinule

Common Gallinules (previously Common Moorhen) are often present but hidden in the Cattails. Usually when seen it is early morning. Such was the case last week: