SOME INTERESTING VISITORS

Arizona plays host to a number of unusual birds along her southern border. A few species found here are not to be found anywhere else in the United States, and quite a number are not found elsewhere except in a small area in southwestern New Mexico or perhaps in lower Rio Grande Valley, Texas.

Bird people from other sections of the country are just as thrilled at seeing some of these different birds as they are at seeing the Grand Canyon and they travel just as far to see them. In fact if their time was limited they would probably skip the Canyon to see the birds.

Probably the most unusual and one of the rarest is the Coppery-tailed Trogon, with Xantus Becard running a close second. The Trogon is a large bird, a foot long, bright red underneath, with a dark back and head. A few pairs strayed up from Mexico and established themselves in the Huachuca and Santa Rita Mountains. Never were there probably more than four or five pairs in either mountain range and recently they have become very scarce, in spite of the absolute protection the State has tried to give them. Year before last one pair was reported seen in the Santa Ritas and until July 1st of last year none had been seen. Perhaps the dry years have been a factor in the scarcity, for other birds seem to be scarcer than they were ten years ago. But being rare, collectors, particularly egg collectors, are tempted to evade the law. One egg collector from California was caught in 1946 after he had robbed a Trogon's nest; he was fined $100 and the eggs confiscated and given to the University of Arizona Museum. He admitted that he had been here other years and robbed other Trogon nests. People not interested in birds cannot understand why a grown man would want to rob a bird's nest, but for many years there have been people who collected birds eggs just as others collect stamps, signatures, antiques, etc. Even though it has been illegal to collect eggs, the nefarious practice still goes on in a black market fashion and the rarer the bird the more the eggs are sought.

Two years ago Xantus Becards were found nesting twenty miles north of the Border, also having strayed up from Mexico. They are not as striking in color as the Trogon but the male does have a lovely rose-colored throat, and being unusual, bird people are just as interested in seeing it and adding it to their life list. Perhaps their nests will not be so easily disturbed since they build on the end of a branch twenty-five or thirty feet high. The nest is a bulky mass with entrance holes on one side, and one wonders how they get so much material to hang together on such a small branch. The Becards resemble flycatchers because of their large heads. They are six and one half to seven inches long.

It is possible to see more kinds of hummingbirds in Arizona than in any other state, most of them being found in the southern part. Two of them, the Rivoli and the Blue-throated are the largest hummers found in the United States. To see either of these hummers is a thrill, for PHOTOGRAPHING BIRDS Mr. and Mrs. Thornburg of Tucson specialize in bird photography. Such a specialty not only requires a knowledge of photography but also a knowledge of birds. Mrs. Thornburg, who was president of the Tucson Audubon Society last year, writes: “We have been interested in birds for fifteen years, attempting to photograph and record their beauty for others for eight years. Our first bird study was done in Iowa and Colorado; later having more time to devote to this hobby we came to Arizona, the state which most bird people recognize as the last outpost for the study of unusual and little known birds. The work is fascinating, because birds like people have personality, and we get to see their lovely colors and intricate markings at close range. In our bird photography we set the camera close to where the bird will be, and it takes ingenuity to get the bird in that exact spot, then trip the camera with extension release. With regular lens we set within 15 inches to 3 feet depending on size of bird, and with 10 inch telephoto lens at about 5 feet. The pictures in color, with exception of the Trogon, were taken with a Speed Graphic 214x314, which was tripped with a solenoid, battery, tripper cord set-up. The Trogon picture was taken near the nest, 20 feet high in a live oak tree. An A2 Argus was used and it was necessary to build a small platform to hold the camera. Speed for color is usually set at a 50th. We prefer Ansco film because it is faster and gives good color. The black and white pictures were taken with an Argoflex using an auxiliary lens, at various speeds.

Owls are unusual birds of desert areas in the southern part of the state. The Pyrrhuloxia and Cardinal are outstanding in color, and the little Elf Owl, smallest of the owls. On the desert he nests in old woodpecker holes in Saguaros, uses cavities in oaks and sycamores. The Phainopepla is a satiny black bird with a crest, and a red eye. They are often seen along roadsides sitting on wires, or tip of trees and shrubs. They love mistletoe berries and in winter are found where they are abundant. Other seasons they are flycatchers. From central part to southern border of the state one might be fortunate enough to see Varied or Painted Buntings, two other rare, pretty birds.

Two handsome Painted Redstarts Arizona shares or the young birds will be destroyed by the hot sun, or by natural enemies. We never cut branches but fasten them back, to be replaced again.

The Flycatcher family is well represented in Arizona. One, the Sulphur-bellied is not found anywhere else in the United States except the mountains of the southeastern part of this state. The Beardless, a very tiny one, and one much sought by ornithologists, is found only here and in lower Texas. Coues is found in southern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico. A most striking one, the Vermilion, is more widely distributed over southwestern states but Arizona can point him out to easterners with pride for he nests here and some of them spend the winters in warm valleys of the southern part of the state.with southwestern New Mexico and western Texas. We have found the Redstarts very hard to photograph and have wasted much film on them. They are very dark birds, nest in dark canyons as a rule, and are jumpy birds, turning this way and that, almost never still a fraction of a second. In fact no bird photography is easy, but requires infinite patience and time. As a rule birds are unwilling subjects; a few do not object to the lens, are even curious about the camera, but they are the exception. For pictures we prefer to attract the birds with food or water but it isn't always possible to do that, and we must work at the nest. Here, photographers must be careful about cutting branches or otherwise exposing the nest, The top and back of his head, and underparts are the vermilion red his name signifies. The Sulphur-bellied is marked to attract attention too, with yellow underparts, rufous tail and black streakings above and below. They arrive late in spring and are just getting started with brooding by late June or July. Coues is the Spanishspeaking flycatcher who says "José, Maria, José" so he fits well in southern Arizona. Olivaceous, and Buff-breasted flycatchers are looked for by visiting ornithologists in our southern mountains, also.

Hawks that stay near the Mexican border are Zonetailed, Harris, Mexican Black, and Mexican Goshawk. In winter Audubon Caracara have been seen quite fre-quently from Tucson south to the Border. The little Mexi-can Grebe has been seen on ponds near Tucson. Occasionally such rarities as Thick-billed Parrots or a Groove-billed Ani are seen. The parrots have been reported from the Chiricahua Mountains and the lower Santa Ritas.

Three doves found here are new to easterners, the large White-winged and the small Incas and Mexican Ground Doves. Bridled Titmice are found only in the mountains of Arizona and New Mexico. Black Vultures are not uncommon in winter, while Cactus and Bewick Wrens are common. People interested in birds are thrilled by the bird that is scarce or uncommon, in the region where they live, even though it may be abundant else-where. We can remember what a stir would be created similar, just paler. One male in feeding young, brought such large grasshoppers the young had great difficulty swallowing them. Scotts is lemon yellow and black, while Bullocks and Hooded are orange and black.

We have three Tanagers, Western, Hepatic and Coopers. Western has an orange-red head, yellow and black body. Coopers is a vivid red, and Hepatic duller red. They are usually quite easily attracted down to food and certainly are handsome visitors to have around.

Since we have such an array of spectacular birds we should give them proper protection. Bird people know that Arizona is the last frontier of unusual birds and that means that some come not just to see or photograph them, but many come to take back dead birds for their collection when a Bewick Wren, or a Mockingbird, was reported in the part of the Midwest where we once lived; bird people would drive for miles just to see them, and add them to their list.

Two warblers of our southern mountains that visitors want to see are the Olive and Red-faced. An unusual Sparrow is the Black-chinned. We have three Orioles, Bullock, Hooded and Scotts. Orioles weave their nests, usually fastening them to branches of trees, but Scotts prefer to hang theirs in yuccas, fastening them under the horizontal blades. In two pairs we watched nesting, it was hard to tell the female from the male, for her markings were very Variations. And there are too many budding young ornitholo-gists in the nation for Arizona to be able to supply their wants. We who are interested should work for inviolate refuges in the Santa Rita, Huachuca and Chiricahua Mountains at least, to be enjoyed now and in the future. The dry years may take their toll, and man makes it even worse by piping the water from its source for his own use. Even photographers will have to adopt a code of ethics, to not cut branches or unnecessarily expose any nest if we are to keep these birds to enjoy, and to share our enjoyment of them with the many visitors to our state.