ARIZONA'S WINTER BIRD VISITORS

One day each year, in the last week of December, members of the National Audubon Society count the birds of the nation. In 1967 twenty-six observers from the Maricopa Audubon Society counted 100 species with a grand total of 62,000 birds. This was a sampling in a circular area fifteen miles in diameter, which was broken into six sections. At least four observers were assigned to each section and the count continued through the daylight hours. In the evening the counters assembled to compile the figures for the day and compare the count with at least the previous years total. This identical area has been covered in a like manner for fifteen years. Christmas Bird counts have been made the past few years in the following areas: Ajo Mountains, Flagstaff, Atasco Highlands (near Ruby), Nogales, Organ Pipe Cactus Nat'l. Mon., Patagonia (to include the refuge), Pipe Springs National Monument, Petrified Forest National Park, Rincon Mountains, Tucson Mountains, Tucson Valley, and Yuma. For each count, observers in cars and on foot cover a fifteen mile circle during the daylight hours of a single day. These samplings give a glimpse of the number of birds that may be seen in Arizona in winter. Warm valleys are numerous across the southern half of Arizona, starting with the Safford Valley, San Simon, and the Sulphur Springs Valley on the east, all the way across to the lower Colorado on the west. Some have been developed by irrigation and industry and have large centers of population and others like Canelo Valley, east of Patagonia to the Huachuca Mountains, have become cattle ranches. We mention specific places because there we have experienced contacts with the birds. Our winter bird visitors have found other warm valleys in Arizona so there remains plenty of area for the visitor or resident to explore and report.

When we started to write about winter birds we were uncertain if we meant the calendar winter, terminated by the spring equinox, or winter as our human friends define it: the period between leaving their homes in cold country, after Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner with their families, and returning when the weather warms up. We have let the birds decide for us and have used the period between the start of the main bird movement south, early in October, to the reverse movement when birds start north late in March or early April.

March 17, 1955, we made a trip on the lower Colorado River where we saw thousands of tree swallows gathering for their trip north. We were with an experienced Government Refuge Manager and at our exclamations about the numbers he remarked that we were probably seeing most of the tree swallow population of the United States west of the Rockies. The white-crowned sparrows have fascinated us with the prompt arrival of the first ones a few days before or after October Ist each year. Carlos Stannard, who banded birds in this area for many years, found they arrived in waves and the same individuals appeared with the same wave each succeeding year. These waves build up to large flocks found feeding on weed seeds on the desert and along fences in the irrigated areas. They also offer a good example of plumage change. When they arrive, the young birds hatched that season, can be identified by their brown and buffy crowns. The adult birds have black and white crowns. As the season progresses the head feathers of the young change and by spring migration time they have reached adulthood and their head pattern is black and white like their parents.

Another change in plumage occurs with the Audubon's warbler which arrives as a rather plain, gray bird. The amount of wear a bird's feathers must take is revealed during the winter. As the gray gray tips of the feathers wear off, five bright yellow spots gradually appear on flanks, throat, crown, and rump, while the breast and face darken materially. A paradox as he wears his clothes down they become more beautiful. The Audubon's warblers come in great numbers and spread out over the warm country. Their trait of gathering insects as flycatchers and their distinctive chirps make them more easily spotted than other warblers.

Our first encounter with the winter change of plumage was in 1922, very early in our experience with birds, and the literature on Arizona birds was very meager. We lived in Tucson and the desert was closer to the University than it is now. Large flocks of birds came to our yard and as we fed them, more and more came. They were in such numbers that as they pecked at the food it sounded like rain. They had the most mottled, non-descript appearance of any bird we had seen. The lightcolored, conical bill was the only stable mark. We asked people

NOTES FOR BIRD LOVERS BY HARRY L. AND RUTH CROCKETT

The Crocketts have been valued contributors to ARIZONA HIGHWAYS since 1939. Their technique in bird photography has been to find a location where the birds come to drink, eat, or to feed their young and set up a camera on such a situation, pre-focused. When the bird occupies that spot the shutter is tripped with a solenoid from some distance. This entails a lot of watching and a lot of patience. The color photos with this article were made with a 31/4 x 41/4 Speed Graphic SANTA RITA MOUNTAINS The southern half of Arizona is broken up by mountain ranges which make many valleys. In this picture we are looking across the Santa Cruz Valley, site of the early Spanish and American civilization in Arizona, to a colorful range.

CACTUS WREN This bird consumes great quantities of insects which they gather by poking into cracks, crevices and under the edges of objects. This gives them a reputation of curiosity but it is a seek and search process.

CACTUS WREN NEST They construct covered nests of small sticks, and grasses. These are lined or padded with material at hand. If they are near cotton fields they use cotton. Where sheep have been run they use wool which has caught on barbed wire or thorns. These nests, constructed in groups of three or four are used as winter shelters. Should you be in the desert the day after the first severe cold night, you might see them adding to the lining. A cactus nest is a work of art.

FORMAL PORTRAIT OF A CACTUS WREN - The State Bird of Arizona is the largest member of the wren family. Its song does not seem musical but rather a chuckle. It has a slight wren bob.

VERDIN - A dressed up bush tit. They work over plants, even the flowers, for insects. The voice is strong and seems too great for such a small, petite bird.

RED-BREASTED NUTHATCH A winter visitor in our valleys where they delight the birder with their walking over the trunks and branches of trees, even up-side down.

MEXICAN JAYS They are found in the canyons along our border with Mexico and in a few oak areas farther north. They are lighter colored than the other jays, but just as noisy.

ABERT'S TOWHEE - This bird gains a living by scratching, turning over leaves and sticks to find insects. They seldom fly to change location, but run from place to place. They are residents and are about all year.

COLLIE'S MAGPIE-JAY - This is the only bird of this species to be reported in Arizona. It appeared at Douglas and was fed by families at the smelter. It expected a mate and built a nest that was never used. The National Audubon Society held their convention in Tucson during its time of residence in Arizona and many bird people saw it. It was found after Christmas with a pellet in its body.

AUDUBON'S WARBLER - Audubons are winter visitors, arriving in great numbers in mid-October and leaving mid-March. They come at the end of their feather moult and are a rather uniform blue-gray. Through the winter the wear on the feathers reveals five yellow spots. When the bird leaves in the spring it is beautiful.

WINTER FLOCK OF ROBINS In the warm agricultural valleys of Arizona, the robins reverse the order of their arrival and we say "When the robins come in winter." When the food situation is right, we have literally thousands of them eating china berries, nuts of the Washingtonia palm and pyracantha berries.

YELLOW-HEADED BLACKBIRDS Gather in great numbers at the end of the day in such a tree as this. As dark approaches, they drop down into a hedge or bush to roost for the night.

INCA DOVES - Small doves with an edging on their feathers which gives a scaled appearance. They are residents, pairing off in spring and summer. In fall and winter they gather in flocks. They seem to like people and are found about our yards.

CURVED-BILL THRASHER - A resident, with us the whole year. With a great bill and an aggressive nature it assumes first place in the order of eating.

with a Kodak Ektar 127mm lens and a 4 x 5 Linhof View camera with a bellows draw of 17". Lens used is a Schneider Symmar 210mm. The Crocketts have a series of colored 1 6mm movies they call "Arizona Birds," which they show at schools, Audubon Societies and to other interested groups. The movies are made with a Bolex equipped with a turret of lenses of 1x4x6x, which allows the operator to stay with his camera. All cameras are tripod mounted when in use.

MOCKINGBIRD A resident over warm Arizona. Best known for its fine song. They are mimics and may pick up mechanical sounds or phrases from other birds' songs.

WHITE-CROWNED SPARROWS They gain much food from the ground in the form of weed seeds. These four were probably making their last feeding before starting on their migration north.

IMMATURE WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW When the winter flocks start arriving about the first of October we note that some have buff and brown in the crest instead of black and white. They are the birds hatched that summer. During the winter they mature and the brown and buff turn to black and white.

SONOITA CREEK A desert stream flowing the year around. Many consider this the finest stand of cottonwoods and willows in the state. Many species of birds are present. The Tucson Audubon Society has watched over it for years as a sanctuary. In 1966 it was necessary to get the Nature Conservancy to purchase 309 acres which is called The Patagonia Sonoita Creek Sanctuary near Patagonia.

BROAD-BILLED HUMMINGBIRD - A rare visitor in the winter, appearing in January where the flowers bloom in a sheltered place or a garden.

BLACK-CHINNED HUMMINGBIRD The common breeding hummingbird in summer. A few birds are present as early as January, especially around homes with many flowers.

COSTA'S HUMMINGBIRD ON NEST - This picture looks out of place but we find incubating Costa's early in February every year. The Costa's is the desert hummingbird and is seldom seen in the irrigated areas.

GILA WOODPECKER MALE Besides grubs and larvae which is their natural food, they are very fond of pyracantha berries. The pyracantha, a favorite ornamental planted by home owners in our warm valleys, is attractive to many birds.

SCREECH OWL - This individual took over a nest the Gila woodpecker had dug in this saguaro. It faced the morning sun and the little owl was often seen sleeping in the opening.

HOUSE FINCH A resident in the warm areas of the state and found higher in the summer. A cheery group of birds remaining as a colony around our homes or on the remote desert.

GILA WOODPECKER FEMALE Digging into the trunks and limbs of trees is important to woodpeckers to gain a living and to make nests. This shows the heavy chisel bill, the feet as an anchor, and the tail as a prop, while digging.

CARDINAL FEMALE The cardinals are rather common in the warm valleys the year around. The bright color and cheery whistle make them noticeable and favorites with people.

WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH A winter visitor from the pine clad mountains. They gain a living by searching the bark of trees for insects and larvae. They are quite agile and go up and down and all around on the trunks and limbs.

MILLER PEAK And the front of the Huachuca Mountains. This peak is 9,445 feet in elevation and only a few miles from the Mexican border. In the early days of ornithology thousands of bird specimens were taken from this range for display in the leading museums.

PINNACLE PEAK DESERT There are still thousands of acres of desert in Arizona which invite winter exploring. There are many birds present, especially along the washes.

WINTER BIRDS from page 11

And searched the books available all to no avail. When spring came the male's body feathers cleared to a solid black with white wing coverts and we found them in the guides as lark buntings. In winter they feed on weed seeds in great flocks. In more open country they often can be identified by the rolling motion of their flight. The birds in the back fly over the flock alighting in front. This continuous motion gives the appearance of rolling waves. The plumage of many wintering birds change during their stay but these three are probably the most dramatic. The red-tailed hawks and some Harris' hawks, as well as the small sparrow hawks are present year around, but in the winter the marsh hawks, with their prominent white rump marks, are the ones most often noticed as they seem to glide in flight close to the ground. The red-tailed soars higher in the air and can often be seen perched, looking over the land landscape for a meal. At the end of winter they build a nest of sticks in the arms of the Giant Saguaro cactus and hatch two young. Some owls, too, are permanent residents, but being nocturnal are difficult to find. Some people can imitate their calls and so excite their curiosity and bring them out for observation. Often watching a nest used by red-tailed hawks for several years we found the nest usurped by great horned owls. The little screech owl likes to nest in holes in the saguaro cactus which are dug by Gila woodpeckers and gilded flickers. He occasionally may be seen sitting at the entrance to his hole asleep, absorbing the morning sunshine.The blackbird group is well represented here in the winter by Brewer's, red-winged, and yellow-headed. One of our favorite activities is to find an area that is being irrigated and follow the irrigator as he turns water down the ditches. The insects come up on the high ground of the rows and the blackbirds come in for the feast. Wintering birds tend to roost in flocks of their own kind. As evening approaches they gather in the trees and as darkness falls they quickly drop into bushes. In one section in N.W. Phoenix where the residences have substantial grounds, they go into the very large oleander hedges. In the morning they leave the night roost and spread out in smaller groups to gain a day's food. Between leaving and the return at evening hardly any birds are seen in this vicinity. Many feedlots, where cattle are fattened, are found around our warm valleys. These are excellent places to see the blackbirds. They have a tendency to feed over fields in flocks. As migration time approaches thousands of blackbirds gather, wheeling and rolling in beautiful flights. We understand that these flocks comprise the summer blackbird population of several western states. Then they are off to the summer range, leaving only a few pairs of red-winged and yellow-headed to nest here. The Brewer's blackbirds all leave for the north or higher elevations. Related to the flocking for migration brings to mind another memorable experience. The chipping sparrows come in great numbers in the fall and then disperse over the warm valleys, and of course many go south into Mexico. The event referred to was at Dripping Springs in Organ Pipe Cactus Nat'l. Mon. and the chipping sparrows were gathering for the spring migration. When we came in sight of the springs the small pools were edged with sparrows and others were flying into the bushes among the surrounding rocks. As there was room they dropped down, took a drink and flew on. In the time we watched hundreds and hundreds pass in front of us. Oregon Juncos are a thrill to us but our winter visitors from the north say they see them at home.

PARTY-LINE

Along Telephone wires Noisily excited... Small birds gather to talk about Springtime! Anne Shattuck In lesser numbers sandpipers, western sandpipers, long billed dowitchers, pied-billed grebes, horned grebes, and herons enjoy the winter with us and are found in our irrigated fields, along our streams and even frequent the overflow ponds at the disposal plants. In fact our area for the Christmas bird count includes such a series of ponds and always produces a good count.

The robins are not predictable as to their time of coming or place. Some years we have thousands eating the berries from the pyracantha bushes and the umbrella trees. They are also fond of the nut which is produced on the Washington palms. In large numbers they enter an area and strip it and go on to the next area. This does not make them welcome by a home owner who cherishes his red pyracantha as a decoration. Other years we see few robins in the populous areas the whole season through, but see them a little higher in the junipers. This is noticed win ters when there is less snow at the higher elevations. Often the flocks of robins are accompanied by cedar wax-wings. Although not so many, they are interested in the same food and are accepted by the robins.

People from the north who have had a pair of bluebirds nest in a box provided for them in their garden are surprised to find them in flocks of a hundred or more working over the desert, or perhaps in a cultivated field where the alfalfa has been baled, or following the ground breaking equipment used in preparing a field for planting. In these situations the insects are brought up and the western bluebirds, and the mountain bluebirds gather to feed.

We have long advanced the theory that birds are present in proportion to the food supply in their environment. We have watched particular canyons where chuparosa (Belaperone Cali fornica Benth) is warmed into blooming by the winter sun and especially when helped by winter rains. Early in January, 1968, these flowers started blooming and male Costa's hummingbirds mingbirds appeared to feed on them. At the end of January females had joined them and a nest was found on the first of February. On February 7 we led a Maricopa Audubon Society field trip to Hummingbird Canyon and showed forty members and guests, with the aid of a 20X telescope, two males watching over their feeding areas, two females feeding and one coming and going from her nest where she had been incubating most of a week. This was a repeat record of the past three years in the same canyon. We find their nests in this general area into April. The Costa's hummingbird is a desert dweller, seldom seen in the populated, irigated areas. However they do frequent the gardens of homes bordering the desert. One appeared and spent the winter northwest of Scottsdale at a home where the winter flowers were blooming. In early February this Costa's was joined by a black-chinned male and they fussed and feuded over the flowers. Both disappeared early in March probably to a nesting spot more to their liking.

The black-chinned hummingbirds prefer the irrigated and populated valleys over the desert, and the many plants cultivated by man. By early March they begin to drift in. March the 5th the female had appeared in our yard and a day later the male joined her. They remain through the summer and we suspect they have two broods.

Anna's hummingbird is a winter visitor. It has been seen in November and December as it established a route, feeding at the flowers of the gardens of a neighborhood. In recent years the people of one of these neighborhoods have put out syrup feeders. They have been successful in attracting several Anna's to their area. Several years ago a pair raised their young there. On Feb ruary 26th a group on the Encanto Park bird walk found an incubating Anna's on her nest.

The broad-billed hummingbird is a rather rare visitor. One gave a winter visitor a thrill late in January as she alighted from her automobile. This bird with the bright orange-red bill was feeding in the flower bed in front of the resort hotel. We had seen it several years ago about the same time of year at the foot of Stewart Mountain Dam. The broad-billed nests early in the summer in the canyons along the Mexican border.

As our human population is not made up of all winter visi tors, neither is our bird population. The reliable and exciting mockingbird is here summer and winter and entertains with anties and song, even singing on moonlight nights. Bird students have about decided this song is not all for joy, but in a great measure to declare his territory to have and to hold. The thrash ers make their presence known. The curved-bill is probably more common and as its name implies has a big curved bill with which it does a marvelous job of digging. Bendire's thrasher with a straighter, shorter bill seems to us not so abundant but easily found. The curved-bill has a red-orange eye and the Bendire's a lemon yellow eye, which helps in their identification.

The Gila woodpecker is a resident that can be depended on to appear with a loud call. They thrive on the desert and in urban situations. On the desert they are the principal diggers of the nest holes in the saguaro. In the populated areas the Gila woodpecker is making a struggle to keep its nesting sites from the starling. The starling, an imported bird of greater strength, moves in on them and takes over. On the desert the starlings have not been as successful. The lack of water on the desert seems to make a difference. The ladder-backed woodpecker, often seen on the desert, favors mesquite and other trees of the desert over cactus. The gilded flicker is the other principal digger in the saguaro. They have not made too great an intrusion into Arizona, staying with the saguaro. We have never seen one in an irrigated area. The red-shafted flicker comes to us in winter around our homes, digging in the ground for ants and grubs. The yellow-bellied sapsucker and Lewis' woodpecker are in the warm valleys in the winter, and go to the pine forests, in our mountains, to raise their young.

The dove families are well represented in Arizona. The mourning doves are here year around and we occasionally find their nests soon after Christmas. They continue to nest until September. They spread out in pairs during this period only flocking in the evening, September to December. They appear in great numbers at the cattle feeding lots any season. The little Inca dove which has worked its way up from Mexico has not made it beyond our warm valleys. In the spring they pair off to nest, and gather in flocks in the fall.

They come in readily for food and may be seen sitting in the sun with their burnt-orange colored wings extended. The little ground dove tried to extend its range but was not successful and had to drop back to the south. They enjoy more seclusion and the growing number of subdivisions were not attractive to them. The white-winged doves as a group go South for the winter but a few remain where the food is attractive and suffi cient for them.

Most of the flycatchers do not find a good living here in the winter, but notable exceptions are: the vermillion, black phoebe, and Say's phoebe. The vermillion male, a thrill as he sits on a hunting perch to spot an insect on the wing, becomes a jewel on wings as he sallies out for the catch. The female, although not brilliant, is attractive with the wash of salmon color on her sides. The black-phoebe we find hunting insects near water and the Say's phoebe over land the year around.

The phainopepla probably will be first noticed in the tree tops on the desert. They are closely allied to the flycatchers but with an insect diet they enjoy some berries. In winter they are especially fond of the ping berries of the desert mistletoe, which is a good indicator the bird is in the vicinity. The male phainopepla is shiny black and the female a sooty black. The white wing patch is conspicuous in flight, but not visible when the bird is perched.

Roadrunners are present all year. As the name implies they do not fly much, but run and glide. Though not as common as they were, they are seen as we ride about, and often come close to habitations.

The verdin seems to be an adaptable little fellow. When we have a dry year they appear around our homes and build their shelter nests. In the fall of 1965 when the pomegranates were harvested from the bush in our back yard there was some fruit which had come on late and was very high. These were easily skipped. In December they ripened and split open and resembled pendant flowers. The verdins found them and ate the red kernels. They were interesting visitors and we enjoyed the several that were about regularly. On the morning of December 18th we could not believe our eyes as six were present at one time. They clung to the hull and daintily removed the fruit, alighting on near-by twigs to consume the pulp surrounding the seed. We supposed it to be a family, still feeding together, judging by lack of development of the yellow on the heads of some, and the amiability of the birds while feeding. The following winter the desert growth was profuse due to winter rains and we seldom saw one in our yard. Their winter shelter nest is a ball constructed of thorny sticks. When available they prefer to construct it in a tree with thorns. The nest has an entrance on the lower side,

The boat-tailed grackle has increased its numbers greatly in Arizona. Twenty years ago we knew of only one colony and made a special trip to Douglas to see them at a ranch a few miles out of town. Now we can take you to a number of such groups, one a few miles north of Phoenix.

The house finch, a hardy, sociable, little fellow joins members of his clan to make a colony. The colony may be established in town or a remote spot on the desert. The males' bright red feathers and the cheery chatter and song of the group soon attract attention, and we have many inquiries about them from new-comers. The smaller, yellow and green-blacked lesser goldfinch moves in small flocks during the winter, feeding on weed seeds.

Abert's towhee likes the cover of brish land, but has readily adapted to our urban areas. We find them under hedges and bushes or running along the ground in our cities. They seem to prefer running to flying and generally do not choose a high conspicuous perch. The rufous-sided, green-tailed, and brown towhees are here, too, but seen less frequently. All the towhees are vigorous in their activities. One good identification is the way they jump and kick back with both feet when scratching for food.

The cactus wren, state bird of Arizona, also builds an enclosed nest. They form a tunnel from grass and small sticks, at least a foot long and make a chamber at the end, a continuation of the tunnel. This structure they line with any soft material at hand. Feathers, mostly from other birds, cotton if they are near a cotton field, or wool caught on thorns or barbed wire if sheep have been taken across the desert. The greater number of nests made in early winter for shelter nests give one the feeling he has found a small colony of birds when it really is a family. Occasionally we do have a snow on the desert. Should you know the location of cactus wren's nests and go there, they will probably be busy re-enforcing the felting or padding the lining. Rock wrens are common on the rocky out-cropping of the desert. The canyon wren, as its name indicates, prefers the canyons of the desert mountains. They are easily identified by their song, a run in the descending scale. A guest was surprised recently when the echo across a small canyon was found to be two birds calling to each other.

The sparrows seem to prefer the desert, open range country, and farm areas. They are so numerous, and many so much alike it is hard to make a definite identification. They keep one alert and there are plenty of identifiable markings to make observations interesting. The sleek, trim, black-throated with their sweet song, are a joy as they work over the bushes and the desert floor. The sage sparrow chooses the dry, bushy desert and the Brewer's sparrows move in groups that stop to rest and join in singing. They blend with the tree coloring so well they are not easily seen and only the soft music is evident. So they have been called "singing trees." Some of the larger sparrows seen in winter are the white-crowned and lark-sparrows. The lark sparrow is beautiful with a chestnut colored ear patch and black dot on the breast. They like more open country and smaller flocks. The white-crowns form small or large flocks and seem satisfied where they find some cover and food.thirty-eight miles north of Phoenix on the Black Canyon High-way. The banks of the Hassayampa River are accessible through the rest area south of Wickenburg.

Several groups in Tucson make field trips in the surrounding country. The most active is the Tucson Audubon Society which has made their major project the Patagonia-Sonoita Creek Sanctuary. This wonderful birding location has more than a mile of stream flowing through a stately stand of trees, mostly cottonwoods. One hundred seventy-two species of birds have been recorded. The Arizona Chapter of the Nature Conservancy, buying this property, has had it fenced and it offers a prime birding spor. It is surrounded by the Sonoran desert near Patagonia. St. David offers good birding with its artesian ponds and old trees. Fenced highways and narrow space for parking offers problems but take the side roads and you will find the trip more peaceful and productive.

Western Belted Kingfisher

Accessible birding locations are numerous in the state. The streams, ponds, and canals are of importance as gathering places. In the several irrigated sections the dirt from the major canals has been piled out and converted into roads. Plantings have been made to give the combination birds like: water and trees. The land watered by these canals is frequented by birds and the growth along the fences offers cover. The Maricopa Audubon Society conducts walks through Encanto Park. A friendly cattle rancher has cooperated with this group to establish a sanctuary Chapters of the National Audubon Society at Tucson, Phoenix, and Yuma offer a welcome to the public at their regular meetings where speakers discuss birds, nature, and conservation. They also conduct field trips to sites where birds are found, and take visitors on bird walks through parks. These groups or interested individuals, where there are no organizations, can usually be met through the Chamber of Commerce. Arizona has many winter bird visitors. Their presence is a joy to other visitors and residents alike.