Arizona’s Second Spring

Arizona’s Southeast is a land of contrasts where forested, block-fault mountains rise above the Sonoran Desert plains. Wild canyons ring the mountain ranges carrying cool streams to the dry expanses below. This remarkable geographic diversity is reflected in the region’s tremendous variety of plants and animals, especially birds. Indeed, Southeast Arizona has a greater variety of breeding birds than does any other area of comparable size in the US. And many of the birds of Southeast Arizona occur only here within the US, their ranges barely extending north from Mexicoo.

Our ten-day tour is designed to give us an excellent chance of seeing virtually all of Southeast Arizona’s breeding birds. Among the specialties we seek are Zone-tailed and Gray hawks, ten or more species of hummingbirds including Violet-crowned and White-eared, Arizona Woodpecker, Rose-throated Becard (rare), Thick-billed and Tropical kingbirds, Sulphur-bellied, Dusky-capped, and Buff-breasted flycatchers, Greater Pewee, Northern Beardless-Tyrannulet, Mexican Chickadee, Bendire’s Thrasher, Red-faced Warbler, Painted Redstart, Abert’s Towhee, Rufous-winged, Five-striped, and Botteri’s sparrows, Yellow-eyed Junco, and the beautiful Elegant Trogon.

Late July through August is an ideal time to visit Southeast Arizona. In a typical year, the late-summer prevailing winds bring moisture from the west coast of Mexico. Clouds begin to build in mid-morning and cooling, isolated afternoon rains refresh the desert and mountains. It is not uncommon to watch a rain shower pass a few hundred yards away without feeling a drop of rain. These rains can turn the desert and grasslands into a backdrop for carpets of wildflowers. The summer rain is also the onset of breeding for some of the local bird specialties. Montezuma Quail and Botteri’s and Cassin’s sparrows are at the peak of their singing and easier to locate. This time of year has also proved to be better than the spring for the appearance of Mexican vagrants as these post-breeding wanderers move north.

Although many of the nightbirds have completed their nesting by early August and are less likely to be vocalizing (hence, less likely to be seen), we will still make an effort to locate as many as possible. Southeast Arizona boasts no fewer than eleven species of breeding owls, including Whiskered and Western screech-owls, Flammulated Owl (very difficult in August), Northern (Mountain) Pygmy-Owl, Elf Owl (the world’s smallest owl), Burrowing Owl, and the magnificent Spotted Owl. The Mexican Whip-poor-will is also a possibility. Nocturnal outings can also be productive for seeing mammals. A few of the species we could encounter (day or night) are Collared Peccary, White-tailed Deer, Black Bear, Western Spotted, Hooded, Striped, and Western Hognose skunks, Ringtail, White-nosed Coati, Bobcat, and even Mountain Lion.

Our route forms a loop beginning and ending in Tucson with stops in Willcox, the Chiricahua, Huachuca, and Santa Rita mountains, the Patagonia/Sonoita Creek area, Nogales, the Pajarito and Atascosa mountains, and California Gulch. Scenery is spectacular, one-night stands are few, and the itinerary is arranged so as to maximize our chances for the local specialties as well as any vagrants that might appear.