I was in Granite Basin this past week, and was surprised to see a greater roadrunner there. The range for roadrunners is extensive—not only can they be found in Arizona, but they also occur in California, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Missouri and Arkansas! Who knew?
When I think of this iconic species, I usually associate them with being in the deserts of the southwest. I guess that is why I was surprised to see one in a ponderosa pine habitat. Based on their extensive range, it is apparent they can eke out an existence in a variety of different habitats, as different as Arizona is from Louisiana.
Interestingly, I received an email this past week from a customer with amazing photographs and a story of how a Cooper’s hawk attacked and killed a roadrunner in his yard. I was really surprised by this, as roadrunners are a considerable predator in their own right. In the bird world, however, even predators can become prey.
I also saw a merlin while I was at Granite Basin. A merlin is a small falcon and a winter visitor in the Arizona Central Highlands area. Merlins prey mostly on small birds.
Speaking of predators, there has been a red-shouldered hawk at Watson Lake for the last two weeks. This is an uncommon species for our area. If you look at range maps for this species, they are abundant in the eastern United States and along the coast in California, but not in the intermountain west.
On my day off last week, I went to the overlook off of Highway 89 and it was relatively easy to find the red-shouldered hawk. If you look in a southeasterly direction from the overlook, you’ll see a small grove of Cottonwood trees where it is hanging out.
Last Monday, there was an even rarer bird species at Willow Lake. A Prescott birder discovered and identified a short-billed gull earlier in the day. I was at the store, and it was late in the day when I first received word about the gull. I left the store immediately and headed out to the lake.
The former name for short-billed gull was Mew gull. I’m sharing this information with you, as, if you were to look up short-billed gull in your field guide you won’t find it under that name. This is a species that is so rare in Arizona that when I referenced the Birds of Prescott, Arizona checklist, created by Dr. Carl Tomoff, there are no records of this species ever occurring in the Prescott area since he started keeping records in 1974!
This is a species that breeds in northern and central Alaska into northwestern Canada. Its typical winter range is coastal—from southern Alaska down to southern California, and it is not typically found inland.
I arrived at the lake around 4:45 p.m., and knew I had limited time with sunset only about thirty minutes out. I had my 95 mm Swarovski Scope, and my Swarovski 12x42 NL binoculars—I was prepared to find that bird! Fortunately, after scanning the surface of the lake for about five minutes, I found the gull way out in the middle of the lake.
I could not have identified the bird had I not had my scope. I actually called the birder who found the bird earlier in the day, while I was looking at the bird through my scope, and we were comparing our field notes on plumage, bill color, bill length, etc. This was a life bird for me, which is always a big deal!
Until next week, Happy Birding!
Eric Moore is the owner of The Lookout, in Prescott, where you will find a Hallmark Gold Crown Store, wild bird products, and Vortex and Swarovski optics. Eric has been an avid birder for over 55 years. Eric can be contacted at eric@thelookoutaz.com.
