As a young boy, growing up in Massachusetts, seeing a robin in late winter was always a sign that spring was not far off. What are the bird species here in the Arizona Central Highlands that are harbingers of spring?
The first species that comes to mind is the turkey vulture. Not necessarily a pretty-looking bird, and it certainly doesn’t have a pretty song like an American robin, but it is definitely one of our first arrivals each year. I saw my first vulture of 2025 on Friday, February 28th, in Prescott Valley.
Another early arrival each year are swallows. I assume everyone is familiar with swallows returning to San Juan Capistrano, California each spring. We also experience swallows returning to Prescott in late winter, early spring. When our swallows return, they usually show up at our local lakes, as the habitat surrounding our lakes supports a species of non-biting flying insects called midges.
I was on a walk on the Peavine Trail last Wednesday, February 26th, when I observed two different swallow species: violet-green and northern rough-winged. I always worry about early arriving migratory bird species who rely on a diet of insects that have to be caught in flight.
Swallow foraging behavior is referred to as “aerial gleaning,” which is defined as catching flying insects in sustained, continuous flight. This is the only way swallows can eat—in flight. Talk about fast food!
It is interesting to observe how, after a brief spell of warm weather, midges emerge in abundance. However, a cold spell can quickly reduce their activity, making it difficult for swallows to find flying insects this time of year.
I was on the Peavine Trail on Monday afternoon, and it felt like December! The air temperature was 39 degrees, but with the wind chill factor it felt like 23 degrees—and the snow was coming down. I doubt the swallows, which had returned days earlier, were finding any flying insects.
Another migratory bird species that has been observed recently are black-chinned hummingbirds. I have a customer who lives in the Verde Valley, and he has had a broad-tailed hummingbird at his hummingbird feeders. The same customer, on Tuesday of this week, saw a common black hawk. The occurrence of each of these species is an indication that spring migration is getting underway, even if, at this point, it is on a small scale.
You may be wondering what you can do to attract migratory birds who will be passing through the Arizona Central Highlands over the next few months. The key to attracting migratory birds is to offer a birdy buffet—a mixture of different food types that appeal to a wide variety of bird species, including seed eaters, insect eaters and nectar eaters. And don’t forget to provide a source of water.
Our bird seed blends are mixed right here in Prescott—every week—and don’t contain filler ingredients like box-store birdseed. The nutritional value of our seed and suet products is superior to generic bird seed products found at box stores.
Years ago, when I created the different seed blends that we sell, I sent a sample of each blend to a lab where they calculated the guaranteed analysis with information on the percentage of crude protein, crude fat, and crude fiber.
We pride ourselves in our quality wild bird seed blends. Migratory birds need stores of body fat and protein to fuel their migration. I invite you to consider purchasing bird seed that is both healthy and nutritious for our feathered friends rather than blends with a lot of filler ingredients.
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 Swarovski and Vortex optics. Eric has been an avid birder for over 55 years. Eric can be contacted at eric@thelookoutaz.com.
This past weekend was the winter solstice, the shortest day and the longest night of the year. While I personally do not like the cold, I do love the winter night sky. Each morning when I go outside to retrieve the newspaper, I like to just pause, and look at the heavens and take in the wonder of the night sky.
Maybe like you, unfortunately I live in a neighborhood where some of my neighbors leave their outside lights on all night long. Why? I have no idea. To me it is annoying, and a poor use of precious resources. We live in a time when we need to be so mindful of how we use energy.
One may think it is a little thing, a 100 watt bulb left on all night, but multiply that by hundreds and thousands of lights left on all night and what a huge impact this has on energy use.
There is a dark sky ordinance in some communities. I personally like living in a community where people value dark skies. I like living in a neighborhood where there aren’t any street lights.
Another issue to consider is the impact of lights on wild birds, especially when they are migrating. Lights at night disorient while birds, resulting in window strikes, resulting in an untimely death.
Several months ago the Courier ran an article about outdoor lights at night, and the impact on wild birds. I concur.
