Last week, I spent Thanksgiving Day down in the valley. I went birdwatching early morning at the Riparian Preserve at Gilbert Water Ranch and later in the day Gayla and I hiked at the McDowell Sonoran Preserve. It was an absolutely beautiful day and I thoroughly enjoyed my time in nature.
Birding at the riparian preserve was amazing, as it always is. This is my favorite urban birding destination in the valley. Ironically, while there I met a birder from Prescott Valley and it was his first visit to the preserve. If you’ve never visited the Riparian Preserve at Water Ranch in Gilbert, I highly recommend it.
I was there exactly two hours and saw fifty-four species. What is nice about birding at this location is that the birds are so acclimated to the high use that they have little fear of people. I suspect thousands of people visit there every day, and the birds are very comfortable with all of the foot traffic.
When we hiked at the Sonoran Preserve, I was saddened to see the effects of our long-term drought on the plants. Interestingly, these are native plants—plants that have evolved over millennia to live in a hostile, desert environment. They should be used to excessive heat and periods of drought.
At the preserve, however, many of the sahuaro cacti have fallen over, and most of the standing sahuaros looked distressed—their trunks and arms were shriveled and looked very unhealthy. It is not unusual to see cacti showing signs of heat-related stress in summer, especially before the monsoon rains start, but to see them looking so poorly this time of year was alarming.
I only saw thirteen species at the Sonoran Preserve. Species in this environment are hardy desert-dwelling varieties that have adapted to a low-water consumption diet. They get most of their water through the food they eat, as there is rarely standing water.
I recently added a new water feature to my yard, and it has been a game-changer! The amount of bird activity in my yard has really increased. I even saw a water-loving species that I don’t think I’ve ever seen in my yard before—a hermit thrush. Providing a source of water is one of the best ways to attract birds to your yard, including robins and western bluebirds.
Last Saturday, I led a store-sponsored guided bird walk in Chino Valley. The focus of the trip was to look for birds of prey, of which we saw a lot! We also saw a good mix of other species, including a number of western bluebirds and a few robins at some berry-laden cedar trees.
One really interesting experience was witnessing the behavior of some American Kestrels. Our group was birding along Road One West when we observed a car pull up a hundred yards or more beyond where we were. A woman got out of the car and proceeded to releasee the contents of two live traps—mice—at the edge of a field.
No sooner had she released the mice when both of the falcons flew down and immediately caught a mouse and went up to a telephone wire to consume their breakfast. I can only assume that the woman releases her nightly catch at the same location and time each day as the falcons seemed to be waiting for her!
We had a wonderful bird walk, and saw several birds of prey including three species of falcon, a bald eagle, and both red-tailed and ferruginous hawks. We also saw a number of loggerhead shrikes—a songbird that preys on live food.
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.
