I was thrilled to fill in as tour leader for Bill Grossi and guide the Chiricahuas montane trip again. After a fun and successful trip yesterday with a great group today’s trip would be just as good! Another full tour with 12 birders and we set out with excitement and gazed at the snow-capped mountain range looming before us, knowing there were plenty of great birds awaiting us and it would be another great day in the higher elevations. As on Friday’s trip, we started at Massai Point in the Chiricahua National Monument and enjoyed the panoramic views of the bizarre rhyolite rock towers in the glowing morning light. Cameras were clicking away amid many oooooohs and aaaaaahs, exclamations worthy of this specatcualar place! The noisy group of Mexican Jays greeted us as soon as we stepped off the bus, soon to be followed with incredible up close scope views of a stunning pair of male and female Arizona Woodpeckers right in the parking lot! A lifer for almost all in the group and a great start to another great day in the mountains. Dark-eyed Juncos flitted under manzanita bushes in the morning chill as we headed down the road to the sunlit slopes for another mix of birds.
The mixed bluebird flock from yesterday was in the same spot along the road and this time contained more Westerns than Easterns, which was good since Western was a life bird for most. Scope views of vibrant males perched atop yucca and agave stalks were breathtaking, and careful studies of the drab females and immatures were worthwhile when seeking out the few Easterns in the group. A male Sharp-shinned Hawk began soaring from the valley below and put the bluebirds in nervous flight as two Mexican Chickadees materialized in the oak just at the road’s edge and offered great brief looks to those lucky enough to get on them before they moved downslope, calling incessantly. A male Red-naped Sapsucker in the same oak did not disappoint and made up for the narrow chickadee miss. Spotted Towhees, Bewick’s Wrens and Rufous-crowned Sparrows were flitting further downslope in the warming morning light, and we’d catch up with these later in the day.
Off to the visitor’s center we went, eagerly scanning both sides of the creek for the coati we saw yesterday. We weren’t as lucky this time but the bird activity at the parking lot was frenzied with flocks of Dark-eyed Juncos, gangs of Mexican Jays, noisy groups of Acorn Woodpeckers, ground-feeding Red-shafted Flickers and stealthy Hermit Thrushes all vying for attention at the sunlit road’s edge. Ruby-crowned Kinglets nervously flitted from the oaks, occasionally flaring their brilliant red top crests. We hiked down the Faraway Trail which proved to be just as birdy as yesterday but the main highlight this time was a lone male coati along the rocky outcrops near the trail! What a stroke of luck to see the same male back to back in broad daylight in such close quarters. The entire group was elated, a lifer mammal and great looks as it scampered amongst the large boulders and even climbed into a small oak to peer out at us in curiosity. Apparently, it even followed us for several hundred yards according to some birders lagging behind to photograph it! Several Coues’ White-tailed Deer were also close enough to photograph and a few bucks sported impressive racks. The trail also yielded the same vocal young male Olive Warbler in about the same spot as yesterday and a lone Juniper Titmouse was also present in the same area. What great birds, lifers for most and much sought after species on this tour. Bridled Titmice were all around us in noisy flocks, offering great views and photo opportunities as charming as they are. A bold Hutton’s Vireo foraged so low in the pines that it almost descended onto a participant’s hat! Too close for binoculars to focus, now that’s a great look at a great bird. A pair of Spotted Towhees glared and scolded at us from a grape vine tangle and noisy flocks of Mexican Jays seemed to follow us along the trail as they did yesterday. Clearly they were a group favorite. Acorn Woodpeckers and Red-shafted Flickers were numerous as were Ruby-crowned Kinglets which always entertain with their nervous demeanor. They also made for great comparisons with the very similar Hutton’s Vireo nearby.
A nice picnic lunch at the Faraway picnic area drew in several noisy and bold Mexican Jays eager for a handout of sandwich spoils and a few even hopped right onto the tables! Rufous-crowned Sparrows chattered from the nearby brush piles and occasionally showed themselves but the jays stole the show. We were all eager for our Pinery Canyon drive towards Rustler Park and a change in scenery filled with new birds but unfortunately the large yellow school bus alloted to us today was in no way capable of making the exciting but hairy, narrow, winding dirt road up and we had to settle for birding the canyon’s lower reaches among the small pine groves below Methodist Camp, a disappointment for some but due to our driver’s caution and large vehicle, we had to settle for such a compromise. Nonetheless, we still had some great birding along the road and soon were face to face with a pair of glaring Yellow-eyed Juncos staring us down at five feet in a small oak! What a bird, some exclaimed and yes indeed, what a bird it is! This was another lifer for most and what great views of the pair actually walking and not hopping around. as their dark-eyed counterparts do. Scope views of the tiny and adorable Cliff Chipmunk barking at us with its tail pumping was very amusing as well!
Birding our way back towards the main road, we stopped frequently to explore the oak-dotted hillsides and sycamore-lined creek beds and were rewarded with brief looks of a vocal Western Scrub-Jay that was heard more often than seen, but this was a bonus as we didn’t encounter it yesterday. Also present were more Western Bluebirds with a few Easterns mixed in for comparison and a stunning male Phainopepla atop a nearby oak which filled up the scope with great views of it’s silky and glossy black plummage and striking beady red eye complete with its pointy crest. Acrobatic Bridled Titmice surrounded us and a small group of noisy Bushtits came through briefly, not stopping to wow us as they usually do but were still identifiable for most. Acorn Woodpeckers and Mexican Jays were everywhere as we birded a few more stops before loading up and heading back to town. Great looks at the endemic Apache Fox Squirrel in a leafless sycamore tree were unmatched and a final highlight was a small group of quail consisting mostly of Gambel’s that scurried across the road but several birders in the group also caught sight of the lone Scaled Quail in with them, noticing its “cotton top” before it dashed into cover.
Another great day of birding in the montane highlands with another fun group of eager birders! Despite not being able to drive up to Rustler Park, we did very well and scored almost all the species we did on yesterday’s tour, and even notched up a few that we didn’t have yesterday. Many thanks to the fun group for their understanding and for their enthusiasm on this successful tour!
Moez Ali