Beginning Birding at Lakeside Park with Kathe Anderson

Broad-billed Hummingbird by Shawn Cooper

Difficulty: Easy. Flat walking surfaces in a city park, with less than two miles covered. Bathrooms on-site.

Lakeside Park in southeast Tucson is a great place to get to know your urban birds and it’s possible to get some early fall migrants as well. Join the fabulous Kathe Anderson, who is one of the best birding teachers around, on an outing designed for those just getting into birding. We’ll explore the lake and the adjacent lawns and ball fields with likely sightings including Black-crowned Night Heron, hummingbirds, Vermilion Flycatcher, Cooper’s Hawk, and swallows. Drive time to park and meeting location is about 15 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 10 participants.

Broad-billed Hummingbird, Shawn Cooper

Photographing Birds in Flight (Field Work Portion) with Krisztina Scheeff

Difficulty: Easy. Not a lot of walking, and all flat excellent walking surfaces.

To extend the classroom portion (which you have to sign up for separately), join Krisztina Scheeff in the field for a hands-on, real action photography lesson to put those skills you learned to work. The two hour field portion will truly test your patience and birds in flight photography skills but it will be a lot of fun and you will come away with added skills on how to photograph birds in flight! Bring a camera, and a tripod or monopod if you like. The field portion is suitable for bird photographers (beginners, advanced, and anywhere between), but cell phones won’t work for this workshop. Will hold this workshop either at the DoubleTree festival venue or at nearby Reid Park. Specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. To read more about Krisztina, please visit www.KSNaturePhotography.com. Limited to 15 participants.

American Kestrel by Krisztina Scheeff

El Rio Preserve with Jim Gessaman and Kim Warner sponsored by the Town of Marana

Moderate. Mostly easy with paved trail and overlook, but some steep grade when walking down to sandy trails. Bathroom on-site.

Explore this nature preserve area just northwest of Tucson in Marana along the Santa Cruz River which is also part of the historic Juan Bautista de Anza Trail. You’ll enjoy the view from the overlook where you’ll be able to scan for a variety of birds including waterfowl, shorebirds, and flycatchers. A walk around the lake trail should turn up a good variety of species including Lazuli Bunting, Hooded Oriole, Green Heron, and Cinnamon Teal. Drive time to the meeting location from the festival venue is about 30 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 10 participants.

Lazuli Bunting, Mick Thompson

De Anza Trail at Santa Gertrudis with David Griffin

Difficulty: Moderate. Around 1 ½ miles of mostly flat walking on some sandy/gravel trails and road. No bathroom on-site. Bring water.

We’ll walk in the shaded riparian forest along the Santa Cruz River which is a fantastic location for three types of kingbirds (Cassin’s, Tropical, and noisy Thick-billed) along with a wide variety of other desert riparian species like Inca Dove, Gray Hawk, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Bell’s Vireo, and Blue Grosbeak. Drive time to the meeting location from the festival venue is about 50 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 10 participants.

Thick-billed Kingbird, Martin Molina

Birding with Bonner at Sweetwater Wetlands with Bonner Black, Andrew Lydeard, and Alex Patia

Green Heron by Hemant Kishan

Difficulty: Easy. Just over a mile walking on flat paved and hard packed surfaces, with some shaded benches along route. Bathrooms on-site.

This artificial wetland is the premier birding hotspot in the Tucson Valley, offering a stunning variety of species that can be found here at any time during the season. Green Heron, Common Gallinule, Tropical Kingbird, Common Yellowthroat, and Abert’s Towhees are some of our prime targets. Drive time to meeting location from festival venue is about 20 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 15 participants.

Green Heron, Hemant Kishan

Oaks to Pines in the Catalinas with Rob Ripma and Jehudy Carballo

Difficulty: Moderate. Will involve some walking on mild slopes with some elevation and possibly on some rocky/uneven surfaces. Bathrooms available. Drive time to first location about 45 minutes.

We’ll explore the oaks to pines of the Catalina Mountains starting at the Gordon Hirabayashi Campground scrub oak woodlands which is good habitat for species such as Woodhouse’s Scrub Jay, Bushtit, and Scott’s Oriole. We’ll then head up into Bear Canyon which puts us in a beautiful canyon with sycamores and pines where we’ll search for Mexican Jay, Plumbeous Vireo, and Grace’s Warbler among others. Depending on timing and activity we may visit other locations as well. Drive time to initial meeting location from festival venue is about 40 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand.  Limited to 10 participants.

Scott’s Oriole, Matthew Studebaker

Bird Research in Action Demonstration with Henrey Deese and the McNew Lab at the Paton Center for Hummingbirds

The McNew Lab studies disease ecology of birds and their parasites and pathogens, and this will be your chance to see this work in action. This research specifically investigates associations between birds in ticks in the region, so we will be mist-netting and banding birds, checking them for attached ticks, and taking small blood samples to test for tick-borne diseases. The working group will demonstrate the techniques that are being used and discuss the research. We’ll meet at the Paton Center for Hummingbirds and specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Drive time to the meeting location from the festival venue is about 70 minutes. Limited to 10 participants.

Summer Tanager, Hemant Kishan

Photography Field Workshop: Bat Photography at Pond at Elephant Head with Dano Grayson and Stephen Vaughan

Difficulty: Easy. Most of the time spent in photography blinds.

The desert comes alive at night and the Pond at Elephant Head offers the perfect opportunity to catch it in action with your camera. Bat migration is happening during the monsoon season and offers an amazing experience. Join Wildlife Photographer, Dano Grayson for an evening of photographing bats and other wildlife at this private photography location. Weather conditions play a large role in bat photography and we cannot guarantee success. Please email Stephen Vaughan at stephenhvaughan@gmail.com if you have questions. Important Equipment Needed for this Workshop: Camera with telephoto lens of at least 300mm along with tripod and shutter release cable. Limited to 8 participants.

Birding with a Purpose: Cactus, Cottonwoods & Birds with Tony Figueroa and Jack Parlapiano

Difficulty: Hard. Will involve hiking/walking about three miles roundtrip with some mild slopes/wash crossings, but overall mostly flat ground and good surfaces. Bring 2 liters of water. Bathroom on-site.

Join Tony Figueroa, Director of the Invasive Plant Program, to hear how Tucson Bird Alliance is constantly working to restore and preserve these places for future generations of people and birds to enjoy. The Sonoran Desert is amazingly dense with vegetation compared to other deserts, but this sensitive habitat is at risk due to invasive species such as buffelgrass. We’ll discuss the ecology of the area and find some great birds, too, as we explore the desert and riparian areas around Colossal Cave. Possible bird sightings include Gray Hawk, Purple Martin, White-breasted Nuthatch, Canyon Towhee, and Varied Bunting. Limited to 9 participants.

Gray HAwk, Axel Elfner

San Pedro House with Kristy Gallo & Jessica Vaughan

Difficulty: Moderate. About two miles walking on good gravel/dirt surfaces, although it may be muddy depending on monsoon conditions. Prepare for possibility of chiggers. Bathroom on-site. Drive time to location approximately 90 minutes.

The San Pedro River is one of the single most important biological features in the arid Southwest and serves as a migratory corridor for an estimated 4 million migrating birds each year. Riparian specialties like Common Ground-Dove, Gray Hawk, and Blue Grosbeak are expected along with a good mixture of flycatchers like Western Wood Pewee, Cassin’s Kingbird, Willow Flycatcher, and plenty of Vermilion Flycatchers. Limited to 9 participants.

Blue Grosbeak, Matthew Studebaker