Archives: Festival Events

Difficulty: Moderate (Some mild slopes but excellent surfaces. Drive time to location approximately one hour on paved roads.)

Saint David is a curiously lush oasis bordering the San Pedro River, characterized by artesian wells and springs that support high groundwater levels and abundant trees and ponds. Summer Tanager, orioles, Tropical Kingbird, Gray Hawk, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, and others are likely to be seen, as well as migrants. We will also search for Mississippi Kites, which nest nearby, and any other rarities that happen to be in the area. Limited to 9 participants.

Mississippi Kite by Dan Weisz

Difficulty: Moderate (steeper slopes or more rocky/rooted trails)

We’ll start in grassland habitat around Proctor Road looking and listening for singing sparrows first thing in the morning. Along with sparrows we will be looking for birds of upland riparian habitat including Bell’s Vireo, Blue Grosbeak, Summer Tanager, and Varied Bunting. Next we’ll head into the mid-elevation oak-juniper habitat, looking for desirable southeast Arizona species like Arizona Woodpecker, Painted Redstart, and Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher. After this we’ll spend some time walking along the nature trail and investigating the hummingbird feeders at the Santa Rita Lodge that make Madera one of the best spots for hummingbird diversity in the country. Maybe we’ll find an Elegant Trogon! Limited to 9 participants.

Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher by Jim Burns

Difficulty: Easy (Flat walking trails. Drive time to location approximately one hour.)

We’ll take a leisurely stroll through the riparian forest along the Santa Cruz River following the historic De Anza Trail. This 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. Limited to 9 participants.

Blue Grosbeak by Matthew Studebaker

Difficulty: Moderate. (Some walking on mild slopes and dirt/gravel trails. Drive time to location approximately 75 minutes.)

We’ll explore this 117,000 acre refuge with habitat that ranges from semi-desert grassland to cottonwoods and is uniquely managed for Masked Bobwhite Quail. Depending on water levels we may stop at Arivaca Cienega, Aguirre Lake, and the BANWR Headquarters. Swainson’s Hawk, Western Kingbird, Loggerhead Shrike, and Chihuahuan Meadowlark should be in the grassland areas, and we’ll keep our eyes open for early fall migrants like Lazuli Buntings. Community Forest Program Manager, Jay Snowdon, will also highlight issues facing the ecosystem at BANWR, specifically from invasive plants. Limited to 9 participants.

Swainson’s Hawk by Martin Molina

Difficulty: Moderate to Hard (Walking a narrow trail with uneven surfaces and some increase in grade.  Drive time to location about 1 hour)

These two canyons are just north of the more famous Madera Canyon and offer fabulous birding in riparian areas flanked by upland desert and grassland. From the Florida Canyon parking lot we’ll keep our eyes open and ears alert for Northern Beardless-Tyrannulet, Black-chinned and Rufous-crowned Sparrows, along with Varied Bunting.  Depending on water levels we could work our way up higher along the creek, we’ll look for Gray Hawk, three species of Myiarchus flycatchers, Bell’s and Hutton’s Vireo’s, Hooded Oriole, and perhaps even catching a glimpse of the soaring resident Golden Eagles. Next we will drive through Box Canyon hoping to find a rare Five-striped Sparrow or singing Scott’s Orioles. Limited to 9 participants.

Scott’s Oriole by Matthew Studebaker

Difficulty: Moderate (May include walking along mostly level trail but with uneven surfaces for around 2 miles, one area with steep stairs. Drive time to location about 80 minutes)

Patagonia Lake is the top eBird hotspot in the state thanks to its mix of waterbirds and great riparian habitat. Mexican Duck, Ruddy Duck, and Neotropic and Double-crested Cormorants should be readily seen on the lake along with raptors, flycatchers, and tanagers along the Birding Trail. As one of the few “large” bodies of water in SE Arizona you never know what could show up. Limited to 9 participants.

Neotropic Cormorant by David Quanrud

Difficulty: Moderate (Some walking on mild slopes, but still on excellent surfaces. Drive time to location approximately one hour plus driving on gravel/dirt roads)

Las Cienegas is a 45,000-acre national conservation area with high desert grasslands, riparian strips and perennial streams, marshes, and juniper-oak woodlands. Here we can find grassland breeders such as Cassin’s, Botteri’s and Grasshopper Sparrows, Chihuahuan Meadowlark, and Loggerhead Shrike, as well as riparian-associated species including Gray and Zone-tailed Hawks, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Blue Grosbeak, Yellow Warbler, and Summer Tanager. Las Cienegas is great for mammals, too — we’ll visit a colony of Black-tailed Prairie Dogs (road condition permitting) and keep an eye out for Pronghorn Antelope. Limited to 9 participants.

Loggerhead Shrike by Mick Thompson

Difficulty: Hard (Steeper slopes or more rocky/rooted trails. Drive time to location approximately one hour with some gravel roads.)

While Madera Canyon has long been the most visited spot in the Santa Rita Mountains, this adjacent canyon to the south is deserving of more birders’ attention. Join us on a half-day exploration of Montosa Canyon, which supports some hackberry thornscrub habitat as well as a nice drainage with scattered oaks and mesquites. Some more common species we can expect to encounter include Bell’s Vireo, Rufous-crowned Sparrow, Canyon Wren, and Ladder-backed Woodpecker. We’ll also target rare species which have nested in the canyon in past years, including Five-striped Sparrow and Black-capped Gnatcatcher. We’ll also keep our eyes out for dazzling Varied Buntings on territory. Limited to 9 participants.

Five-striped Sparrow by Richard Fray

Difficulty: Moderate (some walking on mild slopes, but still on excellent surfaces. Prepare for possibility of chiggers. 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. The conservation and restoration of the San Pedro River has been a long-standing priority for Tucson Audubon and this field trip will give you the opportunity to see it up close. Riparian specialties like Common Ground-Dove, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, and Gray Hawk are expected along with a good mixture of flycatchers like Western Wood Pewee, Cassin’s Kingbird, and plenty of Vermilion Flycatchers. Limited to 9 participants.

Gray Hawk by Axel Elfner