Birding with a Camera at Sweetwater Wetlands with Krisztina Scheeff

Are you a birder and would like to learn more about your camera and how to capture your own photos? Join professional Nature Photographer Krisztina with KS Nature Photography for a casual session of birding with the added bonus of photography. This program is open to all ages, birders, photographers, and anyone who would like to learn more about the birds and about basic camera techniques for bird photography. Bring your binoculars and any camera, if you like (point and shoot, DSLR, Mirrorless – and any lens). Specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. To read more about Krisztina, please visit www.KSNaturePhotography.com. Limited to 12 participants.

American Kestrel by Krisztina Scheeff

Arivaca Cienega Area with Joshua Covill sponsored by Hillstar Nature

Difficulty: Moderate. Mostly flat walking dirt trails on possibly some uneven and rocky terrain. Bathroom on-site. Drive time to Arivaca is about 75 minutes.

Just outside of the small town of Arivaca is the Buenos Aires Wildlife Refuge, known for its grasslands and cienegas, along with being a place where efforts to re-introduce Masked Bobwhites are being undertaken. Led by Joshua Covill of Hillstar Nature, we’ll focus our birding efforts at the Arivaca Cienega and along the Arivaca Creek where we’ll look for Black Vultures, Gray Hawks, four species of kingbirds (Tropical, Cassin’s, Thick-billed, and Western), Lark Sparrows, and buntings among others. Limited to 9 participants.

Tropical Kingbird by Jim Burns

Las Cienegas Grasslands with Louie Dombroski and John Coons of Field Guides

Difficulty: Moderate. Some walking on mild slopes, and possibly rocky/uneven surfaces. Drive time to location approximately one hour on some paved and gravel 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. You’ll enjoy this beautiful area with Louie Dombroski who spent many years working at the nearby Paton Center for Hummingbirds and with John Coons of Field Guides. Limited to 9 participants.

Summer Tanager by Hemant Kishan

Santa Cruz Flats with Keith Kamper & Chrissy Kondrat

Difficulty: Moderate. Birding from vehicles and the road but very hot by mid-morning. Drive time to flats area approximately one hour. Will include driving on gravel roads.

This flat area of agricultural fields, mesquite bosques, pecan groves and desert scrub is rarely birded in the summer, but it can hold many surprises. Tropical Kingbirds should be fledging their young at this time, and we can expect to see them in the rows of pecan trees along the road. Raptors such as Black Vultures, Swainson’s Hawks, and Burrowing Owls and if we are lucky, an early Crested Caracara, are possible. Sludge ponds and flooded fields at this time of year have yielded a variety of shorebirds, waders and blackbirds, while swallows and flycatchers catch our attention in the air. It will be very hot by 10 am so put on sunblock, bring a water bottle, and wear a hat. Limited to 9 participants.

Swainson’s Hawk by Martin Molina

Sabino Canyon with Max Roberts

Difficulty: Moderate. Mostly well groomed walking trails but may have some incline and may be on some uneven and rocky terrain for about 2 miles roundtrip. Bathrooms on-site. Bring 2 liters of water.

We’ll bird Sabino Canyon Recreation Area walking a loop that includes both Sonoran desert upland and Sabino Creek riparian area. Gila Woodpeckers, Purple Martins, and Cactus Wrens should be readily seen with other desert and riparian birds. Meet at the ramada by the Visitor’s Center at 5700 N Sabino Canyon Road. $8 parking fee. Return to car by 9am. Sunhat, water and walking shoes always recommended. Drive time to meeting location from festival venue is about 25 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 10 participants.

Cactus Wren, Mick Thompson

Birding with a Smartphone and Bluetooth/Wi-Fi Enabled Camera with John Amoroso

Difficulty: Easy. Flat walking trails in the city park. Bathroom on-site.

Take a bird walk in the field with experienced “I-birders” and learn how to use your technology to enhance your birding. Bring a pair of binoculars, your smart phone (with Merlin, E-bird App, and a field guide (i.e., Sibley) pre-loaded), and a Bluetooth/Wi-Fi enabled camera (if you have one), and learn how to FIND birds more easily, ID them more accurately, and SHARE information more quickly. Specific meeting instructions emailed beforehand. Drive time to the meeting location from the festival venue is less than 5 minutes. Limited to 10 participants.

Verdin, Mick Thompson

Birding at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum with Michael Sadat

Difficulty: Easy. Paved pathways with benches but there is some steeper incline. Bathrooms/water on-site.

Join docent and bird guide, Michael Sadat, for a guided bird walk around the beautiful grounds of the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. The Desert Museum is ranked on TripAdvisor.com as one of the Top 10 Museums in the country and also is home to many Sonoran desert specialties such as Costa’s Hummingbird, Gilded Flicker, and Pyrrhuloxia. Entry fee of $29.95 not included. Limited to 10 participants.

Pyrrhuloxia by Michael Sadat

Lakeside Park with Donito Burgess

Difficulty: Easy. About one mile walking on concrete, paved surfaces and some grassy lawn. Restrooms are available.

Lakeside Park in southeast Tucson is a great place to get to know your urban birds. We’ll be at the front end of the possibility of migrating shorebirds, wading birds, gulls or terns, so while unlikely, we’ll be sure to keep our eyes peeled for unusual birds as well. Osprey is a possibility. We’ll explore the lake and the adjacent lawns and ball fields. Likely sightings include Black-crowned Night-heron, hummingbirds (Anna’s, Black-chinned, & Broad-billed), Cassin’s Kingbird, Vermilion Flycatcher, Cooper’s Hawk, swallows, Abert’s Towhee, and more! Drive time to park and meeting location is about 15 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 12 participants.

Vermilion Flycatcher, Greg Lavaty

“Bird Words: Finding humor and joy in birding and its terminology” with special guest, Rosemary Mosco

Southeast Arizona Birding Festival Banquet & Culmination

Wrap up your festival experience with us as we celebrate more than just the new birds we’ve seen, but also the movement that birding is becoming—all over the world, and right here in Tucson. You’ll enjoy a delicious meal, receive a drink ticket, visit with friends, and hear from special guest Rosemary Mosco.

Rosemary Mosco is an author, illustrator, and speaker whose work connects people with the natural world. Her evening presentation, Bird Words: Finding humor and joy in birding and its terminology, celebrates birding with hilarious definitions and clever illustrations. This talk will highlight Mosco’s process, behind-the-scenes discoveries, and why birding definitions are so funny. You can find The Birding Dictionary and another of Mosco’s books, A Pocket Guide to Pigeon Watching, at our online Nature Store or in-person at the Nature Shop booth in the Nature Expo. (Limit of 120)

Kingbirds & Myiarchus Flycatchers ID with Chris Benesh sponsored by Field Guides

Cassin's Kingbird by Lois Manowitz

Southeast Arizona is rich in flycatcher diversity, and some of the more common and conspicuous ones include Tyrannus kingbirds and Myiarchus flycatchers. Birders often struggle with the subtle features that differentiate them. In this talk, Chris Benesh of Field Guides will provide some helpful tips on features to focus on and a few shortcuts to help identify them correctly.  (Limit of 100)

Cassin’s Kingbird by Lois Manowitz.