Archives: Festival Events

Difficulty: Easy. This trip is designed to be intentionally inclusive and accessible for beginner and advanced birders who experience accessibility challenges as a result of a disability or other health concern. No bathrooms at the lodge feeders.

Join Kim for a 90 minute “Big Sit” at the Santa Rita Lodge feeders. We will enjoy the variety of birds at the feeder station, where benches are available. Possible birds include Rivoli’s Hummingbird, Acorn Woodpecker, Mexican Jay, and Hepatic Tanager. Drive time to the meeting location from festival venue is about 55 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 8 participants.

Rivoli’s Hummingbird, Fred Mitchell

Difficulty: Easy. Just over a mile walking on excellent surfaces. Bathroom and water on-site.

Join Rich Bailowitz, author of the Field Guide to the Damselflies and Dragonflies of Arizona and Sonora at this artificial wetland perfectly situated for a wide variety of dragonflies and damselflies. We’ll also come across some great birds too! Drive time to meeting location from festival venue is about 20 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 12 participants.

Difficulty: Easy. Mostly flat, groomed trails at a large city park. Bathrooms on-site.

This beautiful park in northeast Tucson includes a large lake (with a few smaller ponds), grassy park area with palm trees, and is surrounded by Sonoran desert. This mix of habitats creates opportunities for many birds including Anna’s, Costa’s, and Black-chinned Hummingbirds, Brown-crested Flycatcher, the Hesperia subspecies of Purple Martin, Phainopepla, and Hooded Oriole. Drive time to the meeting location from the festival venue is about 30 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 12 participants.

Black-chinned Hummingbird, Hemant Kishan

Difficulty: Easy. Flat walking around city park trails for about a mile. Bathrooms on-site.

Less than 15 minutes from the festival venue, this is one of the best spots in Tucson to find Vermilion Flycatchers and the city park habitat (along with pond) offers a good variety of species. We’ll walk the grounds hoping to find Broad-billed Hummingbird, Belted Kingfisher, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Cassin’s Kingbird, Lark Sparrows, and Lucy’s Warblers. Drive time to meeting location from festival venue is about 10 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand.  Limited to 10 participants.

Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Shawn Cooper

Difficulty: Easy. Walking on excellent surfaces at a city park. Bathroom on-site.

Join local leader, Marie Davis, for a walk around the beautiful gardens of Desert Meadows Park in Green Valley. Birds to look for include Costa’s Hummingbird, Vermilion Flycatcher, Rufous-winged Sparrow, and Abert’s Towhee. Drive time to meeting location from festival venue is about 35 minutes, specific meeting instructions will be emailed beforehand. Limited to 10 participants.

Costa’s Hummingbird, Francis Morgan

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 combine herping and birding in the most popular canyon in Tucson, Sabino Canyon. The Sonoran desert upland and Sabino Creek riparian area offer great opportunities for iconic desert birds such as Greater Roadrunner, Gila Woodpecker, Cactus Wren, and Black-throated Sparrow. With the help of Jim Rorabaugh, the senior author of A Field Guide to the Amphibians and Reptiles of Sonora, Mexico, we will also attempt to find whiptails, Zebra-tailed Lizards, spiny lizards, and maybe the iconic Gila Monster. 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 12 participants.

Greater Roadrunner, Dan Weisz

Moderate. Mostly easy with mix of paved and dirt trail and overlook, with some short, steep grades between paved and dirt 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 Abert’s Towhee, 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.

Hooded Oriole, Fred Mitchell

Difficulty: Moderate. Mostly flat walking for about two miles on some sandy/dirt trails. No bathroom on-site.

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. Sponsored by Sabrewing Nature Tours. 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

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 start at the Gordon Hirabayashi Campground to search for birds of oak woodland such as Woodhouse’s Scrub Jay, Bushtit, and Scott’s Oriole before heading up to higher elevations and new habitats. A stop in Bear Canyon puts us in a beautiful canyon where we’ll search for Mexican Jay, Plumbeous Vireo, and Grace’s Warbler among others in the sycamores and pines. 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 8 participants.

Grace’s Warbler, Shawn Cooper