Arizona Birding Trip

Arizona Birding Trip - 2005

This page contains information and photos from the first out-of-state birding trip for the "Senior Birding Buddies". The trip took place April 15-20, 2005 in Southeast Arizona. Our itinerary:

April 15 - Fly from St. Louis into Phoenix and drive to Tucson;

April 16 - Tucson to Portal - birding at Sonora Desert Museum, along the trail to Portal - stay at Portal Peak Lodge for 2 nights;

April 17 Portal - Bird all day and evening (Owl prowl) in Portal, Cave Creek Canyon (South Fork), and Rodeo, NM with guide, Dave Jasper (best guide ever!!!);

April 18 Portal to Green Valley - bird along the way at San Pedro River and Miller Canyon - stay at Best Western in Green Valley for 2 nights;

April 19 - Bird at Patagonia (including Marion Paton's back yard), Sonoita Creek, and back to Green Valley;

April 20 - Bird at Madera Canyon in the morning, leave for Phoenix and flight back to St. Louis.

"Senior Birders" in Cave Creek Canyon - from Left to Right:

Tim Riley, Dave Pierce, Dave Jasper (Guide - kneeling), Elliot Glassman, "Yours Truly".

Click Here to see favorite photos from this trip.

Birds seen (134 different Species over the 5 day period, including 50 North American life birds for me):

4/16/05	4/17/05	4/18/05

White-winged Dove	Band-tailed Pigeon	Bewick's Wren
Mourning Dove	Elegant Trogon	Greater Roadrunner
Great-tailed Grackle	Mexican Jay	Hermit Thrush
Gambel’s Quail	Whiskered Screech Owl	Swainson's Hawk
Curve-billed Thrasher	Grace’s Warbler	Spotted Towhee
Pyrrhuloxia	Painted Redstart	Gray Hawk
Gila Woodpecker	Bridled Titmouse	Western Wood Pewee
Northern Mockingbird	Dusky-capped Flycatcher	Yellow Warbler
Verdin	Northern Flicker	Calliope HB
Cactus Wren	Arizona Woodpecker
Lesser Goldfinch	Brown Creeper	4/19/05
Turkey Vulture	Hutton’s Vireo
Costa’s HB	American Robin	Meadowlark
Northern Cardinal	Black Phoebe	Lark Sparrow
Black Vulture	Blue-throated HB	Zone-tailed Hawk
Common Raven	Virginia’s Warbler	American Coot
House Sparrow	White-throated Swift	Mallard
Rock Pigeon	Townsend’s Solitaire	Great Blue Heron
House Finch	Bullock’s Oriole	Neotropic Cormorant
European Starling	Abert’s Towhee	Osprey
Cliff Swallow	Scott’s Oriole	Bufflehead
Canyon Towhee	Pine Siskin	Ruddy Duck
Cassin’s Kingbird	Green-tailed Towhee	Tree Swallow
Western Kingbird	Crissal Thrasher	White-faced Ibis
Red-tailed Hawk	Black-tailed Gnatcatcher	Pied-billed Grebe
Cassin’s Sparrow	Ash-throated flycatcher	Song Sparrow
Black-throated Sparrow	Broad-billed HB	Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Western Wood Pewee	Broad-tailed HB	Northern Beardless Tarranulet
Brown-crested Flycatcher	Black-headed Grosbeak	Black-throated Gray Warbler
Ferruginous Hawk	Ladder-backed WP	Wilson's Warbler
Chihuahuan Raven	Lucy's Warbler	Lesser Nighthawk
Phainopepla	Summer Tanager
Loggerhead Shrike	Bell's Vireo	4/20/05
White-crowned Sparrow	Vermillion Flycatcher
Say’s Phoebe	Bendire's Thrasher	Northern Mockingbird
Black-chinned HB	Lark Bunting	Red-naped Sapsucker
Anna’s HB	Eurasian Collared Dove	Bushtit
Violet-crowned HB	Brewer's Sparrow	Wild Turkey (RITA)
Rufous-crowned Sparrow	Brown-headed Cowbird	Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Cooper’s Hawk	Scaled Quail	Western Tanager
Tropical Kingbird	Vesper Sparrow	Yellow-eyed Junco
Chipping Sparrow	Barn Swallow	Townsend's Warbler
Lazuli Bunting	Brewer's Blackbird
Acorn Woodpecker	Rufous HB
White-breasted Nuthatch	Elf Owl
American Kestrel	Western Screech Owl
Great Horned Owl
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Hooded Oriole
American Goldfinch
Magnificent HB

Favorite Bird Photos From this Trip (place pointer over Thumbnail for caption - click on any photo thumbnail to view full size):