Arizona & California – Winter Deserts & Sky Islands
Monday 22 December 2008 to Tuesday 6th January 2009
AA8030
Many
of the USA’s fine birdwatching venues are at their best in spring, but Arizona
and California offer excellent year round birding and this tour presents a
welcome contrast to the gloom of a typical British winter. Southeastern
Arizona’s majestic ‘sky islands’ of canyon and mountain rise above the Sonoran
desert and are home to a wealth of bird life ranging from Gambel’s Quail to
Painted Redstart. In contrast, the coastal zone of southern California offers a
quite different environment with a number of avian specialities, amongst them
Black Oystercatcher, Black Turnstone, Surfbird and Wandering Tattler. In
addition there are a number of other local specialities on offer, such as:
California Quail, Nuttall’s Woodpecker, California Thrasher, Wrentit and
California Gnatcatcher. The deserts of both states have many special and
distinctive species of their own such as Cactus Wren, Greater Roadrunner, Gilded
Flicker, Pyrrhuloxia, Curve-billed Thrasher and the more difficult to locate
Crissal, Sage & Le Conte’s Thrashers. The oak and pine clad mountain slopes
harbour a number of excellent species, including Red-breasted & Pygmy
Nuthatches, Williamson’s Sapsucker and Townsend’s Solitaire. We will spend time
exploring the San Diego coastline, Anza Borrego State Park and the Salton Sea in
California. In Arizona, Madera Canyon, Patagonia Lake State Park and the
grasslands of the San Rafael Valley - an important wintering area for many
species will be explored. From Sierra Vista we will look for wintering raptors
Sandhill Cranes and Mountain Plovers in the Sulphur Springs Valley and visit the
San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area, an excellent site for wintering
sparrows and finches and the birds that prey on them. In fact, raptors will be
very much in evidence throughout, many of them occupants of grassland fence
posts and roadside power poles. The very best of winter birding in the USA !Day 1: Fly UK to San Diego, where we arrive in the evening.
Overnight – San Diego
Day 2: The whole day will be spent in the San Diego Area, visiting a variety of habitats, which should reveal a good diversity of species. Visiting tidal flats, rocky coastline and scrub, we will look for a number of specialities including Western & Clark’s Grebes, Pacific Loon, Glaucous-winged Gull, Brandt’s Cormorant, Surfbird, Wandering Tattler, Heerman’s Gull, California Thrasher, Wrentit, California Gnatcatcher and Golden-crowned Sparrow.
Overnight – San Diego
Days 3 & 4: Heading eastwards on our way to the Salton Sea, we pass through the marvellous Anza Borrego State Park where we should encounter a number of desert species, perhaps including Gambel’s Quail, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Cactus Wren and Black-throated Sparrow. Although created by man, the Salton Sea is an oasis for wildlife, attracting a multitude of birds: wildfowl are numerous and as many as 15 species of ducks may be present as well as Snow and Ross’s Geese; waders should include American Avocets, Black-necked Stilts, Long-billed Curlew and Least Sandpipers. Amongst the many California Gulls we will look for the sought-after Yellow-footed Gull. More desert species in this area could include Burrowing Owl, Inca Dove and Crissal Thrasher.
Overnights - Brawley
Day 5: After breakfast we’ll drive to Phoenix, stopping en route a number of times to look for specialities such as Prairie Falcon, Le Conte’s Thrasher, Black-tailed Gnatcatcher and Vermilion Flycatcher.
Overnight - Phoenix
Days 6 - 8: On Day 6 we head for Tucson, en route visiting a number of sites, such as Casa Grande Water Treatment Plant for a variety of wildfowl, perhaps including Eared Grebe and Bufflehead. From our base in Tucson we visit the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, where typical species include Gilded Flicker, Anna’s and perhaps Costa’s Hummingbirds, Greater Roadrunner, Cactus Wren, Pyrrhuloxia and Black-throated Sparrow. We will also explore the pine-clad slopes of Mount Lemmon, which provide habitat for White-breasted & Pygmy Nuthatches and Red-naped Sapsucker. An excursion to the Sweetwater Wetlands may reveal Harris's Hawk, Sora, Black Phoebe, Common Yellowthroat, Brewer’s & Yellow-headed Blackbird.
Overnights - Tucson
Day 9: We drive south to Green Valley and visit Madera Canyon, hoping to see such species as Rufous-winged Sparrow, Arizona & Acorn Woodpeckers and perhaps Painted Redstart.
Overnight - Green Valley
Days 10-12: We drive to Sierra Vista for a three-night stay. On the way we may visit Patagonia, Sonoita Creek, Patagonia Lake State Park, Kino Springs or Paton's. Whilst at Sierra Vista we have two full days to explore the area. We will visit the Sulphur Springs Valley, a haven for wintering Sandhill Cranes and Snow Geese, many raptors including Golden Eagle and Prairie Falcon plus Mountain Bluebirds and Mountain Plovers. We will look for longspurs and sparrows in the San Rafael Grasslands and if time permits for Abert's Towhee and maybe even Green Kingfisher in the San Pedro Riparian Reserve. Nearby, Miller, Garden, Scheelite and Sawmill Canyons are also options, with Spotted Owls a possibility.
Overnights: Sierra Vista
Day 13: After leaving Sierra Vista we’ll drive to Portal – a delightful hamlet at the base of the stunning Chiricahua Mountains - former home of Apache Chiefs, Cochise and Geronimo. At the entrance to the Chiricahuas is Cave Creek Canyon - a delightful area and a haven for birdlife, which includes: Whiskered Screech Owl, Hairy & Arizona Woodpeckers, Northern Flicker, Steller’s & Mexican Jays, Mexican Chickadee, Bushtit, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Golden-crowned & Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Western Bluebird, Hermit Thrush, Hutton’s Vireo and Yellow-rumped Warbler. The desert scrub around Portal also supports an array of birdlife, with some local specialities and a number of wintering species, including: American Kestrel, Scaled Quail, Bendire’s, Crissal & Curve-billed Thrashers, Loggerhead Shrike, Phainopepla, Green-tailed Towhee, Brewer’s, Vesper & Lark Sparrows and Lark Bunting.
Overnight – Portal
Day 14: After early morning birding around Portal we will travel to Tucson but visiting Willcox Twin Lakes en route, where we should encounter a number of wetland species, perhaps Eared Grebe, Great Blue Heron, Killdeer, Spotted Sandpiper and several species of wildfowl.
Overnight – Tucson
Day 15: Catch a morning return flight to the UK.