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Photo credits: Photos courtesy of agencies or businesses shown.
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April 30 Bird Sightings Report
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Southwestern New Mexico Audubon Society Bird Sighting Report
April 30, 2008
Read the current issues of Ravens.
This is the eightieth in an on-going series of twice-monthly bird sighting reports of local interest in the four counties of southwestern New Mexico. Please contact me if you have sightings to report (species, location, and date); and feel free to inform others that they can receive these reports if they send me their e-mail address.
Photographs appearing in these Reports are the result of the generous contributions of subscribers, and may not be used for commercial purposes without their consent.
Thank you.
David Beatty
On the web at: http://swnmaudubon.org/index.html
Learn more about the SW New Mexico Birding Trail
Now that the height of bird migration has begun this Report is receiving many pictures of new arrivals. Thank you! Not all are able to be printed in each Report and some will be archived for later presentation.
Often difficult to identify, this flycatcher was captured at The Nature Conservancy’s Iron Bridge preserve in Connie Adler’s photo on April 20. It will be identified at the end of this Report.
Other recent birds of note at Iron Bridge include single Western and Least Sandpipers on the Gila River shoreline on 4/20 (seen by 6 birders); a Lazuli Bunting (Debbie and Jerry Bird and Terry Timme) on 4/22; Mike Fugagli’s Lawrence’s Goldfinch (4/26); and a Cordilleran Flycatcher which gave me an up-close view on 4/27.
A Lazuli Bunting appeared for a photo at Connie Adler and Judith Nelson’s Boston Hill feeders on 4/25. Connie also has recent photos of Black-headed Grosbeak, Bullock’s Oriole, and Cedar Waxwing on 4/25. If you would like to see these pictures you can contact me and I will put you in touch with Connie. Rich Matthews had his first-of-season Black-headed Grosbeak in his north-of-Silver City yard also on April 25, and Don Murphy, near “W” Mountain, identified his bird on 4/29, but earliest bird was the one at the Dale and Marian Zimmerman Silver City yard on April 15.
The Zimmerman's noted their first Ash-throated Flycatcher on April 27, and on that date a Northern Mockingbird also returned. Brian Heap reports large numbers of Pinyon Jays are regularly visiting his seed feeders in the small Catron County town of Luna on the Arizona border near the San Francisco River.
Surprisingly the Lawrence’s Goldfinch that appeared in David Morehead’s downtown Bayard yard feeder earlier in April (and mentioned in the last Report) remained at least through April 25. He also had a visit from this stunning Hooded Oriole on 4/25.
Junella Haynes has been visited by an Inca Dove at her 6th Street, Silver City yard for the week of June 20-26. A recent report of an early April (4/9) sighting of several Grace’s Warblers has arrived from visiting birder David Hannah who visited the Pinos Altos Range among several local birding hot spots at the beginning of the month.
Our Audubon chapter's Lake Roberts field trip on April 19 produced a Zone-tailed Hawk and several Purple Martins among 43 species counted. On the same date (in a much different habitat, and far from Lake Roberts) Robert Shantz photographed this Zone-tailed Hawk at the Gila River’s Lower Box near Red Rock north of Lordsburg.
Robert also captured photos of Horned Lark and Gray Flycatcher on Steins Road in Hidalgo County on April 28. Let me know if you would like to see those pictures and I can give you Robert’s address.
A pair of Montezuma Quail flushed under the feet of Rinda Metz during a hike in the south Burro Mountains on 4/24. Debbie and Jerry Bird found two male Rose-breasted Grosbeaks at Iron Bridge (along with a possibly lingering Greater Yellowlegs along the river) on April 28. I was surprised to see almost a half dozen Blue-gray Gnatcatchers at the summit of Eighty Mountain (7467 feet) on April 28, which is just northeast of Gomez Peak in the Gila National Forest. They are more frequently found at lower elevations.
What is another name for blue? This April 23 photograph by Connie Adler taken at her backyard feeding station at the foot of Boston Hill in Silver City calls for a deeper color.
Indigo Bunting
A very nice count of 5 Abert’s Towhees, along with a first-of-season Yellow-breasted Chat as well as a Peregrine Falcon, were Roland Shook and Denise Friedrick’s prizes on a survey of bird species along the Gila River near the village of Cliff on April 21.
Debbie and Jerry Bird found a Lark Bunting visiting their Silver City yard on April 29. And on May 1, in a big surprise, as Jerry was censusing the lower reaches of San Vicente Creek south of Silver City he came across a Worm-eating Warbler!Look closely, here is his photo of the bird:
An overnight trip to Deming on April 24 brought me face-to-face with a Red-faced Warbler in the pines at Mountain View Cemetery on 4/25. I was astonished. Also, a look-in at Deming’s Pecan Park produced about 15 White-faced Ibis taking to the air.
Dale and Marian Zimmerman counted 6 Least Sandpipers, 91 Wilson’s Phalarope and an Eared Grebe during a trip to the Tyrone ponds on April 27. The previous issue of this Bird Sightings Report had a picture of a Cattle Egret, near Tyrone. Now come three Snowy Egrets which were photographed by Roland Shook on April 25 on the Gila River near the Bill Evans Lake water discharge juncture to the river.
Roland also found a quite unusual Bonaparte’s Gull at this location and has a photo should one wish to see it. Earlier in the month (4/17) he had a Solitary Sandpiper at the river in the nearby Gila Bird Area section of the national forest.
Jim Rogers, near Faywood, between Deming and Silver City, found a first-of-season Scott’s Oriole on April 21. He has a dandy photo which only limited space precludes showing at this time. Several birders recently have seen Osprey along the Gila River near the Iron Bridge preserve. Roland Shook got the species in his sights.
The flycatcher pictured at the beginning of this Report is an Ash-throated Flycatcher. (The similarly appearing Brown-crested Flycatcher was seen at Iron Bridge by Debbie and Jerry Bird and Terry Timme on April 22.)
Southwestern New Mexico Audubon Society presents a program on “Wolves in the Wilderness: Progress and Setbacks”. Ten years after the reintroduction of Mexican Wolves into the southwestern United States the program, and the wolves are in jeopardy. Jean Ossorio discusses her detailed charts on individual lobos and their fates. Friday, May 2, at 7 p.m. in Harlan Hall, on the WNMU campus. (534-4458)
Two seasonal bird counts occur this month. The Gila River Spring Count will be held this Saturday, May 3 up and down the Gila River in southwestern New Mexico. Roland Shook is the organizer. Beginning birders can be paired with more experienced persons. (388-3441). The following week, Saturday May 10, Jerry Bird coordinates the International Bird Migration Bird Count Day in Grant County. (534-4950). Participating in one or both counts are great ways to learn more about bird identification and behavior. You can even do back yard birding if your property adjoins the Gila River (May 3) or is located anywhere in Grant County (May 10).
You can always check on chapter activities at our web site: http://swnmaudubon.org/index.html
Look for the next issue of SWNM Audubon’s Bird Sightings Report in your in-box around the middle of May.
DB
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Silver City/Grant County Chamber of Commerce
