Golden Eagle Harassed by Ravens

Thursday afternoon I took a scouting/photography trip to Arivaca Arizona to check out the wildflower bloom which you may remember I predicted would be spectacular due to the abundance of winter rain in the area. Well I have been talking to folks in the environmental community and beyond and the most frequent comment is "I have never seen it like this before" so I had to see for myself. At the end of my trip when I was headed home I witnessed this amazing sequence of events.
This Golden Eagle was being chased by a couple of Ravens which are pretty big birds and they were ganging up on this magnificent bird.
These first few shots are of the Eagle landing in a tree in an attempt to get away from the Ravens.



Roosting.
From this point the shots are of the eagle taking flight which was a beautiful thing to see.

Madera Canyon Tanagers and Orioles

When I opened my e-bird alert this morning I was surprised to find that a Flame Colored Tanager had been confirmed at Madera Canyon. Considered an accidental stray from Mexico I did what any self respecting birder would do and took the afternoon off and headed out to Madera.

My expectation was that we would search for hours and go home disappointed. As you can see from the photos it went much better than anticipated. When we arrived we found the area it was spotted in and drove a short distance and parked the car.

Just as we arrived so did the Flame Colored Tanager. The whole process took 15 minutes not counting the drive to the canyon.

Wanting to make sure I had some usable photos we stuck around to see if it would visit again. First came this Hooded Oriole.


And then this female Hooded Oriole.

And next up was this Hepatic Tanager

And finally this Scotts Oriole!! There were also assorted hummingbirds, a Painted Redstart, White Breasted Nuthatches, Yellow Eyed Junco's, Myrtle Warbler's and etc.etc..

Arizona's SB1200 A Very Bad Idea

Arizona took a sharp right turn when the legislature voted to approve SB 1200 which places the future of wildlife management in the state in the hands of hunters and ranchers. The bill is backed by the heavily anti wolf Arizona Sportsmen for Wildlife and would essentially make certain that only those who are opposed to returning the Mexican Gray Wolf to the wild in Arizona would have a say in decisions about wildlife management in the state.

The law passed by the legislature creates a new Game and Fish Commissioner Appointment Recommendation Board that would guarantee hunters control 3 seats and ranchers 1 seat, leaving only 1 seat to represent the rest of Arizonans who really care about the future of wildlife here in the state.

Now I'm not a rocket scientist but it's easy to see how this is going to work out. Special interest hunting groups will team up with special interest ranchers and recommend people who will vote against the Mexican Wolf and in favor of more killing of just about everything. These people would hand pick the commissioners who decide state policy on wolf management, protection of endangered species like jaguars and sonoran pronghorns, promotion of state wildlife action plans and virtually every other important wildlife policy in Arizona

Placing total control of Arizona's wildlife management in the hands of interest groups whose values are killing wildlife and protecting livestock at any cost is a monumentally bad idea and must be reversed immediately by the Governors veto.

This is nothing short of a power grab that will doom Arizona to backwards management of our most precious asset, our wildlife. Arizona is on the verge of a policy decision that will alter the future of eco-tourism in the state by making the state one big Safari Club. Thousands of people come to Arizona each year armed only with cameras and binoculars and spotting scopes in hopes of seeing some of our wonderful wildlife and it would be a shame if they went to more environmentally aware states in the future.

I for one am deeply disturbed by this development and will continue to speak out against this outrage often and loudly. I will keep you updated on this important issue. Please contact the Governor and tell her to veto SB 1200 now.

Jan Brewer

Telephone (602) 542-4331
Toll Free 1-(800) 253-0883
Fax (602) 542-1381

Thank You

Ray Goodwin

Sonoran Connection

Birds of Madera Canyon

American Kestrel spotted on Whitehouse Road-Even with the return of water to the canyon the number and variety of birds seems to be less than I would expect to see this time of year. There is still plenty of unmelted snow on the peaks which makes me think that there will be good stream flow for some time to come. The spring wild flowers do not seem as abundant in Madera as they were in Sabino yesterday.
Say's Phoebe
Grace's Warbler
Ruby Crowned Kinglet
Broad-billed Hummingbird
According to E-Bird Alert a Flame Colored Tanager was spotted at Madera Canyon yesterday while we were there but unfortunately we were unaware of it's presence.
Canyon Towhee

Mexican Jay

Turkey Vulture
Red Tailed Hawk
Rough Legged Hawk

Lower Sabino Canyon

If you are looking for solitude then Sabino Canyon may not be for you. If you are looking for an unbelievably beautiful place then Sabino fits the bill. We went on Friday morning and the place was packed with walkers,runners,trams and lots of children enjoying the great outdoors. The above sign greets visitors at the entrance to the canyon but we would not get far enough into the canyon to see the big cats today.
We walked the half mile Bajada Nature Trail when we arrived and were happy to see a large flock of Cedar Waxwings hanging out in the Palo Verde . Get information on Cedar Waxwings here: www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Cedar_Waxwing/id
There were a couple of examples of crestate saguaros along the trail.
This is with out a doubt the most accommodating Round Tailed Ground Squirrel who allowed us to observe his morning exercise. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Round-tailed_ground_squirrel
To our delight we were treated to a real harbinger of spring. There were several American Robins on the trail as we headed towards Sabino Creek. Learn about the American Robin here: www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/american_robin/id

The Creosote is in full bloom and is actually quite pretty. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creosote

The views are exquisite in all directions.
The wildflower bloom is well underway and is the best I've seen since moving here five years ago.
Sabino Creek is flowing robustly from snow melt and recent rains.
I can't get over how some plants survive in the most inhospitable places.
List of birds on this walk: Cedar Waxwing, American Robin, Brown Thrasher, Phainopepla, Prruloxia, Broad-billed Hummingbird, Costa's Hummingbird, Black-chinned Hummingbird, Gambel's Quail, Painted Redstart, Yellow Warbler, Goldfinch, Lesser Goldfinch, Canyon Towhee.
Sabino Dam is an easy walk from the visitors center and well worth the trip.


Pearly Crescentspot www.butterfliesandmoths.org/species?l=1741

We came across this Painted Redstart feeding on flying insects along the stream bed. www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Painted_Redstart/id
Queen Butterfly
I'm not sure what this lizard is but I was wondering if his tail is a regrown one.
There is still snow in the mountains on April 2nd.