August 8th, 2012: Tenth day of Camp Chiricahua

     On this fine day of Camp Chiricahua, we had an early wakeup to head towards San Pedro House to bird. Jennie Duberstein had hooked us up with several researchers that were banding in this area. So we headed towards them, but we birded on the way. Birds that we saw were Vermilion Flycatchers, Lazuli Buntings, Inca Doves, and a juvenile Great Horned Owl, to name a few. We finally arrived at the banding station where they were banding a female Common Yellowthroat. However, one of the banders brought in one bag, and the bird inside made the yellowthroat look like a House Sparrow. It was an adult male Painted Bunting, an incredibly multicolored bird.

Male Painted Bunting
(notice red throat and belly, purplish head, and yellow-green back)

    After birding at San Pedro House, we headed up to Carr Canyon to picnic. We arrived and began eating. Suddenly, we heard a nearby, light "whip" call. We all froze because we all knew what that call was. We had heard it at Mount Lemmon at the beginning of camp. It was a Buff-breasted Flycatcher, a bird that almost everybody had missed. Fortunately, I had already seen it, so I wouldn't have been crestfallen if I missed it. But as I thought this to myself, the bird flies to an open perch, for everybody to see. This was a great moment for everybody, because this was a bird that everybody had lost hope in seeing. So when the bird flew out to the open, an aura of joy and happiness encircled the camp. After lunch, we birded this area. Yellow-eyed Juncos and Cordilleran Flycatchers were the most common birds, along with Bewick's Wrens and Brown Creepers. We then reached a clearing where some Turkey Vultures soared over. But among these vultures was one bird that looked a little different. It had a striped tail and striped underwings. It was a Zone-tailed Hawk, but a juvenile because it lacked the bold, white stripes that the adults usually have.

Juvenile Zone-tailed Hawk
(notice the stripes on the tail and on the underwings, and the yellow cere at the base of the bill)

    After lunch, we headed back to the San Pedro River Inn, where we birded some more. Nothing of interest was seen. However, once it started getting dark, Lesser Nighthawks began flying all over the place, catching gnats and flies while in flight.

    These goatsuckers are nearly identical to Common Nighthawks, but differentiation between the two species is possible. Lesser Nighthawks are overall smaller than Common Nighthawks, but this isn't the most reliable field mark. The most reliable way to tell them apart is by studying the white wing patches on the wings. On a Lesser Nighthawk, these white wings patches will positioned at a certain distance from the wing tip, that will form a equilateral triangle. On a Common Nighthawk, the distance from the wing patches and the wing tip will form an isosceles triangle. This may be difficult to view from afar, but with a proper view, identification is possible.

     The nighthawks made for a nice way to end the day. As it was our last day at San Pedro River Inn, we packed our bags, and had to clean up our rooms before going to bed.