Day 11—Mt Lemmon . . . again

Monday, April 30, 2018

Today we went back to Mt Lemmon, this our third time birding its hotspots.. We managed to see more Red-faced  Warblers, House Wrens, and got our first look at some Pygmy Nuthatches. 

Then we returned to Rose Canyon Lake and paid the $11 day use fee. Despite trying to postpone my bedtime, I had not slept well the night before, so at this stop, I snoozed in the car while Deb hustled birds. Suddenly a helicopter with a water bucket swinging from its cable roared into sight at the ridge line. Having worked for the fire service, I knew that the helicopter was filling its bucket from Rose Canyon Lake to fight a forest fire. The helicopter came and went four times. Deb appeared at the car and said that it was interesting to watch the operation from lake level. This was the second time our birding was interrupted by an overhead helicopter. The first was in the Lower Rio Grand Valley when a Border Patrol helicopter swooped down to check us out when it was searching for illegal immigrants. Note to immigrants who want to enter the States: Wear binoculars, a birding vest, and a Tilley hat.

There is also a ridiculous story about a dead scuba diver found miles from the ocean after a forest fire. How did he get there? The helicopter bucket had scooped him up. Not really. I've heard that one so many times, told as though it actually happened, but Snopes says: FALSE.

Peregrine Falcon (Internet)

I was awake by then so birded the area with Deb. We met a guy named Chris Goger who showed us an area where he had found Pygmy Nuthatches. In this area was a dead tree snag that sported two small nest cavities. We were on a rock outcropping looking nearly eye level with the tree. Here we "Did a Carol" probably for about half an hour, but the nuthatches did not show up.While we were waiting, a Peregrine Falcon flew over. It was too fast for a photo but a thrill to see nonetheless. We told Chris of the Red-faced Warblers in Marshall Gulch beyond Summerhaven. He was eager to find them.

After Rose Canyon Lake we continued up the mountain stopping again at birding hotspots along the way. This time I dropped Deb off near the end of Marshall Gulch and told her that I would pick her up in an hour. I then stopped at the Winterhaven General Store and bought myself  some oatmeal cookies, an apple, and a cup of decaf for breakfast. I again saw several Red-faced Warblers working the willows by the stream and caught a few zzz's while waiting. When I picked up Deb, Chris G. was there and delighted to have seen the Red-faced Warblers.

Deb and I stopped at the public restrooms across from a realty company in Summerhaven. When I got back to the car, Deb was still sitting in it. I said, "Aren't your going to get out? There are Pygmy Nuthatches at the Realty Company's feeders." That spurred Deb to action and she climbed up to the company's deck to get some good shots of the nuthatches in the nearby trees. She also got great shots of the rock and ground squirrels working the area. 

When we were both still below, the real estate woman came out, filled the feeders, and threw some peanuts below. I stayed in the car and watched one little ground squirrel. It would find a peanut, stuff the end of the shell into its mouth, and then scamper off to find a spot to bury it, digging frantically with its small paws and carefully camouflaging the area by sweeping pine needles over it. It did this quickly with four peanuts, but the fifth one was too much of a temptation. This one it stopped to eat, cracking the shell and pulling the nut out with its teeth. After all this exhausting work, the little guy spread itself out on its belly and rested on a warm rock, its eyes at half mast. Stellar's Jays, and Rock Squirrels were also carting off peanuts as fast as they could. Deb got several photos.

We could see the smoke of the forest fire as we wound our way down the mountain. Eventually the road was blocked by firefighter and ranger cars. We, and a long line of other vehicles exiting the mountain, were stopped for about fifteen or twenty minutes until it was safe to drive past the firefighting equipment and smoke.

Our last stop of the day was Silverbell Lake in Christopher Columbus Park. We hoped to see some shorebirds, but the summer desert really is not the best time or place to look for shorebirds. We saw little other than mallards and domestic ducks and the usual suspects.The place was heavily used and littered with trash.