USA 2023 - Death Valley - Flowers, Birds and a Coyote

 9-11 April 2023

At first sight, California's Death Valley seems an unlikely place to look for birds. Or any wildlife for that matter. But, as ever, if you look properly there are things to find. While the Mesquite Flat sand dunes (above) provide one of the valley's enduring images, this harsh environment is not typical of the wider area. The alluvial fans a short distance to the south, on the road from Furnace Creek to Stovepipe Wells, were dotted with colour after the recent rainfall. Plants in flower included Desert Gold (or Hairy Desertsunflower) Geraea canescens, Browneyes Chylismia claviformis and the ubiquitous Creosote Bushes Larrea tridentata (all pictured below).

Desert Gold Geraea canescens - Death Valley CA

Browneyes Chylismia claviformis - Death Valley CA

Creosote Bush (detail) Larrea tridentata - Death Valley CA

It's worth mentioning a few useful plant identification websites that came to my assistance here - notably wildflowersearch.org, which allows you to specify the search area (which could be 'Death Valley National Park' or a trail like Mosaic Canyon), southwestdesertflora.com and calscape.org (the Californian Native Plant Society). 

On arrival the previous afternoon, our first stop had been the National Park Visitor Centre at Furnace Creek. This is worth a look, if only to fill up your water bottles, pay the park entrance fee and visit the loo. Outside, a flycatcher was zipping in and out of the centre’s covered area, presumably feeding young in a nest.  It was Say’s Phoebe (below), the key identification feature being the light orange (Sibley says ‘dull cinnamon’) vent and belly, an open country species of the western USA and Mexico. 

Say's Phoebe - Furnace Creek, Death Valley CA

Our first day's hike was up Mosaic Canyon, with an early start to avoid the full heat of the day (which rose to the mid-30s Celsius or mid-90s Farenheit). It's a great walk; the canyon narrows down to single file sections where you have to scramble over the smoothly polished marble. The steep canyon walls kept it shady and cool in the lower sections, although things got hotter and sunnier as it widened out. 

Mosaic Canyon, Death Valley CA

The birdlife was enjoying the shade as well. Just past the first narrow section I heard a loud chirpy whistle coming from the canyon wall. “Probably a Canyon Wren”, advised a passing hiker. By this point on the trip I had learned to be cautious about other people's identification skills - and with good reason. Although the bird was plainly in a canyon, it was a Rock Wren (below), looking far more like the image of that species in Sibley than the one that I’d seen at Red Rock Canyon, Nevada (see earlier blog post here). For the record, Canyon Wrens have a deeper, rufous colour, with a white throat and breast. 

  

Rock Wren - Mosaic Canyon, Death Valley CA

Further up, where the canyon widened out, a loud chirping led me to a nice family scene: a male House Finch was feeding his young (below). They had bred early here, probably to escape the extreme heat of the summer. House Finches are attractive birds; it's a pity that some people discount common species, no matter how colourful they may be.  

Feeding time! House Finches in Mosaic Canyon, Death Valley CA

Our base in the National Park was The Ranch at Furnace Creek, which I would recommend as a place to stay - although, in fairness, there aren't many other local options. The campsite at Furnace Creek looked almost full, although it can't have been comfortable camping in the heat (and this was only April!). This campsite actually closes in the summer. 

For birdwatching, Furnace Creek is a bit of a magnet - for what I would argue are all of the wrong reasons. Breathtakingly, somebody decided that this would be the ideal place for a golf course. So the desert gives way to a complex of well-watered lawns, clumps of trees and a couple of decent-sized lakes. Naturally, all of this water acts as an avian magnet.

I had an evening walk around part of the golf course - a bit nervously, as I wasn't sure how birders would be received here. As it turned out, there were no problems. It might have helped that nobody was playing. In fact, apart from a few greenkeepers, who paid me no attention, there was no-one out on the course for the two days that we stayed at Furnace Creek. I wondered why they had bothered creating it.

My walk took me to the smaller pond, which contained couple of Cinnamon Teal and three Ruddy Ducks. Five American Coots (one pictured below) were stalking around on the fairway nearby. At first sight, these are very like the UK's Common Coot, but note the dark patch (actually red) at the top of the frontal shield. Clearly, none of these birds would normally be found here.

American Coot - Furnace Creek, Death Valley CA

An American Robin (below) perched nicely for me on a sawn-off log.  

American Robin - Furnace Creek, Death Valley CA

And a Turkey Vulture (below) floated over, missing the tips of some of its primaries. At least this was a 'proper' Death Valley resident.

Turkey Vulture - Furnace Creek, Death Valley CA

The following morning I was out of our room at dawn (just after 6am). My plan was to walk an anticlockwise circuit of Furnace Creek, heading up to the main road, along to the visitor centre and campsite, then down the airstrip road to the larger golf course pond, which I hadn’t found on my previous walk, then returning across the golf course.

There was very little bird activity in the hotel grounds, the first two species being both non-native - House Sparrow and Collared Dove. More movement (both avian and human) was apparent over at the campsite, where a mobile flock of around twenty Brewer’s Blackbirds (female pictured below) and a smaller number of Great-tailed Grackles were poking around the picnic tables. Brewer's Blackbirds (and indeed the grackles) are members of the Icterid (New World Blackbird) family, rather than thrushes. They are common in the western USA. The males are a bit smarter than the females: glossy black, with a white eye. 

Brewer's Blackbird female - Furnace Creek, Death Valley CA

I made my way across the campsite and joined the road that runs down to the airstrip. Two Canada Geese flew over (I would meet them later on), followed by a Wilson's Snipe. Death Valley is to the south of the snipe's year-round resident range, so this bird had likely either over-wintered here or was on passage to the north. I was very pleased to see it, even if only in flight. Further down the road, a small passerine in a tree turned out to be an Audubon’s Warbler: there were a few about.

The airstrip road took me near to the larger golf course pond. This was equipped with a wooden viewing platform (below), so it appeared that birders were being positively welcomed to this corner of the golf course.

Viewing platform - Furnace Creek gold course CA

The platform boasted a small notice celebrating the property's 'achievements in environmental sustainability'. I can't really comment on this, except to say that the presence of ponds, reed beds and well-watered fairways looked rather out of place in this arid desert landscape.

Audubon environmental sustainability notice

I wasn’t alone: another birder, who was from the east of the USA, so not completely familiar with the local birdlife, had beaten me to it. We had a brief chat and gazed across the pond, which contained a pair of Ruddy Ducks and three American Coots. Two more unusual birds then flew in. Most exciting for me was this beautiful male Yellow-headed Blackbird (below) - another icterid - which sat obligingly at the top of a Tamarisk tree.

Yellow-headed Blackbird (male) - Furnace Creek, Death Valley CA

This is a wetland species, so Death Valley wouldn’t be a natural place to find it. The same could be said about the Belted Kingfisher (below) which arrived next, looking almost green in the morning light. We’re out of range for Green Kingfisher here in any event, but the shaggy crest is a good identification feature for Belted (Green has a neater pointed crest). Belted Kingfishers are seen as far south as Colombia and Venezuela.  

Belted Kingfisher- Furnace Creek, Death Valley CA

Canada Geese (below), are so familiar in the UK as a non-native species that it felt odd taking their photo. But here they are native, setting aside the artificial nature of this particular habitat in this particular location. Death Valley sits right at the southern end of their resident range, so it’s unclear whether these two were going to stay here and breed or fly north.  

Canada Geese - Furnace Creek, Death Valley CA

Time was moving on, so I walked back to the hotel taking a more direct route across the golf course. Near to the accommodation blocks I encountered the local Coyote (below) walking along the side of a fairway and across a green.

Coyote - Furnace Creek, Death Valley CA

Coyote (detail) - Furnace Creek, Death Valley CA

We had seen a Coyote crossing the fairway here the previous evening, so I guessed that this was the same individual on its usual round. In appearance, Coyotes sit somewhere between a fox and a wolf to my eyes. While the ones that I’ve come across elsewhere in the USA have looked pretty lean and hungry, this Furnace Creek resident appeared to be in fairly good condition. Although there are no livestock, and very few wild ungulates, in Death Valley, it is likely that the golf course’s substantial Desert Cottontail population is the main prey item. And I doubt that losing a few bunnies would upset the golf course managers.

It was time for our last Death Valley breakfast. By the time that car was packed, the thermometer was already showing a toasty 91 degrees Farenheit (33 degrees Celsius). We were heading back to the coast.

To be continued ...  

Reference:

Sibley, D. (2003) Field Guide to the Birds of Western North America. London: Christopher Helm.

  

USA 2023 - Grand Canyon Birds (and more)

Sunday 9 April 2023

Steller's Jay - Grand Canyon AZ

We had arrived at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon on the previous afternoon, after a five and a half hour drive from Las Vegas across the vast, open landscapes of the Arizona uplands. First impressions of were off-putting: there was a 40 minute traffic queue to get through the National Park entrance, and the car parks on the South Rim were jammed. Our fault for arriving during the Easter weekend; we had been lucky to snatch a late room vacancy.

Grand Canyon AZ - view from South Rim

It wasn't any quieter when we had sorted ourselves out, got checked in at the lodge and walked over to the canyon edge. The view is, of course, sensational and it was great to be back after a 30 year absence. But the crowds had scared away most of the wildlife. A few Violet-green Swallows were flying above the canyon rim, and the only bird on the ground was this sharply-marked Spotted Towhee (below) searching for bits and pieces just over the wall at the edge of the viewing area. This is very much a bird of the western USA, its range extending into south-west Canada and down the spine of Mexico.

Spotted Towhee - Grand Canyon AZ

Also here was a Cliff Chipmunk (record photo below), also looking for scraps left by visitors. We only saw a couple of these: they had been a lot more common on my previous visit, although that had been in high summer. Today there was still snow on the shadier north-facing slopes.

Cliff Chipmunk (record photo) - Grand Canyon AZ

Fortunately, things improved considerably the following morning. As ever, it pays to be up early, and we were out of bed before 0600 to watch the sunrise. The first wildlife reward was a group of four or five Mule Deer nosing around the Thunderbird Lodge building, and looking very much at home. It wasn't a surprise: I had seen Mule Deer at sunrise by the Bright Angel trailhead on my last visit.

Mule Deer - Grand Canyon AZ

Mule Deer group - Grand Canyon AZ 

It was time for the obligatory sunrise photo shoot. The morning light was superb: clear and crisp.  It was fabulous to be out. 

Grand Canyon at sunrise

Once the sun had lifted above the canyon rim, we walked east along the Rim Trail, soon leaving our fellow sunrise gazers behind. There was much more bird activity in the forest than the previous afternoon (there could hardly have been less!), but my first sighting had me leafing through my copy of Sibley. Although looking like something new, the mystery bird turned out to be a Dark-eyed Junco (below).

Dark-eyed Junco (Grey-headed) - Grand Canyon AZ

The reason for my confusion was that Dark-eyed Juncos are variable, with 15 subspecies recognised in the HBW/Birdlife International Checklist. This form is known as a Grey-headed Junco (subspecies caniceps), with a more restricted distribution across the south-western states. Its rufous mantle is just visible.  

For comparison, here (below) is a more 'normal' Dark-eyed Junco from California's Monterey Bay coast. This subspecies is known as the Oregon Junco (ssp. oreganus), and is a common and familiar sight on the West coast of the USA. I took this photo a week before in our hotel car park.  

Dark-eyed Junco (Oregon Junco) - Aptos CA

While I was puzzling over the junco a woodpecker swooped in, perched in a pine and then flew onto a nicely exposed branch (below). It was clearly a Northern Flicker, which I had previously seen on a visit to New England. However, the species has now been split, so this is my first Red-shafted Flicker. It had an impressively long tongue (bottom image); although they can eat fruit and seeds, most of their diet comprises insects, especially ants. They often feed on the ground, like the Green Woodpecker in the UK and Europe.

Red-shafted Flicker - Grand Canyon AZ

Red-shafted Flicker showing tongue - Grand Canyon AZ

The eastern form of Northern Flicker now called the Yellow-shafted Flicker. The new names relate to the shafts of the wing and tail feathers, which are not easily seen - except in the hand, I guess. More obvious differences are that Red-shafted Flicker lacks a red nape (which Yellow-shafted has), but has a red moustachial stripe (compared to a black stripe on Yellow-shafted). The red stripe shows up well in this record photo below.

Red-shafted Flicker (detail) - Grand Canyon AZ

Posing no identification problems, but proving photographically difficult as it was constantly on the move, was this Pygmy Nuthatch (below) climbing down the trunk of a pine.

Pygmy Nuthatch (record photo) - Grand Canyon AZ

A bird that I had been particularly keen to see, the Pygmy Nuthatch is a western species, its range extending from southern Canada (just) down into Mexico. Oddly, we saw neither of the more common North American nuthatches (White and Red-breasted) on this trip; both are found on the Grand Canyon South Rim (says eBird) and elsewhere in California, too. Pygmy Nuthatch is a bird of conifer forests, while the other two species are less fussy.

Next up was the arrival of a pointy-crested Steller’s Jay (see image at the start of this post). Another western species, Steller’s Jay ranges from coastal Alaska to Central America. There are 16 subspecies; this Grand Canyon example was subspecies macrolopha (the inland  form). Note the white marks on the head; these are absent in the coastal nominate subspecies. Steller’s Jays prefer coniferous or mixed woods; I haven't seen it on the coast. Which can’t be said for the final bird that appeared: a Western Scrub-Jay (below).

Western (Woodhouse's) Scrub-Jay - Grand Canyon AZ

This looked so different from the coastal form that I had seen the previous week (see image at the end of this blog post), that I wondered at first whether it was a different species. But in fact it's the inland form of Western Scrub-Jay, known as Woodhouse's Scrub-Jay. (Although possibly not for very much longer if the proposed renaming of American common bird names goes ahead.)

And that was it for our morning Grand Canyon bird walk. We had breakfast at the lodge, packed our bags and started the long drive east ... to the considerably more arid surroundings of Death Valley.

To be continued ...

Reference

Sibley, D. (2003) Field Guide to the Birds of Western North America. London: Christopher Helm.

 
 

USA 2023 - Las Vegas Birding

Friday 7 April 2023

American Avocet - Henderson NV

When we decided on a Las Vegas stopover, I'd assumed that there would be little (or no) wildlife interest in the desert city. I was wrong. Some online research pointed me to a birding oasis in the nearby city of Henderson, less than half and hour's drive from the Strip. 

I arrived at the entrance of the Henderson Bird Viewing Preserve (below) just after opening time at 7am. A few cars were parked there; the local birders had beaten me to it.

Henderson Bird View Preserve NV - entrance

Like many great birding locations, the Henderson Bird Viewing Preserve occupies a complex of sewage treatment ponds. It was set up as a partnership between the city and volunteers, including the local Audubon Society. To say that the surrounding land has little wildlife value would be an overstatement; it has NO wildlife value, being a mix of sand, gravel and development projects. But all that changes when you move inside the reserve fence.  It is no exaggeration to say that there were birds all over the place: on the ponds, over the ponds, in the bushes and on feeders near the Visitor Centre. More details about the reserve, including a site map, can be found here (opens in new window).

One of the ponds at Henderson NV

Viewing screen at Henderson NV

The action started as soon as I stepped out of the visitor centre, with a bird feeder that was festooned with birds, both on the feeder itself and on the ground below.  But my eyes were first drawn to … a rabbit – a Desert Cottontail (below), which is the main cottontail species in the western USA.

Desert Cottontail - Henderson NV

The cottontail was sharing the fallen seed with Mourning Doves and female Red-winged Blackbirds (one can be seen behind the bunny). These are strikingly different to their male counterparts, which weren't around. Very strange. I was mulling this over when a large hawk materialised out of nowhere and zoomed past the feeder, scattering the blackbirds. There were two possible candidates, Sharp-shinned and Cooper’s Hawks, that look very similar. From its larger size, I’m happy that this bird was a Cooper’s Hawk.

A small bird flew into a bush next to the feeder: it was a Verdin (below), one of my target species for this leg of the holiday.

Verdin - Henderson NV

This is a male Verdin: note the rufous shoulder patch (lesser coverts) as well as the yellow head. Verdins are a bit of an anomaly: they are the sole representative of the Penduline Tit family (Remizidae) in the Americas. A desert-dwelling species, their range extends from east California to west Texas, and down into Mexico. 

In a nearby bush was a Audubon’s Warbler (below). This is a first winter bird – brownish with a pale throat. Audubon's Warbler was previously a subspecies of the familiar Yellow-rumped Warbler, but it has now been elevated to the rank of full species - as has its counterpart the Myrtle Warbler. (This has given me an 'armchair tick': never the most satisfying birding experience, but nobody turns them down!). 

Audubon's Warbler (1st w) - Henderson NV

For completeness, here (below) is an Audubon's Warbler in full adult plumage, also from Henderson. There were a lot of them around. The reserve at Henderson is obviously a magnet for migrant birds.

Audubon's Warbler (adult) - Henderson NV

The visitor centre hummingbird feeders were busy. Seeing any hummingbird is a thrill for this UK-based birdwatcher. While several species are possible at Henderson, all of the ones this morning were Anna’s Hummingbirds (below), the same as we had seen on the coast. Hummingbirds can be awkward to identify - partly due to their speed of movement, but also because their iridescent plumage can show different colours with different lighting. This is shown by the two photos below, which I think are of the same bird. The red throat (gorget) and crown, coupled with the grey breast, identify it as Anna’s Hummingbird.  

Anna's Hummingbird - Henderson NV

Anna's Hummingbird - Henderson NV

Turning my attention to the water, I scanned through the scatter of ducks bobbing around on the nearest pond (pond 1). These were: Ruddy Ducks, Shovelers, Buffleheads and my first Redhead (below).

Redhead - Henderson NV

Distinguished from Canvasback by the blue (and non-tapered) bill with a black tip, Redheads look very like ‘our’ (Common) Pochard but with a brighter colour to the head and a more distinct forehead.

Comparing images of the three species, Common Pochard almost looks like an intermediate between Canvasback and Redhead. Also here was a Common Gallinule, which has been split from ‘our’ Common Moorhen, but looks very much the same. Zipping over the water were hirundines that, at first sight, looked like Sand Martins. In fact, they were Northern Rough-winged Swallows, which have a brown (not white) throat.

I walked on to pond 8, which was where most of the waders (shorebirds) were hanging out. 

Black-necked (Black-winged) Stilt - Henderson NV

The morning light wasn't ideal for photography, but I had a go - see the American Avocet at the start of this post and the Black-necked Stilt (above). In assembling my world bird list I use the HBW/Birdlife International Checklist, which does me no favours with the stilts: Black-necked (Americas) and White-headed (Australia) are both lumped with Black-winged Stilt, even though they can be easily separated visually. All of them share the over-long reddish legs and dagger-like bill, though.

Lesser Yellowlegs - Henderson NV

A single Lesser Yellowlegs (above) - note the smaller size and mainly unbarred belly - was stalking around the avocets and stilts on pond 8, while on pond 4 next door, these Long-billed Dowitchers (below) were busily feeding; Henderson sits on the edge of their breeding and wintering areas, so these guys were probably on passage north.

Long-billed Dowitchers - Henderson NV

The waders were all well and good, but what I really wanted to see were some desert specialists, and the gravel path between ponds 4 and 8 obliged with a pair of Gambel’s Quails. The first pair that I came across were quite mobile, legging it quickly away from me (and who can blame them?). Not a great photo, as a result.

A pair of Gambel's Quails - Henderson.

But at the eastern corner of pond 8, a male gave me a closer view (below).

Gambel's Quail (male) - Henderson NV

While Gambel’s Quails look very much like their Californian Quail cousins, the ranges of the two species hardly overlap, so confusion is unlikely. Gambel’s Quail is a common desert resident with limited distribution in the south-western states and part of northern Mexico. Las Vegas is right on the edge of the species’ range. So, a good bird to see – neat, and almost comical with its drooping head plume. I was very pleased. Like many quails and partridges, Gambel’s Quails are often found in groups (coveys): apparently, these can contain up to 16 birds, although the ones at Henderson were mainly in pairs. The breeding season was upon us.

A series of exotic sounding whistles were coming from a patch of reeds at the corner of pond 8. The source was this displaying Great-tailed Grackle (below). He had an audience of at least two admiring (possibly) females, who are just about visible down in the reeds on the right.

Great-tailed Grackles - male (displaying) and female (bottom right) - Henderson NV

Within the USA, Great-tailed Grackles have shown a wide and speedy range expansion across the central and south-western states since the late 1800s, starting from southern Texas and following the development of urban areas. There were a couple on the roof of our Las Vegas hotel next morning.

Looking west towards central Las Vegas from Henderson Bird Viewing Preserve NV

The panorama above, looking over pond 8, shows the tower blocks of the Strip with the mountains behind, admittedly foreshortened by the 400 lens. Just to the right of the hotels you can just make out a range of low brick-red hills. This is Red Rock Canyon, which will be the subject of my next blog post.

Pond 9 contained a good range of waterfowl, including these Ring-necked Ducks (below).  

Ring-necked Ducks - Henderson NV

I’ve seen some vagrant Ring-necked Ducks in the UK (for example at RSPB Radipole Lake in Dorset), but these were my first in their native range. And very smart they are too.  The species is strictly North American, and Henderson is well out of the usual breeding area, so these birds were either wintering here or on passage. Also on the pond were a pair of Cinnamon Teals and plenty of Shovelers. It was odd to see such a mix of familiar and (to me) exotic species on the same pond.

Ruddy Duck (male) - Henderson NV

Back on pond 1 a Ruddy Duck drake (above) had drifted into view – much closer than the ones at Moss Landing.  Also North American, this species ranges down as far as northern Nicaragua and the big Caribbean islands (its scientific species name is jamaicanesis). Once a familiar sight on UK wetlands, it has now been (almost) completely eradicated from our side of the Atlantic. But that's a separate story.

It was time to return to the family, who had enjoyed a leisurely breakfast at our hotel on the Strip. But we were soon on the road again, heading for Red Rock Canyon.

To be continued ...