North
of Yuma
Sep 21,
2002,
77 -
95 degrees, 0700-1330
- narrated
by Henry Detwiler
A long morning trip with Jeff & Dave to look for residents and migrants along the
Gila and Colorado rivers.
100
species
Click on
thumbnail pictures for full-sized shots.
Adriana and I picked up Jeff
Coker at 6:30 and we met up with Dave Taylor and his son Hayden shortly
after 7:00 at the Gila River Grove. There wasn't a lot of activity
there, but we did latch on to Yellow, Orange-crowned and Wilson's
Warblers. We surprised a Great-horned Owl in the grove and Jeff
found the resident pair of Burrowing Owls in the fields to the north.
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Brewer's Sparrow
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The winter
sparrows have returned to Yuma in force, and we found our first
Lark, Brewer's & White-crowned, and Lincoln's Sparrows, as well as a
Green-tailed Towhee consorting with the resident Abert's.
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South of Kool Corner, we found the Harris' Hawk,
Western Tanagers, and this beautiful male Vermilion
Flycatcher. Betty's Kitchen yielded Hermit, Townsend's,
Wilson's and Black-throated Gray Warblers. In a small pond
east of Mittry Lake Dave pointed out two Red-necked Phalaropes,
and the overlook yielded several waterfowl.
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Male Vermilion Flycatcher
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The Yuma Proving Ground sewage lagoons had a few ducks,
shorebirds, a Black Tern, and my first Lesser Yellowlegs for the Yuma
area. Sage Sparrows were a nice find on the way out.
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Jeff spotted our only Osprey along the main channel of the
Colorado River south of Imperial Dam. West Pond was full of coots, but
nothing else. Senator Wash was very low, and we were happy to find a
Common Tern among the Caspians and Forster's. A bonus bird was the
Marbled Godwit.
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Brewer's Sparrow
(Showing off its finely striped crown)
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Male Costa's Hummingbird
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The desilting ponds were still bare, but Phil Swing Park was
hopping. Chipping, White-crowned, and Lincoln's Sparrows
were joined by several warblers, finches, and a bright Gray
Flycatcher. The date palms in the trailer
court across from Laguna Dam provided a tasty snack for a female Black-headed Grosbeak.
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At home, I snapped these two hummingbird pictures,
and hit bird #100 for the day, an immature male Rufous Hummingbird
that has been jealously guarding one of our hummingbird feeders.
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1st-Winter Rufous
Hummingbird
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