July Bird Count at Tohono Chul Park

For the last few years I’ve been privileged to take part in official Audubon-sponsored bird counts at Tohono Chul Park. The purpose of the annual Tucson Bird Count (TBC), which takes place each spring, is to document what birds occur on each of over 800 points throughout the Tucson Valley and Saguaro National Parks East and West. Additional, quarterly counts take place in several good birding areas, including Tohono Chul. According to Jennie McFarland, TBC Coordinator, the purpose of the count is not only to learn more about our ever-changing bird population, but to determine how Tucson residents can better share their space with native birds.

At Tohono Chul, the counts are led by a very experienced birder, Jim Hayes, who is retired from the National Science Foundation. At Jim’s invitation, he is joined by three or four Tohono Chul docents who have varying degrees of birding experience.

We begin the count in the eastern parking lot around 5:15 just before the sun comes up, to see/hear owls or other night birds, and to be able to more clearly hear the first dawn songs. Each birding area has six official points, where the group stops and records all birds positively identified. The rules require that the group leader must personally see or hear the birds at the official point. The point counts last five minutes each. Birds seen and heard on the way from one point to another are also recorded (by number and sex, if known). Anything unusual, such as a bird actively building a nest or a rattlesnake, is also noted. The photos in this post are from the midsummer bird count at Tohono Chul, on July 10, 2016.

Point 1.  This point is at the western end of the Park, at the bottom of the Saguaro Discovery Trail. It's a good area for seeing desert birds as well as other wildlife in the wash west of the trail. 

We saw and/or heard a number of typical birds at this point, including: brown-crested flycatcher, cactus wren, Gila woodpecker, house finch, pyrrhuloxia, verdin,  and white-winged dove. 

 On the way to the next counting point we saw a nesting purple martin, in the same saguaro it had used the previous year. (It was sticking its head out of the nest hole, just like the bird in the above photo.) These birds are new to Tohono Chul, having first appeared last year. We knew they were likely to be on or near "their" saguaro, because they'd been seen recently by docents. But we could not note the species in the official point count because the bird couldn’t be seen from the official point, so it was placed on the "supplemental" list. When I asked about the strictness of the rules, I was told that they help make certain that the counts are consistent from year to year.

Point 2.  We picked up a supplemental Lesser goldfinch on the way out of front entrance and to the next official point, in the front parking lot. Sometimes that is where we start the count, and we've been there in the cold dark of a winter morning, where the early birds are already vocalizing. At this point we picked up a few more species (in addition to several we already had), including bronzed cowbird, mourning dove, Abert's towhee, and Bell's vireo, as well as supplemental phainopepla, en route to the next point. When you're on a bird count, you try to identify every bird you see, including distant wire birds, such as this pair of doves:

 We now headed to the next two official points on northeast side of the Park.  On the way we passed a pile of eucalyptus logs, all that remain of the giant tree that shaded the front of the Park for more than forty years, serving as a home to numerous birds, including several Cooper's hawks.

 As we approached the third official counting point, on the Desert View Trail, the sun was just peeking over the Catalina Mountains. 

Points 3 and 4. After  five minutes at the third stop, it was already starting to get hot, so we hurried over to the next point, on the other side of the loop trail, where we were protected by shade, but it was also a bit harder to see birds. 

Points 5 and 6.  We returned to the interior of the Park for the last two official counting points. There were few new species by this time, since it was already too hot for most of the birds (the hummers were still busy drinking nectar--we saw three species overall: Costa's, Anna's, and my favorites, broadbills). We saw more birds than I have mentioned in this report, but I will not enumerate them all except to say that there were approximately 25 species. There was plenty to see besides birds. Tohono Chul is known for its outdoor art, and we saw some new metal sculptures near the fifth point, in the Sundial Plaza:

Heading to our final stop, in the shady Riparian area, we were all hot and tired. On the way we were rewarded with the sight of a supplemental Western diamondback, which didn't move a muscle as the five of us trooped by.

A bush of beautiful morning glories,

A colorful leaf-cutter ant trail,

And the beautiful Texas ranger the ants were dismantling.

We finished the bird count around eight AM, hot and sweaty but satisfied. It is so exhilarating to be out in the desert, even on a hot July day, before dawn. I even love doing bird counts in the winter. Because Jim and usually one or two of the other birders are so experienced, I always learn a lot (for example, this time I learned that the brown-crested flycatcher is most likely to sing his complete, complex song at dawn). I always pick up tips for when I lead my own bird walks at Tohono Chul or the Desert Museum. No matter how many species we "get," there is always the pleasure of seeing and hearing the birds, being with like-minded people on an important purpose, and, at least for the Tohono Chul walk, seeing some of the changes in the ever-changing venue.

For more information on the Tucson Bird Count, as well as ways you can attract birds to your yard, visit the Tucson Audubon Society website.

Springtime Changes at Tohono Chul

This post is for the many friends I've known at Tohono Chul, especially those who have not seen the changes that began in the last two or three years, including a new designation as Tohono Chul Bistro, Galleries, and Gardens. This post is also for anyone who loves the Sonoran Desert in the springtime. (For some typical flowers, click here.) Spring has started three or four weeks early this year, but is still gorgeous, exciting, and thrilling. If you are in the Tucson area or planning to visit, please stop by. You will be glad you did.

Remarkable Penstemons, near the entrance

                                                                             

Early-blooming hedgehog, across from Overlook

                                                                                                                                                                               

Spring Garden (So far--lots of flowers still to come)

                                                                               

Bluebells

                                                             

New Orchard east of the former cholla forest

                                                                               

"Living Fence" (ocotillos) north of Ethno Garden

                                       

Closeup of living fence leafing out, with early blooms

                                                                           

Old Penstemon Garden

                                                 

New Penstemon Garden, currently hidden behind cloth fence

                                                                                   

Desert Hibiscus on the way to parking lot, saying "Come back soon!"

Reptile Ramble--Close up and Personal

I have written here many times about Reptile Ramble, the educational show we present at Tohono Chul Park in the warm weather. The program is helmed by two professional scientists who are assisted by two or three docents each week, and sometimes I'm lucky enough to be one of the docents.

The aim of the Ramble is to demystify snakes for our audience, and demonstrate why no one ever need fear them. At the same time, we introduce our visitors to many of their local neighbors, including lizards, amphibians, turtles, and four to six live snakes, usually including rattlesnakes. Last week I was one of the assistants, and was fortunate to demonstrate my favorite snake, Leo the common kingsnake. A visitor took a video of my presentation, though it was so windy the sound is very bad. Still and all, this is a good idea of what Reptile Ramble is like, on the docent's side. 

Amazing Lesser Nighthawk Mother

Lesser nighthawks, which are very common in the Tucson area this time of year, are often seen soaring over the desert in the evening. During the day, they can occasionally be found roosting or nesting on the desert floor. Yes. Nesting. On the bare ground, often with no more shade than a creosote bush. 

As this photo shows, they are very well camouflaged, and that apparently serves them well.

Despite their name, nighthawks are not raptors; they are insect-eaters, and soar in the evening, gathering flying bugs into their very wide mouths with the help of "whiskers." The young are semi-precocial, which means that after they are hatched they do not need the constant care of a parent, as many nesting birds (doves, robins, etc.) do, but can move about and hide. They still depend on their parents, however, to bring them food until they are strong enough to fly on their own. 

When a birder and I saw the nighthawk today on our bird walk, she seemed fidgety. We wondered if it was due to all the bugs brought out by the extreme humidity, but apparently she was just getting ready to resettle herself and turn her eggs:

 Which she did, and which we were lucky enough to observe and videotape. By the way, birds such as nighthawks and doves that nest in the desert sun in the summer do so to keep their eggs COOL.

Here's the video:

 

Late Spring, Early Summer Beauty at Tohono Chul Park

We have gone from a relatively cool spring to a suddenly and ferociously hot summer, with the Monsoon fast approaching. Before it gets here, I want to share some of the beautiful things I've seen in the Park in the last few weeks:

You may have to look carefully to see the mama hummer sitting on this nest, which is directly on top of another nest in which someone--probably the same bird--recently fledged two babies. It is a pent-nest, if you will.

Below is a beautiful white-winged dove perched atop a blooming agave:

And a Gila woodpecker on nearby agave blossoms:

My last still photo is of two adorable, sleepy screech owls who have been roosting in the tree outside the Museum Shop:

 

 And finally, here's a video of a beautiful, very long gophersnake I saw meandering across the main path near the old penstemon garden. Even if you don't like snakes, just take a moment to watch its grace and fluidity:

 

Fierce Ground Squirrel Attacks, Kills, and Eats Longnose Snake!

This morning at Tohono Chul Park, some other docents and I watched a round-tailed ground squirrel attack, kill, and start to eat a longnose snake. All of us were flabbergasted; we think of these little rodents as extremely cute, harmless creatures whose only encounters with snakes occur when snakes go into their burrows and eat their young. It turns out the story is way more complicated, and as I found out while researching this, ground squirrels are well-known as eaters of carrion, birds, and snakes, even, apparently, rattlesnakes.

We did not see the beginning of the attack, but the snake was still moving when we began watching. After it was clearly dead, the squirrel began tearing through the snake's skin and biting off, then eating small pieces. After a while the squirrel began to drag the snake away, perhaps to pull into its burrow so the young squirrels might enjoy a treat?  I like to imagine a future race of pumped up killer ground squirrels rampaging through the desert. The actual truth is perhaps not so far-fetched. Here is the sequence as I photographed it.

For more on longnose snakes, click here. Another story about round-tailed groundsquirrels can be found here.

And finally, I managed to upload my video of this event. (June 23, 2015).

Tale of a Lost Tail

The Desert Spiny lizard (Sceloporus magister), is among the most prominent creatures greeting visitors at Tohono Chul Park in the warm weather. Big, bold and beautiful, with striking colors and eye-catching behavior (these lizards, especially the males, frequently do pushups to advertise their fitness and attract mates), spinies say "Sonoran Desert" as surely as does the saguaro.  

Like other members of the Iguanid family (and other lizards, including geckos), a desert spiny can lose its tail to a predator in a process called autotomy, in which the tail breaks along a fracture plane between two vertebrae. Studies have shown that the lizard is handicapped for some time afterward while it grows a new tail, but it is obviously much better off  than if it had been eaten by the predator!

The tail that regrows is not the same as the original, however. Instead of new vertebrae for support, the regrown tail is composed of cartilage, with long muscles running its length (rather than shorter sets of muscles, as in the original tail). Studies have shown that the new tail does regrow nerves, though it is not known how they compare with the originals.

Above is a photo of a beautiful male spiny I saw at Tohono Chul Park this week, who had fairly recently lost his tail. The photo below more clearly shows the cartilagenous new growth. For a photo of an intact male and the female he has just mated with, see the bonus question in my recent nature quiz. 

Late Spring Nature Quiz

This is our first nature quiz in quite a while. Here are five photos of plants and animals that are found in the Arizona Upland portion of the Sonoran Desert. Can you identify them? (Note that all photos were taken at Tohono Chul Park.)

1. This extremely fragrant plant is attractive to bees, butterflies, and human noses. What is its common name?

a) Kidneywood
b) Bladderwort
c) Spleen sticks
d) Herbert

2. This photo graphically presents three icons of the Arizona Upland. What are they?

3. What are the brilliant neon blue fish in this photo?

a) Blue Tetras
b) Cactus Crappies
c) Desert Pupfish

4. What in the world made these odd sandy excavations?

5. What kind of lizard is this? Is it male or female?

Answers:
1. This is kidneywood (Lignum nephriticum), a fairly common shrub of the arid southwest. Its bark was used traditionally as a diuretic, hence its name. The flowers have a beautiful, bright sweet scent that becomes stronger when they are heated by the sun.

2. This photo shows a white-winged dove and Gila woodpecker enjoying the blossoms of a saguaro cactus. The saguaro is indeed an icon of the Sonoran Desert, as this is the only place in the world where it grows (and mostly in the Arizona Upland). The white-winged dove is an important pollinator of the saguaro, and the Gila woodpecker is well-known for making holes in saguaros that are used as nests.

3. These small, beautiful fish are endangered Desert Pupfish, which are kept as breeding populations by both Tohono Chul Park and the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. In spring, when the weather begins to get warm, the males show their sexual readiness by turning this brilliant shade of neon blue. 

4. These small depressions, or "pits," are made by antlions, tiny insect larvae that trap and eat ants. Each pit is created in loose sand by a larva, which then waits at the bottom for an unwary ant to fall into the trap. If the ant should regain its footing on the slide down, the larva throws sand up at it, usually sending it tumbling to the bottom where it becomes a meal.

5. This beautiful reptile is a female Desert Spiny Lizard (Sceloporus magester). When she is sexually mature, her head turns rosy pink to orange. Her better half has beautiful bright colors on his back and his belly. These are the large lizards often seen doing "pushups," which is the male's way of displaying his colors to females and rival males.

BONUS QUESTION:
What do you suppose these guys have been up to? Please post your guess--or, even better--what you imagine they are thinking, in the comments.

SCORING:
5 points: You must be a nature docent!
4 points: You are at home in the desert.
3 points: You think the desert is beautiful, but would never spend the summer here.
2 points: You guessed randomly, right?
1 or 0 points: You'd really rather stay indoors.

Snake sex!

You've probably seen a photo or video of two snakes standing on their tails, intertwined, swaying back and forth, and may have thought this was a picture of snakes copulating. Nothing could be farther from the truth--when two snakes engage in this sort of "dance," as it is called, they are most likely males engaged in ritual combat. 

Oregon rattlesnakes, via Wikipedia

 The snakes I have observed having sex are much more sedate: generally they lie next to one another, with the male's tail wrapped around the female, holding their bodies close together while the male inserts his hemipenes (two penises) into the female's cloaca. The beautiful kingsnakes (Lampropeltis splendida) below began their romantic activities in the afternoon a couple of days ago, and I was told they were still together at sunset, but were gone by the next morning.

Photo by RobandUrsula Garrwald

The pair of western diamondback rattlesnakes (Crotalus atrox) in the photo below began copulation during a live music show at Tohono Chul Park one Sunday afternoon, and were still at it when I took the photo the next day. I was told that the female occasionally wandered off (to eat?) and then returned to resume activity.

Here is the possible outcome of such amorous activity: several baby diamondbacks from a group of eight that were born in a hole underneath an organpipe cactus a few months later, not far from the scene of the mating.

Note that the baby rattlers are so young their eyes are still cloudy