Arizona Tour Report 2016

18th April - 28th April


TOUR HIGHLIGHTS:
Either for rarity value, excellent views or simply a group favourite.

The Grand Canyon! Scaled Quail Gambel’s Quail Grey Hawk American Avocet Wilson’s Phalarope Greater Roadrunner Western Screech Owl Whiskered Screech Owl Mexican Spotted Owl Mountain Pygmy Owl Elf Owl White-throated Swift Violet-crowned Hummingbird Magnificent Hummingbird Anna’s Hummingbird Rufous Hummingbird Lucifer Hummingbird Elegant Trogon Arizona Woodpecker Gilded Flicker Greater Pewee Buff-breasted Flycatcher Thick-billed Kingbird Cassin’s Vireo

Saunder’s Gull Pinyon Jay Phainopepla Violet-green Swallow Black-capped Gnatcatcher Bendire’s Thrasher Crissal Thrasher Olive Warbler Cassin’s Finch Lucy’s Warbler Virginia’s Warbler Grace’s Warbler Black-throated Grey Warbler Rufous-capped Warbler Red-faced Warbler Painted Whitestart Yellow-headed Blackbird Scott’s Oriole Lark Bunting Yellow-eyed Junco Rufous-crowned Sparrow Abert’s Towhee Western Tanager Black-headed Grosbeak Lazuli Bunting

 

SUMMARY:

Arizona is home to some of the best birding in the USA with a feast of scarce and localised birds to find and many of them only just creep over the border from Mexico, which makes this an extremely exciting destination. This was a private tour which visited most of the key areas in a relatively short period of time but a slightly later departure or a summer tour in July would have yielded quite a few more great birds. However, we had a fantastic time as we visited the key ‘Sky Island’ hotspots in the Santa Catalina, Santa Rita, Huachuca and Chiricahua Mountains in search of such delights as Mountain Pygmy Owl, Elegant Trogon, Buff-breasted Flycatcher, Red-faced, Virginia’s, Grace’s and Olive Warblers, Yellow-eyed Junco and so much more. And of course there’s plenty of desert birding to enjoy with Gilded Flicker being a particular favourite. I cannot recommend birding in Arizona enough and look forward to returning sometime soon!

 

 

DOWNLOAD FULL TOUR REPORT