December at Sweetwater Wetlands

Canon R6, EF 24-105mm at 24mm, f/22, 1/100 sec.,  ISO 320, 0 EV.

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Sweetwater Wetlands, a water reclamation site and nature park, is located in Tucson, Arizona, just east of Interstate 10 near Prince Road. The park is doing well following a controlled burn in October which reduced much of the overgrown reeds. The wetlands look good with a lot of bird activity. 

​Image above: A view of the eastern section of the park from the northern shore facing south with the morning sun coming through the trees. 

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RARE BIRD ALERT!
The elusive Northern Parula . . . .

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Peek-a-boo! 

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For the past several years during our visits to Sweetwater, we have been approached by several birders with a common message:  "There is a Northern Parula (rare in Tucson)  in the (bushes, trees)  to the (east, north, south) of the pond . . . not right now, but usually at (sunrise, sunset, [fill in the blanks]) !!"  

Try as we might, we never saw the Northern Parula, often just missing it.  "It was there a minute ago, keep looking."   It got to the point where I began to wonder if our fellow birders had gotten into some organic trail-bars laced with magic mushrooms!

Well, Sunday December 9th we confirmed the sobriety of our fellow birders by not only spotting a Northern Parula in the trees to the south of the most eastern pond, but actually catching some images!   

Above, a Northern Parula pausing a fraction of second on a branch while feeding. Below a side view. 

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Canon R7, RF 100-500mm at 500mm, f/7.1, 1/1000 sec.,  ISO 16000, +2.67 EV.

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Northern Parulas are one of North America's smallest warblers. They winter in the Caribbean and sections of southern Mexico and breed in the eastern U.S. and portions of southeastern Canada. A "standard" range map (probably at least 20 years old, below and to the left) shows them never straying west of Texas and the plains states. However, current eBird maps (below and to the right) show them scattered in smaller numbers throughout the western states, with reports of some nesting pairs in California. So in all fairness, one can see them in Arizona without the aid of pharmaceuticals. 

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Both of the maps above are from Birds of the World. The one on the left is a high level summary and perhaps 20 years old.  The one on the right is from eBird sightings throughout the year.

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Canon R7, RF 100-500mm at 186mm, f/7.1, 1/1000 sec.,  ISO 2000, +0.67 EV.

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Northern Parulas have a yellow breast and throat.  The male has chestnut/black bands across the breast, markings usually not seen in the female.  This may be an immature male, with a faint breast band.  The back is blue-gray with two white wingbars and a triangular greenish-yellow patch on the back; the latter is evident in the second image of this series. They have a partial white eye-ring. 

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Canon R7, RF 100-500mm at 500mm, f/7.1, 1/1000 sec.,  ISO 2000, +1 EV.

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Northern Parulas eat insects, preferring the canopy of mature forests, especially if moss or lichen is present.  They may eat fruit or nectar in the winter season.  
(References:  Birds of the World and All About Birds) 

Here the Parula's small size is evident against the backdrop of the cottonwood leaves. 

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Cooper's Hawk

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Canon R7, RF 100-500mm at 270mm, f/7.1, 1/1000 sec.,  ISO 1250, +1.33 EV.

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On Sunday December 9th this immature Cooper's Hawk was perched on a branch warming up in the morning sun on the western side of the 0.6 Mile Loop.

Cooper's Hawks live year round in the lower 48 states, with breeding to the north into Canada and winter living into southern Mexico. Cooper's Hawks have blue/gray backs and pale breasts with reddish barring. The bill is small and strongly hooked. As seen in these photos, immature members of the species lack the reddish barring on the chest and abdomen. Males and females look the same,  although females are larger, as is the pattern for all raptors. It seems reasonable that females need more weight and size to deal with hunting down prey each day as well as carrying eggs and maintaining a nest with young'ins in it on an annual basis!

This hawk has fluffed up his/her feathers likely to help warm up on this brisk morning making for a nice portrait.  

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Cooper's Hawks eat mostly birds, preferring medium sized birds including European Starlings, Mourning Doves and Rock Pigeons. They are very skillful flyers and can suddenly appear at backyard feeders looking for a quick bite! 

For more on Cooper's Hawks, click here.

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More on Sweetwater Wetlands . . . .

Here is a photograph of one of the many maps provided on posts throughout the wetlands. Note that south is at the top of the map, north at the bottom, the entrance is at the blue star. The controlled burn focussed on the area in the red square which I created on top the image. All photographs in this post were captured somewhere along the 0.6 mile Loop Trail. Following the burn it is possible to see across the ponds looking south from the Ramada and northern shore.  

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Great Horned Owl

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Canon R7, RF 100-500mm at 135mm, f/7.1, 1/2000 sec.,  ISO 3200, +0.67 EV.

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On the northern shore, not far from the Ramada, a fellow birder tipped us off to a sleeping Great Horned Owl in a mesquite tree leaning right over the trail.  Great Horned Owls sleep during the day and hunt at night. For more on the Great Horned Owl, and to see a late afternoon encounter with a female Anna's Hummingbird click this link.

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Below, a view of the eastern pond on December 2nd at 8:50am. On cold mornings mist hangs of the ponds.  The sun was rising over my left shoulder. 

Canon R6, EF 24-105mm at 65mm, f/13, 1/320 sec.,  ISO 500, +0.33 EV.

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Pied-billed Grebe

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Canon R7, RF 100-500mm at 500mm, f/7.1, 1/1000 sec.,  ISO 1250, -0.33 EV.

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The morning of December 9th I spotted this Pied-billed Grebe on the pond. These birds are among my favorites, with a definite "cute" factor. (They remind me of Ernie's rubber duckie. Granted, they are not yellow).

​Pied-billed Grebes live year round throughout North America as well as Mexico, Central America and portions of South America, breeding in the north central U.S. and southern Canada. They are good underwater swimmers aided by feet with lobed toes located toward the rear of the body. They may dive for 10 to 60 seconds at a time, often popping up well away from their diving point. (Ref: Birds of the World). Which brings me to the next image, below . . . . . 

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As I was shooting the solitary grebe at about 8 frames/second, I had a disorienting moment as I realized that I suddenly had two grebes in the frame!  A second grebe popped up right next to the first!  This is the first time I can recall seeing two grebes together in their winter habitat here in Tucson. 

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The two grebes seemed to canoodle a bit, image above, and then posed for a portrait below. I was going to ask how many copies they wanted (5x7's, wallet size?) but they swam away! 
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Reflections of the reeds on the water makes for an interesting canvas. 

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About an hour later, another first for me, one of the grebes vocalized in a long low whistle, photographs below. Calling usually occurs during spring mating season; however, if these two grebes are a pair, one of them may be calling for the other.

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Canon R7, RF 100-500mm at 500mm, f/7.1, 1/2000 sec.,  ISO 1200, +0.33 EV.

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For recordings of grebe calls, see All About Birds.

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Spotted Sandpiper

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Canon R7, RF 100-500mm at 500mm, f/7.1, 1/1000 sec.,  ISO 500, +0.67 EV.

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On the same pond we saw a Spotted Sandpiper, initially on one of the large rocks, above, and then at the water's edge, in food foraging mode, series below. 

Spotted Sandpipers are shore birds that live where there is little to no seashore but lots of lakes, rivers, streams and wetlands providing food and nesting areas.  They live year round throughout South America up through Central America and Mexico, into the southern U.S., with breeding sites coast to coast all the way to Alaska. In breeding season they have a dark spots on the belly and an orange bill. The bird here is likely a non-breeding adult, with light spots.  

In the series below we can see a sandpiper looking for breakfast at the muddy edge of the pond. They eat mostly small invertebrates: midges, mayflies, flies, grasshoppers, beetles, worms, snails, and small invertebrates. 

Their feet are well suited for walking on shorelines.

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Canon R7, RF 100-500mm at 500mm, f/7.1, 1/2000 sec.,  ISO 32000, +0.67 EV.

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As they forage they constantly bob their tail in a smooth motion.

​For more on Sandpipers and their roll reversal during mating season, see All  About Birds.

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Orange-crowned Warbler

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Canon R7, RF 100-500mm at 472mm, f/7.1, 1/1000 sec.,  ISO 1000, +0.33 EV.

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Orange-crowned Warblers breed in Canada and the western U.S., wintering in the southeastern U.S., and Mexico. Orange-crowned Warblers eat mostly insects supplemented with fruits and seeds. Look for them on the cattails in the western end of the wetlands. Here our subject is actively foraging in the understory.

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Canon R7, RF 100-500mm at 500mm, f/7.1, 1/1000 sec.,  ISO 2000, +1 EV.

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The orange crown is rarely visible, evident only if the bird is excited, or with the right angle and lighting. Below we can see a hint of it as the bird angles his/her head. The sexes are similar in appearance, but the female tends to be duller with an indistinct or absent orange crown (Ref: Birds of the World).

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Vermilion Flycatcher

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Canon R7, RF 100-500mm at 500mm, f/7.1, 1/500 sec.,  ISO 400, +0 EV.

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Vermilion Flycatchers live predominantly in Mexico, as well as a sliver of southern Arizona, including Tucson where their presence is common. Here we see what is probably an immature male looking for flying insects, his favorite fare, in the wetlands near the ramada. 

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Canon R7, RF 100-500mm at 500mm, f/7.1, 1/500 sec.,  ISO 800, +0.67 EV.

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The mature male, shown to the right, has a solid red cap, throat and breast with dark wings. Image on the right captured at Agua Caliente in November of 2016. 

Image below: Another view of the immature male at Sweetwater Wetlands  on December 3rd. 

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The images below were captured November of 2021 at Historic Canoa Ranch, a Pima County facility just to the south and east of Green Valley. The property includes a pond and wetlands with adjacent fields as well as restored ranch buildings.

​I find the immature coloration quite striking. 

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Canon R6, RF 100-500mm with 1.4x Ext. at 700mm, f/11, 1/2000 sec.,  ISO 6400, +0.33 EV.

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Canon R6, RF 100-500mm with 1.4x Ext. at 700mm, f/11, 1/2000 sec.,  ISO 8000, +0.33 EV.

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For more on Vermilion Flycatchers nesting in the spring see these posts: Agua Caliente in April: A Time to Make more Birds! ,  Happy Easter and Joyous Passover! New life begins in the Sonoran Desert, and Update on Nests: Vermilion Flycatchers and Anna's Hummingbirds. 

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That's all for now!  Best wishes for a joyous holiday season! 

​Happy Trails!