July 26-August 4, 2025 with Cory Gregory
The summer monsoon season in southeast Arizona is my favorite time to go birding there. Despite the heat, there is a wonderful mixture of avifauna in late summer. Post-breeding hummingbirds wander and gather in great numbers at feeders, some of the open-country birds start to breed once the grasslands green up, and some of the normal breeders are still around and on territory. Add to that the dynamic weather and afternoon thunderstorms. All in all, it's a great mix! Over the course of this trip I hope you enjoyed sampling these many habitats, mountain ranges, and various birds.
Our fun began in Tucson where we first got acquainted with the Sonoran desert by visiting the Tucson Mountains west of the city. It was here that we first encountered Black-throated Sparrow, Pyrrhuloxia, Curve-billed Thrasher, Black-tailed Gnatcatcher, and others. That evening, we even got to enjoy hearing one of the rarest nightbirds in all of the US, the Buff-collared Nightjar!
The real fun began the next morning when we set out from Tucson. We stopped in Box Canyon where we enjoyed another rarity, the Five-striped Sparrow. Nearby, a Golden Eagle perched on a ledge, Rock Wrens sang, Gray Hawks were attending a nest, and Cassin's Kingbirds kept a close eye on everyone. Farther east, we enjoyed watching more than half a dozen Mississippi Kites swirling together near St. David. We kept heading east and it wasn't long until we were watching Chihuahuan Ravens, Chihuahuan Meadowlarks, and a slew of shorebirds at Willcox. The number of stilts and avocets was pretty impressive, as were the numbers of Baird's, Least, and Western sandpipers. But from there, it was time to head down to Portal, our home for the next three nights.
The next morning, after our picnic breakfast, we ventured high into the Chiricahuas. As soon as we stepped out of the van at Rustler Park we were surrounded with different species. Greater Pewees called and caught bugs from exposed perches, Yellow-eyed Juncos littered the ground, Steller's Jays came in to take a look, Grace's Warblers sang from high in the trees, and we even had a prized Red-faced Warbler make an appearance. Barfoot Park was similar, except this time we saw a major target, the strange Olive Warbler. Strangely, we even saw a Greater Pewee attack one and take it down to the ground. Things weren't looking good for the warbler but it eventually got away! We continued to bird in the upper reaches of the mountains which was a pleasure. Pygmy Nuthatches showed up, a male Calliope Hummingbird fed from a thistle, and Western Tanagers were fairly common. That afternoon we visited some feeders in Portal which were hosting a couple dozen species. We added Scott's Oriole, Blue Grosbeak, Northern Cardinal, and we also saw more Gambel's Quail. And our last stop before dinner was for a photogenic pair of Thick-billed Kingbirds which was a very good species to add to our growing list! Lastly, that evening we ventured out some more and ended up seeing Common Poorwill and crushing views of Western Screech-Owl. What a day!
The next morning we stayed a little closer to home. We spent a fair bit of our morning exploring the lovely riparian forest along the South Fork of Cave Creek. We saw a Blue-throated Mountain-gem taking a bath below us, Arizona Woodpeckers working up tree trunks, Sulphur-bellied Flycatchers and their squeaky-toy sounds, Rufous-crowned Sparrows, Mexican Jays, and much more. And who can forget the lovely Painted Redstarts? Up the slope, at the Southwestern Research Station, we enjoyed watching the feeders there as we got to learn more about how to tell some of the hummingbirds apart. The feeders were alive with Rivoli's Hummingbird, Blue-throated Mountain-gem, Black-chinned Hummingbird, Rufous Hummingbird, and several others. Late that morning we went down to New Mexico to work on our growing New Mexico lists. But also to enjoy the desert museum and lunch at a nearby shop. Later that afternoon, after a siesta, we drove to Paradise and enjoyed another set of feeders. This one was hosting a very-rare White-eared Hummingbird which we all got to see. That evening we hunted for another nightbird we hadn't seen yet. Thankfully, we did catch up to the Whiskered Screech-Owl and even got to see it.
We had to depart Portal this morning, it was time we moved to the Huachucas. Our first stop was back in South Fork where we got to hear the distant Elegant Trogon, and then on to the research station where we finally caught up to the continuing rare Berylline Hummingbird! We made our way up and over Onion Saddle, down to Pinery Canyon where our encounter with the Spotted Owls and Mexican Chickadees would make any birder jealous! As we drove down into the lowlands, we spotted a few things along the way like a massive Golden Eagle that was perched near the road. Western Kingbirds dotted the powerlines, Swainson's Hawks soared nearby, and we even saw a quick Scaled Quail duck into the bushes. After our lunch in Bisbee, and after admiring the gigantic Lavender Pit, we visited the San Pedro House where Yellow-breasted Chat, Gila Woodpecker, and Blue Grosbeak livened up the hot afternoon. Later that afternoon we visited the legendary Ash Canyon where we were successful in finding yet another two new hummingbirds, Anna's Hummingbird and the rare Lucifer Hummingbird!
Miller Canyon has become an incredibly popular birding destination thanks to the wonderful hummingbird setup at the Beatty's, but also the trail up the canyon which can have some very superb birding. We devoted our morning to this beautiful canyon but it hardly took any time at all to see the stars of the show, the pair of Flame-colored Tanagers; we enjoyed great views of them right on the Beatty's property! Farther up the canyon we added Zone-tailed Hawk, Painted Restarts, Plumbeous and Hutton's vireos, before turning around and settling in to watch the hummingbird feeders. It didn't take long to see why Miller Canyon is such a hotspot! The various feeders were alive with dozens of hummingbirds. Perhaps none stole the show quite like the vivid Violet-crowned Hummingbird that stayed busy defending its favorite feeder. Later that afternoon we visited another famous canyon in the Huachucas, Ramsey Canyon. We took a walk upslope and managed to hear another Elegant Trogon before rain pushed us back downhill. But when the rain let up, we paused and watched some more hummingbird feeders there, these hosting both a Berylline and Violet-crowned hummingbird.
The final canyon we visited in the Huachucas was Carr Canyon. We slowly wound our way uphill that next morning until we reached the coniferous forests around the Reef Townsite campground. Our main target here fell into place almost immediately, the Buff-breasted Flycatcher. After we filled up our memory cards with amazing photos of this precious Empid, we continued to look around. We found Woodhouse's Scrub-Jays, Grace's Warblers, Black-throated Gray Warbler, Plumbeous Vireo, and even another Zone-tailed Hawk. But, we had ground to cover and so we made our way back downhill, through Sierra Vista, and out to some grasslands. Our main target here, the range-restricted Botteri's Sparrow, fell into place nicely! After lunch in Patagonia, we went to try to find yet another rare Arizona specialty, the Rose-throated Becard. It took some effort but we were eventually rewarded with great views of both the male and the female. We even got to watch the female catch and eat a really big caterpillar! It wouldn't be a visit to Patagonia without a stop at the Paton Center for Hummingbirds. We enjoyed more hummingbirds there, including another Violet-crowned, before taking a walk and scoring our first Song Sparrow and cooperative Yellow-breasted Chats. A brief stop at the famous roadside rest yielded yet another pair of Thick-billed Kingbirds before we eventually had to make our way down to Nogales where we'd stay for two nights.
We had flexibility at this point to target some remaining species we had yet to encounter and so that next morning we went first to Santa Gertrudis Lane where we enjoyed even more encounters with things like Inca Dove, Vermilion Flycatcher, Summer Tanager, and Blue Grosbeak. The newest species to our checklist though was Black Phoebe, Lazuli Bunting, and Tropical Kingbird, although the bunting was rather sneaky. However, getting to watch another Rufous-winged Sparrow in full song though may have taken the cake. Next, a quick stop at Amado WTP helped fill out our checklist with Mallard, Mexican Duck, Ruddy Duck, Black-bellied Whistling-Duck, and Neotropic Cormorant. Next we visited Canoa Ranch where, despite the heat, we enjoyed a walk around the lake. New for our checklist was Pied-billed Grebe, Double-crested Cormorant, Great Blue Heron, Lark Sparrow, and Lucy's Warbler. Next, before lunch, we swung by a cute city park where we were successful in tracking down our 13th and final species of hummingbird, the tiny Costa's Hummingbird. After our lunch in Green Valley, we tracked down yet another new species for us, the desert-loving Harris's Hawk. Things were going well! But then we started driving around Sahuarita. We tried and tried for Gilded Flicker but it didn't look good in the heat of the afternoon. And then, there, a flicker flying! We got out but couldn't find it, thankfully Gary saved the day and spotted our Gilded Flicker on the side of a saguaro. Whew! It had been a long and hot day and so our Italian dinner in Nogales tasted especially good.
Our final day of birding began in Nogales where we packed up and headed north (it sure wasn't going to be south!). A Lesser Nighthawk en route was a good omen! One of our main stops this morning was in the picturesque Montosa Canyon. When we weren't dodging bats, we were enjoying a beautiful new addition to our triplist, the Varied Bunting. From there, we went to another canyon in the Santa Ritas, the well-known Madera Canyon. We took a walk up top but it was pretty hot and quiet and so we retreated to the feeders where we said our final goodbyes to species like Acorn Woodpecker, Arizona Woodpecker, Bridled Titmouse, Lesser Goldfinch, and Hooded Oriole. We drove north into Tucson for lunch, before one more birding stop, Sweetwater Wetlands. Although the sun was scorching, we made the best of it and tallied nearly 30 species including new species for our trip like Cinnamon Teal, Northern Shoveler, and American Coot. But before long, the heat pushed us out and we retreated to our hotel in Tucson. That night, we went over our Top 3 and coming in at Number 1 was Spotted Owl! But Five-striped Sparrow, Flame-colored Tanager, and Berylline Hummingbird weren't far behind.
Here's a list of the other critters we encountered:
You can see my complete trip report on eBird at this link: https://ebird.org/tripreport/401926
You can download a combined PDF of this page and the eBird report at this link: https://fieldguides.com/triplists/azs25bTRIPLIST.pdf
-- -- Cory Gregory (Curlew)