April 30-May 4, 2026 with Micah Riegner
The mountains of Southeast Arizona support an astonishing diversity of owls and nightjars and we saw the vast majority of them in just three days of birding. After gathering in Tucson, we left for California Gulch, just a stone’s throw from the Mexico boarded. We set up a picnic dinner after finding a confiding Five-striped Sparrow and as dusk approached, so did an ominous storm. Despite the nasty oncoming weather, we managed to find a territorial Buff-collared Nightjar. Then we booked it back to Tucson.
The following morning, we drove to Miller Canyon in the glorious Huachuca mountains. Our main target was the Flame-colored Tanager, which had been reportedly nesting in the sycamore-lined riparian corridor. We ran into a bunch of other birders there, who showed us there nest was, and we could see the top of the female’s head as she sat there incubating. The male came by a couple times to check on her. Other birds from the morning included Red-faced and Virgina’s Warblers, Hutton’s and Plumbeous Vireos, numerous Dusky-capped Flycatchers and a flyover Zone-tailed Hawk. We sat at the feeders for a bit and watched Broad-billed, Broad-tailed, Rufous, Anna’s and Rivoli’s Hummingbirds coming to drink. We did pizza lunch in Sierra Vista, then blasted over to Portal via Douglas stopping to see Bendire’s Thrasher along State Line Road. After checking into our hotel we drove out the Paradise Road and saw a Bobcat crossing right in front of us. Awesome! Right at dusk we saw Elf Owls at a nest cavity and a pair of Western Screech-Owls in a Juniper. Some Poorwills called from a distant hillside as the full moon came over the horizon. Later, we drove out towards South Fork and saw a pair of Whiskered Screech-Owls and a close Mexican Whip-poorwill.
We continued to bird along Cave Creek the following morning finding a Thick-billed Kingbird before we even left our lodge. South Fork was relatively quiet, but we saw a few good things like a Coppery-tailed Trogon inspecting nest cavities, Brown-crested Flycatchers, and Scott’s Orioles singing away. We saw several Mexican Fox Squirrels including one that fell out of a tree almost landing on someone in the group. In the afternoon we drove up and over Onion Saddle stopping for Black-chinned Sparrow in the chaparral along the way. We did another picnic dinner at Pinery Canyon and right at 7:30 our target emerged: Flammulated Owl! The bird flew in right above us and we were all blown away by its smallness. Further up canyon we heard a Spotted Owl proclaiming its territory.
We packed a lot of birds into our final day of birding. First, we stopped at Rose Ann Rowlett and Richard Webster’s house to see Blue-throated Mountain-Gems coming to the feeders. A Botta’s Pocket-Gopher was moseying about outside of its burrow, which was cool. As we loaded up, we flushed the flock of Band-tailed Pigeons that were coming down to the feeders in the back. Nearing the Southwest Research Station we found a Northern Pygmy-Owl in a dead tree, then, up at Rustler Park we found an Olive Warbler, Greater Pewee, Grace’s Warbler, and some Steller’s Jays. We made our way down the switchbacks towards Willcox, stopping at Pinery Canyon again to check for the roosting Spotted Owl but couldn’t locate it. With another birding group we watched a pair of Buff-breasted Flycatchers that were probably getting ready to nest on the hillside. Once in the semidesert grassland we picked out a distant Crissal Thrasher and an even more distant Chihuahuan Meadowlark. We stopped too for the Great Horned Owl nest along the road that Cory told me about. The adult was there with three big fluffy chicks. We had a nice lunch at a Mexican restaurant in Willcox, then we swung by Lake Cochise where a Hudsonian Whimbrel had been reported. We saw the whimbrel, plus Cinnamon Teal, Mexican Duck, White-faced Ibis and Yellow-headed Blackbird, which were all new for the trip. On our way out to the highway, we stopped for a flock of Chihuahuan Ravens that were lined up on the telephone wires. It’s a spot I always find them. We drove back to Tucson and checked into the hotel as dusk approached. Our original plan was to do dinner at a restaurant, but we still needed Lesser Nighthawk so we did a picnic at the over in the Tucson Mountains and watched Lesser Nighthawks against a fiery sunset—a nice way to wrap up the tour. The close Common Poorwill that was on the road was an unexpected bonus. I’d like to thank you all for joining me here in Arizona, and I look forward more birding adventures to come!
Mammals
Desert Cottontail (Sylvilagus audubonii)
Black-tailed Jackrabbit (Lepus californicus) We saw a few out on State Line Road.
Cliff Chipmunk (Neotamias dorsalis) The chipmunks at Miller Canyon.
Harris's Antelope Squirrel (Ammospermophilus harrisii) These were coming to eat at the Portal feeders.
Common Rock Squirrel (Otospermophilus variegatus)
Mexican Fox Squirrel (Sciurus nayaritensis) We had multiple encounters with these gorgeous squirrels at South Fork. One fell out of a tree almost landing on someone in the group!
Arizona Gray Squirrel (Sciurus arizonensis) Seen at Miller Canyon.
Botta's Pocket Gopher (Thomomys bottae) We watched on outside its burrow at Rose Anna and Richard’s house.
Bobcat (Lynx rufus) Certainly the mammal highlight of the trip! We watched one cross the road outside of Portal.
Collared Peccary (Dicotyles tajacu) There was a big herd on the road in Portal.
White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus) These were regular throughout our time in the mountains.
You can see my complete trip report on eBird at this link: https://ebird.org/tripreport/511517
Micah