December 27, 2025-January 2, 2026 with Cory Gregory
One can find great birding in Arizona any time of year and winter is no exception. Although some species have migrated south, others wander to Arizona and some even start to defend territories. This winter trip, based out of Phoenix and Tucson, highlighted many of these aspects and we enjoyed a great time birding together for a quick five days.
We tallied nearly 140 species and ended up seeing some neat mammals and amazing scenery as well. From the desert flats west of Phoenix, to the gorgeous mountains east of Phoenix, and down to Tucson and the nearby mountains and grasslands, there was always something fun to look at. And besides, we really lucked out with weather! It was a fun trip and I'm glad you were all there to enjoy some beautiful winter birding in Arizona.
Our trip got underway in Phoenix where we started by birding at a nearby hotspot, the Gilbert Water Ranch, our first afternoon. It didn't take long to start to see some fun desert species. A Greater Roadrunner darted along the path, Anna's Hummingbirds sang from nearby treetops, Curve-billed Thrashers skulked in the brush, and the range-restricted Abert's Towhees put in many appearances. Additionally, the pond gave us point-blank looks at some species we don't usually see so close-up. Ring-necked Ducks and the American Wigeon sure looked good in that evening light!
The next morning, we set off on a quest to see what the desert flats west of Phoenix had to offer. En route, along the many canals, we had a lovely set of birds while the sun was still low to the east. We found Black-necked Stilts, Greater Yellowlegs, Pied-billed Grebe, and nice herons like Snowy Egret, Great Egret, and of course Great Blue Herons. Western Meadowlarks flocked together and a few American Pipits bobbed up and down along the banks. But after a bit, we pressed on.
Once we made it out to the dry flats west of the city, we started our hunt for sage-loving species. We turned up a flock of Sagebrush Sparrows, which was excellent, but also an adorable and inquisitive Black-tailed Gnatcatcher. A Say's Phoebe kept watch nearby, a few Abert's Towhees skuttled around on the ground, and the ever-present Verdin and Horned Larks were seen too. Nearby wet fields attracted a lot of things as well including a Burrowing Owl along a roadside, a variety of ducks like Canvasback and Ring-necked Duck, and also some shorebirds like Long-billed Dowitcher and Least Sandpiper. Nearby, a corral was home to a variety of cowbirds as well as Brewer's Blackbirds.
That afternoon we visited the Glendale Recharge Ponds which were absolutely loaded with a great assortment of waterfowl and shorebirds. We scoured through hundreds of Long-billed Dowitchers, hundreds of ducks like Northern Pintail, Green-winged Teal, and Gadwall, and enjoyed seeing a Peregrine Falcon, Osprey, and especially some Harris's Hawks along the entrance road!
We finished off the day with a visit to Encanto Park in Phoenix where we successfully found the Rosy-faced Lovebirds, which wasn't hard, but also encountered the continuing rare Lewis's Woodpecker that had been spending the winter there. What a great first full day of birding!
We departed Phoenix this morning and drove straight up to the east, climbed into the Superstition Mountains, and birded at the well-known Bryce Thompson Arboretum. This gorgeous location has long been a hotspot, great for winter birding. Our triplist grew by leaps and bounds in quick fashion. We heard a rare Steller's Jay near the entrance, tracked down a rare Juniper Titmouse, heard some Canyon Wrens singing, and, most importantly, had brief looks at the very rare Rufous-backed Robin! There were other highlights in the park as well though including a wintering Black-throated Gray Warbler and a Townsend's Warbler. Phainopepla made a quick appearance and the many Hermit Thrushes were busy feeding in the fruiting trees.
We departed, had lunch en route, and then made our way south towards Tucson. We tried a few other spots for some thrashers, plovers, and other open-country birds but all were quiet midday. We continued south and checked in to our comfortable hotel, our home base for the remainder of the trip.
This morning, we ventured east and south of Tucson, targeting the lovely grasslands which are part of the Las Cienegas National Conservation Area. Our first stop on this chilly morning yielded a lot of sparrows, predominantly Vesper and Savannah. However, it was exciting seeing a small flock of Mountain Bluebirds pass through and Chihuahuan Meadowlarks sang from nearby treetops. At a different, nearby patch of grasslands, we struck gold and found 100-200 Chestnut-collared Longspurs! Although they were nearly impossible to see on the ground, somehow Elizabeth did just that and we all enjoyed great views of this skulky bird. Nearby a Horned Lark posed nicely on a fence, we continued to kick up lots of Vesper and Savannah sparrows, and a Sharp-shinned Hawk buzzed by.
After lunch in Patagonia, we birded at the Paton Center for Hummingbirds which provided us looks at Ladder-backed and Gila woodpeckers, Bewick's Wren, Lesser Goldfinch, Northern Cardinal, Spotted Towhee, White-breasted Nuthatch, Inca Dove, and of course the star of the show, the Violet-crowned Hummingbird. We closed out the day back in Tucson where we had the incredible good fortune of seeing a day-roosting Northern Saw-whet Owl! Why it liked to roost in that spot, I'm not sure, but I AM sure that we really enjoyed seeing this little guy!
We ventured east this morning making it all the way to Whitewater Draw Wildlife Area which is a well-known gathering spot for birds (and birdwatchers!). Of course, the Sandhill Crane show was great, but there were lots of other highlights as well. We added Snow Goose to our triplist as well as enjoyed Cinnamon Teal, Mexican Duck, and a variety of other waterfowl. A male Vermilion Flycatcher dashed in front of us, Marsh Wrens crept through the reeds, and both Say's and Black phoebes were on the hunt for flying bugs. Once we departed and started driving north, we started to encounter some wintering Lark Buntings. Not just a couple, but we ended up seeing hundreds as they swarmed alongside the road! Shortly after, we added Yellow-headed Blackbird to the list as well.
After lunch we visited the must-stop hotspot in Willcox, the famed Lake Cochise and Twin Lakes Golf Course. Things were off to a good start when we had awesome looks at Bendire's Thrasher on the way in! The lake was hosting a ton of waterfowl and it was great to have such good looks at Ross's Geese alongside some Snow Geese. Another highlight was getting to watch a Sora foraging out in the open! Stunning views. Lastly, we made our way back to the west, stopping in Benson. This was another great spot for waterfowl; we estimated 200-300 Canvasbacks! Mixed in were Cinnamon Teal, Northern Shoveler, Gadwall, Mallard, Bufflehead, Ruddy Duck, and 75 Ring-necked Ducks. It was here we added Eared Grebe to our list as well.
Our final full day of birding started when we went south out of Tucson to Canoa Ranch. This proved to be a fruitful stop, we had absolutely crushing views of a male Costa's Hummingbird as well a major trip highlight, a flock of Lawrence's Goldfinches! This irruptive goldfinch can sometimes be hard to find in Arizona in winter, but this year looked to have been a good one and we had crippling scope views of a flock of males and females near the pond. Also nearby, our first Brewer's Sparrow and handsome Lark Sparrows. From here we ventured up to Madera Canyon where we took a hike up from Proctor Rd. With some luck, we had great looks at a male Coppery-tailed Trogon! Yes! We also found a hybrid sapsucker (looked to be a mix of Red-naped and Red-breasted) and also had a quick lesson on flicker intergrades. We watched the busy feeders at the Santa Rita Lodge and enjoyed Rivoli's Hummingbirds, Acorn Woodpeckers, Mexican Jays, Bridled Titmice, a Yellow-eyed Junco, Hepatic Tanagers, and a brief Painted Redstart before we needed to head back to town. We closed out the trip with a foray to the dry plains northwest of Tucson. A brief Prairie Falcon, a regal Ferruginous Hawk, and an adorable Burrowing Owl were the final new birds of the trip.
I wanted to thank all of you for coming along on this short, Arizonan adventure! It's always a joy to bird in Arizona and I'm happy I got to share it with you. We came away with a great list of birds and I hope you all made some good memories as well! I hope to see you soon on another Field Guides trip, safe travels!
You can see my complete trip report on eBird at this link: https://ebird.org/tripreport/460034
You can download a combined PDF of this page and the eBird report at this link: https://fieldguides.com/triplists/arw25TRIPLIST.pdf
-- Cory Gregory (Curlew)