Ken and Audubon Society Visit Mt. Trumbull, Arizona

Ken went with the local Audubon Society to a place he's wanted to visit all of his life- Mt. Trumbull, on the Arizona strip.  He had a wonderful time and saw many birds- one a new to his life list.  Following is a report of the trip written by an intern working with the BLM, Sarah Thomas:

Red Cliffs Audubon Society visits Mt. Trumbull

            On Friday, September 12^th, four members of the Red Cliffs Audubon Society gathered their binoculars, bird guides, and cameras in preparation for the dusty trek out to Mt. Trumbull for a weekend birding trip.  Arriving in the cool ponderosa forest just before sundown, the birders quickly organized a night-time search for burrowing owls.  Though they didn’t spot any of these elusive hunters in the starlight, the following morning proved to be full of flight and feathers.  The Red Cliffs group identified over 30 bird species in the Mt. Trumbull area including :

kestrels,

chipping sparrows,

pine siskins,

Stellar’s jays,

and northern flickers. 

The talented birders identified some species, like the plumbeous vireo,

by their songs and vocalizations alone.  Special sightings included the Hammond’s flycatcher,

the dainty, yellow Tennessee warbler,

 and the zone-tailed hawk. 

This tropical hawk, whose northern range barely extends into Arizona, scored a spot on many of the birders “life lists.”  The trip wrapped up at an exquisite spot on the rim of a volcanic cliff overlooking an eternity of sienna and olive watercolor mesas and feathery side canyons tumbling down to the Colorado River.

 In awe, all looked out at the beauty of Parashant, too stunned to even raise their binoculars.