Ashurst Lake 4.20

This place is a true gem. It's probably one of my favorite places to bird at not only because of the rich wildlife but because of the other amenities that come with this place. I've been coming here for the past four years, ever since I learned of the fish that are stocked there. Because of the fish, raptors are common. Osprey, Bald Eagles, and Turkey Vultures can be seen year-round. I didn't really put a date on this post because I visited it three times in the past two weeks, so I thought a date was unnecessary. I'll start off with the first time heading there. As I arrived passing the campgrounds, several MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRDS were seen perched atop the pines, waiting for gnats and flies to be seen so that they can get their breakfast. Yes, I said breakfast because birding should be done early in the morning for the best results. As I parked I saw a pair flitting around. On my walk which consists of around a 3.5 mile walk around the whole lake. And the only reason I walk this amount is because birds can be found at different parts of the lake.. I'll get back into that later in my story. Well as I was walking I wanted to head in the direction of the campgrounds. As I arrived around the area, I was surprised to see a flock of 50 or more VIOLET-GREEN SWALLOWS. They're beautiful green color complemented they're white underbelly and they're little violet rump was just so stunning with the colors. Anyways as I was now heading to the entrance I saw a flock of BUSHTITS and another lifer the JUNIPER TITMOUSE. It was picking berries of a bush. Next I saw a pair of AMERICAN KESTRELS that were circling around the lake in hopes of a fish caught ashore. A little more ways and I wound up at a pine tree filled with blackbirds of all sorts... RED-WINGED BLACKBIRDS, BROWN-HEADED COWBIRDS, BREWER'S BLACKBIRDS... all wound up in a single tree in the middle of a forest. As I passed the blackbirds, I headed to a cove were I saw an ungainly duck dabbling near the shore shoveler style. Now it wasn't red or green with white. So what could it be? There was only one more teal left out.. was it really the blue-winged teal that I was hoping for? Now let me give you a little bit of backstory. These teal are much more common in the east, they can only be seen here in Arizona during the migration period, and even then its rare. As I went to get a closer look, it turns out it was a pair of BLUE-WINGED TEALS. Another lifer for me. On the way back I saw many more birds such as a few more uncommon ones (in that are) like a NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRD, and a few EURASION-COLLARED DOVES. I also saw a RED-NAPED SAPSUCKER hanging out by the campgrounds, and near the shore I found a flock of VESPER SPARROWS. WESTERN MEADOWLARKS accompanied me basically everywhere on my trip with their melodious songs. Sparrows included CHIPPING SPARROWS and a bunch of DARK-EYED JUNCOS. RUBY-CROWNED KINGLETS were also very common. Now back on the waterbirds which I didn't really include on my walk... that's because they can be seen from basically every point of the lake. BUFFLEHEADS, GADWALLS, MALLARDS, EARED GREBES, and CINNAMON TEALS. As well as raptors which were abundant, OSPREY, TURKEY VULTURES, AMERICAN CROWS, COMMON RAVENS, and BALD EAGLES. I also saw a COOPER'S HAWK near the entrance. Anyways it was a great day and that concludes my first trip there of the year. Here's the link to the eBird checklist of the day: eBird Checklist 4.7.20

Violet-Green Swallows

Vesper Sparrow

Least Sandpiper

Juniper Titmouse

Blue-Winged Teal

Red-Naped Sapsucker

Osprey and Bald Eagle

Osprey on Nest

Cinnamon Teals

Northern Mockingbird

Now this is my part on the second time I went there. This time it was more of a fishing trip but I couldn't resist birding at least near the campgrounds... anyways here's how it went. As I was fishing (yea birding isn't the only thing I do) I heard a lot melodious peough noise. And it repeated and repeated itself... that's when I learned the true importance of studying calls and songs. And I can't say this enough... if you're thinking of heading somewhere (to bird) study the birds that are there at that time of year and with that pay attention to their behavior, songs and calls. If I would've done this I would've easily been able to identify the calls and point it out as a TOWNSEND'S SOLITAIRE. Yep this beautiful gray thrush was hopping from the tips of trees in search of food. And little did I know that I would see about three more. Now after comparing to nearby AMERICAN ROBINS and MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRDS I had to say that it was now my favorite thrush. It may be a drab bird but it's elegance won me over. I also saw more VIOLET-GREEN SWALLOWS and a bunch of DARK-EYED JUNCOS and CHIPPING SPARROWS. I was actually quite happy with the sparrows because I got great pictures of a Chipping Sparrow... a male that was unafraid of my presence. Anyways, I didn't add that many species to that checklist but it was a great day mostly cause of the solitaire. Here's the checklist: eBird Checklist 4.11.20

Townsend's Solitaire

Mountain Bluebird

Western Meadowlark

Chipping Sparrow

Now this is my story for my most recent trip that I actually took yesterday. This was a productive day as well. I was hoping for the Pinyon Jay, but.... I did not see any. I wasn't surprised because they usually break of into pairs in spring and become much more secretive. Anyways putting that aside I saw four lifers and I'm still researching on a particular duck whether or not is a Mexican Duck or Mallard/Mexican Duck hybrid so that can change the value. I once again headed around the whole lake... but I was taking much more time in hopes of getting a glimpse of the Pinyon Jay (which I didn't.) I headed in another direction where there was a huge pine grove, and Pinyon Jays being pine seed eaters could possibly be present there. None, but I saw a couple MOUNTAIN CHICKADEES and a bunch of YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS. Also saw a few pairs of MOUNTAIN BLUEBIRDS and several RUBY-CROWNED KINGLETS. I headed back on the road but I took a little stop by the shore and I saw a pair of LESSER YELLOWLEGS and a few more WESTERN MEADOWLARKS and a HAIRY WOODPECKER drumming in a nearby juniper. A little more ways and I saw a flock of six EARED GREBES that allowed me for some great pictures. I also scanned the water for waterfowl and I saw a GADWALL, a bunch of BUFFLEHEADS, one lone NORTHERN PINTAIL, and some MALLARDS. As I was walking I saw the usual DARK-EYED JUNCOS and CHIPPING SPARROWS. I usually see the red-backed juncos subspecies but this time I actually saw quite a few pink-sided. The road led me to the coves (and I call them coves but they're like inlets of water where some of the dabblers and shorebirds like to hang out.) I scanned for any ducks and sure enough I saw six BLUE-WINGED TEALS and a few CINNAMON TEALS hanging out with them. On my way I stopped by this particular cove where I saw a few gulls munching on crawdads. As I was approaching them they turned out to be CALIFORNIA GULLS and RING-BILLED GULLS. As I was scanning the water, I actually saw two FRANKLIN'S GULLS floating peacefully on the water. Except the water wasn't so peaceful as there were 21 mph winds (yea sometimes birding can be hard.) I had on four layers of clothing so it didn't really bother me. As I was taking pictures of the gulls one of the rock moved.. wait... that wasn't a rock. It was a WHITE-FACED IBIS. I thought they stay in flocks but I only saw one. That little area also provided me with looks at a some AMERICAN PIPITS that were in breeding plumage. The last time I saw one was at the Salt River and it was non-breeding plumage so it was cool seeing the difference. I also saw the usual shorebird KILLDEEER which were basically common everywhere at the lake. I headed back and I was surprised to see a a GRAY FLYCATCHER flitting around for gnats and whatever he can find. I was surprised because it actually wasn't too hard to photograph and it actually stood still. As I was heading back to the car I saw pair of buffleheads close to shore so I stopped to take pictures of those but while I was I heard a loud splash. I literally almost dropped my camera. An OSPREY dove literally feet away from me.... I got shots I thought I would never get. Plus, on top of that a flock of about 8 lesser yellowlegs came near me and I got better of shots of them as well. That just ended my time there perfectly. Well, that concludes my story for these three times... I'll probably post more on this lake because I go there quite often. But this is the how my time in April went. If you want you can also check out the last section which includes maps and tips on birding at the lake, I highly recommend the spot because the wildlife is truly amazing. This is last checklist if you want to check it out: eBird Checklist 4.16.20

Eared Grebe