Prochilodus246
Well-Known Member
230) Box tree moth (Cydalima perspectalis)
Zoochat Big Year 2023
- Thread starter Chlidonias
- Start date
The second location I visited in Arizona was Madera Canyon. The canyon is located only about one hour south of Tucson, and is obviously a popular destination for daytrippers from that city, with many picnic grounds and hiking trails. It is also an outstanding birding destination. I have to say that I was a little disappointed after Cave Creek Canyon, and felt it was a little quiet. This view was also held by local birders I met, and I think the current drought may be a reason for this. I was disappointed to miss a number of species, especially the elegant trogon, Montezuma's quail and the ladderback woodpecker. I tried for the trogon three times, and was only rewarded by it's call.
I stayed in the Santa Rita lodge which is popular with birders and other naturalists, and has the only bird feeders in the canyon. Once again it was self-catering, and there is nowhere to buy food in the canyon.
This has been a successful trip of six days, of which three were travel days. I achieved six new mammal families, and there is more than enough still to be seen to justify another, maybe longer trip.
Mammals
122. Arizona gray squirrel Sciurus arizonensis
123. Ringtail Bassariscus astutus
Birds
779, Wild turkey Meleagris gallopavo
780. Cooper's hawk Accipiter cooperii
781. Golden eagle Aquila chrysaetos
782. Gray hawk Buteo plagiatus
783, Arizona woodpecker Dryobates arizonae
784, Red-naped sapsucker Sphyrapicus nuchalis
785. Dusky-capped flycatcher Myiarchus tuberculifer
786. Brown-crested flycatcher Myiarchus tyrannulus
787, Streaked flycatcher Myiodynastes maculatus
788. Say's phoebe Sayornis saya
789, Plumbeous vireo Vireo plumbeus
790. Northern raven Corvus corax
791. Casson's finch Haemorhous cassinii
792. Pine siskin Spinus pinus
793. Wilson's warbler Cardellina pusilla
794. Painted redstart Myioborus pictus
795. Louisiana waterthrush Parkesia motacilla
796. Hepatic tanager Piranga flava
797. American rock wren Salpinctes obsoletus
798. House wren Troglodytes aedon
799. Hermit thrush Catharus guttatus
Reptiles
26. Sonoran spotted whiptail Aspidoscelis sonorae
Invertebrates
68. Sonoran bumble-bee Bombus sonorus
69. Giant Mesquite bug Pachylis neocalifornicus
70. Blue fungus beetle Cypherotylus californicus (new Family)
Two-year new species targets
Mammals 107/100
Birds 775/1000
Bonus ectotherms 211
I stayed in the Santa Rita lodge which is popular with birders and other naturalists, and has the only bird feeders in the canyon. Once again it was self-catering, and there is nowhere to buy food in the canyon.
This has been a successful trip of six days, of which three were travel days. I achieved six new mammal families, and there is more than enough still to be seen to justify another, maybe longer trip.
Mammals
122. Arizona gray squirrel Sciurus arizonensis
123. Ringtail Bassariscus astutus
Birds
779, Wild turkey Meleagris gallopavo
780. Cooper's hawk Accipiter cooperii
781. Golden eagle Aquila chrysaetos
782. Gray hawk Buteo plagiatus
783, Arizona woodpecker Dryobates arizonae
784, Red-naped sapsucker Sphyrapicus nuchalis
785. Dusky-capped flycatcher Myiarchus tuberculifer
786. Brown-crested flycatcher Myiarchus tyrannulus
787, Streaked flycatcher Myiodynastes maculatus
788. Say's phoebe Sayornis saya
789, Plumbeous vireo Vireo plumbeus
790. Northern raven Corvus corax
791. Casson's finch Haemorhous cassinii
792. Pine siskin Spinus pinus
793. Wilson's warbler Cardellina pusilla
794. Painted redstart Myioborus pictus
795. Louisiana waterthrush Parkesia motacilla
796. Hepatic tanager Piranga flava
797. American rock wren Salpinctes obsoletus
798. House wren Troglodytes aedon
799. Hermit thrush Catharus guttatus
Reptiles
26. Sonoran spotted whiptail Aspidoscelis sonorae
Invertebrates
68. Sonoran bumble-bee Bombus sonorus
69. Giant Mesquite bug Pachylis neocalifornicus
70. Blue fungus beetle Cypherotylus californicus (new Family)
Two-year new species targets
Mammals 107/100
Birds 775/1000
Bonus ectotherms 211
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A fantastic two days with Orca on Brittany Ferries to Santander. We were incredibly lucky with both birds and cetaceans (as well as seeing tuna, ocean sunfish and Portuguese man-of-war. A yet to be formally identified beaked whale that we saw is thought to be True's beaked whale. I am counting it here, but the species may conceivably change.
Mammals
13. Common dolphin
14. Striped dolphin
15. Bottlenose dolphin
16. Harbour porpoise
17. Fin whale
18. Minke whale
19. Cuvier's beaked whale
20. Sowerby's beaked whale
21. True's beaked whale (probable, tbc)
Birds
156. Northern fulmar
157. Cory's shearwater
158. Manx shearwater
159. Great shearwater
160. Balaeric shearwater
161. Sooty shearwater
162. Northern gannet
163. Common scoter
164. Great Skua
165. Yellow-legged gull
166. Black-legged kittiwake
167. European storm Petrel
168. Atlantic puffin
Day 25 (August 2)
The plan for this day was to spend the entire morning birding in the denser coastal forest looking for any number of forest birds including the East Coast Akalat, along with investigating further sites for giant sengi and the native Zanj Sun Squirrel. Unfortunately, I woke up feeling a little unwell, something that rapidly progressed to extremely unwell within minutes after arriving in the park. As a results, we had to abandon our birding plans and retreat back to the lodge. Very frustrating but necessary decision.
The pain of this decision was further reinforced when we got back to the lodge only to get an invite to tag along with some researchers heading out to an offshore island which hosted a massive breeding colony of thousands of terns and noddies. Of course, had we been out birding, this is not an opportunity we would have had anyway, but it still doubly stung to have to say no to this as well.
Strangely and luckily enough, by mid-day, I was completely fine again. Whatever got into my system was firmly and effectively ejected, allowing me to get back to the itinerary. First, an afternoon visit to the Watamu Snake Farm, which is a lovely little place housing many of Kenya's native species. Afterwards, we made our way to Mida Creek for some proper shore birding. The mudflats at Mida are special in that the tide moves in from multiple directions, all converging at a singular point. If one is to stand at this point about an hour and a half or so prior to high tide, they'd find hundreds of shorebirds being pushed in by the tide directly towards them.
521) Roseate Tern Sterna dougallii
522) Tibetan Lesser Sand-Plover Charadrius atrifrons
523) Common Whimbrel Numenius phaeopus
524) Terek Sandpiper Xenus cinereus
525) Dimorphic Egret Egretta dimorpha
526) Crab-Plover Dromas ardeola
527) Greater Sand-Plover Charadrius leschenaultii
528) Curlew Sandpiper Calidris ferruginea
529) Lesser Flamingo Phoeniconaias minor
530) Eurasian Curlew Numenius arquata
531) Amethyst Sunbird Chalcomitra amethystina
Once finished at Mida, we made our way back towards Arabuko-Sokoke to do a quick bit of birding within a marshy grassland adjacent to the park.
532) Northern Brownbul Phyllastrephus strepitans
533) Scaly Babbler Turdoides squamulata
534) Zanzibar Red Bishop Euplectes nigroventris
535) Common Waxbill Estrilda astrild
536) Pin-Tailed Whydah Vidua macroura
537) Malindi Pipit Anthus melindae
Afterwards, we made our way back into the forest for one final go at the giant sengi, which I'm happy to report were finally somewhat complacent, as were two very nice raptors.
538) Fasciated Snake-Eagle Circaetus fasciolatus
539) Palm-Nut Vulture Gypohierax angolensis
109) Golden-Rumped Sengi Rhynchocyon chrysopygus
~Thylo
Between this and the four-toed sengi that you saw beforehand. I too would be very grateful of seeing both species in a relatively short span of time. Also, out of curiosity, did you ever manage to successfully photograph both sengis during your time in the forest?
Unfortunately not. The Four-Toed remained within very dense vegetation that made photography challenging and I ultimately didn't end up with a decent photo. The giant sengis were incredibly shy and ran away whenever we approached, so I was happy enough to just get a good look at one before it, too, ran off once I switched to my lens.
Evidently on night drives, the Four-Toed Sengis will just sit out in the open along the road and are very easily photographed then.
~Thylo
Madera is a really cool place, and my understanding from talking with the locals is that Montezuma Quail are actually super common there, but require lots of effort to actually see, due to their ridiculous levels and secrecy and camouflage. I missed both them and the trogons too, unfortunately.
Day 26 (August 3)
An extra early morning start as we departed Watamu and made our way to our next destination via a drive through Tsavo East National Park. At the gate, we were treated to some roosting free-tailed bat species hopefully (relatively) soon to be identified by their HET recordings. The drive itself was absolutely lovely through some dry but productive bush, especially near the river. We even managed to pick up some out of range sandgrouse and an additional sighting of a fleeting Hirola!
540) Hunter's Sunbird Chalcomitra hunteri
541) Madagascar Pratincole Glareola ocularis
542) White-Browed Sparrow-Weaver Plocepasser mahali
543) Red-Fronted Prinia Prinia rufifrons
544) Chestnut-Bellied Sandgrouse Pterocles exustus
545) Hartlaub's Bustard Lissotis hartlaubii
546) Rosy-Patched Bushshrike Rhodophoneus cruentus
547) Red-Winged Lark Mirafra hypermetra
548) Chestnut-Backed Sparrow-Lark Eremopterix leucotis
549) Somali Courser Cursorius somalensis
550) Taita Fiscal Lanius dorsalis
551) Somali Bee-Eater Merops revoilii
552) Cut-Throat Finch Amadina fasciata
553) Yellow-Necked Spurfowl Pternistis leucoscepus
554) Black-Chested Snake-Eagle Circaetus pectoralis
555) White-Headed Vulture Trigonoceps occipitalis
556) African Pygmy-Falcon Polihierax semitorquatus
557) Red-Bellied Parrot Poicephalus rufiventris
110) Peter's Gazelle Nanger petersii
111) Fringe-Eared Oryx Oryx callotis
We spent the night inside Rukinga Sanctuary, which allowed us to do a night drive which produced some additional interesting species.
558) Spotted Eagle-Owl Bubo africanus
112) East African Gerbil Gerbilliscus vicinus
113) Emin's Gerbil Taterillus emini
114) Small-Spotted Genet Genetta genetta
115) Rufous Sengi Galegeeska rufescens
~Thylo
Someday I'd like to go back to Madera and bird it properly. When I visited in 2018, I didn't get there until the afternoon, and so saw nothing other than Mexican Jays (which were still nice as ASDM had just gone out of them). I missed the trogon both here and at Patagonia Lake, which is another great birding spot.
~Thylo
I've visited Patagonia Lake too, though the time of year I was there made trogon pretty much out of the question. Patagonia Lake is where I got to see Gray Hawk, among a number of other cool species.
Day 27 (August 4)
The first half of the day was spent inside Rukinga attempting to find additional Rufous Sengi for better views and for Klipspringer up in the hills. Unfortunately, we failed at finding either but made up for it with some great new birds, which also allowed me to complete the Kenyan set of helmetshrikes.
559) African Bare-Eyed Thrush Turdus tephronotus
560) Eastern Crombec Sylvietta (brachyura) leucopsis
561) Grey Wren-Warbler Calamonastes simplex
562) White-Crested Helmetshrike Prionops plumatus
563) Grey-Headed Bushshrike Malaconotus blanchoti
564) Black-Throated Barbet Tricholaema melanocephala
565) Spotted Palm-Thrush Cichladusa guttata
566) Tsavo Sunbird Cinnyris tsavoensis
567) African Hawk-Eagle Aquila spilogaster
568) Pygmy Batis Batis perkeo
569) Black-Necked Weaver Ploceus nigricollis
570) Wahlberg's Eagle Hieraaetus wahlbergi
116) Ochre Bush Squirrel Paraxerus ochraceus
In the early afternoon, we departed Rukinga and made the strenuous journey uphill to Wundanyi in the Taita Hills. We arrived just in time to have a couple hours of daylight left in the Ngangao Forest to do some quick but extremely productive afternoon birding. Once evening fell, we wandered deeper into the forest for some spotlighting.
571) Stripe-Faced Greenbul Arizelocichla striifacies
572) Taita White-Eye Zosterops silvanus
573) White-Starred Robin Pogonocichla stellata
574) Taita Apalis Apalis fuscigularis
575) Taita Thrush Turdus helleri
576) Hartlaub's Turaco Tauraco hartlaubi
117) Eastern Giant Pouched Rat Cricetomys ansorgei
118) Eastern Tree-Hyrax Dendrohyrax validus
On our way out of the forest, we heard the call of a Taita Warty Frog just off the path, but unfortunately were unable to locate one.
~Thylo
Funny enough, several years ago, I had just dropped off my bags in my room at the Santa Rita lodge and I looked out the back window to see a pair of montezuma quail saunter by.
Day 28 (August 5)
This day was originally planned as a full day in the forest as we had no idea how difficult or easy the three main endemic birds might be. We're extremely lucky they were so easy the first afternoon, as a heavy mist covered Ngangao so instead we chose to bird the lower open areas which were clear of mist but also significantly lacking in trees. No deep forest birds will be found here, however we still picked up some very nice species.
577) Pale White-Eye Zosterops flavilateralis
578) White-Necked Raven Corvus albicollis
579) Tawny-Flanked Prinia Prinia subflava
580) African Stonechat Saxicola torquatus
581) Striped Pipit Anthus lineiventris
582) Spot-Flanked Barbet Tricholaema lacrymosa
583) Brown-Breasted Barbet Pogonornis melanopterus
584) Singing Cisticola Cisticola cantans
In the late morning, the fog lifted and we made our way back up into the forest. Here we got fantastic views of a pair of apalis gathering nesting material and a few other excellent forest birds.
585) Lemon Dove Columba larvata
586) Placid Greenbul Phyllastrephus placidus
587) Yellow-Throated Woodland Warbler Phylloscopus ruficapilla
588) Evergreen Forest Warbler Bradypterus lopezi
Shortly after getting into the forest, however, some light rain began to fall and the mist quickly moved back in, adding a layer of moisture to the entire mountain. These conditions were really not ideal for birding, but they were good for testing our luck with some endemic amphibians. Ultimately, one out of two ain't bad:
Taita Hills Caecilian Boulengerula taitana
With the weather worsening and our day already so successful, we headed back down the mountain to rest for a few hours. Wasn't too long before we had a knock on our door from the groundskeeper who we'd told to let us know if he found any cool animals. He had, in fact, found some cool animals.
119) Wahlberg's Epauletted Fruit Bat Epomophorus wahlbergi
15) Taita Blade-Horned Chameleon Kinyongia boehmei
~Thylo
NICE!!!! I wonder, is this the first caecilian to be posted on the big year threads? Also any photos and anything more about finding them? Do you just have to get lucky when it rains?
Mexican jays were very prominent, all over the place. At Cave Creek Canyon I only saw one small group. I was wondering if maybe they were repressing other species at Madera.
I have some cell phone photos of them, yes. From speaking with a local forestry guide who helped us find the animal (as well as the endemic birds), whenever it's sufficiently wet they seem to come out near the surface. The man we spoke with had seen one moving about the foliage in the open just a few days beforehand, and we found ours after maybe 10-15 minutes of lifting logs and sifting through the foliage. I'm not sure how lucky we got tbh or if they're just not as difficult to find as one would expect.
~Thylo
Day 29 (August 6)
A not so early start to the day for once. We casually got ourselves together and began the trek towards Amboseli National Park. We made the last minute decision to take the long way by driving through Tsavo West instead of just a highway. A fantastic decision on our part I think.
589) Somali Bunting Emberiza poliopleura
590) Black-Capped Social-Weaver Pseudonigrita cabanisi
591) Martial Eagle Polemaetus bellicosus
592) Blue-Capped Cordon-Bleu Uraeginthus cyanocephalus
593) Chestnut Sparrow Passer eminibey
594) Crimson-Rumped Waxbill Estrilda rhodopyga
120) Klipspringer Oreotragus oreotragus
121) Mountain Reedbuck Redunca fulvorufula
Following our drive through Tsavo West, we drove through some pretty desolate and heavily degraded pastoral lands to make our arrival in Amboseli. This is not a park I was particularly knowledgeable about before arriving, and boy was I in for a treat. The beautiful views of Mount Kilimanjaro in the background, the dust devils barreling across the dry plains, the mirage of "Lake" Amboseli, the masses of thousands of waterbirds in the wetlands buzzing around elephants waist deep on water and buffalos with only their heads above the surface. All amazing!
595) Grey Crowned Crane Balearica regulorum
596) Double-Banded Courser Rhinoptilus africanus
597) Collared Pratincole Glareola pratincola
598) Squacco Heron Ardeola ralloides
599) Wood Sandpiper Tringa glareola
600) Black-Winged Stilt Himantopus himantopus
601) Red-Billed Teal Anas erythrorhyncha
602) Blue-Billed Teal Spatula hottentota
603) Marsh Sandpiper Tringa stagnatilis
604) Ruff Philomachus pugnax
605) Little Stint Ereunetes minuta
606) Common Moorhen Gallinula chloropus
607) White-Faced Whistling-Duck Dendrocygna viduata
608) Malachite Kingfisher Corythornis cristatus
122) Bohor Reedbuck Redunca redunca
Back at our lodge, we took some time at night to walk the brush with our thermals.
123) Woodland Thicket Rat Grammomys dolichurus
124) Yellow-Winged Bat Lavia frons
~Thylo
A few more additions from the last few days in Japan - not quite on the same scale as others' recent additions but progress nonetheless:
Mammals
3. Brown rat, Rattus norvegicus
Birds
67. Japanese wagtail, Motacilla grandis
68. White wagtail, Motacilla alba
69. Pacific swift, Apus pacificus
70. White throated needletail, Hirundapus caudacutus
71. Coal tit, Periparus ater
Day 30 (August 7)
Back in Amboseli for a full day. The day was spent alternating between the wetlands and the plains, where we were on the search for wolves.
609) Spur-Winged Goose Plectropterus gambensis
610) Red-Knobbed Coot Fulica cristata
611) Cape Teal Anas capensis
612) Striated Heron Butorides striata
613) Pied Avocet Recurvirostra avosetta
614) Common Redshank Tringa totanus
615) Winding Cisticola Cisticola marginatus
616) Saddle-Billed Stork Ephippiorhynchus senegalensis
617) Banded Parisoma Curruca boehmi
618) Rufous Chatterer Argya rubiginosa
619) Southern Pochard Netta erythrophthalma
620) Greater Painted-Snipe Rostratula benghalensis
125) Egyptian Mongoose Herpestes ichneumon
126) Hairy Slit-Faced Bat Nycteris hispida
As far as the wolves go, we went the whole day empty handed but having gotten as close as arriving at a site only moments after a pair had disappeared into the grass. In the late afternoon, we decided to stake out a den that was off the road. We'd had no idea whether it was active or what species it currently belonged to, but it was better than wandering the park hoping to see a wolf trotting along. After only about 45 minutes of waiting, I witnessed possibly the coolest thing I've ever seen.
By chance, I decided to take a glance behind us where, a few hundred yards down the road, I saw a big cloud of dust kicked into the air and four animals inside. One was clearly a Thomson's Gazelle, one was large raptor, and then there were two others on the ground right in the center of the cloud. One was small, I assumed a gazelle fawn. I thought I was watching an eagle try and take a gazelle fawn while the adults defended it. Looking closer, as the animals ran out of the cloud and onto the road, I saw that the fourth animal was a canine, jackal-sized. We spun the car around and chased after the action. The fawn ran onto the road, followed by the canid, eagle overhead, and the female gazelle last. The canid nabbed the fawn and took off, other animals in pursuit. As we got closer, I realized the fawn wasn't a fawn at all, it was a hare. And the jackal wasn't a jackal, it was the wolf!
What had happened was the wolf was hunting a hare, but a Tawny Eagle wanted it, too. The gazelle must have had a fawn in the grass nearby and simply wanted the predators gone. The result was an incredible amalgamation of species interactions. Wolf vs hare, eagle vs hare, wolf vs eagle, gazelle vs wolf. It didn't end there either, even once the wolf had the hare and the gazelle had trailed off, the eagle still wanted the kill. The wolf ran and the eagle pursued, when from up ahead the wolf's mate came charging in and jumped the eagle. For the remainder of the time we watched, the presumed female (the one who made the kill) ate the hare while the eagle watched from a distance and all the while the presumed male wolf sat defensively in-between them. Simply incredible!
127) African Golden Wolf Canis lupaster
~Thylo