This year's tour was confined to the south-east of the state with just one brief excursion north of Tucson to find Burrowing Owl. The itinerary included stays in Portal, Sierra Vista, Green Valley and Tucson, giving access to more excellent birding sites than could possibly be covered in the time available.
Here are some photographs of a few of the birds seen and places visited during two weeks of sunshine:
Scenic Cave Creek Canyon in the Chiricahuas
Burrowing Owl - in decline and becoming harder to find around Tucson
Willow Tank - an oasis in the desert, near Portal
Whitewater Draw - not much water at this time of year but still worth a visit
Patagonia Lake - a large man-made lake, good for ducks, grebes, shorebirds and more
Lower Sabino Canyon - saguaros, chollas, mesquite, palo verde and more
Amado Sewage Pond - often attracts something unusual, this time a Greater Scaup
Portal Main St. - always good for an early morning or evening walk
Black-throated Sparrow - an attractive common resident of desert scrub
Lark Sparrow - one of the most numerous birds we saw
Cactus Wren - the official state bird of Arizona
Greater Roadrunner - always popular and seemed particularly numerous this year
Scott's Oriole - one of three oriole species seen
(Mexican) Spotted Owl - well worth the climb up Miller Canyon
Lucifer Hummingbird - eight species of hummingbirds were seen
Vermilion Flycatcher - presumably a first-year male
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