Date: 9/24/25 2:41 pm From: dpsiminski (via aznmbirds Mailing List) <aznmbirds...> Subject: [AZNMbirds] San Pedro River Birding Walk
This morning, nine birders participated in The Friends of the San Pedro
River’s Birding Walk from the San Pedro House. We birded a loop south of the
San Pedro House within the San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area
(SPRNCA). We saw 50 species of birds. The river was flowing very high today
and the River Trail near markers 6 and 7 had flooded and it was very muddy in
that area.
Our Bird-of-the-Day was the Yellow-billed Cuckoo. Besides being a Federally
Threatened population of the Yellow-billed Cuckoo, a life-bird for some
participants, and that it is just a very cool bird, it is probably the last
time we will see one this year. Cuckoos arrive late on the San Pedro River,
about mid-June, breed very fast, and then are mostly gone by mid-September.
One of the two that we saw today was seen by all the participants as it sat
calmly preening in an Arizona Walnut tree. The other was a fleeting glimpse of
a long, boldly spotted undertail as it flew and then disappeared into the
foliage of a Fremont Cottonwood. Another probable EOS (End-of Season) bird
was a single, Yellow-breasted Chat. Back in July, we saw and heard over thirty
during a single birding walk.
Some FOS (First-of-Season) birds for the San Pedro River birding walks were
two Cassin’s Vireos, a few Brewers Sparrows and White-crowned Sparrows.
The most abundant bird of the day was the Green-tailed Towhee. We detected 19.
(!) In the early fall in recent years, they have seemed to migrate through the
SPRNCA in great abundance and then for the winter months become just a regular
common winter resident.
The Friends of the San Pedro River leads birding walks on the second and
fourth Wednesday of each month. For the months of October and November, the
walks leave at 7:00a from the BLM’s San Pedro House south of State Route 90
just west of the San Pedro River. We walk about 4km, and we are out for about
three and one-half hours. Bring your own binoculars, a hat and water.
The next San Pedro River birding walk is on Wednesday, 8 October, at 7:00a.
See you there.
Pete Siminski
Friends of the San Pedro River
Sierra Vista AZ