Lower Santa Cruz River

Jarmo, visiting from Finland, and I went to a couple of spots northwest of Tucson today, basically just sniffing around to see what we might find. The Marana Pecan Grove was being patrolled by a Black Vulture, a species I don’t often run into right there; the two Turkey Vultures with it were flirting with being late, most of them already having moved out to Nogales or farther south for the winter. A single Swainson’s Hawk was a surprise at this date, and I fully expect it to be the last one I see ‘til they return from South America in, what, about 5 months.

We managed to find one single solitary Ruddy Ground-Dove at Red Rock; it seems like this winter they’re easier to find than usual, and—this loner at Red Rock notwithstanding—in larger numbers, too.

And we ended a nice relaxing day of birding at Sweetwater Wetlands, where the Least Grebe swam out into the pond as if on command. Wish I could get him to do that every time!