Green Valley Sewage Ponds

Denis and I ventured to Green Valley today, itching for some of the rare Calidris reported there these past few days. It was not to be: though we found more Western Sandpipers (>11) and Wilson’s Phalaropes (>25) than have been there on other recent visits, none of our targets appeared. Clearly, as in so many other southeast Arizona ‘wetland’ habitats, the birds here are, literally, volatile, resting for a short while and then moving on to greener valleys to the south.

The Ross’s Goose does continue, though, and American Wigeon numbers are slowly increasing. But our best sighting was of two common birds interacting. A female American Kestrel had the great misfortune to be spotted by a Gila Woodpecker, and every time the tiny falcon landed on a pole top, the noisy woodpecker chased her off. This went on for a distance of 5 poles, the kestrel barely settled before the Gila asserted its claim to those 16 square inches of creosoted pine. They never actually came to blows, but if they had, my money would have been on the woodpecker!