A Bird's Eye View at Tempe Town Lake

Normally I'm quite far away from the birds I attempt to photograph: either the creatures perch high in a tree or lie many yards away across a field.  But at Tempe Town Lake I was able to spy my subjects while uniquely situated above them, from my vantage points along McClintock Drive's bridge.  The structure crosses the lake right where water often released on the Salt River begins to fill the man-made lake.  

I set out for the lake partially because I was longing to see some of the regular winter migrants that usually frequent the waterways throughout my Phoenix neighborhood.   While plenty of American wigeons and ring-necked ducks are flocking at Granada Park's ponds, I've only see a few other seasonal water bird species so far this year.  I did encounter a pair of female goldeneyes flying in tight formation over the Arizona Canal and I identified a lone ruddy duck on a pond near the Adobe golf course.  However I had yet to see any shovelers, teals, canvasbacks, or pintails, to name just a few of the lucky discoveries from past years.

Tempe Town Lake was created over twenty years ago when the river bed was dammed to created a two-mile long body of water that spreads across 200 acres.  Today it's circled by sidewalks, bike paths, hiking trails, parks, and office towers, all situated directly under Sky Harbor's flightpaths and in the midst of crisscrossing five-lane expressways.  Not just to bikers, canoers, and fishermen, it's home to many species of birds. 

On a visit to the park last winter I was rewarded with at least six finds in the family of visiting water fowl: hooded mergansers, ruddy ducks, common buffleheads, northern shovelers, green-winged teals, and ring-necked ducks.  While none were first-time encounters, it was an exciting concentration of ducks and other water birds in a relatively small and easy to traverse area.

I had focused my visit at  the southeastern corner of the park, where concrete walls line the river channel near remnants of an abandoned dam.  It's at a point where an area of restored, verdant Salt River habitat spills into the lake and exactly where McClintock Drive passes over the waterway. 

The vrooms of jets taking off at nearby Sky Harbor and the roar of freeway traffic zipping by on the 202 adjacent to the river were probably deterrents enough from exploring the bridge.  Add the stream of fast cars on McClintock and it's no wonder I avoided it all together last time I visited.  However its height at around thirty-five feet offered direct views to the river bottom below, where a seemingly perennial water supply nurtured the native flora and, lucky for me, fauna in the form of numerous birds.

It was actually safe to walk across the bridge as its sidewalks were protected from the traffic by guard rails.  And it's easy to peer over the outer safety railings or through slats at the river below.  From the western walkway, alongside southbound Tempe vehicular traffic, I had a commanding view of the wide expanse of Tempe Town Lake's eastern border.  I did feel a continuous vibration from the steady stream of cars along with an occasional shake from trucks: movements that could easily be offset by the fast shutter speeds of bird photography. 

The first bird to catch my attention was a male belted kingfisher perched on an abandoned length of rebar jutting out of the water.  He wasn't especially unusual since the species is a regular visitor to Phoenix's waterways in the winter.  The slate-blue bird almost never tolerates a birder's or photographer's close approach but he let me sneak up and capture a few excellent shots.  Maybe the kingfisher was distracted by the din of traffic noise on McClintock 

I soon discovered my first northern shovelers of the season just beyond the kingfisher's perch.  Several pairs of the dabbling ducks crisscrossed the inlet while they foraged in the shallow water with their amusingly-long beaks.

Among several mallards and American coots was a plain bird that aroused some curiosity.  Something was different about what I thought was a hen, with her cinnamon head, speckled sides, and black rump.  Later identification proved that the she was actually a he, and also a gadwall, a brand-new species for me!  And the mallard accompanying him?  She was a female gadwall! 

At least three egret species were in the area, including a snowy and great, along with a great blue heron.   The great heron, blinding white in the late morning sunshine, showed particular intolerance of my close proximity overhead.   So it quickly gave me an opportunity to photograph it in flight as it escaped to a more secure edge of shoreline.  

I investigated the bridge's eastern walkway but the views looked down on a short expanse of currently dry riverbed.  It would take an especially rainy day or a period when Tempe Town Lake is being recharged to see any water fowl immediately below.  In the meantime a number of homeless humans and at least one coyote had their own unique shoreside views just a short walk away.

New birds dabbling: gadwalls, male left, female right, from McClintock Drive's bridge at Tempe Town Lake.

New birds: gadwalls, male left, female right, at Tempe Town Lake from McClintock Drive's bridge.

Male kingfisher from McClintock Drive's bridge at Tempe Town Lake.

Male kingfisher from McClintock Drive's bridge at Tempe Town Lake.

Northern shovelers, male right, female left, at Tempe Town Lake from McClintock Drive's bridge.

Northern shovelers, female left, male right, at Tempe Town Lake from McClintock Drive's bridge.

Great heron at Tempe Town Lake from McClintock Drive's bridge. 

Capture of on-line map showing Tempe Town Lake's eastern border and McClintock Drive's bridge over the Salt River.