As I feared, the warbler trail has finally gone cold. With no new species to report it might be time to focus on the cardinals which have begun appearing in Arizona. Over the weekend I saw at least five black-headed grosbeaks, both male and female, along with one male western tanager: each the first since last summer.
I actually hit the warbler trail again yesterday at the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix and did encounter two males: a Wilson's and a Townsend's. But I've already seen these species since the beginning of spring, so I was a little disappointed they weren't specimens like the red-faced or hermit which have so far eluded me.
The members of the cardinal family were on my property in Prescott where the grosbeaks were quick to discover the suet and seeds I placed in feeders. The tanager is a much less common visitor to my neighborhood and seems to eschew any of my handouts. I wasn't surprised he was a fleeting presence, perched high in a pine tree for the minute I observed him.
As spring heats up and serves an early taste of summer, the weather is a reminder that other cardinals will migrate to the state. Blue grosbeaks and both hepatic and summer tanagers will certainly breed in the Prescott area. Lazuli buntings will pass through and, if I'm especially lucky, a rose-breasted grosbeak might stray into the area.
Meanwhile everyone's favorite cardinal, the northern, along with its cousin the pyrrhuloxia will sweat out the summer in the desert, where they dwell all year long. I have a much lower tolerance for the heat and will follow their cousins the tanagers to the cool pine forests soon.
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| Male black-headed grosbeak in Prescott. |
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| Male black-headed grosbeak in Prescott. |
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| Male western tanager in Prescott. |
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