NATURAL HISTORY
But mostly people are here for the distinctive natural beauty. Southeast Arizona is a nexus for five eco-systems (Sonoran, Chicuahuha, Great Plains, Rocky Mountain, and the Sierra Madre) which create an extensive and notably bio-diverse location in the United States. In Ramsey Canyon a Sonoran Pine grows near a prickly yucca, revealing the complex nature of the isolated ranges which shelter species from hybridization and extinction.
The ranges are not connected, as most montane systems are, and so create "sky islands" (an imaginative description of the discrete ranges viewed from above).
I'm here because it's a prime United State birding location, and an unusual rare species, the Elegant Trogon, is found here by the diligent and the fortunate.
We plan to bird Ramsey Canyon, Fort Huachuca's Garden Canyon area, the San Pedro Cottonwoods Riparian Area, the Chiricuaha Mountains, and Madera Canyon. Each is located in one of the sky islands.
One of the pleasures of birding in remote places is bonding with others who love birds. The birdwatching jokes and ridicule we birders endure at the hands of insensitive relatives and friends aren't heard. We're too busy wondering if that last call was a bridled titmouse or a sulpher-bellied flycatcher.
There's such a delight when I see a lovely bird flare up from a thicket, whip across the road, or perch on a high branch, and I'm the lucky one who's seen that two seconds of exquisite color and movement.
The Elegant Trogon is a must on avid birder's lists, and have a guide coming to help with this. My intrepid brother, a biologist from Iowa, will join me in the quest. The rest of the family will hike and enjoy the scenery. Wish us luck!
I'm here because it's a prime United State birding location, and an unusual rare species, the Elegant Trogon, is found here by the diligent and the fortunate.
We plan to bird Ramsey Canyon, Fort Huachuca's Garden Canyon area, the San Pedro Cottonwoods Riparian Area, the Chiricuaha Mountains, and Madera Canyon. Each is located in one of the sky islands.
One of the pleasures of birding in remote places is bonding with others who love birds. The birdwatching jokes and ridicule we birders endure at the hands of insensitive relatives and friends aren't heard. We're too busy wondering if that last call was a bridled titmouse or a sulpher-bellied flycatcher.
There's such a delight when I see a lovely bird flare up from a thicket, whip across the road, or perch on a high branch, and I'm the lucky one who's seen that two seconds of exquisite color and movement.
The Elegant Trogon is a must on avid birder's lists, and have a guide coming to help with this. My intrepid brother, a biologist from Iowa, will join me in the quest. The rest of the family will hike and enjoy the scenery. Wish us luck!
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