CALIFORNIA & ARIZONA SPECIALITIES – a quest for the key birds of a spectacular part of the world

PRICE INFORMATION

Birdquest Inclusions: Our tour prices include surface transportation, accommodations, meals and entrance fees.

We also include all tipping for accommodation/restaurant staff.

Deposit: 20% of the total tour price. Our office will let you know what deposit amount is due, in order to confirm your booking, following receipt of your online booking form.

TO BOOK THIS TOUR: Click here (you will need the tour dates)

The single supplement will not apply if you indicate on booking that you prefer to share a room and there is a room-mate of the same sex available.

This tour is priced in US Dollars. Amounts shown in other currencies are indicative.

Air Travel To & From The Tour:  Our in-house IATA ticket agency will be pleased to arrange your air travel on request, or you may arrange this yourself if you prefer.

CALIFORNIA & ARIZONA SPECIALITIES BIRDING TOUR: DETAILED ITINERARY

California & Arizona Specialities: Day 1  Evening tour start at our Los Angeles hotel.

California & Arizona Specialities: Day 2  First, we visit a nearby park hoping to connect with our first ‘California’ endemics, such as California Thrasher, California Towhee, California Scrub Jay, Nuttall’s Woodpecker and Wrentit. This is also a good spot for the localized Lawrence’s Goldfinch and the more widespread – but beautiful – Yellow-breasted Chat. Furthermore, we will almost certainly connect with our first two of many western USA hummingbirds: Allen’s and Anna’s Hummingbird.

More widespread and common species we can expect here include Band-tailed Pigeon, American Bushtit, Spotted Towhee, Common Yellowthroat, Northern Cardinal, Mourning Dove, American Goldfinch, House Finch, Great-tailed Grackle, Bell’s Vireo, Cassin’s Kingbird, Western Flycatcher, Northern Mockingbird, Brown-headed Cowbird, Blue-grey Gnatcatcher, Northern House Wren, Red-winged Blackbird, and the first three species of many sparrows to come: Song, Savannah and Lincoln’s. We can expect the first American warblers in the form of American Yellow, Audubon’s, Orange-crowned and (migrating) Nashville Warbler. On the pond, we look for our first Canada Goose, Black-crowned Night Heron, Pied-billed Grebe, Great Egret and Double-crested Cormorant. More herons come in the form of Great Blue Heron, Snowy Egret and Green Heron. Northern Rough-winged, Cliff and Tree Swallow will fill up the sky, where we also keep an eye out for raptors in the form of Turkey Vulture, Osprey and Cooper’s Hawk.

We then head for the coast to look for the scarcer Heermann’s Gull between more common Western and Californian Gulls. Western Grebes, Surf Scooters and both Pacific and Common Loons float at sea, while Brown Pelicans are plentiful as well. We scan the pier looking for the local Brandt’s and Pelagic Cormorant, Black Turnstone, Wandering Tattler and Surfbird – the last three species typically wintering along the west coast of North America. Black Oystercatcher can be found here all year round. Accompanying species include Royal and Caspian Tern. A little further, we visit a small park for our latest target species this day: the range-restricted California Gnatcatcher. Overnight in Los Angeles.

California & Arizona Specialities: Day 3  We start this morning in the Bolsa Chica Wetland where we look for Ridgway’s Rail (occurring alongside Virginia Rail) and three species of tern: Elegant, Forster’s and Least Tern. Because it is a wetland area, we can also expect waders such as Grey Plover (Black-bellied P), Killdeer, Willet, Marbled Godwit, Hudsonian Whimbrel, Black-necked Stint, American Avocet, Spotted Sandpiper and Long-billed Dowitcher. We can practice our ID skills with similar-looking Western and Semipalmated Sandpipers both occurring – alongside the more distinct Least Sandpiper. With a bit of luck, we will see a Black Skimmer zooming over the water. Other possible species include many ducks (including Lesser Scaup, Redhead, Ruddy Duck, Cinnamon Teal and Blue-winged Teal), Black-necked Grebe, White-faced Ibis, American White Pelican, Bonaparte’s Gull, Red-breasted Merganser and Brant Goose.

On our way out of Los Angeles, we visit a place for Wood Duck, probably also adding Common Gallinule. From there, we’ll head up northwards to the small village of Taft. Along the way, we will undoubtedly come across more widespread species from the car, like Red-winged Blackbird, American Crow, American Kestrel, Red-tailed Hawk and Northern Raven – if we haven’t seen these already the other day. We will also visit a lake to pick up Clark’s Grebe. Overnight stay in Taft.

California & Arizona Specialities: Day 4  Near Taft we will look early morning for Bell’s Sparrow and Leconte’s Thrasher. Other new species here can be Western Meadowlark, California Quail and Loggerhead Shrike. We will then head further north today, in the direction of San Francisco. We will particularly look for two species with a range (almost) only confined to California: Yellow-billed Magpie and Tricolored Blackbird. Just a little bit more widespread, but still rather local, is Oak Titmouse – which we have a good chance of seeing as well today for the first time. We will be on the lookout for Prairie Falcon almost the whole drive. This huge falcon, about the size of a peregrine, can be found in this open countryside – sometimes resting on telephone poles. Finally, we will check some spots for wintering Golden-crowned Sparrow.

Our final destination will be Half Moon Bay, where we hope for a good rest as tomorrow will have an adventure – that is, if the weather gods are kind to us. The chances of seeing our first Bald Eagle increase once we get closer to the coastline. Overnight in Half Moon Bay.

California & Arizona Specialities: Day 5  Today, we will make a pelagic trip from Half Moon Bay. Huge upwellings produced by the massive submarine Pioneer Canyon (twice the size of the Grand Canyon!) has allowed birders to see a set of spectacular species only a short distance from land. Today will offer excellent chances for Black-footed Albatross, Sooty Shearwater, Pink-footed Shearwater, Buller’s Shearwater, Ashy Storm-Petrel, Black Storm-Petrel, South Polar Skua, all three skuas, Sabine’s Gull, Cassin’s Auklet, Rhinoceros Auklet, Tufted Puffin, and Red and Red-necked Phalaropes. We might even come across rarities such as Laysan Albatross, Fork-tailed Storm Petrel or even Hawaiian Petrel. For those into whales (who’s not?), we have a good chance of finding Blue and Humpback Whales. We will be out on the water for a full day. Overnight in Half Moon Bay.

California & Arizona Specialities: Day 6  This morning, we start driving eastwards towards the lovely town of Bishop. This town is situated on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada, which also means we pass the famously beautiful Yosemite NP. We might do some birding, having chances to see a whole bunch of woodpeckers: Downy, Hairy, White-headed, Pileated Woodpecker, Northern Flicker and Red-breasted Sapsucker, along with regular species like Black Phoebe, Warbling Vireo, Steller’s Jay, Brewer’s Blackbird, Pine Siskin and more. This is a fairly long drive, but if we arrive late afternoon we can make a first attempt for Sooty Grouse or target Black-billed Magpie in the surrounding countryside of Bishop. Overnight in Bishop.

California & Arizona Specialities: Day 7  This morning, we will start early. Very early. We will bring a visit to the lek of Sage Grouse. Early in the morning, the males come together on the prairie around a lake, all against the backdrop of snow-capped mountains – a fantastic spectacle! And with their white collars, orange air sacs and pointed tail feathers, the males do everything they can to leave an ever-lasting impression on the females – and us. Walking back to the cars we look out for typical species such as Sage Thrasher, Horned Lark and Sagebrush, Vesper and Brewer’s Sparrow.

A short distance away is the Inyo National Forest where we look for White-headed Woodpecker, Townsend’s Solitaire, Mountain Bluebird (what a blue!) and both Cassin’s Finch and Purple Finch, but the main target species here is Black-backed Woodpecker. This woodpecker likes recently burned areas of the forest, so it is not guaranteed that we will see it. Once we have sorted this out, we will visit some spots in the afternoon for the beautiful Pinyon Jay (talking about blue!) and Grey-crowned Rosy Finch. Over the day, we can expect more common or widespread species like (American) Grey Flycatcher, Ash-throated Flycatcher, Western Tanager, Swainson’s Hawk and Yellow-headed Blackbird. Overnight in Bishop.

California & Arizona Specialities: Day 8  This morning, we leave for Nevada early morning. In the early morning, we try for the beautiful Sooty Grouse near Big Pine. With its naked, yellow air sac, this fowl makes a particularly deep and low sound. We also check fast-flowing streams here for American Dipper. New species we can expect here are Clark’s Nutcracker, Rock Wren, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Mountain Chickadee and Thick-billed Fox Sparrow. We pass through Death Valley and will make some scenic stops. In the (late) afternoon, we try for both Crissal and LeConte’s Thrasher west of Las Vegas. This is also one of the few spots for Grey Vireo in this itinerary. When darkness falls, we go out for dinner and have a walk on ‘The Strip’ later in the evening. We are not in a hurry the next day and, therefore, have plenty of time to enjoy this crazily glitzy location in the middle of the city. Overnight stay in Las Vegas.

California & Arizona Specialities: Day 9:  In the early morning, we probably make another attempt for both thrashers just outside of Las Vegas. We also look particularly out for range-restricted Black-tailed Gnatcatcher, but other regular species here include Summer Tanager, Sharp-shinned Sparrowhawk, Peregrine Falcon and Greater Roadrunner. Hereafter, we drive straight to the Grand Canyon – rightly one of the most visited tourist destinations in the United States. Various viewpoints offer a great view of this special landscape. But… there are also birds. We drive to a point where we can hopefully view the California Condor up close. This species became extinct in 1987 but was successfully reintroduced after all 27 remaining individuals were caught and bred in the San Diego Wild Animal Park and Los Angeles Zoo. Afterwards, when numbers rose through captive breeding, condors were released in northern Arizona and southern Utah, the coastal mountains of California and northern Baja California in Mexico. During our walk, we can also expect to add new species like Juniper Titmouse, Woodhouse’s Scrub Jay, Zone-tailed Hawk, Violet-green Swallow and White-throated Swift. Overnight in Grand Canyon.

California & Arizona Specialities: Day 10  This morning, we start the day in the small town of Flagstaff. Here, we hope to see Evening Grosbeak. If not, there are plenty of photo opportunities for Mountain Chickadee, Western Bluebird and Pygmy Nuthatch. We also have a chance to see the endemic subspecies of Dark-eyed Junco, also called Red-backed Junco. If we haven’t picked up Lewis’s Woodpecker before, we can try here as well. Another species we hope to see here is American Three-toed Woodpecker, but this species is not guaranteed, and luck has to be on our side.

We then head further southwards to southeast Arizona. Along the way we make a first attempt for Bendire’s Trasher around Phoenix. This is probably the hardest thrasher of the five species possible on this tour, but for sure we will get it. Like the other thrashers (California, LeConte’s and Crissal’s Thrasher) this species also has a relatively small distribution area, mainly within the United States. From Phoenix, we drive to the Madera Canyon via Tucson. We will keep an eye out for new possible species like Harris’s Hawk, Crested Caracara and Neotropic Cormorant. Overnight in Madera Canyon.

California & Arizona Specialities: Day 11  This morning, we take a scenic walk through the Santa Rita Mountains of which the Madera Canyon is part. New target species we can expect are Bridled Titmouse, Yellow-eyed Junco, Grace’s Warbler, Painted Whitestart and Mexican Jay and the best chances of seeing the beautiful Red-faced Warbler and Elegant Trogon. Both species only occur here in the United States but have a wider distribution in Central America. Other, more widespread, new species can be Townsend Warbler, Cassin’s Vireo, Grey Hawk, Wild Turkey, Hepatic Tanager and Brown Creeper. We spend some time at our accommodation where we enjoy the many birds that come to the feeders here, including Arizona Woodpecker and Rivoli’s Hummingbird.

In the afternoon, we visit a nearby gorge for Five-striped Sparrow. This species has a very limited distribution but can be found here. New birds could well include Golden Eagle, Verdin, Rufous-crowned Sparrow, Lucy’s Warbler, Northern Beardless Tyrannulet and three species of sparrow: Black-throated, Black-chinned and Cassin’s Sparrow. In the evening, we try in the Madera Canyon for local specialities Mountain Pygmy Owl, Whiskered Screech Owl and Mexican Whip-poor-whill. More widespread night birds here include Common Poorwill, Western Screech Owl and even Great Horned Owl. Overnight in Madera Canyon.

California & Arizona Specialities: Day 12  This morning, we focus on species missed the other day(s). If there aren’t any left, we make our way to Sierra Vista – at the foot of the Huachuca Mountains. Along the way, we try for Scaled Quail. For the rest of the day and tomorrow, we will visit several gorges of this mountain range. One of these gorges holds Spotted Owl, although we need a good dose of luck for this species. In this gorge, we also have a chance to see Rufous-capped Warbler, Canyon Wren, American Dusky Flycatcher, Plumbeous Vireo, Black-throated Grey Warbler, Dusky-capped Flycatcher, Hermit Warbler and Say’s Phoebe.

The garden of our accommodation for tonight is specially designed for birds, and here we have the opportunity to see and possibly photograph species such as Acorn Woodpecker, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Gambel’s Quail, Curve-billed Thrasher, Pyrrhuloxia, the beautiful Lazuli Bunting and Green-tailed Towhee. Other species possible in the garden are Dark-eyed Junco, Chipping Sparrow, White-crowned Sparrow, Inca Dove, Bewick’s Wren, and three species of oriole: Bullock’s, Scott’s and Hooded Oriole. We can also expect (new) hummingbirds here, such as Rivoli’s, Black-chinned, Broad-tailed, Broad-billed and Calliope Hummingbirds. With luck, we might even see Lucifer Sheartail. Elf Owl breeds in the garden. Overnight stay in Sierra Vista.

California & Arizona Specialities: Day 13:  Early this morning, we visit a garden where we have a chance to see the spectacular Montezuma Quail – a species with a localized distribution and nowhere easy (but we have a good chance!). Afterwards, we visit another gorge where we hope to see target species like Buff-breasted Flycatcher, Greater Pewee, Olive Warbler and Tufted Flycatcher – all ‘Mexican’ species just occurring here in the United States. More widespread species possible here include Hermit Thrush, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, White-breasted Nuthatch, American Robin, Winter Wren, Hutton’s Vireo, Hairy Woodpecker en Hammond’s Flycatcher.

Later in the day, we visit some nearby feeders for Blue-throated and Violet-crowned Hummingbirds. These two species of hummingbirds, and Lucifer Sheartail, are found in the United States only in southeastern Arizona (or in the case of the sheartail, also in west Texas). At the end of the day, we make the short drive to Tucson. Overnight in Tucson.

California & Arizona Specialities: Day 14  If we still need Bendire’s Thrasher by now (a fair possibility), we have another chance to pick up on this local species. The rest of the morning we will bird the fantastic Saguaro National Park in the Sonoran Desert – just west of Tucson. The Saguaro NP owes its name to the many giant cacti that grow here. Typical species for this habitat include range-restricted species like Gila Woodpecker, Gilded Flicker, Rufous-winged Sparrow and Abert’s Towhee. Other species we can expect here include Lesser Goldfinch, Phainopepla, Western Kingbird, Costa’s and Rufous Hummingbird, Brown-chested Flycatcher, Black-headed Grosbeak, Blue Grosbeak, Cactus Wren, Chihuahuan Raven, White-winged Dove and Canyon Towhee. In the afternoon, we drive towards Los Angeles for our last few days. Overnight stay in Los Angelos.

California & Arizona Specialities: Day 15:  Today we will take a ferry to and from Santa Cruz Island, part of the Channel Islands. From the ferry, we should see Cassin’s Auklet and Scripps’s Murrelet, as both species breed on the islands. Other possibilities include Pigeon Guillemot, Common Mure or Rhinoceros Aucklet – though it is getting a bit late for these species. Pink-footed Shearwaters can be picked out between the more regular Sooty Shearwaters.

After arrival we will visit the former Prisoners Harbor to look for one species in particular: Island Scrub Jay. This is the only island endemic species in North America and with the smallest range of any North American bird species. A genetic analysis shows it has diverged from California Scrub Jay (its sister species on the mainland) about 150.000 years ago, now being larger, darker blue in colour and with a distinctive call. There isn’t much else to go after here, but for sure, we will see the local subspecies of Rufous-crowned Sparrow and enjoy some Island Foxes.

California & Arizona Specialities: Day 16  This morning, we drive early to the San Gabriel Mountains. This beautiful mountain area just north of Los Angeles is home to some specialities, including Mountain Quail, White-headed Woodpecker and Thick-billed Fox Sparrow (the latter two we might have seen already). The beautiful Mountain Quail – with its long, erect crest – will hopefully be the fifth quail species to see this trip! May is a good time for warblers as well, and we hope for the first Wilson’s, Hermit and MacGillivray’s Warblers.

In the forests, we can also expect a few new species, like Western Wood Pewee and Olive-sided Flycatcher, alongside a whole set of species we are probably now familiar with, like Stellar’s Jay, Green-tailed Towhee and Dark-eyed Junco. When evening falls, we will look for several new owl species: Flammulated Owl, Northern Saw-whet Owl and Northern Pygmy Owl. A little lower, we can look for Spotted Owl if we have missed that species before in Southeast Arizona, but we need some luck here as well.

Our tour ends this afternoon at Los Angeles International Airport.