I spent a few days in Madera Canyon, the famous birding hotspot in southeastern Arizona. Days consisted of long hikes, interspersed with relaxing periods sitting on the patio watching the bird feeders.
Moonrise over the Santa Rita Mountains
Like other “Sky Island” sites in Arizona, the bird life in Madera Canyon changes with the elevation. The lower canyon was home to this Northern Cardinal, a bird of my youth in Indiana.
A couple of miles up the canyon, Wild Turkeys were common visitors to bird feeding stations.
Painted Redstarts are flashy and conspicuous.
Coues White-tailed Deer were a common sight.
One of the most sought-after birds in Madera Canyon is Elegant Trogon. They nest in the big sycamores along the creek in the upper canyon.
This is a view from the rim surrounding the canyon. It was a long climb to this point, to the land of Grace’s Warblers and Greater Pewees.
Yellow-eyed Junco was one of my favorite birds in the canyon, not as flashy as the warblers and trogons, but beautiful nonetheless.