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Tucson Audubon Society
"Desert
Dingbat” Birdathon Team Report
by
Sonja Macys
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In the spirit of the season- that is the horseracing season- I might say that the Desert Dingbats needed a handicapping adjustment this year. Our team was charged with beating Valerie Pullara, our new Development Director, in the “Most Donations Dollars Raised” category. It was a tough road, due to the many externalities that plagued our team. However with the timely delivery of your valuable pledge, we will keep our title as the reigning champs in this category for BIRDATHON 2006!
First of all, let me just say THANK YOU for supporting me in my effort. This year was especially tough, given that I was less than two weeks out of my knee surgery when we went out for 24 hours of Bird Watching. I felt that I had to do it. I owed it to my loyal BIRDATHON donors to win! And it was fun!
Those of you who have been with me for many years will recognize the route. We have kept a variation of the same for the past four years, starting in Green Valley at 3:40pm on Saturday 5/6 with a Great Horned Owl. We started earlier than usual to add more daylight on to the first day and see what we could find of desert birds on Continental Road and higher elevation birds at Madera Canyon. It paid off! We ended the day with 73 species, well over halfway to our eventual total of 132!
Some highlights were a flock of Cedar Waxwings, sporadic visitors to our area but not usually this late in the year; a Rose-breasted Grosbeak at the Madera Kubo cabins where I chit chatted with visiting birders while Larry and Linda hiked up the Vault Mine Trail; and a Pine Siskin, completely distinctive from the House Finches because of his habitat (they usually like to be higher) and the yellow band on the otherwise bland wing.
In addition to being in an ambulatory challenged state, I was doing double duty as driver and recorder because our teammate, Barbara Heineman (driver) is now a hotshot CFO at the Symphony and could not be with us. Larry has lightened up over the years and let us retire early for a “good night’s sleep” (9:30pm-4:30am) even though it cost us the Flammulated Owl, Whiskered Screech Owl, Whip Poor Wills and Poor Wills (look on the bright side, we saved you a few bucks!).
The next day came early as we met at 5am to head up Mount Lemmon, searching for American Kestrels on the wires and other urban birds along the way. To be honest, we were not exhibiting our usual frenetic pace- “ok, I see it, Let’s go”- until later in the day when we realized that, despite our handicaps, we might actually do pretty darn well. We ambled up Mount Lemmon, catching Red Crossbills, Bluebirds, and Red Faced Warblers. By brunch, we were at 100, which we always celebrate with chocolate. Down the Mountain and onward…
After hitting 100 by 10am, we were going to have to pick up the pace to get another 50 birds. We still had opportunities. Hadn’t hit any water spots or migrant traps yet. It was do-able. We could actually get to 150. The clock started really ticking. We zipped through Agua Caliente Park for the Northern Bearded Tyrannulet and Green Kingfisher, no Vermilion Flycatchers though. A jaunt down Woodland Road got us the Vermilion but no Bronzed Cowbirds associated with the cows. And still no Roadrunner.
Like in years past, I sit on the right hand side of the car (could it be my right-leanings?) and as we sped down the road, I emitted a scream. “A ROADRUNNER IN THE TREE!” Our astute driver slammed on the brakes (this Birdathoning can be dangerous). The Roadrunner is Larry’s good luck bird, so we had to go back and see it better. After two U-turns, we were back on the road to the Sweetwater Wetlands.
How were we going to get in Sweetwater and Avra Valley? Bird opportunities were there but time was running short and my energy was fading. A respite of ice and elevation at Mt. Lemmon had long since worn off. My aggressive advil program, sheer competitive determination, loyalty to my donors, and the entertaining quips of fellow dingbats were all that kept me in the race. But at Sweetwater we picked a few up, and that raised morale…our first ducks and a Lazuli Bunting which Barbara and I thoughtfully considered, much to the Larry’s consternation.
He was finally realizing that we were RUNNING OUT OF TIME. And what time did Avra Valley close anyway? Was it 3pm or 2:30? And what do we do with that last hour? As we sped along, making decisions on the fly, we crafted a plan. I would entertain the facilities personnel as my colleagues ran, at breakneck speed, to get to all of the ponds.
We got there at 2pm and closing was at 2:30pm. They were not happy to see us, late on a Sunday but that did not slow the group down. The gang ran and I sought shade, elevating the knee and contemplating whether or not my determination to raise money for Tucson Audubon had turned into some sort of sick obsession. Who would give up the Kentucky Derby and limp around for 24 hours, chasing birds. By the time I realized just how stupid I was, they were back with more ducks, a Black-necked Stilt and many more. It was off again for the last hour of the competition.
As always, we had Larry to thank for ensuring that we didn’t give up. We sped by Kennedy Park’s grassy areas to pick up an Inca Dove; unsuccessfully 4 wheeled through the “roads” at the dry Orange Grove Ponds and ended up at the Ina Bridge over the Santa Cruz River. Larry was the only one with the juice left to walk it all the way. As we made plans for next year’s effort, we all shared our joy and surprise that we did so well this year. In my case, it was thanks to YOU. I didn’t want to let you down.
If all of our pledges come in, the Dingbats will have raised about $5,000 for Tucson Audubon’s many and diverse programs. And we have you to thank for it.
Please check the website to pay your Birdathon Bill online or send a check to:
Tucson Audubon Society
300 E. University Blvd. #120
Tucson, AZ. 85716
Please make sure to write “Macys’ Birdathon 2006” in the tag line. Once again, many thanks for your support. Call me if you want to go birding!
Sonja
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This page was updated on 05/16/07