Birds of Brazil 

Come to one of the May 15 (Sedona) or 16 (Flagstaff) meetings to be wowed by pictures of plants, animals, and birds of Brazil! And you will hear Eric Moore speak about the wonders of this country known for its amazing rain forests and the world’s second longest river.

In September of 2011 Eric traveled to Brazil to participate in a two-week long bird watching expedition with Borderland Tours out of Tucson, Arizona. He spent time birding in mountainous rainforests and in the Pantanal region of central Brazil. The bird watching was spectacular with over 400 species observed!

When the guided portion of the trip was over, Eric met his wife in San Paulo and the two of them traveled north to Manaus, Brazil, meeting up with their son, Merritt, who had been serving as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for two years. Manaus, the capital of the state of Amazonas, is in the heart of Amazon watershed on the banks of the Rio Negro River. Eric and Gayla spent two wonderful weeks with their son exploring and visiting many incredibly beautiful areas in the Amazon region, witnessing the wonder and beauty of nature in the jungles of the Amazon.

Eric is the owner of Jay’s Bird Barn stores in Prescott and Sedona. On the store’s website he says that his “interest in birds began when I was very young. By the time I was five years old I was fascinated with birds and watched them at feeders in my parents’ yard in Massachusetts. At the age of 13 I joined the Tucson chapter of the National Audubon Society. When I lived in Utah I participated in the Utah County Birders Club (there was not an Audubon chapter in Provo). I have been associated with the Prescott chapter of the National Audubon Society for the past eleven years and have served on the board of directors and as the “publicity chair.”

I have led bird walks, been in charge of the North American Migration Bird Count, and I have participated in the Christmas Bird Count in Tucson, Provo, and Prescott for a time period spanning 30 years. I consider myself to be an excellent birder. Birding is more than a hobby for me–it is a passion.

 At the March 20 (Sedona) and 21(Flagstaff) meetings, Dena Greenwood, NAAS Board member, Field Trip Co-Chair, and    will fill us in on the wonderfully happenings  at the Sedona Wetlands Preserve and also exciting plans for improvements at Page Springs/Bubbling Ponds, which is part of the Lower Oak Creek Important Bird Area.

 Several V-shaped flocks of Canada Geese take flight at daybreak, honking as they ascend.  They will spend the day foraging in farmers’ fields, only to return at dusk to their safe new ponds at the Sedona Wetlands Preserve.  A flock of eight Cinnamon Teal rise, circle, then slide behind rushes on Pond Two.  A pair of Common Gallinule work the back pond.  Two Northern Harriers careen low scouting for their next meal.  The konk-la-ree of Red-wing Blackbirds adds to the biophony of the marshland.  All these images evoke memories for people who grew up in the mid-west or back east where marshes and wetlands are common and these sights and sounds are abundant.  Although rare in the middle of Arizona in a desertenvironment, these images are now a reality at the new Sedona Wetlands Preserve.

The vision for the Sedona Wetlands Preserve started 20 years ago with then Mayor and Audubon Board Member, Anita MacFarlane.  After many years, of planning by citizen committees, engineers and city officials, the Preserve Phase I has been completed.  We will discuss the plan, show highlights of the wonderful waterfowl that have already discovered the Wetlands and discuss what’s planned for future phases.

Another birding magnet, long known to local birders, is Bubbling Ponds at Page Springs. In addition to rearing ponds for rare native fish, Bubbling Ponds is where local birders are sure of finding avian surprises – from the nesting Common Black Hawks and Bald Eagles to the elusive Pacific Wren; Wood Ducks; Black-crowned Night-herons; and Great Blue and  Green Herons.

Thanks to the efforts by members of Northern Arizona Audubon Society planning team in cooperation with Arizona Game and Fish Dept. it will be receiving a major renovation.  Upgrades will include entry kiosk, interpretive signage, trail improvements, viewing decks, outdoor education sites and landscaping around the Ramada.

Dena will discuss these two exciting projects that are sure to further define Sedona/Verde Valley as a premier destination site for birding and ecotourism.

Dena began her birding adventures 25 years ago as an Arizona State Park’s ranger leading bird walks at State Parks and developing bird guides for several State Parks.  She received her graduate degree in environmental biology with an emphasis in ornithology, botany and geology.  She conducted bird research for Colorado Plateau Research Station, National Park Service, and the U.S. Forest Service on the Verde, Colorado, and San Juan River corridors.  Dena has been guiding birding field trips throughout the Southwest for over 20 years with the Elderhostel program and the Audubon Society.  She is a board member and field trip chair for Northern Arizona Audubon Society and a founding committee member of the Verde Valley Birding and Nature Festival, organizing field trips for the Festival.  She currently manages Jay’s Bird Barn in Sedona and leads Wednesday bird walks from there.

(NOTE: The Sedona – only – Feb. meeting is cancelled due to bad weather.) The avifauna within the Sky Islands of southeastern Arizona includes many bird species found nowhere else in the U.S., including Neotropical migratory species whose northern breeding range extends to these mountains. A few notable species include elegant trogons, eared-quetzals, buff-breasted flycatchers, yellow-eyed juncos, magnificent hummingbirds, and Mexican chickadees. As a result and because of the scenic beauty, birdwatchers from across the globe visit the region, providing the basis for a vibrant ecotourism industry.  Conservation of this unique bird assemblage relies on identifying important drivers of species richness and diversity.

Dr. Jamie Sanderlin, Research Wildlife Biologist at the Rocky Mountain Research Station, will be our speaker for the Feb. 20 (Sedona) and 21 (Flagstaff) meetings. She will share with us information about research projects in the Sky Islands as well as how some of us can participate as citizen scientists.

In the early 1990’s, Rocky Mountain Research Station scientists initiated a five-year study of avian distribution and habitat associations within the Sky Island mountain ranges of the Santa Rita, Santa Catalina, Huachuca, Chiricahua, and Pinaleño Mountains. This baseline study identifies important avian habitats and can help guide management and restoration efforts in response to disturbance events.

Since the original study, the region has been under increased stress associated with ongoing droughts and wildfires which have burned most of the original study sites. Fortunately, Southern Arizona is unique in having highly skilled citizens able to identify birds by sight and sound. These citizens are important for monitoring and conservation efforts within the region. This presentation will focus on avian species richness from the original study, and will also include discussion of current citizen science efforts in the Sky Islands to assess wildfire impacts on bird populations. Come and learn about the unique birds in the Sky Islands and how you can be involved in their conservation!

Dr. Sanderlin received her Ph.D. and M.S. degrees at University of Georgia working with American black bears in central Georgia, and a B.S. degree at Purdue University working with banner-tailed kangaroo rats in southeastern Arizona. Her broad research interests within statistical ecology of birds and mammals include population and community ecology, wildlife genetics, new analysis techniques, and sample design. She also spent two years in New Zealand as a Post-Doctoral Fellow at the University of Otago. Living on the South Island in New Zealand was a wonderful adventure, affording many opportunities to see wildlife, including yellow-eyed penguins, little blue penguins, kea (alpine parrot), northern royal albatrosses, New Zealand fur seals, Hector’s dolphins, and New Zealand sea lions.

She is happy to be back in the U.S. and to have the opportunity to live and work in the Southwest as a U.S. Forest Service Research Biologist in Flagstaff. Ever since sampling small mammals near the Chiricahua Mountains as an undergraduate, she wanted to return to learn more about the plant and animal diversity in Arizona, especially southeastern Arizona, and is excited to be working on a project in the same region with bird communities and local residents

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