Blue Goose ~ Day 202

December 15, 2014 ~ Sierra Vista, AZ

The San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area (SPRNCA), six miles from the motel, was the first IBA (Globally Important Bird Area).

WWW.BLM.GOV

The primary purpose for the special designation is to protect and enhance the desert riparian ecosystem, a rare remnant of what was once an extensive network of similar riparian systems throughout the American Southwest. One of the most important riparian areas in the United States, the San Pedro River runs through the Chihuahuan Desert and the Sonoran Desert in southeastern Arizona. The river’s stretch is home to more than 80 species of mammals, two native species and several introduced species of fish, more than 40 species of amphibians and reptiles, and 100 species of breeding birds. It also provides invaluable habitat for 250 species of migrant and wintering birds and contains archaeological sites representing the remains of human occupation from 13,000 years ago.

The VC is the San Pedro House - a modest four-square home shaded by immense cottonwoods. Volunteers staff it and manage a well-stocked gift shop. The property consists of 57,000 acres on BLM land, 40 miles along the river. Because of the available water of the San Pedro River and the silver discovered near Tombstone to the north, the area is rich with history - Spanish, Apache, miners, Mexican cattlemen and their grand ranches.... The river originates in Mexico and runs north from the border joining the Gila River between Phoenix and Tucson. The Gila then runs west and empties into the Colorado River at Yuma in  the southwest corner of Arizona. And then.....

WWW.LIVESCIENCE.COM

For the first time in 16 years, freshwater from the Colorado River has flowed into the salty waters of the Gulf of California. On Thursday (May 15, 2014) a high tide surged past a stubborn sandbar and connected the river with the Sea of Cortez, said Francisco Zamora, director of the Colorado River Delta Legacy Program for the Sonoran Institute. Because of water use upstream, little flow from the 1,450-mile Colorado River has reached the sea in 50 years.

[The Sea of Cortez is also known as the Gulf of California, the water between the Baja Peninsula and the mainland of Mexico.]

There were a few other hikers/birders about, most down along the river, which is where I walked for a couple of hours. The trail was like a trace (as in Natchez), a narrow 1-4 foot depression in the earth.

San Pedro River - AZ

The river is not impressive but at least is not ephemeral, and there are ponds and oxbows and evidence of seasons of flooding. Birding often requires a zen attitude. Stand still in one place and the birds usually will show, like a furtive Bewick's Wren moving along the opposite bank or the Ruby-crowned Kinglets and Black Phoebes. Hawks soared overhead and woodpeckers worked the tall trees. I read that half the migrating birds in the US pass through this corridor, an estimated 3-5 million songbirds in the spring. The trail meandered along, silent today, a study in tall leafless cottonwoods, tangled brush, matted grasses and damp dirt. Appealing to birds and birding people but few others, perhaps fortunately, and now protected.

I learned later there was a rare (for this area) Louisiana Waterthrush moving on the mud flats, and a gentleman with digiscoping ambition was headed there as I was leaving.

In the brush and fields west of the river were Green-tailed, Spotted and Abert's Towhees, Curve-billed Thrashers and many sparrows. I am working hard on sparrow ID. The most common and obvious lately have been White-crowned, but I also see Savannah, Lincoln's, Vesper, Song and Lark Sparrows and know I'm missing half a dozen other sparrow species.

The feeders at the VC were also busy with Pyrrhuloxias, sparrows, Red-winged Blackbirds, White-winged Doves....

Pyrrhuloxia at San Pedro Riparian NCA - AZ

WWW.BLM.GOV

The primary purpose for the special designation is to protect and enhance the desert riparian ecosystem, a rare remnant of what was once an extensive network of similar riparian systems throughout the American Southwest. One of the most important riparian areas in the United States, the San Pedro River runs through the Chihuahuan Desert and the Sonoran Desert in southeastern Arizona. The river’s stretch is home to more than 80 species of mammals, two native species and several introduced species of fish, more than 40 species of amphibians and reptiles, and 100 species of breeding birds. It also provides invaluable habitat for 250 species of migrant and wintering birds and contains archaeological sites representing the remains of human occupation from 13,000 years ago.

The San Pedro House is a former ranch house, 80 years old, close to Sierra Vista but also tucked away down near the river, modest and appealing, sub-faded/bleached (as is most road signage) with porches and sun coming in the windows, a fire burning for warmth and an adjacent old log cabin sagging under the weight of a huge branch of a giant cottonwood on the roof.

San Pedro Riparian NCA - near Sierra Vista, AZ

I then tried to go to Garden Canyon on Fort Huachaca, getting permission from the guard at the main gate: "Do you have any weapons ma'am?" I drove past several firing ranges on the road to the canyon, but was eventually barred by a gate across the road so I turned around and went back to  the motel in Sierra Vista (actually to an Olive Garden first). This city reminded me of Ridgecrest, California next to the China Lake Naval Weapons Center, both desert towns with their economies enhanced by a significant military presence.

And there was one another giant white fish hovering in the sky hereabouts also, just like near Yuma. So I researched this and.......

Near Sierra Vista / Fort Huachaca - AZ

WWW.YUMASUN.COM

The iconic – and enormous – white aerostat balloon seen floating over Yuma Proving Ground to the northeast of the city of Yuma has temporarily been grounded while the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) assumes control of its operation. The blimp, in use since 1989, had formerly been operated by the U.S. Air Force.

“The Department of Homeland Security accepted Tethered Aerostat Radar System (TARS) operations and executive responsibilities from the U.S. Air Force over the summer,” said Bill Brooks, Branch Chief for the Southwest Border Media Division of the Customs and Border Protection Office of Public Affairs. “DHS will manage and maintain the TARS system for the foreseeable future as part of our comprehensive portfolio of border security and surveillance tools.” When in use, the giant helium and air filled aerostat balloon floats 2 miles above YPG about 50 miles from Yuma. Known as the “eye in the sky,” the blimp continuously scans the border area with radar in search of low-flying aircraft that could bring illegal drugs or other contraband into the United States. Tethered to the ground by cable, the 208-foot-long aerostat can detect activity up to 230 miles away. All radar data is transmitted to a ground station where technicians monitor the information and disseminate it as needed. The surveillance balloon at YPG is one of eight along the southern border of the U.S., with additional aerostats in Texas, New Mexico, the Florida Keys, Puerto Rico and Fort Huachuca, Ariz.