HE BIRDING COMMUNITY E-BULLETIN
September 2012
This Birding Community E-bulletin is being distributed to active and concerned birders, those dedicated to the joys of birding and the protection of birds and their habitats.
This issue is sponsored by the producers of superb quality birding binoculars and scopes, Carl Zeiss Sport Optics:
www.zeiss.com/SPORTS
You can access an archive of past E-bulletins on the website of the National Wildlife Refuge Association (NWRA):
http://refugeassociation.org/news/birding-bulletin/
RARITY FOCUS
Starting 13 May, there was a Plain-capped Starthroat in Bob Behrstock and Karen LeMay’s backyard in Lower Ash Canyon at the edge of the Huachuca Mountains in southeast Arizona. Unlike many previous Arizona Starthroat occurrences, this individual almost never visited feeders, foraging instead high in the oaks, often making the bird difficult to see. It remained sporadically in and around this Ash Canyon yard at least through 23 August. The yard was not generally accessible to the public, and few people were fortunate to see this hummingbird.
Then on 26 May another Plain-capped Starthroat was found by Dave Stejskal close to a culvert along Mount Hopkins Road in Montosa Canyon, on the west side of the Santa Rita Mountains in southeast Arizona. After its discovery, local birders put up a hummingbird feeder to hopefully aid visiting birders to see the hummer. Unfortunately this individual was missed as many times as it was seen. Nonetheless it was present at least through 15 August.
Remarkably, on 7 July, another Plain-capped Starthroat was seen by John Yerger at the Sunny Flat Campground at Cave Creek Canyon in the Chiricahua Mountains, although this was not seen again. Still another Plain-capped Starthroat was found at the backyard feeders of Hank and Pricilla Brodkin on 7 July in Carr Canyon, again in the Huachuca Mountains. The same or another Plain-capped Starthroat visited their backyard again on 17 and 24 August.
