Being a new year we decided to launch a new Utah Birders Bumper car decal/sticker.  When we came up with the Steller's Jay as our original bird for the Utah Birders we did so because it was simply put, one bad a$$ bird.  It wasn't a dainty little thing with some pink marking--like the Black Rosy-Finch, which was my first choice (I know, I know...).  Anyways, we've now had 6 different stickers over the past 2 years--3 for specialty trips we've led, and 2 different versions of the Jay.  The all new 2014 Utah Birders Sticker however came about from our recent poll conducted by Matt Pendleton--this years sticker was the #1 bird most representative of Utah based off the Top 10 Poll--the 2014 sticker boast the WESTERN TANAGER!

So you may be wondering--how can I get my hands on one of these bad boys?  Easy enough question to answer.  For starters, if you sign up for the 2014 Utah Birders Challenge, we will mail you one.  Then throw that thing on the back of your car so we know you're out to find the coolest and some of the most hard to find bird in Utah.

We will also periodically hand them out at field trips, and as giveaways throughout the year.  And if you haven't created a Utah Birders Profile yet, you can also get one by doing that! If you have created a profile recently and don't have you're sticker yet, this is the one you will get!

We'll still have other stickers at various events specific to that event, but we wanted to have something new and fresh for everyone for 2014!

The last week of April the past 6 years I have headed to Washington County to meet the first big wave of northward passerine migrants as they arrive in Utah.  This weekend can bring large numbers of migrants and quite an array of species to the various oases around St. George.  Eastern vagrants are extremely rare this early, but the variety and numbers of birds make it worthwhile.  By now the majority of breeders to the Mojave Desert region are back and already nesting--while several species such as Brown-crested Flycatcher, Lesser Nighthawk, and Blue Grosbeak are still scant.  Each year the birding is different.  In 2007 when I was doing my Utah Big Year migration was in full swing and I picked up just about every usual migrant in the course of a couple days.  The past few years migration has felt a little slower.  There have been plenty of migrants, but nowhere near as heavy.  The last couple years we have seen a later than normal migration in Utah so it’s not surprising that the end of April hasn’t been as great.

Not a Migrant, but this Eurasian Collared-Dove

picture turned out pretty sweet.

Fast forward to this past weekend and it looks like migration is just about on schedule--that being not too early nor late.  Keeping up with tradition my wife and I hit the road Friday night and headed to Washington County.  We left Salt Lake later in the evening to miss the traffic through Utah County Construction.  That put us into St. George just after 11pm, where it was 70 degrees--wonderful!  We made out way out to the Beaver Dam Slope and set up camp above Lytle Ranch on the bluffs overlooking the Beaver Dam Wash.  I sat out enjoying the stars and singing COMMON POORWILLS all around us.  The highlight of the night were 5 or 6 large flocks of shorebirds that came flying over our campsite.  The whistling of their tiny wings and the chattering calls and squeaks were unlike any I have heard before.  I have no idea what species they even were--only that for a half an hour I was in awe of the sounds.

Saturday got a late start as we didn’t leave the tent till 9am.  Winds were thrashing the slope and we didn’t hear much singing.  A couple BLACK-THROATED SPARROWS and House Finches were about it.  We arrived at the ranch where there were more cars than I had ever seen there.  We had brought our dog so we opted to pass the ranch and walk Beaver Dam Creek.  But before we left the parking lot I enjoyed hearing the lovely notes of several SUMMER TANAGER, the melody of a lone HOODED ORIOLE, the chattering of a BULLOCK’S ORIOLE, numerous LUCY’S WARBLERS, and a couple BELL’S VIREO. Spring at Lytle is always a blast.

Lucy's Warbler are everywhere in Washington County in April

We hit the river and slowly made our way up creek about a mile.  This is the equivalent of walking just past the main pond on the ranch property.  There weren’t a ton of birds, but the water felt good on the feet, and I did manage to pick up all 6 species of regular swallows along the way.  I hadn’t been to Lytle since last May--my trip south in January skipped the wash--so all the local species were new year birds.  PHAINOPEPLAS, LADDER-BACKED WOODPECKER, and BLACK-TAILED GNATCATCHER all were brilliant to see for the first time in almost a year.  The surprise of the morning was a WILD TURKEY zipping through the Cottonwoods--apparently there are more than a dozen hanging out on the property now.

Summer Tanager add a splash of color to the desert.

As we neared the gate on our walk back down river we ran into the Sommerfeld’s and Merrill Webb who had seen just about the same birds as us.  It seems like we always see the same faces this time of year down there--if we ran into Rick Fridell it would be a true end of April trip.  Back at the ranch I checked out the Hummingbird feeders and picked up Black-chinned, Costa’s and an ANNA’S HUMMINGBIRD for the year while  WHITE-THROATED SWIFTS chattered overhead, and the tanagers continued to serenade the property.  The group of vehicles was an Audubon event that was scouring the ranch--with so many people around we decided to check out a few other places.

The Beaver Dam Slope

Driving across the slope we didn’t add any new birds for the trip--but at Utah Hill we added the expected BLACK-CHINNED SPARROWS, and a singing GRAY VIREO.  We ended up at Gunlock Reservoir for lunch where a pair of COMMON BLACK-HAWK are nesting again this year.  There reservoir is still full from last years runoff so there was a ton of activity at the inlet where some shallow water persists.  A surprise MUTE SWAN was hanging out here, along with a GREAT EGRET, a couple BLUE-WINGED TEAL, cormorants, White-faced Ibis, Spotted Sandpiper, and Black-necked Stilt.  Singing Rock and Canyon Wren kept us company while we ate as well.

Mute Swan at Gunlock (looks pretty ruffled)

After lunch we hit the usual spots around St. George in Ivins Reservoir, Tonaquint Park, Springs Estate Pond, and the Washington Fields.  Nothing out of the usual at those locations, although the young SNOW GOOSE that was present at Springs Estate in January is still there and all grown up.

Lingering Snow Goose at Springs Estate Pond

After getting our fix of city it was back out to the slope.  We decided to hike Welcome Springs Canyon which was wind free and a great hike to end the afternoon.  Birds were scarce, but a singing BLACK-THROATED GRAY-WARBLER was a new year bird, along with Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, and Bushtit.  The highlight of the trip came when I was watching the swifts and Violet-green Swallows dip and dive in the air above the canyon.  As I was looking up I noticed a very “blunt” looking hawk way up in the thermals.  When I got my binoculars on the birds I was stoked to see a dark adult BROAD-WINGED HAWK.  The only other spring Broad-winged I have seen in Utah was at Lytle Ranch less than 10 miles away--this same weekend in 2007.

Beautiful high flying dark BROAD-WINGED HAWK

We ended the day on the slope where Mockingbirds, CACTUS WRENS, Black-throated Sparrows, Ash-throated Flycatchers, and Western Kingbirds took turns singing for us.  While watching the sun dip over the desert a PRAIRIE FALCON let out a cackle and came curing past our campsite--a first for me on the slope.  It was a clear and calm night--great for camping in southern Utah.

Sunset on the Slope

Sunday morning we were up a little earlier, driving across the slope and adding a GRAY FLCYATCHER hanging out in a Joshua Tree.  Gambel’s Quail were everywhere, and flocks of BREWER’S SPARROWS were also on the move.  As we rolled into the ranch a CRISSAL THRASHER crossed the road.  This time I headed up ranch while Sam walked the dog down river.  It was calm near the camping area but windy in the orchard where I didn’t add any birds--but I did manage a sweet shot of a White-winged Dove.

White-winged Dove at Lytle Ranch

I guess it was an end of April trip though--as I ended up back at the campsite Rick Fridell was hanging out with his family at a camp site.  Rick had seen a handful of empids in the ranch but not much else.  I mentioned that I was surprised that I hadn’t seen or heard any Scott’s Orioles as they are usually quite prevalent by now.  He mentioned that he had heard one singing this morning nearby.  As I left I headed in that direction, and sure enough picked up the SCOTT’S ORIOLE for the trip--and the 3 Oriole Weekend.

Beaver Dam Creek in April

Sam and I headed to the river crossing where we added a couple more birds for the trip in FOY singing PLUMBEOUS VIREO and WESTERN WOOD-PEWEE.  After that we slowly made our way back into town stopping again at Utah Hill adding CASSIN’S KINGBIRD, Lark Sparrow, and Western Scrub-Jay for the trip.

Lark Sparrow at Utah Hill

After having lunch in town we swung by Quail Creek where one COMMON LOON and 5 RED-BREASTED MERGANSERS were both new year birds.  From there we hit the highway and headed north.  We stopped at Chicken Creek Reservoir in Juab County where waterfowl were out in force.  GREATER SCAUP, Bufflehead, and Common Goldeneye were all still present.  The lack of shorebirds was unusual for this date here--no phalarope, peeps, or dowitchers.  There were a few FRANKLIN’S GULLS on the lake as well a couple BONAPARTE’S GULLS.

We opted to skip I-15 through Utah County so we took the west side of Utah Lake.  Near Goshen we saw plenty of HORNED LARKS, and between Elberta and Saratoga Springs we picked up most of the usual raptors including: Red-tailed Hawk, Swainson’s Hawk, Golden Eagle, Northern Harrier, and American Kestrel.

And just like that the weekend was over.  We tallied somewhere around 125 species in the 2 days.  That’s a little lower than normal as we didn’t pack as much birding into the weekend, and skipped out on any high elevation stuff. 150 species is about normal for this weekend.  Rick Fridell mentioned that last year they picked up 165 on their usual Washington County Big Day the last week of April.  If you’ve never been birding in Washington County this time of year, it’s a great time to go and well worth the drive.  It also takes care of having to wait for all those passerine migrants up here in the north!

Nothing like a rainy day to finish up a couple of the drawings I started in the past week.  I wrapped up the Golden Tanager this morning:

This afternoon and evening I dove into the details on the Bearded Mountaineer.  It was 100's of strokes for the feathers, but it was worth it, turning out nicely:

Next Up:  Gilded Barbet, Gray-breasted Mountain-Toucan, Paradise Tanager, and Golden-collared Tanager.  I also have a few more hummingbirds I want to work on, and plenty of tanagers I will get to.  Not to mention the Fruiteaters, Aracaris, and Parrots.  

Seems like I've caught the illustration bug at least for the moment.  After finishing the Rufous-crested Coquette last week I started on a couple more illustrations.  But not before I had a print made of the coquette--and put it in a matte and frame:

5" x 7" print in 11" x 14" cream matte with 2" black frame

(click image for larger version)

If you are interested in a print,  I can have more like this made.  A photo quality print on matte stock costs $35.  A framed and matted version can be picked up for $60.  Just let me know what you want at western.tanager@gmail.com and we can work something out.

But like I said above the coquette was just the beginning.  Maybe it's the fact that the birds of Peru are so colorful and amazing to look at that I just want to make my own renditions.  Right after I finished the first one I started working on a second bird, that was even more stunning than the Coquette--a Golden Tanager:

Golden Tanager about 50% Complete

Right now it's about 50% finished.  I have a lot of details to add but got a good start on it.  The Golden Tanager is an absolutely striking species and the color is so vibrant.  I've worked on this one an hour or two most nights this week and will probably finish it up this weekend.

I also started working on a Peruvian specialty this week--a bird with one of the coolest names, the Bearded Mountaineer! Cool right?  It's a species of hummingbird endemic to southern Peru and has some very stunning but simple features.  This one is about 10% finished so it's probably over a week out, but you can see the various states from beginning to end with what I've done so far.

Bearded Mountaineer about 10% Complete

You can see how I start with the basic shapes then go into smaller and smaller details as I layer the design.  On this last one I have the basic shapes, and most of the low level details laid out.  I have a at least a couple more birds in mind to work on in the next couple weeks.  I'll be sure to share those as well as the finished versions of the above when they're done.

If you have something you want illustrated let me know and I can see what I can do.

This is my favorite photo I have taken, and of my favorite bird, Piranga ludoviciana, or the Western Tanager as most of us know it. I took this near the mouth of Little Cottonwood Canyon in May of 2010 as the northern Utah valleys were being overwhelmed by literally flocks of tanagers heading north. I may have also photshopped a stick that ran across the birds back to make the image look a little prettier than it initially was.

This week eBird released its all new "Occurrence Maps". These maps, which are called STEM (Spatio-Temporal Exploratory Model) maps, use eBird checklists that report all species and include effort. The location of each checklist is associated with remotely-sensed information on habitat, climate, human population, and demographics. Fine-scale patterns of species occurrence relative to these variables (over 1000) are generated both regionally and temporally, to produce predicted occurrence at some 30,000 locations for every day of a single year (2008 in this case). This massive volume of information is then summarized on maps, which in many cases provide unprecedented information about the annual cycles of North American birds. These maps showcase the power of eBird – year-round, continental-scale monitoring of all species. Each species map is displayed with a text overview of the broad-scale migration patterns, along with an interesting biological story to consider.

Below is the map for Western Tanager:

Western Tanager Occurrence Map. Couresty of eBird

According to eBird:

The model performs exceptionally well for this species, and we believe these maps are accurate representations of where and when Western Tanagers occur in the United States. While some species (e.g., Mourning Dove or Red-tailed Hawk) do not have specific habitat associations, Western Tanager generally prefers pine forests for breeding. They do not breed in desert habitats, so their breeding range in the West is strongly defined by elevation and rainfall, and the tanagers are found in mid- to upper elevations in the Rocky Mountains and Sierra Nevada ranges. The fine-scale accuracy of the model is probably largely due to the fact that the habitat layers used for the models closely match the actual habitat preferences of the species. In general STEM maps do very well with evergreen specialists, like Western Tanager and (in the East) Brown-headed Nuthatch, since one of the key layers defines this forest type quite well. During migration (April, and September - October in particular) Western Tanagers occur in a variety of western habitats, including urban and suburban parks, deserts, and even patches of trees in grasslands.

During the breeding season, the map appears to focus on the montane forests, when the migrants arrive at their breeding grounds. The pressure to arrive at breeding areas and claim territories causes the spring migration to occur relatively rapidly, as compared with the more protracted fall migration. Fall migration in Western Tanager actually begins in early to mid-July, when the first adults return to Mexico. From August to October, migration brings Western Tanagers back to the lowland areas that they use in spring, but notice how much more slowly their overall departure progresses.

Pretty cool stuff! Although this model worked out really well there seemed to be some talk about some species models weren't working out that well. Currently there are only a handful of maps available. They can be seen here.