MEETINGS      FIELD TRIPS      MEMBERSHIP      CONSTITUTION  CONTACTS     LINKS

Purpose
The Yuma Audubon Society is dedicated to conserving natural resources, educating members on conservation issues, and increasing awareness about the diversity of nature in the Yuma area.  Our constitution is here: YAS Constitution

In the recent past, Yuma Audubon has sponsored Audubon Adventures, the Yuma Birding & Nature Festival, and Audubon Christmas Bird Counts.

Common Poorwill

Meetings
Meetings are held the second Tuesday of November through the second Tuesday of April at 7:30pm, at the Casa Sierra Vista Apts club house, located at 600 E. 25th Street (just east of Arizona Ave. & 25th St.)  A kick-off meeting in October and a May picnic are held at the Yuma West Wetlands or another park. Here's a synopsis of the meetings we have planned for fall/winter 2009/2010.

Tuesday, December 8 at 7:30 pm. Casa Sierra Vista. Annual holiday slide show with goodies.
Saturday, December 19. Christmas Bird Count. Contact Henry Detwiler.
Tuesday, January 12 at 7:30 pm. Casa Sierra Vista. Cary Meister, "Four National Parks." This will also be our annual membership meeting.
Tuesday, February 9 at 7:30 pm. Casa Sierra Vista. Henry Detwiler, "Photographing Flowers & Birds."
Tuesday, March 9 at 7:30 pm. Casa Sierra Vista. Stacey Bealmear, "Gardening to attract pollinators and birds in Yuma."

Field Trips
Yuma is surrounded by many natural features, including the Colorado & Gila Rivers, deserts, mountains, the Imperial Dunes, and the Salton Sea.  Join us as we explore these areas in search of diverse birds, reptiles, mammals, and plants.

Field trips are typically held the Saturday following the monthly Tuesday meeting.  We carpool from the "Big Lots" parking lot (corner of 16th Str & 4th Ave.) at 7:00 a.m.  Past trips have visited the Salton Sea NWR, Cibola NWR, Cienega de Santa Clara, and Palm Canyon.

2010 Field Trips will include:
- Jan 16, 2010:  Meet at 7:30 a.m. at the "Big Lots" parking lot for carpooling. Join us for an all-day birding trip to Picacho Peak Recreation area.
- Feb 13, 2010:  Nature Photography East of Yuma. Join us as we search for (and photograph) flowers, reptiles, and of course, for birds!
- Mar 13, 2010:  Maybe Betty's Kitchen, Martinez Lake, & Imperial NWR?
- Apr 2010:  Join us at the Yuma Birding & Nature Festival for field trips & seminars: www.yumabirding.com

Field Trip Reports

14 Feb 2009:  Al Borgardt reported "A good day of birding at Cibola. Total of 80 species seen. The best bird of the day was an Eastern Phoebe located near the south end of the Goose Loop. All of us enjoyed the multitude of Sandhill Cranes. A feast for the eyes." And Cody Hurlock reported to the AZ/NM bird list server: "Hello all, Our Yuma Audubon field trip to Cibola NWR on Feb. 14 was quite successful - with a total count of 80 species. The most notable being an EASTERN PHOEBE seen at the south end of the "Goose Loop" drive perched on a stalk in a recently cut/harvested corn field. We all had good looks at the bird from about 100 ft and could clearly see its whitish underparts and drabber coloration. After a few minutes it flew into a tamarisk next to the irrigation ditch on the south side of the road. Other nice birds included: Black-throated Gray Warbler - 1 near the west entrance of the nature trail Ash-throated Flycatcher - 1 along the nature trail Red-naped Sapsucker - 1 near Cibola Lake Green-tailed Towhee - 1 near Oxbow Lake Campground 2000+ Canada Goose 500+ Sandhill Crane The staff at the refuge headquarters informed us of a Worm-eating Warbler that was caught at the nature trail twice in the last month in mist nets as part of some research project. We looked and listened but didn't see the bird.

17 Jan 2009:  On Jan 17 we headed out east of town.  Adventurous members who came along were: Al & Helga Borgardt, Cody Hurlock, Murray Jackson, Karen Horoschuk, Jean & Terry Beasley, Michal Graber, Bob, L.D Smith, Ron & Sue Bodner, and Henry & Suzanne Detwiler. About 5 miles east and 1 mile north of Tacna we finally tracked down a pair of LeConte's Thrashers.  We never heard them sing, but they were certainly interested in our taped calls.  Also in the area were a few Sage Sparrows. At Quigley Waterfowl Management Area we saw the regular Abert's Towhees, Yellow-rumped Warblers, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, and a small flock of Sandhill Cranes in the wet fields.  As we were eating lunch a Prairie Falcon swooped down close-by and snagged a sparrow or lark from the dry farm field.  A second Prairie Falcon then entered the scene and tried to steal the meal from the first one.  But it was unsuccessful, and they both flew off. At the Effie May riparian area a few miles west of Wellton we were rewarded by the Least Flycatcher, which has been lingering there since at least October 2008.  Also there was a Spotted Towhee.  After finding a few egrets and waterfowl along the Gila River we departed for home.

Jan 2007:  The trip to Tacna was cold--actually below freezing!  Traci, Mickey, Al & Helga, and I met Murray, L.D., Bob Hoover, Terry & Jean, Eric & Brooke, and Lin at the Tacna Chevron at 7:45 am.  From there we caravanned the final few miles to the Couch's Kingbird site.  Except it wasn't there!  Lots of other birds to entertain us, like Vermilion Flycatchers, both accipiters, and plenty of doves, though.  But no kingbird.  A couple of folks left after a couple of hours.  Still no kingbird. But lots of searchers--and more coming all the time.  Soon there were more birders than birds.  After 3 hours we decided to move on to Quigley WMA, so I left my cell number with a California birder I knew.  We took a break at the Tacna Chevron and were pulling into Betty Mason's when my phone rang--Rich Hoyer had spotted the wily bird eating bees at some near-by hives.  So we turned our caravan around and drove back to the site.  And had marvelous looks at the bird swooping out of a mesquite grove to catch bees mid-air.  Following that we saw White-tailed Kites, White-fronted Geese, Snow Geese, Canada Geese, and numerous ducks at Quigley WMA, and then several other species at Quigley Pond.  All in all, it was a chilly but successful morning!

Christmas Bird Count

Yuma Birding & Nature Festival
This event will be held in April 2010, and will feature a number of birding and nature field trips and seminars. Some of the more popular are owling, searching for bighorn sheep, and night treks through the dunes to spot sidewinders, scorpions, and lizards. More information can be obtained at their website: http://www.yumabirding.com

Membership
Membership can be at the national or chapter level, or both. Fee structures and benefits are as follows:

Contacts

Links
National Audubon Society www.audubon.org
Imperial NWR www.fws.gov/southwest/refuges/arizona/imperial.html
Cibola NWR www.fws.gov/southwest/refuges/arizona/cibola.html
Local & National Rare Bird Reports  birdingonthe.net
Southwest Birders www.southwestbirders.com
Yuma-area Bird Guide www.southwestbirders.com/guide_yuma.htm
ASU - AZ birds, range maps, & songs
http://askabiologist.asu.edu/expstuff/experiments/birdsongs/
 

Thick-billed Kingbird - Yuma Main Drain