Tucson Bird Alliance

06/01/2026

In South Tucson, the community is creating green spaces for people and wildlife. Thanks Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day for this uplifting video showcasing our work at Luna y Sol Cafe!

05/30/2026

This week's rare bird alert for southeastern Arizona includes Flame-colored Tanager (photo: Kalee Vidana), American Herring Gull, Prothonotary Warbler and more:
https://tucsonbirds.org/rare-bird-alert/

Short-tailed Hawk
HUDSONIAN GODWIT
American Herring Gull
Buff-collared Nightjar
Berylline Hummingbird
Rose-throated Becard
White-eyed Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Black-capped Gnatcatcher
Brown Thrasher
Tennessee Warbler
Prothonotary Warbler
Kentucky Warbler
Hooded Warbler
Rufous-capped Warbler
FLAME-COLORED TANAGER

https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/658486997

Macaulay Library ML658486997; © Kalee Vidana; Cochise, Arizona, United States

05/29/2026

Happy Birdy Friday!
If a trip into the high country is in your future, a bird you will surely hear, and hopefully see, is the Pygmy Nuthatch. As you might have guessed, this bird is tiny, and its lifestyle usually places it up in the tops of tall long-leaf pine trees—not the best viewing conditions. Luckily, this species is prone to chattering away within its extended family group, and it’s not unusual to find flocks of seven to ten individuals. Rare among North American songbirds, the Pygmy Nuthatch is a cooperative breeder, with one-third of breeding pairs having one to three male nest helpers, often the pair’s own offspring from previous years. These helpers feed incubating females, nestlings, and fledglings, and help defend the nest site. Even more unique, Pygmy Nuthatches employ several techniques for surviving winters at high elevation since they don’t migrate or move downslope much. They are able to withstand cold nights by choosing well-insulated cavities, huddling together, and allowing their body temperature to drop into hypothermia. The Vaux’s Swift is the only other North American bird to combine these three behaviors. Extended nuthatch families roost together, stacked on top of each other in curious shapes (squares, triangles, diamonds!), and even neighboring families join in during the coldest weather. In the 1950s, one study noted 150 Pygmy Nuthatches roosting in a single tree—at least 100 in a single hole!

In Southeast Arizona, Pygmy Nuthatches can be found in mountain forests of ponderosa pine, Southwestern white pine, and aspen. Since they are cavity nesters, they do best in areas unaffected by fires and logging, where the oldest and largest trees (alive and dead) can be found. They feed on weevils and bark beetles, and in some locations their winter diet shifts to pine seeds they have stored in tree bark. Pygmy Nuthatches are busy little birds, often heard before seen. Typical for nuthatches, there is no real separation between their calls and songs. They are rarely quiet, so listen for their high-pitched "peep" calls—if they continue for over two minutes, that’s considered a song!
-Matt Griffiths Communications Manager
Image by Shawn Cooper

05/28/2026

Bird the world with Tucson Bird Alliance: the Llanos of Colombia with Victor Emanuel Nature Tours! Join leader Brian Gibbons and Tucson Bird Alliance host Matt Griffiths January 21–30, 2027 for a birding adventure in the vast sweep of grasslands, wetlands, and forest-bordered rivers that is the Llanos of the Orinoco basin. We'll bird in a protected reserve that offers some of the most pleasant and productive birding anywhere in the Neotropics. Here, Scarlet Ibis blaze across the marshes, bizarre Hoatzins clamber through riverside vegetation, and Jabirus patrol broad wetlands. We expect close to 200 bird species, including Sunbittern, Orinoco Goose, Great and Common potoos, Horned Screamer, Crestless Curassow, Pale-headed Jacamar, Gray-cowled Wood-Rail, and Scarlet Macaw. Mammal encounters add another dimension: Capybara, Giant Anteater, Anaconda, and possibly even the elusive Jaguar!
Find all the details at https://tucsonbirds.org/international-tours/

Victor Emanuel Nature Tours

05/27/2026

Nature Shop featured item: "Beauty" Bumper Sticker by Wil Taylor.
Turn heads with this eye-catching 11" x 3.5" vinyl bumper sticker! Featuring six of Wil Taylor's stunning bird paintings arranged to spell "Beauty," this locally-printed gem celebrates the incredible avian diversity of southern Arizona. Each vibrant illustration brings color to your bumper while supporting local Tucson artistry. Weather-resistant and made right here by Gloo Factory, it's the perfect way to show your love for our region's feathered friends.
$6.00 - Available in-store and online at:

Turn heads on the road with this eye-catching 11" x 3.5" vinyl bumper sticker! Featuring six of Wil Taylor's stunning bird paintings arranged to spell "Beauty," this locally-printed gem celebrates the incredible avian diversity of southern Arizona. Each vibrant illustration brings personality and co...

05/26/2026

Paton Center feeder ALERT: Out of an abundance of caution we have taken down all seed feeders due to a suspected case of bird eye disease on our grounds.

Paton Center feeder ALERT: Out of an abundance of caution we have taken down all seed feeders due to a suspected case of bird eye disease on our grounds. We will keep you updated while we monitor the situation, but these feeders will be down for at least two weeks. Hummingbird feeders are still up and will be cleaned daily. The Paton Center remains open and very birdy! We are very sorry for the inconvenience, and we thank you for understanding. The health of the birds visiting the Paton Center is our utmost concern at this time.

Photo: Violet-crowned Hummingbird by Thomas Heher

05/23/2026

This week's rare bird alert for southeastern Arizona includes Hudsonian Godwit (photo: Adam Dudley), Berylline Hummingbird,
Prothonotary Warbler and more:
https://tucsonbirds.org/rare-bird-alert/

Short-tailed Hawk
HUDSONIAN GODWIT
Buff-collared Nightjar
Berylline Hummingbird
Rose-throated Becard
White-eyed Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Black-capped Gnatcatcher
Gray Catbird
Tennessee Warbler
Prothonotary Warbler
Hooded Warbler
Rufous-capped Warbler
FLAME-COLORED TANAGER

https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/657974564

Macaulay Library ML657974564; © Adam Dudley; Cochise, Arizona, United States

05/22/2026

Get to Know the Orioles of the Southwest!
There are three oriole species that breed in Southeast Arizona. The most common is the striking Hooded Oriole that some call the “palm leaf oriole” because of its preference for nesting in palm trees. This is a great species to find in urban areas due to the increased presence of ornamental palms and hummingbird feeders, which they are known to frequent. This species is also found in the arid desert where, like other orioles, the female weaves a hanging basket nest composed of grass and plant fibers that is “stitched” to the underside of leaves. In Arizona, Hooded Orioles are known to mimic Ash-throated Flycatchers and Gila Woodpeckers, and they can be very difficult to view even when chattering away right in front of you—very surprising for a bright yellow-orange bird!

The Bullock’s Oriole can be called the riparian oriole of the western half of the US since it prefers streamside habitats and often builds nests in cottonwood trees. This species is our most orange oriole and is superficially similar to the Baltimore Oriole—at one time they were considered a single species called the Northern Oriole. Even though they frequently hybridize where their ranges overlap in the Great Plains, genetic work has revealed that the two species are not closely related.

The Scott’s Oriole is a mountain species of the Southwest, and it is closely associated with juniper, pinyon pine, live oak, and especially yucca where it feeds on flower nectar and uses yucca fiber for its nests that hang from live yucca leaves. This bright yellow and black species is a prolific singer and its sweet, clear warble enlivens desert canyons throughout the day all summer long and even in winter.
-Matt Griffiths, Communications Manager

Scott's Oriole, Matthew Studebaker
Hooded Oriole, Shawn Cooper
Bullock's Oriole, Mick Thompson

05/21/2026

Great report from Dan Weisz. Thanks Dan!
Crested Caracaras in an alfalfa field.
I am always happy to see these birds.
In the book “A Most Remarkable Creature,” author Jonathan Meiburg introduces Caracaras with “...if you try to imagine ten separate attempts to build a Crow on a Falcon chassis, with results falling somewhere between elegant, menacing and whimsical, you wouldn’t be far off.” Then he adds: “All have broad wings, hooked beaks, and an alert, curious expression.” He finishes with, “Their most striking qualities, however, are their minds. Unlike most birds of prey, Caracaras are social and curious, and they feed with gusto on foods other predators disdain.”

05/21/2026

The Colorado River Delta—with its marshes and lagoons, back waters and mudflats—once spanned across 2 million acres in the Upper Gulf of California. Today, at 44,000 acres, the Ciénega de Santa Clara is a remnant of what once was. And still, hundreds of thousands of birds rely on it.
Learn more 👉 https://bit.ly/ShorebirdColoradoRiverDelta