After getting back in the early morning from camping out for the juniper-field ecology project, I went out to Lake Mary, Mormon Lake, and Ashurst Lake just southeast of Flagstaff for some birding. November is typically a great month for rarer migrant waterfowl, loons, and grebes in Arizona. At Upper Lake Mary, I was rewarded with good looks at a Herring Gull and a Horned Grebe. Both of these species I had only seen once before in Arizona, so it was cool to see them again. I was able to get a photo of the Horned Grebe:
The distinct contrast between the dark cap and white cheek, peak near the back of the crest, and white tip to the bill are all good traits to help separate Horned Grebe from the similar Eared Grebe. Just below where I had the grebe were two Common Loons. I was able to digiscope shots of one bird:
By the time I got to Mormon Lake and Ashurst Lake the winds were blowing strong and the birds were hunkered down for the most part. Ashurst Lake had a Herring Gull there too, which may have been the same bird as I found earlier on Lake Mary (I think it probably got spooked by all the boaters and went over to this nearby lake). It was nice to see Mormon Lake still having water in it. With the recent drought years, it is usually dry at this time of year. I think Mormon Lake is only one of two natural lakes in Arizona. Here are some photos of that lake (in the first photo the San Francisco Peaks that Flagstaff is at the base of can be seen towering in the distance):
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