The Bird Whisperer: Mammalogy/birding trip to Red Tank Draw, Montezuma Well

From April 30 to May 1, 2011, a few of us from our mammalogy class joined some of the folks from our professor's ornithology class for a joint field trip to Red Tank Draw and Montezuma Well area (about 45 minutes south of Flagstaff). When we arrived at Red Tank Draw the winds had not picked up much yet, so we were able to get some birding in. Almost immediately we were surprised to find a fledgling Hutton's Vireo, which suggested that its parents had laid eggs at the beginning of April...which seems really early considering the cold spring we have had. Other bird highlights were more Hutton's + Bell's and Plumbeous Vireos (made for a good ID challenge for the ornithology students), a displaying male Costa's Hummingbird, Ash-throated Flycatchers, and a male Bullock's Oriole. We also came upon nests of a Cooper's Hawk and Black Phoebe.

We then went down to the picnic area at Montezuma Well to birdwatch some more before the gates closed in the afternoon. We bush-whacked along the canal at the end of the parking area there with bird highlights including a female Black-chinned Hummingbird sitting on her nest. After exiting we got chided by an NPS employee for being back there, claiming it was off-limits to public even though the sign they have posted there just says "beware of falling branches". Apparently government signs have hidden meanings. We then did a short walk up to the overlook at Montezuma Well where we saw some rock squirrels, cliff chipmunks, fledgling Rock Wrens, and a small group of Bridled Titmice.

Afterwards we started setting up small mammal traps at a few different sites on the way back to the Red Tank Draw area. The first line that we set was along a ridge with small cliffs above the road near the well, the second was in the flats off FR 618 before the draw, and the third main one was on a slope with pinyon-juniper woodlands and scrub oaks above our campsite. Our professor set a few larger cage traps along the canyon walls above the draw, as well as a skunk-sized trap down along the water in the draw. Instead of dying down, the winds increased through the late afternoon into the night. We ended up moving campsites closer to the edge of the canyon overlooking the draw, which had some junipers and crucifixion thorn shrubs that provided some shelter for our tents (although not much). While eating dinner, a few of us saw an amazing shooting star that flamed as it penetrated our atmosphere (one of the brightest ones I've ever seen). Suffice it to say that it was too windy to attempt putting up mist nets for bats that night. After dinner we all tried unsuccessfully sleeping as the wind howled and buffeted our tents all night long. At one point I awoke to a brief period of calmness, only to have the winds remind us again that it was still there.

The next morning we got up early, eating our breakfasts in our vehicles to try to keep warm (the wind had an icy bite to it). After taking down camp, we went up to check the traps on the pinyon-juniper hill above where we camped. Here we were rewarded with some pinyon mice which have huge "dumbo" ears and a markedly bicolored (dark and light) tail as key characteristics for identifying them. In the slightly larger traps we found a couple of white-throated woodrats (packrats), including one that had a nasty, parasitic botfly larvae growing in its neck (in addition to missing part of its ear...one messed up woodrat!). We then tried setting up mist nets at two spots along Red Tank Draw to catch birds, but ended up taking them down as the winds kept snagging the netting on the abundant catclaw acacia and mimosa. While a few watched the nets initially, we went down to check the largest trap along the draw and were surprised to see that we actually caught something in it: a striped skunk. Several of us took up positions around the perimeter with cameras at the ready, while our professor approached the trap with a large towel to let the animal out. Luckily, the skunk didn't spray, but it made a few of us run as it came our way after the trap door was opened.

Our next trap checking was at the flats above the draw, where many of us saw our first wild kangaroo-rats. They are cool rodents that have elongated hindfeet that allow jumping for movement (hence their name), huge black eyes, and cheek patches for storing seeds. We caught five Ord's kangaroo-rats at this site. The last trap lines to check were on the slopes/ridgeline above the road going to Montezuma Well. Here the few of us from the mammalogy class witnessed one of the best moments of the trip when checking one of the traps on the cliffs. After seeing that the trap held a cliff chipmunk, Jesse handed me the trap to see what was in it and then I handed it to Katie. Not knowing how chipmunks would react in a trap, Katie opened the trap door too wide and the chipmunk rocketed straight up in the air inches from her face and plummeted about 10-15 feet down the slope into the brush! At that moment the rest of the gang including our professor arrived to find us in hysterics over the flying chipmunk. The prof didn't let Katie live the chipmunk incident down for the rest of the day (and even had a picture slide during our final practical exam paying homage to the incident). In addition to the chipmunk, we also caught another pinyon mouse and a few brush mice, the latter of which has an orange wash on the flanks and sparsely-haired tail.

We then walked the loop trail at Montezuma Well, checking out the ancient indian ruins, swallet draining the spring-fed waters of the well outside to a canal system the indians built to channel the water just above Wet Beaver Creek. Here we found nesting Rock Wrens and Northern Rough-winged Swallows, plus a Rock Wren atypically perched up in a tree. Golden columbines were blooming down along the creek too and one of the ornithology students pointed out fossilized leaves in the limestone. To end the day, we ate lunch at the picnic area where we were treated to views of a pair of Vermilion Flycatchers (with the male foraging close to us while we too ate). Our professor also found an old nest which had a piece of shed snake skin incorporated into it. A female Red-tailed Hawk was also discovered sitting on a distant stick nest. A memorable trip!

Here are various photos from the trip:

Red Tank Draw area: