We've been anticipating the arrival of the Turkey Vulture migration through
our part of town since early March. We've had bad timing this year, and
only a bird or two here or there. We watch from our house, as well as
nearby Fort Lowell Park and also the Pantano Wash Riverwalk at Glenn and
Saguara. Even the few we've seen, don't seem to be putting down or
lifting off from the Pantano Wash in that area (often we see them in the
large pines and palms over by the Country club to the east, etc).
But to our surprise and enjoyment, this afternoon we had a small migratory
group fly over us as we walked through the north half of the pecan
orchard. 9 or 10 birds flew over, and then a bit later we saw them join
another group over the wash below. Total of 19 birds counted. Our (puny)
high total for us this year. Granted, we haven't spent a lot of time
waiting around for them, but our observation time/pattern is roughly
equivalent to the past several years, with much lower/negligible numbers
this spring.
The Lewis' woodpecker remains at the Riverwalk there, a special treat.
