Rodeo is about 15 minutes' drive from Portal and well worth a visit if you are birding in the area.
We saw a number of
species in Rodeo that we had seen earlier on the trip, and
we finally spotted the elusive Scaled Quail (which
subsequently, of course, reappeared frequently). I had
just been reciting text from Taylor as we drove along, to
whet our appetites for our next major destination, the San
Pedro River area. Taylor was expounding on the highly
successful recovery of the San Pedro corridor (see the
Winter 1997 issue of Living Bird for a great article about
this), and commented on the "exploding bird populations."
At that moment, a Scaled Quail ran from the side of the
road into the grass, and we noted that this must be one of
those populations, for the bird looked like a stuffed
animal whose white stuffing was exploding out of its head!
We also birded the grassy areas and Willow Tank Pond near Rodeo. We saw Snowy Egrets, Green-winged Teal, Northern Shovelers, and Mallards at the tiny pond. Along the roads through the grasslands, Loggerhead Shrikes were everywhere, far more numerous, even, than they had been in South Florida when we visited there in March 1995. We also saw a Red-tailed Hawk close to the road, and I enjoyed taking pictures of him until we realized that the majestic bird was apparently injured and could not fly. That made it seem like I was cheating, and we left the bird in peace.
One species that we looked for in vain that afternoon was Bendire's Thrasher. Curve-billed Thrashers were easy to find throughout the trip, but Bendire's had escaped our view. We decided to check that area again the next morning, on our way out of Portal, and we played the bird's song just before heading out, so that it was fresh in our minds/ears. We were rewarded! While checking out the many sparrows along Stateline Road, we suddenly heard the Bendire's song and quickly found the bird singing at the top of a small tree before it flew away.
We then made a left and drove down a gravel road to our last destination in the Rodeo area. This was the off season, so the cotton gin stood in silence. We were looking for a Barn Owl, since Taylor's book indicated that there was usually one in residence here. We flushed a flycatcher from the beams supporting an awning and were very surprised to ID it as an Eastern Phoebe, quite unusual for this area.
After much searching, I was looking over at the mountains and the field next to us when Herb said, "Carena, look in here," pointing up at the first and smallest of 3 round ventilation exhausts protruding from the wall of the barn. I lifted my binoculars and saw an empty pipe about 20" in diameter. I said, "There's nothing in there." Herb pointed to the next pipe, higher up and about 3 feet in diameter. Without my binoculars I could see a huge fan inside the pipe, and sitting on a horizontal fan blade was a pair of Barn Owls, clear as day!
I told Herb they were there, and excitedly lifted my binoculars to enjoy this beautiful pair of ghostlike creatures. We took some pictures and were dizzy with excitement when we returned to the car a few minutes later.
Taylor's book indicates that this building usually harbors a Barn Owl, so we were hoping to see one. Seeing such a magnificent pair sitting perfectly still in such good light was a priceless experience. This was lifer #50 of the trip for me, and the most exciting of my 71, even though this is a bird found in the East as well as the West.
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Copyright(c) 1997, Carena Pooth......Images or portions thereof may not be used without permission.