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AZFO FIELD EXPEDITION

 

AZFO Field Expedition - San Carlos River and San Carlos Lake: 19-20 May 2018

Leaders: Doug Jenness (d_jennessAThotmail.com)

Overview

The riparian area along the San Carlos River, one of two rivers that flow into San Carlos Lake, is very rarely birded. The principal goal of this expedition is to explore about five miles along this riparian corridor, from its mouth northward. In November 2013 we conducted an expedition in this same area looking for late migrant passerines, wintering birds, and vagrants (see report). Following up that expedition in May, we hope to obtain a better understanding of late migration and nesting in this riparian area. Overall the width of this corridor is more than two football fields wide. The area is mainly vegetated with Fremont cottonwood, Gooding's willow, velvet mesquite, and tamarisk. We will be particularly looking for nesting raptors and possible Tropical Kingbird nesting. This will be our main target on Saturday.

On Sunday morning, we will have teams survey both the north and south shores of San Carlos Lake, one of the largest lakes in the state.

What to Expect in the Field

Surveying the San Carlos River will involve a lot of walking. Although there isn't a lot of up-and-down terrain, there will be bush-whacking in a few places.

Be prepared to carry water, a lunch, and wear sturdy shoes. The weather could be hot.

Although the main road from Hwy 77 to Coolidge Dam and around the south side of the lake is paved, many of the other roads can be rough. High-clearance vehicles will be useful.

Preparations

The entire area we will be surveying is on the San Carlos Apache Reservation. This means that we have to each obtain permits to be on the reservation. The cost is $10 per person per day. We can pay for two days at once. The permits can be purchased at: Circle K in Globe (1951 E. Ash St., which is US 70). It is open 24/7, which means that participants can get permits Friday night or early Saturday morning. (Note: For those who have been to San Carlos before and bought permits at the Apache Gold convenience store by the casino, they are no longer sold there.)
We'll likely be staying in motels in nearby Globe, although we'll also be looking into camping possibilities. More details will be sent to those who sign up for the expedition.


Please register with Doug Jenness (d_jennessAThotmail.com).

 

 

 

 


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