Part 4 - Alaska, A Journey, Not a Destination
Introduction
Aw yes, Las Vegas; Sin City, Marriage Capital of the World, The City that Never Sleeps, Gluttony Central, The City of Lost Wages, Birding Mecca… Wait, what? Birding Mecca? Ok, that could be an overstatement, but for people like me, I need only remember the Yellow-billed Loon that landed in and shut down the Bellagio fountains for a few days earlier this year. I knew that there must be something to birding Las Vegas.
And yes, I got lots of good quality time with our beautiful hard-working daughter who has recently moved to Las Vegas.
Some Unusual Ranges
There is something about Las Vegas that attracts many birds to stop off or become resident when many others of their species pass it by in their migration patterns. Could it be the bright lights of the strip? Could it be the residents putting up habitat and food? Could there just be something about the natural landscape? I really don’t know.
Take the yellow-billed loon, for example. This bird typically winters on the BC and Alaska south coast and summers high in the arctic. Clearly, Las Vegas is way out of range, why? Oddly, this was not the first sighting in Clark County (Las Vegas). Sibley’s field guide shows this small area around Las Vegas as a rare observation area.
The Hummingbirds
Other great examples of range oddity are the Anna’s and Costa’s hummingbirds. Anna’s is a coastal resident common to the west coast of California but there it is a finger of residency extending from the west coast to Las Vegas.
Costa’s is even more interesting. It is a migrator that winters in Mexico and comes into southern California and Las Vegas for the summer. At some point in time, some of those birds decided that hanging out in Vegas was more fun than flying back to southern Mexico. They decided to stay right there in Las Vegas, year-round. There is a tiny purple dot in the Sibley’s field guide to show this strange year-round residency.
My conclusion on the hummingbird residency anomaly, is that they found enough nectar in the yards of residents to decide to stay through winter. Either that, or they were big Elvis fans and have been waiting since the ‘70’s for his return.
The Bell's Sparrow
Bell’s Sparrow is another range oddity. This sparrow lives year-round along the west coast from central California down the Baja Peninsula. In the winter, a small portion of its population moves east into SE California and SW Arizona. There is a tiny dot of purple in the Sibley’s field guide right on top of Las Vegas which means they are year-round residents. This phenomenon is owed to the chaparral and scrub habitat that is now protected to the west and north of Las Vegas. Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument and Desert National Wildlife Refuge together make nearly 2 million acres of protected habitat.
The Bell’s Sparrow is a reclusive bird that outside of breeding season is hard to find owing to its habit of fleeing by running on the ground, not flying. In the spring time, they will sit up on the chaparral scrubs and sing incessantly.
Bell’s Sparrow’s numbers are declining because their habitat makes for great desert subdivisions, industrial sites and commercial buildings. The expansion of Las Vegas and subsequent destruction of desert habitat was shocking for me to see this trip.
The Thrashers
Keeping on theme, there are two very similar thrashers that thrive in the desert. The Crissal Thrasher and the LeConte’s Thrasher. Crissal is more likely to be found in arroyos with some larger vegetation and undergrowth and LeConte’s favors the open chaparral. The deserts of Las Vegas are fingers of year-round occupation for these birds.
Birding Las Vegas for my Targets
LeConte’s Thrasher and Bell’s Sparrow were my two main targets while birding Las Vegas. Watching eBird, I knew the Tule Springs Fossil Bed NM was the place to go. The chaparral scrub was about 45 minutes from my campsite, and I knew that I needed to be early to beat the heat and give myself the best chance. The alarm went off at 5am and I rolled.
Down the hill to US95, take a left. A few miles up the road to the turn towards the Desert NWR which takes you through Tule Springs NM. Following the road through the NM I took a right towards the community of Corn Creek.
As I approached this enclave in the desert, it became clear that outsiders were not welcome. Maybe they had bad experiences, maybe they just liked their privacy. I don’t know but the signs telling me where to turn around and that they don’t call 911 were an added dimension that I did not anticipate.
Never-the-less, I could not be deterred. Important birds were waiting for me. Also, I don’t call 911 either. I found what was surely an ancient conquistador wagon trail and proceeded around Corn Creek to the area of the recent birding reports.
There are no trails to follow in the scrub. You just start walking and listening.
It was a slow start, but eventually, I began to hear things. Bird things. Bird songs. Yes, Bell’s Sparrow songs. And then sightings. Many of them. I crept up for photos and did the best I could do.
Sadly, LeConte’s Thrasher eluded me, for now.
I made my escape from Deliverance in the Desert and was safely at the campsite eating breakfast by 10 am.
More to Birding Las Vegas than Deserts
Surprisingly, there is more to birding Las Vegas than desert birds. There are other great habitats to be explored.
A trip up Kyle Canyon Road into Lee Canyon and the Mt. Charleston area, in general, is well worth the effort if you are birding Las Vegas. Mt. Charleston peak is 11,916 ft above sea level. I, and I suspect many others, find this to be completely unexpected.
We camped at about 6500 ft for several days and temperatures were very mild when compared to 100f plus at the bottom of the hill.
It was while exploring this area that I found my lifer Black-chinned Sparrow and Cassin’s Finch.
Closer to town you have the Henderson Bird Viewing Preserve (fee required) that is loaded with song birds, waders and waterfowl.
Additionally, there is the Clark County Wetlands Park. This is a free and very large area for walking. We encountered many birds while walking here last November. Including Sora, Crissal Thrasher, Phainopepla, and Osprey. My November checklist for this location had 25 birds listed. This is a must go location when birding Las Vegas.
The Final Roll of the Dice
Back at camp, this trip, May 2024, I had one more shot at that LeConte’s Thrasher. Before packing up to leave, I looked out across the horizon and concluded that there just might be a LeConte’s around our site.
What were the odds of finding a LeConte’s Thrasher when birding Las Vegas?
I started walking and listening and looking. Something flew. It was the right size. But was it Crissal or LeConte’s. Only a good look or photo could make a positive ID. I squatted, camera ready, and gave a little whistle. Here he came, just for an instant. Snap. Photo taken. Yes, the fine malar stripe and light sandy color revealed his identity as LeConte’s Thrasher. Jackpot!
Love the blog, dad. Thanks for visiting me in Vegas and taking me birding 🙂
You’re welcome! Love you!
You and daughter in Las Vegas were worth the view. But that led to the Yellow-billed Loon, some new in my vocabulary, and I learned more about it. Costa’s Hummingbird is a jewel I never heard of. What a birding and geographical adventure, as usual. Enjoy Alaska to the fullest.
There is no shortage of interesting things to learn!
My first time reading your blog and I loved it. The pictures are beautiful and the information worth the read. I’ll be back.
Thanks. I am glad that you enjoyed it.
I think you would really enjoy the blog on the Florida Scrub-jay. You can go to the website and look in the Content section under blog and find it. It is titled Florida Scrub-jays to Piping Plovers.
Interesting, as usual! I especially enjoyed learning that the Costa’s hummingbirds I’ve seen at the Henderson Bird Viewing Preserve are range oddities.