Birding in SE Arizona with the drought? (1 Viewer)

[HantaYo]

Hi,

Having a bad itch to do a birding trip in southeastern Arizona end of April and May. BUT I am concerned about the Exceptional Drought conditions in the area as noted at: http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/DM_west.htm

Spring forecasts indicate drought conditions to persist. I am concerned about the multi-year droughts impact on the bird life and the overall birding trip experience. Areas of interest are the Chiricahua, Huachuca and Santa Rita Mountains.

Any thoughts on birding in Exceptional Drought conditions?

Thanks,
Jeff

 

[Mysticete]

hypothetically, the drought could end up displacing birds from Mexico, increasingly the likelihood of vagrants being around.

However the drought might contribute to forest fires, which might lead to a lot of closures in key birding areas.

 

[HantaYo]

Fires were the key factor in canceling the Arizona trip last year. I have not heard anything on how far the drought extends into Mexico. I still need to research how the fires impacted potential birding areas; just starting up the trip planning. One of the fires was through the Chiricahuas very close to Cave Creek. Thinking about earlier this year to avoid wildfire problems.

 

[Mysticete]

Bear in mind however that a trip before Late May may miss a lot of the later migrants, like the various flycatchers. Something to keep in mind if any of those are on your target list