PRO Series: Shorebird ID Workshop at Lake Cochise

Registration: $50/member, $100/non-member. 

Trip Difficulty: Easy. We will be walking along the dirt road that borders Lake Cochise. Terrain is flat and participants should expect to walk between 1-1.5 miles.

This workshop will focus on the identification of shorebirds in their alternate (breeding) plumage as they stopover in Arizona before reaching their breeding grounds to the north. Your guide will break-down the identification from paying attention to shape and structure, foraging behavior, plumage, and more. Lake Cochise has proven to be the most productive shorebirding location in SEAZ and depending on water levels, one should expect a diverse array of species.

Our meet-up location will be north of Lake Cochise by the Crane Observatory viewing platform here: 32.233887, -109.826085. Carpooling can be arranged from Tucson if participants agree. Limited to 12 participants.

About the Series: Introducing the Pro Series field trips and workshops presented by Arizona Birding Tours and Tucson Audubon Society. Take your birding to the next level with help from professional guides at Arizona Birding Tours. Each month we’ll explore advanced birding topics ranging from classic identification challenges to the art of birding by ear and so much more. Join us and discover new aspects of birding that will enhance your experience and expand your birding repertoire.

About the Leader: Caleb was born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona where he began birding at a very young age. At 17 years-old, Caleb was leading bird walks, field expeditions, and bird identification workshops for multiple statewide and local organizations. Birding has taken Caleb across much of the United States and to northern Mexico. In recent years, he explored the Midwest as a traveling field ornithologist before settling back down in Arizona where he is a professional birding guide with Arizona Birding Tours. In addition to his love of exploration, Caleb enjoys watching the look of amazement on the faces of his clients as they observe the beauty of the diverse wildlife and landscapes of Arizona and the Southwest. From watching California Condors soaring over the cliffs of the Grand Canyon to observing a pair of Elegant Trogons visiting their nesting cavity in a sycamore in the sky Islands of southeast Arizona, Caleb truly loves his home state of Arizona!

Caleb is an eBird Regional Reviewer for Maricopa, Yavapai, Gila, Graham, Greenlee, Navajo, and Apache Cos. in Arizona, a current member of the Arizona Bird Committee, co-author on multiple papers regarding bird distribution and status, and serves on the Arizona Field Ornithologists Expeditions committee, leading trips into under-birded areas across the state.

Header Image: Least Sandpiper by Lois Manowitz