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  • Sycamore Canyons
• Sycamore Canyons
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An Assortment of Birds, Reptiles, Amphibians and Mammals
Arizona's Sycamore Canyons

Northern Flicker Loud-calling woodpecker that can also bang tree trunks loudly. Large size. Jet black bib. Belly spotted. Frequent. More ...	Hairy Woodpecker Back is mostly black with a bold white stripe along spine. Patch of red back of head on males. Harsh call distinctive. More common at higher elevations. More ...	Acorn Woodpecker The bold black and white clown-face easily distinguishes this woodpecker. Gathers and stores acorns in granaries build into dead trunks. Common in oak zones. More ...	Arizona Woodpecker In wooded canyons near Mexican border. Back brown, belly with distinct dark spotting. Small woodpecker. More ...	Mourning Dove Very common dove across many Arizona habitats including sycamore woodlands. Year round. More ...	White-winged Dove Larger than other doves and with conspicuous white bands in wings visible in-flight. Spring and summer only. More ...	Common Ground Dove Uncommon Arizona bird. Very small dove usually on open ground away from dense vegetation. Scaly head feathers. More ...
Greater Roadrunner Large bird with heavy bill hunts along ground. Prefers open areas but roosts often in trees at night. More ...	Scrub Jay Often noisy, blue-gray birds moving in small groups seeking berries, insects, or plundering opportunities. More ...	Mexican Jay Forms noisy flocks of blue-gray birds that forage as a group. Throat without distinct white patch or darker necklace. More frequent in southeast Arizona. More ...	Bridled Titmouse Small bird with boldly-marked black and white head, and a distinct creast. Often forages in small, mixed-species flocks. Common, especially above 1200m. More ...	Painted Redstart Bold black, red and white bird active on trunks and branches. Migrates south for winter. Common, especially above 1200m. More ...	Yellow Warbler Common bright yellow and small active birds in canopy present mostly spring and summer only. More ...	Yellow-breasted Chat This brightly colored and noisy bird of riparian habitats can be surprisingly hard to see! More ...
Cedar Waxwing Fall, winter and spring bird attracted to trees with ripe fruit. Backward facing crest. Tan, yellow and grayish plumage. Black eye mask. More ...	American Robin Familiar bird common through much of North America. White eye ring, rufous breast, orange-yellow bill and streaky chin. More ...	Western Bluebird Brilliant blue and rusty-orange male. Female is duller blue-gray. Medium bill. Feeds on berries and insects. Juveniles have speckled chest. More ...	Phainopepla Males are black with red eyes and distinct crest on head. Female is similar but gray in color. Moves to lower elevation in winter. More ...	Bronzed Cowbird Shiny black and irridescent. Males have distinct red eyes. Moist canyons in southern Arizona. No head crest. More ...	Summer Tanager Males are nearly pure red. Females yellowish. Young males may have yellow also. Spring and summer only. More ...	Hepatic Tanager The females of this and the summer tanager are drab yellow and brown. The bill of both male and femate Hepatic is dark. More ...
House Finch Very common birds in canyons and around habitations. Conical beak. Females are brown w/o red at all. More ...	Song Sparrow Inhabitants of thickly vegetated areas usually not far from water. Notice spot at center of breast. More ...	Lincoln's Sparrow Stays near ground often hidden among thickets and shade offered by sycamore and cottonwood trees. Buffy color on lower belly. More ...	White-crowned Sparrow Very common in winter months. Concentrated in riparian areas with drought. More ...	Rufous-crowned Sparrow Habitat is sparsely vegetated rocky slopes above canyons. Black whisker stripe and reddish crown. More ...	Abert's Towhee Prefers to forage on ground near thickets and shade offered by sycamore and cottonwood gallery woodlands. More ...	Canyon Towhee Nearly uniform brown bird with a conical bill. Faint necklace and rusty under tail. More ...
Spotted Towhee Often hiding in thick chaparral the call may reveal this bird before its bright plumage. Orange-red flanks. More ...	Lazuli Bunting Males are light blue and golden tawny. Migration thru Az in spring and fall. More ...	Blue Grosbeak This male is brilliant blue with rusty wing bars. The female is brown, but shares the heavy silvery beak. More ...	Black-headed Grosbeak Medium sized spring and summer bird with dark head, thick bill and rich, tawny chest. The female lacks tawny color and head is streaked. More ...	Northern Cardinal Males unmistakeable red. small black mask, and sharp crest atop head. Females gray and reddish. Both have orange-red bill. More ...	Violet-green Swallow Irridescent green on head and back. Belly and chest white. White extends onto dorsum of rump. More ...	Barn Swallow Head and back irridescent blue-black, throat and chest rusty, long tail feathers. Rarely perches. More ...
Broad-billed Hummingbird The red bill against the irridescent blue-green plumage is distinctive. Female has white bar behind the eye. More ...	Black-chinned Hummingbird Much of head and throat appear black in males. Occas. a dark purple patch visible on throat. Spring and summer. More ...	Broad-tailed Hummingbird Most common and widespread montane humming bird through much of Arizona. Male has irridescent red throat. More ...	Rufous Hummingbird Pass-through Migrant. By mid summer these feisty male birds are heading south from their breeding ground in the nw USA and w Canada. More ...	Violer-crowned Hummingbird Pure white chest and belly, red bill, and in males, a violet crown. Uncommon in far s.e. Arizona canyons. More ...
Yellow-billed Cuckoo This bird with a long tail and white belly is partial to trees and so is occasionally seen among sycamores and other riparian habitats. More ...	Cooper's Hawk Streaky breast; long, black-and-white banded tail and relatively long wings. Strong talons and raptor beak. More ...	Turkey Vulture Nearly solid black plumage. Undersides of wings appear two-toned. Bare skin of head is reddish. Absent in winter. More ...
Wild Turkey Grand and beautiful birds reintroduced and now common in many wooded canyons and Arizona forest lands. More ...	Least Grebe Rare Bird. Small drab birds floats on surface of water and repeatedly dives for extended minutes. More ...	Black Phoebe Upright and alert posture. Head, back and chest black contrasting sharply with white belly. Spring, summer and fall. More ...	Brown-crested Flycatcher Spring and summer bird with pale yellow belly, gray chest and rusty tail feathers. Uses heavy bill to glean insects from foliage and ground. More ...	Western Wood-Pewee Small flycatcher with upright posture, grayish color and no distinct eyering and only faint wingbars. Spring and summer. More ...	Cassin's Kingbird Vocal flycatchers that stay close to tops of riverine trees. White of chin contrasts with darker chest. More ...	Tropical Kingbird The belly is yellow and the black tail has 'V' notch. Upright posture. More ...
Canyon Wren Small birds with a long rusty-topped tail that make distinct descending calls in desert canyons. No eye stripe. More ...	Bewick's Wren Small wren with long tail and gray-brown back. White stripe through eye. More ...	Cactus Wren Desert birds often moves into riparian zones during drought. Largest wren in Az. All year. More ...	Blue-gray Gnatcatcher Small bluish bird with a long tail and active foraging style in trees and shrubs. Fine, slender beak. More ...	Verdin Tiny grayish bird with pale yellow head and small patch of maroon on shoulder. More ...	Ground Squirrel The common large squirrel of open, rocky habitats from the low desert up through canyons and on rocky slopes. Brown to grayish. More ...
White-tail Deer Smaller than the mule deer and with shorter ears. Tail markings mostly white. More ...	Arizona Gray Squirrel Gray tree squirrel with long, bushy gray and white tail. Frequent in wooded canyon thru e. and s. Arizona. More ...		Ornate Tree Lizard Small scaly lizard often climbing trees, boulders and fences. More ...		Yarrow's Spiny Lizard Black collar is complete and bordered by white behind. More extensive blue on males. Large spiny scales. 10cm w/o tail. More ...
Elegant Earless Lizard Small, colorful lizard found near riparian zones in Southeast Arizona. Two pairs of black bars on the sides of the venter. More ...		Plateau Lizard Sharply pointed scales on gray-brown, small to medium sized lizard. Some specimens lack longitudinal stripes. More ...		Slevin's Bunchgrass Lizard Small scaly lizard found grassland slopes of Southeast Arizona mountains. Gray line down back. Some populations pale. More ...		Ridge-nosed Rattlesnake Another small snake (< 60cm) found in s.e. Arizona canyons. Upturned scales forming lines on either side of the nose are diagnostic. More ...
Greater Short-horned Lizard Also called the Mountain Horned Lizard. Often colored precisely like the substrate, in this case red sandstone. More ...	Sonoran Spotted Whiptail Neat yellow stripes the length of body, faint spot between the stripes and a very long slender tail. More ...		Black-tailed Rattlesnake End of tail below rattle is all black. Dark blotches on golden to gray background. More ...	Rock Rattlesnake The beautiful contrasting black and light gray pattern are distinctive. This is a small snake (< 80cm) found in s.e. Arizona canyons. More ...

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Sycamore Canyons
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