Tommy D's Sidetracks: Sonoita Creek/Patagonia Lake: Odes for A Change?

Friday, July 21, 2017

Sonoita Creek/Patagonia Lake: Odes for A Change?

In all of Arizona's birding hotspots, Patagonia Lake State Park has had the highest diversity of documented bird species with an impressive list of over 300 species. On the other world of things, there have been over 50 odonates documented within the park limits. While there are a handful of incredible Mexican vagrants for birds to the Park, there have been quite a few rare odes in similar form. On July 20th, I teamed up with awesome birding buddies Caleb Strand and Chris Benish to do something new at Patagonia Lake State Park and Sonoita Creek. And that was oding. For three guys who have birded more than anything, this was quite the awesome event taking place. Our main concentration was odes! It was epic to see Caleb and Chris searching for bugs and keeping an eye out for those birds too.

And of course, before it all started, a tiring drive was in order to Patagonia..

The three of us got to ode for about 4.5 hours before rain shut down the rest of the day. But in the four hours, we had a lot of highlights. We covered the west side of Patagonia Lake and the Sonoita Creek Natural Area west and below the dam of the lake. I will feature the highlights on this post, there were many. Out of those highlights, I was able to add four lifer odes, which were Spine-tipped Dancer, Black-and-white Damsel, Violet Dancer, and our outing favorite, the limited-in-Arizona Slough Amberwing. Lets take a look at those four epic odes that I got to enjoy for the first time.

The first lifer highlight was Argia extranea, which is called the Spine-tipped Dancer. With several close look alikes, Caleb showed Chris and I the Spine-tipped Dancer's main field marks that were a saddle-shaped spot on Segment 2 of the abdomen, an unforked humeral stripe, etc. Chris and I both took time to investigate the field marks and enjoy our newest ode.

Chris then caught the Spine-tipped Dancer with his net, and Caleb held the small ode and it gave us more chances to study it up super close.

Caleb and Chris closely examining the Spine-tipped Dancer

Once dropping down into Sonoita Creek, below the dam of Patagonia Lake, we began to search for a variety of odes such as Cerulean Dancer and Malachite Darner. The possibilities were exciting of what we could possibly come across. Things got really fun when I spied a Black-and-white Damsel along a calm and narrow part of the Creek. We soon got to see another one, and they were the only two Black-and-white Damsels that we were able to see all day. I think we may have gotten lucky! With several stripes on the male's thorax and white on the end of it's abdomen, it really makes this damselfly unique in it's appearance. It's an ode in it's own genus, and from what I'm reading, it looks like it's one that has a very unique behavior! It was one that I was really hoping to come across on this outing.

Up next in the lifer department was this Variable Dancer. This ode looks similar in it's populations throughout Arizona to most others of it's species, but elsewhere, it can look very Variable to claim it's well-given name. Something I love about identifying wildlife in the field is when some creatures have telltale field marks. The Variable has one of it's own at a quick glance, which is a purple color on abdomen segment 8, while the last two segments, 9-10, are sky blue. It was already my second new Dancer of the outing that was still young..

The fourth lifer was probably the favorite of all three of us. I'm pretty sure it was, because it was a lifer for all of us. While oding along the Creek, Slough Amberwing was one that we were searching for in rather shaded areas. After Chris spied an Amberwing along the creek and after he announced it, Caleb quickly walked back and said it was the Slough itself! Throughout the hike, we would see a few more Slough Amberwings. They are smaller than the Mexican Amberwing that we are all have gotten used too, and they have bright red on their wings as well as some strong i.d. marks on the Thorax with a few stripes, as well as darker legs than Mexican.

Aside from the lifers, there were plenty of other highlights too. One that topped some of the lifers came from a Caleb-found Serpent Ringtail. While Caleb and I got our life looks at a Serpent Ringtail last week at Eagle Creek that resulted in fly-by looks only, this sighting of one came from it returning to the same perch multiple times in a row. When Caleb called out, "Serpent Ringtail" Chris and I were sprinting in that direction to get good looks and some photograph. And there was really no need to rush after all, because this Serpent Ringtail was content in it's spot!