January 8- Friday, 8:00 am – Gilbert Water Ranch

Trip difficulty: Easy. 1-1.5 miles on flat, well-graded paths.

We’ll start at 8am at the Water Ranch, one of the top birding destinations in the Phoenix metro area, usually yielding 45-50 species in a typical two-hour cool season walk, including wintering waterfowl, waders, shorebirds, common desert species and often some surprises. A sizable flock of White Pelicans has been visiting regularly, and secretive Wilson’s Snipe are back. After a break, we’ll take a quick detour to a little-known linear park that is quite reliable for Rosy-faced Lovebirds to see if we can punctuate our field trip with these flying rainbows. Wrap up around 11:15 am. Meeting place will be determined a few days before the trip. Limited to 8 participants.

Leader: Kathe Anderson (kathe.coot@cox.net)

Registration for this trip is free.