The Orioles will once again run our traditional Birdathon route, an epic all-day quest for birds in the Santa Catalina Mountains! On April 29 we'll bird Tucson's own "sky island" mountain range from bottom to top over the course of one long day, and aim to see a selection of the representative bird species found in each life zone as we go. We'll start at dawn with riparian habitat along Tanque Verde Creek and then bird the Sonoran Desert at the foot of the mountains before continuing upward through the oak, pine, and fir forests toward the top of the mountains. Our target is to see and/or hear 100-120 species throughout the day.
The Orioles Birdathon team for 2023 is Scott Olmstead, Carl Englander, Will Russell, Malcolm Chesworth, and Tony Shrimpton.
**Update: We finished the big day with a solid 104 species, with one of the top highlights being the rare Evening Grosbeak in Summerhaven.**
Pledges:
- Marcia Grand: $10/species; $100 for a rattler; $150 for 3 species Tiny Owls; $100 for 3 species frogs; $150 for a Large Lizard like a Gila Monster, Desert Iguana, Chuckwalla, etc; $150 for any 3 – javelina, coyote, bobcat, racoon, jackrabbit, skunk, deer, coatimundi; $10 for each working nest; $150 for one saguaro with an active nest in it; $150 for any 5 hummingbirds; $250 for mountain lion.
- Marty Herde: An extra $10 for each Scott's Oriole
- William Russell: $1/species
