January has arrived and with it potentially frigid temperatures—at least by local standards. Whether the coldest month on average in the Sky Islands lives up to its billing or instead continues the balmy, La Nina-driven trend witnessed in December is anyone’s guess. Regardless, many of our iconic, heat-loving Madrean species are generally nowhere to be found during the biodiversity nadir of January. Still, even the seemingly slim pickings of winter can provide a memorable feast for the curious naturalist.
Venture to the proper habitat and you may even find a few wildflowers adorning the landscape. I’m not talking about our mercurial spring blooms, but rather several species of shrubs that throw all caution to the wind by producing flowers in the dead of winter. You can find two of them at Patagonia Lake, as well as along Sonoita Creek.
The flashier of the two is Barkleyanthus salicifolius, a member of the aster family with no widely accepted common name. Look for it in riparian areas fringing both the lake and the stream. You can distinguish it from its look-alike cousin, seepwillow, by the fact that Barkleyanthus has at least yellow flower buds or even a few blooms this month.
The main flowering period for the species is from January through March. During this time, seemingly by magic, a good handful of butterfly species emerge to partake in the nectar at this winter-flowering shrub. Some of the same lepidopterans also visit the rather mundane-looking flowers of arroyo willow, which often grows near Barkleyanthus. Both species, along with their attendant butterflies, add beauty and vitality to an otherwise somewhat denuded winter landscape.
Not to be outdone, the local birding scene is still hopping in January, despite the absence of many neotropical migrants. Sparrows are among the groups of birds whose ranks swell in winter, in terms of the number of species as well as sheer volume. Visiting a grassland such as the San Rafael or those at Las Cienagas can net you a slew of species, some resident, others merely wintering here.
If you have never sorted through various types of sparrows, you may well pass them all off as “LBJ’s” or “little brown jobs.” This would be a shame since a careful study of them will reveal many differences in appearance, behavior and choice of habitat.
Some, such as our wintering white-crowned sparrows may well have migrated here from the Arctic. Others, including our handsome black-throated sparrows inhabit our local arid habitats year-round.
Enjoy them all, keeping in mind that the Sky Islands harbor more species of sparrows than any place on Earth—over 30 types. Add a few winter rarities—such as the red-throated loon at the lake and rufous-backed robins in local woodlands—and you begin to fathom the joys of cold-weather birdwatching.
Finally, we shine the spotlight on mammals. January is a stellar month for observing some species that become far harder to find once the vegetation leafs out. Watch for Arizona gray squirrels in winter as they seek sustenance in both riparian and Madrean evergreen woodlands. Whether they are retrieving hidden tidbits that they cached during fatter times or gleaning other wild calories, these handsome rodents generally are quiet and retiring. This stands in stark contrast to their close cousins, the eastern gray squirrels, who require little provocation to launch themselves up a tree to verbally abuse you for minutes on end.
One hypothesis attempting to explain the lack of such vociferous behavior by Arizona grays is that it might just net them an attack by a vigilant hawk, hence their more retiring nature in a region renowned for its predators. Fortunate observers may witness pre-courting behavior, with one or more males chasing a female. The real fray ensues in spring, but idling hormones can sometimes make the frisky males jump the gun. Surprisingly, Arizona hosts more tree squirrel species than any other state—four or five in all, depending on which taxonomic authority you cast your lot with.
With the many other winter wonders that are on display in January one need not fret about the general downswing in our biodiversity. Life still thrums here even during our most austere season—a time when each species comes even more into focus in lieu of their warm-weather cohorts. Enjoy!
Vincent Pinto and his wife, Claudia, run RAVENS-WAY WILD JOURNEYS, their Nature Adventure & Conservation organization devoted to protecting and promoting the unique biodiversity of the Sky Islands region. RWWJ offers a wide variety of private, custom-made courses, birding & biodiversity tours. Visit ravensnatureschool.org