Patagonia Lake State Park has earned a reputation among birders as a place to see rarities. I was especially interested in Elegant Trogons, a species that has been a regular during the winter. It is a Mexican bird that may edge over the border into southeast Arizona. I had seen one of them here a few years back. At that time I went looking for it every morning during a week that Edie and I camped there. It was tough to find, usually sleeping deep in some bushes.
This time was different. There were two birds actively hunting, one of which was so intent that it seemed oblivious to our presence. On one occasion a male flew toward Edie and perched eye level fifteen feet in front of her. Later I watched as one of them demonstrated it's foraging technique.
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The Trogon perches fairly low, remains quiet, and searches the ground for prey.
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Once the prey is sighted it dives to the ground and grabs the future meal in its beak
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It returns to the same perch or a nearby one, prey in mouth.
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| Breakfast is served. |
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