Seven of us – Marshall Esty, Phil Evanstock, Shirley Fackleman, Darlene Gatto, Vera Markham, Donna Smith and George Wall (leader) – met at the Gilbert Water Ranch for a morning of bird watching. The temperature was just right, there weren’t very many people on the trails yet and the birds were singing; it was perfect for a morning stroll. Right off at the start, we were presented with a challenge – a Kingbird sitting in a tree. We could tell it wasn’t the Western fairly easy because there was no white on the sides of its tail, but we didn’t have a chance to check much further before it flew off. We saw it a few more times during the next hour and got very close looks both through our binoculars and with the scope. No white on the end of its tail nor the white patch at the throat which eliminated the Cassin’s – there was no doubt that we were seeing a Tropical Kingbird. What a treat! Another hi-light was a flock of White-faced Ibis that flew over us.