Not in My Yard

This handsome Vermilion Flycatcher greeted me when I went back to my old stomping ground, Granada Park, a couple miles from our house. Much as I love my yard birds, it is nice to get out and see something different. This guy had a female with him but she was skittish and I didn’t really love any of the photos.

One day last week we went to Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix on a lovely cool day:

Greater Roadrunner

Desert Spiny Lizard

Cactus Wren, Arizona State Bird

Lesser Goldfinch, female

Gila Woodpecker, male, on saguaro

There is a small office park with a pond close to where we live. Back in February we went over there for a late afternoon walk after office hours. We were very surprised to see an Osprey up in one of the big trees…surprised because this pond does not have any fish in it…and yet he had a big crop like he had just eaten. We were back there in April and there he was again! He flew in around sunset, with a full crop, and went up to one of the big trees again. We guess that is just where he likes to spend his nights.

So odd to see him so close to our house, in the middle of a big city. Here are a few more critters we saw there:

American Wigeon couple

Neotropic Cormorant, juvenile

Young Goslings swimming at sunset

Red-eared Pond Slider

We hope to get back to day tripping soon to see more exciting sights and animals.

A Brief Escape

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Say’s Phoebe

We’ve been very good during this loooooong quarantine, only doing essential shopping and initially walking in a closeby park, which we quit doing because there were plenty of social nondistancers. But one day last week I met a friend at Rotary Park in Scottsdale, where we sat six feet apart, and talked and watched the critters fly around and other people walk around. It was a lovely day and nice to have a break in the monotony.

We sat by the Butterfly Garden but only saw a couple of butterflies.

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Gulf Fritillary

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This little Lesser Goldfinch was the star of our visit, being very brave and seeming to enjoy our attention:

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A good time was had by all. Then a few nights later, this was the Flower Supermoon, the last supermoon until April 2021:

And…just so I can file these 4 photos away, Tony and I went to Reach 11 in Phoenix right at the beginning of the quarantine. We easily socially distanced because there was hardly anyone around including birds and other animals:

Cactus Wren

Round-tailed Ground Squirrel

What Lies Beneath

Ring-necked Duck, female

Do you think life will ever be the “old normal” again? I don’t…

Winter in the Desert

We went to the Desert Botanical Garden again a few days ago. It’s not quite time for the wildflowers to begin blooming but it’s always a pretty place to walk. No new birds either but I’ll keep trying…

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Cactus Wrens, Arizona State Bird

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Gilded Flickers

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Curve-billed Thrashers

Gila Woodpecker

A Visit to DBG

Verdins (yellow-headed one is an adult)

On another unseasonably cool day in Phoenix, we went back to the Desert Botanical Garden. Here are some of the sights.

Cholla with Fruit

Cardons (native to northwestern Mexico)

Gila Woodpecker, male

Artichokes

See the bee, above?

Gaillardias

Cactus Wren (Arizona State Bird)

Crested Saguaro

Prickly Pear blooms

Saguaro blooms (Arizona State Flower)

Mourning Dove juveniles

Look what we saw! If it hadn’t been cloudy, the photos would have been much better but it’s the first time I ever got one without branches in front of it. It was also very windy that day!

Great Horned Owl

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Phoenix Sonoran Preserve

Much like the McDowell Sonoran Preserve in Scottsdale, the Phoenix Sonoran Preserve, located in North Phoenix, has over 18,000 acres of beautiful desert views including 36 miles of exciting multi-use trails. The wildflowers were just beginning to bloom but the tons of Chollas were glowing in the sun.

We were at the Apache Wash Trailhead where a mountain biker crashed into a rattlesnake that same day and was bit. We did see an ambulance but didn’t know about this until seeing it on the news that night. It’s rattler season.

Black-throated Sparrows

The female Black-throated Sparrow is the nest builder (you can see her gathered materials in her bill) and a breeding pair is very territorial so the one on the nearby cactus must have been her mate.

Cactus Wrens, Arizona’s State Bird

These two were also together so I imagine they are mates, too.

Painted Lady Butterfly

Mexican Poppy

Scorpion Weed

Brittlebush

There were really pretty views here.

A perfect plump Saguaro after all our rain

It was hazy but in the distance, we could see Four Peaks, 42 miles away, as the crow flies, still covered with the recent snow.

The day before, we drove around trying to get a good view of Four Peaks with the snow, away from houses and buildings. This was taken somewhere north of Fountain Hills…

It’s been in the 80s the last couple of days; the snow has all melted. Spring is coming to the desert.