Estrella Mountain Regional Park

Red-tailed Hawk

Isn’t he/she gorgeous? We went to another of Maricopa County’s Regional Parks the other day. It was a gloomy, cloudy day and the park left a lot to be desired. It was definitely the least attractive of all the county parks we’ve visited. This hawk was really the only redeeming factor for me.

We saw a Red-tailed Hawk 3 different times while there so I don’t know if this is the same one as the first 2 photos. The one in the first 2 photos was a very cooperative poser and there was even a little sun by then so it was a great photo op. Thank you, Hawk.

Everything else was pretty mediocre. I had a couple of target birds but we didn’t see them…

Say’s Phoebe

Vermilion Flycatcher

Not a park I would go to again but we did get a free pass to go to another county park so it kind of evened out.

Valentine’s Day is also Arizona Statehood Day. This is a very big saguaro superimposed on a 1912 map. Happy 107th Birthday, Arizona!

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Gateway Trailhead

This is the third time we’ve been to the McDowell Sonoran Preserve in Scottsdale. It is comprised of 30,500 acres of Sonoran Desert, 7 trailheads, and over 200 miles of trails. This particular trailhead, Gateway, is the closest to town and it was very busy on a weekday afternoon last week. The trails were also very rocky so it was hard to look up while walking with cameras. Basically, it’s not a place that we would go to again but I’m sure many people love it…since there were a ton of them there. Nevertheless, it was still pretty…

Painted Lady

Creosote

Birds, none for most of the trail until we got towards the end…

Black-throated Sparrow

Gila Woodpecker

Curve-billed Thrasher

Thompson Peak

Gilded Flicker

House Finches

These are the other trailheads we’ve been to which were farther north, away from the city, and with nicer trails, more dramatic scenery, and better mountain views: Brown’s Ranch Trailhead and Granite Mountain Trailhead. Next time we’ll go to the trails that are farther north again…

2019 Begins…

We went for a late afternoon walk around Desert Botanical Garden the other day. We had some really cold days here and, with the holidays and all, we haven’t been on one of our day trips for about a month so we have to get back on the road again soon. Meanwhile…

I thought the birds would be a little more active. We did see a lot of quail, doves, starlings but I didn’t take photos of them. We also saw a cute little wren that I would have liked to get a photo of to identify it but it wasn’t cooperative.

Anna’s or Costa’s Hummingbird, female

There were very few butterflies. I imagine many froze during the cold snap. 😦

Queen Butterfly

Verdin

Cactus Wren

Being at the Garden reminded me that I didn’t meet any of my goals for 2018! I had similar goals for 2017 and met them all but 2018 was different. Spending 5 weeks in Indiana unexpectedly threw me off for the whole year. When I got back, I couldn’t get back into the swing for quite awhile, one of my cats got very sick, and then the summer was so hot that I just decided I would chuck my 2018 goals:

1. Volunteer 100 hours at Desert Botanical Garden. Not even close (compared to 102.75 in 2017).
2. Find 50 new Lifers (new birds). Found 36 (compared to 58 in 2017).
3. Go on many AZ day trips with Tony. Went on 16 (compared to 23 in 2017).

I also went to a few parks on my own and a few expeditions with my birding friend, Karen, plus I went to a couple places back in Indiana so I did see many pretty sights, gorgeous birds, and other wildlife so I can’t really complain. But I’ve decided not to be too specific in my 2019 goals:

1. Maybe volunteer at Desert Botanical Garden, maybe not. Maybe elsewhere, maybe not.
2. Find some new birds.
3. Go on as many day trips with Tony as we can.
4. Take as many photos as I can.

These were my first bird photos of 2019. It was cloudy, cold, and rainy so they were from my yard only. The hummers were all fluffed up.

Anna’s Hummingbird, male

Hope your year is off to a good start and that you have many exciting goals…or no goals…but fun times ahead.

 

Holiday Cheer

“I’m glad I’m wintering in Phoenix!”

Are you in the mood for the holidays? Hmmm, I’m not really (yet, anyway) but here are a few photos of my yard birds beginning to celebrate.

“For me? I hope it’s peanuts.”

“I pecked that myself.”

That was an Orange-crowned Warbler (“Tink”), a House Finch, a Curve-billed Thrasher,  an Anna’s Hummingbird, and a Gila Woodpecker.

“Mom, I wish we had a fireplace and I wish I had a Christmas sweater.”

And here are a few from holidays past…beginning with Google in 2009. He still likes the Christmas tree but mostly lays under it instead of in it now.

House Sparrows, an American Robin, European Starlings, a Verdin, Northern Mockingbirds, a Say’s Phoebe, and a Desert Cottontail were all hoping for some holiday cheer.

Svengali, Kit, Stripey

Jessi, Ivory, Ferguson

Ebony, Google, Edie, Torti

Happy Holidays, Happy Solstice…if you celebrate…

 

Butcher Jones Trail

We went looking for birds and stuff on Butcher Jones Trail at Saguaro Lake last week. It was supposed to be birdy. As usual, it wasn’t but it was nice anyway.

Osprey

We saw more butterflies than I’ve ever seen in one place, many groups of several.

Southern Dogface (open wings) and other Sulphurs 

Empress Leilia (a first)

Queen

Clark’s Grebe (lifer)

We saw this well-known guy with one foot in exactly the same place we saw him last November.

Great Blue Heron

More of the trail:

Saguaro Detail

Mesquite Bosque

We briefly stopped at Coon Bluff Recreation Area on the Lower Salt River on the way back, hoping to see some eagles, wild horses, something, but no luck. It was a pretty view, though, and the fall colors were beginning so it was worth the stop.

And now we’re on to December…