An Ode to August

Barrel Cactus Bloom

August you can be quite stunning.  But you also drain me of my energy. I see rain and I smile.  I see sun and I frown. Hot, sweaty, sticky T-shirts are not my thing. It's a love-hate relationship with you.

Migrating Black Terns at Benson's WTP

You bring us rarities.  You bring us color.  Lightning, thunder, raging desert rivers along with gulls, terns and lots of other interesting things. But try searching for a Painted Bunting in 100+ degrees while walking around wet grassy bug filled fields! You, dear August, test my limits.

Texas Ranger and Barrel Cactus

I begin to think of ocean waters, cool breezes, and freezing nights.

The Benson WTP

I come home from an exhausting day at work.  No energy to do anything.  Just sleep.

Mary Jo Ballator's Ash Canyon Retreat-home to the US rare Lucifer Hummmingbirds

Hiking is not even possible.  So I sit among the blooming flowers and watch the migrating hummingbirds from within my chair. 

Male Lucifer Hummingbird

The bugs bite me.  Itch itch itch.  You are way too intense for me and all I can do to escape you, August, is retreat into my air conditioned car.

I think of stain glass windows and old pine with lots of musty books. It's raining all day long.  And cold.  Behind my window, I watch the birds while enjoying a hot cup of coffee. 

Coyote pups need water and want to play with the photographer!  Not today:)

 Most speak ill of the whipping frozen winds of the north.  Not me.  I feel energized by them. I imagine myself at the Whitewater Draw on a cold January day.

Female Lucifer Hummingbird

August.  You are beautiful but you are too high maintenance for me.

As much as I hate saying good-bye to you, I am also secretly relieved that you are leaving.  Is that terrible of me to write?

Sweetwater Wetlands

Your close friend, September, will be visiting soon and I look forward to a brief visit. Nothing personal:)

The Chuparosa Challenge-When You Wish Upon a Star

 It had been a long summer of chasing a dream.  One that would drive me mad until the goal was achieved.  The shots today are not anything special....or are they?  At first glance, the male Rufous hummingbird shines bright and true.  "You'll know it when you see it."

"You'll know it when you see it."  I kept repeating that line over and over.  I certainly saw the Rufous and his golden glow in the sunlight. But hello there.....who are you to the far left?

"You'll know it when you see it."  I went to every canyon for you and suffered bites all over my body....and not find you.  I look for you in the middle of nowhere and almost got killed by illegal crossers.  I even gave up on you. 

"You'll know it when you see it."  A man doing a "Big Year" came to find you and he did.  I missed you by minutes one day.  Many people missed you and waited and searched and searched for you.

I thought I had seen you once.  I submitted your photo to the rare bird gurus and they told me that I'd know you when I saw you.  I had a picture of something else.   Do I glance you now on the feeder?  Larger than the rest.  Please stay long enough so that I can get a clear shot.  You are the final hummingbird to see for this season.

And I do spy you behind that feeder.  Please come out more.  I know you'll only be around for a very short time. 

Do you know how many nights I couldn't sleep until I found you?

And in your grand shadow and starry gorget I only hope to see you clearly.

Please let the other hummers stop chasing you off.  My heart is beating as fast as yours right now.

And then you chase a female off showing your white feathered back......

......your profile shows the long dark bill.........

......the feeder shows me that you are very large for a hummingbird.......

.......and your gorget shows a dark thick streak of pink........and I know that I've finally found you.  Like a great finale to a beloved TV series, I sigh and smile sharing the briefest of inner applauses inside my head.  I did it!  I spotted you.....you rare rare Plain Capped Starthroat.

I have moved from beginner to low intermediate birder. But please don't quiz me on my buntings, sparrows, or other little bitty flycatchers:)  I'm still studying this group and many others. Today ends the Chuparosa(Hummingbird) challenge for this year.  It was exciting.  Frustrating.  And always educational.  On this day I would suffer over a hundred chigger bites on my feet waiting for this bird.  It was the worst pain that I've felt for this year.  But the price was well worth it.  Two more posts on hummingbirds.  One which includes this years photography stats.  I hope you enjoy the shots.  They were collected from many many hours of observations.  I'd like to thank Warren for planting this series into my brain.  Because of this challenge, I discovered many of our beautiful canyons and just how unique they all are.  I'll be moving into the grasslands soon with Kathie.  Just a few of the many bloggers who inspire me to be a better person everyday.  Thank you all for your own work from your part of the world. More tomorrow.....

The Pipevine Butterfly

As you've seen this past month, the butterfly show has kicked into full gear and I won't be done for awhile with the finds.

Another rare treat to our desert is the Pipevine Butterfly.  It's large blackish blue with dazzling dots.

Last year I hadn't seen many of them but this year, they've been everywhere!  In fact, this butterfly stopped by El Presidio one day and had the residents oooing and ahhing.  I was shocked.  Why?

This particular butterfly is threatened or endangered in some areas, but I don't think it is here as it has a large range to flutter about.

This butterfly loves all kinds of plants like the infamous butterfly bush, vincas, lantanas, verbena, and milkweed.  But there are certainly many more plants that it will visit.   It's tricky here in Arizona because in spring, we love our wildflower gardens but we can also pick millions of other themes for our places.....like the Butterfly Garden!!!  My Butterfly Garden hasn't begun yet because the fountain hasn't gone into the space....but when it does, these colorful and magnificent plants will go into that spot. 

September is the month of the butterfly here.  An explosion really.  And if you set your garden up right , your guests will feel like they're walking in one of those cheesy Disney movies. Plus you'll be the talk of the neighborhood. Today's photo shoot was taken at the Ash Canyon B & B.  And the garden is by Mary Jo.  

Stay tuned for more....

The Chuparosa Challenge-Devil's Play

I think you may have been waiting for an update, yes???  Well this blogger has much up his sleeves:)  How did I have so much time to do all of this?  Well, TV is pretty bad these days and life is pretty exciting. And there's a whole lot more fun outside than inside. What I want to know is how I can do all this walking and not lose weight!!!???  So the Devil???

Well if you haven't guessed it yet, I found another gem in the hummingbird world at Ash Canyon!  The name is Lucifer.  Or another name for Satan.  If this is what Satan looks like, I may be tempted to join in on the fun:)  But come to find out....it has nothing to do with the Red Guy at all.

In Latin, lucifer means "light-bearing" and was applied in Old English to the morning star. Thus, when William Swainson named the Lucifer Hummingbird in 1827 he might have been thinking of the luminous glow of its colors. The male Lucifer's outer tail feathers are hard and narrow, and hum loudly during aerial displays. He performs a zigzagging dance to attract females and repel other males.

One of the distinguishing features of this hummer is the decurved (downward-curving) bill.  Reminds me of a Depeche Mode video or a distant relative the Ibis:)  Another new word for hummer fans to add to their must know lists....gorget, swording, and decurved:)

On this particular day, the hummingbirds were out in high numbers meaning they were EVERYWHERE!!!  Not just the Lucifer but lots of other species. August and September are the high months for hummers to migrate through Arizona to get to Mexico and Central America for winter.

When I saw this guy, I nearly flipped.  I wasn't expecting him as I was looking for the Rufous.  So as you can imagine....it was quite the treat:)

Many times I'll go out on the Rare Bird Alert site for New Mexico and Arizona to help me zone in on the hot areas for birds and then just go.  In fact, I went this day again looking for the Starthroat and ended up with most excellent finds:)  But will I ever find the Starthroat??!!

By the end of this challenge, I feel like I will be able to write a paper on these birds.  It has been a wonderful adventure into a world of exciting and colorful birds. Birding with hummers isn't difficult at all and the people who bird for hummers are always interesting.  The most hiking I have done for a hummingbird mission was in Montosa Canyon for that elusive Plain Capped Starthroat:)

Agave blooms on the hills and in the canyons are the preferred foods for most hummers like the Lucifer.  Plus there is a plentiful collection of bugs this time of year for them to do their "hawking". 

There will be more on the Chuparosa searches.  I'm not done yet:)  Remember I have written these posts back in August and I'm at the high point of hummer season:)  A special "thank you" to Mary Jo for the telephone conversations and info about these hummingbirds.  More tomorrow....