Seeds of Promise

Northern Beardless Tyrannulet

Reconnecting with birds already seen 10 times over, he patiently waits. Birds are amazing and he spies them easily now knowing exactly where they can all be seen. At least in Arizona. 

However, this explorer is at times impatient.  He knows he cannot sit at home and wait.  He must continue observing the same birds over and over again until they are ingrained into his mind.  This makes him a better birder.  A stronger birder. 

He observes with friends to keep it fresh. For some, it's their first time seeing many of these amazing creatures.  And it feels good. The educator within him comes out and it feels natural.   

He abides his time waiting for the seeds of promise.  Each night is a study session.  Tropical birds, habitats and places unknown.  These things swirl about in his dreams.  Something new.  Something exciting. 

Eastern Meadowlark(Lillian's Subspecies)

A life's journey is ahead.  Each year, he focuses on areas around Central America, Mexico and of course, the rest of North America. 

Plumbeous Vireo

Ticking and listing away, he discovers that there are many difficult challenges ahead.

Barn Swallow

Quite honestly, it's not about the tick or the check for him.  All birds are amazing.  Even the everyday kinds. But challenges are fun and he's all about pushing the envelope.  After birding the same areas over and over again, the birder is ready for a delicious challenge.

Marla imagining life at Empire Ranch

For now, this birder must strengthen his skills if he's going to succeed. When the time comes to discover a new species, he must be prepared! It's like practicing for a marathon or preparing for a food competition.  Soon his skills will be tested.  {end of narrative}

Texan Crescent (Anathassa texana)

Always strange to write in the 3rd person voice but I was feeling creative.  Lately, I have been anxious about a great many things.  One of those things happens to be a major trip that is scheduled for this summer.  I'm going to be surrounded by a wonderful team of birders. I am excited about the trek with my birding bud, but I am working on getting my reflexes ready with the camera. I also know this is going to be mentally exhausting. Rain forest birds are fast and usually in the shadows before one can get a shot of them.  Not good for photography! This is an opportunity to work with an amazing crew and possibly add on 200 new life birds!  So what's the concern? Excellent birders=quick spotting and onto the next bird.  I'm a "stop-and-watch-the-bird-for-awhile" kinda guy.  So I don't know what to expect. I can keep up with the group but I've never done this before.  On my treks, I usually stay one week in one area to study the habitat and surrounding areas both day and night.  My results are usually top notch.  This time around it's a different habitat for each day!! Now that's exciting but also overwhelming. In some cases from those evening studies, it's a one shot thing which doesn't leave much room for screwing up:) For now, I'm practicing practicing practicing for the weeks ahead!

Sonoita Creek

Today's post features photos from the Empire Ranch in the Cienagas Grasslands near Sonoita and the Patagonia-Sonoita Creek Preserve in Patagonia, Arizona. A special thank you goes out to Doug Taron(entomology) and Karina Hilliard(herpes)for the butterfly and last post's lizard ID. Also featured in this week's post is my partner-in-crime from work.

We had a fun day observing Gray Hawks in flight. Lots of gray birds in this post:) Until next time.....

Stand Perfectly Still

Muriel and Gordon explore the trees and bushes at Patagonia-Sonoita Creek Preserve for the rare Rufous-backed Robin

A slight rustle.  That nearly muted call from within the grasses or reeds. Your cloaked disguise makes you vanish from within. 

Several Mule Deer hang out near Huachuca Canyon

A speck upon the landscape. A compact little operative working the tree.  

Look carefully at the photo.  Warblers are hard!  Here is the rare-for-Arizona Yellow-throated Warbler currently hanging out at the city park of Patagonia.  I reported on this guy two weeks ago without a picture.  This time I knew where he was hiding and got the pic:)

If I stand still, I might see you better.  

If I don't move, you may stay longer.  

Vesper Sparrow at the Sonoita grasslands

If I am patient, I will find you hiding. 

Chestnut-collared Longspur

If I don't frighten you, perhaps you'll stay longer. 

Pronghorn in the grasslands.  Yes, the vistas are like paintings.  That's why I love the photography bit around these parts

 For you are what brings me to these parts of the world.  

A coyote

 You are why I wake up so early in the morning. You give me a reason to start my day with a smile.

We flush several female Chestnut-collared Longspurs from the grasses

And why I'll continue to wake up....oh-so-early!

The Gadwall are speechless with this raccoon passing them by.  Definitely not a duck.  At Sweetwater Wetlands in Tucson

Just so I can see you swim across the pond or....

Busted:)

.....stare back at me.  I am your friend.  I will do no harm. I will keep my distance.

Ruddy Duck at Peña Blanca Lake

And I promise to stand perfectly still so that you can go about your business.  And I promise that I'll always be a responsible wildlife photographer.

Canyon Wren 

I'd like to thank Muriel and Gordon for a fun day out for the first half of this blog.  It's always a pleasure working as part of the team when we are out searching for rare birds. The second half of this blog was done alone just quietly standing in one spot along the path.  My best work usually happens just sitting on a log or bench being patient.  It's not easy:)  

I remember sitting in the front row as one of those crazy fans.  I took this pic at the Phoenix Comicon back in 2011. 

I'd like to dedicate this blog post to a childhood hero of mine.  Star Trek inspires me to this day and Leonard Nimoy was like an extended part of my family for most of my teenage years.  Even as an adult, this guy can be seen in my classroom on a poster as the infamous Mr. Spock.  

I finally meet him in person!

I was fortunate to meet this amazing actor and man back in 2011.  You are and always will be my friend.  Thank you for helping me through those tough years as a kid.  Star Trek changed my life for the better. 

Relentless Heat and Humidity

The Nuthatch

At the time of this write, the rains were plentiful and providing much needed water to our desert and canyons. Things are so green around here.

And of course with it comes all of the bugs and humidity which make hiking really bad.

Today's photos were taken near Patagonia on an afternoon hike.  I brought water with me but almost suffered heat exhaustion.  I was with a friend and I tried taking pictures but my eyesight was getting blurry.

There were grasshoppers galore.....and the chiggers.  In fact, the pain I suffered on this day went a little too far.  We made it back after almost collapsing. When I took my shoes and socks off, I discovered my feet had been severely attacked by hundreds of chigger bites.  This was worse than Panama during our turtle project along the Caribbean beach.

Brachystola magna
Plains lubber

Let's just say that I am glad to be done with this rainy, hot and humid weather.  It's time for gardening and cooler temps again. 

The Sky Is A Flutter

Variegated Fritillary

In 2008 on the Amazon river, we saw many butterflies puddling along the clay shores.  Fast forward to the future and Southern Arizona during the summer of 2012 and we saw the same exact thing happening here on our roads.  There were so many magical butterflies around us.  This truly has been the year of the butterfly.

I write this post on Saturday after the weekend I took these pictures and wish I could have filmed the activity.  My friend Jen and I pulled the car over and took a closer look......there were literally hundreds of them puddling along the road. Big ones, small ones, blue ones, orange ones......

Sulphur butterflies graced the skies but so did many many others.   If you look around the yellow ones closer, you'll see several other kinds of flutters.

While our exotic Butterfly Magic house is about to open on the first of October, I'd like to recommend Mother Nature's show going on right now.  It's free and won't cost you a penny.  These shots were taken on the Patagonia Sonoita trail.

And where there are butterflies and moths, you'll find loads of caterpillars of all kinds. This Wooly Bear was all over the place on our hikes.  We had to be careful not to step on them.

And now for the good pics.  Incoming!!!!  If you look closely at the shot, you'll notice a fight for the flower.  Do you see the little beetles on the flower? 

Variegated Fritillary

The sky was very very active.  Everywhere you turned we found butterflies and much like the hummingbirds, it was hard to figure out where to point the camera.  These images capture the beauty, but what you don't see or feel during this shoot are the chiggers biting me up and down my legs.  It has been a super wet summer here and life is very active.

In fact on this early morning while I write this post, I'm debating whether or not I should just let myself heal more.  The issue? My other half actually has the day off today.  This may be a day for the Phoenix Aquarium as the rain has caused severe flooding alerts.  Last night a wash filled too quickly and carried a car off.  The husband survived with a broked pelvis as he hung on for life for hours while his wife didn't make it out of the car in time.  Sadly, she was carried away with her vehicle where she drowned. That was here in Tucson by Avra Valley road.  And in Phoenix a technician was caught in the middle of a raging wash.  He went to the top of his heavy utility vehicle and was stranded for hours until he was finally rescued.

So this rain has been serious business with Flood Advisories throughout much of the weekend and into the next couple of days.  It's cloudy outside.  I fed the birds.  Need to do pruning but the mosquitoes are out of this world.  But on this trip last weekend, after our hike here, we went wine tasting in Sonoita.  Not a word Gaelyn:) Does wine count as a snack?:) And I bought a bottle of wine with my friend Jen.  We think we may actually read and crack that bottle open today and just chill instead of run around the grasslands and "desert" we live in today.  But the PROBLEM???  With massive weather systems like this.....

......comes random butterfly making and they sure do like it because it was happening all over.  We have had Giant Swallowtails all over our property laying eggs right now.  The butterflies live for about 2 weeks and then die.  I found one dead on the courtyard and felt really sad because we had been watching this one lay eggs all over my kumquats and tangerine bushes.  It was like Charlotte's Web. Okay but I just got off topic....back to the rainy weather.....

Big storms from the south in Mexico bring cool shorebirds to our desert and today I may end up going to the Sweetlands looking for that Sabine Gull and other tropical birds.  This year in Arizona we've seen the Purple Gallinule and Roseate Bill!!!  Such beautiful rarities from places like Florida and other tropical nations.

My point is, if I even have one, that as much as I'd like to sit on my duff and do nothing, there is so much out there right now to be seen that if I did sit here all day, I'd be missing out and feel guilty because this isn't going to last forever as it is like a treasure grove of discoveries.  How's that for a run on sentence?

The desert is dangerous, exciting and full of wonder......and full of bugs right now.  This is the high time to watch butterflies here.  We have so many in Southern Arizona.  So if you come to visit during September, remember your bug spray and get ready for some incredible finds. 

Birding Around The Patagonia Area

Western Screech Owl

Another owl and another amazing hike.  This time in the Patagonia area!  Surprisingly I had never been.  It was a bright day.  I did more hiking than taking pics, but it was a fun day with a lot to see!

Patagonia Lake

Patagonia lake costs 10 bucks per vehicle with 4 people. It's a really nice park full of camping, swimming, trails, and boating.  In fact, you'll find a little bit of everyone here. This park does cater to the birding crowd and has several of the best trails to help discover our feathered and furry friends.  Meanwhile the RV enthusiasts, swimmers, and campers will all stick together in their own areas.  Patagonia is one of the most diverse areas for birds and humans using the park for various recreational services.

However before I went to the actual lake, I stopped at a birder's haven....the Sonoita-Patagonia Preserve.  Bring 5 bucks cash with you as they don't take debit cards.  No machines.  Today I met several birders on this trail that I WON'T use for role models.  Oh goodness.  Where do I start?  Not typical of any birder I've met so far, these "birders" were loud and obnoxious.  One of them claimed to be a Professor of birding somewhere in the south of the US, but I don't even know how that was possible!!!??  There was a group of Javelina in the reeds and one of the women, with her thick Southern drawl, screamed, "LOOK!!  THERE ARE THOSE JAVELINAS!"  Unfortuneatly they did not attack but instead fled the scene:) If I had been the Javelina, I would have done the same thing.

This Western Screech Owl is very cool. And well hidden in the trees.  I thought I would spot more, but my neck gave out.  I tried to hang with the Southern birders for awhile but they were nuts.  Loud.  Obnoxious.  Shouting.  I hope the poor owl didn't die of a heart attack from the way they were climbing all over the base of the tree!  At one point, "the Professor" showed me his pics and wanted to see mine for comparison.  You know that contest...."Whose is better? Bigger?" etc.....ohhhhh some people.  While they were scrambling to set up their equipment to get a better shot, I took the opportunity to fade into the background and escape.  And was I glad I did....

A much quieter path lay before me.  And I kept my eyes open for movement....anywhere and everywhere.  It can be very exhausting.  I think I hiked about 6 hours today!! The path was shaded and a birder's paradise.

There was plenty of movement in the branches and I honestly was a bit lazy with my camera.  I forgot to take them because it was such a beautiful day and a wonderful hike on some fantastically maintained trails.  Birders and nature lovers will enjoy the walks.

As I walked past a birder, he whispers, "Deer to your left."  And there they were.  Silently I watched them watching me out of the corner of their eyes.

I smile to myself.  Even the simplest of things like spotting a deer makes me happy.   I sat for a few moments and watched as she grazed incognito.

At the end of the Railroad Trail, I reached the creek where I sat for a few moments to take it all in......

Mourning Cloak Butterfly

Fluttering about me was this Mourning Cloak Butterfly that captivated me with its beautiful shades of brown. 

Some of the oldest Fremont Cottonwood trees are found here.  It's also home to several endangered fish, bird, and insects.  Bring binoculars and a good pair of hiking shoes.

The American Robin

During this day, birders searched high and low for the Rufous Backed Robin.  I couldn't find them, but I did see plenty of American Robins.

And how about some Western Bluebirds?  Here are the best shots I could get of these lovely birds. 

And the  birders were goo goo gaga over the Phoebe bird.  Seriously, everytime I encounter a birder in the woods they are so excited!  I see Phoebes everywhere I go.  So I took several shots to prove it.  It's a cool little bird but I don't understand why they're so cool.  Maybe they don't have these little guys back home?  In fact, when I hear Phoebe....this is who I think about.....

Not my own pic...obviously.  But the one below is.  Again many of my birder friends may not find that funny.  This is Phoebe from the TV series Friends.  It just shows you the kind of birder I am:) The odd duck.  But here's the Phoebe that they're talking about:)

If you are interested in more info on the Patagonia Sonoita Creek Preserve, click here.

Hope you enjoyed my little trek.  More tomorrow.....