Mirage

Hey everyone!
I'm back from an amazing 3 day weekend. I'll be catching up with blogs again this week.  I have a lot of work from the field stuff ahead and can't wait to share with you all some incredible discoveries.  But for now, I leave you with the latest with my birding buddy Kathie! And to be honest, she's not just a birding buddy anymore.  She's my buddy.  Period. So on with today's outing a little over week ago! Sometimes you have to stare and wonder.  How in the world did this bird end up in the middle of the desert?

Red Tail Hawk

But be quick!  A magical window for bird spotting happens at the briefest moments of dawn.....when first light and birds meet together to begin the new day.

Western Meadowlark

And if you don't get up, you can sometimes miss some of the most amazing things around you. Today's post was an early morning at 5 AM.  Kathie and I motivate each other to go searching for.....whatever.

And if you think you've figured out the desert, try not to.

 So many surprises are hidden and you have to be ready to get it all on camera....

.....because you won't get another chance to film Lark Buntings on a fence line.  They'll be in the bushes hiding for the rest of the day!

Lark Buntings

Sometimes the human eye wonders if it is being tricked.  But alas, in the quietest of experiences, one can capture the majesty of Mother Nature. And then like a thirsty desert survivor looking for water, a mirage appears and he wonders if he is seeing things correctly......

Great Egret

Ocean birds in the desert!!!  Two American White Pelicans with Double Crested Cormorants!

As they fly, an excitement happens and I forget that I'm bouncing on the car while capturing the birds in flight.  It takes Kathie to break me from my reverie to keep still so that we both can get the shots:)  Sometimes I get so caught up in the moment that I lose track of my surroundings.

But as this Pelican suggests, it's time to go.  And at the end of an hour, the birds have also taken the hint and gone into hiding from the nasty heat of the desert.  And like that dehydrated human in the desert heading towards the "water", it all disappears!

More tomorrow!!

1000

Greetings all,
Today's post is "blog-centric" and it's about the blogging experience and some things I'm noticing after 2 and half years of blogging.  And it's an important landmark.

Red Tailed Hawk looking Gray in the sunlight

Today celebrates Las Aventuras' 1000th post.  I can't believe I've hit this mark.  Since its 2010 debut, Las Aventuras has been an incredible journey.  At 1000, I look at old posts and think....really?  My first year was a lot of learning (as it is for everyone). Most of the work was documentation and pics taken from the internet during those first couple months.  Lame! It wasn't an overnight thing but something I was definitely passionate about. And like anything, the more I learn, the better I get with my work.  For me it's chronicling the El Presidio Gardens, wildlife, photography and travel.  But I'll admit it's turned a little "birdy" lately:)  And that's okay.  That's where I'm at right now.  The weather has been cooling and so I'll be out in the garden more getting plants in place etc.  I have hesitated to put anything in on our courtyard yet because we are waiting on the fountain to get set up.  And we're very close!

On this 1000th post, I am feeling exhausted and daily updates will be a thing of the past starting January.  I had planned on doing that this year until I began to journal other works.  This blog attracts a variety of searches.  The top ten ALL TIME posts are:

Cooper's Hawk

1. The Wall-It's about Meth addiction in my neighborhood and problems with the cement borders along the El Presidio Gardens
2. Royal Purple Smoke Tree-A popular plant world wide and it's beautiful in the garden here at El Presidio
3. Yosemite National Park-Not my greatest shots and with a terrible camera at the time.
4. Xochimilco, Mexico City-A date gone wrong during my youth.  Met up with someone in Mexico City at this place. I figured that if the date went wrong, I'd at least learn about a new Mexico City landmark. Turns out I made a good decision:)
5. The Gorilla-One of the places on my bucket list. It's at Virunga National Park and about the last of the wild Western Gorillas.  The pictures are not my own but it is a fascinating look at this park around a volcano that I hope to visit one day.  I have lots of goals:) 
6. Wisteria-beautiful plant but doesn't grow well here in Tucson.  If you live in the Old Pueblo, I wouldn't use it.  I've seen it in the landscape but it doesn't "go to town" like say places in California, etc. 
7. Spider Plants-that house plant is still strong and highly favored by people worldwide.
8. Year of the Solar System-written from my notes at a NASA lecture, this post is SUPER long.
9. What's a Rain Chain?  One of my first posts about the exploration of garden art during my docent training at the Tucson Botanical Gardens.
10. Birds Beware-about my ignorance and putting spikes on the wall to keep the meth addicts from jumping into the El Presidio Gardens by putting Pigeon spikes up around the concrete walls.  Although it hasn't left my mind entirely, I hestitate because I don't want to harm the wildlife at our place.  But since that write Meth crossing has gone way down due to a Cacti garden barrier going up and high police patrols.

An unintended affect from my work on this blog has been also good for "business". Or from people wanting to use my photography for business or to have in their homes.  Currently I have work that will be published by a university on UNESCO sites in January regarding Coiba island.  Another photo right now is being reviewed for possible use at a local Tucson business.  All of this has made me research the "photography" business more.  All in all, this blog has been about research on everything. And it's all a work of love.

Cactus Wren

The camera work is getting trickier as I am wanting to do more with my photography. I currently use the Canon Rebel.  I have 3 lens that I primarily use.  The 300 mm is my favorite:)  I'd like to thank Rosemary for the Beautiful Blogger Award.  Check out her blog Tales From My Garden. She's a poetic soul with incredible shots of flowers, wildlife and more! Thank you Rosemary.

Juvenile White Crowned Sparrow

7 things about myself?

1.  Love fantasy and sci fi stuff....the inspiration behind this blog really:)

2.  Travel is exciting and it inspires me whether it's here in Southern Arizona or in far away France.  This year I'd like to go to Mexico City, Florida and Montana with a summer trip to Ecuador or Argentina.

3. I do like cats a lot.  When it gets crazy with those teenager folks, I imagine my cats on the couch with me reading a good book.  In fact, I even made a corner in the classroom full of cats.  It's bizarre, weird and funny all at the same time.  My room is an eclectic mix of Spanish art, culture, wildlife, cats, elves, Walter Mercado, and papers that need grading. It's the most comfortable room on campus and I'm proud of the fact that kids enjoy coming to my classroom and hang out. And a place for UA students to train and learn the way of Spanish teaching:)  Passing the torch on.....

4. I like gardening when it's not hot and when home owners don't throw cig butts or trash on the ground.  I also don't like acorn season.  That's when thousands and thousands of Live Oak acorns fall onto our courtyard every year....like now:)

5. I order taco salad everywhere I go. 

6. Love my kindle.  If I'm not writing, exploring places with my camera, I'm reading....something.  Current read  The Animal Dialogues by Craig Childs was recommended by Kathy of FKH Photo Journal. PS THANK YOU!!!  It's a great read.

7.  I would love to have my own personal Mexican Courtyard.

This adventure is just beginning or maybe it has been going on for quite some time now.....but I'm not ready to sit back on my couch and watch TV yet.  There are places that call my name and I'll be there with my camera and notepad to write it all down.  I hope you enjoy the journeys wherever they may be.  You don't have to go far to discover new things.    More tomorrow.....

A Rohrerbot Production 2012

The Dark Side

Yellow Headed Blackbirds

Just how many black birds are out there??!!!!  Well on this day with Kathie, we'd discover every type of black bird and then some at Lakeside Park!!!!  There were some incredible surprises in the mix as well....rarities.  I love my birding buddy.  She's not only a cool person, but I now miss her when I'm birding alone.  Birding anytime is great but it's better when we work together as today would prove.

Great Tailed Grackles

And of course there were those that stood out from the "black feathers" only club.  But Kathie's careful eye discovered Cowbirds!!!  She was in awe and when it's something big, she says things like, "Oh my gosh Chris.  Oh my gosh! That's a...."  And we both get excited over the discovery.  

Wigeon

First, she documents and by the time she gets that camera ready, they've taken off on her. Birds are fast so I usually snap the shot and ID later.

Mallards landing

Now to be honest, blackbirds or sparrows scare me and can be difficult to ID. Or maybe it's just in my mind.  But they are birds and they are cool.  I just don't know why I feel that way because the blackbirds are incredibly interesting behavior wise.

American Coots

But inevitably, my eye is attracted to the raptor sitting in the tree.  I'm fascinated by them. Or how the above Coots gathered in a big group to have breakfast.

Red Tailed Hawk

But something captured both Kathie and my eyes.  Yellow.  WTH?!  There were two yellow headed blackbirds on the grass!  If you've ever tried taking shots of these birds, you know how difficult it is to get them on camera as they like to hang out in the reeds around water areas.  But here out in the open, there were TWO Yellow Headed Blackbirds.  And these birds do grab my attention and it was one of the many personal thrills for this day. The Vermilion Flycatchers and Herons being the other exciting finds...

But this sequence here of shennagins really got me excited and was thrilling to get on the camera.

Like hummingbirds, there was a pecking order and someone crossed the line......it was the female Grackle.

What a ^%&#!  She had to get her bill into the fold but thankfully the two young ones stood their ground......until 2 Kestrels presented themselves up in the airwaves and then all hell broke loose.  Everyone and their mother goose got up and flew the coup!

Well except for this cute adorable little White Crowned Sparrow.  They're back!

White Crowned Sparrow

The shot below of the Cowbirds REALLY got Kathie jumping up and down.  Luckily I was able to capture the two together.  It's important to note that they are two completely different Cowbirds hanging out on the same branch.   The trees were full of Brewer's, Grackles, etc etc.  And these two were cleverly disguised in the mix. And while the Bronzed Cowbird wasn't a lifer for me, the Brown Headed Cowbird was.  It was an unusual find in Tucson.  I saw my first Cowbird in Madera Canyon.

Male Bronzed Cowbird and a Brown Headed Cowbird

Kathie told me that this would happen.  She said that many times there are different birds hiding in the mix.  But my eyes were pulled to the Vermilion Flycatchers, Egrets, Herons, Raptors, Hummingbirds, etc etc.

And lately the Warblers have grabbed my full attention.  Coming up, I'll present several from my Portal visit. It was a fun day, as always, with Kathie.  But most importantly, I learned the very important lesson of looking closer.  Not everything is as it appears.  And then I joined the Dark Side of the force:) And it's appropriate.  Kathie would be the Emperor and I would play her henchman Darth Vader.  That Yellow Rumped Warbler never had a chance:)  More tomorrow.....

Yellow Rumped Warbler

Greaterville Road

Hot Kingbird activity on this road!!

Greaterville Road.  Kathie told me about a magical road towards Sonoita where birds were numerous and plentiful.  Within a short stretch of road, we encountered dozens of different birds.  And it was pretty exciting.

Kestrel love!

We got up early and left for our trip to the Empire Ranch.  But we stopped along Greaterville Road before reaching Cienagas.  While it was early morning, there was a definite excitement at what we would find.  And what a way to get our morning started!

Kathie is great about the numbers and counting how many birds are in the area.  While for myself, I love using the camera to capture all the incredible finds in the air.  I really love motion in my shots.

American Kestrel

I don't know why, but I thought of TexWisGirl when I took this shot:)  There was a fence, some stars, and colorful tractor in the background.  And the reason I saw this?  A bird was on it:)

But I noticed a Red Tail Hawk in what appears to be an Oak Tree.

Red Tail Hawk

And then the Blue Grosbeak!!!  So many of them and so difficult to get on camera.  They love sticking to the grass and are very shy around people:)

Blue Grosbeak

In fact, the best bird spotting was on fence and telephone lines.

Vesper Sparrow

We saw lots of interesting and unusual swallows.  Two would be lifers like this bird below.

Northern Rough Winged Swallow

And along the road, a lot of conversation happened about ID'ing kingbirds.  I think I have the Cassin's down pretty well now.  There were at least 3 types flying around and there were lots everywhere!

Cassin's Kingbird

White chin=Cassin's Kingbird.  Beautiful birds!

We spent a long time on the road not aware of how much time passed.  That's great birding:)

Eventually we realized we had to get going to Empire Ranch and Cienagas before it got too hot.

Now Greaterville goes on for a long while......and we only touched a small 2 mile distance on the road.  It was incredible.

Turkey Vulture

But we'd have more finds as we continued on......

More tomorrow.....

Looking Back-Birds Of Prey

I began this year. The beginning of my real wildlife photography would start.  I would learn to track flight, manual focus on the spot, and train my eye and hand to be quick.

Harris Hawks

Looking back?  My knowledge of birds is stronger.  The wildlife photography has improved.

I have yet to spot so many more birds, but my investigations began with Birds of Prey.  

They were larger and easier to spot in the wild.

Red Tail Hawk

Some were found right in my own backyard!  Like these two hawks. 

Cooper's Hawk

 Some would be found accidentally like these owlets below. 

Or this Turkey Vulture...

.......and in more exotic locations, birds like this Northern Harrier would fly over my head and catch my eye.

The assassin known as the Loggerhead Shrike would sit on a branch waiting for its prey.

My ears could not deny me my first discovery of this pair of Great Horned Owls.
 

...or the camouflage of this Western Screech Owl.

Slowly, I add to my birding lists and will continue to do so until I find them all:)   And that may take me awhile.

The Gray Hawk is quite stunning around Riparian areas.

Or the mystical Ferruginous Hawk.....

More importantly.  Everytime I investigate a new bird, I learn about the habitat, what they eat and how they sound......

.....and that continues to add to my knowledge base.

And that in itself is the living classroom....the one we find surrounding us.

And then there are the exotic places that I can only glimpse at faires.  Birds that are found elsewhere around the world.....the Birds of Prey that exist in Europe or South America.  And I yearn to find them in their natural habitat.  I've been exposed to a broader picture of the bird world.

Eagle Owls with massive wingspans, deadly buzzards from Africa......

....or South America.....

.....make my mind wander.  What more is out there?  Where could I find them?

And thanks to these beautiful birds, my hunger only grows to find more at each Rare Bird Alert that pops up on my screen.  Location.  GPS tracking coordinates.  It's all exciting stuff.  More to come.....