"You Just Missed It!"

Pied Bill Grebe with exuvia (dragonfly larvae)for the baby chicks.  Thanks to Ragged Robin! for the ID

"You just missed it!", exclaims an excited birder in the muggy and super moist environment.  I think to myself, "Damn you Mr. Yellow Bill Cuckoo. Damn you Green Heron."  Like every birder with a report, you run off to find those little gems hiding in the reeds, tree branches, or rocks.

Today I went to find the Green Heron, the Pied Billed Grebe, and the Yellow Bill Cuckoo.  I found one of them:)

Mourning Dove

Which isn't bad at all.  But when you consider, "You just missed it!"  Well that can make it frustrating:)  It was so muggy.  We were all wiping our brows from the moisture dripping off our faces.  I was a mess.  And it was only 7 AM!!!  No joke about our desert.  It's a hot one here.  Afternoon is off limits and the mornings are sometimes barely acceptable:)   From sun up +2 hours, you have to bird.  So that means you have to get up early in the morning.  No shower for me until I get back.

Gila Woodpecker

But I am always rewarded with unique views of birds.  I did find the cormorants.  They flew off later and I thought the below shot was nice.

Neotropic Cormorants

Yellow Billed Cuckoo?  No.  A Yellow Headed Blackbird. Still a nice find:)

Yellow Headed Blackbird(female)

Oh and this Moorhen was needing a little photo attention.  "Look at me!  Look at me!"  It's still hard to believe, for me, that this bird is related to the Purple Gallinule.

I snapped a shot of this bird last year in Panama.  There are some similarities.

And dragonflies.  No matter how much I try to resist taking their pictures, I can't help but snap one more shot.

The good news is that I did find the parent Grebe with some food for the little ones.  They were hiding in the reeds and it was fun watching the parents get the food.  And on top of that, I met another really nice birder who shared her observations on this day.  I was in a chatty mood.  Until next time...:)

Pied Billed Grebe

The Mesopotamian Marshlands

Today's post is another fascinating tidbit of research I've found through my reads.  Of course all of this relates to my wetlands theme this past summer.  Just when I think I've heard it all, I discover more.....and then I'll spend hours reading and researching interesting events happening around our world.  My last work was on the extinct Ivory Bill Woodpecker and Great Auk and of course, the cloning of extinct animals.  These will be ongoing works as long as I blog.  Today's post is on the near extinction of the Marsh Arabs and the immese wetlands that were once found in the country of Iraq.  

From 2000-2009

Maybe many of you already knew this(I'm always a few steps behind everyone else:), but Iraq is more than just desert.  Americans, and this world, have seen the pictures and film coming out of this country.  And then I had Netflix and watched a special known as "Braving Iraq."  It was an eye opener for me and changed how I view Iraq today.  If you haven't heard this story, just wait.  You'll be shocked.  An ancient culture lived in marshlands along the Iraq and Iran border.  These marshlands were immense and larger than the Everglades of the US but a bit smaller than the Pantanal of Brazil.  

Taken in the 1980's. A vast expanse of homes made of reeds.

Once known as the Garden of Eden, Saddam silenced the wildlife and peoples of this area.  In 1991, he began to drain the waters fed by the Tigris and Euphrates river.  An ancient culture was destroyed, people were displaced, and the wetlands that fed millions of birds were also destroyed.  A desert was created and by the turn of the century, the wetlands had lost the battle.  A tiny area was all that was left of this once great region.  By 2001, it was said that the wetlands faced an inevitable extinction.  Then the Iraq war happened.

The above image is quite different from the one most Americans have of Iraq.  It shows a greener country. Once known as the Fertile Crescent of the world, this half-moon shaped chunk of the Middle East was the birthplace of human civilization. Today, we associate the area with endless deserts, oil and improvised explosive devices.  Then the war began.  And the Marsh Arabs began to destroy the canals funneling the water back into the extremely dry lands.  It was ineffective and did more damage in the long run restoring this great area.  Then the United Nations stepped in and declared that the Garden of Eden would be restored once more and it would become a World Heritage Site.  Saddam would be caught, tried, and hung for his crimes against humanity.  And the wetlands would return but only with the help of courageous people who braved the years of the war for a better Iraq later. The Iraqi wetlands once covered tens of thousands of square miles that were home to snakes, lizards, frogs, fish, water buffalo, gazelles, jerboa, and endemic birds.

Look at the map above.  All of it was green and full of life.  Today the marshlands are growing larger again and expanding into their once fertile areas.  Even after years of desertification, plants still found a way to grow back and thrive once more.  The Marsh Arabs, many who were just children when the wetlands were drained, are returning home once more.  Many of of their parents would never see their homes again and die believing that the wetlands could never be restored.  But the children remembered.

When U.S. forces invaded in 2003, only some 400 square miles of marsh remained. Once Hussein’s regime was brought down, locals began destroying the dams that held water back and allowed the wetlands to flood again. Today, more than half the original wetlands have been restored, and thousands of birds and fish, as well as the Marsh Arabs, have returned to the land.  Today the area faces issues of drought and dams being built in Turkey and Syria.  The water isn't near the levels it used to be but the area now continues to grow and improve.  And while recovery may take some time, it's nice to know that the endangered wildlife has a chance to expand again into the larger areas.  If you have Netflix, type in Braving Iraq.  It has a birder's take on the special but it was filmed during the war and was an eye opener for me. Another addition to my list of places to visit in the future. More tomorrow....

Los Perros Del Camino

What???!!!  Dogs???  On your blog????  Really???  Okay okay...let me explain myself.  It's really a double bonus post with cute dogs.  For the Park Rangers out there:), I wanted to show you Mt. Lemmon 10 years later.  Look at all the growth around the dead trees in the pic below. Fire is a good thing when people, structures, and animals aren't hurt. Yeah, it's pretty exciting:) And second, this is for my hiker friends:)  Hiking with dogs that is.  And I have a special surprise on the bottom of this post from last night:)

Hikes are great.  On this particular morning, a dear friend of mine took the puppies for a walk.  We were up early before the tourists hit the trails at around 6 AM.  I realized a couple things.  Hiking with dogs is a workout:)  There is no stopping.  And the birder in me had to be put aside to keep up with these active pooches.  My camera was slung over my shoulder and I shot pics whenever I could:)

And at the end of it all, humans and dogs alike have gotten a good workout.  But after we came back to the cabin, I grabbed my bird lens and took off birding alone:)  I am a cat person.  We have 5 of the feline variety:)  But I love all animals and these dogs are like family:)  When the owners are out, we dogsit for the crew.  My favorite thing about them?  Well there are 5 of these guys as well:)  In the morning, I'll get them up for their bathroom routines and in a pack mentality, they bound out from their cage and attack my other half(who is sleeping) and give lots of sloppy kisses.  I have a good evil laugh:) 

The trails are open on Mt. Lemmon.  It had been a year since I last visited.  Within one year, a trail that was wide open has now grown in with vegetation.  It was exciting to see. There were lots of wonderful birds and animals in the area. And of course the hikes are brilliant.  Afterwards, stop at several of the local eateries for a nice breakfast or lunch.  I'll just say this.  It was great getting out of the desert heat and hiking once again. If you love dogs, this may be the last time you see them on this blog:)  Of course, wolves and coyotes can and may show up down the road.  I see coyotes often but it's always on my way to work and I never have the stupid camera!! And speaking of work, I begin today(which is good...I need the money).  It also signifies a new fiscal year and several interesting and exotic trips this year.  Anyhow, enjoy your day wherever you are.  And the surprise?

Last night was a wonderful thunderstorm event full of dangerous lightning, rain, and power outages.  Thank you Gaelyn for your tips on getting that lightning shot.  This isn't my best work, but it signifies the beginning of ideas.  It's a lot harder than it looks and don't worry....I did it safely and that's why it's hard to do:) And I'm not sure dogs or lighting go well together. If you live with a dog, you know what I mean:) More tomorrow....

Captain Jack Sparrow and Friends

Here are some observations about birdfeeders from our Tucson gardens.  I stopped putting birdseed out at night since someone thought it was funny to make a seed trail to one of the units at El Presidio.  I know I try to go for fantasy in the garden but in reality, we are not Hansel and Grettel.  So at some point in the morning, I go out and put the food in their feeders. 

A call is made by one bird.  Today it was Captain Jack Sparrow.  Notice the tail and you'll understand why I call him that name.  There aren't any birds around at all and the minute I pour the seed into the feeders, one singular call is made.

In the hot humid temps, one bird appears.  Then another. And another......until the entire area is full of life and activity.

My birdfeeder visits attract Verdins, Anna's Hummingbird(crossing my fingers for that random Rufous visit), House Sparrows, House Finches, Pigeons, Mourning Doves, Curve Billed Thrashers and Cardinals.

I tried a new setting on the camera to see how the images would turn out in the bright sun.  And I kind of like the darker images.

Currently, there are a lot of juvenile birds out there and as always, it's fun to watch them learn from their parents. 

This Mourning Dove was quite cute sitting waiting patiently for several of the other birds to move out.  So I am hopeful that I'll see a Rufous Hummingbird or some Incan Doves.....or perhaps a Gambel's Quail.  More tomorrow....

Hoodlums

I've written before about my neighborhood.  There are times of great peace and happiness and then there are extreme moments of anger.  I watch over the El Presidio gardens.  I care for them.  Yet there are people who would damage the plants or rip out birdseed feeders and spill them onto the ground. Can you believe that someone took our hummingbird feeder and smashed it onto the ground? 

Cloudy with a good chance for arrest

Needless to say, anytime we have new homeowners/renters move into this 16 unit condo, we have what I like to call "a transition" period.  The homeowners learn how destructive their friends can be. And sometimes it's not the homeowners BUT street riffraff! We've had a combo of issues.  The worst offenders are the ones who smoke and throw their cigarrette butts on the ground.  And then there is the pot smoking!  Lately, we've had a guy cut across our gated community and cut into the children's academy on the other side of the fence.  I went over to the daycare and we both filed a report with the Miramonte police force. (Yes, our neighborhood has its own squad:) It's definitely a work in progress, but when I drive up to our place, I feel a great sense of pride as do many people.  There is a beautiful canopy above our homes with birds flying around the property in the middle of our downtown desert retreat. 

Looking out from El Presidio Gardens.  The crimes have been happening around the front gates.  Several cacti lost the battle as several pads were snapped in half from someone climbing the wall.

So it angers me when careless and thoughtless people jump our fences and vandalize our property!  After contacting the police and homeowners, most of the issues have disappeared. Several homeowners filed reports and the police are now involved.  The information seems to have spread to the right people because we're not seeing as many issues even though a Jose Cuervo tequila bottle was recently smashed onto our parking lot.  The glass punctured a homeowners tire.  I am coming to an end with these gardens.  In 2 or 3 years, I'll be finding a company to care for our grounds again.  It doesn't mean I'll stop caring about the gardens but my work will be finished and I'll be free to let this chapter close.  The unfortunate part will be that our landscape fee will shoot waaaaay up!  I think it will be double the cost now.   The HOA cares for the wellbeing and safety of the homeowners and their property.  There have been issues in the past and if they are not dealt with,  things get a lot worse. There has been prostitution near "The Wall", a police raid that spilled onto our courtyard, 2 units broken into(one 5 years ago and another 3 years ago) and a meth bust over the past years.  And it all started with these "little" issues. Usually summer is the high time for all this stuff to happen as school is out and kids have lots of free time on their hands.  With it all wrapping up, things should quiet down a bit. Why did I choose this place to live?  It was a challenge for me to fix up the dying property with a potential to make it as a winter home down the road.  Things are coming together and more homeowners are stepping up to the plate which has been exciting to witness.  Coming up this month, I will talk through the process of renovating the gardens here at El Presidio and also share with you and the homeowners several of the plans for each of the areas around the property.  I know people love the bird, travel, critter, and flower posts, and I won't stop posting those BUT I need to do a little focus back on what we're doing around here.  I have been documenting these meetings, purchases, and prepping for the various changes that will be forthcoming.  But my final message here to homeowners/renters who follow the happenings on the grounds here, keep an eye open for hoodlums; two whenever possible:) Then contact the police and their non emergency hotline...unless of course, it's an emergency.  Then dial 911. More tomorrow....

The Chuparosa Challenge-Tales From Abroad

Let's start off with the Magnificent Hummer.    Again, everytime I go out on my quests, people ooo and ahhh at this particular hummingbird:)  Today's adventure takes us to the top of Mt. Lemmon near Ski Valley.  I was searching for the Broad Tailed Hummer. 

So I followed this tame raven to the Iron Door tavern after a long hike in the woods.  This raven was raised by humans after the fires and is one of two that you'll find around this place.  They are very healthy and happy:) One of the hummingbirds that has eluded me has been the Broad Tailed Hummingbird.

I don't know why because they are quite common.  But I've been discovering that each canyon, each mountain top sports different hummingbirds and that has been a really interesting observation about these little adventures.  Case in point.  I started noticing a different type of female hummingbird in the woods.  I do not joke when I say they hover right in front of me.  I start noticing different sounds, different flight patterns and different patterns on the gorget.   That's when I knew I was in the right spot.   It's hard to describe the noise or flight patterns of a hummer.  But if you recognize their vocalizations, you'll notice the variety of sounds that they can make. 

But let's examine the female first.  In the pic above, you might notice the "striping" on the gorget.  There's also a little brown/yellow on the side of the wing.  This tipped me off that I was dealing with a different female hummer from the rest that I have observed on my trips.

The male Broad Tailed Hummingbird looks a lot like the Ruby Throated Hummingbird back east.  It's gorget will appear dark or black when it's not "flashing":)  What do I mean by this?  Look at the pic below of the Magnificent Hummer.  Notice how the gorget(throat) shines a blue color?  When it's not the pretty blue color, it's a dark black color.  So I was hoping that the male Broad Tailed Hummer would "flash" for me.   The results were incredible.  During this shoot, I was able to go alone and focus on the photography bit without having to entertain people.

There were warning signs that something was "going down".  Their territorial calls come first and then the swoop and attack.  The male Broad Tailed hummer would usually chase off the Magnificent.  The females would come in first and then.....

......I would wait:)  And wait:) And wait......:)

My first shot was by accident.  Here is the very quick male Broad Billed Hummer.  He wasn't really into the feeders on this day so I had to locate where he was perching.  And that is where I'd get the best pictures.

Here(below) we can see the BT flashing his gorget.  Pretty little hummer.

Many of you have wondered how big some of these birds get.  I needed perspective and here is a simple branch with the BT on it.  You can see how small these tiny birds are.  And as a photographer, I love this series of pictures.

The key is listening for their chirps and whirrrrrs.  I was able to locate the male easily by tracking his flight patterns and keeping my ears open.

I was just amazed how territorial this little guy was with the male Magnificent Hummers.  They're much larger.  How does this little guy get away with chasing the big guys off?:)

And I saved my favorite picture for the last part of this post today.  If you go out and search for hummers, remember there are 2 "Broad" titled hummingbirds.  I often, in my excitement, mix their names up.  There is the Broad Billed Hummer which is an incredible blue color and orange bill and then there is this guy below....the Broad Tailed Hummer.  My search continues.  I've had some difficulty with the monsoon rains creating terrible road conditions on the canyon roads.  Many of the roads are muddy and not accessible by car.   I'll be sticking to paved roads for now and hopefully I'll find some of the more elusive hummers out there.  Stay tuned for more.... PS. Warren I have a stats post coming up for you with the list, etc of hummingbirds spotted including where I found them.

Delicate Touch

A day after the blogger chaos, it's for reasons like this post today that make everything all worth it.  You don't know what you have until it's all gone.  Each of us lives in our different areas and shares a piece of our world.  And I have learned about birds, butterflies, critters, plants, and garden styles that I normally would not have known about if it were not for blogging.  It's better than any magazine or TV program out there.  I show these pics to family or friends and they say, "Pretty." But when I show them to you all, there is an understanding of what goes into a shot like this because most likely, you've taken one similiar. 

I began this blog alone looking for other Tucson gardeners for help.  We were all over the place but not connected.  It took becoming a docent at the Tucson Botanical Gardens and this blog to link me up with everyone here.  Then came you. And it is such an enriching experience.  To be able to look at my own birds, plants or butterflies and appreciate not only my environment but also the surrounding areas is something quite special.  When I speak to people in the butterfly garden or in the cacti patch, I can share with them my knowledge.  But even better?  It's knowing where they come from and listening to their stories as they compare and connect their experiences to our desert environment here.   And THAT is quite rewarding.  So while I've been studying birds......I've also had a nice education on insects and wildflowers this past month.  Today I present the yellow Columbine of Mt. Lemmon.

Thank you for all your time and effort. More tomorrow...

El Presidio Gardens (The Monsoon Report 2012)

Last night was not a good night.  My blog was removed(as were many others) and I think I felt a huge hole in my heart.  2 and half years of research and exploration gone.....just like that. It was a bit unnerving but thankfully I was able to get the blog up again.  Blogger/Google is a difficult beast for help.  It took me hours to get Las Aventuras running. It made me sad to think that I might lose you all.  It made me upset that all of my information and photography would disappear.  And all I can say was that there was a great big empty feeling inside.  My other half felt my pain and thankfully Pat was there to help me out. Several of you may have gone through this yourself.  It's a bit terrifying.  Think about how many thousands of hours you put in your work a year.  It's like a bad habit but used for good:) Okay that's that. So I thought I'd put a spin on our gardens and updates from around El Presidio.  How about an update during a monsoon storm?  We had some beautiful light during this night and the skies were incredible.  The above shot is taken from the parking lot.

The skies were dark and therefore our courtyard lights went on.  Here are our wonderful Oak trees providing a little ambience from around the property.

As we face the front entrance, I notice a light out, lots of clouds, and some much needed rain....but there was more....

As I looked up, I noticed a HUGE rainbow over our homes!  That was a first.

I got up on the second level and took a shot over the courtyard area.  The former pool is adjusting to the rains.  I will continue filling in more dirt for the spots that need it.  It has taken some time for the soil to settle in.  Hopefully soon a fountain will be going into that area.

Here is the front area of the Northern Planters.

And finally the side gardens.  Not all is done here yet but I am liking how it's all coming together.  This area above is called the Fruit Garden and the pic below is from the Fern Garden.   This area is the oldest of my works at 4 years of age.  I am loving the curving nature of bamboo as it's creating a natural green tunnel for folks returning home.  It's not perfect yet and requires me to tie up a lot of random bamboo sticking out, but as it gets older, this arch will get higher.

More updates coming from El Presidio Gardens.....weather permitting:)