Catching the Reclusive One

He hides in the thickest thorn bushes.


He turns his back on me


But just occasionally I catch this classic beauty out in the open and manage to grab a couple of photos.

Was it something I Said?

This is one of those classic moments when you have to wonder what is being said!

I'm Liking the Lichen

Lichen only grows where the air quality is good so what could be better than finding it in your own yard?


This fascinating life form comes in so many shapes and shades,


each one is a unique, natural work of art.




Nature Notes hosted by Michelle at Rambling Woods.

Silhouettes

The Thrasher looks quite magical in silhouette on the cholla.

So Handsome

We are very lucky to have dozens of Saguaro Cacti in our yard that cover all age groups from ancients who have obviously been standing sentinel for several hundred years to tiny little babies that are still hiding from the sun under their nursery plant. There are only a couple of the Saguaros that we have given names to, so far - I know it sounds a little odd to give them names but they are all so unique.
There is a young one close to the back of the house that is very chubby, that became Cartman! Right outside the dining room is a very old one that bears the scars of many woodpecker inhabitants that has been christened Madala (an African term of respect for an older man) and next to it, growing up in its shadow is one that is probably only about fifty years old, that has become Junior.
And then there is Adonis, a saguaro that stands alone, further up the yard. It is quite magnificent, so perfect that it looks almost more like a model of a saguaro than the real thing!


Unlike some of the mature saguaros that are pockmarked with dozens of woodpecker holes, Adonis has only one or two to spoil the perfection. The limbs are straight and strong.


And it looks splendid no matter which angle you look at it from.



And like all top models, Adonis is very smooth. All those unsightly spines that younger cacti have to deter predators are gone to leave a perfectly smooth physique that will stand any number of close-ups!


And as the desert sun begins to set the beautiful Adonis is lit up to perfection.


What a magnificent specimen!


Nature Notes hosted by Michelle at Rambling Woods.

Business is Brisk

At the feeders this morning

Soaking up the Sun

Life can be hard in the cooler months of the year if you happen to be an ectotherm. That is probably why this little lizard was not going to give up his patch of warm sun even if a pesky lady kept pointing a camera at him!

Who's Watching Who?

If I sit quietly in the yard sometimes I feel as if I am being watched. If I look very carefully I realize that I am not being paranoid, I am being watched!


But if I stay still and quiet very often the watchers will make themselves known.



I guess they are just waiting to make sure that I am not a threat.


And when they realize that I mean no harm, they carry on about their business.

A Lethal Beauty

My yard is usually alive with bird calls from sunrise to sunset. The constant fussing of the quails, the sweet chirruping of the Lesser Goldfinches, the raucous clatter of the Gila Woodpeckers and the bizarre rattling of the Road Runners, to name but a few. So when silence suddenly descends I know there must be a predator in their midst.


This magnificent hawk landed right in front of my kitchen window and I managed to grab my camera and get a couple of good shots before it flew off. Would the birding experts among you care to weigh in on the decision, is it a Sharp-shinned or a Coopers Hawk? I can't decide.

The Best of 2011

The whole point of this blog was to only photograph flora and fauna that ventured onto our land and despite a number of temptations I have stuck to it. To close up the year I have picked out one or two favourites from the last twelve months.
To start the ball rolling we will do Reptiles, this was a tough one but in the end I had to go with this glorious male Desert Spiny Lizard that I spotted sleeping in a tree one night during the monsoons.


A natural progression from here of course is to Amphibians, something I really didn't expect to find in the middle of the desert but again the rains provided and the monster that turned up in our yard was truly impressive - A Sonoran Desert Toad.


Next the Mammals and, despite some serious and far bigger competition, there could really be only one - my favourite cheeky little visitor, the Antelope Ground Squirrel :)


And on to Birds (sorry no fish!) Again I have gone for attitude rather than scale and so the 'mighty' Broadbilled Hummingbird is the avian representative.


The Invertebrate lovers amongst us will cry foul but I am not going to do a representative from every group, two stars will suffice, for colour the Flame Skimmer is my choice.


And for grand scale the somewhat daunting Arizona Blonde Tarantula


I couldn't possibly do a 'best of' without some Cactus representation and the king of them all is the mighty saguaro. Rather than the classic arms akimbo shot I went for something a little more intimate


I love photographing cacti when the sun is sinking, the soft light against the severity of the spines is such a great contrast and none highlight that better than the fearsome cholla


So animal, vegetable or mineral (they are all gems after all!) these are some of my favourite sights from 2011.
Happy New Year everyone.

Love or War?

You know how cats can be when they meet in the darkness, lots of growling, snarling and caterwauling. Well double the volume and that is what we just had outside our kitchen window. I was just outside checking the last of our Christmas lights when I heard what sounded like several javelina galloping down the path beside the house, straight towards me. I thought cats were supposed to be soft-footed! There were several blood-curdling screams and I wondered if something had caught a javelina but it was too dark to see. Then I saw two shapes rapidly climbing up a mesquite tree. Lots more screaming and then quiet. I decided to pop inside and get a flashlight and see what the drama was. It turned out that there were two bobcats in the tree, one chased up there by the other. The aggressor climbed back down and sat under the tree, leaving its victim/beloved in the top of the tree. If you look very closely amongst the branches in this picture you can just about make out the shape of a cat.


We were able to get a couple of lovely photos of the bobcat at the bottom of the tree by opening our sliding glass doors, it was not the slightest bit bothered by our close proximity, or the flash going off!


The treed bobcat started to growl very loudly which caught the interest of the cat on the ground and he started to circle the tree.


The snarling and growling went on for several more minutes before the cat on the ground seemed to loose interest and wandered off into the thickets. This gave the treed cat the opportunity he had been waiting for, he scrambled down out of the tree and disappeared into the darkness. And peace and quiet once more resumed.


Nature Notes hosted by Michele at Rambling Woods

The Kind of snow I like

Is very far away on distant mountain tops!

Must Try Harder

How many times did I get that written on my school report card? Still trying very hard to get a decent photo of the Cactus Wren.


But I definitely have a way to go yet.

Morning Routine

Now that the mornings are getting a little cooler the Roadrunner has a new routine. Stroll down the wash to get the circulation going, soak up some early sun


and fluff up the feathers!


Having warmed up he is ready to go in search of breakfast.