I Love The Monsoon Season

The skies are always so dramatic, it is a constantly changing show.

Bucky's Last Visit.

I posted a couple of months back about a mysterious hole that appeared in our yard, we put one of our wildlife cameras nearby and discovered we had a badger around. It seems that he was just passing through and this was the last shot we got of him, a couple of weeks ago. Happy travels little guy, I hope you come back some day. We like having you around.

Heading South

The White-winged Doves will be starting to fly south soon and things will become more orderly at the bird feeders. Every time I see them hitting the feeders and scattering seed everywhere, or chasing all the other birds off I have to remind myself that they do some good by scattering the seeds from the Saguaro fruits. I guess they should be called the seed-scattering dove!

The Land of Extremes

I enjoy seeing which animals show up on our wildlife cameras but they are also interesting just for observing the seasons. The desert can be a very inhospitable place when it heats up.



But it isn't all blue skies and high temperatures. When it rains it doesn't tend to do things in half measures!

Cool Down!

You know I would never complain about having a home in such an amazing place and I figure if you choose to live in the desert then you have to sign-up for the sweltering heat as part of the package. But as the monsoon season seems to have (hopefully temporarily) abated and the mercury is rocketing I thought I would post a picture from the past, just to cool us all down a little. Proof that it can indeed snow (occasionally) in the desert.

Desert Dweller

The sweet little Round-tailed Ground Squirrel always strikes me as the consummate desert dweller, they rarely show signs of overheating even in the current sweltering temperatures and camouflage doesn't get much better than theirs. I am so happy to share my piece of desert with them.

So Proud

I took this picture some time ago but I just had to post it. This little Lucy's Warbler was so loud, how could a female possibly resist? I do hope all his hard work paid off and he found himself a mate.

You Can't See Me

I could hear him making his strange rattling call up the yard, I looked in all the normal spots were he usually likes to hide and then he caught my eye. Perched precariously on the top of a mesquite tree the Roadrunner actually thought he was hiding and looked rather reproachful when I took his photo.

Mother To Be

Eating for two or three or four or five, this sweet little pregnant Round-tailed Ground Squirrel was parked under the bird feeders and getting quite the feast.

Dinner Time

Looks like Zebra-tailed Lizard is on the menu for the Kestrel today.

The Man

This splendid fellow was doing his push-ups on a rock outside our bedroom window and he was looking so splendid I just had to take his picture. How could we fail to be impressed?

First Of The Year

It is warming up and the night life is changing, this was the first tarantula of the season, a very small one on the wall of the house. Soft and fluffy :)

Hello

Is it my imagination or is that Saguaro looking at me?

Dinner Date

A beautiful pair of Ladder-backed Woodpeckers sharing a meal atop of one of our Saguaros. Could there be a more romantic dinner spot?

There Is A Reason I Am This Bright!

Lots of things eat bugs right? So as a bug, you want to hide, be inconspicuous, well camouflaged. Or you can announce your presence, loud and proud with bright red and yellow! Needless to say it is a warning, at the very least - I don't taste good or in the case of this Iron Cross Blister Beetle - I am toxic! They actually carry cantharidin toxins that can interfere with the vertebrate nervous system so no munching on this one!

Scale and Tail

This little Western Diamondback is working hard on our resident packrat population and so as a result has become my husbands new best friend. With the number of packrats in our yard it won't stay a little snake for long, it's an all you can eat buffet.

Proud Father Part Two

When I originally saw this little family it made me sad. There was a very diligent father, eleven tiny chicks and no mother. Something must have happened to her very soon after the chicks hatched. With so many natural predators it is very hard for a pair of quail to successfully raise a clutch of chicks and I have to be honest I didn't think a single parent would have any chance at all. So imagine my delight when our little one parent family showed up again this morning. There were eight healthy chicks remaining and they are now much bigger and so have a far better chance of surviving. Well done Dad.

Quiet Please

At this time of year our evenings are filled with the delightful calls of Lesser Nighthawks and often we see them swooping across the skies at twilight. But were do they go during the day? They rely on their amazingly cryptic colouration to hide in plain sight either amongst rocks on the ground or blended perfectly with the bark of a branch. So beautiful to see this special bird hiding out during the day.

A Late Night Special

A couple of days ago a large excavation appeared in our yard, it was very impressive with vast piles of dirt moved. Anything that can dig in this ground earns my instant respect as it is like concrete. The list of possible suspects was pretty short, what could possibly be that strong? We had our suspicions so we positioned one of our wildlife cameras to see if we could see the master builder at work. It took a few nights but eventually he appeared, a badger! I can't believe my luck, another new yard species.

Proud Father

Talk about a harried father! This male quail has eleven little chicks to watch over. Sadly there was no evidence of a female around to help him out. Good luck fella, you are going to need it to look after that big brood.