Males actually have a little iridescent purple patch at the base of their throat if the light is right, but the light is never right on our Yellow Trumpet Bush when I see this visitor in the morning. He's quick and tiny - even smaller than the ruby-throated hummingbirds I always saw growing up - and I think his bill seems longer, by comparison, too.
http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Black-chinned_Hummingbird/id
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Just for Comparison - American Goldfinch
I used to have a ton of goldfinches at my feeder in Trumansburg. So pretty and so feisty -- they were fun to watch!
Birds I've Seen Around Arizona - Lesser Goldfinch
I've seen this guy and his greenish-headed female counterpart at the Desert Botanical Garden. Pretty, but not as striking as the American Goldfinches that used to visit my feeder in Trumansburg, NY.
Birds I've Seen Around Arizona - Black-headed Grosbeak
This guy visited the feeder behind the restaurant at Tortilla Flat during my first visit there in November, 2005. I remember looking through a book with a dozen or so birds pictured that I found in the gift shop there. If not for that book, I might never have identified this bird. Pretty sure I haven't seen one since!
Red-winged Blackbirds chasing a Red-tailed Hawk
This chase is so fun to watch! So much diving and swooping -- it's a real aerial show!
Birds I've Seen Around Arizona - Red-winged Blackbird
Another bird familiar from home. When I lived in Mecklenburg, NY, I loved sitting on Dave & Kim's porch, watching red-winged blackbirds chase a red-tailed hawk, swooping and diving at him above the field across the road. Apparently, this was nest-protecting behavior. Here in AZ, I mostly see them congregating in corn fields.
Birds I've Seen Around Arizona - Northern Cardinal
Speaking of birds that are easy to recognize, here's the Northern Cardinal. I'm always happy to see them because they remind me of home. Usually I see them at the Desert Botanical Garden, but I've seen them at Apache Lake, too.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Birds I've Seen Around Arizona - Phainopepla
Ah, the Phainopepla. This bird is the reason my father-in-law thinks I'm such a great birder. To me, his profile is hard to mistake. If you've seen him once, you'd recognize him again. I first saw one on my first bird walk with Nancy at the Desert Botanical Garden. She spotted it, much to the delight of everyone in our group!
My second sighting was while riding in the truck with my Dad and FIL (and probably others) at Apache Lake. I said with confidence that it was a Phainopepla. Jeff was skeptical, but fortunately, my Dad had a good camera to hand. He snapped the photo and we took it home and zoomed in. Black bird, crested head, red eye. Yup. Phainopepla. Thanks, Nancy!
Birds I've Seen Around Arizona - Curve-billed Thrasher
Seen at different times of year at Tortilla Flat and the DBG. Pretty easy to recognize with that yellow eye and curved bill.
Birds I've Seen Around Arizona - Black-tailed Gnatcatcher
Wow, another bird I don't remember from my January 2008 bird walk at DBG. I must have been really tired or distracted by my family, who were all along for the walk. But look how cute this little guy is. Apparently he's pretty common at the DBG, so maybe I'll get to see him again!
Birds I've Seen Around Arizona - Rock Wren
Apparently, I saw a Rock Wren on a January 2008 trip to the Desert Botanical Garden. I don't remember it, but I wrote it down. Probably the guide identified it for me. Pictured here, a Rock Wren actually on a rock. Go figure.
Birds I've Seen Around Arizona - Cactus Wren
The state bird of Arizona!
We had a cactus wren that frequented the back yard at my in-laws' house when we lived there. But technically, I don't think I can say I've ever seen one in my yard. I've seen it at Tortilla Flat and the Desert Botanical Garden, though.
Birds I've Seen Around Arizona - Verdín
Verdín, Verdin, Auriparus flaviceps encarando la adversidad. Facing adversity
Originally uploaded by fvaldes
The first bird I saw on my very first bird walk at the Desert Botanical Garden. I was walking to the gate with one of the guides, and he heard it before he saw it in a Palo Verde tree overhead. Not surprising considering how tiny these guys are. I still don't recognize birds by their call (except grackles and mourning doves).
Birds I've Seen in my Yard - Northern Mockingbird Wingbars
Just another picture so you can see (1) his wingbars, and (2) his feistiness!
Birds I've Seen in my Yard - Northern Mockingbird
Northern Mockingbird in the Cloisters City Park pond, Morro Bay, CA 1
Originally uploaded by mikebaird
How could I forget this little guy? They're all over the place here, too. Long, flicky tail... white wing bars in flight... feisty little bird.
Birds I've Seen Around Arizona - Ladder-backed Woodpecker
OK, so the first time I saw this bird was at the Desert Botanical Garden, and the guide had to tell me what I was seeing. Now that I know what to look for, I can tell the difference between this bird and a Gila Woodpecker (the Ladder-backed Woodpecker is smaller and has a black-and-white or black-and-buff striped face). Uncommon at the Desert Botanical Garden, I've seen it twice. Once in April and once in January.
http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Ladder-backed_Woodpecker/id
Birds I've Seen Around Arizona - Gila Woodpecker
I first saw this bird in November 2005 at Tortilla Flat, AZ (population, 6). Tortilla Flat is on the Apache Trail, a scenic (if sometimes seemingly treacherous) drive east of Phoenix. The restaurant there does a hopping busines considering its remote location, and the whole place is lined with dollar bills. Adam's Dad hung one up in the store ages ago, and it's still there!
Birds I've Seen Around Arizona - Burrowing Owl
Another bird seen on my commute from my in-laws' house to work. I saw as many as eleven, depending on the time of day and the route I took to (or from) work. They lived right along the side of the road burrowed into the packed dirt along a canal at the perimeter of a crop field. Best sighting was dusk when all the owls were outside their burrows enjoying the cool evening air, but usually I saw them in the mornings on the way in to work.
Birds I've Seen Around Arizona - Greater Roadrunner
My parents visiting from New York got to see a roadrunner before I did! My first (and only) sightings happened while we lived with my in-laws this past fall. I guess it makes sense. Driving to work from their house, I went right past the RV park where my parents spend most winters. My sightings happened in two places: right around the corner from the in-laws' house and right outside my parents' RV park fence!
Birds I've Seen Around Arizona - Inca Dove
I learned about the Inca Dove during a project for work two years ago, but I had never seen one. Then Friday last week, I was walking on campus with co-workers when I spotted a pair. My co-workers made fun of me, but I was pretty excited.
I mean, when I learned of the Inca Dove, it was through an illustration on a traveling display we designed. I thought maybe the real thing didn't look as scalloped as the illustration, and that maybe I'd seen one but hadn't recognized it. But then, when I saw one, I knew for sure what it was and there was no mistaking it. So, yay, Inca Doves!
Birds I've Seen in my Yard - White Winged Dove
I first recognized this bird at a wedding in Tucson in spring 2008. I've seen them a bunch of times since, including occasionally in my back yard.
Birds I've Seen in my Yard - Mourning Dove
Pretty little birds, found all over the place here. On my first bird walk at the Desert Botanical Gardens, the guide pointed out to me the dove's turquoise ring around its eye. Pretty, no?
Birds I've Seen in my Yard - Mallard Duck
Yes, two males and a female right in our front yard in April. Why not the back yard where the pool is? Who knows. Adam and Cael chased them off because they hung out on our front porch and pooped everywhere. Bye bye, ducks.
Birds I've Seen in my Yard - European Starling
Another bird seen practically everywhere. At work, I learned that these non-native birds encroach on nesting cavities of the native Gila Woodpecker.
Birds I've Seen in my Yard - House Finch
I first had house finches at my feeder in Trumansburg, NY, so when they showed up in my backyard here, I was thrilled to be able to identify them. Don't laugh. It's weird moving from one side of the country to the other. The landscape and the birds are so foreign, and learning to identify the plants and wildlife makes me feel like I belong here.
Birds I've Seen in my Yard - Great-tailed Grackle Female
A picture of the female because she looks so different from the male. When I first moved here, I thought it was a different bird altogether.
Birds I've Seen in my Yard - Great-tailed Grackle
Seen in my yard and everywhere else. They're noisy and they'll eat anything -- basically the crows of Arizona.
Birds I've Seen in my Yard - Say's Phoebe
This is the bird that prompted my interest in birding. I had a little Say's Phoebe who would perch in my backyard just a few inches off the ground, and he came back every afternoon shortly after I moved to Arizona -- that would have been in May 2005.
I just had to figure out what he was, and my friend and co-worker Nancy helped me to identify him. He stayed for a couple weeks and moved on, but he came back every year. Now we've moved to a new house, and I'm a little sad not to get to see him anymore.
http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Says_Phoebe/id
Birds I've Seen in my Yard - Abert's Towhee
Have seen these little guys a lot this spring! There's a pair that spends a lot of time in our yard -- apparently Abert's Towhee pairs usually bond for life.
Birds I've Seen in my Yard - Gambel's Quail
I usually see two or more of these together -- saw two this morning!
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