I went for a walk to bird watch, stretch my legs, and see if any other interesting animals were at Agua Caliente Park this month. As I approached my usual walking path, I decided to change things up. Often walking the same direction, why not change it; I’ll walk in the reverse direction in the park.
My brain is wired in a particular way, no doubt reinforcing my habits. So I got thinking about myself as a right-handed person and how different it feels when I use my left hand for simple tasks. Now how would I feel to walk in the direction opposite from my usual path?
Birds seen!
Walking in the opposite direction on the paths I have walked a hundred times at this park was at first strange. My brain prompted me to stop every so often and determine where exactly I was on the trail and to assess some of my usual birding opportunities from the different angle. It was an interesting time to realize how simply changing the direction of my walk offered me a different perspective on my outing. I enjoyed the walk and will continue to change things up as my walks continue here in the coming months.
Have you ever changed things up? Were there any advantages or disadvantages to the change up? Maybe you were forced to do things differently from your normal routine, share if you wish.
Nature abounds in our backyard as I watch almost 100 Western honeybees at one of 2 Baja fairy duster plants! Look closely to see a bee:
So many Western honey bees!
We are also very excited when we see hummingbirds stopping at our desert willow trees and Baja fairy duster plants. Especially when they rest on a tree branch since one rarely sees a hummingbird not moving. The javelina continue to walk past my bedroom window and coyotes are in the neighborhood, as are bobcats. I’m soon off on another adventure so I will return with backyard 2026 nature journals.
Our backyard has had a couple of different lizards scurrying around and an occasional butterfly. I wish I could capture a photo of a butterfly! Red-tailed hawks have flown overhead, as do common ravens. The usual birds are at the feeders or in the trees. My October nature journal:
Three high school students were peering into the water’s edge and calling out to each other, “There’s long neck. Look how large he is. This is the second day seeing him.” I frequent this park and could not imagine what they were observing. And to name an animal, “long neck”? So I went to where they were standing and asked what they were looking at in the water.
It was a turtle with a long neck! Yup, good name! I mentioned I had never seen one in all the years frequenting this park. Many red-eared sliders were in the water too. They were the usual, and most numerous, turtles for us to see. This long-necked turtle was new to me!
I immediately used the Inaturalist app with a photo of the turtle to determine what it was we were looking at in this water. We discover it is a spiny softshell turtle. These students, who were visiting from New Hampshire, saw the turtle the previous day too. Yes, this was a new turtle for me too! The students also now aware of the Inaturalist app.
I enjoyed talking with the students. They would only be in Tucson another day but had hopes of seeing a javelina. Unfortunately they missed the parade of javelinas through our yard last month. And they will not see javelinas at the Grand Canyon where they will visit next. But they are having an educational Arizona visit in towns and parks around the state.
As I walked the park’s paths this month, I saw my first phainopepla. Of course the Gila woodpeckers were busy and noisy as usual. The vermilion flycatchers with their bright red color is easy to see, just as a northern cardinal that also tried to hide itself in some shrubs. Off in a distance on an electrical power pole I saw what first looked like a black vulture. I did not have my camera that day, but after talking with another birder, I decided it was a juvenile turkey vulture. Few wading ducks, only a couple of ring-necked ducks. About 17 different bird species are usually seen. Now I can keep my eyes open for the spiny softshell turtle too!
The harvest moon and hunter’s moon, the rain and rainbows, and migrating wildlife this month has been fascinating to observe. Here’s my October nature journal for Agua Caliente Park:
One never knows what the birding day will be like till having spent the time. I hoped to see as many birds as I could this October day. Soon I found myself in the middle of a Gila woodpecker festival. They seemed to be all around me and busy collecting food. Here are some photos of those observations.
Gila woodpecker with something in its beak.
Male Gila woodpeckers seem to be busy today.
Here’s another Gila woodpecker at another place in the park on a Saguaro cactus.
I listen to various birds and am still learning their calls. I wonder if one call I hear is a phainopepla. Is that squeaky call a phainopepla? It is most helpful when I finally see the bird while calling! Yeah!
A female phainopepla calling!
I hear the call of a bird I know! Most every time I will find this bird scratching around on the ground, so that is where my eyes search for sight of an Abert’s towhee. I follow the call. No bird is around on the ground as I walk the trail, but I know it is here because I hear its call. I could not believe it as I look up in a tree and see the Abert’s towhee!
An Abert’s towhee in a tree and not on the ground!
A favorite bird of mine is a curve-billed thrasher. It is a challenge to find this bird, but the call helps me head in a correct direction. Then, will the bird be on the ground or in a tree? It hides so well in the shrubbery. Finding it today was easier than usual as I see it on a tree branch!
Easier to see a curve-billed thrasher when in a tree and not in the shrubbery.
It’s important to not distract yourself while birding with other thoughts, things to do, or whatever. Can you? Sure! But I find it more relaxing and believe I see more birds when I tune into the sounds and sights around me in nature. Being in the moment today provided me with seeing 17 different species of birds at this one park. I pointed a couple of birds out to people who were simply walking by. They appreciated the info, and there is a northern cardinal to point out so easily with its red color!
Northern cardinal almost missed by people passing by.
More than 2.5 years ago my best friend was dying. We both knew death was inevitable. We just were not sure how long the dying would take. My friend had a challenging last couple of years. She fought cancer through rounds of chemo, found extra bursts of energy when spending time with family and friends, and never seemed to feel sorry about herself while talking with others. I, on the other hand, was angry, sad, and not ready to lose my best friend for any reason, especially for one as permanent as death.
She and I talked often and about everything through our 40 shared years. Her divorce and our friendship were misconstrued by some. Her belief was: if anyone truly knew her, they knew the truth. She moved on with her law school acceptance and graduation and me with my various administrative school positions; we celebrated it all. Our travel opportunities, hikes searching for loons, and time at my Adirondack cabin were enjoyed by us. We discovered some people never knew/understood a deep love could exist between friends. At those times, we wished we were family instead. Apparently it was more acceptable to say “I love you” to a family member than anyone outside of that circle.
We both knew we had things to talk about at as her energy and time dwindled. I think I was more heart-broken about this all than her. She seemed to be in a better place understanding the finality of life than me. It may have been her final two years that forced her to look at life through a different lens than mine. I was always wishing for the next moment we would share, and yet knew it would probably not be.
And so when I spent the last weeks of her life with her, I knew it was time to talk. I wanted to know her latest feelings about some of the things I had been wondering about and would no doubt continue to wonder beyond her death. Our discussions involved close looks at the environment, family, friends, religion and whatever else came to us as we talked. Who, what, why and where? Respect, trust, love, likes and dislikes. Life seemed so complicated and so did our end-of-life discussion. How appreciative I was of having time to talk with my best friend just before she died.
As I move on without my friend, I must realize how fortunate I was to have such a wonderful friend in my life … and that will always bring a smile to my face, a warmth in my heart, and tears in my eyes. I tell myself: life goes on … as she said it should. Remembering her birthday this month with fond memories, such as our pursuit of loons!
Four mile Adirondack hike brought us to a lake’s edge seeing some loons!:)
Practice has always been key in my life. Whether training for a 5k, 10k, mountain climb or long-distance bicycle ride, it was important to get moving and doing the activity over and over. Build physical and mental strength; know that quitting can only be an option after I really have put my best effort in. Now with my new watercolor painting challenge, I have tried to pursue the same practice mentality.
How many times do I need to paint the same kingfisher? Apparently a few more times and to make more changes to get a slightly different and hopefully better result! I have painted this bird so many times! Now it is time to take a break from this bird since I am not making enough of a change between paintings. As they say, if you continue to do the same, you’ll get the same result. Hopefully in giving myself a break from painting this bird, I will have fresh eyes when I return to it in time. I’ll keep you posted, I am not giving up on creating the look I really want for this bird!
Heavy-handed with my paint on this bird; looking for a different look in a future painting!
Nature journaling can be done however you wish and whenever you wish. My initial thought was to return with my nature journal to Agua Caliente Park in Tucson in the fall. However, my recent walk allowed me to see three brown-crested flycatchers.
Brown-crested flycatchers are here in southern Arizona in the summer. I heard their call, believing I knew their call, and kept looking for them. Finally I saw the butt-ends of them on a branch! Crazily I am asking them to turn around so I can be sure of my observation and identification. No quick accommodation was provided me! Interestingly they were holding their wings out to be in a cooling pose. Here I was wishing I had brought my camera to photograph this scene … and then, the larger bird, dove for something and returned to the branch. Ah yes, it was what I thought … brown-crested flycatcher!
With a small young one present I wondered if I could find their nest. I did not. All birds in the mid-summer, mid-day heat were not moving fast so I had plenty of time to observe the 2 on the branch and another one flying in the area. I sketched and added some colored ink to the drawings. Nothing is accurate, but a reminder that the birds were here in August.
Another bird, cactus wren, I wanted to include here since I had not seen it last month. Supposedly here during the year, I don’t always catch sight of them. This month though, I did! The usual vermilion flycatchers were enjoying the hot day, but others not so much. As a result, I had to look into grassed-over wetland areas and thickets. By the time I was done I saw 15 different species! Will be back in the fall and see what I observe then. Till then, stay cool and hydrated … humans and birds!
Bird festivals are all over the USA and some in Europe. If you have never attended a bird festival, here are some of the reasons I enjoy attending them:
Meet people from all over the USA and sometimes from other countries. Everyone has a story about how they began to be interested in birds. Or a story about their “spark bird”; the first bird they saw and encouraged them to look for more birds.
Field trips are organized. Some trips the transportation to the birding location is provided. This is especially helpful when I am visiting the area; someone else is doing the driving to the location. This is an option also at my local festival. While traveling to the location it is more time to chat with my fellow birders. Or, some field trips we meet our guide at the trailhead.
Field trips out at sea are the best with a group and guide. Know that those boat trips fill fast!
Field trips in my local area are valuable because more eyes are looking for birds compared to the day I am the only one looking for birds. Notice also, the group size is usually a small number so register as soon as you are interested in a field trip before it closes out.
The guides at festivals are amazingly knowledgeable! Many hear the bird call/song and can identify the bird. Also, many guides carry a viewing scope to share the observation of a bird. I’m using my binoculars, but there are times the viewing scope has a better magnification on the bird. Often I look through the scope to see where in the tree or bush the bird is and that allows me to find the bird in my binoculars.
Infrequently a guide will try to call a bird in, for educational purposes, thus not abusing this practice. As a result, we have had success calling a bird closer to us so we could see it more easily than not. We knew the bird was somewhere within the bush’s leaves and now the bird popped out on top or off to another branch and more easily seen.
Guides provide information about the habitat a bird needs and often knows the flowers or other animals in the area.
Often, I will observe a new bird for my “life list” of birds. That is exciting, especially since I know others saw the bird too and the identification is correct. Real helpful if that bird is only found in a specific location!
Workshops are presented by photographers, birding companies from around the USA and world, such as Columbia and Brazil. Or guides share their destinations, such as Scotland, Ecuador, Costa Rica and that they are available in their home state. Photographers always have absolutely amazing photos capturing birds in flight and explaining to the rest of us how it can be accomplished, with what type of equipment and patience!
Vendors are at the nature expo area with binoculars, viewing scopes, cameras and lenses and all kinds of things a birder may be interested in trying out and/or purchasing. Here’s a place to also spend time talking with representatives of birding companies and personal birding guides.
Finally, you hear about other birding festivals and may consider attending one of them in the future.
Overall, I have really enjoyed attending various bird festivals. If you have never attended one, give one a try. Maybe it’s one closest to your hometown. You’ll be amazed how many birds you will see in a day with the help a guide and everyone else in your group even if it is your hometown!
Will you see this bird? Don’t know till you show up … check out a bird festival within the next year.
Women’s safety must be a priority every minute of every day, especially when I read the dismal statistic: 1 in 3 women in the United States assaulted in her lifetime. Fear is not the emotion any woman wants when attempting to enjoy an activity; yet, it does cause some to hesitate or not accomplish what she wished to do. That’s not the world we want to live in!
Women can now carry a non-violent self-defense tool, a Birdie. The goal is to deter attackers while creating a distraction thus drawing attention to the woman in need of help. See the photo below:
Birdie
With a pull of the top circle, referred to as the “pin”, an ear-piercing siren happens along with a flashing strobe light, especially helpful at night. To stop the ear-piercing sound, return the pin into the Birdie. This personal safety alarm can travel everywhere, unlike tasers and pepper spray, which are not TSA-friendly. It also can be hooked onto bags, put into pockets, or hung on your keychain. Make it as accessible as you wish.
This self-defense tool was shared at a local bird festival workshop. You may wonder why there. Woman can be hesitant to hike and go bird watching alone, especially if hearing any statistics of assaults, etc. Therefore, this self-defense tool was offered as part of a workshop at the bird festival.
Hang it where you can easily access the it.
There is a new “Birdie 3.0” which has a rechargeable battery. When you visit the website you’ll see 2 other available products. One is a disc and the other a box for hotel room. Check those tools out as they may be of interest to you beyond this Birdie. My Birdie is not a 3.0, so a battery will need to be replaced in time. Women’s safety is important … share this info with others … gift someone … and have your own.
