wildlife Archives

While Birding: Be in the Moment

October 19, 2025October 13, 2025Posted in Animals, Birds, blogging, environment, wildlife, writingTagged Arizona, birds, Nature, wildlifeLeave a comment

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!

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.

Smell Flowers & Watch Wildlife While Mountain Biking

October 5, 2025September 24, 2025Posted in Animals, bicycling, blogging, environment, Plants, Travel, wildflowers, wildlife, writingTagged Arizona, bicycling, Nature, travel, wildlifeLeave a comment

Mountain biking requires me to truly focus on what I am doing while pedaling various trails. Some are smooth, others rocky. Some uphill, some downhill. Some steep and others even less enjoyable! But as seasons change I take notice of the wildlife, plants and animals. I actually find myself stopping to photograph the flowers that sprouted after a monsoon rain:

When especially lucky, I may see a squirrel or on this particular day, elk moving through an area! I know elk migrate here in northern Arizona, but rarely do I get this opportunity to see them. By the time I pulled my camera out, they were a distance away, but still seen:

What a great day!

Where’s My Camera, When I Want It!

September 28, 2025September 24, 2025Posted in Animals, blogging, environment, wildlife, writingTagged javelina, Nature, Tucson, wildlife4 Comments

My camera was inside my home. Here was an hour I set aside to be tech-free and focused on pulling weeds from our front area! (Keeping my HOA happy!)

They are not really weeds, according to me; only wildflowers and grasses just wanting to sprout. And not many to be pulled. Suddenly my nose detects a rotten smell. I look up and see a good-sized, adult javelina looking at me. Could it really smell that bad? No time to think as I notice other javelinas behind him!

No camera, so here is a sketch of a javelina looking at me!

I know javelinas have poor eyesight so all I could think about, after saying aloud “wow”, was giving this one and others some space! My movement was to back away and move eventually to behind a backyard gate. Nine javelinas walked across our front yard, across the neighbor’s driveway, through their side yard and on.

I step out from behind our gate toward our front door when another javelina looks at me! Backing away again, 6 more javelinas walk by me! I’m glad we are all getting along so nicely!

Drew this sketch months ago and now it seems most appropriate here.

Fifteen javelinas! I bet at least one of you are chewing my irrigation lines, stomping on our rain gutter overflow spouts, and/or running over our bushes. Convinced I could get back to weeding, I return to the front yard.

A grunt. A movement. And there is another javelina! I am in its path. Quickly I move away and see 2 javelina walk across our yard to our neighbor’s driveway, their yard and beyond. My neighbor was watching also as she had just opened her garage and was soon to pull her vehicle out. We know the javelina’s path so no surprise there.

Where was my camera! Darn, this number, 17 javelina, seen at one time would have broken my sighting record! Oh well… my weeding goes on and the rotten smell has left the yard!

Final Talks With My Best Friend … Life Will Go On …

September 14, 2025August 26, 2025Posted in Animals, Birds, blogging, wildlife, writingTagged birds, friendship, loons, love, Nature, wildlife7 Comments

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, Practice … Is What I Tell Myself!

September 7, 2025August 26, 2025Posted in Animals, Birds, blogging, wildlife, writingTagged birds, patience, watercolor painting5 Comments

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!

Battle: Tarantula Spider vs Tarantula Hawk Wasp

September 4, 2025August 12, 2025Posted in Animals, blogging, environment, wildlife, writingTagged Arizona, Nature, spiders, wasps, wildlife2 Comments

Spiders and wasps are seen where I live in southwestern USA. The tarantula spider kills many common pests around our home, yet it is often thought dangerous. It is not! They are not aggressive or deadly. Any human harassing a tarantula spider can get bit although its venom seems to not be toxic to humans. I observed an unlucky tarantula spider on a hike last month. It is fascinating to see in action things one reads about in nature articles. More about the observation during my hike in a minute. Here is a sketch of a tarantula spider:

Let me introduce you to a tarantula hawk wasp. If you live in the desert regions of southwest USA, you may have seen this wasp. In my backyard it feeds on our milkweeds. This insect does have a powerful sting and if a human provokes it, you’ll be stung and it causes great pain. I read about their hunting style and life cycle, yet even more amazing is to see it in action. Here is a sketch of a tarantula hawk wasp:

A female tarantula hawk wasp mates with a male. Then it is time for the female to lay an egg, which she’ll do about 13 times in her approximately 13 month lifetime. The female wasp needs to capture a tarantula spider each time. (Males however only live 2 – 3 months.)

Once the female captures a tarantula, it will sting it, then inject venom and paralyze the spider. The female tarantula hawk wasp will drag the spider’s body to a burrow or nest. A wasp can drag spiders 8x their size! Amazing! I had never seen this until this hike. Also fascinating was observing the fact the tarantula hawk wasp walks backwards dragging the upside-down tarantula spider here! A photo I took trying to capture the wasp dragging the spider along:

Tarantula hawk wasp dragging a paralyzed tarantula spider

Tarantula hawk wasps can fly 20 mph, but even on the ground this female was dragging the spider along quickly. Once in a burrow, the female wasp lays an egg on the paralyzed, still living, tarantula’s abdomen. When the larvae hatches, it will feed on the fluids and internal organs of the tarantula. It avoids the vital organs so the spider, its host, is alive longer. Eventually the larva pupates inside the tarantula spider’s carcass and emerges as an adult. The life cycle will continue.

I was unable to stay longer to see where the wasp’s burrow or nest was since my fellow hikers were ready to move on. However, it was a great observation for us to make while we were on our birding outing.

Reading about animal behavior is one thing, but seeing it in action is amazing! What have you observed? Wish to share? Please do.

Red-eared Slider … Tracked!

August 31, 2025August 8, 2025Posted in Animals, blogging, environment, photography, Travel, wildlifeTagged photography, travel, wildlifeLeave a comment

I recently learned observations of mine with the iNaturalist app can be tracked. With past input of red-eared slider observations, I discover I have seen this animal at the following times and locations: July 2020 in Tucson, Arizona. April 2021 in Marana, Arizona. April 2023 in San Antonio, Texas. July 2025 in Tucson, Arizona. That is so cool! I love this app allowing me to be a “citizen scientist”. Join, for free, if you are out in nature, have a smart phone, and wish to add to the observations. Download iNaturalist app.

Are You a Citizen Scientist?

August 28, 2025August 8, 2025Posted in Animals, blogging, environment, Plants, wildlife, writingTagged birds, Nature, wildlife2 Comments

The natural world is one step beyond your front door. Do you notice any living thing within your first footsteps? Is there a flower, an insect or something else living that you notice?

If you snap a photo, share it at the iNaturalist app, you have just joined the other citizen scientists around the world. What does this mean?

With the minute you took to observe the natural world, photograph a living thing and share it within the iNaturalist app, you are providing information where others note your observation. Once it has been accepted, through their very easy process, other people, especially scientists see the entry. What’s interesting about this? Some people around the world have actually photographed, unknowingly, rare plants and/or animals! Or maybe it is a plant or animal not observed in decades at your location.

Scientists cannot travel the world, year after year as they do their research. Instead, they can comb through what others are sharing, such as through this app, iNaturalist, along with their first-hand observations.

I submitted this photo on the app:

Recorded the date, location and looked at the suggestions listed. Then chose what I thought was what this lizard would be identified as. Submitted it all easily through the app. Once a couple of other people agreed with my assessment or I changed to agree with them, then research grade allows my information to be used by anyone in the world! (I think it is a desert spiny lizard. Awaiting others to agree or not so I can go from there.)

So, you have the iNaturalist app and use it? Kudos to you! Keep at it! If you do not have the app, and wish to, then download it on your smart phone at the app store, for free, iNaturalist. Or, check out the website for iNaturalist. Either way, get involved and become a citizen scientist.

Nature Journaling: Agua Caliente in August

August 24, 2025August 8, 2025Posted in Animals, Birds, blogging, environment, wildlife, writingTagged birds, nature journaling2 Comments

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!

Advantages of Attending a Bird Festival

August 21, 2025August 8, 2025Posted in Birds, blogging, environment, Travel, wildlifeTagged bird festival, birds, Nature, travelLeave a comment

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.