Tag Archives: birdwatching

It’s All About Red

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I took quite a few photos of Red this week. He was a frequent visitor. I had two close encounters with him that were special moments. Both times I could hear him loudly chirping away. When he does that I believe he is calling me to fill the bird feeder.

I walked outside to the feeder with birdseed and called out, “Hey, Red,” as I always do when he’s chirping at me. I couldn’t see him but then he flew straight to me from the neighbor’s yard. He landed in a bush next to the bird feeder a couple feet away from me.

Red has landed in this planter a few days in a row. I’m wondering if there are some natural seeds or things to eat in it. In any case, it makes a pretty picture.

This is kind of a strange photo. Red swooped down to the birdseed block to take a bite of goodies while still flying!

The other close encounter with Red was I saw him blast off like a rocket flying over our fence to the wash behind us. I called, “Hey, Red!” He made a U-turn in the air and flew back to where I was standing. Once again he landed in the bush by the bird feeder.

It felt really special to have my friendly Red come to me when I called him. Or, maybe he just likes me for my birdseed.

Red on a barrel cactus.

Happy Friday!

Which Red photo do you like the best?

What are your weekend plans?

Bird of the Week — Harris’s Hawk —  CLXIX

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I took this photo of a Harris’s Hawk on our neighbor’s roof. This is my favorite photo of a Harris’s Hawk that I’ve taken. We had a visit yesterday by two of these large predators in our backyard. But I wasn’t quick enough with my camera to get decent photos. I took all of these photos during the past year.

Harris’s Hawk —Parabuteo unicinctus  CLXIX
ORDER: Accipitriformes
FAMILY: Accipitridae

RANGE:

Harris’s Hawks live in the Southwest United States and South America. They do not migrate but stay in the same location. Map courtesy of All About Birds.

Harris’s Hawks are 18-24 inches in length and weigh from 1.5 to 2.5 pounds. Their wingspan is three to four feet. The females are larger than the males.

Their coloring is dark brown, chestnut red, and white; long yellow legs; and yellow markings on its face. 

Here’s is a link to All About Birds with their call: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Harriss_Hawk/sounds

A Harris’s Hawk on our backyard fence.

These hawks mate for life. They are very social birds and hunt in pairs and groups up to seven hawks. I have had six hawks in my backyard at once. When hunting, they may take turns chasing their prey and one bird may flush out their target while others will attack. They feed on small animals including lizards, rabbits, doves, quail and other birds.

A Harris’s Hawk taking off in flight.

A hawk in a tree in our backyard.

There were four hawks perched on this Century Plant at once, but I found the more exciting photo to be with one in flight and one hawk remaining on the plant.

Look for Joy

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Red sightings do give me joy. Always.

For Lent this year I am doing Pray40, which is on the Hallow app. On Sundays, Father Mike Schmitz gives a Bible reading and homily. Yesterday, the theme was “Looking for Joy.” Father Mike mentioned the following quote:

“Suspicion often creates what it suspects.” C.S. Lewis from the “Screwtape Letters.”

My major takeaway was that if we often find what we’re looking for. If we’re looking to be disappointed, most likely we will be. Distrust can be a self-fulfilling prophecy. I realized that life truly is what we make of it. It’s was a reminder that our attitudes can be our destiny. If we look for joy, we can find it.

I’m sharing some bits of joy I had this week, birdwatching at home:

The joyful couple together at the Bird Buddy AI feeder.

I watched as Red fed Mrs. and then gave her a turn at the feeder, but I wasn’t fast enough with the camera to capture it. It was heartwarming though!

Quail Egg Update:

I’ve only peeked a couple times on our quail nest. Last week I said we had four eggs. We’re now up to a dozen! I wrote about our quail nest HERE.

Where do you look for joy?

Birds Plus More Surgeries

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I was so excited to capture this photo of Red taking off the Ocotillo!

I’m going to the Bay Area to take care of my daughter post shoulder surgery. She has a repetitive use injury from swimming from kindergarten through college. Her practices in college added up to 12,000 yards of swimming per day.

I’ve been especially nervous and haven’t been sleeping well. There’s a back story to that, besides the anxiety and worry. (Ever since our last thunder and lightning storm our house alarm has been going of at 3 a.m. Now that I figured out how to get it to stop, my body is programmed to get up at 3 a.m.) Once awake, I worry about my upcoming trip and my daughter.

Mrs. giving a side-eye to another bird at the birdseed block.

I had an appointment with my orthopedic surgeon to take a last look at my ankle. I discussed my other foot with the doctor. My first visit to her was about the left foot, but she discovered my “sprain” was a break in the right ankle — and I was scheduled for emergency surgery.

Now we’re back to the original issue and I’ll have surgery after taking care of my daughter!

Here are more photos from my backyard buddies:

Gila woodpecker taking a turn on a flamingo.

I learned my chipmunks are really Harris Antelope Squirrels! Who knew?

Red’s turn on the flamingo.

The Beavertail sculpture is another favorite perch for Mrs.

This father quail keeps watch over his flock from the tree.

Red ignoring both flamingos and other backyard birds.

I’m afraid I’m at that age where my future will be lots of doctor visits. Hopefully no more surgeries.

Which photos do you like?

How is your week going?

Favorite Photos of the Week

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No surprise. Red is at the top of my list. I was getting a little worried. Mrs. and Red didn’t show up for most of the week. I sent my husband to the hardware store for sunflower seeds. Their favorite. Voila! They both arrived, although separately which makes me believe there is something going on in the nest.

Mrs. made a few appearances. The sunflower seeds did the trick!

Red sharing his favorite rock with a quail. Did you notice I caught a bird in flight? It’s a blur in front of the saguaro.

A male quail keeping watch over his family. Momma and baby below the bench.

A Cactus Wren on a cactus! This is the state bird of Arizona.

What a surprise. Yesterday two cacti bloomed.

Aren’t these gorgeous flowers?

This cactus is next to our driveway.

I had to get photos of the flowers because they only last for a day.

We planted a few bougainvillea. This one is purple and the others are pink. I can’t wait to see how they grow throughout the years

The bougainvillea add such a nice touch of color.

One more favorite photo of Red.

Do you have a favorite photo? If so, which one is it?

Any exciting plans for the weekend? We’ll be celebrating our 40th anniversary!

Sights from my backyard

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Friday I went to see my surgeon and she removed my cast! YAY! Then she put me in a heavy duty boot and told me to use my walker and walk around the house and outside with 50% weight on my right leg. The other thing she said was I could take a shower beginning Sunday with no huge plastic sleeve topped with saran wrap on my leg. WOOHOO!

It’s the little things like semi-walking and taking a shower that are making my days!

Part of my morning routine, after coffee and writing three pages, is to venture outside. I sit for about 45 minutes to an hour watching and listening to my birds. I also listen to the Hallow app on my phone. I’m listening to a podcast on it called “Bible in a Year.” I’m on day 180. I find this to be a peaceful and helpful way to approach my day. I was so over being laid up last Thursday that I didn’t want to do anything. Getting outside plus listening to this app and my birds has helped me over the hump.

Here are a few sights from my backyard:

Here’s a honeysuckle I took with my iphone while sitting outside.

Here’s a selfie of me in my sundress and boot with my walker.

Aloe in bloom next to honeysuckle.

One lone blossom on top of a saguaro.

What little things or moments in your day make it special?

Is it nesting time?

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One of my blogging friends, from Brilliant Viewpoint, suggested that I put water out for my backyard birds. I told her that the doves like to get on the pool float and drink water. I said I’d post a photo, so here it is! FYI, I also ordered a bird bath from Amazon, but so far no birds have used it.

I was distressed the other day because it was a rare day that I didn’t see Red at all. He made an appearance the next day. Talk about relief! However, he didn’t stick around like he usually does and I didn’t see Mrs.

I read about cardinals and their mating and nesting times. I believe they have a nest in a Teddy Bear cactus (cholla) in the wash behind our house. I’ve seen them fly in and out. It’s a very protected space with the prickly plant offering a barrier to predators.

It’s the right time of year for Red and Mrs. to have babies. They start building their nest as early as January and start nesting and laying eggs as early as April and as late as August. June seems ideal. The female builds the nest, lays the eggs and incubates them. The male forages for food. Part of the mating ritual is the male feeds the female. I’ve seen a lot of that lately. Red looks like he’s kissing Mrs. but he’s giving her a nice sunflower seed — one of their favorites.

Red feeding the Mrs.

Here’s a cholla in the neighborhood that has a nest tucked away inside it. You can see how protected the nest would be. You can’t see the nest, unless you’re in person, looking closeup.

Other interesting things I learned about Cardinals: They mate for life. The female lays from one to five eggs, usually three. She may lay eggs three times a year. Also, the male feeds her and the babies up until two weeks after they leave the nest. The males sing or chirp loudly to define their territory and to ward off other cardinals.

Yes, I think I’m not seeing much of Red and Mrs. because they are starting a family.

Here’s a video of Red and Mrs. You can see Red feeding Mrs. a sunflower!

Here’s to week two post surgery with a post op appointment on Friday!

What are you looking forward to this week?