Wednesday, February 17, 2016

Would You Like to See What I Spotted On Our Trip to the SW USA? Here's the Fauna!

Taken at the Petrified Forest National Monument, AZ
Chihuahuan Raven


The following photos were taken at the Grand Canyon area, AZ
Mule Deer (the misses)

Mule deer (the misters)

Bull Elk

Dark-eyed Junco ("Oregon")

The photos below were taken in Mesa, AZ
Curved-bill Thrasher

Great-tailed Grackle (silhouette)

Abert's Towhee

Male House Finch

Verdin 
(I was so proud to catch this photo!  They are QUICK!)

Gila Woodpecker

Collard Dove 

Hmmmm?

Hmmm...Hmmm?

Another photo of the Collard Dove

The photos below were taken at the Riparian Preserve at Water Ranch in Gilbert, AZ
Anna's Hummingbird

Anna's Hummingbird

White-crowned Sparrow


Ruddy Duck

Mallards

Desert Cottontail

?  Cute photos!  ?


Not a good photo, but the best I could get. (a Merlin?)

Gambel's Quail

My favorite photo of a Verdin

 Great White Egret (with a domestic duck...)

Sandpiper?

Black-necked Stilt

Cormorant?
(Sad picture... dove underwater and stayed there a long time.  Unpredictable where he surfaced.)

Male Belted Kingfisher (sad photo)

Green-winged Teal

Hooded Merganser

? (Turtle)


Inca Dove (It's small!)

Taken in Tucson, AZ
When I saw it, I was sure it was a Warbler...? What about a Lesser Goldfinch?   Click on the photos to enlarge and see it better.

The birds below were photographed at the Sonora Desert Museum, Tucson, AZ
Male Anna's Hummingbird

Anna's Hummingbird? (Female)




Curve-billed Thrasher

The following photos were taken from my cousin's house in Tucson.

Who is this cute little guy?

Western Scrub Jay (I think) in the shade.
Assuming this is the same bird... just in a bit of sunshine!

American Tree Sparrow


My!  I had a wonderful time photographing the birds!!  And learning new-to-me ones!  :-)

8 comments:

troutbirder said...

What a great collection. I enjoyed them all! Thanks Shady...:)

Pat said...

Looks like a one of a kind trip. Arizona has a lot to offer but I never seen so many different kinds of birds. You sure were busy with the camera and very lucky capturing them with your camera. Nice job !

Unknown said...

Lovely collection and great photos...a nice way to remember your trip.

Shady Gardener said...

Troutbirder, Oh, it was fun seeing, and learning the names of, these birds!! We had a wonderful vacation! Thanks for stopping by!

Shady Gardener said...

Hi, Patsi! We did enjoy a one of a kind trip! We were gone, believe it or not, for four weeks!!! Enjoyed several national parks/monuments as well!! :-) Thanks for stopping, gardening friend!

Shady Gardener said...

Hi, Jodi! You are right. Enjoying the birds was one of my major highlights! Just getting "away from it all" was also a highlight. :-) Thanks for visiting and leaving your comment! :-)

Corner Gardener Sue said...

Hi Shady,
I enjoyed your photos of the plants and animals from your travels. Wow, that's quite an assortment!

Thanks for visiting my last post. Our winter was mild, and quite a few plants are coming up. The hellebores, crocus, and pasque flowers are blooming. We were in the upper 70s today, and I got some garden clean up done, but the wind slowed me down. It is supposed to be warm again tomorrow, with the possibility of a record high. I think the last one was 75, or something like that. I hope to get more done tomorrow. I don't think it is supposed to get as windy. Oh, I just heard we missed today's record high by 2 degrees.

What's your weather like?

Shady Gardener said...

Sue, I've been pleasantly perplexed by our Winter weather these past 3-4 years... Perplexed, but pleasantly!! ha. We are just now having everything sprouting in the gardens. The heirloom, tiny crocus have begun blooming in the front yard. Yea! They didn't often get a chance in past years, due to the remaining snow heaped over them from the driveway! Happy Spring, Sue!!