Sonoran Desert – Page 73

Hello Gila

One of the birds I was hoping to see once we moved to Arizona was the Gila woodpecker. It only took a couple of weeks, and my second time hiking, to find one, courtesy of the Gateway Loop Trail at McDowell Sonoran Preserve. My first Gila was a ways off but after finishing the loop I found this female atop a saguaro on the Bajada Nature Trail. I’ve since seen one in our backyard but wasn’t able to get a picture. The Gila is one of 14 new species for me since we moved here a few weeks ago (11 birds, 1 mammal, and 2 lizards).

Prickly Perch

A curve-billed thrasher perches atop a saguaro at the Bajada Nature Trail in the McDowell Sonoran Preserve. This was the second thrasher I saw that morning, a new species for me.

The Way of the Sun

Now That’s a Magnificent Nose

Between a Rock and Hot Place

A lovely palo verde grows beside the large rocks of a boulder field at Pinnacle Peak Park, I am constantly amazed at the places life can flourish. The Sonoran Desert is so lovely bathed in the soft morning light.

Dawn in the Desert

Worshipers of the Sun

Old saguaros, arms raised to greet the rising sun.

Stretched in All Directions

As soon as I arrived in Arizona for my interview in February I was struck by the green trees I saw as I drove around town. The palo verde is the state tree of Arizona, the green in the bark contains chlorophyll so they can use both bark and leaves for photosynthesis. I came across this one shortly before sunrise when I visited Pinnacle Peak Park in Scottsdale. We have accomplished a lot in the past six weeks but there is still a lot to do, I feel a bit like this tree, sprawling in all directions, a bit worse for the wear, but still standing, still growing.

Welcome to Arizona

It’s been a busy week since we moved to Arizona but now it was time for some fun. I got up at 5 a.m. this morning (that wasn’t fun) and headed to Pinnacle Peak Park, the park I visited the day after I interviewed in February but now with time to hike the entire trail instead of just sampling hiking in the desert. As soon as I hit the trail, before the sun even rose above the horizon, I met this cactus wren perched on a large saguaro with the moon in the background, my first new wildlife species in our new home.

What a beautiful welcome to Arizona.

Hello Arizona, Let’s Dance

With you little cholla I will dance at a distance, you are called the jumping cactus for a reason, exaggerated though it may be. But dance we shall.