Favorite Wildlife Photos from 2018 - I

I thought I would share my "favorite" wildlife photos of 2018, so ...


First up, a Belted Kingfisher :

Belted Kingfisher at Lake Cochise

Lake Cochise

I drove over to Lake Cochise in Willcox looking for the Northern Waterthrush (one of the few Arizona Warblers I've not photographed).

No luck with the warbler, but as usual did come away with some nice photos:

Black Necked Stilt, American Avocet, and Western Sandpiper

Belted Kingfisher

Belted Kingfisher

Black Crowned Night Heron, Juvenile

Black Necked Stilt

Great Blue Heron

Great Blue Heron

Wilson's Phalarope

Yellow Headed Blackbird

Las Cienegas National Conservation Area

One of my favorite places in Southern Arizona is Las Cienegas -- the home of Empire Ranch -- and about 50 western movies of old.

It's a great place for sparrows, kingbirds, and meadowlarks. They're everywhere. There is the Cottonwood Pond which can attract some rarities (Black Bellied Whistling Duck and Rosette Spoonbill to name a couple).  It also has a wonderful riparian wetland called Empire Gulch. And it's not just birds. Over the years I've seen Pronghorn, Deer, Javelina, Coyote, Rattlesnakes, Jackrabbits, and Black Tailed Prairie Dogs. 

Here are some photos from my trip earlier this week:

Belted Kingfisher

Black Tailed Prairie Dog

Pronghorn

Raven

Red Tailed Hawk

Vermillion Flycatcher

Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge: other birds

Around Lake Aguirre we found a few other birds, although I was so "focused" on finding and photographing the Spoonbills, I sort of neglected the other birds we saw. I did get a few photos, some better than others, but here are the better ones:

Belted Kingfishers always look a bit odd to me, like a cartoon character with their head and massive bill as big as the rest of their body (well, not quite):

Belted Kingfisher

Then there were some Ibises with some debate as to whether they were "just" White Faced Ibises or the much rarer Glossy Ibis. The White Faced has a red eye and upon examination it does seem like one or more has a reddish eye. Yet some of the eyes appear to be black. Is it possible? Well, I think if the Roseate Spoonbills were sent off course by the hurricanes, why not the Glossy Ibis too? Where their territories overlap they are known to mingle.

White Faced and Glossy Ibis

 A bit of a surprise to see a Prairie Falcon by water, but I guess they need an occasional drink too:

Prairie Falcon

Nearby was a family of Harrier Hawks -- I think the parents were teaching the young ones how to hunt:

Harrier Hawk

 Several Warblers including McGillivray's, Wilson's, Lucy's, and Orange Crowned. Here's the Orange Crowned:

Orange Crowned Warbler

Finally just as we were leaving the Refuge one of many Western Kingbirds caught my eye and wanted a photo taken:

Western Kingbird

A Rainy Day at Sweetwater Wetlands

Catching up from last month's Best Wildlife Photos of 2016, I'll start with a quick trip to Sweetwater Wetlands; quick, because shortly after I arrived and was at the far end of the Wetlands it started raining.

Nonetheless, I did come away with some photos; some better than others. The first, a Belted Kingfisher shows the difficulty in photographing birds sometimes. Often when they see you they immediately fly away, never to be seen again. All I got was a blurr:

Belted Kingfisher

There was a Black Crowned Night Heron -- not as often seen at Sweetwater:

Black Crowned Night Heron

The more secretive Common Gallinule showed himself momentarily:

Common Gallinule

The Cooper's Hawks (as well as the Sharp Shins) were out and about. This one I took in the pouring rain:

Cooper's Hawk

 A Great Egret did a flyby:

Great Egret

 And, the Ruddy Ducks -- seen more often in the winter months -- were in most of the ponds:

Ruddy Duck

All in all, a nice, short, wet morning birding and photographing at Sweetwater.

More from Pena Blanca Lake

As I mentioned we didn't find the Green Kingfisher, but did find a nice Belted Kingfisher who allowed me some nice photos:

Belted Kingfisher

Lots to see at Whitewater Draw

Yesterday I checked out Whitewater Draw in Southeast Arizona. Whitewater Draw is most famous for its wintering Sandhill Cranes. About 1,000 have already arrived. By January, there should be 30,000 to 40,000. But, as for yesterday, they were really too far away for a good photo. But, all was not lost. Lots of other photos:

White Faced Ibis

Cattle Egret and Long Billed Curlews

Great Egret

Belted Kingfisher

Least Sandpiper

Great Blue Heron

Eared Grebe

Clark's Grebe

Loggerhead Shrike

Ferruginous Hawk