Snowy Egret

Sometimes a "5" Star Photo comes when you don't expect it. I was traveling through Imperial National Wildlife Refuge before they (opinion) stopped being a refuge for wildlife*, and came across this Snowy Egret. It was windy, he was a bit too far with no access, and yet a wonderful photo:

Snowy Egret

* In 2013 Imperial NWR rounded up 350 Wild Burros and sent them to slaughter houses. They rounded up 30 Desert Bighorn Sheep and moved them to the Catalina Mountains. And, then they opened up the refuge to All Terrain Vehicles for recreational purposes. END OF WILDLIFE REFUGE! It's too bad. It was one of my favorite places.

The Last of the Feral Burros

The last of my "5" Star Feral Burro photos is a mother and colt taken at Imperial National Wildlife Refuge. I have to repeat myself, these really are beautiful wild animals. I is so exciting to see them in the wild  --- and to develop a momentary relationship with them.

Feral Burro

Feral Burro Family

Continuing with my "5" Star Photos in general and Feral Burros in particular, we come to one of my favorite photos. This little colt looked like a stuffed toy from FAO Schwartz in NYC. And, since I am a sucker for stuffed animals the photo is endearing to me.

Feral Burros at Imperial National Wildlife Refuge

Imperial National Wildlife Refuge - A Sad Story

I have been to over 40 National Wildlife Refuges, mostly in the Western United States. And, Imperial NWR had been my favorite. Had been. Now it is a sad reminder of what it was.

Two things have changed. First, someone in the NWR System approved the roundup and slaughter of 350 Feral Burros from the Refuge. This represented about 90% of the Refuge population of Burros and 10% of the US population of Burros.

The NWR System was established in 1903 by Teddy Roosevelt to protect wildlife. The slaughter of 350 large mammals certainly seems counter to that purpose. I could go on about the "political" aspects of this, but I'll just say this:

Of all my wildlife photos, two photos of Burros from Imperial NWR have been customer favorites. Here they are:

Feral Burro Family

Feral Burros walking

In all likelihood, these beautiful Burros shown in the photos above are now dead, killed by the very people entrusted to protect them.  

The second aspect of this Sad Story is that the Imperial National Wildlife Refuge has become a recreational area. In my three days there (this week) I saw NO Feral Burros and NO Desert Bighorn Sheep. No Deer. Not even a Jackrabbit. What I saw were a dozen or more ATVs, ten or so Dirt Bikers, and a ten car Jeep party all buzzing through the Refuge on its only road. 

Here are a couple of Bighorn photos I have taken in the past from Imperial:

Desert Bighorn Ram

Desert Bighorn Ewe

But this trip: NONE

Imperial NWR is no longer a quiet, pristine, beautiful site where a lover of wildlife can usually find Burros and Bighorns. Not even a Jackrabbit will go within a mile of that road now.

I suspect it will be a long time before I go back to Imperial  ----------  IF EVER.

Photo Trip: Imperial National Wildlife Refuge

Imperial National Wildlife Refuge runs along the Arizona side of the Colorado River for about 30 miles; some 25,000 acres including several backwater lakes and marshes. It was established in 1941 to protect wintering migratory waterbirds. Here are two photos, first looking to the north along the river, and then to the south:

Colorado River north

Colorado River south

As you can see there is much vegetation along the river, but after that it becomes a series of lava plateaus and mountain ranges. Although INWR is known for its wintering birds, I go there because it offers the highest probability of seeing Feral Burros and Desert Bighorn Sheep. 

There is one dirt road through the refuge. It runs for about five miles and then goes into a slice of the Yuma Proving Ground for another five miles, and then finally another four miles to the Red Cloud Mine  -- a long forgotten silver and mineral mine from the 1870's. The road is a 4x4 only and at various places goes into a very sandy wash.  Driving from the Visitor's Center to the Mine and back takes two to three hours depending on how much time is spent photographing Bighorns and Burros.  I made two trips out and back Monday afternoon and then two more trips out and back Tuesday Morning. On my first trip shortly after turning around at the Red Cloud Mine I looked up into the mountains and saw a "white rump." Experience told me this was a Bighorn Sheep. The first photo is what it looked like to the "naked eye.":

The next photo with a 100 mm lens:

 And, then with a 400mm lens:

As you can see he knew I was there and was checking me out --- just as I was checking him out. I had several other wonderful experiences getting much closer. More tomorrow!

A Most Reliable Spot

Wildlife photographers must learn where to look for certain animals or migrating birds. It has taken a while for me to find the best spot for Feral (wild) Burros. I had read about certain spots where they might be found. But, it wasn't until Imperial National Wildlife Refuge when I saw so many tracks that I realized that was the best place. Over the years Burros have created trails that are clearly visible. The next task was to discover the best time of day.  The first two times I visited INWR it was mid-morning or mid-afternoon. The third visit was early morning and I came across six Burros following each other in single file on one of the Burro trails. But late afternoon two hours before sunset has turned out most reliable. Here are several of the photos I took on this latest trip:

Searching Again for Desert Bighorns

Christine had a very early flight to Seattle, so after dropping her off at the Tucson Airport I proceeded to Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument. They have this wonderful 22 mile unimproved dirt/rocky road through the Ajo Mountains. There is spectacular scenery and great closeup views of the rugged mountain peaks. I got there by 7:30 AM, so thought I had a good chance of seeing some Desert Bighorn Sheep. But, no. Great drive, but no luck. So, I went on to Cabeza Prieta. I took a couple different drives looking for Feral (wild) Burros, but no luck there either. So, now on to Imperial National Wildlife Refuge on the Colorado River, just north of Yuma. As I am driving through (truly on 4x4 high clearance good tire road) I came across a couple of Army guys who were there setting up targets in the Yuma Proving Ground adjacent to the refuge. They were kind enough to show me where they had spotted several sheep. As we got to that point there was still one Ewe in sight so I took this photo:

We parted company as I continued on my search for the Desert Bighorns. Again, not much luck. So the next morning, I get up at 3:30 AM (in Yuma) so I can be exactly where I want to be (at INWR) the moment the sun comes up (5:00 AM). It's 67 degrees now, but by 8:00 AM it will be 90 degrees, and by 11:00 it will be 109 degrees. I've got the top off the Jeep so I can get a good view of the mountain slopes. While I saw a few Wild Burros, no Sheep. So, I continued on to Kofa National Wildlife Refuge. They have 600-800 Bighorns in those mountains. This is a rugged rocky drive. Reminds me of James Bond, "shaken not stirred". I spent several hours at Kofa NWR but again, no luck. So, I decided to go back to Imperial. As I was just at the point where Imperial NWR becomes Yuma Proving Ground, I ran into the same Army guys. They had found where a couple of Ewes had bedded down. Here's the photo:

Normally, I would toss a photo like this, but in this case it tells the story. I am using a 400 mm super telephoto lens. You can get an idea of how difficult it can be in spotting Bighorns. (There are two Ewes in this photo). Determined to do better than this, I pressed on. Near the end of the Yuma Proving Ground, just as it becomes BLM land, I came across a Ewe at close range:

I had to be quick, because within seconds, she was up over that ridge and out of sight. I did climb the ridge and spotted her again, but by that time she was three hundred yards away up the mountain slope. A few minutes later, (it's about 6:30 PM), I finally found what I really wanted:

This Ram was lying down on the mountain slope away from the sun. That meant I was standing in the sun looking at him. I needed to find an angle where the mountain would block the sun. That was this photo. But, I realized that he wasn't the slightest bit phased by me, so I decided to do a little climbing. I continued to the point of getting this (and several other photos):

I said "thank you" to him, I hope he understood, and left him exactly where I found him. Persistence paid off. Tomorrow, some of the Wild Burro photos.

Two more photos from Imperial NWR

I came across this female with her colt as I was hiking in one of the washes at Imperial National Wildlife Refuge (on the Colorado River) in Southwestern Arizona. It was a challenge to get a clear photo as they were running through the vegetation. But, there is something about it that I like. The second photo is a Western Diamondback Rattlesnake I came upon. Snakes are difficult to photograph when they are stretch out. You have to get back too far to get the entire snake, but it then looks too small. But, when coiled or wound sideways, like this one, it can turn out to be a nice photo. This rattlesnake seemed perfectly content to stay exactly how he is in the photo. I came across him like that. And, I left him like that.

Imperial National Wildlife Refuge: Feral Burros: Part II

Here are four new Feral Burro photos just taken on my trip to Imperial National Wildlife Refuge.  When you come upon a group of them they tend to bunch up: the three in the top photo, and then the six in the second photo. I suspect that is a defense mechanism, making them look larger and more formidable to predators.  They range in color from dark chocolate (third photo) to light grey (last photo) and everything in between. Feral Burros are found within a hundred miles of the Colorado River (between California and Arizona) and then up into Nevada. There is controversy about their existence. Some argue that the population is increasing and destroying important vegetation for other wild animals and cattle. They further argue that since Burros are not native they should be removed (another word for destroyed/killed). Of course they are no less native than farm raised cattle, sheep, or goats. (And, no less native than a lot of "Americans." And, I would point out that the human population is also increasing and destroying important vegetation for wild animals). There are less than 10,000 wild burros in the United States. In comparison there are over 20 million deer in the US. Most Burros live in wilderness areas where the temperatures soar over 100 degrees frequently. It is not exactly prime real estate.  I see Burros as beautiful. I marvel at the freedom they now enjoy. I get excited when I see them, and would rather let mother nature determine their path. I don't mind trying to protect and preserve endangered populations of any animal. But even that requires careful study and thoughtful decisions. However, choosing one over another I would rather leave to nature itself.

SUCCESS!!!!! Desert Bighorn Sheep

Finally, success in finding the Desert Bighorn Sheep in the wild. I had mentioned before that I have found Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep in the White Mountains of Arizona, but never the Desert Bighorns. They always seemed more elusive. Desert Bighorn Sheep have adapted to the desert and are quite unlike their Rocky Mountain cousins. The Desert Bighorn Sheep can go three weeks without water. That means they can stay high up in the mountains far from sight most of the time. I had looked many times in many places: Cabeza Prieta, Cibola, Imperial, and Kofa National Wildlife Refuges, Barry Goldwater Range, Yuma Proving Ground, and Organ Pipe Cactus National Park, all of which have fairly substantial populations (200 to 800). What you have to do is put yourself in the place with the most potential; meaning: time of year, time of day, and rugged mountainous terrain. This time the Yuma Proving Ground just north of Imperial NWR was the answer. There is but one road into this area starting at Imperial NWR. After about five miles (through Imperial) you reach a desolate area of the YPG. This is a 4x4 high clearance "road" only. Definitely not for the faint of heart. I had done this three times before without luck. The first time I blew out a tire and had to return 115 miles to the nearest city (Yuma) to get it replaced. The next two times I made it all the way to where the road dead ends. This is gorgeous country. And I had it all to myself.  (I have never seen another person or vehicle in this area.) You drive up into the mountains. The mountains aren't tall, maybe 200-400 feet above the ground level. But, they are very rugged which makes them perfect bighorn terrain. Each time I had gone through this one spot, I would say "if I were a bighorn sheep, I would want to be here."  This time they were exactly were I thought they would be. And, not just a couple of ewes. Three magnificent rams! The first photo was one of the first I took. I watched them for about 45 minutes. They were very cautious of me at first, but as you can see from the third photo, they became comfortable enough with me to start eating again. I did drive out to the end of the road again seeing one more ram at a much further distance. I don't have the words to say how excited I was in finally finding these beautiful creatures in the wild. NOTE: There is a wonderful book, "Counting Sheep: 20 Ways of Seeing Desert Bighorn" which is a collection of 20 essays from writers who also love nature and wildlife and who went out searching (some finding) the desert bighorns.