Wildlife of The Azure Gate Bed and Breakfast - Part VII

Continuing with wildlife photos I've taken here at The Azure Gate Bed and Breakfast since the Pandemic started and we began "staying at home":

Harris Hawk

Lark Sparrow

Female Lesser Goldfinch

Lesser Goldfinches feasting on Saguaro Blossoms

Male Lesser Goldfinch

Lucy's Warbler

Mallard Ducks enjoying our Swimming Pool

Birding the San Pedro River

The San Pedro River offers wonderful year round birding. Springtime brings migrants - the orioles and tanagers are always photographable. Yet it offers a wide variety of other birds as well:

black chinned sparrow singing away at 6:00 am

black headed grosbeak

common ground dove

green tailed towhee

lark sparrow

the seemingly always present western screech owl

white crowned sparrow

and the occasional white tailed deer

Birding Patagonia Lake

Patagonia Lake is a good birding spot for both waterbirds and riparian birds since a creek runs both into and out of the lake. Here are a few of the day's photos:

Cardinal

Lake Sparrow

Snowy Egret

Spotted Sandpiper

Vermillion Flycatcher

White Faced Ibis

Great Egret and White Faced Ibis

Zone Tailed Hawk

Catching Up: Lark Sparrow

The Lark Sparrow is fairly common throughout the Western United States. Although most sparrows get "classified" as LBBs (little brown birds), the Lark Sparrow actually is quite striking in its head pattern. It is common in open grassy areas with scattered trees usually foraging in the grasses.

Lark Sparrow

Las Cienegas Desert Grasslands - Part IIAmeri

And, finally a few more nice photos from the Desert Grasslands of Las Cienegas:

American Kestrel

Botteri's Sparrow

Cassin's Kingbird

Blue Grosbeak

Lark Sparrow

Western Kingbird

Birding Green Valley

Yesterday, I headed south looking specifically for the Rufous Capped Warbler at Pena Blanca Lake, the Sinaloa Wren on the Juan Bautista de Anza Trail, and the Pacific Loon in Green Valley.

As can often be the case, no luck on those, although I did get the Pacific Loon at the Amado STP. Unfortunately, you can only view from the west so the morning light is terrible. Add the problem of not being able to get close because of the fence and the photos didn't turn out very well. I'll include one to let you see what I mean.

However, as is often the case, I did come back with some other photos. While there wasn't the Pacific Loon on the Golf Course pond in Green Valley there were 10-15 Canvasbacks and one beautiful male Wood Duck. I was there first thing in the morning (36 degrees) and with the mist coming off the lake got some wonderful shots.

Canvasbacks

Great Egret

Great Egret

Great Blue Heron

Wood Duck

Wood Duck

Lark Sparrow in a Mesquite Tree by the pond

Pacific Loon at Amado STP

Ash Canyon in Early Spring

Still not an abundance of Hummingbirds yet in the Madrean Sky Islands of Southern Arizona. The Ash Canyon B&B is at the foot of Ash Canyon and an excellent spot for birding including the best spot in the US for the Lucifer Hummingbird (which I have shown before). No Lucifer on Tuesday. In fact, not a lot of Hummers. There was a male Magnificent that came around twice; a few Black Chinned; a few Anna's, and a few Broad Billed. But, as usual the day was not lost.  The gorgeous Lazuli Buntings were there along with the playful Lark Sparrow and Scott's Oriole. Here are some of the photos:

Lazuli Bunting

House Finch

Lark Sparrow

Pyrrhuloxia Male

Rufous Crowned Sparrow

Scotts Oriole Female

Broad Billed Hummingbird