Best Wildlife Photos of 2016: Lucy's Warbler

This Lucy's Warbler wanted to show me the worm he had caught. Lucy's is the smallest of the warbler family. It has a chestnut rump (which is not always visible) which she wanted to show me as well:

Lucy's Warbler with Worm

Best Wildlife Photos of 2016: Hooded Oriole

A pair of Hooded Orioles nested here at The Azure Gate Bed and Breakfast this year. And here is a juvenile male that resulted. He's sitting on a Fan Palm which is one of the Hooded Oriole's favorite resting spots:

Juvenile Male Hooded Oriole

Best Wildlife Photos of 2016: Grey Hawk

The Grey Hawk is rare visitor to the United States. Typically only found close to the US/Mexico boarder in southeast Arizona and the extreme southern tip of Texas. Over the years I have photographed a few. Here is one from this year that I particularly like:

Grey Hawk

Best Wildlife Photos of 2016: Green Heron

This was an even more difficult choice. Sweetwater Wetlands is a very good place to search for the elusive little Green Heron. And while I don't find one every time I visit there, I've done so enough to get some very nice photos. I'll let you be the judge which is "the best."

Best Wildlife Photos of 2016: Grace's Warbler

Up next is Grace's Warbler, a small warbler that lives primarily above 7,000 feet in the tops of ponderosa pines. As such it is not an easy find -- nor an easy photograph. I couldn't decide between two photos I took this year of a Grace's on Mount Lemmon. In the first, the Grace's is nestled in a Ponderosa pine cluster and I love how the yellow breast shines through the cluster. In the second photo the Grace's is perched out in the open (again on a ponderosa pine branch) and I was able to get very fine detail. So here are both:

Grace's Warbler

Grace's Warbler

Best Wildlife Photos of 2016: Elegant Trogon

The Elegant Trogon is a prized bird from Mexico and Central America that in the past few years has extended its yearly range into the southernmost mountains of Arizona. Found near mountain stream beds containing Sycamore Trees, it is a large colorful bird that "barks" like a seal. This one I photographed in what I believe is the most reliable place to find one --- Huachuca Canyon inside Fort Huachuca.

Male Elegant Trogon

Best Wildlife Photos of 2016: Cooper's Hawk

The Cooper's Hawk is commonly seen here at The Azure Gate --- as is a pile of dove or quail feathers under one of our trees. This photo, however, was taken in Tanque Verde wash as Christine and I traversed the water filled wash:

Adult Cooper's Hawk