Raptors: Part VII

The Crested Caracara is another carrion eating bird, though not as large as the Turkey or Black Vulture, but still larger the the Red Tail Hawk. It is actually in the Falcon family. The Crested Caracara is not nearly as common as either of the Vultures. Their range is quite small, just "inching" their way into the extreme Southcentral part of Arizona, and Southcentral Texas. They usually don't fly in great numbers either, a much more solitary bird. This makes them much harder to find and to photograph. The first one I saw was perched on a dead saguaro along with a Raven. It was Christine who noticed them. Unfortunately, by the time I got the camera out the Raven was gone. I got two photos of the Crested Caracara before he took off. Only one of those photos was "half decent". I have seen one on a few other occasions: once in a tree at too great a distance to get a good photo; once in a tree fairly close, but my photo was slightly out of focus; once flying with several Black Vultures, and then this one perched on a saguaro, clearly the best of my Caracara photos.

Raptors: Part VI

Black Vultures are a little smaller than Turkey Vultures. Their range is the Southeastern United Staes cutting through Southern Texas, Mexico, and a far south as Chile, but with a sliver coming up from Mexico into the southernmost part of Arizona. Unlike the Turkey Vulture, the Black Vulture will eat eggs and kill small newborn animals.  They too, are usually silent, lacking a syrinx.  Here is one I photographed while looking for Crested Caracara:

Although their wingtips are white they lack the white on the lower underside. Their wings are shorter in comparison to their body than the Turkey Vulture. The result is a quicker, choppier wingbeat than the Turkey Vulture. Here is one I photographed in the Galiuro Mountains of Arizona while looking for Coatimundi:

Raptors: Part V

Turkey Vultures are found throughout North, Central, and South America. They lack a syrinx so make almost no sound (contrary to some "cowboy" films that have dubbed hawk calls over the Vultures flight to make them scarier). Unaffectionately called "Buzzards" by some,  even the word "vulture" is used negatively in everyday language. Yet in real life, they serve a most useful role. They don't kill anything, They eat already dead animals whose decay would have the potential of spreading disease. Fortunately, they are protected by the 1918 Migratory Act here in the US.

Turkey Vultures are quite graceful in their flight. They use "thermals" to move through the air, which makes flapping their wings unnecessary most of the time. So, they have the appearance of "gliding."

Turkey vultures are carrion eating birds, finding their meals through keen vision and sense of smell (of decaying animals). If a very large animal has dead -- a cow, for example -- sooner or later you might find 50 or 100 Vultures eating or circling above. Here you can see one feeding on a dead coyote.

They have a long wingspan, though not as long as the Condor or Eagles. In comparison to the most common of hawks, the Red Tail Hawk, it length is about seven inches longer, and wingspan about 18 inches longer. They will often perch and spread out their wings to dry the wings and warm the body:

They are often found in large groups, not just when eating but when roosting. This is especially true in early morning before they set out to look for food. Here is a tree that had 25 or so:

Raptors: Part IV

With the largest wingspan of any North American bird at over nine feet, the California Condor is quite a sight. But although it is one of the longest living birds at 50 years, the Condor is extremely rare with less than 200 living in the wild. Their concentration is limited to just a couple of areas where captive birds have been released and begun to bred. One of those areas is Grand Canyon, another the Vermillion Cliffs just north of Grand Canyon. Here are a couple taken at Grand Canyon:

Raptors: Part III

While Bald Eagle prefer fish, Golden Eagles prefer small mammals and birds. And, while Bald Eagles are found throughout most of the US (except Southern Arizona) Golden Eagles are mainly found in the West. I remember heading through Nevada to Southeastern Oregon and Hart Mountain (looking for Pronghorn). I was in such a hurry I passed by two Golden Eagles eating something in an open field only twenty yards from the highway. Why didn't I stop?  I could kick myself. The lesson is, if you see a potential photo: STOP. Take one. Take two. You never know when or even if you'll get another chance as good. Here are my best:

This Golden Eagle from Central Oregon

This one from Northwest Washington

Cactus Blossoms

We take a break from Raptors due to the flowering of our Peruvian Cactus. It happens quickly, and disappears just as quickly. The Cactus itself is similar to Organ Pipe Cactus it that there is a base and single unbranched "stalks" come up from the base. Ours is about 12 feet high with nine stalks. There are about 50 flowers eight inches long and five inches in diameter. Here are some photos taken yesterday:

Raptors: Part II

Bald Eagles were one of the first birds I photographed. This was before digital and before I had a plan of what I was going to do with my photography. My first "professional" camera was a Minolta APS back in 1996. What a great idea, a film cartridge that holds the negatives after they have been developed. I needed to get in on this new technology. But, before long I had over 1,000 cartridges and not a very good system for organizing them. You could get "boxes" that looked much like a VHS Tape Box, with the ability to store (I can't remember) maybe 20 cartridges. By 1998, I had graduated to the Canon EOS 1V 35mm camera, and by 2006 finally, the Canon 5D digital. Thank goodness for digital, photoshop, and organizing software like iPhoto. But, unfortunately, many of my APS photos ended up in the world's "lost and found"along with every pen I've ever bought.  So, I have to live with many fond memories of photos no longer in hand. I remember eight Bald Eagles standing in a flooded field alongside a back road to Roche Lake in British Columbia. I was able to get within 25 yards of them. But the photos are gone. There was also a time along the Skagit River in Northwest Washington where I got several photos of 30 to 40 Bald Eagles in the same tree. Even so, I have a few more to show you:

This is a juvenile Bald Eagle in his second year (the white molting is the key to its age)

Here, of course, is the adult

Bald Eagles are often found in pairs, especially in the winter, as the last three photos show: