On the Road is a weekday feature spotlighting reader photo submissions.
From the exotic to the familiar, whether you’re traveling or in your own backyard, we would love to see the world through your eyes.
Albatrossity
My god, the country is going to hell not in a handbasket, but in a flaming dumpster full of orange pancake makeup and court orders that have apparently been used as toilet paper. Has there ever been a country that went so bad so fast? Maybe American exceptionalism is not all it’s cracked up to be…
Anyhoo, it’s Monday, and I have more pictures of Arizona birds to show you, and the rest of the week will be whatever the rest of the week will be. Hopefully this will be at least one island of calm in your week.
Feeders at the Cave Creek Ranch were many and varied, as I mentioned above. One nice variation was a blob of peanut butter smeared on the bark of a pine tree, and that attracted lots of different kinds of birds, including this female Ladder-backed Woodpecker (Dryobates scalaris). These are midway between Hairy and Downy Woodpeckers size-wise, but they sound remarkably like a Downy Woodpecker to me. And they love peanut butter! Click here for larger image.
Like the males of many woodpecker species, the male Ladder-backed Woodpecker can be identified because he has a nice patch of red on his head. The sexes are indistinguishable with regard to their fondness for peanut butter, however. Click here for larger image.
I was surprised to see this Verdin (Auriparus flaviceps) at the peanut better lick, but he was a return customer throughout the morning. This active cutie is usually insectivorous but can be found at suet and peanut butter offerings if available. It is also the only North American member of the family Remizidae, which includes the penduline tits of Europe and Africa (Eurasian Penduline-Tit, for example). And yes, that really is the name of the group, which includes lots of tiny active birds. Click here for larger image.
An equally cute and charming bird, in my opinion, is the Bridled Titmouse (Baeolophus wollweberi), a species whose range is primarily in the mountains of Mexico, but which can also be found in the mountains of Arizona and New Mexico. They were abundant in the Chiricahuas, but I don’t think I will ever get tired of seeing them. Click here for larger image.
One of the specialty birds at the ranch, the Blue-throated Mountain-gem (Lampornis clemenciae) is the largest hummingbird regularly found in the USA, weighing in at about 3X the weight of the Ruby-throated Hummingbird that graces the yards and feeders or the eastern US. This is an aggressive defender of feeders, which should make it easy to photograph, but it is also very shade-loving. This female is sorta in the light, and is showing off one of the better field marks for this species, the broad white tips of the outer tail feathers. Click here for larger image.
Side view of another female Blue-throated Mountain-gem, showing another good field mark, the broad and distinct white post-ocular stripe and the less robust white malar (moustache) stripe. Click here for larger image.
The lone adult male Blue-throated Mountain-gem at the ranch had a favorite sitting spot, but, per usual, it was deep in the shade. You can get a hint of blue on his throat, but in the light, it is truly a stunning color. Here’s a shot from a visit in 2008, when it was still named Blue-throated Hummingbird. Click here for larger image.
Another feeder was just a small glass jar with jelly in it, which lots of backyard birders use to feed orioles at this time of year. We were a little early for orioles there (although the verdins did have some jelly once in a while), but this White-nosed Coati (Nasua narica) was a big fan of sugary snacks. Apparently, this critter was a regular, making the rounds of the feeders every morning. But it was probably not a favorite with the folks in charge of keeping the feeders filled. Click here for larger image.
Somewhere I heard the Coati described as resembling “a cross between a dog, a monkey, and a raccoon.” That seems about right. Click here for larger image.
As with any large bird-feeding operation, the activity around the feeders can attract birds that feed on other birds. This adult Cooper’s Hawk (Astur cooperii) came in one morning and perched in a large tree overlooking the feeders. Feeding activity ceased for a while, but apparently the other birds could sense that she had already had breakfast, and the activity resumed after 5 minutes or so. Click here for larger image.
Don L
Just outstanding, and makes Monday morning not so bad. Thanks for the pictures, mate. Always good.
donatellonerd
thanks for another lovely Monday morning OTR, Albatrossity. they make my Mondays.
SteveinPHX
Thank you for the photos. Interesting that I have spent time watching birds only several miles away from where you stayed but there are birds you have seen that I have not. Territorial influence? More likely your expertise is much, much broader than mine.
Betty Cracker
Amazing photos — thank you!
I haven’t had any luck with attracting birbs with a suet feeder, even though we have lots of sapsuckers and woodpeckers around here. I’ll try the peanut blob on a tree and see if that works.
Albatrossity
@Betty Cracker: Thanks! I’ve tried the peanut butter tree smearing thing, and it does work, but it took a while (several days) for the birds to find it and figure out that they could eat it. So be patient; it may not work immediately. And if you have squirrels in the swamp, they may find it sooner!
Wanderer
Peanut butter in tree bark. The squirrels would love that! I might give it a try to see if the birds are able to muscle their way in.
stinger
Spectacular and charming, as always!
Word to the wise hummingbirds: If they keep changing their names, they may not be able to vote.
Torrey
Thank you for the pictures and the commentary. It’s really expanding my knowledge of and appreciation for the amazing variety of birds we have on this continent. (Note: knowledge previously consisted largely of “there are parrots, parakeets, canaries who were badly treated in coal mines, eagles and ospreys.” There is definitely room for expansion.)
SiubhanDuinne
Beautiful photos, as always, but shouldn’t there have been at least a few Cardinals in the mix?
(j/k)
MCat
Thank you again for these great pictures.
J.
Great photos, as usual. And who knew birds liked peanut butter? (I have a cat who likes peanut butter, and I thought that was weird.) Love the pics of the coati, and that Cooper’s hawk is most intimidating. This is how I like to start my week.
Miss Bianca
Oh, hummie and coati pictures just made my day. Love the others too, of course!
mvr
Thank you. The set is wonderful as always. The first two hummingbird photos give a good sense of the new to me hummingbirds that the mountain gems are.
I’m amused that there is a woodpecker midway between a hairy and a downy in size and similar enough in coloration that I could be confused. I’m lucky that they don’t come through my backyard in Nebraska. We’ve suddenly had some hairy woodpeckers visit our feeders and one is a little on the smaller side. Confusion ensues.
Thanks again!
Citizen Dave
Fabulous! Effusive ongoing thanks for all the photographs.
WaterGirl
I wanted to use the 2 blue-throated mountain-gem photos in the sidebar, one for Good Friday and the other for the resurrection on Easter Sunday. In the end, I just use the happy one for Easter.
StringOnAStick
We were sitting in the backyard last night around a solo stove with friends/neighbors, and our currently resident GHO slipped through at dusk; great to see that though the local birds roosting in the trees were not at all thrilled.