Beaver, Tits, Hairy Peckers and more

cactus wrens

spadefoot toads. they go from fertilized egg to miniature anatomically correct adult in 2 weeks. they mate during our monsoon season. in the puddles left behind by the thunderstorms.

AZ ... nice contributions. Hope you didn't stumble across the Africanized Honey Bee's nest. Good idea using the mirror to get us a closer look at the Cactus Wren nest. Wow, so the toads aren't a tadpole for very long. Makes sense I guess, the quicker you can transform the better when in the desert.

Notech ... is that a Western Kingbird?


Here are a couple members of the Weasel family.

Mink - Walker, Minnesota, USA - I see these quite a bit when I'm near a river or lake(fortunately I don't have to worry about them jumping out of the water and putting me into a death roll). Their favorite food is Muskrat.



Northern River Otter - Zimmerman, Minnesota, USA - Another fairly common mammal in Minnesota, because of the thousands of lakes and rivers.

the sandhills are finally starting to arrive here. i saw 2 wedges of them yesterday near willcox az. google search "wings over willcox."

didn't get pics.

re: killer bees....i just walk my ass into a blossoming palo verde tree that is swarming with 3-5,000 bees & start taking pics. they're busy collecting nectar & as long as i don't smell like fear or make sudden moves or noises they leave me alone.

let's see....i know i've got some more pics of denizens of my back yard.

male hummingbird riding out a summer storm on my patio clothes line & gambrel quails on my patio & in my bushes.

some pictures of "wood peckers" would be appropriate here if you guys get the double entendre.

Az

Quote:

Originally posted by azdesertrat

let's see....i know i've got some more pics of denizens of my back yard.

Holy shit!! Wild Boar in the backyard. Do they run at you or run from you when you step outside?

And nice hummingbird shot ... do you know what kind it is? is it a Broad-billed?

pigs...they're just little 50-70 pound peccaries sniffing for acorns from my oak trees. i once accidentally walked into the middle of 8-10 of them on my patio during a really dark night...i'd been woken up by a loud "thump". they didn't gore me or anything. just snorted a bunch, brushed up against my legs a couple times, & made their way out the open gate. the thump was the alpha boar knocking over my garbage can.

don't know the genus of the hummingbird. this one likes my patio & at times will fly up in my face & hover there 3-4 feet away looking at me while i drink my beer & have a smoke. so i talk to it. just like i do the rest of my back yard denizens. it confounds them.

i'm wierd.

Az

[reply=az

i'm wierd.

Az
[/reply]


me too.....

Honkers 11-2-09....



(the fun part is that I took these while taking harvest moon pics for my "rural exploring" thread)

Harvest Moon

Quote:

Originally posted by azdesertrat

some pictures of "wood peckers" would be appropriate here if you guys get the double entendre.

Ask and you shall receive. A large pecker, a small one, and one with nuts.



Pileated Woodpecker - Grantsburg, Wisconsin - These guys are pretty big, about the same size as a crow.





Downy Woodpecker - Minneapolis, Minnesota - The smallest of North American woodpeckers



Red-bellied Woodpecker - Minneapolis, Minnesota - At my peanut feeder



Notech ... Nice gaggles of geese. Especially the pic with that sweet moon in it.

Wow, you guys are pretty good with cameras.

Quote:

Originally posted by RugbySam

Wow, you guys are pretty good with cameras.

i don't know about the other guys, but i have to take 25-30 throw away pics for every one keeper. i'm not that good with the camera. and it helps to know how to use your photo software.

Az

How about a plain Tit in the garden????

And how does a woodpecker save his nuts ?

Here is another tree that woodpeckers have taken over for nut storage.

Santa Monica Mtns - California



Here is one of the guys involved, part of a family of peckers who use this tree as storage.

Acorn Woodpecker - Santa Monica Mountains - California



While I was watching the woodpeckers, I noticed a flock of other noisy birds flying around. Black-hooded parakeets, not native to North America, they are escapees (former pets) who have formed a flock. The warm California weather suits them perfectly. They must be easy pickings, because I saw a hawk chasing them shortly after. I'm sure growing up in captivity doesn't teach them much about predators.

Black-hooded Parakeet - Santa Monica Mtns. - California

I was heading out this road in N.Cal. last Friday and saw some wild turkeys...
by the time I turned around and went back and jumped out and ran, it spooked them,this is what I got (see circle)



The next day I went back to see if they would be back, (they were on the other side of the road), I used some stealth this time



I think that these are all from the same hatch not a group,too many toms and hens together...(red head =Toms)

These are hens...



This is Tom...



This is how close I was able to get with my sneak.. (no zoom) about 25 yards! (there are I think, 3 Toms there)

Notech ... wow, you were able to get pretty close to those gobblers. They're usually pretty skittish.


Raptors, probably my favorite animals. I love finding, watching and photographing them. Maybe it's the fact that they're a lot easier to find than other cool critters, like bears and wolves. I dunno, but I like them, and you'll see me posting a lot of birds of prey throughout this thread.

First up ... Sharp-shinned Hawk ... the smallest hawk in North America.

Grand Portage, Minnesota



They are short winged and long tailed, perfect for maneuvering through the trees while chasing small birds, their main prey item.



As well as hunting in forests, they also have adapted to backyard bird-feeder hunting. This Northern Cardinal found out the hard way in my backyard.
Minneapolis, MN



Here is another one from my backyard. I saw him through my kitchen window and took this pic. I could tell he was trying to kill something in his talons by the balancing act he was performing. I didn't get to see what he was after. By trying to sneak outside for a better pic, I scared him away and cost him his meal. If only I had mowed the lawn, maybe we could see what it was. It was probably a small squirrel, since I didn't see anything fly away after he left. They do eat small mammals and snakes and such too.

sandhill cranes arriving for the winter

border patrol checkpoint @ U.S.191/Kansas settlement road. they searched my yukon for illegal aliens. the guys there didn't want me to post their pics