Birds and bunnies and lizards.....

Cactus Wren posing between the ears

Until some of the company leaves tomorrow, we are pretty much staying at the house, but Dorothy has so much interesting wildlife there, that I have plenty to keep me busy! I don't have the program that I use to crop pictures, so some of these are not exactly the way I want them.

The Cactus Wren is so much bigger than my little Carolina Wren back home! About 8 1/2 inches long.....more like a big woodpecker! I seem to catch pics of his head....his back...his belly...but never a real good one of the whole bird.

The two Gila woodpeckers and the Cactus Wrens really like the suet. I see the Gilas come swooping in from the top of that tall Saguaro cactus next door and head for the backyard. There are numerous holes in the cactus and I figure one most be its home. They are very wary and I was surprised when both showed up together and one sort of "stood guard" while the other one ate the suet.

The Gila Woodpecker reminds me of both a Flicker and a Red-bellied. It has the black and white spotted looking back and wing feathers and tail, plus a yellow lower belly and the red spot on its head. The female doesn't have the red patch on the head. Very striking!

The Phainopepla like to sit high in the tree. Large black birds with a crest. I hope to see them closer eventually.

I spotted a Desert Spiny Lizard and managed to get some OK shots. It decided to pose right by the bunny, so that was cute :-) There are several bunnies that live in Dorothy's yard and they are out there sunning themselves at various times and eating the grass.

I suppose I should keep posting some of the flora each day, too. Once again, I'm trying to learn the cacti names. I may get some wrong :-)

I like this purple colored prickly pear cactus. I think the color really adds to the relativly drab colors of the other cacti and ground colors. It really is beautiful close up. There are assorted Agaves. I think this next picture might be one...or not. It is very skinny compared to the ones following it.

I saw Cardinals, House Finches, Doves....just like back home, but some of the House finches are more orangish or yellowish in color. If I get a good picture, I'll show one. Saw a thrasher of some sort briefly....much paler than my Brown Thrasher back home, but the same yellow eye. Well....enough for today! I'll probably post on a more varied schedule here...late at night or early before anyone else is up.