This morning the desert felt a bit like Minnesota with the temperature dropping to near freezing. Molly and I decided to go over to the Tucson Sonora Desert Museum. A bit south of town, our in the desert (where else?!) is this unique museam where one may learn about the desert plants. After taking a 90 minute tour, I decided to go birding. Apparently, if you are able to find a large number of flower blossoms in the desert, hummingbirds will be a plenty. Better yet, I got lucky in that a rare Allen’s Hummingbird had been seen starting two days ago. Please understand all hummingbirds except Ruby-Throats are rare for me up in Minnesota!

Just like at Sax-Zim Bog and owls, if you find the birders with long glass, you will find the rate birds. I present you a photograph of the Allen’s Hummingbird! (took me 60 minutes to get two pictures). I was not able to capture an image where its neck showed fiery red / copper in the sunlight. Oh well … another day!

… and the much more common to the locals, Costa’s Hummingbird

Nope, this is definitely not Kansas, Dorothy! After weeks on end of waking up to sub zero temperatures in northern Minnesota, Molly and I packed up the car and drove south for a vacation. The birding habitat down here could not be more different from my Boreal Forest. Instead of watching owls in snow flocked pines, I am finding birds amongst the cactus! Even the names of the birds in this desert region are hard to pronounce! Here is a Phainopepla (lifer) I spied this morning in the USFS Sabino Canyon Recreation Area (worth a hike / visit).

It was fun to try and get images of birds that showed off the unique desert habitat.

Cactus Wren (lifer)

Male Ladder-Back Woodpecker (lifer)

Yesterday, my first morning in the region, I drove over to Catalina State Park and joined the Tuscon Audubon Society weekly birding hike. Our two hosts were fantastic, and helped this kid from northern Minnesota learn both bird song and ID’s of almost every bird (all but one or two were lifers for me!) Thanks Tucson Audubon! They have many birding hikes every week. Follow the link!

Birds from Catalina State Park …

Albert’s Towhee (lifer)

Black Throated Sparrow (lifer)

Bluebird

Canyon Towhee (lifer)

Northern Cardinal

Gila Woodpecker (lifer)

Great Horned Owl on Nest

Lesser Goldfinch (lifer)

Female Ladder-Back Woodpecker (lifer)

Vermilion Flycatcher (lifer)