Salve for Snowbirds’ Suffering; Sharks and a Whole Lotta Tarpon

Good Morning! Sunrise today in Key West.

Panorama. Bud N’ Mary’s Marina, Islamorada, Florida.

Shark and tarpon feeding frenzy at Bud N’ Mary’s Marina. A deckhand is flinging fish guts into the water as he’s cleaning the catch.

Daily Hummingbird; Sunrise, but not in my Backyard

Good Morning! Here is sunrise today three time zones east of Arizona. Or is it two? Anyway, this is not my backyard.

Black-chinned hummingbird flying at the San Pedro House is today’s Daily Hummingbird.

Bird on a Stick, Daily Hummingbird, Sunrise Panorama

Bird on a stick at the San Pedro House.

Daily Hummingbird: She’s a broad-billed, I believe, flying in my backyard.

Today’s sunrise panorama in my backyard.

Gratuitous hummingbird photo: really scruffy Anna’s, like a fledgling.

Bees in flowers; Daily Hummingbird; moonrise panorama

The bees are so covered in pollen, I can’t really tell the species. These are various prickly pear cactus flowers in my neighborhood.

Female broad-billed hummingbird flying in my backyard. Look at the fuzzy gunk on her beak!

Panoramic dawn moonrise in my backyard today.

Wilson’s warbler in the mesquite.

Dawn Moonrise Panorama, Backyard Birds, Daily Hummingbirds

Good Morning! Here is the panoramic dawn moonrise in my backyard today.

Daily Hummingbirds! That’s right. There are two! Both are females. Both spotted at the San Pedro House. The first is a black-chinned. The second is a broad-billed. Look at the fuzzy gunk on her beak!

Gambel’s quail calling to one of his pals.

My nemesis bird. Hooded oriole, hiding among the branches, won’t come any closer than the far side of the tree.

Wilson’s warbler.

Antidote for too much snow; really scruffy hummer; panoramic dawn and moonrise

Here are some blooming prickly pear cactus yesterday in my neighborhood. Hopefully, seeing these will bring some warmth to snowbirds who may have left southern Arizona too early for the dark, cold North, arriving “home” to face whiteout, icy snow. Makes you wonder if they had to put chains on their vehicle to even get down their driveway to begin digging out a path to their front door.

Super-scruffy female Anna’s hummingbird flying in my backyard. She is today’s Daily Hummingbird.

Curve-billed thrasher weirdly doesn’t have the curviest bill of the thrashers.

Panoramic dawn today with moonrise and freaky sunrays along the horizon.

Look at the Hummingbird’s tongue; Today’s Sunrise Panorama; Ornithology Challenge!

Anna’s hummingbird flying with her tongue out in my backyard. She is today’s Daily Hummingbird.

Here is today’s panoramic sunrise in my backyard with a freaky, long-exposure, flying bird. Do you see it?

Ornithology Challenge: Identify this bird. It is a flycatcher of sorts. Spotted along the trail from the San Pedro House to the San Pedro River. In fact, about half-way there, because there was a dude playing with his dog at the end of the trail, repeatedly throwing a stick, and the dog was obviously off-lease, and the entire situation seemed antithetical to finding any birds or other wildlife to photograph. Post your answers in the comments!

San Pedro River Wildlife, Daily Hummingbird, Dawn in my Backyard

There were so many birders at the San Pedro House that I went to hike the trail along the San Pedro River. The butterfly, though, was actually spotted at the San Pedro House. Experts tell me the butterfly is a bordered patch butterfly. The literature says that their identification is “variable,” which explains why my butterfly didn’t look like the reference images. The best method of identification is to contact your regional institution of higher learning and scientific research and request DNA sequencing. Experts haven’t told me yet what species the caterpillar is. If you know the species of the caterpillar, please post it in the comment section.

Today’s Daily Hummingbird is this broad-billed flying at the San Pedro House.

Dawn in my backyard today. When there are no clouds, your choices are to get some early dawn photos, when there is some color, or wait for actual sunrise and try to catch some sunrays. I turned on the security light on the Mancave for some added interest.

Sunrise today, return of the Cooper’s hawk, Daily Hummingbird

Panoramic cloudless sunrise today in my backyard.

Our resident Cooper’s hawk returned yesterday as I was outside reading.

Broad-billed hummingbird flying in my backyard yesterday.

Arizona killer bee, hummingbird flying, today’s sunrise photo

Experts tell me the best thing to do if you are attacked by a swarm of Arizona Killer Bees is to start running in circles while wildly flailing your arms above your head. If this fails, experts say, you’re screwed. Anyway, here’s an Arizona Killer Bee feasting on nectar from mesquite flowers in my backyard.

Female broad-billed hummingbird flying in her natural environment in a photo that is way too close for any perspective. But I like to do my photos close, so you can tell if they are in sharp focus or not. She is today’s Daily Hummingbird.

With a cloudless sky, the only way to get any color in your sunrise photo is to photograph at dawn when the atmosphere refracts light into its component colors. Here is dawn in my backyard today.

Sunrise with sunrays, broad-billed hummingbird, Wilson’s warbler

Panoramic sunrise in my backyard today with all the sunrays.

Broad-billed hummingbird with all the colors flying in my backyard.

Wilson’s warbler sighting in my backyard. He’s flitting around in the mesquite tree picking over the budding flowers.

Gratuitous reptile photo: Whiptail lizard yesterday in my backyard.

Anna’s hummingbird flying in her natural environment and not too close, so you have perspective

Panoramic sunrise in my backyard today. It’s behind the trees.

Anna’s hummingbird flying in her natural environment. Don’t claim it’s not her natural environment. She will fight you.

Daily Hummingbird: this Anna’s flying in his natural environment.

Lark sparrow in a mesquite in my backyard.

Panorama sunrise and broad-billed daily hummingbird

There’s a rabbit in today’s sunrise photo. Can you find it?

Female broad-billed hummingbird flying in my backyard with fuzzy gunk on her beak. She is the Daily Hummingbird.

Gratuitous hummingbird: male broad-billed perched in flowering mesquite in my backyard.

Whole Lotta Hummingbirds; Today’s Sunrise Panorama

Bird on a stick. Broad-billed hummingbird at the Paton Center for Hummingbirds.

Violet-crowned hummingbird at the Paton Center for Hummingbirds.

Broad-billed hummingbird flying at the Paton Center for Hummingbirds in Patagonia, Arizona. He is today’s Daily Hummingbird.

Today’s sunrise panorama in my backyard. The sun is behind the trees. If you look close, you can see some sunrays.

Gratuitous horned lizard photo.

Let’s look at a hawk, the daily hummingbird, and the sunrise

Cloudless sunrise in my backyard today. This is a three-image HDR, +/- 2 stops, if you want to get all technical.

Cooper’s hawk closeup. This is the bird that hung out at our birdbath for a really long time the other day.

Here is today’s Daily Hummingbird. A female Broad-billed flying in my backyard.

Close encounter with turkey vultures; black chinned hummer, and vibrant sunrise

This is a less than perfect pano of sunrise in my backyard today. The vibrantly colorful clouds distract you from the problems in the merge.

Daily Hummingbird: Black-chinned hummingbird flying at the San Pedro House.

At one time there were three turkey vultures feasting on the dead squirrel in the street in front of our house. Here are two of them after they took off, when the photographer arrived.

Daily hummingbird, roadrunner, Cooper’s hawk hangs out while I read, sunrise HDR today

This is an Anna’s hummingbird flying in his natural environment, which happens to be my backyard.

Here is a roadrunner in my backyard yesterday morning. There was a pair of them systematically working the backyard, looking for things to kill.

Yesterday I’m in the backyard reading, look up, and there’s a Cooper’s hawk at the birdbath! It hung out with me for like a half hour. It apparently had an injured foot, probably from killing a dove. It would use the foot when taking a drink or water or bathing.

Today’s sunrise in my backyard. This is an HDR of three images, +/- two stops.

Sunrise with a Whole Lotta Birds, Daily Hummingbird, and Backyard Wildlife

This is sunrise in my backyard today. It’s behind the trees. Go ahead, download this image to your computer, expand it to 100%, and see if you can find all the birds. There’s a boatload! I found them when I was removing dust spots.

Daily Hummingbird is this broad-billed. She’s flying with fuzz on her beak and tail.

Greater short-horned lizard spotted yesterday in my backyard, which is a happy thing, because I thought the roadrunners ate them all.

Rock squirrel defiantly looking right at me as he or she slams down all the peanuts I set out for the birds.

Trains and birds and sunrise

Amtrak leaving Benson, Arizona, heading east.

Black-chinned hummingbird flying at the San Pedro House.

Green-tailed towhee at the San Pedro House.

Sunrise panorama in my backyard today. You need to time it to get all the color.

Panorama sunrise, daily hummingbird, and hummingbird’s eyelashes

Panorama sunrise filtered through a distant tree.

Daily Hummingbird: Female broad-billed flying in my backyard with fuzzy gunk on her beak and trailing fuzz from her tail.

Have you ever seen a hummingbird’s eyelashes? Well, take a look. This female broad-billed is scraping gunk from her beak.

Purple, pink, magenta dawn; tongue-out hummingbird; bird much too close

The view at dawn in my backyard today.

Anna’s hummingbird flying in my backyard with her tongue out, and there’s even some gunk on it! Go ahead and look super-close at this photo.

You will just have to take my word that this cardinal was captured in his natural environment, because the photo is much too close for any perspective.

Dawn with pink clouds, daily hummingbird, freakish creature burrowing out of the earth

High pink clouds over my backyard at dawn today. This is a three-image pano with a nice view of my mancave.

Black-chinned hummingbird flying, twisting, turning at the San Pedro House. He is today’s Daily Hummingbird.

Bizarrely gruesome rodent-like creature* burrowing out of the earth in the dark shadows at the San Pedro House. Conveniently, though, its hole is right under one of the bird feeders for it seems to like to eat seeds.

Gratuitous hummingbird photo: Broad-billed hummingbird flying in my backyard with her tongue out.

Be sure to check out my completely new and updated homepage!

*Yeah, it’s a gopher.

Daily Hummingbird, Cooper’s Hawk Visits the Birdbath, a Gratuitous Photo, and Backyard Sunrise

Female broad-billed hummingbird flying in my backyard, and her tongue is out. Be sure to look close.

Gratuitous hummingbird photo: Male Anna’s perches in the mesquite.

So, I’m cooking dinner (it’s a process), and I randomly look out the breakfast nook window, and there’s a Cooper’s hawk in a birdbath in my backyard! I go retrieve my camera, which I always keep out and ready, go into the garage, and quietly as possible open the window that looks out towards the backyard. Anyway, if you look close, notice the bloody gunk on the hawk’s beak. I’m guessing probably had a dove for lunch.

Sunrise panorama in my backyard today. Look close and see the dove on top of the fire station building.

Purple clouds at dawn, daily hummingbird, and a vermilion flycatcher hunting

A panorama of dawn in my backyard today.

Black-chinned hummingbird flying at the Paton Center for Hummingbirds, while his black chin reflects some purple.

Female vermilion flycatcher perching on the old agave stalk we keep in the backyard just so flycatchers have a place to perch.

Sunrise Panorama, Hummingbirds, and a Flycatcher

Here is today’s sunrise panorama in my backyard, with some of the lens flare, because I fixed the other lens flare. Look close and see the long-exposure, flying bird!

With trepidation, the broad-billed hummingbird flies towards that scary, hidden spot behind the leaves. This is today’s Daily Hummingbird. The image was captured at the Paton Center for Hummingbirds in Patagonia, Arizona.

Gratuitous hummingbird photo: Broad-billed hummingbird with his tongue out at the Paton Center for Hummingbirds.

The Say’s phoebe thought it could, but it couldn’t, elude the photographer by perching at the topmost branch of the tree at Empire Ranch in Sonoita, Arizona.

A hummingbird standoff, flying hummingbird, dawn today

Mancave light is on because Minnie the Mouser helped to chase a mouse into a trap, and the mouse was temporarily relocated to the Mancave (still in trap), while awaiting permanent (hopefully) relocation to parts unknown. This is my dawn today.

The Daily Hummingbird: Broad-billed hummingbird flying at the Paton Center for Hummingbirds.

Standoff at the hummingbird feeder between two broad-billed hummers at the Paton Center for Hummingbirds in Patagonia, Arizona.

Sunrise in My Backyard Today and the Daily Hummingbird

HDR photography of sunrise in my backyard today.

This broad-billed is the Daily Hummingbird, for obvious reasons.

Gratuitous quail photo from the Paton Center for Hummingbirds. He’s a Gambel’s.

Old Buildings in Black and White

These images are from Empire Ranch near Sonoita, Arizona.

Corrugated steel outbuilding.

Bricks, probably adobe.

With a bit of tint added to monochrome.

Paton Center for Hummingbirds and Sunrise Today

Today’s Daily Hummingbird is courtesy of my friend Stan. Broad-billed hummingbird flying in his natural environment. And his tongue’s out!

Violet-crowned hummingbird.

Black-chinned hummingbird approaches one of the multitude of feeders at the Paton Center for Hummingbirds.

Purple yellow orange violet dawn in my backyard today.

Whole Lotta Bokeh, Daily Hummingbird, Sunrise Today

Whole Lotta Bokeh: Gambel’s quail in a mesquite tree with trees, leaves, and the fire station in the background.

Daily Hummingbird: Anna’s hummingbird is cleaning the gunk from his beak by scraping it against the branch of the mesquite tree.

Panoramic sunrise in my backyard today may look exactly like yesterday’s, but it’s different. The sun is just slightly further north.

Cloudless Sunrise Pano, Daily Hummingbird, Return of Killer Bees

Cloudless sunrise panorama in my backyard this morning.

Daily Hummingbird: Anna’s flying in my backyard yesterday. Take a really close look and see if I made any mistakes.

An Arizona killer bee on an onion-leafed asphodel flower. If the killer bees are busy, they’re safe. If you run a lawnmower near their hive, be sure to wear beekeeper gear.

A cloudy, yet cool sunrise panorama today and today’s daily hummingbird; beware the killer bees

Panorama photograph of the really cloudy sunrise today in my backyard. I am probably the only photographer who will routinely photograph cloudy sunrises where you can’t even see the sun.

Daily Hummingbird: Here is a photograph of an Anna’s hummingbird, which is much too close and devoid of any perspective. You will just need to take my word that he is flying in his natural environment.

An Arizona killer bee flying near onion-leafed asphodel flower.

Panoramic Sunrise and Hummingbird Photos

Cloudy, yet colorful, sunrise panorama in my backyard today.

Daily Hummingbird: male Anna’s flying in my backyard.

Anna’s hummingbird approaches her natural environment. Look close and see the tip of her tongue and some saliva at the very limit of her beak.

Sunrise Panorama, Daily Hummingbird, and Random Bonus

The instant of sunrise right behind the distant pine tree in the neighbor’s backyard.

Anna’s hummingbird flying in my backyard.

I didn’t decide who the Bonus Bird would be until just now, and it’s this pyrrhuloxia spotted at the San Pedro House. Some say photos edited with Lightroom look “flat” and that we need to use Photoshop to properly edit photos. I researched this, and it seems the tone curve my be the secret to photos that look more three dimensional. What do you think?

Cloudy Colorful Sunrise, Daily Hummingbird, and Bonus Bird

Here is sunrise in my backyard today as raindrops fall.

The Daily Hummingbirds is one of the resident Anna’s males who live in my backyard.

Bonus bird is this yellow-rumped warbler.

Freaky Moonrise, Daily Hummingbird, Flyday Hawk

Dawn in my backyard today with weird and freaky purple sunrays emanating from beyond the horizon and crescent moon rising.

Daily Hummingbird: this Anna’s hummingbird flying in my backyard.

For Flyday, here is a Cooper’s hawk flying over my backyard.

Photographer Too Dumb to Get Oriole Photos Gets Oriole Photo; Daily Sunrise and Hummingbird Photos

If you are like 15-feet away, they’re not good with that. If you are like 30-40-feet away then they’re ok. Here is a Scott’s oriole eating oranges. And his tongue’s out!

Daily Hummingbird: One of the two male Anna’s hummingbirds living in my backyard flying in his natural environment.

Sunrise in my backyard today. Four-image panorama, with Lightroom’s HDR applied. And even though, I know the camera’s image sensor is not clean, surprisingly I found no dust spots. Do you see any?

Moonrise at Dawn, Closeup and Flying Hummingbird, and Bonus Bird

Here is moonrise at dawn today in my backyard.

Closeup of an Anna’s hummingbird flying in my backyard. The photo is from yesterday. He is today’s Daily Hummingbird.

When I was trying to photography orioles, a vermilion flycatcher showed up. Here he is perching on a patio chair.

Flying Daily Hummingbird and Panoramic Sunrise

Here is today’s sunrise in my backyard through clouds at the horizon.

The Daily Hummingbird: male Anna’s flying in my backyard.

Vying for the title of “My Nemesis Bird,” here is a Scott’s oriole hiding amongst the branches of a mesquite tree in my backyard. He is skittish but not as skittish as the hooded oriole, which is still my nemesis.

Rainy Sunrise and Daily Hummingbird and a Random Photo

Rainy sunrise in my backyard today. Look closely and see water droplets on the branches of the mesquite tree.

Anna’s hummingbird in his natural environment and much too close to have any perspective. He’s perching in a mesquite tree in my backyard. The photo is from yesterday.

Freight train rumbling through Benson, Arizona. Actually, this is just east of Benson. Railroad experts tell me fifty to sixty trains travel through Benson daily. If you want to photograph a train, you don’t need to rely on some random high school kid who is obsessed with trains and memorizes their schedules. You can just park next to the tracks and wait.

Daily Sunrise and Hummingbird Photos and Arizona Easter Bunny

Cloudy, windy, stormy sunrise in my backyard today.

The Daily Hummingbird is this Anna’s flying in his natural environment and not too close, so you have perspective.

Arizona Easter Bunny caught unawares out in the environment somewhere near Sierra Vista, probably out hiding eggs. Looks like Easter Bunny may have some ticks.

Panoramic Sunrise Photo and Daily Hummingbird

A few clouds, but not too many, reflect all the colors from the sun. Sunrise in my backyard today.

Daily Hummingbird. This broad-billed I saw a couple days ago, when I was trying to calibrate the Big Sigma lens. I think this was prior to getting it zeroed in, but close.

Look👀 at her tongue!! Female Anna’s a couple days ago, when I was still working on calibrating the Big Sigma lens.

Partly Cloudy Sunrise and Hummingbirds

Partly cloudy sunrise in my backyard today. If it were me, I would just call it cloudy. But that’s just me.

The Daily Hummingbird flying in my backyard yesterday. This is one of the males of the two resident pairs of Anna’s.

Gratuitous hummingbird photo: If you look really close at her open mouth, the tip of her tongue is just visible in mandibular beak. (That’s the lower part.)

Extraordinary Anna’s Hummingbird and After Sunrise Panorama Photo

Here is today’s sunrise photo. Later than usual, due to a camera malfunction. (The shutter release wouldn’t work!) The end result, though, is a whole lotta sunrays and a boatload of lens flare (if you like that sort of thing).

Tongue’s Out! This Anna’s is really sticking her tongue out. The photo is from yesterday, when I was working on fine tuning the autofocus for the Big Sigma 150-600mm lens. This image is actually just before I had it figured out.

Today’s Daily Hummingbird. Yesterday broad-billed hummingbirds made their first appearance in my backyard this year.

Clear Morning Sunrise, Daily Hummingbird

Sunrise in my backyard today. You can see the sun. It’s right behind that pine tree.

Daily Hummingbird: this Anna’s who was flying in my backyard yesterday.

As I looked through the viewfinder, I could see the female Anna’s hummingbird’s tongue flicking into the nectar.

Daily Hummingbird and Panoramic Sunrise Photos

Panoramic view of my backyard today a few minutes before sunrise. Look at the fiery glow in the clouds above the sun that’s still beyond the horizon.

This is the Daily Hummingbird: female Anna’s flying in my backyard. Take a close look at the glistening tip of her tongue sticking out beyond the tip of her beak. This is the first photo after attempting to fine tune the autofocus on the D850 Nikon + Sigma 150-600mm lens. Settings: 600mm, f/6.3, 1/2500, ISO 1400.

Daily Hummingbird, Sunrise, and Bonus Photos

Anna’s hummingbird flying in my backyard.

Cloudy and overcast sunrise this morning in my backyard. Rain and snow fell overnight, but not much snow actually stuck.

Bonus! Cactus wren, the state bird of Arizona, in a mesquite tree in my backyard.

Daily Hummingbird and Sunrise Photos

An Anna’s hummingbird flying in my backyard.

Sunrise today in my backyard. It just stopped raining, and it is still super windy. The photo was taken shooting out a window in my garage, where I sheltered from the wind.

Bonus! Green-tailed towhee I spotted the other day at the San Pedro House. Check out the distinctive colors and markings.

Cloudy Panoramic Sunrise and Daily Hummingbird

Cloudy panoramic sunrise in my backyard today. The images for the pano were taken at the predicted time for sunrise, but you can’t see the sun, because it is so cloudy.

Male Anna’s hummingbird flying with gunk on his beak. He is today’s Daily Hummingbird.

This is what happens when mom doesn’t teach the kids to chew food with their mouth closed. Yes, it’s gross. This Gila woodpecker pulled that gooey wad of whatever out of one of his hiding places in a mesquite in my backyard.

Broad-Billed Hummingbird and Today’s Sunrise Panorama

Full-resolution panorama photo at sunrise today in my backyard.

Broad-billed hummingbird flying at the Paton Center for Hummingbirds in Patagonia, Arizona.

Bonus! Pyrrhuloxia in the mesquite in my backyard yesterday.