Cap'n Bob & the Damsel

Environment

Scorpion Glow

Scorpion GlowI apologize for posting this out-of-focus picture of a dead scorpion on the RV drive, but the lighting conditions weren’t too good to avoid a slight camera motion that blurred the image. At any rate, I just wanted to show how these little beasties show up if you put ultraviolet light (a.k.a. black light) on them.

Image – dead scorpion in ultraviolet light. Click on the image to enlarge.

A while back, we bought little hand held flash lights with UV LEDs just for the purpose of detecting scorpions. Our little Miniature Pinscher, Cabela, found this nasty little bug on the patio (thank goodness it was already dead) and I found a couple of them (also dead) in the garage the other night using the UV flashlight.

06 Oct 2012 by Arizona Critters Environment

Where’s Waldo?

Where’s Waldo

Of all the birds that come around to the feeders, the male cardinal has the poorest camouflage in our Sonoran desert environment. When he does show up, we ask each other, jokingly, “Where’s Waldo?” The goldfinches feeding on Nyjer seed bags in the foreground aren’t much more subtle with their bright yellow breast feathers. Click on the image to enlarge.

25 Sep 2012 by Arizona Critters Environment Home & Garden Photography

More Erosion Control Project

More Erosion Control Project

I collected some more rocks from around the lot and placed them along the road to shore up the rocks I placed there on Wednesday. Damsel came out to help also. She took this picture of me working on the project when she brought the dogs out for their run.

I took the panoramic image seen above after the day’s work was complete. I still want to move more of the one-inch red gravel to cover some of the bare spots. Click on the image to enlarge.

14 Sep 2012 by Arizona Environment Home & Garden Panorama Retirement

Erosion Control Project

Erosion Control Project

About three weeks ago, I posted an item about some erosion along the front of our property. Today, since the temperatures were in the comfortable range of mid-eighties, I started transporting boulders from the back property and placed them along the edge of the path that the runoff takes when we get our summer gully-washers.

I still have a way to go before I will be done. I have some more one-inch red gravel to place on the bare strip on the right end of the area. I also will be transporting more medium-sized boulders to place in front of the ones I brought down today. I also intend to extend the rock wash at the right end a couple of feet to the confluence with the runoff coming down the road.

Click on the image to enlarge.

12 Sep 2012 by Arizona Environment Home & Garden Panorama Retirement

More Erosion

More Erosion

We had a really heavy downpour last Wednesday night. It looks like I’ll have to shore up the front of the property with big rocks to avoid losing more of the landscape between the RV drive and the west wash. Again, I have plenty of big rocks up in the wash and around the lot, so it’s just a matter of collecting them in the wheelbarrow and burying them along the roadway where the floods wash down.

Damn! I’m supposed to be retired and all this stuff pops up to keep me busy. Ah well, It probably keeps me out of trouble.

Click on the image for the full sized panorama.

25 Aug 2012 by Arizona Environment Home & Garden Panorama Retirement

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