Cap'n Bob & the Damsel

Anna’s Hummingbird

Anna’s Hummingbird

There are a bunch of hummingbirds that frequent Damsel’s feeders. I took a photo of this little male Anna’s Hummingbird sipping at the west feeder last evening. I was not aware that this variety’s range was limited to Baja California and the west coast until the 20th century when urbanization of desert areas expanded their range. Moreover, I had no idea why it was “Anna’s” hummingbird. See the following Wikipedia excerpt:

Anna’s hummingbird (Calypte anna) is a medium-sized stocky hummingbird native to the west coast of North America. This bird was named after Anna Masséna, Duchess of Rivoli. In the early 20th century, Anna’s hummingbird bred only in northern Baja California and southern California. The transplanting of exotic ornamental plants in residential areas throughout the Pacific coast and inland deserts provided expanded nectar and nesting sites, and the species was able to expand its breeding range greatly.

15 Feb 2015 by Arizona Critters Home & Garden Photography

Wickenburg War Memorial

Wickenburg War Memorial

The Town of Wickenburg dedicated a war memorial in 1976 to those men and women who served in the Armed Forces and Merchant Marine of the United States. In 2013, the Kellis-Draper American Legion Post 12 (so named for the town’s two WW1 heroes killed in action), re-dedicated the memorial in a more prominent place in town on the Post’s property in the center of the old downtown district.

Plaques on the memorial contain the names of our town’s servicemen who perished in the service of the country in honor of their devotion in keeping the United States of America free. Wickenburg people perished in all the big wars since the start of the twentieth century: WW1, WW2, Korean Conflict, South East Asia and the War on Terrorism. The latter, is still in progress today, whether the current political mess in Washington, D.C. admits it or not.

13 Feb 2015 by Arizona Military Never Forget

Multi-National Neighborhood Flags

Neighbor’s Place

Our next-door* neighbor to the west has roots in Montana and also in Alberta, Canada. When her relatives and friends from way up north come to visit, she flies the Canadian flag below the Stars and Stripes. In the summertime when the northerners are all back home, she generally flies the Arizona flag in the lower position.

* When I say “next-door” I mean that literally, even though her house is another 500 feet up the road beyond our place. Our next-door neighbor to the east is another 500 feet in that direction. We like the semi-rural feel of our Arizona home.

I took this photo while Damsel & I were walking the dogs after lunch today. I was at the neighbor’s house to the east taking telephotography of the west neighbor’s flags, a distance of about 1000 feet.

Camera Settings: focal length 200mm, ISO 100, aperture F7, shutter speed 1/500 second.

12 Feb 2015 by Arizona Culture International

Mourning Dove

Mourning Dove

This afternoon, I went out in the courtyard with the camera and telephoto lens. I occasionally have done this since obtaining the camera in December, looking for targets of opportunity.

Today, a mourning dove was perched on the courtyard wall. Oddly, the bird just sat there, not particularly startled by my appearance. It did keep an eye on me as I removed the lens cover, adjusted a couple of things on the camera and took a series of photos of the bird. It finally fluttered away after I moved to a different part of the courtyard for another shot or two.

We have seen several varieties of doves here in town, including mourning, white wing and collared doves. The mourning dove is the most prolific and for good reason according the source quoted below. Click on the image to enlarge.

From Wikipedia:

The mourning dove (Zenaida macroura) is a member of the dove family (Columbidae). The bird is also called the turtle dove or the American mourning dove or rain dove, and formerly was known as the Carolina pigeon or Carolina turtledove. It is one of the most abundant and widespread of all North American birds.

It is also the leading gamebird, with more than 20 million birds (up to 70 million in some years) shot annually in the U.S., both for sport and for meat. Its ability to sustain its population under such pressure stems from its prolific breeding: in warm areas, one pair may raise up to six broods a year.

The wings can make an unusual whistling sound upon take-off and landing. The bird is a strong flier, capable of speeds up to 88 km/h (55 mph).

10 Feb 2015 by Arizona Critters Photography

Garden Maintenance Day

Beavertail Transplant

Today was a beautiful spring-like day with temperatures reaching as high as 80°. It seemed like a perfect day to get some chores done.

The first task was to spray nearly three gallons of Roundup™ on all the weeds sprouting just about everywhere on the landscape. I have a two gallon spray container wherein I mix the concentrated weed killer with water. The container is one of those that you pressurize with a built-in pump. I sprayed most of the areas where the weeds had started sprouting, refilling the spray tank once.

The photo that Damsel took is of me putting the finishing touches on transplanting a Beavertail Cactus (opuntia basilaris) that had been growing in a pot in the courtyard. The paddles were rescued from a beavertail up near the north property line last year. This set of paddles had flowers last spring while in the courtyard pot and we’re hoping to have more this March through June.

You can see the finished item in the inset to the photo above. Click on the image (courtesy Damsel) to enlarge.

09 Feb 2015 by Arizona Home & Garden Retirement

Rose Quartz & Cactus Rescue

Rose Quartz

We found a large, rather flat piece of rose quartz up in the back of the lot today. We have plenty of rose quartz rock laying around, but this almost looked as though it had been cut. Click on the image to enlarge.

Bob found the stone while up in back rescuing a queen-of-the-night cactus that a palo verde branch fell on in the microburst last summer. The queen cactus is in a pot (image) waiting for the cut to dry up so it will (hopefully) take root and can live closer to the house or maybe in the patio.

We also rescued several paddles (image) from a tree-like prickly pear (image) on the new lot that toppled onto its side, presumably in the same microburst that took down the palo verde branch. Those will be taking root in a pot for the time being before being transplanted to the west side of the property where our cactus garden grows.

08 Feb 2015 by Arizona Home & Garden

Water Dog

Water Dog

We took the dogs to the dog park today. It was a nice day with about a 76 degree high temperature. The dogs did their usual off-the-leash thing in the over-an-acre fenced-in compound, running, sniffing and making contact with the other dogs in the park.

Beethoven (Bay Bay) has a penchant for jumping in the small tub that is in the park. Today, however, the tub was dry when he first jumped in. He got out and splashed in a nearby puddle, seeming disappointed.

I filled the tub with water and after another run around the park, he was back for more. This time he had water. He jumped in, immersed himself (except for his snout) swam a few (very short) laps and jumped out as depicted above, having satisfied his waterlust. Click on the image to enlarge.

06 Feb 2015 by Arizona Critters Photography

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