Luke, A White Crested Phainopepla — Image by kenne
This is the time of year some SCVN members state watching for the return of “Luke” to Sabino Canyon. Phainopeplas generally spend their summers at the higher elevations of the Santa Cantilina Mountains, returning to the canyon to feed off the desert mistletoe berries in the canyon.
What makes Luke unique is his white crest. For over eleven years, Luke can be spotted in the same general area in the canyon. Unfortunately, because of the pandemic, we don’t know if Luke returned last year since many of us were not doing our usual nature walks in Sabino Canyon.
Phainopeplas usually perch high on canyon mesquite trees. They have digestive tracts specialized for eating mistletoe fruit. These berries are low in nutrients, so the birds have to consume lots of them. The berries spend only about 12 minutes in a Phainopepla’s intestine, and the birds may eat 1,100 berries in a day.
A singular bird of the Southwest, they are a brilliant sight in flight. Males are silky black and slender, with an elegant crest and bold white wing patches that appear when the bird takes wing. Phainopeplas nearest common ancestors are the waxwings, which also have a glossy, silky look to their plumage.
Birds In The Treetop — Gila Woodpecker, American Kestrel and Five American Goldfinches (October 6, 2021) — Image by kenne
We walked with an early morning Audubon lead bird walk group through the Sweetwater Wetlands a few days ago. (1/800 s at f/10, ISO 400) The tree was about 100 years away, photographed using my 28/300 mm lens.
Just like the white-winged dove Sings a song, sounds like she’s singing Ooh, ooh, ooh Just like the white-winged dove Sings a song, sounds like she’s singing Ooh, baby, ooh, said ooh
And the days go by, like a strand in the wind In the web that is my own, I begin again Said to my friend, baby (everything stopped) Nothin’ else mattered
He was no more than a baby then Well, he seemed broken-hearted Something within him But the moment that I first laid Eyes on him, all alone On the edge of seventeen
Just like the white-winged dove Sings a song, sounds like she’s singing I said ooh, baby, ooh, said ooh Just like the white-winged dove Sings a song, sounds like she’s singing I said ooh, baby, ooh, said ooh
Adult Common Gallinule (Sweetwater Wetlands, Tucson) — Image by kenne
The common gallinule (Gallinula galeata) is a bird in the family Rallidae. It was split from the common moorhen by the American Ornithologists’ Union in July 2011. It lives around well-vegetated marshes, ponds, canals, and other wetlands in the Americas. The species is not found in the polar regions or many tropical rainforests. Elsewhere, the common gallinule is likely the most commonly seen rail species in much of North America, except for the American coot in some regions. — Wikipedia
A cuckoo bird that lives for speed, With your shaggy crest, what a site indeed. Streaked feathers break up your silhouette. And your unusual track, not your typical set.
A blue and orange patch behind your eyes, You prefer to chase prey, instead of fly. Your expressive long tail flips here and there… Quail chicks and k-rats best beware.
It’s true, I often see you running about, With a limp lizard’s tail hanging from your mouth, Some have witnessed your familiar antics, taunting rattlesnakes, eagles, and hairy arachnids.
But my favorite three things have to be, Your curiosity each time you encounter me, And how you turn your back to the sun for its heat (like a tiny matador, feathers erect and sleek).
Finally, I think I must surely admit That trickster track—your zygodactyl footprint! How do I know which way you are going? With two toes facing forward and the back two, back-going.
It doesn’t matter much to me you will see I just look for the “X” in the sand to guide me. On the trail of a friend, a cuckoo I know the Greater Roadrunner, always running, on the go.
Hutton’s Vireo is a small songbird that bears an uncanny resemblance to a Ruby-crowned Kinglet. They can be found in the Pacific coastal regions, where they tend to be richer green and yellow. However, in southeastern Arizona, they are grayer like this one I photographed recently in the Cienega Creek Preserve.
Seagull Over Puerto Peñasco, Mexico — Image by kenne
Oh, the wild seagull, the bold seagull, As he screams in his wheeling flight; As he sits on the waves in storm or calm, All cometh to him aright. All cometh to him as he liketh best, Nor any his will gainsay; And he rides on the waves like a bold, young king, That was crowned but yesterday!
