
Desert Spiny Lizard, Sweetwater Wetlands Park, Tucson, Arizona — Image by kenne
Desert Spiny Lizard, Sweetwater Wetlands Park, Tucson, Arizona — Image by kenne
Desert Spiny Lizard — Getting A Little Sun (Sabino Canyon Recreation Area) — Image by kenne
Two Desert Spiny Lizards — Image by kenne
― from Song of a Nature Lover by
Desert Spiny Lizard — Image by kenne
We have been experiencing some warmer spring weather here in the desert,
so more lizards are on the move
— kenne
Desert Spiny Lizard On His Throne — Image by kenne
— kenne
Desert Spiny Lizard in the Saguaro National Park (April 2, 2018) — Image by kenne
Lizard Walk — Desert Spiny Image by kenne
In Your Face, Dude (Desert Spiny Lizard) — Computer Art by kenne
— kenne
Desert Spiny Male Lizard — Image by kenne
The morning light and the cooler desert temperatures bring out the colors in this male desert spiny lizard.
Desert Spiny Lizard — Image by kenne
It’s hard not to think of lizards when one thinks of the hot desert days of summer.
Most lizards like the heat, but not to much.
An article in the Smithsonian Magazine notes,
“Scientists worry that a warming climate may be especially dangerous for lizards,
which aren’t able to regulate their own temperatures.”
Scientists are making use mitochondrial DNA to map out a species’ genetic diversity
to learn how animals might best adapt to global warming, if at all.
Lizards “may need to become nocturnal if they want to survive.”
Still, I’m always amazed to see a Zebra-tailed lizard moving across a neighbor street (black-top)
in the bright sun knowing that the air temperature is already in the triple digits
— go figure!
kenne
“In My Mexican Festival Colors” — Desert Spiny Lizard by kenne
Male Desert Spiny Lizard Chasing A Female — Image by kenne
“Disturbed” Desert Spiny Lizard — Image by kenne
I was doing yard work this Saturday morning and uncovered a desert spiny lizard that was still wintering, which gave me time to go get my camera.
Mountain Spiny Lizard at Roger’s Rock In Madera Canyon, Santa Rita Mountains — Images by kenne
(Click on any of the images for larger view in a slideshow format.)
For those of us who live near the Santa Catalina Mountains, Madera Canyon in the Santa Catalina Mountains is about an hour and twenty minutes drive. There are a lot of reasons to love the canyon, rated the third best birding destination in the United States. Yesterday, the Monday Morning Milers hiked one of the canyon’s many trails to Roger’s Rock where I have captured many vista photographs in the past and did the same yesterday. One of the things that made this hike different from past hikes was seeing the mountain spiny lizard captured in this posting. The colors of this guy were very prominent, sunning in the 6,500 feet elevation cool mountain air. I have learned that every hike, even on the same trail, has something new and impressive to see.
— kenne
— Ken Kesey