Psalm 19:1--The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth his handywork.


I wish to apologize to anyone who may be having trouble making comments on my posts. I appreciate your visit so much, and wish I could read what you have to say, but something is going on with my computer, and until I can get the issue addressed, this may continue. Please keep visiting! Also, often I cannot make a comment on some posts I look at, particularly those who ask for me to show I am a guest. I have noticed sometimes someone can only comment in the "Reply" section of another comment...if that's all that works, then that's fine! Let's keep visiting no matter what happens, and know we are touching each other with our creativity and thoughts and images even when we can't get (or leave) feedback. God bless you my dear blogger friends!


21 April 2015

The Drive-bys and the Fences

Spring continues on here, temps in the mid-80s mostly, and getting out to enjoy the desert environs is such a treat!  On our drive two weeks ago when we saw so many quail we also saw other wonderful birds,  and some fences, so for this week's Wild Bird Wednesday and Bird d'Pot, as well as Good Fences, here is my offering...go by and check out the other offerings on these wonderful memes!

A Gila Woodpecker on a saguaro

Different Gila

Female Phainopepla...sorry the lighting isn't better so you can see her shades of grey color.

Male Phainopepla, jet black

A dove sitting on top of a saguaro.....

...and by on top, I mean WAYYYY up!  See him!?  By the way, notice the dead saguaro next to the live one, embedded in a dead tree.  The tree offered shade and protection to the saguaro when it was young many years ago.

An osprey flying over a small lake near our home.  A surprising find!  (Again, sorry about the picture quality, but he was WAYYY up there, too! :-))

I went down the street to a Palo Verde in a wash (so I wouldn't be doing this in someone's yard) to get a couple of fronds of the yellow blossoms for my Easter bouquet, and I heard someone singing up a storm.  I looked and looked for the vocalist and found this mockingbird sitting on top of the light pole.

Singing his heart out.
 And now for a couple of fences....this first one is a typical SW gate, but the surprise were the statues on either side of the entrance...very "Eastern" :-)


This entrance gate looks very typical of our area, right down to the fake stetsons (each side of the entryway was identical) on top of the posts.



47 comments:

Elizabeth Edwards said...

so pretty. i wonder how they don't get hurt by the catcus. ouch! luv ur fences. ( :

TexWisGirl said...

pretty cool gates - you're right about southwestern meets easter. :) love the saguaros!

mick said...

I especially like the photos of the woodpecker with the holes on the saguaro. I have read about saguaros but no book ever thought to mention that the woodpeckers had holes in them! Amazing!

Cloudia said...

What a bounty!




ALOHA from Honolulu,
ComfortSpiral
=^..^=

Bethany Carson said...

Your scenery is so different from up here! Love the taste of desert, and your southern birds!

Adam Jones said...

Love the Woodpecker clinging onto the cactus.

Margaret Birding For Pleasure said...

Lovely shots of the Mockingbird.

eileeninmd said...

Great collection of the birds. I love the Gila Woodie.. And the gates/entrances are beautiful.. Have a happy day!

Sallie (FullTime-Life) said...

The dove in the very top of that saguaro is amazing. I just loved finding out that birds nested in the cactus, when we stayed in Tucson those winters. Have I already told you that? Anyway, thanks for the great pictures and memories, I love that black bird too and even learned how to spell it once;)!

sonia a. mascaro said...

Beautiful photos of birds, Marie!
These fences looks amanzing.

Kathy said...

Love that hat! That gate and entry is soooo Tucson.

Latane Barton said...

Excellent bird pictures and also the two gates. I wonder about those statues! I am not even going to guess.
Have a great rest of the week. Love Mom

Dorothy said...

Great pictures, Marie! Love your fences!

Linda Kay said...

I love the last gateway..very unique. And the desert drive was alive with all sorts of birds. The cactus are lovely.

EG CameraGirl said...

The Gila Woodpecker looks like quite the character!

Phil Slade said...

To me who only sees woodpeckers that peck wood it sounds so unlikely that a woodpecker will attack a plant in the way the Gila does. On the other hand, those cacti look both huge and strong. The Gilas are obviously well adapted to their specialised environment?

A great capture of the Osprey Marie. Looks like the wheels are down in readiness for a plunge or a landing.

Patsy said...

Wish I could feel the warm sunshine now. It is just still so cold here.

Unknown said...

Lovely photos! I love the woodpecker and the cacti.

Candy C. said...

It always amazes me that the birds can sit on top of the cactus! Neat gates, I think I saw that second one last time we were in Tucson! :)

Karen @ Beatrice Euphemie said...

Love all the different birds - so many! I have never heard a mockingbird - have always wanted to. Love the Southwestern style gates. xo Karen

Yesteryear Embroideries said...

You live in such a beautiful world!I am surprised that the cactus does not hurt those little birds.......it is amazing at how nature adapts. Love the fence pics!

Anonymous said...

Great gates and fences, Marie. Love the birdies in their desert habitat, too.

Rajesh said...

Beautiful birds, very nice variety.

Christine said...

So glad to come over from Good fences to see wonderful desert birds and fences and cacti! Really enjoyed it all!
Have a great day!
Christine

Ida said...

Wonderful bird sightings. I love the Cacti too. Great fences. The one with the lizard is really neat but I did find it odd that they had the statue next to it as it just doesn't seem to fit.
Also a great gate with the Stetson hats.

Yogi♪♪♪ said...

I love it all, the saguaros, the birds, and the gates. What is it about gates that people find so attractive. Great post, thank you

Irma said...

Beautiful pictures Marie.
I love all the different birds.

Hootin Anni said...

The fencing is an odd combination, but still makes an interesting entrance!!!

love, Love, LOVE all your birds. Exceptional.

Kenneth Cole Schneider said...

Interesting information about the "nurse" cactus that took care of its baby. I envy your warm weather, having just relocated temporarily to NE Illinois. Down to 27 degrees last night while back home in FLorida it was 77 degrees overnight.

Celestina Marie said...

Hi Marie, Love your bird pics. You captured really great shots.
Great fences too and the horse fence with the stetson hats is amazing. It would fit right in here too.
So enjoyed my visit. Wishing you a nice weekend.
Hugs, CM

Debbie said...

lots of great birdie catches and a couple of awesome fences!!!!

My name is Riet said...

Love the bird photo's and the fences look greeat.

Lisa @ Two Bears Farm said...

These are all so excellent, but I especially love the bird on the cactus!

Rohrerbot said...

The Osprey is quite a catch Marie. Nice work! The Saguaros are about to begin their bloom cycle...get ready! It's going to be epic. Keep your eyes on those flowers....and the cavities....:) Owls, Martins and more....that's all I'm saying:)

ifthethunderdontgetya™³²®© said...

Great pics! I hope to see a woodpecker on a cactus...someday!
~

Karen @ Pieces of Contentment said...

Your surrounds are so different to ours....both filled with beauty for those who have eyes to see it.

Ela said...

These fences are lovely !!
Great shots ! Greetings !

NatureFootstep said...

well, that is a lovely entrance. And some pretty birds as well :)

Jeanne said...

Great desert finds!

Inspired By June said...

Wonderful shots, Marie! How wonderful that you have an osprey nearby!

Mascha said...

Lovely bird photos, finally today I find the time for a visit (to many is to do in the garden... )
Have a nice new week

Anni said...

I remember those "P" black birds [can't spell it...won't even attempt to spell it].....are they the ones with red eyes?

Gerald (SK14) said...

quite different from anything we see here

Unknown said...

nice
dazzlingzest.blogspot.com

doodles n daydreams said...

I loved seeing all the birds, so different to the ones we have here.
The eastern style figures don't really fit with the rest of the gate, do they?

Diana

Anonymous said...

You always share the most amazing photos. Love the plants, birds and the fences/gates!

LV said...

Wonderful display of birds. I try to capture them, but not fast enough.