Monday, June 15, 2009

Cactus Monday - More Saguaro Fruit

In the summertime, walks in the desert are most enjoyable early morning or in the evening. Chris and I looked at Sabino Canyon after sundown to see if any bats were feeding on saguaro fruit. The only bats we saw were little brown bats, the common little insect eaters that come out at dusk. Sorry, we didn't get any photos of bats, just the fruit.
But if you like bats, you might enjoy this short 21 second National Geographic video of a fruit bat eating from a saguaro. Click here for video.

Sometimes I bring my camera early in the morning when I go to the nearby track. I like to watch for birds in the natural desert vegetation that surrounds the school. There are no birds in the photo below, but I like how you can see the moon above the building.
There's a hummingbird feeding on the saguaro fruit in the photo below. Hummers in the wild are usually too fast for me to catch in a picture.
One of these house finches is orange colored. The hue looks slightly different from the orange house finch that visits our backyard feeder.
This cute little yellow headed bird is a verdin. It's not much bigger than a hummingbird. Verdins are abundant at the canyon, but they are usually camera shy, preferring to keep hidden among mesquite branches.
I'm not sure what this plain colored bird is that's eating the saguaro fruit. I'm guessing it's a juvenile verdin.
And here's the same bird holding onto the leaf of a desert spoon plant (sotol). Birders, please let me know if this is not a verdin.
Happy Cactus Monday!
For more cactus fun, head on over to Teri's Painted Daisies.

32 comments:

Betsy Banks Adams said...

Beautiful Diane, The birdies also love the saguaro fruit, don't they???? I love all of the colors. Neat!!!

GiVEAWAY on my blog today only.

Have a great day.
Hugs,
Betsy

•°°• IcyBC •°°• said...

Incredible shots! Can I have a favorite? The last one is just so cute..

Prospero said...

The first shot and the moon shot are my favorites. The Verdin is an attractive bird. That's the first time I see or hear of one.

Cathy S. said...

Nice photo shot, the birds are very cute!
Happy Cactus Monday!

Martha Z said...

Those sugaro sure attarct a variety of flying creatures. The bat video is neat. Hummers are hard to get. There was one at Sonoma Coast, probably an Allen's which we do not have here but he wouldn't hold still.

marianne said...

Ohh what fabulous shots! True eye candy!
Thanks for this treat.

HCM!

Carol said...

Beautiful. I never thought of them as having fruit. Are they edible for humans?

www.wildlifearoundus.blogspot.com

Unknown said...

I could sit and watch the birds feed from the cactus all day! Thanks so much for sharing!

Teri said...

Oh wow, what fabulous photos!!!! I didn't realize the fruit was so red. I love your Sabino Canyone photos and insights.

HCM!

betchai said...

that picture of the bird eating the saguaro fruit is really amazing, i can't get my eyes off the bird, actually, all your pictures are great, wonder how you took them while like enjoying the cacti, so cute!

Annette said...

I really enjoyed this post. I find it amazing that the saguaro fruit pops open and is so red. The photos of the birds are wonderful, too. I wonder what it's like to walk in the desert at night. What sounds do you hear?

Phoenix C. said...

I love the one of the fruit with the dark night sky behind!

Julie said...

Beautiful photos Diane! I love birds! It was fun seeing the video of the bat eating fruit! Saguaros are so awesome! Thanks for sharing!!!
Happy CM!

Lisa at Greenbow said...

Happy Cactus Monday. It has been a long time since I have seeen a verdin. Such cute little things. I don't know about the plain gray bird.

Rena Jones said...

Wonderful pictures!

Gaelyn said...

What an excellent aray of birds enjoying the saguaro fruit. Have you tried it yourself?

Deepa Gopal said...

Beautiful pics...especially the pic of moon in the backdrop. And the birdies are lovely..

HCM:)

deedee said...

The shots with the birds are wonderful. You got a picture of "three" birds on a cactus at the same time before they flew away - wow! Nice pictures!

Jen said...

Great pictures. I'm surprised to see some of the same birds in AZ as in KY...but I know there a lot that are different.
I'm looking forward to the day when I can come out and enjoy the beauty of it all.

yoon see said...

Lovely cactus and birds shots as always.
Thanks for your lovely comment on mine.
Have a creative week and until meet again!
Bye!

Margaret Ann said...

You must be ten feet tall!!! Spectacular photography!!! Always a treat to visit you! HCM...a wee bit late this go around... LOL :)

Prospero said...

Diane, yes, that is Agapanthus (could be africanus or some hybrid. It's one of the only things I didn't grow from seed, so I can't be sure.) Orange crush is Delonix regia - and Complicity is Cosmos "labybird" and Adenium obesum. Do you miss California?

LisaNewton said...

I love the picture with the moon in the background. I'm not too sure about the watching bats idea. I'm not a bat fan. :)

Gaelyn said...

Diane, Please stop by for an award I'm passing on to you.

Janie said...

Enjoyed the cactus and bird shots. The photo of the cactus, wall, and moon above is very interesting.

Inday said...

i used those cactus as fence to ward off wild children in the neighbourhood....long ago...

Sweetpea said...

Beautiful pics! Would you mind if I borrow them to use in my Biology classroom?

Diane AZ said...

Sweetpea, My pics are available to you or anyone else who wants to use them.

SAPhotographs (Joan) said...

Arizona has always been my favorite state and wish I had time to explore it more. Wonderul pictures of the cacti Diane. Thanks for visiting my blog too.:)

Marvin said...

I enjoyed your photos and especially liked the feeding verdin. I'm glad this camera shy bird decided to pose for you.

Silver said...

The pictures are amazing, especially the one of the bird holding onto the leaf of a desert spoon plant!

~Silver
Reflections

Max said...

Yes, it looks like a young verdin. I saw one just like it when I was in the Canyon in April and thought it was a really drab warbler until my Sibley guide set me straight.