Costa's Hummingbird

    Last week we had unusually cold weather.   Our hummingbirds, which usually have enough plants to keep them happy, were fighting over the feeder in the back yard.   They can be very territorial, and the one was not happy about sharing his food.   

      The solution was to buy another feeder and put it in the front yard, specifically the casita window.   It wasn't long before it became a popular spot.

   

I think this is a male Costa's Hummingbird.  

     I've been trying to get some good pictures for days.

    

        Arizona is home to a number of types of hummingbirds.   The Costa's live here year round.  This one seems to best match the description of the Costa's in the book "Desert Hummingbird Gardens" by Sylvia Yoder.   But if anyone has other information, please let me know.   The other possibilities were an Anna's or Black-chinned hummingbird.

       I love  watching the hummingbirds here.  They are so friendly!   Whenever we go outside to work or read, they fly very close to us.  It's as if they want to say "hi" and see what we're up to.   The ones we had in Ohio never came this close.  

      We've planted a lot of native plants that attract them.  Yoder's book lists lots of trees, shrubs, cacti and other plants that they like.   But for the best pictures, the feeders seem to work the best for me.  

    

Coyotes on the Hunt

     The other night two coyotes visited the back yard.   Off and on during night the resident bunny had been playing and drinking from the water feature.   About 15 minutes after his last visit, the coyotes showed up.
      I don't think they found him, but it wasn't for lack of trying.   They hunted for at least a half hour.   The pictures came from my Bushnell Trophy Cam. I edited them into a short movie.   This is my first attempt at using Picasa to make a movie.    I don't think Sundance will be calling, but have a look if you have a few minutes.

 

Coyote on the Cam

It finally happened!   I "captured" a picture of a coyote visiting our water feature on the new Trophy Cam that I set up.  

The coyote only stayed a few seconds.   He enters the picture on the right side and exits from the top left.   Here are the 6 pix:

I hope these are only the first of a lot of pictures of our backyard wildlife.

Backyard Trophy Cam

     For a long time I've wanted to set up a camera to record the wildlife that comes to our water feature.  During the day we see rabbits and quail almost every day.  Occasionally we see coyotes, road runners, and Harris Hawks.  Last week we saw a different bird of prey, which I think was a Cooper's Hawk. I wish I had a photo to study or show to someone who would know more.
       So I was excited when Kent surprised me with an early Christmas present a few days ago--a Trophy Cam.    I've had a great time working with getting it set up and experimenting with the settings.   Here are some of the photos:
     

   The rabbit on the left is the first one we "captured".

    I changed the location slightly here:

 

   So far I've only captured rabbits and quail.  But I'm sure that one night I'll catch the coyotes dancing in the moonlight.

Vancouver to Victoria

 

BC Ferries

We signed up for a Victoria and Butchart Gardens tour with Westcoast Sightseeing, which involved taking a ferry to Victoria.    The journey was one of the highlights of the trip for me.  

The islands are pine covered, with lighthouses and a few homes along the shore.   I don't know what the houses cost, but they have million dollar views.

          There are restaurants on board and plenty of comfortable seats.   But my favorite spot was on the deck.  With the wind blowing and the sun shining., it was the best seat on the ferry.    

River Otter Swimming

Here he comes!