Sandhill Crane

The two Sandhill Cranes  was taken at the Cibola NWR near Yuma by DesertDale.
They are found though out North America .   They reach their peak on the Great Plains at migratory time  at stop over points .

 Their habitat are on prairies, fields, mushes and on the tundras.  Such as marshes or bogs , in open grasslands or marshy tundras.

Their diet varies on what type of area they on in, such as insects, roots of aquatic plants.  They also eat rodents, snails, frogs, lizards, snakes, berries, seeds and even nestling birds.
They long distances, even cross the  Bering Straits in the spring and fall when heading for their nesting grounds in Siberia.   The Cranes in  Mississippi, Florida and Cuba do not migrate .

Enjoy the posting.  Kitfoxgal

Great-Tailed Grackle

 Our pet Grackle has left us.  She was at our site for about a week.  Then her mother came back  looking for her.  What a joy it was to have her here every  day.  She even left her markings on top of our pick-up,  I am sure they are on the top motorhome.   She would come looking for us when we were setting out doors.

There are 6 species of grackles.  The male are a glossy black.  Females are often much duller,  brownish all most.

They feed in open country, but often go into town at night.  They live in groves, thickets. farms, town and even in city parks.  They may be common around streams or ponds.

They eat insects, such as spiders, millipedes,snails, eggs, and nestlings of other birds. Plus seeds waste grains berries fruits and nuts.

Hope you enjoy this posting as much as we did enjoy Miss Grackle.

I am pleased that her mother came back looking for Miss Grackle.  Kitfoxgal

Birding On The Road: Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher

DesertDale take all these photos that are posted on this blog.

Hope you all enjoy the bog.



Birding On The Road: Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher: The Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher is a bird that is found in the east also but hard to see in high in leafy trees.  They are much more seen in th...

Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher

The Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher is a bird that is found in the east also but hard to see in high in leafy trees.  They are much more seen in the west.

They are blue-gray above , whitish below and with  white eye-ring.  Their white outer tail feathers.

Spring time and summer the males has a thin black eyebrow.
They are a very small woodland bird with a long tail.   They often dart out in a short, quick flight.to snap up in small insects.

DesertDale takes all the photos that are posted on this blog.  KItfoxgal

Dark Eyed Junco

The dark-eyed junco is the best-known species of the juncos.   It is a genus of small grayish American sparrows. This bird is common across much o North America .  In the summer they travel as far as  the Arctic. 

Enjoy the posting.  It has been a long since I posted the last  and things have changed on the posting.  So bare with me.  Kitfoxgal 

Gambel's Quail

Friday, October 10, 2014

Gambel's Quail

The Gambel's Quail is a desert quail.  They are common in the desert .  In the land where cactus and mesquite are fond.

They are all so seen on the edges of cities.  They travel in coveys most of the time, in pairs during nesting times.

In the spring , males perch high and give a loud descending  (waow) sound.

Enjoy the posting.  Kitfoxgal

Steller's Jay At Flagstaff

The Steller's Jay are very aggressive.  They visit campgrounds, picnic areas and feeding stations in the West looking for food.

 The Steller's Jay is very easy to ID.  They are dark blue, with a black-crested jay with variable white or blue markings on the head.  They are the only North American jays with crests.

They are found from Alaska to Nicaragua.  But they are more limited north   and clinal among the 8 subspecies north of Mexico.  The most distinctive subspecies is in North America.  They have a longer crest, paler back and white streaks on their forehead.

They were discovered on a  Alaskan island in 1741 by Georg Steller,

This "Little Guy" is eating on a block of feed for  quail.

Hope you enjoy the posting as much as DesertDale and Kitfoxgal did having them visit our campsite  every day ,near Flagstaff.