The month of November, 2016 started on a sad note. MaryLou's oldest brother who lived in Tucson, Arizona was recuperating from complications which followed a leg fracture. We planned to visit him and made flight reservations, also hoping to do some birding while out there. His condition suddenly deteriorated the day before our scheduled arrival. He had turned gravely ill with pneumonia and sepsis.
We flew out the first day of November and visited him that evening in a rehabilitation facility. He was very weak but alert and involved with events surrounding the World Series and the presidential election. We stayed at nearby Davis-Monthan Air Force Base and visited with him the next morning. We planned to spend more time with him, but he passed away that night.
We had reservations to return to Florida on November 4 and had time to briefly visit Sweetwater Wetlands and the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum before flying home.
I had to pore over nearly 1,000 processed photos from November to highlight favorite memes, such as critters (plenty of birds!), skies, reflections, flowers, fences and scenes which speak for themselves.
My first images were from Sweetwater Wetlands. Our visit was much too brief, given the circumstances.
Yellow-headed Blackbirds flew overhead:
The Red-naped Sapsucker is the western counterpart of our Yellow-bellied Sapsucker:
The Verdin inhabits thorny shrubs in the arid lands of southern Arizona:
Long ears serve to dissipate body heat of the Desert Cottontail:
The next morning, rain was threatening when we visited the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, but most of it evaporated before reaching the ground:
Cactus Wrens were common:
Butterflies included a Common Checkered-Skipper:
Back home in Florida, our winter resident birds were settling in. Among them was a fairly rare Bell's Vireo:
Marsh Wrens appear irregularly during the winter months:
Eastern Phoebes stay for the winter:
This phoebe is dwarfed by the heavy guard rail fence along the "road to nowhere:"
Clay-colored Sparrows made their first (and so far only) appearance in our local wetlands:
Wintering Palm Warblers were numerous:
Swamp Sparrows were reliably present but few in number:
Female Ruby-throated Hummingbird:
Sharp-shinned Hawk:
Dark morph of a Short-tailed Hawk:
The local pair of Bald Eagles, after losing their first brood earlier in the year, had successfully reared one eaglet which remained dependent well into September. Now they were refurbishing their nest in preparation for the new season:
A large male Bobcat was visiting, probably meeting up with one of the resident females:
Zebra heliconian at the flower of a Firebush (Hamelia patens):
A "mirrored sunrise" on November 27 is an illusion caused by convergence of the parallel rays of the rising sun on the opposite (western) horizon. Conditions are best when the sky is clear overhead but the tops of storm clouds over the Atlantic Ocean break up the light to form the rays:
The sky was clearing up after a rain storm on November 28:
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Linking to Misty's CAMERA CRITTERS,
Linking to Eileen's SATURDAY'S CRITTERS,
Linking to SKYWATCH FRIDAY by Yogi, Sylvia and Sandy
Linking to WEEKEND REFLECTIONS by James
Linking to BirdD'Pot by Anni
Linking to Our World Tuesday by Lady Fi
Linking to Wild Bird Wednesday by Stewart
Linking to Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday) by NC Sue
Linking to ALL SEASONS by Jesh
Linking to Fences Around the World by Gosia
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Please visit the links to all these memes to see some excellent photos on display
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This past week we suddenly and unexpectedly traveled to southern Arizona.
Saguaro Cactus in the desert outside Tucson:
Just before our planned return to Florida from our second home in Illinois we learned that MaryLou's brother Jack, who lived in Tucson, Arizona was terminally ill and had entered hospice care. We arrived in Florida on Sunday and on Tuesday morning, hoping to visit him before the end, flew to Arizona. It was dark when we arrived and drove directly to see him. He was in a nearly comatose state and we worried he would not make it through the night.
We stayed in the Air Force Inn at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base. The next morning (Wednesday) we visited him again at 9:00 AM. We were gratified to find him to be quite aware of his surroundings. On the way to the hospice facility we stopped by the Sweetwater Wetlands, quite nearby.
We got there before 7:30 AM and briefly joined a scheduled walk conducted by the Tucson Audubon Society:
We only ventured a few hundred yards into the preserve but were rewarded with excellent sightings of a Cooper's Hawk...
...Anna's Hummingbirds:
...and a flock of Yellow-headed Blackbirds:
A Red-tailed Hawk alighted atop a power pole along the perimeter road:
This Desert Cottontail ventured across the path. Its long ears help dissipate body heat:
A highlight was this Red-naped Sapsucker, which I had seen when we lived in New Mexico, but it was my "first photographed" of this species:
We had to hurry off but planned to make another visit to Sweetwater early the next day. We were surprised how much better my Brother-in Law appeared to be, and we stayed with him all morning and into mid-afternoon.
Jack's breathing was labored and his speech indistinct, but we conversed about current events in politics and particularly, sports. Jack is an attorney and had served as counsel for the Chicago White Sox baseball team. While he considered the Chicago Cubs to be his "number two team," he was avidly interested in seeing the Cubs in the final tie-breaking World Series championship game that very night (which they won).
Back at our quarters the next morning we were up very early because of jet lag due to the three-hours difference in time. We received a call from Jack's caregivers advising us that he had passed away quietly some time between 4 and 5:15 AM. Sad as this was, we were so grateful that we had one last chance to be with him-- much better than just coming out for a funeral.
We drove back to Sweetwater Wetlands and had time to be alone with nature. Although it was not nearly as "birdy" as it had been the previous morning, I captured photos of another "life bird photographed," the diminutive and reclusive Verdin:
I am fondest of my first Verdin photo. While not a "bird guide" picture, it captures its arid environment and the bird's relative size:
That afternoon, hot and tired, we briefly visited the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum southwest of town. There were many visitors but few birds. Cactus Wrens were inviting subjects:
Butterflies were plentiful, among them a Clouded Sulphur...
...and a Common Checkered-Skipper:
Storms threatened as we departed the Museum:
There was heavy rain Thursday night, but skies were clear for our early morning departure on Friday. We had to lead a South Florida Audubon bird walk the next morning. On Sunday the weather was cool and clear, perfect for grocery shopping to replenish the larders after being away from home for six weeks. Monday provided a cloudy dawn over the local wetlands:
Great Egret reflection:
A fence along "The Road to Nowhere" at the north end of our birding patch:
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Linking to Misty's CAMERA CRITTERS,
Linking to Eileen's SATURDAY'S CRITTERS,
Linking to GOOD FENCES by Tex (Theresa).
Linking to SKYWATCH FRIDAY by Yogi, Sylvia and Sandy
Linking to WEEKEND REFLECTIONS by James
Linking to BirdD'Pot by Anni
Linking to Wild Bird Wednesday by Stewart
Linking to Today's Flowers Friday by Denise
Linking to Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday) by NC Sue
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Please visit the links to all these memes to see some excellent photos on display
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