There's a visual phenomenon the locals call "The Red Glow; it's when the rising sun hits Silver Peak and the light gives it, well, a red glow. It doesn't happen often, but it's quite striking when it does, and I have a great view of it from my back yard --
Things are starting to "green up" here in March. And the birds are starting to pop up and be more conspicuous, singing from exposed perches. This l'il Verdin, usually a quiet, secretive bird, sang for me out in the open --
State Line Road, which runs along the Arizona/New Mexico border between the towns of Portal and Rodeo, is a good place to see raptors. In the past month I've seen Merlin, Prairie Falcon, Northern Harrier, and Red-tailed Hawk along the road. Here's a juvenile Red-tail giving something he sees on the ground a laserlike stare --
The sunrises for the most part have been cloudless, but there are those occasional dawns that are spectacular --
There were still lingering patches of snow up in the high Chiricahuas until late March, and we even had a few times of (for the lack of a better term) weather instability that left here-and-gone-in-a-minute white stuff above Portal.
We'll be having a celebration of the restoration of Willow Tank on Earth Day, April 22. Willow Tank is one of the few permanent water impoundments on the east side of the Chiricahuas, and is therefore an important stop for birds to rest and feed before heading on out. It can also be a good spot to see birds not commonly seen in the area, too. Here's a scenic of Willow Tank. It's not large, only about an acre or so, but it's a welcome sight to tired birds --
Willow Tank is one of the only -- if not THE only -- place here when you can see water birds such as ducks. Here's a male Cinnamon Teal on flyby.
One of the signs that spring is here is the return of the Turkey Vultures to Cave Creek Canyon. My friend Winston Lewis, who along with his wife Jackie are the proprietors of The George Walker House in the tiny (try a population of 4) community of Paradise, calls the TVs "The Paradise Air Force", as they can sometimes look like a fleet of bombers coming into view. They're usually seen here starting March 15. I saw this one a day earlier --
One of the many social occasions we have here in Portal is the annual St. Patrick's Day Parade. Parade participants range from Border Patrol on horses and ATVs to a hometown kazoo band.
And Portal's honorary mayor goes down the parade route in a classic Porsche. This year's mayor is Jackie Lewis, who I mentioned runs Paradise's George Walker House. Jackie is giving her best queenly wave, a la Queen Elizabeth --
Here's yet another sign of spring -- the return of the birds from their south-of-the-border wintering grounds. Foremost among them are the hummingbirds. There are a few who overwinter here, but the overwhelming majority will be returning to a feeder near you in the coming weeks. I have a few returning friends, too, including this beautiful male Broad-billed --
Male and female birds become Mr. and Mrs. again, like these Northern Cardinals. Here's the Mrs --
And the Mr., both in my back yard.
I may have mentioned her before, but I have a female Coues (White-tailed) deer and her young "son" who visit my yard daily. I'm a sucker for single moms, so I accommodate her as best I can. She now seems to be quite relaxed here.
See? I'd say that's the epitome of relaxed; she's lounging in the shade of my RV canopy.
But there are now signs of deadlier critters afoot. I found this Black Widow near my trailer. Unfortunately expired -- and I had nothing to do with it.
I have a few "to do" projects around the house this year; the major one is re-finishing the wood decks. I have three, and they probably haven't had work done on them since they were first put in around 10 years ago. And that's a lot of harsh Arizona weather. So I'm sanding, both by hand and with a belt sander, followed by filling in cracks and missing pieces with wood filler, then sanding again, spraying with deck cleaner, then rolling on redwood stain. The wood is very dry, so it's been taking 3 coats of stain before the wood soaks it up.
Before --
After.
I've done the front and side porches, and now it's time to do the LONG back porch deck...
And here's yet another sign of spring here -- poppies! It's been a fairly dry winter, so they're hard to find. I came upon these while driving along State Line Road.
The weather in March has been alternating between clear and cold, clear and warm, cloudy and threatening rain that almost invariably doesn't happen. And wind -- lots of it. The results of the unpredictable weather can be spectacular, as in this rainbow over Faranuf --
or damaging, as in these struts in the RV canopy. The canopy is supposed to withstand 90mph-plus winds -- it's an Arizona law or buildings -- but, as you can see, it's been battered. The struts are bending; you can see the crease in the center --
or have been ripped entirely out of their screws. There's no warranty on the canopy -- "damage by inclement weather" is not covered. Though what other kind of weather would do this? Some friends suggested a few fixes, so along with the porches this is another of my "Tool Time" projects.
I have a Magnificent hummingbird at my feeders for the first time since I moved here. They're probably my favorite hummingbird as they're the most colorful just so long as you get them in the right light. This is a portrait of one, though it was taken at Jackie Lewis's bird garden -- an Important Bird Area -- in Paradise.
But this one WAS taken in my back yard; it shows a Magnificent next to a female Black-chinned. Notice the size difference. It's why I call the "Mag" the Mack Truck of the hummingbird world. It's second only to the Blue-throated as the largest hummingbird in the United States. A Mag is 5.1" long; a Black-chinned 3.75".
Yet another sign of spring are nesting birds. Here's a female Great Horned Owl nesting in a cavity created by an Arizona Sycamore's fallen tree limb. She's right near the Portal Store and doesn't seem to be bothered by admiring birders.
But most of the nesting birds aren't quite as public as Mrs. GHO. This female Blue-throated hummingbird has her nest under the eaves of a house between two outdoor light fixtures; her location will remain a secret.
Meanwhile, the raucous and entertaining Acrorn Woodpeckers continue to investigate old stumps for possible stashes for their acorns. It sure looks like they're striking a pose here. Voguing?
And now we come to the "Rare Hummingbird" mentioned in this post title. On the morning of March 28 I was watching the backyard birds when I saw this hummingbird come to a feeder. It took me a few seconds before I realized it was a Violet-crowned hummingbird, an "uncommon to rare" bird that, except for really rare occasions, is only seen in SE Arizona. It's the best Yard Bird I've had so far. And it's now April 4, and I've seen it every day at the same feeder. Here's hoping VC stays a spell!
So spring is here! And I leave you with a Silver Peak sunset.
