We will start out this post with a couple of photos of a butterfly. These next 2 photos are of what I believe to be a Gulf Fritillary (thank you Larry!), which is very flashy and showy. One with wings open and one with wings closed.
There were many Pinevine Swallowtails also fluttering around in the flower gardens. Now in the birding department we found some unusual finds, the first up was a Bewick's Wren, which I had never seen close to human habitat before. Have seen many over the past few years, but always further out in the wild and not very close to human population. This is a small bird at about 5" in length, but very active and sometimes be hard to locate as they tend to forage in dense vegetation and when a lot of that vegetation is brown and gray, they can be hard to see.
The Gila Woodpeckers, which are very common in Arizona, were constantly in the yard or not far away. This female landed on a tree and was very accommodating and let me snap a photo or two. Kind of liked the quizzical look she is giving me and wondering what I am up to. Males have a red spot on the top of their head while females do not. But this photo does show a glimpse of the yellow belly that many times is not seen by the casual observer.
Next up is a Lesser Goldfinch, another very common bird in the right habitats of Arizona. This bird is a bit less colorful than the American Goldfinch from back in Nebraska, but still brings a splash of yellow sunshine.
Next we have a Northern Mockingbird (which was one of my mother's favorites from back in Nebraska) and I am sure just about everyone knows about their outstanding singing abilities. The photo indicates pink on their underside, which not correct, but this bird was perched on a bird feeder that had been painted red, so the reflection on the white underside is appearing a little pinkish.
The last 2 birds on this post were not actually taken in the yard of the Duquesne B & B. The Northern Cardinal was found in the lot next door and the Acorn Woodpecker was taken a block west on main street in the Patagonia City Park.
The Northern Cardinal is one of my favorite birds as it was our high school mascot when I was growing up in Nebraska, and you must admit the males are usually very vibrant in color. Even the females are very attractive even though they are a bit more subdued in color.
And finally, but not least an Acorn Woodpecker. I just love the way they look. They have unforgettable faces and this one almost fits the name with what looks to maybe a acorn in its beak.
This last photo I hesitated about adding, but decided, no, this is nature and we all need to see how some of these creatures adapt. This is a Yellow-rumped Warbler (Audubon's sub-species) and even though I had seen it flying about the trees for 2 days, I was not aware aware that it was missing a foot until I got the photos processed on my computer at home. It goes to show that some of these creatures can survive and adapt with handicaps. Do not know if the foot is missing due to an accident or if it was hatched that way. But it is remarkable that it is doing as well as it is.
Duquesne B & B is a great place to stay if you are wanting to spend some time in Patagonia. They do have a website and the rooms are very nice and very nicely decorated.
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