The Game is Afoot!

Male Black-chinned Hummingbird
Not a Plain Cap, but lovely just the same

Um... more like 'the Game is Awing', the game being chasing rare birds, a potentially ignoble sport. My excuse is that last year, just after I left southeastern Arizona, just when I was patting myself on the back for a successful birding trip, a contingent of Plain-capped Starthroat Hummingbirds alighted in many of the places I'd just vacated. It was as if I left a vacuum the little birds decided must be filled on my departure. Little %&#ers. Annoyed as hell, I swore, when the Plain-capped Starthroats returned in 2015, I would race down, on-the-spot to see them.

A year passed. I have waited patiently. Finally, earlier this month one singular Plain-cap showed up at Madera Canyon, a canyon magnificently bereft of anyone named Claire. So yesterday I spent much of yesterday flying from Sacto to Los Angeles where my flight was inexplicably held up 2 hours. UGH! Finally I arrived, tired and slightly cranky in Tucson. I rented a car and sped over to Madera Canyon where I took possession of a little rented Casita room at the famous birder's venue, the Santa Rita Lodge. The lodge is famous for having a seating area set up for birders where they can sit and watch umpteen species of hummingbirds and other local flora and fauna feed. V. convenient arrangement all around.

Canyon Wren that flew in for a look-see

Dropping my gear in my room, I raced to the Lodge's bird feeding area where, so help me, a very nice lady informed me that the Plain-capped Starthroat had arrived. Then it had flown away. This, only twenty minutes prior to the arrival of a birder with the name, Claire. %#^$~!!!! It instantly dawned on me, if my flight hadn't been delayed 2 hours, I would have been in place to see the Plain-cap.  Still, not giving up hope for a glimpse of my target, I sat down and stayed put until sundown. Alas, no Plain-Capped Starthroat.  I keep telling myself, 'Maybe tomorrow?' Uh.. no such luck for today at least. But meanwhile there are scads of other birds to gawk at and capture on digital.

No matter how many feeders are put in there will be squabbles
Male Broad-billed Hummingbirds in a face off

Male Hepatic Tanager on Suet Feeder

A girlie Hepatic Tanager - as yellow as the male was red - flew in for some suet too

'Yeah, I'm pretty damned cute' muses a cheeky Broad-billed Hummer

Arizona Woodpecker - a girlie as she hasn't a red patch on her noggin

Unexpected mad eyed devil; a male Bronzed Cowbird

I love my birdies of course, but don't think I turn my nose up at mammals. I spotted quite a few of these handsome rodents darting about, also enjoying the bird seed and grain. I asked around but no one knew what they were. I later looked them up on my iPhone Audubon Mammal app. Yay! My first Yellow-nosed Cotton Rat, a new mammal for me.

Yellow-nosed Cotton Rat

Cool! Oh, and the drive in and out of Madera Canyon can't be done without seeing at least one or two Coues White-tail Deer.

Shy Coues White-tail Doe

Now, there were loads of birds I saw at Santa Rita Lodge that I didn't mention, solely because I can see them at home in California, like Acorn Woodpeckers, House Wrens, Lesser Goldfinches, House Finches. Black-headed and Blue Grosbeaks. There are also birds that while not normally found in California, they are so common here in Arizona that after a while my brain stops recording them, such as the numerous White-winged Doves. I'll show pictures of some of the above mentioned when/if I get nice shots of them.

Midday I drove to the bottom on Madera Canyon where it is warmer than at the top of the canyon. I became enchanted by the numerous butterflies there, all of which are new to me and had to be looked up on line. Butterflies are even more difficult to photograph than birds sometimes as some of them never seem to sit down and hold-the-hell still.

Arizona Metalmark

Reakirt's Blues

left, a Leda's Ministreak, on the right, uh...

None of my butterfly shots are too sharp as I never have the depth of field focus adjusted to the situation. *sigh* Which is why I am hold the duel title of world's laziest birder & world's laziest butterfly watcher.

After sundown I again went to the bottom of Madera Canyon and there spotted a couple of Lesser Nighthawks out for a wing around the desert. The shots I got were rather dark but I intend to get a better picture or two by Monday, when I leave Arizona. This is only a short visit, and there really ought not have been a visit in the first place, but had to have a try at seeing a Plain-capped Starthroat. This is probably the guiltiest last second birding trip for me ever. Oh well. People fly to Las Vegas for less noble reasons, wrote the judgmental woman.

The Road Home

Old fencing on the back roads of Mendicino

Just when you think the wildflowers have all passed you by, accidentally you happen upon a quiet little hillside between coastal Mendocino and Ukiah. There is a splash of colors on the grasses and  butterflies dart about. Eureka! There's a touch of  'Spring time' left in them thar hills.

Along the road from Fort Bragg through to Ukiah, we passed through the adorably tiny town of Comptche and the Montgomery Woods State Reserve. Sometime later we drove past some red flowers and I pulled to the side of the road to examine them. At first I thought the red flowers were  California Fuchia but on closer scrutiny they looked different. Now, I've looked them up they are actually delphiniums, or more commonly called Lark Spurs. 

Bright Red Larkspurs aka Canyon Delphiniums

There were lots of wildflowers shining on the shady hillside. Barbara and I excitedly scoured the hillside to see what grew. Some flowers were there but in small numbers.

Cute little Baby Blue-eyes were scattered sparingly

 One spot had strange looking flowers called Elegant Clarkia that look like someone shredded them with a cheese grater. Strange

Elegant Clarkia or 'Red Ribbons' looking more purplish in the shade of trees

There were Chinese Houses scattered around too. Never saw them before this year, now they seem to be everywhere.

Chinese Houses

We weren't the only ones interested in the local blooms of course. There were butterflies visiting flowers too.  I seldom see different types of butterflies, in one spot any more so it was a treat seeing so many kinds. There were Duskywings which are to date, the biggest Skipper butterflies I've ever seen.

A Duskywing Skipper feeding on the Blue Dicks.

A whitish, Western Swallowtail sipping vetch nectar

I don't recall I've ever seen one of these gigantic California Sisters butterflies before

 The Yellow Lupines were far deeper buttery yellow than the pale yellow lupines we found in Lake County. Barbara started calling them Butter Cookies because they look like rows of cookies... maybe we were just ready for a snack?

Yellow Lupines

Eventually we headed on for Ukiah in the east, with intent to get home. I figured if we made it sometime prior to midnight it would be a miracle. But we had to stop again to admire a bumper crop of native succulents, called Canyon Dudleya, Canyon Liveforever or Rock Lettuce. Love those names. Barbara had a Klepto-botanist thought, and what do you know? A couple of teeny rooted Rock Lettuce jumped off the cliff, crawled into the back of my car and followed us home. Honestly. The little buggers hitch hiked a ride!

The biggest bunch of Rock Lettuce on the slope

Around Fort Bragg

Tiny patch of the b'jillion acre Mendocino Botanical Gardens

It's been a relaxing week in Fort Bragg. didn't do as much local exploring as I expected. Jo, Barbara and I visited the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens - or to be more precise - the gift & garden shop at the gardens. Barb bought a few plants but I decided not to bring any home, where they'd only be fated for death in my Gulag Garden.  Here are some fortunate plants I didn't buy.

Fancy Geranium

And a few fishies whom were also spared my interest

Most of the time we spent lolling around Jo's home. I mentioned her late husband Sean's artistic talents in my last blog post. I recall seeing his work at their previous home in Monterey County more than a decade ago. I went nuts over Sean's stuff back then and still feel the same draw to them now.
Here are some of Sean's hangings.
 

This hanging features Scarlet Macaw tail feathers

This is AWESOME!

Amusingly enough, Jo was never too thrilled with Sean's hangings. I never asked her, but I think she didn't appreciate the work's ability to gather dust, cobwebs and feature bones, odds and ends. As for myself though, I guess I've got enough boondock appreciation in me to think it's all pret-ty cool.

I spent a fair amount of time birding in the laziest possible manner - sitting near the picture windows in the livingroom, watching Ospreys and flocks of Violet-green & Cliff Swallows float by. A Great Blue Heron and Mallards used the pond.

A natural little pond just across from the house

Most evenings a ghostly white Barn Owl swept through the meadow, hunting mice. I bet her bird 'yard list' is well over 100 species (comparatively, mine is around 40).

I did drag myself away from the window one afternoon, driving myself down to Mendocino.

View of the sea from the little village shops

View along the shop fronts

Had fun walking around window shopping. Didn't buy much, thank heavens, just a book, California Foraging, which of course, I need like a hole in my head. Really, I already have lots of books on edible wild plants. But this one actually tells when to forage for each plant, what parts of plants are edible and how to prepare them, and even better, how to ensure a better yield for the wild plants in future seasons. Way cool.





Oh, and I bought this HUMONGOUS smoky quartz crystal, from Nepal. Coincidentally, later in the day I heard about the horrible earthquake in Nepal.



One other thing is Barbara and I visited Jo at her work place at KUNK FM Fort Bragg, a radio station. She got a job there a while back and really enjoys working there and learning all about how radio stations operate. Myself, of course, I just LOVE the station's name: The Skunk FM. It was awesome visiting her there.

Jo learned the ropes at the Skunk FM

By the way, The Skunk FM was instrumental in Jo getting her new doggie, Finn. He was featured at the station in their ongoing association with the local Humane Society.

Fynn, enjoying his new home

Lovely, lovely visit with Jo. Wish we could stay and visit with Jo and Fynn all summer.