Arizona Photography

 The local bird nerds have been giddy over the appearance of a hybrid hummingbird they are calling the Costifer, a cross between a Costa's and a Lucifer.  When I first heard of it, I didn't know what to look for.  People would ask if I had seen it, and my only response was "I don't know".  When I got home and saw my photos on the computer, I was pretty sure I had not only seen it, but had photos of it.  A quick check with Tim confirmed it.  I was really pleased to add it to my collection, as it is a beautiful little bird. In addition to the Costifer, this was a good day for other birds, including the usual hummingbird species that are still hanging around.  In fact, I had so many keepers I could have easily produced several updates to the blog. Rufous (F)                                        Lesser Goldfinch (M) Territorial Dispute Bordered Patch Broad...

 Suddenly, there weren't nearly as many Hummingbirds at the sanctuary, quite a few having migrated south for the winter.  There were still lots of photo ops, just not the swarms we had been seeing over the past month or so.  It was a stark reminder of what the fall/winter season will be like. Flame Skimmer Anna's (M) Anna's (F) Black-chinned (M) Broad-billed (M) Costa's (M) Gila Woodpecker (M) Acorn Woodpecker (F) White-winged Dove House Finch (M)                                           Mexican Jay Lazuli Bunting (F)   House Finch (F)  

 One can tell that this year's Hummingbird migration is starting to move farther south.  Male Rufous Hummingbirds seem to have moved on toward Central America, but there were plenty of females or immatures left to entertain us.  Here are a few of those. There were lots of Anna's, too, both male and female.  Of course, some stay here year round.   And, many of the other species were well represented. Broad-tailed (F) Broad-billed (M) Broad-billed (J) Mexican Petunia Black-chinned (M) Lesser Goldfinch (M) House Finch (M) Acorn Woodpecker (M) Ladder-backed Woodpecker (M) Lucifer (M) Rivoli's (M) AZ Carpenter Bee Mexican Jay Canyon Towhee Black-headed Grosbeak (F)