The Desert Cardinal

Although I have seen Pyrrhuloxia on previous visits to south TX and southern AZ, I don't know that I have ever really gotten a good photo of one.  Today I got at several hundred shots including this one which I particularly like.  You can see the resemblance to our bright red cardinals (which also live in this area) but instead of being all red, the males are a lovely soft gray with splashes of blood red feathers.  The vegetation here is all dead at the moment so the background is a complementary shade of soft gray, providing a perfect setting for this lovely bird.  I am putting one of the only shots I got of the shy female in Extra.

It was overcast this morning and the hide was a little slower than on our first morning; not that it was truly slow.  In addition to loads of wonderful birds, we got a nice look at a male Javelina too, which was fun.

Yesterday afternoon the birds at the hide were all very nervous and skittish.  Just as we were speculating on what sort of predator might be nearby, a beautiful Cooper's hawk landed right in front of us where it proceeded to have a nice long drink.  With a 500 mm lens on my camera, I was hard pressed to get the entire bird in my frame!  Very fun.

This afternoon we have our last session in the hides.  Tomorrow morning we will all head out to begin our respective journeys home.  As much as I have totally enjoyed my trip, I am looking forward to getting home to Hubs, Jax and Charlie.  

Thanks for joining me on my TX adventure!
xo
Debbi