The Sun, At Last!

What should have been winter’s last gasp turned into a mighty huff and puff these last few days, with heavy rain in Tucson proper and rain and snow up here, just a couple of hundred feet higher; the mountain slopes are still snow-covered, and the views are full of wonderful incongruities as I wander through the paloverdes and agaves here in the yard.

I’m sure there’s some avian suffering going on up in the land of crossbills and saw-whets, but down here in the high desert a slight increase in gluttony is the only indication that the abundant Mourning Doves, Gambel’s Quail, and Curve-billed Thrashers at our feeders have even noticed the week’s inclemency. The cold temperatures may have been a little rougher on the nectar feeders, as Anna’s and Costa’s Hummingbirds seem even more conspicuous at the feeders–at least when the Verdins, feisty in their defense of the sugary icicles, tolerate their approach.