The Official State Bird of Arizona, The Cactus Wren

The sight and sound of the cactus wren is one of the delights of the Southwestern desert.  

On an early morning desert hike you will hear the sweet bird songs of a cardinal or the phanenopepla, which is music to the ears.  And then you hear a squawking of a bird which seems to be scolding its neighbors and you identify it immediately as the "curious" cactus wren!  

The curiosity of the cactus wren is what makes him so interesting.  They like to visit our garage, where I found one sitting on my bicycle seat trying to figure it out.  They have been known to make a mess inside a car if a door or window is left open.

The cactus wren is the largest wren in North America and although it can be found in your backyard, it is a true bird of the desert and can survive without freestanding water.

             The cactus wren is not listed as endangered or threatened but it is, like all song birds,

   protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.  

Someone forgot to notify the Harris Hawk about that, since last week I saw the hawk grab a cactus wren and serve it to her babies for dinner.

Nests are built in cactus (especially in the cholla cactus), tree yucca, or thorny low trees like the mesquite, acacia or palo verde.  The nest is a bulky mass of weeds, grass, and twigs shaped like a football, and it is lined with feathers, animal hair, plant down and is built by both sexes. 

They hunt for insects, including spiders, beetles, ants, wasps, grasshoppers, plus fruit and seeds.

Both parents feed the nestlings.

I could hear these baby cactus wrens chirping, and I looked to see mom first with a spider and then a worm--what a perfect combination for these tiny little ones to grow!

The eggs hatch within two weeks after being laid and the babies will fledge and learn to fly at about twenty days.  

They still depend on the parents for food so they stay near the nest for about a month.

THE END

The Harris Hawks are back in Town!

The Harris Hawks Who Prey Together Will Stay Together!  

They are called the wolf packs of the sky...

 Hiking in the desert is like a day on safari!  Walking the trails early in the morning with all the desert vegetation around, I am constantly looking for birds, both little and big, jackrabbits, mule deer, coyotes, bobcats and am secretly hoping to see that mountain lion.  Really? 

Finding or knowing where the raptors are nesting is a thrill!  These hawks have returned to this nest for several years--I see the mom first, bringing in sticks and rebuilding.

I watch day after day as mom and dad rebuild the nest--soon the female will be incubating two to four white to blueish eggs for thirty-one to thirty-six days.

Harris Hawks live in relatively stable groups and are notable for their behavior of hunting cooperatively--

 most other raptors hunt alone.

The mature female hawk is the dominant bird in the hierarchy. 

Often, there are three hawks attending to one nest: two males and one female.  It is debated if this is a polyandry society.

Harris Hawks feed mostly on live medium-sized mammals such as rabbits, squirrels, and other rodents, but also will grab a quail, medium sized birds (such as this cactus wren) and small reptiles.

The Harris Hawks hunt together and they also raise their young together.  They also stand guard together, helping to defend the nest against a threat.  This increases the likelihood that the eggs will hatch and the young will make it to adulthood. 

Squawking babies need to be fed, 

two to three times a day.

Flight feathers start to grow at around three weeks--over the next few weeks the nestling will begin flap-hopping but won't fledge until about the sixth week after hatching

I know I can!

But not yet!!!

Great Horned Owls, Birds of Prey!

Birds of prey include hawks, eagles, owls, and falcons. This group of birds have a huge range of sizes and behaviors, but the one most common behavior is the tendency to catch live animals to eat.  And for us living in Phoenix and the urban surrounding area, the red-tail hawks, Harris hawks and the great horned owls reside among us.  So each spring if we are lucky to spot one of these raptor's huge nests we can witness the growth of these special birds' offspring!

This year the first sighting was of only one owlet, on April 5th.  Its nest is located in the bowl of a saguaro, where the saguaro has broken off, ten to fifteen feet above the ground.

But a few days later there were two owlets!

And then there were three owlets!  They grew so quickly, that by April 14th they were as big as mom.

Generally, great horned owls lay two to three white eggs, but they may lay up to six.  Both the female and male incubate the eggs for thirty to thirty-five days.  

Each day there is a change--eyes get brighter and there is a little more body movement.  The owlets get more mature looking but they still have to grow into those big yellow eyes!  The great horned owl's eye is almost as big as a human's eye, so a great deal of light is passed through the pupil, allowing the owls to see in dark conditions.

They are quite curious, will follow me with my camera, will notice passing cars, and when a plane flies overhead they look up to see what it is. Their ear tufts are large and are used to convey body language.  When the ear tufts lie flat, the owls are irritated and when they stand upright the owls are inquisitive.

The whole family is following my directions and is posing for the camera!  I wish!

It isn't too many days later that the mom decides to leave the nest to give the owlets room. Both parents feed the young, and keep their eyes constantly on the nest.  

Mom spreads her wings but always has an eye on her owlets.  After her flight and stretching she digs her talons into the saguaro which holds her nest and lands on top. 

 The young fledge from the nest when they are forty to forty-five days old.

The next step for them is to get out of the nest, which is very high up in the saguaro. They do not know how to fly yet but will be able to spread their wings and float down, and then they will hop, skip, jump and walk to a safe tree, and will climb the tree until flight comes.

 You know that they are making a plan!

First owlet to fledge the nest. 

It is exciting to find the first branching of a fledgling, then to focus and snap the picture!  I step back for a different shot and just happen to look up and see that mom, who is a very large bird, has landed silently on the saguaro right next to me--wow! 

Owl feathers are soft as fleece to the touch which helps to deaden the sound of air rushing over the feathers while in flight. The front edge of the primary wing feathers are toothed like a hand saw, and wind passes over the wings to keep the owl's flight soundless!  

I'm watching the adult and still trying to get my best shots--

 I notice that she is not bothered by my presence, and she slowly closes her eyes and falls asleep.

Young raptors spend several days on the ground while learning to fly.

They have been spotted in a nearby tree where the parents will feed them and watch over them.

A few days later they are gone--all three of these young owlets have entered the wild of the desert!

The young birds may seem abandoned, but the parents are usually within sight watching their fledglings. 

By next season, these young owls will have left their birth territory.  The family splits up and most will be excluded from breeding by the aggressive behavior of the territorial owls.