Equinox

The days and nights are nearly equal but soon the nights will be longer than the days. We're moving into fall and then winter. I look forward to cooler days and nights! It's still in the high 90's here and now that the hurricanes have gone by, and monsoons seem to be over, no rain on the horizon.

The desert looks amazing after the amount of rain we've had, with a new crop of poppies and morning glories as well as fragrant purple blossoms on the wild sage. Insects are still happy and there are a lot of them! And of course the sunsets continue to be unbelievable.

This monsoon season did not produce the violent wind and lightning storms that we had last year. The rain that's fallen has come quietly and sunk deep into the earth. The tale end of hurricane Norbert did, on the other hand, produce a gully washer that eroded our driveway and the dirt road leading to our house. But I say any rain is good rain when you live in the desert!

We had a resident bufo toad for at least a month. He squished his fat body under the lip of our front wall where a drip released excess water from our air-conditioner. But one day he was gone and when I saw a couple of toads run over on the road I hoped he wasn't one of them.

This year the bats arrived late and are still draining the hummingbird feeders every night. We had no migrating hummingbirds this year, a fact that I find disturbing. I plan to contact Audubon to see if they have any information about this change from last year. I haven't seen a javelina for months but I think they may be coming when I'm not looking. Several times the waterlily in the pot in front has been overturned and leaves chewed. Also our compost mysteriously disappears overnight.

We've installed a new fountain in the back yard after struggling to maintain the cement cactus that looked so cool. In the end the motor gave out due to too much junk in the water. But before that happened the thing was covered in a slimy brown algae that the bees seemed to like. I could probably sell the stuff if I had the proper equipment and training. UGH! The birds haven't discovered the new one yet and I really hope they like it. It has two bowls, one small one at the top with the bubbler and then another bigger one into which the water cascades.I am now armed with algaecide! And it's safe for wildlife.

Before I close I have to add a picture of my dog who has taken up the cause of banned books. He's quite a reader when he isn't exploring the droppings of wild animals!

Bats and hummingbirds oh me oh my

With the monsoons the summer wildlife has been heading elsewhere for their midnight snacks. All except the fruit bats that are still arriving to drain my three hummingbird feeders every night!

Cute little guy isn't he? Looks like a teddy bear. I LOVE watching them swoop into the feeders in the night--not sure how many come but I would say ten to fifteen...of course now they've discovered their sugar bar they're surely addicted. Last year I think they were gone by mid september but our weather has remained warm, with temps close to 100* in the day, going down to 75* at night--one morning I got up to 61* but that was a fluke it seems.

We've had at least four and I think maybe five different types of hummingbirds. The Costa, which are here all year round, ditto with the Annas. The migrants are the Rufous: feisty little redheads who have completely taken over one of the feeders.

Looks like a little sweetheart, doesn't he? You should see them in action! Loud angry cht cht as they chase every other hummingbird away.

We've had another one that I'm not sure about. Dark oily green back, darker wings with a light colored underbody--the violet crowned below is the closest I can come to what he looks like--unfortunately the one who frequents our feeders doesn't have a red bill! Or if he does I can't see it. Can any of you Tucsonians shed light on this?

I'm missing the nightly visits of the javelina and also the coyotes, who have been strangely absent. Once in a while I hear the yips far in the distance but they haven't been traveling by our house.

The clouds have been outdoing themselves, great billowing masses that send cloud shadows racing across the Catalina Mountains. I have to say that since spending time in Portland in June and July I am even more appreciative of the Sonoran Desert. Not only is it peaceful but the beauty is at times so awe-insiring that I don't have words to describe it!



I am looking forward to the fall when I can open my windows at night again. The only thing bad about that is that my dog smells things and occasionally goes nuts, barking hysterically. He hasn't had to spend the night in the closet for a long while.

Here is a picture of myself and my dog taken outside our house by my husband's very talented second cousin, Sherry VanDyke:

Aren't the clouds amazing?