Mike in the Wild

The vrooms of jets landing and the roar of freeway traffic zipping by overhead are not the usual soundtracks accompanying wonderful birding excursions.  But the noise doesn't detract from the wide range of avian sightings available at the eastern end of Tempe Town Lake where the Salt River feeds a sprawling urban recreational area. The reservoir was created over twenty years ago when the river bed was dammed to created a two mile long body of water that covers over 200 acres.  Today it's circled by sidewalks, bike paths, hiking trails, parks and office towers, all situated directly under Sky Harbor's flightpaths and in the midst of crisscrossing five-lane expressways.  On the ground and water, the area is not only a destination for bikers, kayakers and fishermen, it's home to many species of birds.  The parking lot at the north end of Tempe Marketplace is the ideal location to leave your car and begin an exploration of the local birding grounds.  Cautiously shar...

Many birds have eluded me in my pursuit of photographing them, especially the Montezuma quail in southern Arizona.  But there is a species that resides much closer to my Phoenix home and that is just as elusive, at least when it comes to capturing a good shot of it.  That bird is the kingfisher.  The belted kingfisher is the only kingfisher that commonly calls the waterways of Arizona home, and only in the winter non-breeding season.  The bird has a number of distinguishing characteristics starting with its unique vocalization.  You'll know that you're in one's vicinity when you hear a burst of mechanical clicks that sound more like a Vespa than a bird's call.  It's a noise that's supposed to indicate they're disturbed. Well, I for one am convinced that this bird must always be disturbed because not only is it clamorous but it's difficult to approach.  As a result most of my shots are quite grainy due to the very far distance that the kingfisher'...