Hummer in flight

These little guys got here early this year. We still dip into the 30s at night, so I am surprised to see them here. But since they are here, I put up the feeder immediately, make sure they have enough nourishment, I don't think we have enough blooms for them to feed on yet. And nope, no food coloring here!

The ruby throats get used to people a little quicker. I can stand pretty close to the feeder to take these pictures, I do have to crop these pics. Later in the season, another species of hummers, called rufous move in. Although a little smaller than the ruby throats, they are much more territorial, and very aggressive towards others, but very shy, I can't get close enough to them.

Flagstaff Arboretum-Birds of Prey

April 25th is Arbor Day, we didn't realize it, it was free of charge to access the arboretum. Unlike the nice, warmer weather we had earlier of the week, it was windy, cloudy, and cold. I think we are still too early in the season to see the Spring colors (mostly native plants at the arboretum).

But we wer able to see the Birds of Prey on display. Because of the wind, the normal program was not held, but are resting on handlers hands.

Above we have both male and the female Eurasian Eagle Owls. The female is the larger of the two, which is common among birds of prey. They must be camera shy, since most of my shots, they seemed to look away.

Ready for Spring

Sorry, this picture is a little soft. But it was snowing, windy, and I was driving in my car when I snapped this. Hey, it's not stopping this guy, who just can't let a little snow/wind stop him.

Glad Spring is here (for us), the driving range is always crowded with people welcoming in the Spring!

This was taken a week ago. Today, it was 75 degree up here in Flagstaff, and gets to 32 at night. Some 40 degrees differences, I guess I have to wait before I can plant any vegetables..

New toys

Well, I finally ordered some center pinch lens caps for my Olympus. I know, it says Nikon, but heck, the price was nice, and I am definitely tired of trying to take the lens cap off with the lens hood on. This is a must have!

Also purchased the M42 to Olympus 4/3 mount adapter. This is a cheapy little item, helps me to add a few extra lenses that I can use with the E500, but unfortunately, this version does not have AF confirmation (like the Pentax). The other thing is, the view finder is a little more difficult to get right on, due to smaller size with the Olympus camera. I might have to invest in a focus screen. But heck, it's still fun to mount the SMC 50mm lens on it.

Urban Wildlife

As I drove around in the Fountain Hills area, I found quite a bit of animals among the residential area (or you can say more houses among the wilderness).

A lot of quails, and here, a road runner. Not colorful like the cartoon counterpart, I am sure there's no shortage of lizards and snakes around this area. I didn't see a coyote though.