Looking at things is very different from seeing them
Every day when I head out on my hikes across the Arizona desert, there is always a chance of encountering one of the Southwest's most misunderstood residents, the Western Diamondback Rattlesnake. Contrary to popular belief,…
Read MoreA couple of years ago, while photographing wildlife along the Lower Salt River, I caught a quick glimpse of an animal swimming across the water. It looked a little like a beaver, but smaller. Before…
Read MoreI’m usually at the Salt River early in the morning looking for native wildlife rather than horses. In fact, I often avoid them because they attract so much attention. Many visitors seem to have eyes…
Read MoreThe Riparian Preserve at Water Ranch in Gilbert, Arizona, has a very different feel this time of year. Water levels in many of the recharge ponds are low, and most of the winter visitors have…
Read MoreSince the beginning of May, I've been making regular early morning visits to an urban location in Phoenix to photograph a family of Great Horned Owls. I usually stop by once or twice a week,…
Read MoreA few years ago, when we still lived in South Scottsdale, there was a park nearby that we used to visit often. It sits in a flood protection zone for the monsoon season and is…
Read MoreScarface and her companion were back at the Riparian Preserve this week. The pair spent much of the morning chasing and playfully nipping at each other across the nearly dry settling ponds. Despite all the…
Read MoreAt the Riparian Preserve at Water Ranch, water is carefully managed through a series of settling ponds - an engineered landscape that has become a refuge for wildlife over the years. Some ponds sit nearly…
Read MoreEvery year around this time, I start watching the ground a little more closely - and right on cue, they return. The “aliens” of the desert are back. Digger bees, often from the genus Anthophora, are…
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