Author: Doug Backlund

Mid-November Update

I’m still here. It has been a while since I have updated anything. Birding has been good, and the weather has been fantastic. Last night it rained, reports vary but probably around .2 to .25 inches in the Ajo area. More rain is forecast for tonight.

The star of the show this fall, a Rufous-backed Robin at Bud Walker Park. It has been two years since I’ve seen one. This bird has been quite cooperative for photos too. A number of birders have traveled here to see it, some were successful others were not.

A Varied Thrush in the town plaza has been getting a lot of attention too. This bird has also been very cooperative for photos.

Kestrels don’t usually let me approach very close; this one was an exception. A female at the golf course, there seems to be more Kestrels around this winter than usual.

Also at the golf course, a Gilded Flicker posing in nice light.

This is Arp 273, pair of interacting galaxies nearly 300 million light years out there. Located in the constellation Andromeda, this is a very small and faint target, but I think it was worth the time I spent on it. They are also known as the Rose Galaxies.

NGC 660 is a rare polar ring galaxy. I copied this information from Wikipedia: NGC 660 is a peculiar and unique polar-ring galaxy located approximately 45 million light-years from Earth in the Pisces constellation. It is the only such galaxy having, as its host, a “late-type lenticular galaxy”. It was probably formed when two galaxies collided a billion years ago. However, it may have first started as a disk galaxy that captured matter from a passing galaxy. This material could have, over time, become “strung out” to form a rotating ring.

NGC 925 is a barred spiral galaxy located in the Triangulum constellation, about 30 million light years away. Although relatively large in the field of view, it is very faint. All of the galaxy photos I posted are taken with the C8 and a .63 reducer, so about 1200mm focal length.

Cat, Canine and Birds

I’ve been keeping busy with some astrophotography but don’t have any images that I’m ready to show just yet. I did have some success with the trail cams at Highway Tank, finally, a Mountain Lion passed through the field of view. I’ve been seeing the fresh tracks of a lion there for a long time.

Here’s a screen shot from a 10 second video of the Mountain Lion. Judging from the number of deer and burros I got video of, this lion is having no problem finding something to eat.

This Kit Fox has been fearless in coming around at night. Yesterday I found a road killed cottontail and brought it back to camp.

It wasn’t even dark yet when the fox showed up for its dinner.

As it turned out, there are two of them, but the other one was shy and didn’t come in.

While on a hike yesterday, this Loggerhead Shrike posed nicely on an ocotillo.

Birding Blacklighting Insects

Birds and Bugs

OK, also one mammal. The weather has cooled down nicely and is perfect fall weather for the Sonoran Desert. It seems every day brings something new. Just yesterday I was counting birds at Lake Ajo when I caught movement out of the corner of my eye, it was a Gray Fox out in broad daylight, sauntering by the truck. Now that the full moon is past, I expect to start doing astrophotography again.

The sun was high, so the light wasn’t the best, but I whistled at the fox, and it paused for some photos.

At Highway Tank this female Brewer’s Blackbird posed for a nice photo with a nice background.

During a hike up McGrady Wash, this Loggerhead Shrike swooped by and landed in a bush. I could see it was eating something, but it was too well hidden to identify the prey. Then it flew into a creosote bush with some of its prey.

A tight crop of the image shows this. I think I can see lizard skin.

This Northern Waterthrush is the first one I’ve ever seen in the Sonoran Desert. It was at Highway Tank.

And a Cassin’s Finch at the golf course.

I put in another night at the black light with some friends and got this fly. A nocturnal fly is sort of unusual, so I photographed it. It turns out it is in the genus Ormia. From Wikipedia: Ormia is a small genus of nocturnal flies in the family Tachinidae, that are parasitoids of crickets. Flies in this genus have become model organisms in sound localization experiments because of their “ears”, which are complex structures inside the fly’s prothorax near the bases of the front legs.

A photo of the underwing of a Staghorn Cholla Moth.

Birding Blacklighting

Hot and Dry

Well, it is the desert. It has been hot. No rain in the forecast. Maybe I should have stayed in Granite Gap awhile longer but I’m here and I’m staying. For the last week highs have been around 100, record heat for this time of year. Tomorrow, it cools down and it should stay that way now. Birding has been great; one just needs to get out early before the heat builds.

This Ruddy Ground was at Highway Tank. This is the first one I’ve found on my own. I’ve seen a couple of others after following reports from other birders.

A Slate-colored Fox Sparrow at Highway Tank, this morning.

An Eastern Phoebe at Highway Tank, it has been there for a few days now. Quite a rare bird in the Sonoran Desert.

I got out with the blacklight one night. This is *Hemiphileurus illatus*, Lesser Triceratops Beetle, a species of rhinoceros beetle. Adults and larvae feed on other insects and insect eggs.

A close crop of the head showing the horns that give this species the name of Lesser Triceratops Beetle.

This strange insect had me puzzled as to whether it was a moth or a bug. It is a bug, a Hemipteran, *Scolopsella reticulata*. It is a species of planthopper, and the only member of its genus found in North America. I can find very little information about it. There are only 12 records in iNaturalist.

Birding Flowers and Plants Herps

Back in Ajo

I left Granite Gap on Monday and drove to Ajo. Before next week is over I may wish I had stayed at Granite Gap, it is going to get hot again! I suppose I will survive. I’m glad I came here though, last night we got a California Kingsnake, a species that I’ve only seen dead on the road once before. This one was smaller and easily photographed and handled. Birding has been pretty good too. There is an invasion of Red-breasted Nuthatches, and they are turning up in places where the species has never been reported, like Ajo. Previous to yesterday, there were no eBird records of Red-breasted Nuthatch in the Ajo area, I’ve now seen three.

This is the first Red-breasted Nuthatch I saw. It was in Bud Walker Park.

Yesterday Greg Gilson found this Palm Warbler at the golf course. This morning, five of us were treated to see it as it was still here. Another first for the Ajo area. Greg also saw a Golden-crowned Sparrow yesterday, but we could not find it today.

Here’s the California Kingsnake. It is very similar to the Long-nosed Snake, but the snout is shorter and the black bands go around the entire body. The white patches are wider at the bottom too.

A pair of Western Diamondbacks we found under some old plywood at the golf course.

I went to Highway Tank one day and found this lion track with a coyote track superimposed over the left toe.

While out for a hike at Granite Gap I came across this plant, something new to me. It is Stinging Serpent, *Cevallia sinuata*. The leaves are armed with spines that emit formic acid. The plants were past flowering, this is a seed head.

Another image that shows the leaves of Stinging Serpent.

Birding Insects

Still at Granite Gap

It just won’t cool down out at Ajo. It did for few days but then the heat returned. It looks like maybe next week it will start to cool down again. It has been very nice here at Granite Gap. I have lots of hummingbirds at my feeders, but only three species so far.

I don’t think I’ve ever posted a photo of my campsite here at Granite Gap. I’m backed up to some big rocks and a few juniper trees, it gives some shade in late afternoon and protection from southwest winds, which is the prevalent wind direction here. State Highway 80 is about 300 yards behind the rocks, but there is very little traffic.

This Bewick’s Wren posed nicely for me a few days ago, right outside the camper.

This morning I came back from my hike and found this Painted Redstart behind the camper. I’ve never seen one here before. I suppose it is a migrant from the mountains heading south.

A large robber fly, sucking the juice out of an unidentified insect.

Birding Flowers and Plants Herps Insects

Heading West

I’ve gone as far south as I’m going to. Now I’m heading west. I stopped at Valley of Fires for a couple of nights. There was only one campsite open and it was directly across from the restrooms/showers. Not a good spot, people coming going all day and night. Now, I’m at Granite Gap and as usual, it is quiet and peaceful. I’ve been here since Sunday. It is a little hotter than I’d like but it is tolerable. Cool weather is on the horizon.

I keep the cooler in the shade of large juniper behind the camper. Last night, I went out to get some food and was startled by the buzzing rattle of a startled Black-tailed Rattlesnake. I didn’t have my flashlight as the full moon put out plenty of light. I didn’t have any trouble spotting the snake about 5 ft. away, backed up against the rocks behind the cooler. Naturally, I got the camera and put on the flash and took some photos.

I’ve got three species of hummingbirds coming in, this one is a juvenile Broad-tailed Hummingbird.

Most of them are Black-chinned Hummingbirds. Males are difficult to get a photo of that shows the black and violet gorget. This one turned out pretty good.

This Warbling Vireo has just caught a leaf-footed bug.

A Cassin’s Sparrow that was surprisingly cooperative, usually they are very sneaky outside of the nesting season.

Indian Rushpea, *Hoffmannseggia glauca*. Several Native American tribes ate the tuberous bulbs raw, boiled or roasted, including Pima, Apache, and Pueblo.

Astrophotography Aurora Borealis Birding Insects

Heading South

I left my campsite yesterday and drove to Sidney, Nebraska. I’m in the Cabela’s RV Park. Today I’m aiming to make to it to Timpas and spending the night there. I would have been happy to stay where I was, but the weather is changing, a period of rain and cloudy weather is moving in.

Here is another image of STEVE from the geomagnetic storm that occurred Monday night. Spaceweather.com had several other reports and photos of STEVE. Mine was the only one from South Dakota. I was pretty excited to see this! I guess I won’t be seeing any more auroras now that I’m going south. Read more about STEVE at this LINK.

A few days ago, I was sorting things out in the truck when I noticed lots of small things hitting the truck. A closer look revealed that backswimmers, aquatic insects, were coming out of the sky onto the truck. I checked around the area and they were not coming down on the camper or anywhere else. I realized what was happening, the shiny, black truck looked like water to the backswimmers. There must have been a large hatch of them somewhere and they were looking for new areas to colonize. This is a photo of one I took some years back at the same place, genus Notonecta.

It took a few days, but I finally found a few Pygmy Nuthatches near camp.

A pair of Canada Jays (Gray Jays) in the top of a pine.

I probably shouldn’t even show this, it is not very good. This is Abell 85, an extremely faint supernova remnant near Cassiopeia. I spent three nights on this, gathering 6 hours of exposure. I could not even see it in any of my photos, and even after processing it was very faint. Without the new software that allows me to remove stars before processing, it would have been hopeless. Unless I decide to invest in a new astrophotography camera, I think these very faint objects will be off limits to me, it just isn’t worth the time.

Astrophotography Aurora Borealis

Northern Lights

Tonight, there was a major geomagnetic storm, and the auroras began as soon as it was dark enough to see them. It was not the best display I’ve seen in South Dakota, but the appearance of another phenomenon was completely unexpected and welcome! I took lots of photos but for now, I’m going to post only three. I wish this had happened when I was in Harding County, a couple of degrees further north might have made a big difference.

The aurora stayed low on the horizon most of the time, this is about as good as it got. I could see it very well with the unaided eye but the camera picks up a lot more color. All images are taken with a Canon 6D, 35mm Sigma art lens, mounted on an iOptron Sky Tracker.

On the left is STEVE. STEVE, formally known as Strong Thermal Emission Velocity Enhancement, is different from the aurora. It looks like a ribbon of pink or mauve light. Sometimes, STEVE even has a “picket fence” appearance, with green columns of light passing through the ribbon. That can be seen in my photo. Auroras, by contrast, usually are shimmering green ribbons. Very exciting to see it!

Another image with STEVE and aurora on the right. I enhanced the stars in the Big Dipper.

Birding

Some Pierre Area Birds and now the Black Hills

Post author By Doug Backlund
Post date September 15, 2023

After two weeks of waiting, I finally got the new truck registered, and I am on the road again. Currently, I’m at my favorite spot in the Black Hills, southwest of Jewel Cave. There is still some logging activity, but it isn’t close to me. I’ll stay here for a few more days then start moving south. Tonight, I’m doing astro, the conditions are perfect.