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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 20h

A chipping sparrow (Spizella passerina) at Capulin Spring, in the Sandia Mountains of New Mexico, back on July 24, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

A bird with its head tilted toward the camera, seen partly obscured by leaves. The head is dominated by a brown cap, with white and black streaks extending from the beak to the cap. The face features a black streak through the dark eye, with a white streak above and a gray patch below. The beak is pink and gray. The throat is white. The breast is light gray. The back and the visible part of a folded wing are patch brown. The rear third of the bird is off camera. The background for the image is blurred-out green vegetation.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

A male blue dasher (Pachydiplax longipennis) in the Rio Grande Bosque, Albuquerque, back on July 11, 2026. I think his face looks friendly, but I'm not a small flying insect. #nature #naturephotography #dragonfly

A close-up of a dragonfly face. The composite eyes are blue-green above, turquoise-colored below. The hexagonal patterning created by the tiny individual eyes is partly visible. The mouth area is white. The area framed by the eyes and mouth area (in human terms, the nose area) is black. Behind the head, the thorax is blue and looks hairy. The bases of the clear wings are visible, but that far back the picture is out of focus. Three pairs of legs extend down from the thorax to grasp a gray twig, but only the front pair is in focus. The background for the image is a uniform green, thanks to out-of-focus vegetation.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

A queen (Danaus gilippus) in the Rio Grande Bosque in Albuquerque. Nectaring on, I think, goldentop (Euthamia). Based on the scent patch, it's a male. Photo taken back on July 9, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #butterfly

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Based on the size of its external tympanum, this American bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus) is a male. Photo taken in Albuquerque, N.M. on September 26, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #frog

A bullfrog sits in the shallows of a pond with the top half of its head just out of the water. At the center of the photo is the bulge containing its left eye, which is staring at the camera. The oval black pupil is surrounded by a thin yellow ring. What would be the white of a human eye is a speckled mix of gold and black. The external tympanum, behind and below the eye, looks like a shallow oval depression in the skin. It's about twice as large as the eye, which indicates that the frog is a male. The bulge for the right eye is also visible, but we're looking at the back of that. The lips look yellow. The nostrils are visible, barely, as small oval holes at the tops of two small bumps on the snout. The dull green of the frog is a good match to the dull greens of the pond water.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

A curve-billed thrasher (Toxostoma curvirostre) on top of a street sign. Photo taken in Albuquerque, New Mexico on September 28, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Orange-crowned warblers (Leiothlypis celata) rarely show an orange crown. Those wild and crazy ornithologists... This one hopped about in cottonwood saplings as it snapped up black bugs the size of periods. Photo taken in Albuquerque, N.M., September 26, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

This American barn owl (Tyto furcata) was wet and muddy, no idea why. Photo taken in Albuquerque, New Mexico on September 26, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds #owl

A close-up showing the head and upper body of a barn owl that's peering at the camera, past an intervening branch that extends along the bottom of the image. Behind the owl is leaves, mostly out of focus. The barn owl face is dominated by a somewhat heart-shaped white area surrounding the dark eyes, with a brown edge and a brown line extending down to the pink beak. Elsewhere on the visible part of the owl, the color mix is white (mostly at the upper breast) and tan. The plumage is wet, sometimes soaked, and there's mud in spots. Clearly this owl wound up in a muddy puddle, but why?

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

Three photos of a great horned owl (Bubo virginianus), taken in Albuquerque, New Mexico on September 26, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds #owl

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

What sacred datura (Datura Wrightii) looks like in the rain. Photo taken in Albuquerque, New Mexico on September 24, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #flowers #wildflowers

Looking down into the large but delicate-looking trumpet-shaped flower on a datura plant. The white fused petals are dotted all over with raindrops. The white turns greenish where the petals fuse, and down the throat of the flower. The central organs of the flower stick up from the throat but are indistinct. The edge of the flower includes folds and narrow points. Below the flower, and out of focus, are a pebbly surface and multiple dark green leaves of the plant itself.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

Long-billed dowitchers (Limnodromus scolopaceus) on their way south from the Arctic. Photo taken in Albuquerque, New Mexico on September 24, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

This desert cottontail (Sylvilagus audubonii) has made a home in flood control riprap. Photo taken in Albuquerque, New Mexico on September 24, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #rabbit

A rabbit with large ears (though not as large as a jackrabbit's) looks at the camera. The fur is a speckly mix of red-brown, brown, and gray. The eyes are brown, with large black pupils. The rabbit is crouched among basalt boulders.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

A Say's phoebe (Sayornis saya), one of my favorite birds. Photo taken on a gloomy morning in Albuquerque, on September 24, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

A bird standing on the pebbly ground, facing the camera with its head turned slightly to the viewer's right. The head and neck are gray, but a bit whiter on the chin. The eye is dark. The black beak is short and sharp. The gray on the breast shades into tan on the belly. The legs are black. This photo shows the undersides of the tail feathers, which are black. From this angle, no details of the wings can be seen.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

A rainy day, so a good one to go back over trail cam footage. Raccoons (Procyon lotor) in our front yard in Albuquerque, early on the morning of September 10, 2026.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

A closer look at the mating wheel used by dragonflies and damselflies. These two were hanging vertically, but rotating the image makes it easer to understand. Blue-eyed darners (Rhionaeschna multicolor) in Valencia County, New Mexico on September 21, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #dragonflies

Two dragonflies in the famous mating wheel, only the "wheel" isn't round. The male is clinging to a reed; it has a blue head, a brown and blue thorax, and a blue, brown, and black abomen. The back end of his abdomen is curled up, then back down, and has ended up behind the female's eyes. The female is a patching mix of brown, green, and blue-green. Her the proximal part of her abdomen is curled sharply forward. The distal end is held staight, the better to clasp the male on his undersides. The reeds in the picture are brown.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Still known as a Canada goose but who knows, he may try to change that next. Branta canadensis flying at the camera on September 19, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

A Canado goose getting close to the camera, moments before zooming on past. The photo is cropped to focus on the head and body, and the wings extend off-camera to the left and right. The head is black, with the signature white patch extending from the chin up and back past the eye. The black beak is open, showing a glimpse of a pink tongue. The neck is black. The visible parts of the wings and body are gray-brown. The fanned-out tail isn't that visible but looks black. Many small droplets of water glisten on the goose's breast. The blurred-out background includes green pond ripples below and an unidentifiable multi-colored pattern above.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

One last image of that immature Forster's tern (Sterna forsteri) I saw at Tingley Beach on September 19. I liked the uniform gray background in this photo (thank you, cloud) and decided to play it up. #nature #naturephotography #birds

A bird flying in a square of gray, the latter due to a cloud. The photo is deliberately cropped so as to leave a lot of gray surrounding the off-center bird. The bird's head is to the right, its tail is to the left, its right wing is extended toward the camera, and its left wing is hidden behind its body. The head and neck are mostly white, but a black smudge surrounds the eye and extends a short distance back from there. The beak is dark, narrow, and pointed. The back is gray, but with a remnant patch of brown at the base of the neck. The visible wing is gray, but shading darker towards the tips of the primary flight feathers. The undertail coverts and rum are white. The tail is seen on edge but looks gray.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

A Western warbling vireo (Vireo swainsoni) checking me out from the safety of a tamarisk. Photo taken in Valencia County, N.M. on September 21, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

I was out in the boonies looking at birds, and saw a chopper flying along with ... this? It turns out to be a gizmo used to map aquifers and water salinity. In other words, it can see underground. Photo taken in Valencia County, N.M. on September 21, 2026.

A commercial helicopter with a large, strange-looking thing dangling from it, against a cloudless, turquoise-colored sky. Scaling off the helicopter, several cables dangle about 90 feet, then become a cone of mostly finer cables of about the same length. Those cables end at (and presumably support) what looks like a hexagonal arrangement of pipes held horizontally. A length of the same pipe-like object sticks out straight at the front. And there's a box at the back end that looks surprisingly like an outhouse riding on top of the hexagon. I would guess that the hexagonal part is about 75 feet in diameter, with an additonal 25 feet or so for the front projection. If that sounds like nothing you've ever heard of or seen, that's how it struck me too.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

No monkey business going on here, just enjoying the sunshine together. On top, a pond slider (Trachemys scripta). Below, a painted turtle (Chrysemys picta). Photo taken at the Rio Grande Nature Center, Albuquerque, on September 16, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #turtles

Two turtles on a log in a pond. One has climbed partly onto the back of the other, not that the other one minds. Instead, they both seem to be in a state of bliss as they soak in the warmth of the un. Their eyes are mostly closed. Their jaws are closed and to human eyes, they're smiling. Both have green upper carapaces, and both have green heads and necks with yellow stripes. The upper turtle has a small red patch behind the eye, and the lower part of the carapace is more yellow than green. The lower turtle has no red patch, but the lower part of the carapace is more red than green. Also, the lower turtle has some red on its legs. The lower turtle has extended a couple of legs to serve as collectors of solar heat.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

For those who prefer more conventional photos of birds, suitable for IDs and such, here's the same immature Forster's tern (Sterna forsteri) as before. Photo taken at Tingley Beach in Albuquerque on September 19, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

As this immature Forster's tern (Sterna forsteri) yawns in the morning sun, its nictitating membrane is covering its eye. A protective reflex, I assume. Photo taken at Tingley Beach in Albuquerque, N.M. on September 19, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

A Western kingbird (Tyrannus verticalis) at Rio Grande Nature Center State Park, Albuquerque, on September 16, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Variegated meadowhawks (Sympetrum corruptum) in wheel. They were flying when I first saw them, but that must get tiring. Photo taken in Albuquerque on September 18, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #dragonflies

A male and a female dragonfly in the mating position known as a wheel. In this photo the male is resting on a small rock as the female is below him, basically upside down and front to back. The tip of the male's abdomen is curled down and behind the female's head, where, believe it or not, he inserts his semen. The female is sharply curved down from the head and forward from there, ventral side up. To maintain this mating position, she's grasping the male's abdomen with her legs, and the end of her abdomen is clasped to the area where the male's abdomen joins his thorax. Both the male and the female have patches of gray and white. The male also has bright red areas on his abdomen, and some red veining on his wings. Both have heads with black and orange edges and eyes that range from purple to gray with dark spots. The setting for this image consists of pebbles and twigs on the ground, which is unfortunate as they add visual clutter.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

A female or immature black-headed grosbeak (Pheucticus melanocephalus) foraging for chinaberries. Photo taken at Mesa del Sol in Albuquerque, N.M. on September 17, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

A vertical twig extends up through the photo, ending in a cluster of pink and blue berries. The blue berries are the ripe ones. The grosbeak is perched on a small side branch, where it can reach up for berries. The tail is to the lower left and the head is to the upper right. The breast and flanks are pale orange, shading to off-white on the belly and undertail coverts. The wings are brown with discontinuous white wing bars. The undersides of the wing and tail feathers are brown. The head is brown, with a strong white streak over the dark eye. The pinkish conical bill is short and heavy-looking. The background for the image is uniform gray, derived from a high thin cloud.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

There's still time to enjoy this year's crop of globemallows (Sphaeralcea sp.). Photo taken at Mesa del Sol in Albuquerque, on September 17, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #flowers #wildflowers

A spike of flowers, plus flower buds, on a fuzzy pale green stalk. Each open flower has five petals that are mostly bright orange, but green at their bases. The central part looks a bit like a cauliflower stalk, only with a yellow head. The bud calyces are the same pale green as the main stalk. A closer look shows drops of rainwater (despite the photo being taken in full sun), and even a few tiny ants. The blurred-out background for the image is mostly the same pale green as the central stalk.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

The same acorn woodpecker as before. It stashed a few acorns in a desert willow tree (first image), and wedged one upside-down in a handy crack. It then pecked apart the acorn and consumed the slivers, no hands needed. Photos taken on September 17, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

An acorn woodpecker on a thick branch, perched over a still-green acorn. The acorn is wedged upside-down in a crack in the branch. In the right side of the image, another green acorn and two empty caps are wedged in the angle between several small, bare branches. A few leaves show that this is a willow tree, not an oak. The bird's back is mostly turned toward the camera, with the head turned to the right. The red crest and signature black and white face are apparent. The eye is yellow with a black pupil, while the black beak is stout but comes to a sharp point. The background for the image is pale blue sky.

A close-up the the bird with its beak inserted into the pecked-open bottom of the acorn wedged in the crack in the branch. The skin of the acorn was green but the inside is yellow. The image includes the head and body of the bird, with its head to the left. The top of the head is red. The beak, plumage next to the base of the beak, upper half of the face, back, and most of the visible (left) wing are black. The face includes a white cheek, continuing to a white patch just above the beak. The eye is yellow with a black pupil. The breast begins as black plumage streaked with white, changing to white plumage streaked with black farther down.

Overall, this image is similar to the previous one, showing the head and body of the bird. This time, though, the acorn wedged in the crack in the branch isn't visible. Instead we see the beak pulled back, while holding a generous sliver of yellow acorn meat.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

A Woodhouse's scrub jay (Aphelocoma woodhouseii) chucking the cheap stuff overboard as it searches for the occasional raw peanut. Multiple ground foragers made the most of his pickiness. Photo taken at the Rio Grande Nature Center on September 16, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

A jay perched on the edge of a tray feeder, as black sunflower seeds and milo go flying off into space. The bird is facing to the left of the camera, with its head to the left and its very long tail to the right. The jay's head is bright blue on top, gray on the sides, with an incomplete white line between the two. The eye is black, as is the robust but pointed beak. There's more blue on the neck, on the visible part of a wing, and on part of the tail. The undersides of the body and tail feathers are gray. There a splotchy white patch on the breast. The background is a blurred-out mix of tan, green, and gray.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Why do tarantulas cross the road? This time I have an answer: because a suitable partner may be on the other side. Aphonopelma cf. hentzi on the Crest Highway, in the Sandia Mountains of New Mexico, on September 15, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #spider

A tarantula on the pebbly surface of a paved road. It's big, it's hairy, and it has enormous palps. The top of the thorax is tan-colored. The rest of the spider is medium to dark brown, with lighter hairs in many places.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

A Western flycatcher (Empidonax difficilis) in Cienega Canyon, in the Sandia Mountains of New Mexico, on September 15, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

A bird is perched on a horizontal branch with its back to me, but with its head turned around to the left so it can gaze at me with its left eye. The bird looks mostly gray to brown, with a lighter gray throat. The top of the beak is dark and the bottom of the beak is yellow. The dark eye is surrounded by a white eye ring. In this particular picture, the teardrop shape of the eye ring isn't apparent. Also, the bird's crest is down. The wings have pale wing bars, and the flight feathers have pale outer edges. The tail looks solid gray. Only a bit of the pale belly is apparent from this angle. The background is completely blurred out but derives its pea-soup green color from vegetation.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

A ruby-crowned kinglet (Corthylio calendula) in Cienega Canyon, in the Sandia Mountains of New Mexico, on September 15, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

A male acorn woodpecker (Melanerpes formicivorus) at Mesa del Sol in Albuquerque, N.M. Photo taken on September 14, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

A woodpecker perched on a more or less horizontal branch, facing a quarter-turn to the right (as seen from the camera). Its facial markings are striking. The black, fairly blunt-looking bill is surrounded by a small patch of black plumage, surrounded by white plumage. A large black patch surrounds the pale yellow eye and extends back to join the black back of the neck. The crest is red. The breast is black with white speckles, a pattern that grades into white with black streaks on the flanks. The belly is white. The feet are gray. The visible part of the back and the undersides of the tail feathers are black. Some of the tail feathers taper into points. The balance of the image is mostly out of focus, and taken up with bare branches with brown leaf buds. No idea why the tree had bare branches and buds instead of leaves; that's not usual for this place at this time of the year.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

When I photograph birds at Capulin Spring, I always bring a few walnut pieces for the chipmunks (Neotamias sp.). Photo taken in the Sandia Mountains of New Mexico, on September 11, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #mammals

The image takes in the front half of a chipmunk, which is shoving half of a walnut meat into its mouth. It'll carry away the walnut meet gripped between its teech. The dominant color of the chipmunk's fur is brown, but with black and white stripes across its visible cheek and back. The eye is large and black. The ears are short, rounded, and fuzzy. The chipmunk is on a piece of dead wood, which is where I dropped the walnut pieces.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

Rocky Mountain beeplant (Cleomella serrulata) at The Greenhouse in Albuquerque, on September 4, 2026. The unintended drama was provided by black privacy screen hung on a fence. #nature #naturephotography #flowers #wildflowers

A ball of small flowers rises from a green stem with many fine leaves. The flowers range from light to medium purple, including on the same flower. The flower ball has a corolla of fine filaments, which end in tiny green anthers. The background is dead black, which makes the flower stand out. The dead black is due to privacy cloth hung on a chain-link fence, but you can't see that in the image -- just the dead black.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

I didn't see this desert tobacco (Nicotiana obtusifolia) in the wild, but at the City of Albuquerque's wonderful volunteer gardening program at "The Greenhouse." To learn more, visit my blog on the visit. www.dogofthedesert.net/2026/09/12/t...

Green stalks with pointed green leaves rise through the left half of the picture, and are topped with open white flowers and buds. At the lower right of the picture are two more flowers. The flowers feature long greenish-white tubes that open into white bells, with yellow anthers peeking out. Two of the flowers are older and have started to turn brown.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

A female or immature Wilson's warbler (Cardellina pusilla) hangs on tight as a gust of wind blows through. The plant is white sweetclover (Melilotus albus). Photo taken at the Capulin Springs picnic area in the Sandia Mountains, on September 11, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

A mostly yellow bird braces itself against a wind gust by taking a wide stance on a stem of white sweetclover. The bird is facing the camera but with its head partly turned to its left. It's mostly bright yellow, but with a brownish tinge on its head. The area above the dark eye is bright yellow, though, creating an "eyebrow" effect. The beak is small and dark. The visible bits of the wings are brown. The plumage is ruffled by the wind. The background for the image is blurred out but includes brown grass with drooping seed heads.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

The desert camo pattern on this juvenile "horny toad" doesn't work so well on asphalt pavement. A greater horned lizard (Phrynosoma hernandesi) in the Sandia Mountains of New Mexico, on September 11, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #lizard

A juvenile lizard on asphalt pavement, which this close up looks like crushed rock set in asphalt. The lizard is tan with brown splotches, and has the "flat" look of so-called horny toads in general. The lizard's skin is finely nubbly in some places, warty-looking in others. The edge of the lizard has a single row of tooth-like scales. On a lizard this young, the "horns" on the head are little nubs.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

When a sudden gust messes with with your beautiful crest. A Steller's jay (Cyanocitta stelleri) at Capulin Spring in the Sandia Mountains, on September 11, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Flowers on, I think, Indian grass (Sorghastrum nutans). The droopy yellow parts are male and the bits that look like pink pipe cleaner are female. Photo taken in the Rio Grande Bosque in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on September 8, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #flowers #wildflowers

A panicle (flower spike) with dozens of grass flowers. In this image the panicle looks mostly brown, but with multiple small, drooping, yellow anthers. The background is out of focus, but includes multiple vertical green and yellow streaks (grass leaves and stems) agains a pale blue background (a pond).

A close-up of part of the panicle. There's still some brown, but the drooping yellow anthers are highly prominent. This close up, the pistils are also apparent. They're pink and to me they look just like short lengths of pipe cleaner (i.e., linear and fuzzy). There are also many awns, which are dark and crooked and come to fine points.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

A female or immature Nashville warbler (Leiothlypis ruficapilla) doing a little foraging while on its way south. Photo taken in the Rio Grande Bosque, in Albuquerque, New Mexico on September 8, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

A bird perches in a dead forb with mostly empty seedheads, against a gray background. The bird had a gray head and back. The dark eye is surrounded by a white eye ring. The black beak is short and comes to a sharp point. There's olive green on the otherwise gray wings. The undersides and tail coverts are bright yellow. The tail is gray. The bird is perched with its tail to the left and its head to the right.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Windmills (Allionia sp.) in the North Valley. Each "flower" is three clustered flowers, so there are nine in this picture. Photo taken in Albuquerque, New Mexico on September 6, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #flowers #wildflowers.

A cluster of, seemingly, three purple flowers. In fact, each "flower" is three tightly bunched flowers, which makes nine flowers. Each set of three flowers has nine petals, each of which ends in two rounded lobes. The many stamens per set of three flowers include purple filaments and white anthers. The image also includes unopened buds (pale green and fuzzy), parts of leaves (green, crinkly, and fuzzy), and stems (pink and fuzzy).

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

A turkey vulture glides past. Photo taken in Albuquerque, New Mexico on September 6, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

A large, mostly black bird with its wings spread against a pale blue sky. The head is bare, with red skin. The beak ends in a white, downward-curved tip. It's gliding past with its head to the right of the image, and the tail to the left.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

A solitary sandpiper (Tringa solitaria) picking its way across the shallows. Photo taken in Albuquerque, New Mexico on September 6, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

A shorebird creates concentric circles in shallow water as it steps from right to left. It's back and folded wings are brown speckled with white. A lighter, blurrier pattern of the same colors covers the neck area, and becomes streaky on the head. The dark eye is surrounded by a prominent white eye ring. The beak is straight, narrow, and sharp; it's yellow at the base and black at the tip. The undersides are white. The legs are a dirty yellow.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

A female or immature Townsend's warbler (Setophaga townsendi) on its way south. Photo taken at Capulin Spring in the Sandia Mountains of New Mexico, on September 5, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

Up in the Sandia Mountains of New Mexico, the wild turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo) are still crossing the road. This is one of three immature males (jakes) I saw this morning. Photo taken on September 5, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

A wild turkey strides across gray asphalt with a curved white line. Its head is to the left and its tail to the right. The head is bare and pink. The snood and wattle are poorly developed. The body and visible wing (left) are covered with dark but iridescent feathers that show flashes of dark copper, red, and green. In this image the tail is on edge, so not clearly seen. The young male has a partly developed beard, or clump of hairlike feathers, hanging from its breast. The legs are gray-pink.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

When you take a bath and it gets a little out of control. A yellow-rumped warbler (Setophaga coronata) at the Capulin Spring canoa, in the Sandia Mountains of New Mexico. Photo taken on September 2, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

A bird perches on the lip of a wood trough and faces the camera. The plumage on its underside is so touseled that the bottom half of the bird looks like a big furry ball. The head and back look normal, however. The furry ball is a mix of white, gray, black, and yellow plumage. The chin is yellow (so it's an Audobon's). The black beak, which is pointing more or less at the camera, is short, triangular, and pointed. The eyes are black and have small white eye rings. The head and back are gray, with hints of yellow at the crown. The wings and tail aren't visible from this angle.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

Two images of the same female or immature broad-tailed hummingbird (Selasphorus platycercus). At rest, and a close-up of that highly diagnostic tail. Photos taken at Capulin Spring in the Sandia Mountains of New Mexico, on September 2, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

A hummingbird perched on a reddish twig. It's facing the camera but with its head twisted to its right, the better to check me out with its left eye. In this view we see the mostly gray undersides with a faint red wash on the flanks. The folded wings are mostly behind the hummer but are dark. There are faint flecks of iridescent green on the chin, and a more continuous iridescent green on the top of the head. The dark eye has a trailing light eye patch. The black beak is long, thin, slightly downcurved, and comes to a sharp point.

A "butt shot" of the hummingbird, showing the upperside of the spread tail. The outer three tail feathers on each side are orange-red at their bases, turning to black farther out, with white tips. The next feather in, on each side, is iridescent green with a black tip. The innermost pair of feathers are iridescent green. This image also shows the red-orange wash on the right flank, and the continuous iridescent green extending from the top of the head to the upper tail coverts.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

A wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) hen and her poult crossing NM 536, aka the Crest Highway, in the Sandia Mountains of New Mexico. And no, I don't know why. Photo taken on September 2, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

Two wild turkeys cross a paved highway, with a yellow double center stripe just behind them. Farther back, a white stripe marking the edge of a traffic lane curves through the photo. In the lead is an adult female. Her head is mostly bare, pink and gray. Her feathers are a mix of black, gray, brown, and off-white -- not in striking patterns, however. More a disruptive pattern as is found in camoflauge. Her legs are long, bare, and look more gray than anything else. A little behind her, her poult (chick), already rather large, has more brown than its mom but otherwise has a similarly disruptive plumage pattern.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

Puro Nuevo México Photo taken at Punta de Agua in Torrance County, on September 1, 2026.

A rusty, old, partly stripped out pickup truck sits in a grassy field. The missing parts include the hood, grill, engine, and headlights. It's an older model with a split windshield, rounded fenders, and a narrow bed. Behind the field, gently rolling hills are covered with junipers. Above the horizon, the sky is a hazy mix of clouds and pale blue sky.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

The beak on a rock wren (Salpinctes obsoletus) is perfect for winkling insects and spiders out of crevices. And there are a lot of crevices in the ruined mission church at Quarai. Photo taken on September 1, 2026. #nature #naturephotography #birds

A bird stands on the top of a red-brown wall, in a hunched over position. Its tail is to the left and its beak is to the right. It's a gray bird overall, uniformly pale gray below and speckled gray above. From this angle, the striping on the underside of the folded tail is apparent. The gray beak is long, slender, and sharp and slightly downcurved at the end. The eye is dark brown. Behind the bird, a blurred-out red-brown background is provided by the walls of the ruined mission convento.

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Dogofthedesert @dogofthedesert.bsky.social · 30/08/2026

Back on August 21, I posted a picture of an immature male evening grosbeak (Hesperiphona vespertina) at Capulin Spring in the Sandia Mountains. In hindsight, I like this image better. #nature #naturephotography #birds

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