Ladderbacks and Walnuts

February 08, 2017
Ladderbacks and Walnuts
Growing Native with Petey Mesquitey
Ladderbacks and Walnuts

Feb 08 2017 |

/

Show Notes

IMG_3327

I love the two large walnut trees found along our drive and how they always seem to sport a bird or two perching near the top. Most commonly seen, of course, are red-tailed hawks, but some evenings or early mornings I’ll see great horned owls perched near the top. The view of the surrounding land must be fantastic and a great spot to see any movement of edible creatures like kangaroo rats or cottontails. We hang out around those trees too. It’s a favorite spot for our dogs to mark and a few years ago we hung a swing from one of the trees making it a destination that we all enjoy.

Ladder-backed woodpeckers (Picoides scalaris) are common year round in the borderlands. There are a bunch of woodpecker species to be found around us. The book Finding Birds in Southeast Arizona (now in a revised eighth edition) lists fifteen species, three of which would be unusual sightings. Glassing and identifying a dozen species sounds like a good quest to me.

A couple notes: The photos are mine. If you look closely at that magnificent walnut tree you can see the white ropes that hang a swing. The woodpecker photos show a male ladder-backed pecking at a pecan and a female on the trunk of the pecan tree.

IMG_0443 IMG_3291

Other Episodes

Episode

March 02, 2015
Episode Cover

A Spring Report from the Ol’ Guajolote

Petey jabbers about monkey flowers and sandhill cranes and declares that spring has sprung in the desert grassland.

Listen

Episode

February 22, 2017
Episode Cover

Anemone tuberosa

Desert anemone (Anemone tuberosa) is in the Buttercup Family. Buttercups are the genus Ranuculus and so the family name is Ranunculaceae. It’s probably just...

Listen

Episode 0

April 17, 2022 00:04:51
Episode Cover

Esperanza

Tecoma stans angustata is in the Bignonia family Bignoniaceae and there are a bunch of species of Tecoma starting here in the borderlands with...

Listen