For the past two weeks, whenever the fawns appear around the house, I’m out with them. This is even when the light sucks. It seems to have helped, the fawns are now bouncing around without my care about me or Maggie. It is interesting to see the fawn of the Alpha female we call “The Witch” is trying to be dominate over the other fawn. They are permitting me to walk around to get the shots I want when I see them. This is from last night just before the sun slipped behind the mountains. It’s so much fun to be amongst them now we’re friends.

My time flies, they are already a month old! We had five fawns drop at The Ranch this spring and we know this as our good neighbor has seen them all at the same time. When it comes to seeing the fawns from our windows, it’s been a real challenge. One, the grass is really tall this spring keeping these little guys well hidden. Two, we’ve had predators about from a Mountain Lion to Coyotes so the does have been very protective. While the does come into the Back 9, come up to me looking for their apples, it wasn’t until a little over a week ago that “The Wtich” brought her fawn into the open. We call the doe The Witch because she is the Alpha and she lets everyone know it! In the last few days, the doe has permitted its fawn to come in closer and closer to where yesterday it was bigger than the viewfinder. It’s progress but we’re still at the peekaboo phase.

The Painted Redstart is a small, energetic warbler whose northern range is the mountains on the border of Arizona and Mexico. This Mexican species comes north some springs to raise their young. Thirty-eight years ago Sharon and I saw our first Painted Redstart in Ramsey Canyon, AZ. We have seen them a handful of times since, but the looks were always fleeting. This year we were blessed with a couple of individuals multiple times a day at Santa Rita Lodge, Madera Canyon, AZ. They are very active and part of their charm is their bow and flaring/dancing of their white band tail. They have a great call that in the morning helps you find them. They were a joy to watch and I was so happy to finally get glass on the Painted Redstart.

This juvenal Rivoli’s Hummingbird will be solid color, if only now! The Rivoli’s is a big hummingbird, the biggest in NA. Your average hummer is the size of half your pinky, the Rivoli’s is bigger than your thumb. Its wing beats are slower and when coming into the feeders (stage left in this photo) they sound literally like a Huey! They are a great hummer and while only a few are here, each visit is special.