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DO YOU APPRECIATE DESERT WILDLIFE?We were the strangers and all desert life seemed to be leery of us. After several months the birds came. In the beginning it was just the ravens. They were huge black crows that were as big as my pugs. I thought they were looking for lunch. I knew that the riparian reserve was very close by and thought it was odd not to see any wildlife. Then the other birds came. These beautiful yellow birds used to escort us on and off the property. There is quail everywhere. Although I have never seen the javilena, they do leave their hoof prints all over the property. I believe that we hear them also. We have seen deer and ringtail cats. Ringtail cats are part of the raccoon family. We have free range cattle and bulls. Jack rabbits plentiful as are pack rats and shrew. When we come home at night there are hundreds everywhere. Of course, lizards and snakes and turantulas and scorpians. I have seen diamondback rattlesnakes, coral snakes, red racers and hundreds of lizards.
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This unknown bug flew around me all day. It flies like a wasp and is about 2 1/2 inches long. It is resting on a 2 x 4 and it nearly covers it in height. The underside is bright yellow. There are others that are bright orange.
The Banded-winged grasshopper in the Sonoran Desert are bright florescent green. They measure about 3 1/2". When they hop you can see the underside of their wings which are bright orange or bright yellow. They appear in late August to early September.
