Nighthawks and Poorwills, birds of the nightĬopyrighted by Jonathan DuHamel. Thirteen venomous animals of the Southwestern desert Mesquite trees provide food, fuel, medicine, and more Palo Verde trees about to turn the desert golden The 23 photos, taken over a period of 35 years, show how well animals can vanish into their environment. The photo was published in the British paper, Mail Online, which was featuring the photography of Art Wolfe. Typical life span in the wild is 13 years, but they have lived as long as 38 years in captivity.Ībove, I wrote that these owls are masters of camouflage and the photo below is an example.

They begin nesting in January or February and will have up to 5 eggs at a time. Great Horned Owls do not build their own nest, but instead, seek out the nests of other birds such as hawk nests, squirrel nests, tree holes, rock crevices and nooks in buildings. The Great Horned Owls are the only owls known to prey upon skunks, perhaps because they have a poor sense of smell. In the Southwest, cottontail rabbits and jackrabbits are favored. The Great Horned Owl will prey upon anything it can catch and that includes mammals, other birds, reptiles, and amphibians. The Northern mockingbird is among the birds in Arizona that display extreme learning in mimicking the songs and calls of other species. From my experience with owls, these tufts are most often erect when the owl is on the alert. The “horns” are actually tufts of feathers which can be erect or flat on the head depending on the mood of the owl. Birds in the western interior region are generally pale and grayish in tone….” The facial disk (which helps focus sound) is orange to gray and sets off yellow eyes.

According to The Sibley Guide to Birds, “Females average browner and more heavily marked than males. Males and females have similar plumage, but that varies regionally. The Great Horned Owl is the third largest owl (the Snowy Owl and Great Grey Owl are bigger), with a length of 15- to 25 inches and a wingspan of up to 5 feet. They seem to prefer open, second-growth forest, agricultural areas, and suburban areas. The Great Horned Owl ranges from the boreal forests of Canada and Alaska to the southern tip of South America.

Arizona birds sounds