Monday, July 29, 2013

"Birding" on No Thoroughfare Trail

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We went on a birding walk on No Thoroughfare Trail with my friend Scott yesterday. It's always nice to go out with Scott because he is the birding expert among my friends. We saw or heard many different species of birds, insects, reptiles and amphibians, including: rock wrens, violet green swallows, cliff swallows, Gambel's Quail, white tailed antelope squirrels, red spotted toads, juniper titmouse, white throated swift, blue-grey gnat catchers, ash throated fly catchers, broad-tailed hummingbirds, canyon wrens, damselfly nymphs, whip-tail lizards, fence lizards, collared lizards, tons of shield/stink bugs, robber flies, and tadpoles, water striders, and backswimmers.

Here are some pics:


Scene from the No Thoroughfare Trail-head.






Paintbrush along the trail.




Young red-spotted toad.



There were several pools with tadpoles, water striders,
backswimmers, and damselfly nymphs.



A crescent butterfly in the family Nymphalidae.
Possibly a phaon crescent, Phyciodes phaon (W.H. Edwards, 1864).



Stairway leading toward the second waterfall & pool.



Another collared lizard. 
We see several along this trail whenever the sun is out.



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