Kindergarten Snake

Photo by Pam Bridgmon 12/4/2012

Some eagle-eyed spotting by Marie Graninger had the kindergarten group clustered around (but not, of course, touching or picking up) this tiny snake. Pam Bridgmon writes:

We saw this tiny snake on the Kinder Nature Walk yesterday. The kids just loved it. It was not more than 4 inches long. It was alive but moving very slowly. It's in the center to the right of the rock.

(You'll need to click on the photo and look for stripes.)
Tom "(Not that kind of) Grass-man" Skinner asked Larry "Lizard-man" Jones for the identification. Larry wrote:

That would be a Variable Sandsnake, Chilomeniscus stramineus. I don't see very many, so it is a pretty good find. This would be an adult. They are good burrowers so spend a lot of time underground. Completely harmless. They eat centipedes and other inverts. Usually found in areas of loose soil, and I think all I have seen were in AZ upland desert on gravelly soils (like you show), rather than, say, washes with sand, but I'm sure they are in those areas, also.

Thank you to all the contributors to this little story!

Still hanging around

Photos by Marty Horowitz 11/29/2012

Queen Butterfly on a Hooker Evening Primrose (Oenothera elata ssp. hirsutissima).

Reakirt's Blue on (Willow) Smartweed (Persicaria lapathifolia).
Many thanks to Marty for all of his photo contributions to the blog this year!!

Rock Star Robin

Photo by Mark Hengesbaugh

Text by Mark Hengesbaugh:

If you've noticed an increased number of visitors to Sabino Canyon lately who are toting serious binoculars and field guides, they're coming to see an unusual visitor from Mexico. This Rufous-backed Robin was spotted at the dam on Nov. 27 and as of Dec. 5 is still there. The species' core habitat is in western Mexico and as far as I can tell an individual has never been seen before in Sabino Canyon. Click here for more info on this species.

Colors

Photo by Matt Ball 12/03/2012

Retreat, but don't surrender

Photo by Ned Harris 11/4/2012

This is the web of a Desertshrub Spider (aka Desert Bush Spider); the link is to a blog post from Bug Eric (thanks, Angie) with more info (and photos! Don't click, Honey-Matt!). What looks like debris in the middle of this photo is called a retreat; made of  leaves, remains of prey, whatever is around. The retreat is what generally catches your eye (not literally) when you are out and about. Take a closer look!

A gift of Rose's ...

Frank Rose's latest book, that is! (And you thought I misused the apostrophe.) If you are looking for a great gift for yourself and your plant-loving friends, get a dozen copies of Frank Rose's Mountain Trees of Southern Arizona: A Field Guide, available at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum and, I'm told, at the Sabino Canyon Visitor Center bookstore. Plant goddess Joan Tedford showed us her copy - and I can't possibly use too many superlatives. Fantastic in every way!

Stink bug nymph

Photo by Debbie Bird. 11/16/2012

I'll let Carl 'Bug Man' Olson put the bug in your ear:

That's a nymph of what is commonly called a stink bug, Family Pentatomidae, Order Hemiptera. Juveniles are really difficult because many change so radically from the adult look. It is an herbivore typically, although there are some that are predators. They all have scent glands, and if you look at yours you'll see two dark areas on abdomen and those are glands that produce some very noxious chemicals as defense. You know it's a nymph because wings are in the bud stage on yours.

Don't eat these!