Whatever Weds. A Coyote Tale

Copyright ©2026 Deborah M. Zajac. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

PLEASE DO NOT USE MY IMAGES WITHOUT EXPRESSED WRITTEN PERMISSION.

Saturday morning after I’d finished Wordle and Strands I shared my results with my sister. We trade results and talk about where we struggled or where we felt it was easy. We talked for a bit and then I got up to make a second cup of tea this was about 7A.M. I just caught out the corner of my eye out back a Coyote streaking by. I moved to the backdoor to see where it was going and here came another one streaking by following the first one! That was neat. I thought they were probably heading back to the den since the sun was up already.

Fast forward 50 minutes and when I looked up from reading there out at the edge of the golf course was a Coyote with its back to me gazing out across the flood plain. Oh! I raced to get my camera that was in my retreat. I wished as I was racing that it would still be there when I got back. It was!

©Deborah M. Zajac | http//:circadianreflections.com
Coyote Gazing across the field.

As I opened the sliding glass door and screen it heard me and turned to see what the noise was. It soon realized I was no threat so turned its gaze back to the field. Above is exactly what I saw that had me run for my camera.

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Then I guess it decided there was nothing to worry about or going on so it laid down in the cold grass.

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I think my neighbor came out to look and as it seems to be looking that way rather than at me.

After a few minutes something caught its attention out in the field and it got up to look. I looked too. Oh! There out in the field further west was another Coyote! Perhaps these two were the two I had seen running by an hour before?

Here’s Number Two out in the field looking back at Number One. This is cropped in a bit.

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Next, Number One started making its way across the golf course closer to me! Curious perhaps or had it heard the birds?

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It kept coming closer then below me a Cooper’s Hawk swooped in low over the Sagebrush just behind my fence! The Sparrows and Quail all dove into the Sagebrush and got really quiet. The Hawk landed up on a branch in my neighbor’s tree. The Hawk was watching the approaching Coyote not the birds. I was watching them all.
©Deborah M. Zajac | http//:circadianreflections.com
Cooper’s Hawk

Coyote Number One got to the bottom of the hill below me but, I couldn’t see him anymore. Then he started up the golf cart path headed east and soon was out of sight.

Number Two couldn’t see Number One I think, so came up to the edge of the course. It spotted me. Our eyes met. Then it turned to look east after its buddy, and off it went after it head down on the scent.

©Deborah M. Zajac | http//:circadianreflections.com Image

I watched it until it was out of sight then looked up and there out in the distance were 3 Hot Air Balloons rising. I hoped they’d float my way, but they never do. Prevailing winds tend to head east. This morning was no different they all floated east behind the mountains out into the great Nevada desert.

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I watched until the last balloon slid behind the mountains and out of view. It was my turn to turn away from the view. I went to get my forgotten cup of tea now cold then headed to the kitchen to make a fresh cup. Happy with the way my day started and counting my blessings. I was thinking how wonderful it is to have all this nature and wildlife here and I was very thankful to be home Saturday morning to see it all.

more to come…

Friday’s Feathered Friends- Greater Roadrunner

Copyright ©2025 Deborah M. Zajac. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

PLEASE DO NOT USE MY IMAGES WITHOUT EXPRESSED WRITTEN PERMISSION.

Last month about a week before Thanksgiving I went on a quick road trip to Las Vegas/Henderson with a girl-friend. She was wanting to see her parents who live in Vegas, and I was wanting to go to Henderson which is just 20 minutes south of downtown Vegas to do some birding. So we got a plan together and went. While she was hanging out with her parents I was birding at the Henderson Bird Viewing Preserve. I was hoping to see the Long-tailed Duck that is back this winter, alas, I did not see it, but I had a fantastic meeting with a Greater Roadrunner.

I was walking up a path and turned a corner and there it was standing in the middle of the path. I stopped. It jumped back and looked at me. There we stood eyeing each other up. When it was apparent it wasn’t going to flee and be flighty I started making photographs of it. After a minute it approached me! I backed up to keep it in my focal range. It was too close!!! Such a problem to have right? 😂 This profile is the best image I made showing its colorful skin behind its eye. The colors say Southwest to me.

©Deborah M. Zajac | http//:circadianreflections.com
Greater Roadrunner

I didn’t back up enough because as you see I nearly cut off his feet!

Here it is showing me its lovely long tail.

©Deborah M. Zajac | http//:circadianreflections.com
Greater Roadrunner- I backed up more for to make this image.

I can’t tell if it is a male or female. I do know it’s an adult though. It stayed on the path walking back and forth in front of me, and crossing the path from side to side for nearly 5 minutes! I have quite a few images of it. I think it must have had a nest nearby guarding it perhaps? Anyway, I figured I’d better get moving and let the Roadrunner get back to doing whatever it does. I thanked it for such a lovely encounter and as quietly as I could walked up the path then when the Roadrunner thought I was too close it darted into the bushes.

That was only the 3rd Roadrunner I’ve ever seen and by far the best encounter with one ever!

Fun Facts: Gleaned from AllAboutBirds.org

    • For a generation of Americans, the familiar “beep, beep” of Warner Brothers’ cartoon Roadrunner was the background sound of Saturday mornings. Despite the cartoon character’s perennial victories over Wile E. Coyote, real-life coyotes present a real danger. The mammals can reach a top speed of 43 miles an hour—more than twice as fast as roadrunners.
    • Roadrunners have evolved a range of adaptations to deal with the extremes of desert living. Like seabirds, they secrete a solution of highly concentrated salt through a gland just in front of each eye, which uses less water than excreting it via their kidneys and urinary tract. Moisture-rich prey including mammals and reptiles supply them otherwise-scarce water in their diet. Both chicks and adults flutter the unfeathered area beneath the chin (gular fluttering) to dissipate heat.
    • Greater Roadrunners eat poisonous prey, including venomous lizards and scorpions, with no ill effect, although they’re careful to swallow horned lizards head-first with the horns pointed away from vital organs. Roadrunners can also kill and eat rattlesnakes, often in tandem with another roadrunner: as one distracts the snake by jumping and flapping, the other sneaks up and pins its head, then bashes the snake against a rock. If it’s is too long to swallow all at once, a roadrunner will walk around with a length of snake still protruding from its bill, swallowing it a little at a time as the snake digests.
    • Based on banding records, the oldest roadrunner was at least 7 years old.
    • Roadrunners hold a special place in Native American and Mexican legends and belief systems. The birds were revered for their courage, strength, speed, and endurance. The roadrunner’s distinctive X-shaped footprint—with two toes pointing forward and two backward—are used as sacred symbols by Pueblo tribes to ward off evil. The X shape disguises the direction the bird is heading, and is thought to prevent evil spirits from following.

Isn’t that folklore about its X shaped footprint interesting! I didn’t know that until I read the fun facts. 😊

I hope you all have a lovely week-end. Beep, beep!

more to come…

Happy Thanksgiving!

Copyright ©2024 Deborah M. Zajac. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

PLEASE DO NOT USE MY IMAGES WITHOUT EXPRESSED WRITTEN PERMISSION.

I wanted to wish all of you in the U.S.A. a very Happy Thanksgiving day and week-end!

Copyright © 2019 Deborah M. Zajac ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

To everyone else I wish you a very happy day and week-end!

more to come…

Something for Sunday- First Snow in the Valley

Copyright ©2024 Deborah M. Zajac. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

PLEASE DO NOT USE MY IMAGES WITHOUT EXPRESSED WRITTEN PERMISSION.

I woke up Friday morning pretty early to go birding with a group I’m in. When I opened the garage door to leave I discovered there was snow on the ground and flurries still swirling.

I was heading about an hour northeast from home so, I checked my email to make sure they hadn’t canceled the outing…they hadn’t so off I went.

It wasn’t snowing when I arrived at the meeting spot but, while birding the snow started to fall pretty heavy. It wasn’t in the weather forecast the day before! It was still a good morning of birding. We saw 22 species of birds. One White-crown Sparrow favored us with a nice look perched on snowy grass.

©Deborah M. Zajac | http//:circadianreflections.com Image

By the time we left it had quit snowing so my drive home was easy, and while the snow was sticking to the ground where I was birding it hadn’t had home. The upcoming 10 day forecast looks like we’re snow free.

Nikon D850| Nikkor 500mm| PS CC

more to come…

Whatever Weds. Chipmunk

Copyright ©2024 Deborah M. Zajac. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

PLEASE DO NOT USE MY IMAGES WITHOUT EXPRESSED WRITTEN PERMISSION.

The two expression this Chipmunk made while I was taking its photo had me chuckling.

I got it!

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Uh, what nut?!

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Nikon D850| Nikkor 500mm| PS CC

more to come…

One Word Sunday-Faces

Copyright ©2024 Deborah M. Zajac. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

PLEASE DO NOT USE MY IMAGES WITHOUT EXPRESSED WRITTEN PERMISSION.

©Deborah M. Zajac | http//circadianreflections.com Image

This week Janet from This, that, and the other thing is hosting One Word Sunday. To play along or see what others have shared click over to her site here.

more to come…

What Ever Weds. Silver Fox

Copyright ©2023 Deborah M. Zajac. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. 

PLEASE DO NOT USE MY IMAGES WITHOUT EXPRESSED WRITTEN PERMISSION.

I don’t have much in new content so, I’m reaching into my archives. This image was from a trip to a safari zoo here in Nevada during a time #1 Grandson was here on a visit.

Silver Fox at rest

I love its eyes! Not looking at me but, very aware of my camera and presence. Very keen and crafty for sure!!

I hope your week is going well. We’re halfway through it!

Fuji X-T3| Fujinon 100-400mm| PS CC

more to come…