Sawbill Surprise and Mountain drive with "the guy."

Red-breasted Merganser females

Red-breasted Merganser females

Life has kept me busy these past few weeks so it was nice to get out for an hour or so this morning before Kino's vet appointment.  At the lake things seemed unexciting, so I turned toward the car for a jaunt to Woodland.  Two waterfowl flew just over my head and landed on the lake I had just turned from.   I did not recognize them in flight so fixated the scope on their lean figures.  The long, thin bill, light brown head with a shaggy crest, and lack of contrast between the light chin and fore-neck identified them as the rarest merganser to be found in our area, the Red-breasted Merganser.  This merganser is typically found wintering in the ocean, not desert lakes.   The serrated edges to its long thin bill help it to hold on to its prey which consists mostly of fish.  This rarity showed up when I least expected it, a common phenomenom. 



A buddy biscuit was enough incentive to get Kino up, which is surprising since usually by 11:00 he's sawing logs and immovable.  As I watched him in the car he seemed so happy to be out that I took some pics before we left the car.   It was then that I first thought we could take a drive afterwards up Mount Lemmon.

On the way up we made short stops, and, though Kino was interested in the smells of pine and Juniper, was also content to stay in the car.   It wasn't until we reached the very top that I was able to carry him around and show him some of the magnificent views.








On the way back he sat up and watched the scenery, including a few turkeys crossing the road.  We logged another sunset and enjoyed another day together in this beautiful place.   Thank you for appreciating our wild and not so wild companion animals.