Corona de Tucson
April 30, 2026
April ended just like it began. We are still simply enjoying the comforts of home, the wonderful spring weather, and the "this and that" things to do. Lucy had a spa day and while she was being "styled to pawfection" Joe and I enjoyed breakfast at Mama's Kitchen, perusing Petco, and buying groceries.
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| Lucy's hair cut. Joe and I both agree we miss her longer ears. |
I have been in a quandary about Lucy's food. Lucy came to us with a zip-lock bag of Purina Pro Plan. The older she gets, the more picky she becomes. I found myself scrambling eggs, steaming broccoli, mashing sweet potatoes, and anything I could find to add to her food. And still some days, she refused her breakfast and ate only a little at dinner. My quandary was that I felt like she wasn't getting all the needed nutrients. After tons of reading, we finally decided on freeze-dried-raw food instead of kibble. Yes, it does cost more, but for the past two weeks she has gobbled up both meals (1 cup with 1/2 cup of warm water twice a day) and lapped up the water too. Which brings me to another issue...not drinking enough water. After tons more reading and horror stories about pups and kidney failure from dehydration, we invested in a fountain for Lucy.
Everyday, we see and hear her at the fountain more and more. We were advised to leave her old water bowl in place until she felt comfortable using the fountain. The bowl is now in the cabinet. And no longer do I sit with her and encourage her to drink water. The fountain runs 24/7 for two weeks (water added as needed) and then it is washed and new water is added. Every month the filter is replaced and that is all we need to do. Not only is Lucy drinking more water, the motor is whisper quiet, it is medical grade stainless which results in no biofilm and bacteria which translates to no odor. Even though human noses don't smell the biofilm and bacteria, puppy noses do and I read that is the main cause (even if water bowls are washed and refilled twice a day) for puppies not drinking water.
One morning the three of us drove the loop road in Saguaro NP East. Saguaros are beginning to bloom which makes for a fun and always a beautiful adventure.
Puppies are allowed on the paved trail and picnic areas in the park. We parked and walked the Nature trail with lots of new things for a puppy to see and smell
The saguaro blooms were mostly in the tallest Saguaros right now so photographs were hard to take and I only had my phone.
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| The crested we always pass going to the picnic area... |
This brings me to the title of this post. Did you know that the Gilded Flicker is often referred to as the Saguaro "Boot Maker"? Gilded Flickers live in the Sonoran desert year-round and although they perch high above the ground on the sturdy limbs of giant saguaros, I don't recall ever seeing one when hiking. They prefer nesting in giant saguaros...normally about 20 feet above ground. The entrance hole averages 2.8 inches in diameter while the cavity itself averages 5 inches across and 14.8 inches deep. The nest have no lining or any materials in the bottom. The saguaro responds to the Flickers damage by secreting a sap that overtime hardens into a bark like shell that prevents the saguaro from losing water and protects the nest by making it waterproof. Nature is so amazing as it takes a year or so before the nest is ready for use and becomes a "saguaro boot". What is even more amazing is that there are usually several entrance holes joining multiple nests/boots. Native Americans used these waterproof boots to carry and store water. Today is is illegal to collect saguaro boots from the wild in Arizona.
Imagine our excitement to look up one morning and see a male Gilded Flicker peeking around the tree by the back rail.
Typically, these woodpeckers forge on the ground for ants and ant larva. But they also enjoy suet and seeds at a feeder if they are available and the past few weeks, we have had to replace the suet feeder everyday as they have been regular visitors to the yard.
I read that after the female lays 4-5 eggs, both parents incubate the eggs. The male takes the night shift which explains why we never saw the female. Incubation lasts about 11 days.
We were hoping all the time that at some point we might see a fledgling. And finally, a little female arrived with her dad. It was fun watching her as dad coaxed her from the bird bath to the tree and finally to the feeder.
The fledging returned for several days...sometimes by herself and sometimes with her dad.
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| It's hard to tell from the photo, but the fledgling has its beak wide open in hopes the Gila will share. That didn't happen! |
Back in April of 2023, we bought two Desert Willow trees from the electric company for $15 each. They were just twigs that Joe planted in the backyard. Today these drought-tolerant, fast-growing, native to the Southwest trees are a nice addition to the backyard. The trumpet-shaped flowers are so pretty and we actually have some shade for the back side of our home and pretty things to see when we look out the window.
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| This part of the backyard is shady after lunch... |
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| Fingers crossed...so far Lucy has not tried to pull out any plants or eat any of them. |
The Black-headed Grosbeak has been visiting this week...
and we always enjoy the other faithful feathered friends as well.
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| The chicken is a wee bit too fat to pull out...she finally pulled it from the bottom. Job well done Lucy! |
That wraps up the rest of April. Anbd, I'll close with a few photos of our Arizona skies.
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| sunbeams at dawn |
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| the smell of rain... |
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| peace and gratitude at day's end |
Until next time,
