Desert Botanical Garden - Plants & Sculpture - Blooming Saguaro Cactus (Carnegiea gigantea) with Curve-Bill Thrasher (Toxostoma curvirostre)
The Desert Botanical Garden is a living museum of some 50,000 plants representing more than 4,000 species. They offer education, research, exhibition, and conservation of desert plants from around the world with emphasis on species from the Sonoran Desert — southern Arizona and south to Mexico. I was lucky to catch this Curve-Bill Thrasher sitting atop a flowering Saguaro. Native to the Southwestern and Mexico, it is referred to as the default desert bird since it does not migrate. According to Wikipedia, "The demeanor of the curve-billed has been described as 'shy and rather wild', but it allows humans to view it closely. It is very aggressive in driving out potential threats, whether competitors for food or predators of its chicks."
Size: 4325px × 4325px
Location: Phoenix, AZ, USA
Photo credit: © B. David Cathell / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
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