Camera Critters #276

I’ve gone to an area near where I live which I call “Lizard Lands” a number of times lately.  Each time I was unable to find a reptile of any type.

A couple of days ago, I found out why…a feral cat is hanging out in the area. 

So, I decided to walk the other side of the canyon and guess what I found!



It’s a juvenile Side-blotched Lizard.  It stuck around long enough for me to get a couple of photos and then it disappeared into the rocks.

Lucky for it, the cat hasn’t found his hiding place.

Misty Dawn’s Camera Critter Meme is a great way see critters the world over. Go to the homepage here to see more. Then join the fun and add your own.

Camera Critters #271

It is always a good day when I cross paths with one of the three species of lizards commonly found in this area.

The little fella here is a Great Basin Fence Lizard, which is a subspecies of the Western Fence Lizard.  And, for obvious reasons, they are nicknamed “Blue-bellies.”



And now a special treat for those of you who have those red/blue 3D glasses.  This image is the same lizards shot with my new toy…a Fujifilm 3D W3 camera.



Sharp-eyed viewers might notice the fly on the right of the image.

Misty Dawn’s Camera Critter Meme is a great way see critters the world over. Go to the homepage here to see more. Then join the fun and add your own.

Camera Critters #269

Say hello to my little friend!



Misty Dawn’s Camera Critter Meme is a great way see critters the world over. Go to the homepage here to see more. Then join the fun and add your own.

Camera Critters #263

If you know me at all, you know I really enjoy photographing the lizards around central Oregon…or anywhere else I travel.

Of the three more prominent species in this area, the Side-blotched Lizard is the most colorful.  It gets its name from a very dark blue area located just behind the front leg.  It is hard to see in this image, but believe me, it is there.



Misty Dawn’s Camera Critter Meme is a great way see critters the world over. Go to the homepage here to see more. Then join the fun and add your own.

Camera Critters #254

It was Feb. 14, 2013…Valentine’s Day…and one of the loves of my life appeared.  It was earliest I had seen any of these wonderful creatures.

It was a juvenile Side-blotched Lizard.  This critter wasn’t but about three inches long from nose to tip of tail, but it was still a nice find for me.



The Side-blotched Lizard is common in my area, but normally I only see the reptiles with orange spots on them.  This little fellow appears to have blue spots along the back, but also what appears orange on its sides.  It would be interesting if it was blue on top, orange on the sides, but I think it will develop one spot color as it matures.



Misty Dawn’s Camera Critter Meme is a great way see critters the world over. Go to the homepage here to see more. Then join the fun and add your own.

Camera Critters #206

By this time of the year in the past, I have been able to photograph lizards sunning on the heat retaining lava rocks of the area.

But for the last couple of years, March weather hasn’t been that good and the lizards, along with most non-mammalian critters, haven’t appeared until late April, and in some cases, early May. And this March is looking to be similar to the Marches of the last couple of years, with bad weather predicted to the end of the month.

This image of a Great Basin Fence Lizard was taken four years ago. It is possible this lizard is a Western Fence Lizard. However, range maps show the subspecies Great Basin Fence Lizard in this area, which is a fatter, and darker lizard. This individual was found along the walls of the dry canyon in town. In an area where there is a lot of rock from the slowly eroding basaltic columns, three species of lizards live.

One can also find Side-blotched Lizards and Sagebrush Lizards living among the rocks of the canyon.

I really had no interest in photographing lizard when I imaged my first one. However, after taking a couple photographs and seeing what great subjects they are, I can not pass by and ignore one.

Considering the weather I will have for a couple of weeks, I’ll dig into my archives of past images and hopefully show everyone a lizard shot they haven’t seen before.

Misty Dawn’s Camera Critter Meme is a great way see critters the world over. Go to the homepage here to see more. Then join the fun and add your own.

One Fine Day!!!

I went out shooting yesterday. It's been a while since my health and the weather have conspired to give me that opportunity. And a good shoot it was.

I bagged me a new species of lizard and some new shots of familiar lizards. I like shooting lizards...and I really do. I thought I enjoyed birds, but no...it's those creepy, crawly things which up close and personal have such a prehistoric look to them I like best. You can see a couple of the new shots on my photostream at Flickr.

So, since I am shooting more and more (I hope...it appears the weather in the high desert is going south again real soon), I hope to post more and more shots of the local fauna. I generally put my favorite shots on my Flickr site. But I still have a lot of great shots I just don't want to post at Flickr. And because of that, I was glad when a friend of mine, Misty of Misty's Musing started a Sunday meme called Camera Critters Meme (don't ask me what "meme" means, as I still ain't figured it out). I figure I'll put my "other" good shots linked to that meme here.

So to begin the fun, my I present -- "A Lizard"


I came across this guy yesterday, along the Dry Canyon Trail in Redmond, Oregon which is one of my favorite places to wander. I'm not sure what species of lizard this is. Show me anything else and chances are I'll be able to name it, but lizards? NOT! At least not yet. 8v)

So, if you enjoy critters of any type, check out the Camera Critter Meme here.

And if you know the species of this lizard, let me know 8v)