Is A Desert A Desert or A Desert?

It's funny how anything with sand and cactus is called a desert, but truly, there are several different KINDS of deserts.  Here's a map of the general area of the Sonoran Desert.  The Tucson side is called the Arizona Uplands and the part towards California, the Lower Colorado Valley.  That's weird.  Anyway, a desert is a desert to me.  Somewhere in the middle lies the favorite elevation of those ancient saguaro cactus.

That happens to be right where the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum is located a few miles out of Tucson.  I know it's a bit of a drive, but worth every minute and definitely worth the $21.00 entry fee for me.  Unfortunately, I was too busy getting my jacket off in the really warm morning temperature, so I don't know if this was the senior price or not.

Just look at this view.  I might add the best time to visit is NOW.  Absolutely everything is in bloom, except the saguaros, which mostly bloom at night and you wouldn't see anyway.  There were flowers everywhere!!

Just when you think you've spotted a coyote no one else sees, you realize it's actually in a huge enclosure of sorts.

You can see the netting here.  She/he had absolutely no interest in anything but napping and refused to pose for a picture.

As you walk around the gravel trails of this rather large facility, you'll find all the critters that reside in the Sonoran desert.  Here's a beauty ... just look at those horns.  

As you can probably tell, it IS spring and this guy was only interested in this sexy gal.  At one time, they actually had five babies running around.  They finally figured out what was causing that and put a stop to it.  

Look up in the above picture and you will see this guy in the corner, a desert iguana hanging out in the morning sun.  

As you know, bobcats frequent MY area.  You've even seen my pictures of them at the water station below my house.  I do love to capture the kitties with a camera.

This one however, is pretty rare.  The ocelot is a true beauty, hunting at night and sleeping during the day.  She was scratching her ear like any kitty would, and it felt SO good!!

She finished eating before heading to the rock outcrop up top for a nice snooze.

You've seen these guys on my blog also.  It was rather shocking to walk around the corner and find her standing on a rock just feet away.  I might add it's best to go very early in the day ... like be there at 8:00.  There will be hardly anyone around, making for a more normal wildlife experience.  Once the 359 kids show up (especially during spring break) all the critters disappear.

I probably won't ever see these guys in my back yard.  The Mexican wolf hangs out further south.  These two babies kept here are old as the hills like me and have arthritis pretty bad, which keeps them from moving around very much.  Wouldn't you just love to give them a pet?

I probably won't ever see this big boy either.  He had just received his chunk of meat on a big bone.  The meat didn't last long at all.  He wasn't sure what to do with the bone, but tossed it around with his paws for a bit.  

I'm sure there are ponds with waterfalls for these guys somewhere, but I've never seen any .... ponds OR otters, except here at the desert museum.  

They have a huge outside aviary, but it was locked up for cleaning, along with the restaurant.  Don't miss the raptor/birds of prey show like I did.  Having just survived a cold, I didn't want to take any chances around those 359 kids.  There is an art gallery or two, but I stuck to the critters this trip.  Seriously, if you are in the Tucson area, definitely go check out this desert museum.  

There's so much stuff, I'll show you over the next couple of days so this post doesn't become a War and Peace novel. Between the flowers and the birds, springtime can't be beat in the Sonoran Desert.