Melissa Crytzer Fry

Fighting to save H20 & wildlife in AZ’s Sky Islands (my home). On June 30, BLM approved 67 exploratory drill sites for Canadian Faraday Copper. Please help! By Aug. 18, 2025, email state and Safford BLM offices. Find easy copy/paste suggestions here: tinyurl.com/3ene6wa6. What's at stake:

Hello, there little western screech #owl! The residents of the Sky Islands, Galiuro Mountains ~ #CopperCreek.

It's #Caturday! Squeezy: "What do you mean, 'Do I love #books as much as my mom does?' Duh..."

Did a quick overnight #RV camping trip for our 26-year anniversary. This is in Tucson's Gilbert Ray campground. The #SonoranDesert continues to take my breath away. Squeezy loves it, too.

Another beautiful #bobcat on #cameratrap at #CopperCreek. Her home will become a waste-rock dump, and the creek will be entirely blown out by open pits, if #mining moves forward in this area.

Yowza! Look at this cloud from last night! #GaliuroMountains in Arizona's Madrean Archipelago. #SkyIslands

Y'all have seen me post #cameratrap images of white-nosed #coatimundi in our #Arizona Sky Island ecosystem: the Galiuro Mountains. This time we got a great shot of the paw pads that make those interesting paw prints! Click to enlarge full-size.

This is what REAL nature looks like ... a picture perfect #cameratrap image of a mama #racoon and her kits in Arizona's #Galiuro Mountains. (Not this #AI crap we're seeing all over the Internet).

It's #Caturday, and you know what that means... It's Squeezy-time! This boy is so silly.

So many sweet pics of newborn #fawn with mama, caught on mountain #cameratraps. #GaliuroMountains #SkyIslands

🔉up for lil red noises. The #javelina found leftover mealworms the birds didn't get. Mama and two youngsters on #cameratrap.

We don't often see cloudy and overcast days in the desert - but we've sure been getting them this fall! #Galiuro Mountains hidden behind clouds! #SkyIslands

What a lovely visitor last night - taking advantage of the 1/4" of rain we got! Arizona Gray #Fox. Love the glistening water on her fur!

Well, hello there, gorgeous - right outside my window. Mule #deer buck.

Y'all. I know several people in this clip, which made it a delight to watch. Using humor to shed light on important topics is a good move. #jaguars www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxeg...

It's #Caturday! And somebody named Squeezy is so dang cute. I was away from him for 9 days ... far too long.

We had a lovely kitty visitor last night. #Bobcat on #cameratrap, heading down the drainage chute. Knocks down a rock at departure.

Not sure what spooked the #coyote... but look at those inquisitive eyes. Caught on #cameratrap.

Beautiful Cooper's #hawk visitor on the video cam. Still shot image because video was jumpy.

First time back to hometown in PA since losing my dad Sept. 6, 2025. Put together a memorial bench at the pond he dug and loved so much. We took comfort in the praying #mantis showing up on the bench & its cultural/spiritual significance with inner peace and guardian angels.

Yesterday... 20 minutes condensed to 30 seconds. Poor hubby had just shoveled out all the soil from the last time (in preparation for the storm). Time to do it again! What's-left-of-the-driveway video forthcoming.

Happy #Caturday. Despite not fitting in my lap, Squeezy still gives it a shot, nestling into the "4" shape my legs make when crossed one over the other.

Don't blink. It's a #bobcat driveby! (That trough is ultra-clean, by the way... gave it a good srubbing...must have had H20 elsewhere on the property.)

Y'all... Jessica McCann's lovely debut #novel is being reborn as a 15th anniversary edition under a new publisher on Nov. 10! This one will rip your heart out, but give you profound hope. It's on NetGalley as a requested #ARC, too! #historicalfiction

Last night was a five-mammal appearance on the #trailcams! #javelina, #Bobcat, #coyote, gray #fox, mule #deer, , !

Somebody didn't do a good job of sticking the landing. Though the ramp that the javelina removed made a decent resting spot. Sonoran Desert #Toad.

Planted some baby #saguaros (these are TWO years old!) provided by Tucson Bird Alliance. South-facing, under a host tree (for shade and root moisture), with some rocks to keep them warm during frost. We've lost 8 mature ones over the years. Time to get 6 more!

In my 22 years living here, I have never seen a desert #tortoise pose like this. I thought it was injured, but it appears it was just high on grass. 😂 Zoomed away so quickly about 20 min. later (and up the steep rock wall), I couldn't get my cam out fast enough to photograph)!

It's #Caturday. Squeezy's evening routine: snacks from dad, mouse-toy playtime in the shower (can you see it hanging from the towel hook?).

One can never get enough Galiuro Mountain #ringtails ... their home, #CopperCreek. Working hard to ensure this area does not become #mining's proposed "rock waste dump."

Pile o' collared #peccaries. Love our #javelina friends on #cameratrap.

I was on NPR/local @kjzzphoenix.bsky.social about the growing resistance to #mining, #pipeline, AI #datacenter energy facility threats to our San Pedro River and #AravaipaCanyon. We MUST save this incredible place. www.kjzz.org/fronteras-de...

Very happy that this Giant Crab #Spider (who was in the sliding glass door track) decided to scurry OUTSIDE, instead of inside. Not sure what Squeezy would have done to him - and I do know they will bite if threatened.

Every day, between 4:30 and 5 pm, I watch this gorgeous black-tailed #jackrabbit go past my office window as it heads to the pond for a drink.

I am biased, yes, but after a ride today, I remain convinced that I live in one of the most amazing parts of the country. This is #TucsonWash (way north of Tucson, tributary of the San Pedro River). #SonoranDesert

Happy #Caturday from Squeezy, the silly little goose that he is. He LOVES being out in the courtyard area, despite it being SO dang hot! (He's protected by four walls, and can't get out into the desert, but can see overhead)

There's a baby #fawn hidden under all those doe legs. Mule #deer on #cameratrap.

Always fun to have kitty visitors! #bobcat

Since it's the official start of #football season, it seemed 100% appropriate to post this great-horned #owl on #cameratrap.

#SkyIslands are critical habitat for #Arizona's wildlife. Some of the more 'common' mammals that rely on #CopperCreek's #water & refuge: #coyote, Coues #deer, rock #squirrel (look at those cheeks!), gray #fox.

I recognized the submission, but it wasn't until the end of video I realized 'what' was going on. 😍 #coyote on #cameratrap in the #SonoranDesert (Had to chop significantly to fit here. Volume up).

Take a closer look. There are two! #Roadrunners on #cameratrap.

Squeezy says, "I wanna be one of the BIG cats!" He loves this IKEA wildcats. It's #Caturday!

Another Cutie-mundi at #CopperCreek in the Galiuro Mountains, one of southern Arizona's #SkyIslands. Love white-nosed #coatimundi.

#SonoranDesert sights: 1) two American Snouts who are apparently making baby snouts on hubby's arm 2) Gorgeous clouds, but no rain (again) 3) Daylight moon, #saguaro & turkey #vulture 4) red-tailed #hawk on a behemoth sag.

needed a good #cameratrap laugh! This mule #deer doe provided it! #SonoranDesert

Desert purple #martins are an entirely different subspecies than their eastern cousins. They rely ONLY on saguaro nests next to #desert riparian areas and have migrated from Brazil every year for millennia to nest in the Lower San Pedro. These pics (F, M) at #CopperCreek. #birds

Look at those adorable pantaloons on the American #kestrel! Caught on #cameratrap!

Remember the mule #deer buck with the antler issues? This is how it looks now, the poor fella. Though he seems to be unimpeded. (Close-up view at end of video

It's #Caturday, and Squeezy really wants that moth in the courtyard! 🔊up if you like nails-on-chalkboard sounds. 😹