Monday, November 28, 2005

the goldfinches are here

First sighting of an Ameican Goldfinch for this winter. The finch feeders are out. Now, purple finches, juncos and brown creepers, where are YOU?

Tuesday, November 22, 2005

finally! the elusive Pileated


I have tried for 3 1/2 years to capture a decent picture of one of the Pileated Woodpeckers that live here at Echo Valley. This is a red-letter day for me.
Click on photo to see a larger image.

Monday, November 14, 2005

Hermit Thrush at the dripper

 
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Sunday, November 13, 2005

kayaking the Colorado

Our Master Naturalist group kayaked and canoed a stretch of the Colorado River today. It was a first for some of us and it was great fun. We took an extraordinarily long time do to this 6 mile stretch partly due to doing some exploring along the way for mussels, fossils, interesting plants, snakes (yes, we saw one) and hunting for Texas wild rice. This county really looks different from the river view, and beautiful.

One mishap, a capsized canoe, but as Andy told us in the beginning, "if you turn over, just stand up". Most of the river along here is that shallow, a great place for beginners and a relaxed pace for the experienced. Sue, Andy, and Bill zipped around in their little red kayaks like they were on jet skis.

Here's a partial bird list for the trip: Red-bellied Woodpecker, Pileated Woodpecker, Osprey, Great Blue Heron, Eastern Phoebe, Downy Woodpecker, Turkey Vultures, Carolina Wren.

Saturday, November 05, 2005

Yellow -rumped Warbler

He's here too. Just arrived, to my notice. Wanted a little drink at the dripper, but a resident chickadee chased him away.

this is why I don't live in the city

You see, we have this very long, steep, dirt?, driveway. Most of the dirt is gone so what is left is ruts and rocks. So I had a huge load of crushed rock brought in to fix the problem. I got up before daylight this morning and trudged up the hill with my shovel to spread some of the rocks in the ruts. That's very satisfying work--for a while--and if you don't have to do it. Before long I had an audience. The cows that roam these grounds came to see what was going on. They stood in half circle around me--and watched--and watched. The big black bull kept inching closer. Now I have a healthy respect for big black bulls, especially ones named Gus. I hardly ever turn my back on them. The curious little ones watched too--and their mothers.

I kept working. They got bored or hungry and moved on.
I quit.

Friday, November 04, 2005

its a beautiful day

You can't beat Texas in the fall. The weather is perfect.
I just saw a heron fly over and land in a tree by the "pond" which is part of the creek. By the time I ran into the house to get my binoculars to see which heron, he was gone. Then I saw a Pileated Woodpecker working away at a broken branch on the old post oak in the front yard. A Downy Woodpecker, and a Red-bellied Woodpecker shared the tree. When they saw me out there with my camera, they flew away.
Oh yes, I love this time of year! anyway.

Thursday, November 03, 2005

creatures of the lantana





It is 79 degrees outside right now but was in the 40s last night. We have already had a couple of freezes this season. Hearty flowers are still hanging on in this fall weather. Lantana is one of them. This single plant gives food and shelter to several creatures I wouldn't even have noticed had I not taken a closer look. Note the harvestmen, lynx spider, brown butterfly, preying mantis and the bee. There were also a couple of grasshoppers, one brown, one gray.

the Chipping Sparrows are here!

As I was watching the Ruby-crowned Kinglet in the old oak tree and trying to call him closer, I noticed movement in the vines beyond. Then I saw it, the Chipping Sparrow darting in and out of his favorite hiding places. I wait for this time every year, the arrival of our wintering birds, the Chipping Sparrows, Pine Siskins, American Goldfinches, even Purple Finches live here for the season. Time to put out the thistle seeds.

Tuesday, November 01, 2005

the first meeting

On the property next to ours lives one cow and her newborn calf. On the other side of our property lives a small herd of cattle consisting of about 10-12 cows, calves and one black bull. My neighbors and I recently installed a fence separating the single cow from the herd. The herd is allowed the run of our property except for the forbidden areas where we have fenced them out. Early this morning while the chill was still in the air and the dew was still on the ground the herd came to the fence line to greet the single cow. I think her name is Katy. I believe they all came to see the new calf and to welcome it to the world or maybe just to inspect it. It was an endearing sight. In just a little while they were all lying on their respective sides of the fence chewing their cud, the inspection over, the infant accepted.

To learn more about cows and the behavior of other animals read one of my favorite and enlightening books, "Animals In Translation" by Temple Grandin and Catherine Johnson.
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