Reflections of White Rock Lake

Posted on February 9, 2014 by Kim

Mirror, Mirror, on the wall

Is there a haven in the Dallas sprawl?

Perhaps a park like White Rock Lake,

A place to watch the morning break?

Mirror, Mirror, I do insist,

Show me White Rock in the mist

Mirror, Mirror, hear my words

Who’s the fairest of the birds?Lesser Yellowlegs certainly seems enamored of his own reflection…

While Double-crested Cormorant (left) is primping for her photo op, and American Coot (right) is working it for the camera.

Not all the birds in White Rock Lake Park are native, or even wild. A number of domestic geese and ducks prowl the shores. This is a White Chinese Goose.

More domestics: Black Swedish Ducks in front and the Crested Pekin Duck. And yes, there is no “g” in “Pekin”, despite the insistence of the spell-checker.

Ah, here are we are back to the wild critters. These Gadwalls are looking especially natty.

American Kestrels perch in trees on the edge of a meadow, looking for mice and voles to eat.

Red-bellied Woodpecker, also looking for good things to eat, much prefers insects. Despite the moniker, the belly is only marginally reddish. The red on its head would seem a better inspiration for a name, but “Red-headed Woodpecker” was already taken.

Mirror, Mirror, on the Loch

Who’s the fairest on White Rock?

That’s an easy one! American White Pelicans are the stars of the show at White Rock Lake in winter. These HUGE birds roost and preen on logs near the lake shore. They look like they’re too big to get off the ground, but in fact they are graceful and powerful fliers. Watching them skim the lake’s surface is an impressive sight. Not one I’ve captured to my satisfaction yet, though.

FUN FACT: How huge are White Pelicans? From beak tip to tail tip they are about 5’2”, nearly as tall as I am. Their wingspans are about 9 feet long. The pouch in their bills can hold 3 gallons of water. Take a look at a gallon of water in the supermarket, and then imagine holding three of them in your mouth! Ouch!

They catch fish by dipping their heads underwater, like bobbing for apples. Sometimes several Pelicans will get together and herd fish together to make them easier to catch.

Mirror, Mirror, tell one, tell all

There’s a special place in the Dallas sprawl

Where humans gather, yet young birds fledge

It’s truly a park on the Wild Edge

Walkin’ In A Winter Wonderland

Posted on January 31, 2014 by Kim

In which snow becomes commonplace,

rocks become marshmallows,

and a stroll in the park becomes a holiday tune.

Take time to see how far you’ve come in life…

While keeping your focus on the path ahead.

And try not to slide into the creek.

Treasure Hunt

Posted on January 27, 2014 by Kim

***SPOILER ALERT***

I’ve done my best not to be too specific with my descriptions of these geocaches. Nonetheless, my photos may give them away. If you’re into geocaching, and haven’t done Ridley Creek State Park yet, continue reading with extreme caution.

YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.

In between snowstorms, we decided to go geocaching at Ridley Creek State Park. Never heard of geocaching?

Basically, it’s an outdoor treasure hunt. Game participants have hidden thousands – maybe millions – of containers in outdoor locations around the world. Containers usually hold a logbook and a number of small trinkets. The rule is that you can take an item from the container if you leave another item of similar value. Participants search for the containers, known as geocaches, by using GPS coordinates. Or a smart phone app, as we did.

There are three traditional geocaches in Ridley Creek SP. The first was hidden on a hill between two trails. We poked around in fallen logs and at the base of trees for quite some time until Master Tracker Robb spotted the geocache. Good eyes – it was in a tiny 35mm film canister. (Remember film?)

Me Robb. Me make fire. Me real he-man.

There are several of these tipi structures around the park, and Robb is always happy to pose ridiculously.

The second cache took us to a different hillside on a different trail. This time I found the cache, which is why there are no pictures. In addition to my role as the official App Bearer, I’m also the Team Photographer. The logbook was frozen shut. It must’ve gotten wet at some point.

There may not have been snow, but it was cold enough for ice to decorate the fallen leaves along the creek.

We saved the best cache for last. First, it introduced us to a whole new trail, which instantly became our favorite. Second, the cache was challenging to get to, and even harder to find. The side trail led down another hill until it died out at a rock outcropping. The boulders just screamed “HIDING PLACE!”, and since the name of the cache was “Rock and Roll”, we felt certain we had found the spot.

The treasure proved elusive, though. Don was convinced that if he could just lift up the rock, our prize would be underneath.

We’d just about given up, deciding that perhaps the cache had gone missing (it happens). In checking the online logbook, I found a photo that rang a bell with Robb. He led us straight to this crevice, about four feet up on the side of the rocks. Of course, the cache wasn’t right at the front…

To retrieve it, Robb had to venture deep into the dark recesses of the rock, supported only by a flimsy branch, all the while beating off creepy, nefarious creatures with a magic staff. Is there no limit to his bravery?

Don would wish me to inform you that the magic staff belongs to him, and therefore he deserves all the huzzahs.

Eureka!

Don with the cache box.

This is just a portion of the rock outcropping. It nearly ate Robb, while Don stayed safely out of danger. As Team Photographer and App Bearer, I, of course, was too valuable to risk.

We logged our latest triumph, then followed the trail back to its source. After a nice lung-busting climb up a hill, and an even nicer knee-busting descent down the other side, much of the trail winds along the banks of Ridley Creek.

We saw quite a few of these tiny ice formations on the ground. They look like fiber-optic tubes. I kept expecting them to light up in neon disco colors. Try as we might, we could not figure out how they formed.

Tree of the day – Shagbark Hickory.

Geocaching was a lot of fun, and we are keen to try it again. It added a challenge to the trails we frequent regularly, and introduced us to a new trail. There is no shortage of geocaches to search for, either, so this hobby should keep us amused for quite awhile.

It will be quite some time before we can travel such easy and clear paths, however.

For more information about geocaching: http://www.geocaching.com/

Huntin’ Armadillos: Hagerman NWR

Posted on January 21, 2014 by Kim

Hagerman National Wildlife Refuge: 11,320 acres on the Big Mineral arm of Lake Texoma, along the border of Texas and Oklahoma. Bit off the beaten path for a Pennsylvania chick, isn’t it? Except that last month found me in Dallas spending time with family. Inevitably I got itchy for the great outdoors. This year I conned my cousin Jensen into spending a day at Hagerman, mostly by promising him armadillos. Jensen is a talented photographer with a good eye who focuses on landscapes and sports. This would be his first time birding – and armadillo hunting.

The day didn’t start out auspiciously. 45° to a Southern boy with thin blood and no socks is darn near intolerable. The wind wasn’t helping matters; nor were the thick gray clouds. The weather only served to accentuate the stark landscapes, and send us scurrying back to the warmth of Jensen’s SUV.

Then we saw one good bird, a Red-tailed Hawk, and then another, this time a Northern Harrier (above) in flight. Suddenly the day didn’t look so bad! By the time we’d driven along the Wildlife Drive to where the Snow Geese were, the wind was abating and the sun was trying to break out.

Ah, the Snow Geese! There were hundreds of them, as there always are, gathered in a grassy field across from the lake. More poured in from somewhere over the trees. Watching large flocks of Snow Geese fly always amazes me. They never fly into each other, even when the flight paths of individual squadrons cross. When I looked at these photos later, I discovered that there were a few smaller but very similar Ross’s Geese mixed in.

One of the odd things about Hagerman NWR is that it is dotted with oil wells. Many of them are sitting out at the end of narrow peninsulas jutting out into the lake. The Turkey Vulture above startled us as we were walking down one such spit of land. It burst up out of the vegetation at the water’s edge right next to us, and we’d never even known it was there. One of the many Turkey Vultures at Hagerman.

Off in the distance, we saw something brown splashing across a creek. An armadillo? No such luck, but what we saw was just as good. Jensen said “Fox!” just as I yelled “Coyote!” Mr. Coyote turned and looked back at us before disappearing into the brush. I’d never seen a coyote before.

We spent some time walking along a couple of different trails, across marshy areas and through woods. These strange seeds littered the ground. Jensen said they called them “crabapples” as kids. Sorry, cuz, wrong again. The sign says they’re the fruit of the Osage Orange.

FUN FACT: Well, okay, we have to give Jensen partial credit, because a common name for these fruits is “hedge apple”; in Texas, “horse apple” is common. For centuries the Osage Orange tree was found only in a limited area near the Red River valley, a portion of which is now Lake Texoma. They spread throughout the Plains after they were widely planted as living fences in long hedgerows. Aggressive pruning turned them into tight thorny hedges. Barbed wire made the trees obsolete, but their strong termite-resistant wood makes great fence posts that don’t rot.

Maybe those hedges are keeping the armadillos out?

Both Western and Eastern Meadowlark are found at Hagerman. I’m not a good enough birder to tell the difference from a photo. Supposedly, their songs are quite different, but these birds weren’t talking!

The ponds around the Refuge are good wintering places for waterfowl. We saw several kinds of ducks, including Mallards, Ruddy Ducks, Gadwalls, and this Northern Shoveler. There were also a number of Great Blue Herons.

At one point, the Refuge road passed through a small cattle ranch. This little Texan farm dog chased our SUV fiercely through his territory, despite not being any taller than our hubcaps.

Also escorting us along the road was this flock of snow geese. No more dark clouds now – nothing but blue skies!

THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY: There’s always one on every trip, isn’t there? This time it was a Greater Roadrunner, along the side of the road just feet away from our car. Of course this was AFTER we’d put our cameras away and left the Refuge!

The Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote in one day? I guess that was too much to ask!

And still no armadillos.

Snowed In

Posted on January 14, 2014 by Kim

The mere threat of a snowstorm is enough to induce panic. We scurry to the store to buy milk, bread and eggs – obviously in desperate need of French toast – and then hunker down as if we won’t be free of our homes for a month. When the snow stops, all we can see is the hours of shoveling, and the icy roads on which we’ll have to skid our way around town. We’ve lost our childhood delight in the wonders of the falling snow, in the way it transforms even the most familiar landscapes.

Fortunately, there’s a cure for this malady, and it’s a simple as picking up a camera and looking at the white-frosted world through its lens.

During the storm, a Carolina chickadee finds shelter in a gray birch tree, while a dark-eyed junco finds plenty to eat under my bird feeders.

Mr. Squirrel ignores the food in front of him, and instead plots to raid the can of birdseed. The grass is always greener to our furry friend.

A sunny day right after the storm entices us out to walk the trails at Heinz NWR.

This is the first time I’ve seen the Refuge covered in snow, and it’s delightful. Even the most ordinary things take on a new look.

Our old friend the chicken fungus now wears the face of Old Man Winter.

Sparrows flit about among the grasses. We see tiny bird tracks and larger deer tracks everywhere. The snow is like Facebook for critters, recording their every movement for us to read.

Winter is the time for beavers to get busy.

Even a 2° morning has its charms. The polar vortex etches little ice feathers on my windows. Look quickly! The warmth of the house starts melting these beauties before I can even finish photographing them.

It’s so easy to come down with a case of snow panic with every storm. We all need to slow down, stop worrying and put down the shovel long enough to partake of the cure. An unhurried walk in a winter wonderland gives us a fresh look at our familiar world, and the gentle touch of Mother Nature’s magic lifts our souls.

Snowy Days Are Here Again

Posted on January 6, 2014 by Kim

It was the news report that finally did it.

All week long, by word of mouth and the Internet, I’d been following the dispatches of a horde from the North. But when reports actually appeared on the TV news broadcasts, I knew I’d have to do something about it. I knew I’d have to face the invaders myself.

I gathered my lieutenants and headed into the bitter wind on a hastily arranged reconnaissance mission.

And who were these invaders, these large, nearly white creatures, with sharp talons and luminous yellow eyes? Abominable Snowmen? No, snowy owls.

These large owls range from the usually all white adult male to females and juveniles who are white with dark bars and spots. In North America, they make their living on the grasslands and open tundra of the Arctic, hunting lemmings and other small mammals, by day as well as night.

In many years, New Jersey might see two or three of these large birds at most. But this year, since Thanksgiving, there have been reports of over twenty snowy owls in the state, many clustered along the shore and the Delaware Bay. Other Mid-Atlantic states are reporting similar influxes of owls. Reports of snowy owls being seen in Pennsylvania are coming in from Berks, Chester and Lancaster counties as well as State College and Presque Isle State Park on Lake Erie. The birds are turning up in Long Island, New York, Ohio, and Boston, as far south as North Carolina, and there’s even been one vacationing in Bermuda, and another in Florida.

What in the name of Harry Potter is going on?

Snowy owls are among a number of species of birds subject to winter irruptions in which large numbers of birds appear in areas far outside their normal range. These events are unpredictable in both their frequency and intensity. It would appear that the winter of 2013-2014 is shaping up to be an irruption year of historic proportions.

CONSERVATION PIECE: Experts are divided on the cause of the irruption. The easy answer is the cyclical fluctuation of the lemming population, their main food source up north. The owls may produce large numbers of owlets when lemmings are abundant but skip breeding altogether when prey is scarce. The driving force behind the irruption may well be an overabundance of prey, leading to an owl population boom. Come the Arctic winter, there are more owls than available food. There may be other factors involved, however. At this point, ornithologists have more questions than answers.

FUN FACT: The snowy owls are looking for treeless areas that resemble the tundra they’re used to, so they’re most likely to be seen in places like beaches, marshes and fields, and, oddly, airports. In fact, in the highly developed Northeast, where native grasslands have all but disappeared, airports may be the best available open habitat for these birds. Sightings of owls – and conflicts with aircraft – have occurred at several airports along the East Coast

After researching the latest owl sightings online, Robb, Don and I decided our best chance of seeing a snowy owl would be at Forsythe NWR at the Jersey Shore. We thought the best we’d do would be a short look at one fairly far away, so when we got a good look at this bird above looking out over the marsh, we were pretty pleased.

Little did we know that there was another owl further down the road, calmly sitting on the rocks not 30 feet from a large group of birders and photographers. Look closely to see it perched at the water’s edge just right of center, above. We watched this white beauty for at least a half hour.

We spoke in hushed tones as the bird calmly preened, running feathers through its beak one by one. When it was time to move on, it was hard to tear ourselves away. Since that day, there have been many more reports of owl sightings, and it appears they are here for the winter. I am hopeful I will get another chance to see another of these majestic birds, but my first encounter with a snowy owl was a real hoot!

LOCAL FOCUS: If you are interested in seeing these magnificent birds for yourself, there are a number of opportunities. Check the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology’s online bird survey, eBird, which has been tracking the irruption thanks to reports of hundreds of amateur observers. Their article on the phenomenon includes links to real-time maps showing the most recent sightings. http://ebird.org/content/ebird/news/gotsnowies2013/

Happy Whoo Year!

Coming up: Snowed In

Looking For Fall

Posted on November 6, 2013 by Kim

Has anyone seen Autumn?

I’ve been searching for her everywhere. Autumn is an elusive elf, playing peek-a-boo among the trees, teasing us with glimpses of bright color, evading us when we look too hard, then turning up where we least expect her.

Could September’s seaside goldenrod be a feather boa in her wardrobe?

Maybe her early colors adorn Tuckahoe trees.

Perhaps Autumn’s paint pot anoints the Sassafras leaves.

Has anyone seen Fall?

Did you see her pixie cousins darting among the marching jack o’lanterns?

Strange things lurk in the Pine Barrens of New Jersey. An elven queen knows better than to flout her presence along the Mullica River…

Though occasionally she can’t entirely hide her exuberance.

Could the tea-colored waters of the Wading River be her magic elixir?

Has anyone seen Fall?

Lady Autumn played hide-and-seek with me one morn amid the dogwoods and the maples in my small Eden at home.

Oh, look! Here is one of her Ladyship’s attendants. The first Dark-eyed Junco of the season awaits her wishes.

Have you seen Autumn?

Coming up: The Search Continues

Back In Business

Posted on October 21, 2013 by Kim

KRTR 99.9 Critter Radio brings you the Critter Traxx Traffic Report, sponsored –

*** WE INTERRUPT REGULARLY SCHEDULED PROGRAMMING TO BRING YOU THIS SPECIAL UPDATE ***

This just in – With the government now open, John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge is BACK IN BUSINESS!

Yes, folks, my favorite hangout is up and running. The recent government shutdown followed immediately on the heels of my two weeks at the Shore, and I found myself away from Heinz for nearly five weeks. So it was with eager anticipation that I returned for a bird walk this weekend. Would the Refuge look much different? Would there be any fall color showing yet? What birds would be out and about? Would there be interesting things to see?

The Refuge rarely disappoints, particularly after so long away. Here are some ordinary images of ordinary birds on an ordinary Saturday at Heinz that was somehow anything but ordinary.

Greater Yellowlegs.

Tree Swallows are here in large numbers. They were busily quarreling over a number of nest boxes, even though it isn’t nesting season. We think there might be insect nests inside, and that’s what’s causing the chaos.

It’s fascinating to watch the way Nature changes through the seasons. Every naturalist should have a place they go frequently throughout the year, and Heinz NWR is that place for me. Last October I took my first guided bird walk here, led by Mary Ellen, and the most prominent bird was the Yellow-rumped Warbler. How fitting that exactly a year later, I should go on another of Mary Ellen’s walks, and Yellow-rumps would again dominate the walk. I have now come full circle!

FUN FACT: Phenology: the study of the timing of recurring events in the life-cycles of plants and animals. For instance, the flowering of trees, the birth of baby animals, migration, hibernation; all recur from year to year. Yellow-rumped warblers migrate through Heinz in mid-October. These events are influenced by seasonal changes and their timing may be altered by climate change. If a plant blooms weeks earlier than in the past due to a warmer climate, the insects and birds that depend on it may arrive too late to take advantage of it. And if you’re allergic to it, you may start sneezing a lot earlier!

Green-winged Teal, one of six species of ducks we saw.

Here’s a duck I’ve been trying to photograph in breeding plumage since the spring – Wood Duck. This is the closest I’ve gotten so far, and they’re not very close. But they are spectacular.

Red-tailed Hawk.

I am told that this strange apparition is a Chicken Fungus, that it’s edible, and furthermore that it tastes like – chicken. I didn’t try it.

And with good reason – there are a lot of toxic fungi out there. Best to just admire them for their looks, and leave the taste-testing to the experts. Which I definitely am not.

*** WE NOW RETURN YOU TO YOUR REGULARLY SCHEDULED PROGRAMMING ***

Coming up: The Critter Radio Traffic Report (I promise)

Salt Marsh Safari

Posted on October 8, 2013 by Kim

The day started quietly, with a drive through mist-shrouded farms and forests tinged with early fall color. The calendar said “October”, but by the time we arrived at the dock, the day was already doing a fine imitation of summer. We were here on Cape May Harbor for the Salt Marsh Safari, a two-hour tour on the 40-foot Skimmer through the back bays of Cape May. Before we even got on the boat, we had some great looks at Snowy Egrets (above.)

FUN FACT: Here’s a Semipalmated Sandpiper. A big name for a little bird! Its feet have short webs between the toes, hence the name. The holes in the mud are made by crabs, a few of which we’ll meet in an upcoming post.

Some of those aboard were veterans of springtime Skimmer trips, and reported that there weren’t nearly as many birds this go-round. It didn’t bother me, as I still saw two life birds this trip. Quality over quantity! Here’s the first lifer, Tri-colored Heron.

These are not the Skimmer, but a couple of fishing boats anchored along the harbor.

Speaking of fishing, a couple of times our captains scooped up marine life with a bucket for us to examine. There were sea urchins, shrimp, crabs, and a sea star at least six inches across. We also found a couple of large whelks. Most people know these for the empty shells found on the beach, but they are actually snails. Every time the captain tickled the soft creature inside the shell, it fired back with a jet of water.

Here’s the second life bird, Whimbrel. The captain brought the boat in for a really close view. Being on a boat has its advantages. As does that long downturned bill, for the Whimbrel. It’s perfect for digging yummy tidbits out of the mud.

Shameless plug: if you’re in the Cape May area and want to learn about the wildlife of the marshes, or just want a relaxing boat ride, check out the Skimmer. The captains are friendly and really know their stuff. http://www.skimmer.com/default.html

After lunch, we went for a land-based trek through Cape May Point State Park. With marshes, ponds and forests, there’s always a lot to see here. As the afternoon wore on, the unseasonable heat was getting to animals and humans alike. A couple of Mallards found a nice patch of shade.

A Green Frog knew how to keep cool.

Seaside Goldenrod was in bloom everywhere, and attracting lots of butterflies and bees. This bee is loaded with pollen.

Here’s the Bird of the Afternoon. This is a juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron. We found him at the base of a footbridge crossing a small stream. He couldn’t have been more than ten feet away, and he barely budged the whole time we were taking his portrait.

It may have felt like summer, but the golden hues hint at autumn to come. What better way to spend a glorious fall day than soaking it all up in Cape May.

Coming up: Migration Meanderings

Cold Duck

Posted on September 25, 2013 by Kim

Let’s take a little trip back to the images that inspired this blog in the first place. In February I went on my first trip with the Heinz Refuge Photo Group, to Barnegat Light on the Jersey Shore. In the winter the Inlet attracts a variety of ducks and shorebirds you don’t get to see other times of the year.

The challenge is getting to them! To get close you have to walk out on the stone jetty, which can be dangerous when it’s wet or icy. People have been known to fall between the rocks and get stuck.

The day of our visit was sunny, cold and very windy. Fortunately the jetty was dry, and we walked the whole length of it. The ducks were very close in, I saw 6 new bird species, and it was a great photo day for me and my new zoom lens.

All of these birds were new species for me.

Long-tailed Duck

Long-tailed Duck with an itch, and demonstrating a perfect belly-flop.

Red-breasted Merganser, well-coifed, and on a bad hair day

Common Loon – my first view of Loons. They were silent though. So I didn’t hear their signature eerie calls.

What the well-dressed photographer wears at Barnegat Inlet. Double mufflers! Colleen, trying to keep warm.

The stars of the Barnegat Show are the Harlequin Ducks. The colors of the males’ plumage are amazing. They were out at the end of the jetty, so we had to walk a long way to see them. Hopping from large boulder to large boulder was slow and tiring. The payoff was worth it, though!

Harlequins like the surf rough, and had no difficulty standing up to the waves, even if it meant getting a face full of water. Cold water.

Coming up: More Winter Birds

The Wild Edge

Opening eyes to the wonder around us

Tag Archives: Nature