Feb 27 2009
It occurred to me one day during my recent trip to Mexico that I was taking a lot of pictures of red things, often with green and white as background or accents. Hmmm, I thought, I should get a good shot of Mexico’s flag–it would make a nice introduction to a blog post featuring those [...]
Feb 26 2009
If you didn’t see it, I had a guest post yesterday at Birdchick’s blog. It’s about Brown-headed Nuthatches and features a short video clip of one doing a little spring cleaning. I submitted the post as part of Birdchick’s Swarovski guest blogging contest. I hoped that maybe I’d attract a few new readers, as well as helping [...]
Feb 23 2009
I consider myself a pretty skeptical person–most of the time. But I think the picture below speaks for itself: A large, rapidly rotating disc-shaped object floats in the sky over a remote mountainous area know for sightings of UFOs. I want to believe–how about you? Well, the truth, as they [...]
Feb 19 2009
Tour leading, despite all appearances, is actually hard work. People will often say, “Oh, you’re so lucky!, you get paid to go birding!” Well, not hardly. Nobody gets paid to go birding. But I will unabashedly admit that it can be pretty sweet work indeed. This morning, it was hard to believe that I was [...]
Feb 17 2009
Monday was an odd day. It was very uneven weather-wise, with off and on rain and lots of cloud cover, but also some tentative breaks of semi-sun. We spent most of the day in Weslaco, first visiting Estero Llano Grande State Park, then the Frontera Audubon Thicket. These refuges are newly accessible, having opened to [...]
Feb 16 2009
I’ve just begun a leading a tour to South Texas and Northeast Mexico with a group from the Delaware Nature Society. Today, we birded the eastern edge of the Lower Rio Grande Valley, covering Brownsville, South Padre Island, and Laguna Atascosa. We saw lots of nice birds, but I especially enjoyed our encounters with two [...]
Feb 13 2009
Dear Mexico, We’ve been seeing a lot of each other recently and I have to say, I’m more than a little smitten. I love the way you combine the transcendent with the ordinary. I love the way you keep your secrets, revealing them so slowly. I love the warmth and dignity of your people. And [...]
Feb 11 2009
I haven’t participated in Wordless Wednesday before, but this photo, taken last fall in Cape Henlopen State Park, seems to fit. Click that link for other word-free goodness.
Feb 09 2009
Few people like to be reminded of the practical aspects of mortality. When we encounter death, we like to do it in a church, funeral home or a similarly sanitized, perfumed setting. It’s easy to understand. So I’ll take no offense if you don’t want to look at this photo series. I promise you, though, [...]
Feb 04 2009
So many birderwatchers can name, without a moment’s hesitation, the bird that turned them into a birder, their encounter with it leaving them forever changed in a kind of ornithological epiphany, or birding conversion experience. Like converts of all sorts, the vast majority of birders delight in telling their personal story–the story of their spark bird. [...]
