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A Dusting
What a delight, to wake up this morning and realize that it is snowing. Already a dusting of snow over everything. Pure delight! This picture, snow gets caught in any spot it can, on the bark of a Persimmon tree (Diospyros virginiana). _______________________________________________________________________ If you would like to receive my daily blog posts by email,…
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Rain
Rain yesterday and today. Just a bit. In that rain, the marcescent leaves of an American Chestnut (Castanea dentata). Edges like ocean waves. Pure American Chestnut. Surely these trees will get chestnut blight (Cryphonectria parasitica). Until then I will totally enjoy having these trees close to me. _______________________________________________________________________ If you would like to receive my…
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Winter Frog Fun
Last night it rained. Apparently just the perfect moment for Wood Frogs (Lithobates sylvaticus). As the rain came down I could hear the happy, “Clack, clack, clack!” They were gathering in my little pond for their breeding parties. The little Wood Frogs growing from tadpoles to reach full development leave my pond as a miniature…
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Brown Pelican
Nancy, another one for you. This one in Key West. A Brown Pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis). I have been extremely impressed with the recovery of the Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus). The Brown Pelican is another success story. The use of DDT was banned by the EPA in 1972. In part because of that action Brown Pelicans…
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Gathering For MAVEN Launch
They stay on top of the news. They live right there, where the rockets are launched after all. Early that morning they began gathering. Jetty Park. Port Canaveral, Florida. MAVEN. The Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, to be launched November 18, 2013. Entered orbit around Mars September 21, 2014. These just a few of the…
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Sometimes
A Pine Siskin (Spinus pinus) is a species of bird that I see just sometimes. Yes, winter, but not every winter. Just sometimes. It’s a bird that from one winter to another is totally unpredictable whether it will migrate into one area or another. This is called an irruptive species. They will pay attention to…
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Winter Food For Finches
Leave the seedheads! That’s what this is. Seedheads of Spotted St. Johnswort (Hypericum punctatum). Seeds that finches will enjoy during the winter. A picture from February 25, 2014, when there was snow, lovely SNOW! _______________________________________________________________________ If you would like to receive my daily blog posts by email, sign up here!