Henry David Thoreau wrote: If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away. I am now persuaded he was speaking of a singular great egret who has indeed stepped far away,… Read more »
Cormorants are not rare, and until I spent some time photographing this pair on Monday, I didn’t think they were particularly lovely. They were interesting but aesthetically challenged. Boy, was I wrong. Up close, they are gorgeous birds. These are Neotropic cormorants. They are a Central and South American bird; the only places in the… Read more »
There is an eye-catching plant in our Park right now. Usually, when I post about an eye-catching plant, it is in glorious bloom. But in this case, the plant is in glorious seed. It bloomed months ago and I have to admit, I didn’t even notice. The plant is Baccharis halimifolia, its common names include… Read more »
Our Park is part of a prairie restoration project that aims to show off the native coastal prairie ecosystem that was present in this part of Texas for the last 23,000 years. The silt from Hurricane Harvey dealt this project a setback, but there is a stunning patch of prairie plants going strong just to… Read more »
I had hoped to save this for Halloween. Because it’s creepy and gross. But, while a week ago, cold and rainy would have seemed like just the ticket to a delightful ramble in the park, turns out that cold wet feet are not a bonus, so I’m staying inside today and rolling my little friend… Read more »
When I was contemplating this blog, I knew there were a few topics that I would cover early and possibly often. One of the first was any lasting effect Harvey might have on the ecosystem of the Park. Another was one of my favorite flowers, Bidens alba. Funny thing – topic A, seems to have… Read more »
We have been taught to think of bees as European honey bees. I don’t have to tell you about them, you learned it in grade school. They make hives. They have a queen. They dance. But, not all bees are European honey bees. We have 600 species of native bees in Texas and not one… Read more »
I found a secret garden within shouting distance of the Jackson Hill footbridge. I would tell you exactly where except it’s gone now. I stumbled on it poking around off of the paths. That’s where the bugs, birds, lizards, snakes, and naturalists like to hang out. I crested a tiny hill and found scores of… Read more »
Buffalo Bayou Park is full of Common Sunflowers, and our Common Sunflowers are full of leaf-cutter bees. Common Sunflowers are just that, common. They are the tall ones (four to six feet) with flowers four to five inches in diameter. You can find them everywhere. They were an important food crop for native peoples. So… Read more »
Each blog post begins with a walk. If nothing jumps out at me, or crawls up to me, or flies over me, I look for the nearest patch of frog fruit and stay for a while, something will always happen. But this blog is also driven by photography and I have never managed to get… Read more »