It is perhaps a sign of advancing age, but I often ask myself about the purpose of this and that. Life, emotions, the entire living enterprise that is Earth. This is a blog about a park, so don’t expect big answers, but from the unique perspective of a minor nature blogger, the purpose of everything… Read more »
I am an enthusiastic birder and through the years, have picked up this and that. But there are always birds that simply mystify me. This week, I ran into three such birds. They were all on the high-tension power line that runs north from The Dunlavy. That tower and the line strung from it is… Read more »
People have long argued about which is the sexiest heron. Okay, no one has ever argued about which is the sexiest heron. But that little blue heron I saw on Monday was damned sexy! Little blue herons are not nearly as common as the other herons we see regularly in the Park. iNaturalist has only… Read more »
Free food! Hang that sign in front of a restaurant and the line will be around the block in no time. This is, of course, a terrible business plan. But it does illustrate a universal truth: everyone wants to eat and the less money or energy expended the better. Places full of food tend to… Read more »
This week has been full of distractions. Time to get serious even if no big topic has presented itself to me. There are always small topics! Rattlesnake Master There are a few things that will set a local master naturalist’s heart racing and they aren’t always the same things that will set a civilian into… Read more »
Our red-shouldered hawk chick has left the nest. So, let’s celebrate with more videos! First, foremost, and forever amazing: We have BEAVERS ON BUFFALO BAYOU!!! Fellow master naturalist Ethelyn Kuldell recently captured video of a beaver just swimming along between the Rosemont bridge (by the police memorial) and the Studemont bridge. It was taken around… Read more »
Welcome back to the Cliff Swallow Chronicles. To catch you up with our story this far: There has been a cliff swallow colony under the bat bridge forever. Our cliff swallows winter in South and Central America, return to their mud nests in Houston each year. Upon their arrival, they spiff up the nests and… Read more »
We are deep into baby bird season. Many species who live in the Park year round are raising chicks right here, but most of our egrets and herons are missing. These species roost in large colonies; while adults might spend all year hunting in the Park, when it comes time to raise chicks, they… Read more »
Our red-shouldered hawks have hatched their egg(s) and the nest is no longer even a little sleepy. Mom and Dad are steadily coming and going and feeding the little ones. I think there is more than one, but I cannot tell yet. This week’s post is a video of our happy family. In the video… Read more »
We tend to think of animals as interesting stimulus-response machines. When faced with X set of circumstances, the animal will be triggered to do Y. The bee sees a flower, which triggers the urge to drink nectar which causes the bee to bump into pollen organs. That triggers the bee to groom and pack that… Read more »