I think it has been about two years since I last saw a scissor-tailed flycatcher. Good to see them again!
We also managed very good looks at a sleeping barred owl and several deer foraging near the road.
Checked in on a nearby great blue heron rookery. They’ve moved back a bit more into the wooded area, so the pictures are not so great, but so glad to see they’re still there!
Finally, I am getting around to getting out to the Wetlands a bit more regularly. I always look forward to cold mornings when there are just a few humans on the paths. We nod at each other and sometimes share our stories of who we have been seeing. It is a kind of quiet community, and I would venture to say, one that brings some peace to many of us worrying about the current state of things. While we may not know what is coming, one thing I am sure about is my commitment to keep sharing and hoping more humans pay attention. Click on pictures to enlarge.
Not a great a picture, but I wanted to share this because I think this bald eagle couple might be contemplating a nest here. This would be a wonderful addition to the wetlands, and it looks like good real estate!
© Chris Taylor
Northern Harrier trying to outmaneuver a group of sandpipers and a killdeer. They got away.
© Chris Taylor
Deer and coyotes.
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
Bluebirds, goldfinches, and herons, oh my.
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
It is that time of year again when I have trouble staying at my desk and getting my work done. The number of migrants at the Wakarusa Wetlands has been astounding. And, of course, the year-round residents like the deer and bald eagles are always a pleasure to see. Click on pictures to enlarge.
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
The area I used to visit three or four times a week at the Wakarusa Wetlands is open again. While I did not venture north to areas most affected by the construction, I was overjoyed to go back in to my usual spots. The mitigation areas looked very good from what I could see. The newer Maple Marsh, Ibis Swale, Duck Lake, and Shorebird Shallows were all busy with geese, grebes, gulls, and assorted ducks (many mallards, Northern shovelers, and teal). Killdeer were all along the edges. I did not get a lot of pictures this morning, but I saw a beaver, mink, and muskrat from a distance as well as a big group of deer. I am trying to stay positive, but do worry about how all of the proposed development along 31st is going to affect this area. It looks like there is one path that goes under the highway where Louisiana Street was. I hope that once the highway is finished and heavily traveled that animals use that. I could not see from where I was how that all works, but I am keeping my fingers crossed. An updated map can be found, here: http://www.bakeru.edu/images/pdf/About/Wetlands/Wetlands_Area_Mapweb.pdf
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
I am so happy to see so many deer and turkeys this fall. They seem to be everywhere the last couple of weeks. Seeing them foraging together a few times was a nice treat. Click on pictures to enlarge.
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
And one lone turkey vulture. They will be leaving soon. I always miss their beautiful soaring, their kettles.
© Chris Taylor
Every picture I post this week will be from the area of the Wakarusa Wetlands that will be obliterated by the SLT. I have hundreds of pictures of hundreds of species who will be displaced and/or killed by greed and indifference.
This will be gone. Click on pictures to enlarge.
© Chris Taylor
This is where they have begun clearing.
© Chris Taylor
Same area in August of 2012.
© Chris Taylor
Same area in March 2011.
© Chris Taylor
April 2010 in the same area.
Every picture I post this week will be from the area of the Wakarusa Wetlands that will be obliterated by the SLT. I have hundreds of pictures of hundreds of species who will be displaced and/or killed by greed and indifference.
This will be gone. Click on pictures to enlarge.
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
https://www.facebook.com/wetlandspreservationorganization
Nice to see some spring this morning! Click on pictures to enlarge.
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
It was incredibly bleak and cloudy yesterday, but still a wonderful time for making a lap around the lake. Sometimes, these cloudy days when no one is around are the best.
First, we met some cedar waxwings chowing down on berries.
© Chris Taylor
There were numerous pelicans on the water and turkeys foraging the fields.
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
A heron rookery we visited last year was very active. It looks like some of the herons might already be incubating eggs.
© Chris Taylor
We met an amazing Canada goose. He looks like he took a bath in white paint up to his neck. This is called “leucism,” It is not harmful, just reduced pigmentation.
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
We saw snow geese and Ross’s geese.
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
An beautiful group of deer posed for a shot before taking off for the woods.
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
My favorite part of the day was watching a group of snow geese (Canada geese, blue geese, greater white-fronted geese, and Ross’s geese too!) taking off from a field. So beautiful!
© Chris Taylor
© Chris Taylor
The last stop was a bald eagles’ nest where some brooding is going on. We visited last week and both parents were feeding. The eaglets are too small to see from the road right now. Can’t wait to watch them growing up!
© Chris Taylor
