Once upon a time, an enormous woven tapestry was discovered by a wandering troop of people. They knew nothing of its origins, but they admired its intricate beauty. As they examined it, they realized they could feed themselves and find protection under its cover. Generations passed and the troop become a village. The people … Read more
Marbled Godwits have a survivor’s story not unlike the Long-Billed Curlew. Both were hunted for meat in the late 19th century and suffered a population crash. Both birds depend on grasslands that are under pressure to be developed for agriculture. In preparing for this post, I learned there is a small population (subspecies L. f. beringiae) … Read more
I’ll never forget when in 2003 I first heard the expression “Avostilt”. The San Diego County Bird Atlas needed images of Elegant Terns and author Phil Unitt introduced me to the biology team monitoring the tern colonies at the south end of San Diego Bay. Elegant Terns had recently colonized the narrow dams separating the … Read more
For the past month, I’ve had this Paul Simon song rolling through my head. As with many of us, a tune or song will get in my head and stay there for a day or so. This song is more persistent, calling to me several times a day, and I could not figure out why… until this … Read more
After spending the week with my family in Medford, I drove away on Friday, southbound on the I-5. My first stop was in Marysville California to visit a friend I knew from my previous life (before retirement). Gary had since retired too, and he and his wife moved back here two years ago, where they … Read more
Driving to see my family in Oregon, I took a little timeout to visit the reserves between Williams and Willows California (USA). The long interstate drive wore me down, especially the southern portion. I tried avoiding LA by skirting via the I-15 and Cajon Pass and crossing the high desert through Palmdale, but the plan … Read more
Few people on this planet have not heard the guitar work of Robert Willie White. Until a few years ago I was among the multitudes of fans who had no clue about who he was. He was a member of the Funk Brothers, a group of musicians who played on more No. 1 records than … Read more
Before reading on, listen to this clip: I’ve always loved the snappy electric guitar in Neil Diamond’s original recording of this song. These riffs continue throughout the entire recording, but I could never find out who played them. Remove the guitar from this recording and the song would suffer. A year ago, a web search … Read more
In the past couple months I’ve been occupied with projects in preparation to sell my home and begin an extended ‘traveling lifestyle’ in my small RV. I’ve not been able to do much to gather fresh images to share. I’ve been photo blogging since 2005, but most of those stories were lost when I changed … Read more
One day a year I enjoy the mere act of counting birds. It’s not for ego. It’s not done to call attention to myself. It’s not for an ‘I got more than you’ motivation. It is the Christmas Bird Count, a citizen science endeavor, where the birding community pulls together to survey the birds present … Read more