Where has the summer gone? Mine has been so busy I forgot to write. It seems like only yesterday we were celebrating the 4th of July and now it’s Labor Day. Let’s rewind to June 30th. I headed up Hwy… Continue Reading
Summer arrives, and the welcome late rains will yield to it. The oaks will dry and their denizens go quiet, whispering to their hatchlings, panting in the shade, living at the ends of the days. Uphill the temperatures rise less. … Continue Reading
It may be America’s national bird and the “symbol of supreme power and authority,” but the day-to-day life of a bald eagle can be somewhat less than majestic. Gunshots, vehicles, pesticides, wind turbines, drought, and wildfire are just some of… Continue Reading
Santa Claus isn’t the only one in a pointy red cap who flies around in winter handing out presents. Pileated woodpeckers do, too. As a matter of fact, they fly year round, delivering gifts through large swaths of North American… Continue Reading
Some birds just won’t do without a little pizzazz in their doing. Phainopeplas are among them, tip to tail. They are slight birds, the length of a pencil, and nearly as much tail as anything else. But their eyes are… Continue Reading
For some people, there is a hole in the sky, a blank spot. The condor is missing. When humans first crossed the Bering Strait into North America condors soared widely across the continent. Their fossils have been found along all… Continue Reading
There is, apparently, a lot to be said for having a time of rest: trees drop their leaves and go dormant; fungi retreat underground; insects wrap in cocoons, and chipmunks hibernate; lizards and turtles brumate–the reptilian version of hibernating; we… Continue Reading
This season last year we had a torrent of reports of lazuli buntings scouring through the Whiskeytown brush and in the chaparral all around the North State. These little birds attract attention because they are visually stunning. A superficial description… Continue Reading
The white-breasted nuthatch is one of a kind. Photo by Larry Jordan. Perhaps you have seen white-breasted nuthatches in your yard. They’re heart-warming little clowns, upside down more than right side up, with quizzical smiles in their dished-up bills, and… Continue Reading
If you stroll along the river much lately you likely see a brown bird the size of a handspan strolling, too. But you might notice that, unlike you, it is busy poking about the shoreline for insects and crustaceans, and… Continue Reading
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