“When I was young and the urge to be someplace else was on me, I was assured by mature people that maturity would cure this itch. When years described me as mature, the remedy prescribed was middle age. In middle age I was assured that greater age would calm my fever and now that I... Continue Reading →
Well, it took a pandemic and a closure of my college...but I am finally catching up on photo editing and looking back on 2019. I realize that we are over 2 full months into a new year and a new decade, but I am not quite ready to leave 2019 in the history books. And,... Continue Reading →
I can't quite remember when I was first realized that I absolutely needed to visit the Rio Grande Valley, but the seed was planted some time ago. The reputation of this region's birds and birding locations is iconic. Admittedly, the Brownsville Dump scene from "The Big Year" also planted a seed ("ketchup- potato chips?")! As... Continue Reading →
Six weeks, 6143 miles, 243 species of birds, 26 lifers.....and only ONE blog post! And, yes, I realize that it is now October...but I am not going to let any of that stop me from sharing some of the most memorable experiences from what was an epic summer trip. I think the ship has sailed... Continue Reading →
Well, I think I have officially given up on trying to write about and recap what was an amazing spring. I've at least managed to post some of the photos from an incredible birding trip to Honduras and maybe i'll one day get around to the rest of it! Instead, summer is in full swing... Continue Reading →
Spring has come and gone and I've done a terrible job of capturing any of it here on the blog. But i'm back now and determined to catch up on a few of my spring adventures before hitting the road for the summer. But, first, in real time - an exciting rare bird alert! During... Continue Reading →
I first learned about the concept of 5MR birding from Emma at Flying South; in one of the first blog posts of hers that I discovered, she mentioned this idea of focusing her birding efforts within a 5-mile radius of her home. I was traveling very far from my home 5-mile radius at the time... Continue Reading →
My goodness, it has been awhile since I have written a blog post! Excuses, excuses, excuses....but no sooner was I back to birding (with a Varied Thrush) than I was sidelined again! A shoulder surgery had me down and out for quite some time; by the end of the first month post-surgery I was managing... Continue Reading →
After months of wandering and exploring, I returned to work with a major deadline looming over my head. Completion of my sabbatical project required that I chain myself to my desk, log a ridiculous number of hours in front of a computer screen and, most importantly, ignore bird reports. I logged out of eBird and... Continue Reading →
"In real life, Goshawks resemble Sparrowhawks the way leopards resemble housecats. Bigger, yes. But bulkier, bloodier, deadlier, scarier and much, much harder to see. Birds of deep woodland, not gardens, they're the birdwatchers' dark grail. You might spend a week in a forest full of gosses and never see one, just traces of their presence.... Continue Reading →
Feathers & Flora 