Nature Along the El Camino Real
Blog of the El Camino Real Chapter, Texas Master Naturalists, Milam County, Texas
by Donna Lewis
Here are some last photos of August…
A male Painted Bunting, a Rat Snake in the trees, an Inca Dove, Cardinals on feeders, Pipevine Butterfly, Ruby-throat Hummer on feeder, Swallowtail Butterfly, and Mr. and Mrs. Bunny eating the bird seed.
I hope I have made them happy.
by Sue Ann Kendall, with help from many
Last Monday our chapter hosted a welcome celebration! Can you believe our Milam Wildscape is five years old now? Just think of how many hours of volunteer work have gone into making the Wildscape the sanctuary it’s become, and think how many people have been inspired to go home and start their own little wildscape!
Twenty-two people attended, as reported by Wildscape founder Catherine Johnson. After food, drinks, and welcome ice cream (it was hot), the attendees met around the fountain at the Wildscape, where they learned inforrmation about the Sturgeon Super Blue Moon that was rising later in the evening.
Those who have worked so hard on the Wildscape received recognition for their amazing contributions to the project, and everyone got goody bags and light-up star necklaces, perfect for the occasion.
The next part of the evening focused on our birding station, where its permanent name, Wild Wings Bird Sanctuary, was announced by Ann Collins. I was honored to have one of my suggestions chosen for the name. Ann shared her thoughts, which are reprinted below, and showed off the extensive additions to the site that the Wild Wings team have been creating.
After the dedication of the bird sanctuary, the attendees returned to the Wildscape, visited, and watched the beautiful moon come up.
Thank you to Pamela Neeley, Janice Johnson, and Rosie Johnson, and Linda Burgess for photos.
Four years ago, Gene Rek, Cindy Rek, and I began exploring the possibiity of creating a bird station at Bird and Bee Farm. Unfortunately, I had a very unscheduled emergency brain surgery. Needless to say, lots of things got put on the back burner! We did choose an absolutely gorgeous spot for the station.
Well, four years passed and we revisited the idea and had another look at the site. then Gene, Mr. Energy, got to work while I fell and broke my wrist, which was another setback for me, but it didn’t stop Gene. Lnda Jo Conn things I arrange my setbacks so othre people will step in to do my work. Maybe so, but folks did get excited and got to work for me!
Gene made a road to the site, ran a water line for a water source, built a fence, mowed, set up raised beds for native plants, and all sorts of other things that I couldn’t have done anyway! Catherine Johnson searched tirelessly online for benches for lounging while birding, and she found the most adorable vintage bench, rocker, and table. She got them cleaned up and installed. Thank goodness they are somewhat hidden away or I fear they might be stolen, they are that cute! And we got a birdbath “pilfered” from Rose’s garden (named after Gene’s mom), which is a favorite target of the cows, who knock it over.
Suna Kendall contributed a couple of bird feeders and has spent quite a bit of time canvassing the birds. She’s a kind of a computer nerd and knows her way around them. I’m more of a luddite myself, but I greatly admire her skill. She is putting a bird list on our blog for each month. Check it out, and check out our new web page chronicalling our activities!
(You are welcome to share any cool birds you observe – Suna)
By Sue Ann Kendall
I’d promised myself that I’d make another visit to the bird station our chapter is working on to see what birds are there this time of year. Even though I wasn’t feeling too well, I figured I could sit in the shade for an hour, so off I went to the special area behind Bird and Bee Farm near Milano, home of our Wildscape project (and chickens and turkeys!)
There have been some improvements to the site, as Cathy Johnson posted earlier this week. I enjoyed checking out the new raised beds, charming seating, and a beautiful birdbath watered by a tinkling rain chain.
Last time I visited was three weeks ago, when I identified eleven birds. This week I found seventeen! When you sit quietly, the birds forget about you and go about their business catching bugs and picking delicious morsels off the cedar elms.
I got to see Northern Cardinals, Carolina Chickadees, Tufted Titmice, Eastern Bluebirds, and precious Blue-gray gnatcatchers feeding themselves. Not seen, but very well heard were a Swainson’s and Red-tailed Hawk. Other hidden friends were Red-bellied Woodpecker, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, and Blue Jay.
Two juveniles surprised me. One was a young Cardinal who landed very. Eat me and proceeded to find multiple morsels to eat.
You can tell it’s a juvenile by its black beak. It’s growing in adult feathers, so doesn’t look too great.
The other juvenile was a real puzzle. It was enjoying the water chain and easy to photograph, but I couldn’t ID it. It had pretty eyes but not many markings. I ran my photos through Merlin Bird ID and it got no results. But when I tried iNaturalist, the result came up Painted Bunting. It didn’t look like the female, who is rather green, but as I paged through the pictures, I saw the juvenile. Bingo! It has the wing and beak markings I saw, and the same eye ring. So, there we go. I didn’t see or hear any adults
Here are today’s birds:
Of course I checked out the plants, so that if I get the area declared an official spot on iNaturalist, the observations can go there. A few were really pretty, especially the berries.
I’m going to miss the dedication, but I’ll be back to see what’s here at the beginning of September!
by Catherine Johnson
We acquired several benches and chairs from Marketplace for the Wildscape and delivered them at noon, which is not as hot as later in the day. Many pollinators were flying around, including hummers.
Kim Summers and I went back late evening to water and stayed until 8:00 pm, resting by the big fountain in the shade, while Cindy Rek told us about the Rio Grande Turkeys being delivered to Bird and Bee Farm, where our projects are located.
Pictured are the new pathways in the birding station that Gene Rek has been working on. We also placed 100-year-old furniture in the Bird Station, which Ann Collins chose.
Pictures also show new beds, which will allow native birds to enjoy plants that are watered by a drip system.
We are excited to be viewing all at our full moon Wildscape Celebration later this month: Monday, August 19, 6:30 pm – 9:30 pm. Guests are welcome.
by Sue Ann Kendall
This summer hasn’t been as bad in the heat and rain department as last summer, so I’m not complaining one bit. But there sure have been some interesting developments in the sky, many directly over my head.
I’ll start with the most interesting one. For the past week or two I’d been noticing a lot of honeybees around my legs. It seemed like the earth was buzzing. Upon closer examination, I saw dozens of bees crawling on the tiny blossoms of the grass (I think it’s Dallis grass) that is blooming now. The bees were all very busy, zipping from flower to flower (not leisurely sipping as they usually do), and they were loaded with pollen.
This went on for a few days. Yesterday, there was no buzzing as I walked along the field in my daily bird-watching patrol. Then, late in the afternoon I was over by the trees listening to a Yellow-billed Cuckoo when I heard something that sounded like one of those annoying drones people fly these days. I looked up and didn’t see a drone. I saw a large mass of tiny things moving along at a rapid clip. It was hundreds and hundreds of bees swarming. I guess they were moving on to better pastures. I’m not sure where their hive was before, because I hadn’t heard one in a couple of years. I hope they find a nice new dead tree!
Moving along, I’ve also been dealing with birds overhead, specifically the beautiful but omnipresent Barn Swallows. Now, normally they hang out on our porches, building mud nests, raising babies and pooping. They also eat numerous insects, so they get to stay (also it’s ILLEGAL to mess with a nest of wild birds; you can ask Mike Mitchell about it if you don’t believe me). We coexist just fine, looking into or out of the windows at each other, and enjoying the swimming pool area.
However, lately, the little darlings have not been at all happy with me. They aren’t nesting anymore, just flying around the ponds and in the air catching food. They are always there, and for some reason they resent my presence. When I go for my morning or afternoon walks, I often hear a very loud CHIRP, with a Doppler effect as the chirper moves away. The swallows ambush me from behind, for the most part, but occasionally they fly right at me and veer off just before they make contact with my head.
I have absolutely no clue as to why they are dive-bombing me. I’ve had Mockingbirds and Red-winged Blackbirds do this when they are nesting nearby. But, hey, do they think I want to home in on their mosquitos?
Other things in the sky have been more benign. I was a bit surprised to see both Black and Turkey Vultures in the air and in my trees until I realized the Mighty Hunter (Goldie the Great Dane) had eliminated yet another armadillo that had wandered into the fenced-in area. I wish they’d read my signs that say “Armadillos and Possums: Keep out! Killer Dog! This means YOU!”
Other flying friends include the usual Green Herons, Great Blue Herons, and Great Egrets, along with some hardy butterflies and a smaller-than-usual number of dragonflies. I’m going to pretend the flying Differential grasshoppers don’t exist.
Yep, the skies around here are busy. Always look up in case bees or swallows are coming for you!
Nature Along the El Camino Real 