PhotoAvian

A few photos of the birds I’ve seen this week. Ring-necked Duck female.  I’m not sure why she’s hanging around here, I’ve seen her several times in the last month.  She should be way north of here by now, like at least in NW Colorado, but more like Canada. Ruddy Duck Red-winged Blackbird Ash-throated Flycatcher [Read the full post...]

Red-tailed Hawks are pretty common, living year-round throughout the U.S. and ranging in the summer up into northern Canada and Alaska and in the winter down into Central America.  If you see a hawk, chances are pretty good that it’s a Red-tailed.  We have other species of hawks around here also, Swainson’s in the summer [Read the full post...]

Wandered a bit this week, spending  Monday morning at McGee Lake in Potter Co., and this morning at Palo Duro Reservoir in Hansford Co.  I didn’t see anything too unusual in my travels, but I did get some nice photos.  McGee Lake may be the only playa in the panhandle with water.  Most of it [Read the full post...]

Along with the Lingering Ducks and Shorebirds the last few weeks there has been an infusion of songbirds.  Leaves are finally out in spite of late frosts and drought, and there are green shoots rising through last year’s dead cattail beds at Spring Canyon, but the grass is still dormant everywhere except in well-watered lawns. [Read the full post...]

The southwest end of Lake Meredith is about 4 (maybe more) miles further north than it was in 1984.  The surface area of the lake is probably less than one-third (possibly closer to a quarter) of what it was then.  A lot of the southern end is very shallow now because of all the silt [Read the full post...]

There’s hardly any water birds on Lake Meredith now and there aren’t any playas with water in them that I know of in the northern Texas panhandle (edit: just read on eBird of one north of St. Francis, east of Hwy136 that I’ll try to visit next week when I’m off.)  Strangely, the waterfowl that [Read the full post...]

Grebes are odd little freshwater diving birds.  Their large feet only have shallow webs with lobed toes and their legs are set rather far back on their bodies which makes them great swimmers and divers but rather awkward on land.  I’ve yet to see one out of the water, or flying even, although they are [Read the full post...]

All last week I thought I had to work today but a last second reprieve (thanks, Rochelle) found me out at the lake this morning on one of those panhandle rarities, a windless day.  I took full advantage of it and walked several miles, the first good walk I’ve had since last fall.  I spent [Read the full post...]

After all the griping about the weather in my last post, it got worse.  Thursday was cold, incredibly windy, very cloudy, and totally without moisture of any type.  Then today, nothing but blue skies, moderate temps and light wind (at least until late afternoon.)  I was on call for work but was able to get [Read the full post...]