A Great Blue Heron stands in shallow water at the edge of a pond, one leg raised, with willow branches and their reflections filling the water behind it.

Still Hunting

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Last week, after my daily meditation, I noticed a Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) at the edge of the pond behind the house. It was motionless, the way they are when they hunt. A Nutria (Myocastor coypus) surfaced nearby, swam … Read More

A small reed-covered island in a man-made lake at Murphy Park, Taylor, Texas, dotted with dozens of white egrets, with trees and a water tower behind it under a blue sky.

Room on the Island

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Lens-Artists Challenge #414: Looking Back at #44–Harmony This week Ann-Christine revisits the Lens-Artists Challenge #44: Harmony. She’s given us more freedom to explore harmony beyond the color-harmony concept. Please see her post and photos for her take on the topic. … Read More

A female or immature Black-chinned Hummingbird perched on one leg on a blue-gray wire, its other foot raised over its wing to scratch its neck, against a soft green background of blurred oak leaves.

Acrobat on a High Wire

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Happy National Hummingbird Day! It falls on the first Saturday of September every year, and this year I have the perfect little bird to celebrate it with. For a few mornings in a row, a Black-chinned Hummingbird (Archilochus alexandri) had … Read More

A Cooper's Hawk perched on a tree branch with one leg raised and its beak open, panting to cool off in the summer heat.

Raptor’s Rest — Beating the Texas Heat

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With temperatures constantly being over 100ºF (37.8ºC) the entire month of August — except for one 99-degree (37.2-degree) day — I have noticed that the raptors in our area have been spending more time in the shade. Even some vultures … Read More

A three-image collage of Texas flowers — pale violet Texas baby blue eyes with a honey bee on one bloom, a coral-red prickly pear cactus flower among spiny blue-green pads, and tall purple mealy blue sage spikes with an American bumble bee in flight.

MNOtably Floral

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The time has come for another edition of Flora ABCs. This week, Terri’s Flower Hour #44 reaches the letters M, N, and O. No matter where one goes in springtime in Texas, one will always be presented with a diverse … Read More

Bald cypress trees along the Frio River at Garner State Park, Texas, their reddish trunks lit by golden light and reflected in still green water.

Best Ever: Nineteen Years Behind the Lens

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Lens-Artists Challenge #409: Best Ever Images This week, our guest host for the Lens-Artists Photo Challenge is Steve Hyde, of Steve Hyde Photography Blog. Celebrating World Photography Day on August 19th, Steve thought this would be a perfect opportunity for … Read More

Fall foliage at Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge, with Prairie Flameleaf Sumac in shades of red, orange, and yellow and the white, feathery plumes of Roosevelt Weed rising in the background.

Yellow Hues at Balcones Canyonlands

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Whether you go on a long hike or a short walk, the sights at Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge will always please you. In the fall, you have vibrant colors from the Prairie Flameleaf Sumac (Rhus lanceolata) and Roosevelt Weed … Read More

An American Oystercatcher with a black head, brown-and-white body, pale pink legs and a long red-orange bill walks head-down across wet sand on a Texas barrier island beach, searching for food.

The Oystercatcher and I — A Quiet Morning on St. Joseph Island

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We love spending time on the beach, especially when you can find a remote area where the only other animals are wild. Whenever we go to Port Aransas, Texas, we make time to cross the channel and enjoy quiet times … Read More

A Green Heron stands on a weathered log at the water's edge, enjoying the morning sun before beginning its grooming routine.

Morning Grooming

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Every morning, while sitting on the deck, I never know what is in store at the pond. Yesterday, for example, a couple of snapping turtles surprised me with their attempts at mating — I had never seen snapping turtles here … Read More

Red-bellied Woodpecker clinging to the side of a small blue bird feeder, stretching its beak toward a seed port, with green foliage blurred in the background.

An Acrobat at the Feeder

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In my ongoing struggle to keep squirrels off a bird feeder (yeah, probably a lost cause), I can report that for four days now I have not seen a squirrel attacking the feeder in its new location. Instead, I have … Read More

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