An advantage of having a pond behind our house is that I can spend ample time observing the wildlife that comes here, and there is plenty to learn from them! I am featuring the Green Heron (Butorides virescens) this week. … Read More

The Black-Necked Stilt (Himantopus mexicanus) is an elegant aquatic bird in the Americas and Hawaii. Its bright pink legs are proportionately longer than any other bird except the flamingos. They measure around 13 to 17 inches (33 to 43 cm), … Read More

The Eastern Bluebird (Sialia sialis) is a bird in the thrush family. That brilliant royal blue and red-brown or rusty chest form a beautiful color palette present in the male. The female still exhibits some blue, but it is paler … Read More

Last Saturday, my master naturalist class visited Berry Springs Park and Preserve to observe birds. Although there had been storms the previous night, the rain had stopped by mid-morning. When we started walking around the park, this beautiful barred owl … Read More

An early morning walk on the beach in Port Aransas, Texas, gave me a view of seagulls interacting with one another as the sun was rising. That is a rare event for me since I’m not a morning person. However, … Read More

When visiting Big Bend National Park, one can be assured of seeing unforgettable landscapes and plenty of wildlife. Black bears, for example, have made a remarkable comeback to the area. On one of our trips to the park in September … Read More

There is a first time for everything. One morning, as I looked out our dining room windows, I noticed some pond visitors I had not seen before. These ducks were far, but I identified them in iNaturalist: Ring-Necked Duck (Aythya … Read More

I am not a birder, as photographers refer to those who photograph birds and know a lot about them. However, I enjoy photographing birds whenever the chance arrives. That is how I came to photograph the Red-Tailed Hawk I feature … Read More

When you have a beach nearly all to yourself, nothing is better than sitting back and enjoying nature and its surroundings. That is precisely what we like to do in Port Aransas, Texas. We used to go there every summer … Read More

As the largest heron in North America, a Great Blue Heron can reach a height of up to 5 feet (1.5 meters) and a wingspan of up to 6.5 feet (nearly 2 meters). With a distinctive light blue plumage and … Read More