Bullfrog - "Froggie"

When I returned home from a friend’s house, I lowered the blind in my big living room window. When I looked down at the windowsill, I saw “Froggie.” He was sitting INSIDE my house, on the windowsill! I’ll never know for sure how Froggie got in, Read the rest of this entry »

Prizes for ID Challenge! May 2009

This month we have two winners because I am simply not sure of the bird ID! So, 2 people have won a $10 donation from Birder’s Lounge to the nature/conservation/wildlife charity of their choice. Congratulations to Zeb Acuff and AJ, who have chosen Tri-State Bird Rescue and Research and World Wildlife Fund, respectively.

If you have not yet given the monthly ID Challenge a try, please do! It is a fun way to learn about nature, and your favorite charity will appreciate the donation.

And now, for the answers: Read the rest of this entry »

Indian Blanket (Gaillardia pulchella)

Boy, have I got a treat in store for you! I’ve got lots of pictures from my day at the Heard Natural Science Museum and Wildlife Sanctuary, in McKinney, Texas. I took the day off because the weather was beautiful, and I thought I might have the place to myself on a weekday. As it turned out, I was wrong about having the place to myself, but I was gladdened to see so many others enjoying Nature! Read the rest of this entry »

On a drizzly Saturday, I visited Clymer Meadow, a Nature Conservancy property in Hunt County, Texas. Tours of the meadow are by appointment only, and I was one of about 30 people visiting that day. Several families with small children were present, and the children reminded us all that it can be fun to play in the rain!

Clymer Meadow on a rainy day

On this trip, we were there to see the native prairie, a rare patch of preserved Blackland Prairie. Read the rest of this entry »

Did you know that you can help transcribe bird migration reports for the USGS North American Bird Phenology Program? My first question was, “What the heck is phenology?” Read the rest of this entry »

I found this gal on a piece of deadwood that I used to make my Bird Lounge. I know this is a “gal” because of the long ovipositor, which you can see in this picture  (although the focus is on her head). I’ve spent the last hour or so identifying her, so let me introduce you to Miss Atanycolus sp., of the Braconidae Family in the Order Hymenoptera. Of course, this is my best guess at ID, but I think I’m pretty close. What caught my eye in the first place were Read the rest of this entry »

Maybe I’m the last birder in the world to NOT know the call of the Catbird. Or what a Catbird looks like. Or that they are supposedly pretty common. Now I know! I really and truly thought there was a cat behind my fence, where small trees, vines and a few Hackberry (Celtis laevigata) trees are growing. Read the rest of this entry »

I am proud to host the May, 2009 edition of Circus of the Spineless! Truth be told, this is my first hosting gig, so here ‘goes!

The opening image is my play on the fact that Insects ruled the submissions this month. We had a lone Arachnid post, but it features great looks at several spiders.

I’ve been thinking about what it is about “bugs” that thrills some of us, Read the rest of this entry »

Time for another ID Challenge contest! I encourage everyone to have a go at identifying the 3 pictures I have selected. The winner’s wildlife/conservation/nature-related charity of choice will receive a $10 donation from Birder’s Lounge. All pictures have been taken in the last month, and the city and state where photographed are the only hints. The first person to get the most number of correct answers will win, and you can submit as many entries as you like. Your entries are not posted, so don’t be bashful.

And now for the photos!

This month’s contest will run through May 23, and the winner will be announced on or about May 24-25.  Good Luck!