Wildlife – Page 16 – Wildlife Intrigued

The Flying Bill with Eyes

With Brad out on assignment, I am hanging around the Intrigued HQ a little more than usual – watering the plants, making sure the pipes don’t freeze, keeping the butt prints off the copier, wiping down the escalator hand rails etc. – top level management duties for sure. Since I am in the office, might as well put the feet up on the desk and bang out a few posts. Linda just planned our spring trip to Texas, which has me in a Rio Grande Valley frame of mind. In the last post, we talked about the Clay-Colored Thrush and what turned out to be a rare sighting of the White-Throated Thrush at Estero Llano Grande State Park. Going back there for today’s featured feathered friend.

Green Kingfisher found at Estero Llano Grande State Park in January 2023

Hit the jump to read more about the Flying Bill with Eyes.

The Good, the Wet and the What the Heck

I feel like I know a lot more about those little furballs from Brad’s last post. Adorable little ears, frisky tails, cute whiskers and a joy to observe … IN OTHER PEOPLE’S yards! Hehehe. We have the basic Eastern Chipmunk variety out here in the country and to be honest, damn annoying. They just cost me several thousands of dollars thanks to under-digging my steps and attached concrete slab. They also drive my dogs crazy when they pop out of a hole, give them the finger, wait for them to get all worked up, turn and wiggle their tan ass at them and then run like cowards back down their hole. One of these days (when Linda isn’t looking) I’m going to give Ruger the green light .. or should I say “tan” light.. and see how they like being chased by a 19.5 mph bloodthirsty, merciless Toy Poodle. I still need to assess the punishment I’d get from Linda if she found out. While I ponder that, how about we talk about a much more benign tan creature.

Clay-Colored Thrush found at Estero Llano Grande State Park, Weslaco, TX in January 2023

Hit the jump to find out more about our clay colored feathered friend.

ADHLAS…by Brad Marks

Howdy folks. We know you don’t come here out of a thirst for statistics, so we wanted to get you back into the action as soon as we could. Brad had perfect timing as he just provided us the latest drop of adventures to share. Nothing better than the present to pop a fresh one off the queue, while I battle the last remaining spirits in the new machine. Only one pillar left to port, the digital darkroom – no more delay excuses, I’ve run out of distractions and all the “squirrels” have been rounded up and put to work cleaning the Intrigued HQ grounds….wait is that competitive gardening coming on the TV!?!?!…I better let you go.

Take it away Brad…

Recently Jan and I signed up for an assignment in Alaska during late summer. Tough duty, I know. To get ready for our trip to the Yukon (actually, I’m not sure we’ll even see the Yukon, but it sounded better), we attended a presentation on the tour we were taking. The tour guide was giving us some information about some of the wildlife there. He said that often visitors are not able to tell the types of bears apart. Alaska has both grizzly and black bears. But often the grizzlies are very dark colored, and the black bears have very light fur. To the casual observer they are indistinguishable. The guide gave us a sure-fire methodology to tell them apart in a pinch. Are you ready? Here it is:

If you find yourself too close to a bear and you don’t know which kind it is – climb a tree. A black bear will follow you up the tree. A grizzly bear will simply knock the tree over. Identification problem solved.

Nothing we saw on our trip through Yosemite and adjoining parks was anything like that. Well, except for this black bear from Sequoia National Park last summer (link here). Jan and I only saw very small furry critters. To be fair, some were quite good at climbing trees, we can’t rule out that they are part black bear based on what we learned above, but I seriously doubt it.

Our story begins here. As does the identification dilemma for hikers near National Parks. No, I’m not talking about bears any longer. Thankfully today’s subject is much more approachable and far less dangerous and does not involve any tree climbing, at least not on your part. I’m talking about chipmunks and ground squirrels. Yes, there is a difference between chipmunks and ground squirrels. Before I jump in, I know this may get confusing (I certainly was), so let me give you a primer.

Chipmunk vs. Ground Squirrel identification primer:

One website says the difference between a chipmunk and a ground squirrel is: Chipmunks are small mammals with distinct stripes, while the ground squirrel has body stripes like chipmunks, but no stripes on its head.
Another website says something similar: One easy way to tell them apart is by their stripes. Chipmunk stripes run the length of their bodies, including their heads. Ground Squirrel stripes start at the neck and run along their backs, but they do not have stripes on their heads. (Someone was splitting hairs when they wrote up this definition, IMHO.)
Still another website says that ground squirrels can weigh between 1 and 10 pounds, whereas chipmunks are usually under a pound (not based on the amount of the sunflower seeds they eat near my bird feeders). Good luck getting them to hold still while you weigh them.
Ground squirrels can live between 5-10 years while chippers only 2-5 years. This one isn’t the most reliable visual indicator, unless you have lots and lots and lots of time. (Allyson’s grandpa (Jan’s dad) used to tell her “chipper” stories when she was little. The story was different each time, which kept Allyson coming back for more.)
Their tails can be an indicator all other things being equal. Ground squirrel tails tend to be longer and bushier than the chipmunks “shorter and not nearly as fluffy” tails. Chipmunks will sometimes run with the tails straight up or out behind them.
Habitat can be a big differentiator as well; except we saw all of the critters below in nearly the same habitats. None held still long enough and we didn’t wait around to see to know if they ran up trees (ground squirrels) or not (chipmunks). Chipmunks tend not to climb trees, but climb over fallen trees. Ground squirrels have no qualms at about climbing trees, or so we are told.
Though not really a visual differentiator, hibernation patterns differ slightly: chipmunks wake up every few days to eat during colder months while ground squirrels can go for longer periods of time between winter feedings.

Well, there it is. Clear as mud, right?

You are all ready now to hit the jump and put some visuals to that primer!

Killdeer…by Brad Marks

Sitting here killing time one keystroke after another. Now in the midst of the annual “digital clean-up” process and it is mind numbing. Part of this is making the final push to cross the finish line of the PC migration marathon. Some of it is due to massive procrastination last year (okay, maybe last TWO years) and need to get the birding folders/spreadsheets/trackers etc. updated. Then there is the standard annual rollover resets of the blog post backups and general archiving that needs to be done to keep my OCD from raging out of control (and NOBODY wants that). I’ve said it once, I’ll say it again, I need to go back to the corporate grind in order to get all my free time back! The good news is I think my North American Bird List folder (link here) is updated. That is my running gallery for the best shots of every bird on the list in case a client wants a specific species or if I want to author something someday. Even updated the left navbar with the latest count – 421 species! While I slash through minutes like Scooby through snacks, going to turn it over to Brad to bring you a North Carolina “killing” of a different sorts.

Take it away Brad…

There’s something about being warm during the winter months. Jan and I live in the middle of Illinois, so February is usually a heavy flannel month. Jan suggested we head southeast for a week to escape a bit of winter (really didn’t need much arm twisting). We also wanted to see what we could see in a new part of the country for us.

Jan and I spent a week at Myrtle Beach, SC last winter. During one of our “free” days on the trip (they are all “free” when you are retired) we headed to North Carolina since it was just up the road a piece from where we were staying. The locals all said to go to a preserve a mile or two across the state line. Our GPS was a bit confused for a while, taking us down unpaved roads to an empty lot at the edge of the water. This can’t be right. We stopped in a parking lot for a few minutes and picked a spot (on an actual map) that might actually get us to the coast, without having to stop to ask for directions. Our new destination was Sunset Beach.

After driving across the long and tall causeway bridge, we arrived in a small community of summer cottages on a narrow spit of land just a bit offshore in the Atlantic called Sunset Beach. I’m not saying it was a ghost town, but there were very few cars around, and even fewer moving about. Once I found the parking lot near the beach, I readied the cameras. Before I closed the hatch on my car, there was some movement in the sparse foliage behind me.

Hit the jump to read more about Brad (and Jan’s) adventure.

The Sensor Knows

Well, as a quick update, I am still down with the Las Cruces Crud. I am telling you, this is the most craptastic and nastiest hellspawn I’ve come down with since I can remember. General rule..Bri don’t get sick. At this point now at the mercy of the doctor who basically told me to keep down, suck it up and it should pass. Tapping my watch and noting “time’s a tickin’ on my ultra training schedule” didn’t win me any of his sympathy. He gets three more days and I’m out the door ‘nuf said. The good news is I am finally getting transferred over to the new computer. Still have some clean up to do, but this is officially the first post from the new Alien. Note, disappointed I have yet to locate the “auto-generate a post button” on this watts sucker. I’ll keep looking, but at least for now, stuck with me.

If you recall in my last post, I mentioned it was part one of two and eluded to the possibility our little yellow-eyed feathered friend might have been on the lookout for more formidable predators having easily dispensed with an intruding Sparrow. Time to reveal what led us to that conclusion. This is the first time I’ve ever used the WP image compare widget – apologies if it doesn’t work correctly on your monitors.

Hit the jump to read more about our dark encounter with another resident of Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge.

Burrows and Brags

We have finally made it back home from our winter migration to Arizona. This was a first for us this year as we usually make our way to south Texas. Not our most memorable trip by any means as the cold decided to chase us all the way there and then quickly caught back up to us on our way back. Not sure I can blame that on Arizona, although for two years in a row Linda has caught Covid in the week heading into a planned trip out there. We have decided it cursed! Not all disappointing. Hiking the Arizona mountains was a lot of fun, new birds added to the life list, a new RV for Linda and I had the opportunity to spend my birthday in Vegas. Suspect back to Texas next winter, but we’ll possibly take another trip out to Arizona later in the year to give it a fair chance. Oh, worst part is I managed to catch some wicked crud in Las Cruces on the way back and now having to deal with that crap.

Before getting into today’s featured feathered friend, a quick self-pat on the back. January officially kicked off my 17th year of blogging here at Intrigued.

Time has certainly flown by along with all the features we try and bring you each and every month. A big thank you to Brad and his staff (Jan and Allyson) that have shared their stories these last couple of years bringing new sights and wildlife species to the Intrigued story. Will continue to have more posts coming from that team. Extending our appreciation to the behind the scenes Intrigued staff that make this machine hum and especially to all our readers who make this effort so enjoyable. Raise your glasses to an exciting 17th year and beyond!

Okay, enough of the self-praising, let’s get to today’s featured feathered friend.

Burrowing Owl found at Anahuac NWR in January 2023

Hit the jump to read more about our yellow-eyed friend.

Stink Eye…by Brad Marks

Brad is continuing to hold down the Intrigued HQ back home while we are officially on our way back from or winter migration (much to the chagrin of our nefarious legal department). Honestly, I am not sure it was a true “migration” in the sense the cold weather followed us nearly the entire way and now, still days from home, we are once again in freezing temps. I suspect Linda will quickly put an end to any future discussion of going back to Arizona in the Winter. The good news is there is plenty of new birds in the tin for future posts. I am also excited about getting back so I can officially kick off the ’24 running season – legs getting lazy. While we calculate the best timeframe to slip back in IL, Brad is going to take us along on another of his Colorado adventures.

Take it away Brad…

Normally these pages are filled with rare, exotic, or extremely colorful birds. This time I decided to focus (pun intended) on a bird we probably all overlook. You’ve probably seen them hopping around everywhere you go, but like me, you probably just ignore them.

Jan and I had just left the lofty Rockies (above 9,000 feet) and the freezing temps (check out that story here) for the rather warm plains of eastern Colorado (6,000 feet and nearly 80F) and the Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge (RFNWR). Did you catch the irony in the name? Usually the word “Rocky” conjures up images of snow-covered peaks soaring towards the stratosphere. The word “rocky” isn’t usually associated with the word “flat”. But that’s just what the organizers decided to do for this particular location. Sort of like “jumbo shrimp” or “military intelligence”, “Rocky Flats” seems to be an oxymoron itself.

On the same day we encountered the Western Meadowlark (link here), this sinister looking character was hanging around the parking lot.

If that look hasn’t scared you, hit the jump to read more about this “commoner”.

Flash

Well, I can officially say this has been one … let’s go with “intriguing” snowbird migration. It started with dragging the Midwest winter temps with us all the way to Arizona. We were finally able to de-winterize in Tucson making for some very cold walks to the bathroom/shower houses practically all the way down. Finally got a day when I could shed the coat and walk around in a t-shirt and then the rains came in – so frustrating. Decided to head up to Vegas and spend my birthday in style. There were a number of my favorite birding places in the area and worst case we could seek shelter from the wet stuff in the casinos. All was going quite swimmingly until the day after my celebration Linda made a declaration “I’m done with taking sitting showers!”. For context, we own a Class-B Pleasureway – been living the van life for many years. The parent company of the dealership we bought our two models happens to be based in Vegas. I think this was all a clever plan by Linda crafted long before we ever left home. Remember that “stranded in Vegas with good issues” comment in a previous post, the “own” a Class-B is officially “owned” and replaced with a B+/C- with a full shower. Linda has spoken ha! This ended up extending our stay in Vegas several days to get all the t’s crossed and then opted to stay more days to get familiar with it while being close to the dealership if something needed to be addressed. I am currently relaxing in a recliner typing this post as we drive down US 10. At some point I will have to confess to her she made the right decision (if my current smile doesn’t give it away first), but for now I think I’ll leverage it by guilting her into extra birding trips and fuel supporting this year’s ultra races. Birding has been pretty good, although not nearly as productive as our Texas trips. Currently at 127 which is over 50 birds down from last year at this point. Hoping to make that back up when we head down there in the Spring. Being that we are currently driving through Arizona, decided to go with a bird most of my readers are very familiar with.

Northern Cardinal found at Guadalupe River State Park, San Antonio TX in January 2023

Hit the jump to read more about the birding world’s Flash.

Wagons Ho Junco…by Brad Marks

A big howdy from Vegas my friends! It has been an exhausting month of birding (so far) full of new lifers that are sure to make their way to you once .. or should I say if we ever make it home. We were supposed to be on our way back already, but unfortunately, we are stuck in Las Vegas.. who am I kidding, there are worse places to be held up than the Sin City. For the record, the Sphere is one of the most amazing things I’ve ever seen. I’ll give more details on our unexpected situation in a later post when we get everything straightened out – we might have to find a Conestoga wagon to get back home. Meanwhile, Brad is going to jump in and entertain you with another one of his Cali adventures.

Take it away Brad…

When wandering through a forest of Giant Sequoia trees it’s best to keep looking . . . down. Yes, that’s right. Down. Oh, I get it. These trees are magnificent. And very, very, very tall. However, they don’t move, except for a tiny bit near the tops. Have you ever heard the stories about penguins tipping over looking up at airplanes as they flew over? Probably pure bunk, but that’s what I felt like trying to see the tops of the Giant Sequoia from near their base. Even though the trees are unquestionably tall, the real action is down below, on the forest floor. This is a birding blog after all.

Having said that, photographing birds on the ground isn’t always exciting. Unless you come across a new species, or variant, you have not seen before. That’s exactly what happened to Jan and I at Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks. As I mentioned earlier, we did go to see the trees, all 250+ feet of them. But when something small and greyish/brownish catches your eye, birders are obligated to take photos, normally a lot of photos.

Near every path Jan and I hiked through the Giant Sequoia forests, this little bird was hopping in the undergrowth.

Hit the jump to learn more about this hooded feathered find.

Birthday Bird

By the time you read this post I will officially be another year older, another year’s worth of wear on the body (actually more like 3 years based on the long injury tab) and hopefully another year wiser. All in all, I can’t complain. No longer in the corporate grinder, get to spend each day with someone who deserves better and my days are filled with activities that make me want to get up the next morning and do them all again. Life is good. This is also the first year I have been able to celebrate my special day in Vegas! Going to get a head start on that wear and tear for the year ha. Being in the city of lights, thought I would go with a fitting neon colored specimen from the birding world for today’s featured feathered friend.

Altamira Oriole found at National Butterfly Center, Mission TX in January 2023

How is that for an orange Lite-Brite peg (if anyone remembers what that toy was).

Hit the jump to see a few more shots and learn a bit more about our Halloween inspired bird.

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