Sweetwater Wetlands Park – Wildlife Intrigued

Baby Kill’ers

Welcome to the third entry in the “Baby Month” theme! Hopefully the title didn’t scare anyone off as it can be construed differently if the specifically placed apostrophe is interpreted incorrectly. If you made it to this point, you are good to go, no fear, there are adorables on the way … in just a bit. First the traditional banter to bring you up on the world of Intrigued.

The ankle is progressing, a bit slower than I expected/wanted, but as long we are getting closer to being back on the ultra circuit, I’ll stick with the program. I was actually released from the brace during yesterday’s therapy session. It was mainly being used as additional stability during the more intense exercises, but all the work during the sessions and more importantly, the religious commitment to the home workouts (minimally 3 times a day), it is ready to go solo! Still trying to be smart about it, keeping mindful on uneven ground and watching like a hawk for any crazy old ladies at the grocery story so they don’t ram me with their carts – it’s a thing folks, so much that it was one of the first things the surgeon warned me about after surgery…and you thought the only grey hair danger was on the road ha. Told my therapist that all the work on their basketball court (side shifts, braid walking, ladder hopscotch and lateral ladder steps, etc.) are bringing back a flood of memories from my grade school basketball practices – thank god no suicides or flutter kicking yet ‘cuz that crap sucked hehehe.

No on to the topic that soothes the heart – wildlife babies!

Killdeer Chicks found at Sweetwater Wetlands Park in Gainesville, FL in April 2023

If you like those adorable fuzzy bird fledglings, hit the jump for an extra helping.

I Like [Baby] Birds

First off, getting word back that our extended family member at our western HQ is out of ankle surgery and resting at home. Continued best wishes for a quick recovery from all of us here!

Meanwhile we are busy getting our Christmas tree(s) trimmed and the rest of the “Hallmarkification” completed ahead of our upcoming holiday gathering. One of our favorite events each December was heading out to the local tree farm, traipsing all over the grounds until we eventually made our way back to the first tree we looked at and then prepared for battle – first reminding the arms what it was like before the days of chainsaws and then testing our marriage as we struggled to get the 10+’ tree back to the entrance for bundling and payment. Eventually we shifted our hunt to a particular hardware store in town that featured our favored Fraser Fir. The tree lot owner came down from Michigan every year and would set aside what he thought was his best 11+’ footer for us. Didn’t have the traditional feel to it, but was easier on the marriage ha! Then a couple of years ago we decided the effort to take down the tree on Christmas day or the day after was more effort than we were willing to take on, needing to get that flame accelerator out of the house before heading south. Now we have a 12′ artificial. Do I miss the “Fun old-fashion family Christmas” trek into the country to embrace “the frosty majesty of winter landscape and select that most important of Christmas symbols”. I guess the answer is kinda – it felt like a grounding against the corporatization of the holiday…but looking down at the weather forecast and seeing that it will dip down to 3F tonight…maybe the twinkling plastic isn’t such a bad thing. If nothing else, it cuts down on the constant “Lotta sap in here!” jokes between us.

While I give the ankle a good workout on the ladder, thought I would bring you the next installment in our “Baby Month” series.

Sandhill Cranes with Colts found at Sweetwater Wetlands Park in Gainesville, FL in April 2023

Hit the jump to oooh and ahhhh over some more shots of adorable colts.

It’s Baby Month!

After quite a trek, I am glad to say we have successfully made it back home from our Florida field trip. We ended up having to come home two days early due to the weather situation in the Midwest. Looking at the forecast, we noticed a big snow event that was planned for last Friday night thru Sunday morning and then another round coming in on the following Monday/Tuesday. Driving the RV through that is not enjoyable, especially when pulling another vehicle. As mentioned in the last post, we decided to try to get back between the white goal posts and opted to hard press it so we could get back by Sunday night. Big thanks to Linda who drove the entire way while I tried to navigate through the weather cells and hordes of holiday travelers. I would be feeling pretty great if I wasn’t staring down a new crown scheduled for tomorrow – damn I hate dental procedures ugh.

Anyway, we are home and we are officially in the last month of the year. In honor of the well-celebrated birthday towards the end of this month, we’ve declared it Baby Month where we are going to try and feature as many wildlife offspring we can find in our queues. To start us off we are going with a double feature.

Young Brown Thrasher found at Shell Mounds on Dauphin Island in April 2023

Hit the jump to enjoy more shots of wild “babies”.

Thanksgiving Florida Style

For those of us in the States, this is the official day we designate for giving thanks to others and our own fortunes. I don’t mind having an entry on the calendar as a mental reminder, but honestly, I think this holiday is 364 days too short. If we took this to heart, we would be thankful throughout the year for all the help and successes we have on a daily basis. If nothing else, it would train us to think about the positives more and help negate the constant barrage of negativity that comes at us from every angle – news, social apps, politics, the neighbor’s cat. Life has become so polar lately the middle ground has been tilled up, doused with gas and hit with a flamethrower. We need to get back to civility if that is even possible anymore. Hell, we even have “influencers” trying to convince others to disown their own families because they won’t swallow the narrative. I do not have the answer, but it definitely wouldn’t hurt if we thought more often about the values at the foundation of this holiday. One thing I do know is the entire Intrigued family is incredibly grateful for our personal families, our friendships and especially all our wonderful subscribers and readers. Thank you for your time, comments and support – you make our efforts truly rewarding!!

Now, typically, we like to bring you the traditional symbols of Thanksgiving on this day. You know, Turkeys (link here), Quail (link here) and Cranes (link here). Translated..whatever we happen to find in the queue ha!

Being that we are currently in the southeast, how about we celebrate..Florida style this year!

Alligator found at Sweetwater Wetlands Park in Gainesville Florida in March 2023

It is Gator time, hit the jump and maybe take a step back.

Thinking I’m Back, Down the Hatch

Ever have one of those moments when you just stop in your tracks, look around and say to yourself, “I’m back where I belong“?

It has been a long road for me, well, technically lack of road and lack of trail for way too long. This is officially the longest period of time out due to an injury and trust me, there’s been plenty of injuries over the years. I have to move…a lot… or the crazy suppression system goes on overload and begins to smoke. This week has been a big turning point for me as we are back out in the field. The goal, to get my annual bird count to the 400 tier – a personal record. On our way south, we made a stop at one of my favorite locations – Noccalula Falls in Gadsden, Alabama. If you are a mountain biker, trail runner, birder or just a nature fan, this is the place to be. I’ve ran more miles than I can count on the Black Creek Trails and still have many left to explore. This time my mode was walking, yet the smile was wider than ever. Halfway through the Family Loop trail I stopped among the golden colored trees, took a deep breath, looked around and took all the beauty in. Life is certainly better. Still need time to get back to running mode, but I continued my walk with those same words I start every ultra “Just put one foot in front of the other and repeat“.

I wonder if this Great Blue Heron has a similar mantra “Just put one fin in and repeat“

Great Blue Heron swallowing a fish at Sweetwater Wetlands Park in Gainesville, FL in April 2023

Hit the jump for an explanation.

Twisted My Ankle

We are officially at the 4 week mark since the ankle surgery. That means it is has been 4 weeks since I have put any weight on it. I have noted that is quite an accomplishment for me. Unfortunately, I have ANOTHER two weeks of this insanity before I can start the physical therapy phase and finally get start introducing weight bearing (in between the screams from the PT). I have been doing my best to keep myself busy. A huge chunk of time has been devoted to working on my backlog (did I just hear cheers, someone definitely cheered), trying my best to catch up on my post reading and all the work in the haunt lab – I’ve linked the latest short video at the end if you are interested). YouTube is now my friend – there isn’t stupid Cat video I haven’t watched! In all this, there are always posts I can work on, so let’s get to it!

Battling my inner Venom:

“Do it!”
“But I don’t want to do it”
“Yes you do, do it now”
“Umm, really don’t wanna”
“You shall do it and like it”
“But it pains me”
“You are already in pain, what’s the difference!?!”
“Hmm, that is a valid point, but I’d rather do something else…anything else”
“Do you really want to stare at that series in the queue anymore?”
“Sigh, but I’ll say you twisted my ankle”

Here you go, today’s featured ugh, feathered ugh, friend double ugh Finch – make it stop.

House Finch found at CT RV Resort in Benson, Az in January 2024

As a general rule, I take at least one picture of every bird I see when out in the field. The amount of additional shots I take of a specimen is based on a complex internal mental algorithm which would probably rival any current AI engine. Is the lighting halfway reasonable, did I get a good enough shot to officially claim the check, is there a good story to share on the blog, what is likelihood of seeing it again, are there new behaviors to document, where does it rank on my “cool birds” list, is it on my “crap bird” list (I’m talking about you Asshats link here) and is it out of region all come into play. The logic engine turns, the lights dim and depending on the results zero or more pulses will be triggered to the shutter finger. This processing is repeated, of course, on subsequent shots.

Every once in a while I surprise myself in the digital darkroom and ask myself – “what the hell Bri, did the algorithm glitch?” Hit the jump if you want to see more of apparently one of those surprise results from the field.

That Which Sips Sap

March has been a weather rollercoaster so far. One day it is miserably cold, the next day sunny and high 50’s. Unfortunately, the ground below an inch or two is still rock solid which means all the heavy rains of late are simply running off and not soaking into the ground. This is bad news for replenishing our wells. On the more positive perspective, the trails are way too squishy to use, so the ankle setback isn’t haunting me as much…as it could be. Surgeon had to cancel my follow-up this week which naturally reverts “assessment” rights back to me. Yesterday: “Linda, ankle is fine, heading out for a 5 mile hike in the park, back later” – there might have been a response, but unfortunately, the door slamming behind me might have muffled it. Correct that… there WAS a response and she was waiting for me when I got back!! Time for OSD (operation squirrel distraction). “Sweetie, there is a horde of zombies coming our way, love to talk, gotta go take care of that before they get your beloved Poodles” {followed by a shuffled sprint to the safety of the den}. Note, there is a good chance this does not work out in my favor ha!

While I mentally prepare for the brain sucking invasion, thought I would bring you a sucker of a different type.

Red-Naped Sapsucker found at Sweetwater Wetlands Park in Tucson, AZ in January 2024

Hit the jump to read more about this mega hole drilling feathered friend.

GreYs and BloaTs

Yikes, looked at the calendar and startled myself. How did we get to the last page so quick!! Fortunately, we have a few more weeks before we call it a wrap and put a bow on our 17th year of blogging here at Intrigued. Talk about warp speed, now those years have really flown by. Weeks that will be spent getting ready for the big end of the year staff extravaganza (fingers crossed no repeat of the ambulance needed last year), finishing up the gifts for our family get togethers and eagerly getting packed to head south. These sub-zero windchill temps as of late are for the birds ha. Oh, and in between those activities trying to get some birding to close out the Average Year (link here). That page needs to be updated, but checked off number 315 with a Snowy Owl this afternoon. Ron is having a down year, but Brad has really kicked it in on his annual checks!

Most important is to make sure we continue to keep our readers entertained as they go about their own December agendas. For today, we are going to feature a feathered friend that always causes me to stop and pull out my mental cheat sheet.

Boat-Tailed Grackle found at Sweetwater Wetlands Park in Gainesville, FL in April 2023

Hit the jump to read more about this long tailed prismatic.

The Silent F’s in Thanksgiving

This is the time when we here at Intrigued drive over to our corporate NAS farm, badge in, say hello to our office staff (that didn’t see us coming and go into hiding hehehe), navigate to our holiday section and pull out some appropriately themed photos to honor the holiday. So, in keeping with longstanding tradition, I bring you some Wild Turkeys for your after dinner wind down enjoyment.

Sandhill Cranes found at Sweetwater Wetlands Park in Gainseville, FL in April 2024

Okay, so at least that was the plan. Truth is, the Turkey folder was empty. I quickly recalled my last sighting of Wild Turkeys came courtesy of a rainy day at Benson-Rio Grande Valley State Park. Linda was the one who actually found them as she was biking around the park. Needing the check, I walked up the road and without thinking about the holiday ramifications, snapped a few shots of wet Turkeys with my cell phone and crossed that species off the list. I thought about using those cell shots for this post before quickly realizing how that would crumble the devious facade that Bri actually knows what he’s doing behind the glass.

In my defense, based on a quick look back at previous year’s topics, this isn’t the first time I’ve had to break with tradition – which, I guess, kinda calls into contention the whole concept of tradition. Last year I brought you Quail (link here), and a few years back had a Vulture stand in (link here). Not sure what I was thinking there, at least the Quail is considered a game bird. Anyway, as you have already noticed, this year at least we went back to something that looks closer to the wild variety of the cuisine likely gracing many Stateside dinner tables.

Fear not, there is a reason for this particular series, simply hit the jump to read about my madness, err, thoughtful selection

Cyrus of Sweetwater

A lot of the stress is finally off and best of all, I am finally getting caught up on some badly needed sleep. The annual Haunt Event appears to be another successful venture and since the last post we have received a lot of positive feedback from the attendees (including Brad and Jan, but they may be biased as their annual performance review is coming up ha). The first night we ran out of time for some of the props thanks to an unfortunate late hour incident that took a bit to resolve, however, we were able to catch up on Saturday and get everything working and additional props deployed. I made a quick summary of this year’s efforts up on the mothership if you are interested (link here). Most surprising of all is the weather held for both days even though there was an over 60% chance of rain for both nights at the start of the week. Mother Nature either took pity on me or she is waiting to really hammer me during the fast approaching ultra-race.

Since I am sitting here trying to heal a few leg/foot kinks that developed while hauling all the props back out of the valley, thought I would feature a feathered friend that also has a kink …in its neck.

Anhinga found at Sweetwater Wetlands Park in Gainesville, FL in April 2023

Hit the jump to read more about this turquoise-eyed beauty.

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	Cheryl Batavia on Fish Guzzling
	thesimlux on Fish Guzzling
	Fish Guzzling… on A Telling White Line
	Fish Guzzling… on Thinking I’m Back, Down…
	Fish Guzzling… on I’m Waiting