The warm weather has really caused lawns to green up and flowers to push through the grass carpet. A montage of white daisies interspersed the lawn at Matthews Beach Park and gave it an interesting white and green mosaic. A first-year Mew Gull was busily searching for grubs and insects in the lawn. It would … Read more
I was excited to spot a Trillium under a tree on the hill to the east side of Azalea Way in the UW Arboretum. This sighting flooded me with fond memories of searching for Trilliums in Pennsylvania with my mother and sisters. Finding this showy 3-petal flower confirms that spring is here and we can … Read more
We have probably all looked at an American Crow flying by and said, “oh, it is just a crow.” They are actually really interesting creatures. They form long-term pair bonds. Some populations breed cooperatively with young from previous years helping raise the next brood of young. They have a very complex social system with related … Read more
On Wednesday, I took a late afternoon walk through Magnuson Park. The trees were beginning to bloom. Some of the willows had beautiful flowers opening along their branches. They looked so delicate in the late afternoon sun. New leaves were beginning to emerge from the branches; soon the area will be green with fresh … Read more
The cherry trees in the UW Arboretum are in full bloom right now. It was lightly raining while I walked along Azalea Way and the soft light made the cherry blossoms really glow. Light rain and cloud cover creates a beautiful light for viewing flowers and really appreciating the intensity of colors. The arboretum has … Read more
On February 8th, I noticed that male Red-winged Blackbirds had moved into the cattails and begun to set up territories. I watched one male display repeatedly from the top the brown seed-head. It would puff out its wings to show the red epaulets, lean forward, and give its territorial song. This male was in a … Read more
I had the opportunity to go to the Galapagos Islands last April. It was a marvelous trip and if you every have a chance, I highly recommend you go. These islands were made famous by Darwin’s work on evolution because of all the unique species on the islands and how closely related species vary between … Read more
Did you every wish you could fly? When I was young, I use to imagine what it would be like to fly and look down at the forests and valleys of Pennsylvania. I had the chance to do aerial surveys in a small plane for wading birds across Florida in the 1980s and 1990s and … Read more
I was at Boundary Bay in British Columbia on Sunday to look again for Snowy Owls. We found one way out in the marsh grassland habitat toward the bay and a second closer to us sitting in a parking lot inland from the dike. There were about 20 people along the dike when I … Read more
When I was growing up in Western Pennsylvania, we would listen for Tundra Swans flying over during spring or fall. These birds would generally fly over Pennsylvania between breeding grounds in the Arctic and wintering area along the eastern shore. Here in Washington, it is great that we can easily find this magnificent bird in … Read more