Painted Buntings are a species of concern, as the population and range has dwindled over the past fifty years.  Habitat loss and nest predation by brown-headed cowbirds are both implicated.

When we bought the 80 acres,  we had one nesting pair on the place (the male's territorial calls make it easy to determine how many pairs you've got and ( Read more... )

New post at the 80acresonline blog about a turtle rescue yesterday evening.   This is not the first turtle rescue on the place when a turtle got caught in a fence or stuck under a fence (or apparently stuck...) but this one produced better pictures.

If you'd like to see some of the butterflies on the 80 acres, as photographed this past week, the pictures are up at the 80 acres blog.   Some butterflies weren't cooperative (that would be all the sulphurs, the swallowtails, and the variegated fritillaries) but some were.   I'm particularly happy with the new photos of the Reakirt's blues, which ( Read more... )

Ever wonder what a net-winged beetle was, or what it looked like?

I spotted a pretty orange flying "thing" yesterday and got enough pictures to ID it.   They're posted on the 80Acres blog.

It was a gorgeous afternoon--sunny, cool/warm, breezy--to go for a walk and photograph wildflowers, including a cactus that blooms only once a year, briefly (and not every year.)

Pictures are up at the 80 Acres blog, along with more abut the surprise.

Not yet up are pictures of the tiny blue butterflies (copper and blue--gorgeous little things, ( Read more... )

http://www.80acresonline.org/

Species lists are now live on the website.  When you mouse over the Species List, three choices appear: birds, plants, and "zoology" (which in this instance means non-bird wildlife.)

And each of these lists has three pictures of representative species up there on the top green line.

Ruta's a genius.

The clouds shifted east and the sun came through about 4 pm, so I dropped what I was doing, grabbed the camera, put on shoes, and was out the door by 4:15.  Left a note for Richard on his desk (he & Michael weren't back from the city.)    It was gorgeous outside, still cool, but with a south (not north) breeze.  The ground was soft enough to take ( Read more... )

Besides the blooming plum trees, a few leftover wild plum blossoms, redbuds, and the first white iris, the land had a surprise--something I'd never seen before except in books or on TV:  a Luna Moth.

Pictures are over at the 80 Acres blog.

We think it was just "unfolding" itself after emerging, but it was getting dark so we didn't find whatever it ( Read more... )

A bird last seen on the place in December 2002 showed up again today.  Picture and discussion at:

www.80acresonline.org/blog/

I was sitting up at Fox Pavilion, watching a family of house sparrows and several male cardinals watch me (I haven't been there at that time of day recently and they were uneasy) when I heard something in the undergrowth about 25 feet away.  There's a tangle of vines, elbow-bush, black dalea, Ashe juniper and prairie flameleaf sumac, and from under ( Read more... )