Usually I go out New Year's morning to a wetland and start my year bird list out right, but this year, between work and getting back to running, it'll be a slower start. My #birdsof2023 list starts with a quick park walk this morning:
Spring birds keep arriving. Osprey have been here for a while, and I've spotted them while driving, but not where I could stop and list them. It was downright hot here yesterday, which I can't complain about too much after the wet, cool April we've had, but the sudden change was not welcome.
Warbler season is officially here. Had OC's and Wilson's (let's call them black-capped, #BirdNamesForBirds) in the yard this morning, chasing bugs around the flowering trees.
Looks like #Nike founder #PhilKnight is trying to revise history - just like every other #UnitedStates#Oligarch by covering up his investment in former #Oregon Gubernatorial candidate #BetsyJohnson - who campaigned on cutting services to the most vulnerable in our state!
This #Oregonian will never forget, Phil! Go Fvck yourself and your attempt to moneywash history!
Totally smitten and impressed by the pluck of this tree swallow practicing eir routine on the willow pommel horse even in the midst of the rain and the ambient sounds of the nearby highway.
Yesterday's check on "our" raven's nest found Huginn and Muninn peering into it and making little nibbles at their materials. I'm not great at distinguishing male and female #ravens, but I think, due to his size and scruffier neck, that the male is on the right in this photo.
The nest is built under an overpass of Highway 97, over a stretch of gravel trail connecting two wetland areas. It makes sense to have found these two under a noisy #Bifrost connecting worlds.
Last night when I arrived, I pitched my tent at the hiker biker camp at Fort Stevens and then headed out for a sunset beach hike. Checked out the Peter Iredale shipwreck and hiked a few miles on the beach. Sunset was beautiful. Currently headed toward Seaside, Oregon on the beach.
Opalcreek.org is hiring a full time cook for their forest retreat. This is a full-time for 10.5 months, permanent/seasonal, salaried position, with housing, 15 days paid vacation plus 6 holidays, 80% health, dental, vision coverage. #fedihired#oregon
I spent a lot of my weekend (when not lost in egrets) flirting with this lovely Northern flicker, who was kind enough to sit beside the river trail and talk with me awhile. #Oregon
For #ThickTrunkTuesday, here is a large Sitka Spruce tree I found on my backpacking trip this last weekend. The tree is in front of a battery at Fort Stevens State Park, which was built near the end of the Civil War.
Yum. Found some Morels under our Madrone trees. It’s that time of year. Normally we head to the nearby Cascades for wildcrafting and foraging. It’s great when some of our favorite shrooms pop up on our own property. #mushrooms#morels#oregon#wildcrafting#foraging
Watch Duty kept me super well-informed about #wildfires in California last year. Now it's expanding its coverage — not just to Oregon as I first heard, but throughout the western US.
Wonderful male firecracker skimmer, female eight-spotted skimmer, and what I think is a fluffy sachem (probably male, as e looks to be waiting on the ground to find a mate?) from this summer. #InverteFest#dragonflies#Oregon