Prairie Flowers

Indian Paintbrush

Barton County Missouri

Indian Paintbrush

Barton County Missouri

Milkweed Buds

Barton County Missouri

Some photos I took last Sunday at sunup on the Prairie Park.

Carver Monument

Statue of George Washington Carver as a young boy

Last Saturday we traveled to The Carver National Monument near Diamond Missouri. There is an outstanding center here dedicated to the life of one of Americas greatest scientists. It was late and the Rangers informed us the park would close at 5pm. As we had only a ahlf hour we decided to hike the nature trail down to a stream for a while.

Carver Branch

As we hiked the sun would break out of the clouds for brief periods of time.

Aquilena

We watched Hooded Warblers and stopped at several beautiful flowers that grew along the trail.
The sky darkened as we headed back to the car, the last folks to leave the park for the day. Torandoes passed just to the north of here about an hour later.

Heres a link to the parks site; http://www.nps.gov/gwca

Reflection

Dogwoods

Barton County Missouri

Our prayers go out to those families who lost family members and homes near our part of the world last Saturday. We were out for a day trip photographing and driving in the area where the tornadoes struck just a few hours before they hit. Sometimes I think its hard to reconcile the beauty of nature with the devastation it can also bring. Maybe the best we can do is to accept the fact we are intertwined in it, good or bad rather than seperate from it. That and continue to work to predict and prepare for these kinds of storms.

Prairie Park Morning

Bison Prairie State Park

Southwest Missouri

Bison Prairie State Park

Southwest Missouri

Indian Paintbrush
Verbena (Rose?)

I took a hike last Sunday at sunup over at Prairie State Park. The sun had actually rose by the time I arrived eager to see any new birds migrating through at this time of year. I wasn't disappointed. It was a cool clear morning with a slight breeze out of the north, no rain for a change. The first flowers of the season are appearing. There is a narrow gravel road with signs posted warning which parts of the park the bison herd is presently using. Usually they are quite a ways off but this morning I found a few grazing along the road. I stopped and watched the huge bull in the photos as he grazed almost alongside the car. His breath condensed into small clouds as he crunched the new grass.

Further along I stopped the car and hiked a short trail. The air was filled with birds singing. Dickcissels seemed to be the featured soloists this morning. I watched a Yellow Breasted Chat for several minutes making its way in the short trees in a draw. A white tail doe was moving silently to the stream just beyond the trees, not seeming too bothered by the hiker. Indgio Buntings flashed blue neon signs. I was ready to leave when I stopped and watched a bird sing, that I had not seen here before, a beautiful song that reminded me of a flute. I think it might have been a Wood Thrush. I found a quote in my field guide under Wood Thrush when trying to see if I was correct.

Its attributed to Thoreau:

"Whenever a man hears it he is young, and Nature is in her spring: where ever he hears it, it is a new world and a free country, and the gates of heaven are not shut against him"

I spent Saturday over in SW Missouri at "Birdfest 2008", held at the Wildcat Glade Audubon Center. The three day event was a combination of field trips, seminars, interactive programs and family activities.
Wildcat Glade is an outstanding facility and outdoor area, for more information check out the web site; http://www.wildcatglades.audubon.org/

I took a short hike during a break along Shoal Creek. This red flower grew in places where sunlight made its way to the floor of the oak-hickory upland forest. I also found some dogwoods still in bloom.

Dogwoods along Shoal Creek

While I did not get to travel with the groups on a field trip to local birding areas. I did attend some outstanding seminars including one on Neotropical Migrants, around 50% of the birds that are in our area now are on their way to breeding locations. Some will stay close to Kansas and the Midwest, others traveling as far as Canada. Their journeys are amazing. Many are threatened with plummeting numbers due mainly to habitat destruction. Yesterday I shared some of the information with my students, asking them how far they could travel in 80 hours. Some thought they could walk to Joplin or maybe Tulsa. They were floored by the distance the Ruby Throated Hummingbird travels in that same time period non stop; from Maine to Southern Mexico. Here's a pretty good web site for more information about how to help insure they keep flying.
http://www.neotropicalbirds.org/

Skywatch Friday

April Sunrise

Crawford County Kansas

To participate in Skywatch Friday visit Tom at Wiggers World for all of the details: http://womtig.blogspot.com/

Grape Leaves in Spring

Crawford County Kansas

We have finally had a few dry days here in SE Kansas. The grapes are leafing out. Ive been seeing Yellow throated Warblers in the woods near home and my first humming bird of the season buzzed me the other afternoon. We have been busy with outside garden work. I actually got our tomato plants out. Varieties we are growing this year are Brandywine, Big Boy, Tomato 100, Jet Star and a new German Heirloom who's name slips my mind. Last year was so wet we didn't do too well, usually we wind up canning lots of salsa, freezing many bags of tomatoes and enjoying them fresh most of the summer.

Here's a great song by Guy Clark
"Homegrown Tomatoes"
There's nothin' in the world that I like better than
Bacon, lettuce and home grown tomatoes
Up in the morning and out in the garden
Pick you a ripe one, don't get a hard 'un
Plant 'em in the springtime eat 'em in the summer
All winter without 'em's a culinary bummer
I forget all about the sweatin' and the diggin'
Every time I go out and pick me a big'un
Home grown tomatoes, home grown tomatoes
What'd life be without home grown tomatoes
There's only two things that money can't buy
That's true love and home grown tomatoes
You can go out and eat 'em, that's for sure
But there's nothin' a home grown tomato won't cure
You can put 'em in a salad, put 'em in a stew
You can make your own, very own tomato juice
You can eat 'em with eggs, you can eat 'em with gravy
You can eat 'em with beans, pinto or navy
Put em on the side, put em on the middle
Home grown tomatoes on a hot cake griddle

I cant wait.