I HATE guns!

Today, my last day surveying for birds at EE Wilson, there was someone firing a gun, in what sounded like close proximity to my location. I tried to ignore it but it was too close to be ignored. There were also hounds baying in the distances, odd since hunting with hounds is illegal in Oregon (last time I checked). Hunting season doesn't open until Monday, what's going on?! Julie suggested that the person may have been training a dog to not be gun shy, so maybe a pointer of some sort. Eh, I still have to go to EE Wilson to do the vegetation surveys, that may be nerve wracking. One more day of "birding" to go. I hope it isn't foggy at Finley, though I'm sure it will be.

There were a few black-headed grosbeaks at the last site I was in. Black-capped chickadees were everywhere again, I'm starting to wonder if the small groups aren't all part of a larger flock that has spread out while feeding. Female macgillivray's and orange-crowned warblers allowed me a glimpse of their cute faces before flying off. There was also male wilson's warbler singing at some point. Apparently the warblers haven't quite left yet. I'm not sure where my love for warblers has come from, but every time I see them my heart leaps with joy! Something upset the killdeer that hang out near the "lake." They created quite a stir. I had been hoping that with all of the birds migrating out of the area, new ones would be coming in. If they have they weren't where I was! Why can't I just play with birds forever?!

Last day at Gallery Forest/Thistle sites

The black-headed grosbeaks are gone! It has been two weeks since I was there (because of Seattle and the class reunion) so I expected some change, but not quite as much as I encountered! There were some warbling vireos and hutton's vireos. Plenty of American goldfinches are still hanging out, purple and house finches too. No warblers, though the common yellowthroats are quite active. There were plentiful bushtits and black-capped chickadees, a handful of song and white-capped sparrows and a variety of raptors. This morning I was hesitant about going out, I was tired, I didn't want to be out in the heat, and I was feeling bad about the difficulty I sometimes have with bird calls (not songs). Once I got there and heard the birds I felt better. The sunrise was lovely, particularly over the pond/lake/marsh. I really do like EE Wilson, I wish they had more "all encompassing" management. Another day of surveying at EE Wilson and then I'll be done, other than the vegetation surveys. I'm sad that hunting even occurs, it's only about 10 miles from our place, I'd enjoy birdwatching all winter.

I've been mulling over a lot of environmental issues lately. I suppose that seems par for the course though , eh? McCain and Palin come from two of the least environmental states in the US (Arizona and Alaska consecutively). Obama and Biden come from two of the most environmental states (Illinois and Delaware consecutively). Regardless of any other policy they have their environmental record has won my vote. Some things every American should read are the Environmental Scorecard and the "top ten reasons to vote Obama/Biden". Really, everyone should just go to the League of Conservation Voters page anyway. Around "voting time" I always get a little down, a little reflective. The things that I love most in this world, that I have based my life on, are continually under attack. While the democrats are little more than a band-aid used in place of stitches, the republicans are a gapping wound. Maybe I care too much, maybe I want to do too much.

This all brings me around to grad school yet again. I want to get into the Urban Planing Program at UW, minor (or double major) in Wildlife Science and maybe get the certificate in Restoration Ecology. That's ambitious but I feel it's well-rounded. I suppose age and money will determine what route I follow exactly. I used to hate the idea of living in urban area, but the number of people, particularly poor and minorities, that can be reach is appealing. Eh, we'll see. I suppose this is all looking a little far ahead anyway!

Tagcloud Thursdays

Seattle

My trip to Seattle went quite well. We met my Aunt Diana at Kalama (at a park along the river) so that she could see Audrey. The park was lovely, and I enjoyed talking to Diana. I photographed a large barge that had the "Honda" logo on the side of it and a barge being towed by a tug. The river is lovely but I'm certain they had to remove quite a bit of bed/bedrock to create a body of water large enough for these ships to pass. After the visit with Diana we got back on the road, stopping several more times so that Audrey could get out of her car seat. Unlike many babies I know, Audrey hates being strapped in the seat. Thankfully she isn't a grumpy baby, or I'd have wanted to murder myself! It was raining and late when we pulled into Bob and Helen's house. Grandma Dona, Angela and Derek came to dinner. Wednesday morning mom, dad and I got up at 5:30, in order to leave for the airport. Mom and dad have never flown before and Alaska Airlines is all self-check in at Sea-Tac, so it ended up being a good thing I crawled out of bed! We got dad checked in, checked his bags and then took him to breakfast. Poor dad could hardly eat he was so nervous! After the airport mom and I went back to Bob and Helen's and waited for Grandma Dona. Around 11:00 we finally got to go see Great-Grandma Betty and Great-Grandpa Al. They live at Doug and Sallie's with Grandma Dona. Considering their age and medical conditions, Betty and Al look fabulous. In order to lessen their stress we took Grandma Dona to Pike Place Public Market for the day. She hasn't been since she was a little girl, making the experience that much greater! By dinner time Betty and Al were ready for visitors and we headed up the hill. When we first arrived Betty and Al both spent time with Audrey. Betty had been pretty out of "it" all day but after the baby arrived she became incredibly lucid, asking if she's a good baby, talking about how healthy she feels, rubbing her head and smiling the whole time. Al held her for quite a while, holding Betty's hand and Audrey's leg with one hand and Audrey's back with the other. He also grinned the entire time, particularly when Audrey stood in his lap, facing him and laughing. She brought a little light to their lives last night and it was beautiful! Good food and good company followed, rounding out the evening quite nicely. This morning we met with Ang for breakfast and then headed home. I'm glad to be home, thought Moose and Freyja were going to knock me over they were so excited to see me.

Tomorrow my huckleberry paper is due. I was pretty confident about it, but now that it's close to being due I'm a little nervous! Friday, Saturday and Sunday I'll be doing my last bird surveys, Monday Julie and I are taking Jan to the zoo, Tuesday I have a final exam and Wednesday and Thursday I'll be doing vegetation surveys. A busy week but after that I have nothing major going on until September 15. Summer is almost over.

Ten Years!

I made it through the reunion in one piece! The experience was weird, but fun. It was similar to high school, only we're all ten year older. I've heard this is how reunions commonly go, but I guess I'd hoped it would be a little different. Some people have changed quite a bit, while others are stuck in their bizarre snooty rut. Around 10:30 the BBQ "portion" of the event started. It was nice to see everyone out with their families, there averaged almost one kid per person (though only about half of the people there had kids)! Julie and I watched an osprey feeding its young (which surprised me quite a bit) while at the BBQ. Their nest is on a lamp post in one of the baseball fields. After the BBQ we took the dogs for a walk. An irrigation ditch runs through the park so the dogs and I climbed in and waded around, trying to beat the heat. Later in the evening we attended the "formal" dinner. Everyone avoided Julie and I so we had a large table to ourselves until my "friends" came in. The majority of them were drunk most of the night. This weekend made me realize that I really am not like other people. I don't "need" alcohol, I've only been drunk once (and then not nearly as bad as most people I saw this weekend) and I quite frankly prefer my interactions to be sober. Anyway, the highlight of my night, other than meeting up with old friends, is discovering that Julie will dance if we are at a Reggae concert, therefore I will be trying to get use out to listen to Reggae more often!

My father helped me get some maps, with 10m grids, printed up for my vegetation surveys. He also loaned me a GPS, so that I can figure out exactly where I'm at when I'm looking at these maps! He and I have always had a rather tumultuous relationship and it always surprises me when he does nice things for me.

In the course of three days the black-capped chickadees and red-breasted nuthatches have consumed mass quantities of seed. They've slowed down on the suet, which seems counter intuitive. I'm always amazed by the number of birds I see at my parents' house. There was a brown creeper singing one morning while we were picking vegetables, I spotted him and pointed him out to my mother. Later in the evening a flycatcher was calling in the top of one of the ponderosa pines. A great-blue heron has been hanging out in their garden, probably eating the proliferation of pacific tree frogs. Mom's bird feeder is always busy, birds are almost always singing all around the house. The brown-headed cowbirds seem to have left, they usually spend the day riding around on Huka's back. After a short trip to Seattle I'll be back in the field for one more round of surveys and then vegetation surveys. I'm going to make every effort to do more bird watching this winter, because I like being outside, I like watching birds and working on my ID is never a bad idea!

Finally, we went huckleberry picking yesterday. There aren't very many ripe in Southern Oregon yet, but I know where to go to pick them. After cleaning them we have about 5.5 cups, enough for both pancakes and a pie! Next time we're in GP there'll be even more, we'll probably go picking again (then we can send some to Annie). I LOVE huckleberries and it brought me great joy to not only be out picking again but to be picking with my two closest friends.

Southern Oregon

I've been musing over drunkenness over the last 11 hours, or so. We went dancing last night and had one of the worst experiences I've had in a long time, possibly ever. The number of appallingly drunk people was overwhelming. It helped me realize that maybe I would be better served dancing at home. I don't go out to drink, meet other people or any of the other "normal" reasons. What I go out for is the dancing, to be bathed in music, blanketed in music. It's like active meditation/worship. It feels good to dance hard and not think of anything else. Last night I couldn't think of anything other than getting away from the drunk people. Lets just say that the night was disappointing.

We made things better though by spending the day preserving foodstuffs. My parents' garden is full of lovely vegetables and they have been kind enough to share with us. Rhonda picked up some no spray peaches from one of the oldest peach orchards in the area, seconds, mmmmm. The peaches were all very ripe, with bruises and very soft flesh (for the most part). I absolutely love "seconds" peaches, bruises are predominantly tasty. Anyway, we picked about three gallons of green beans, snapped them, blanched them, vacuum-sealed them and froze them. We also picked, blanched, cut, vacuum-sealed and froze corn (a LOT of corn). The peaches were blanched, pealed, cut and are now in the dehydrator. My mom also gave me several fresh carrots, peas and cherry tomatoes. I've eaten almost nothing but fresh vegetables today, it has been quite lovely!

I spent several hours with Audrey today. We played with the dogs for a while, then we bird-watched. Around 11 we went to see Huka. Audrey LOVED Huka. We sat in the pasture and watched Freyja geek out in the trough. Audrey laughed so hard and when Freyja jumped out, splashing water all over us Audrey laughed even harder. The goat is afraid of her, but was acting all goofy, eliciting another laugh from Audrey. At the tree we usually use as a bathing hitching post Audrey and I stopped. I told her all about the tree and then she put both hands on it, started rubbing it, kicked her feet excitedly and babbled to me about it. Eh, I love Audrey so much. She's only four months old and already very alert, loves the animals, talks up a storm and is generally a joy to be around. I made myself a moonstone necklace yesterday with an opal pendant. Audrey LOVES the moonstone so I let her play with it, she had to stop when the opal headed toward her mouth (I was worried the wire used to wrap it would cut her mouth). This rant leads me to my next point . . . I want to finish my degree so I can adopt a baby! If I thought I could deal with pregnancy I'd even consider birthing a child. Alas, I don't think I could go through with it.

Tomorrow is my ten year class reunion. It will prove to be an interesting day at the very least!

Zoo

Nothing makes me revel in my natural resources degree and question my grad school future more than: stupidity, cool sustainability displays, stupidity, conservation, and stupidity. Yes, I mentioned stupidity three times. Why? Well, because stupid people make me glad I have a multi-faceted degree! I can explain and understand natural resources from a economic commodity angle, from the social side, from a politics and policy podium, and finally as a scientist. Whoever decided interdisciplinary degrees shouldn't get funding is stupid, those of in them rock! I have digressed from my intent here. At the zoo yesterday, yes I said zoo, there were a number of exhibits, signs and pamphlets about sustainability. The zoo itself has recycling bins with every trash can, they're working on ways to make their aquatic exhibits sustainable by creating recycling water systems and they have two exhibits regarding sustainability! One of the sustainability exhibits is sponsored by Trillium Creek Family Farms. This display has raised beds with a variety of produce growing in them, runner ducks, rabbits, pygora goats (I believe pygmy and angora crosses), Icelandic sheep (I want some of these!), chickens and a variety of displays regarding organic food, small farms, and things of this nature. The other display is actually a coalescing of small markers with backyard wildlife habitat types that are spread throughout the zoo. These markers lead to one area, a backyard wildlife habitat display! It is quite possibly one of my favorite zoo displays of all time! The Pacific Northwest region was my other favorite. What can I say? I am a sucker for animals found in my region. Yeah tigers, sun bears and lorikeets are amazing . . . but give me ringtails, black bears, salmon, bobcats and cougars any day. We have a lot of fabulous wildlife here in North America and people seem to sometimes forget that. Julie asked if there are breeding programs for non-charismatic birds that are going extinct (like the programs we had for bald eagles). Sadly, last time I checked there were none. It has been about five years, so I could be wrong, but that is the unfortunate part of being a non-charismatic species. People don't think about you, don't want to buy you and you aren't fantastic, you're just there. Where does this leave me? Believing that backyard wildlife habitat and preservation are my future. Maybe a zoo or wildlife rehabilitation center really are where I'll end up. North American wildlife, urban sustainability, and education? That's right up my alley!

While I'm at it . . . there is a VERY large difference between conservation and preservation folks! I grow tired of reading "environmental" slogans that use conservation to mean preservation. We saw a shirt at whole foods the other day that says "conservation is the key." Now, I agree that conservation is good, but if you ask the schmuck that'll be wearing that shirt what that means and they'll give you an explanation of preservation. Gifford Pinchot was a conservationist, John Muir was a preservationist. Conservation is maintaining something for future use (ie, making sure we have timber for future use). Preservation is maintaining something for future NATURE and WILDLIFE (ie, making sure wildlife will have a home, LEAVING the timber there, not touching it). When you say you're a conservationist you mean I want this to be here for the future but in a anthropogenic way. Preservation is ecocentric, conservation is anthropogenic. Preservation = nature. Conservation = people. Does this make sense?

Finally, back on the stupidity front because this needs to be said. At the zoo yesterday there was a family of "rednecks" in front of us through most of the PNW exhibit. These are the kind of people that go to zoos to enjoy the fact that we've put these animals behind bars, mans dominion over nature so to speak. While looking at the bobcats (one of my favorite NW predators) this girl says "We have one of those at home" Now I figure she means either in the woods near her home or maybe they have a permit to have one as a pet, or even that she's mistaken. After several attempts at getting a rise out of people with this line she gives up, stating "Well, a dead one anyway" Later, at the spotted owl (whom they tried to blind with their flash, breaking zoo policy) the father stated "hey we have a dead one of these at home too" (insert redneck, local yokel laugh). What is wrong with these people?! meh . . .

Oops

Right now I should be at Finley, trudging through the (likely very wet) bushes. I crashed out last night, not setting the alarm or getting anything ready for today. I therefore woke up late, too late really. I feel as though it is okay, since it was raining pretty hard. They're calling for more rain throughout the day (though there is currently none). Yesterday there were scattered thunderstorms off and on all day. They weren't calling for them today, but I certainly wouldn't have wanted to get stuck in one while out surveying! We're leaving for Grants Pass Thursday, meaning I won't be surveying this week. Hmmm, how does this affect things? I'm not sure. Next week I go to Seattle with my parents, Rhonda and Audrey. We'll be leaving on the 26th and coming back on the 28th, meaning I'd have to survey Monday, Friday, Saturday. I haven't heard back from Doug, so I'm not sure what to do. Ugh . . .

I finished the Huckleberry rough draft yesterday. It is 10 pages of text. It may or may not be good, I didn't really read through the whole thing, just in pieces. The fact that huckleberries are in such high demand is quite amazing to me. I still go to the coast and run into people that don't know what they are, apparently they're only popular in areas where they occur on several thousand acres. This is a rather weird situation really. Nobody is sure how best to manage the plants or the people, people are lying to the forest service to get out of following commercial regulations and sometime people are bringing guns and dogs in order to protect "their" bushes. Yes indeed folks, here in the Pacific Northwest we are all CRAZY!

Julie and I are headed to the Oregon zoo. If we get a two plus one membership (same as at the aquarium) we can get into any zoo in the country. Cool! Now I suppose we'll be headed to Portland on a semi-regular basis too, not that I'd complain about that!

Thunderrific

Last night there was a thunderstorm. It was nice, I've not seen many in the Willamette Valley. It's pretty amazing how something that is functionally the same everywhere, is in reality different. The thunderstorm I drove through while in Western Nevada was by far my favorite thunderstorm ever. Our dogs weren't very happy about it, though they weren't upset either! They may have been barking at another dog, I kept thinking I heard one freaking out in the distance, but I was half asleep when our dogs started getting worked up so I'm not sure.

We have a family of red-breasted nuthatches visiting our feeders on a daily basis now. A flock of chickadees too, though a small flock compared to the ones I see at EE Wilson and Finley. Now we have a family of dark-eyed juncos (Oregon variety) too. They were all out at the same time this evening, it was fabulous.

Yesterday we went to the coast, to avoid the heat (after heading to Sweet Life for breakfast of course). It was cold and foggy and the best get away. We bought an annual pass to Yaquina Head. Then we watched a family allow their daughter to steal cobbles from Cobble Beach (you aren't supposed to take anything but driftwood), their son to dig a large hole in the beach and their youngest son to throw very large rocks into the tide pools (also against the rules). The bumper sticker on the back of their van? George W. Bush, 2004. It figures. All of the pelagic birds were still active, and there were WAY more seals out and about yesterday too. We hiked around on several new beaches, climbed on rocks (my favorite), and generally had a good time. I love Newport.

Tomorrow I have to finish my paper for FW 470. I'm only two pages from the minimum so I feel like it should be easy to do. We'll see though! Thursday night we leave for Southern Oregon. My high school reunion is on Saturday. It'll be just like old times because Derek Hammill and I (and our families) will be responsible for set-up and clean-up. Weird how little things have actually changed. I'm excited and nervous about seeing people. I mean I didn't have that many people that I considered friends. Apparently they've asked about me, which is even stranger since I didn't like many people (though they all say they liked me). What is it about high school that makes people treat others so horribly, and then after graduation admit that they thought you were alright? Ugh . . . I haven't heard from the Student Sustainability Center yet, about the Compost Coordinator position. I'll probably stop in tomorrow to see about it. Also, I haven't heard from the people I contacted about graduate school. This is the second time I've tried reaching people and never heard back from them. I'm not really sure what to do. I'd like to hear back from Marzluff most of all because I find University of Washington to be the most appealing school, with the most appealing research and majors. We'll see.

Funny

A public school teacher was arrested today at John F. Kennedy International Airport as he attempted to board a flight while in possession of a ruler, a protractor, a set square, a slide rule, and a calculator. At a morning press conference, the Attorney General said he believes the man is a member of the notorious Al-gebra movement. He did not identify the man, who has been charged by the FBI with carrying weapons of math instruction. "Al-gebra is a problem for us," the Attorney General said. "They desire solutions by means and extremes, and sometimes go off on tangents in a search of absolute value. They use secret code names like 'x' and 'y' and refer to themselves as 'unknowns,' but we have determined they belong to a common denominator of the axis of medieval with coordinates in every country. As the Greek philanderer Isosceles used to say, 'There are 3 sides to every triangle.'" When asked to comment on the arrest, Attorney General said, "If God had wanted us to have better Weapons of Math Instruction, he would have given us more fingers and toes." Political leaders told reporters they could not recall a more intelligent or profound statement by the Attorney General.

Altered from an anti-Obama comment on an anti-Obama article on AOL news. I believe it was called "nine mistakes made by the Obama campaign." I don't recommend reading it unless you want to be amused and irritated by an unintelligent, biased, analysis of Obama.

Fire

When many people think of Western Oregon, the Willamette Valley in particular, they think "green" and "rain," maybe even "water." This leads them to believe that drought is unheard of and to not take proper precautions when working with machinery near grass and other highly flammable vegetation. Here in Oregon our grass becomes VERY dry and VERY ignitable in August. I don't remember a year where this wasn't the case. In Southern Oregon we actually have ordinances against running machinery, chainsaws, tractors, cats, and trucks for example, after 10:00 (sometimes earlier when it's really hot/dry). Apparently we don't have these ordinances in the Corvallis area, or we do and people don't follow them. There was a fire at EE Wilson between August 7, 2008 and August 14, 2008. It wasn't very big, ten acres or less I'd say. The burned area is directly across from my favorite site. I had to walk by it this morning and boy did it smell bad! I've been around burned areas before and I don't remember any of them smelling this bad, part of what makes me believe it was a recent fire (plus they were running tractors all over when I left on Wednesday). The grass is gone, several of the trees are gone, others of them look as though they're going to die. It's pretty crazy. Even crazier is that I could here common yellowthroats talking in the burned area!

I saw an adult coyote this morning. She stared at me while I told her how lovely she is, she didn't move far when she did decide to move. I also told her not to be so trusting of people because here in Oregon people shoot coyotes for sport (which is legal, there is a bounty on them). I like the coyote pack at EE Wilson, I see them every week and they let me get pretty close. With hunting season approaching I can't help but wonder what will happen to them. Do people shoot them just for the hell of it? Or because they believe that coyotes will affect their hunt? Ugh, I dislike most hunters very much.

When I got home I took the dogs out to go potty. I saw a turkey vulture while we were on Witham Hill. It was eating a grey squirrel that had been hit by a car. Oddly enough it was in the grass, maybe it carried the squirrel there? Anyway, the dogs wanted to chase it as usual. I didn't let them, and I encourage the turkey vulture to not fly off, too many crows around that would snatch up its meal! It stayed and let me get a nice long look at it. It was an adult, probably male because it was on the smaller side of turkey vultureness. He was lovely, his feathers seemed a little dull but they molt before migrating back in spring, these feathers are over 6 months old. If you can't tell I LOVE turkey vultures, I wanted to snuggle this one. I find them to be supremely wonderful to watch, I've been friends with a few at the wildlife rehab center I worked at and they do a service to all of us by eating dead things.

Finally, the western tanagers were very active today (yay). I saw and heard the first white-crowned sparrows at either location. The cedar waxwings are flocking, which I assume means they're getting ready to migrate south, american goldfinch flocks are getting larger, purple finches are starting to flock up too (and some males came out of hiding). There were several warblers at the site I was at AND there was a flock of about 40 bushtits (hurray!). Also a belted kingfisher (love these guys too), a juvenile osprey, a juvenile red-tailed hawk (accompanied by an adult), several bewick's and house wrens and wrentits (I highly recommend people check these birds out-they're awesome and found only on the west coast from the northern Oregon border to southern California, they won't cross large bodies of water!), a ton of western wood-pewees, even a few swainson's thrushes. It was a good day!

On the huckleberry front . . . Annie, there is a nursery out here that I will try to get the name of, that sells huckleberry starts. They don't grow well from seeds, cuttings are ify, but if the rhizomes can be gathered they grow okay (that's my understanding). Huckleberries haven't domesticated well yet but there is a house about a mile from here that has some growing in their yard and the experimental seed station has some. Either way we'll send you some huckleberry something or other :)

Wordle Tagcloud

Huckleberries

Julie's posts about Pendleton and AAA's questions about huckleberries have inspired be to put a little of my research for FW 470 in my blog. Huckleberries are part of the Vaccinium genus. This genus also contains blueberries and cranberries (both of which can be found in the wilds of the Pacific Northwest as well). All told there are 400 species of huckleberry worldwide (Vaccinium spp), 26 found in North America, 17 in the Pacific Northwest. Nearly all tribes in this area considered the huckleberry to be sacred. Before non-Indians began settling the area the tribes would dry the berries, eat them raw, or make them into "patties" or "cakes" and then dry them. When non-Indians moved out here and saw them eating the huckleberries they began picking them too. Huckleberries were canned or made into jams, jellies, pies, etc by euro-american settlers. When the depression "hit" the commercial harvesting of huckleberries by non-Indians increased, often creating conflict with Indians on traditional picking grounds. Today fire suppression has caused huckleberry production to decrease (they are rhizomous early-succession plants, they need light!). With the increased popularity of huckleberries in gourmet cooking, magazines, restaurants, and their increased use by cottage industries (syrups, jellies, candies, etc) less of the annual harvests are being left for tribes and home use. The saddest part of this story is that huckleberries have not been domesticated yet. This means that wild huckleberries, which also provide food for countless species of birds and both brown and black bears, are being over-harvested. Our national forests contain a high percentage of the berry field used by commercial harvesters . . . meaning huckleberries have reached a first come first served status. Pickers are often bused in before the picking season opens, to scout out areas with high numbers of berries. These pickers have no ties to the area, to the plants, or to their maintenance. This causes them to be rough with the plants. Huckleberries grow in clusters, so this carelessness also causes unripe berries to be picked along with ripe berries. The following link is for a US Forest Service Research Station publishing: http://www.fs.fed.us/pnw/pubs/pnw_gtr657.pdf.

On another note, it was 95 degrees here today . . . boo! I was really sick last night, I believe due to be out in the heat and having not drank enough water, so I didn't go survey today. Now I have to go tomorrow. The vegetation survey is taking much more time to put together than I expected. I'm frustrated by the management at EE Wilson and I find my interest in this study shifting slightly. I'm interested not so much in just what birds are using these areas, but in the differences between them and the possibility of management types affecting the diversity of species and numbers between the two sites.

Hot, hot, heat . . .

Alright, this heat has got to stop! I was drenched in sweat by about 9:30 again this morning. I know I live in Oregon and that hot weather is normal, but PLEASE . . . it's too much! I'm just glad I'm not doing these surveys in Southern Oregon, then I probably would want to cry. The birds were pretty inactive, visibility wise again today. I did see some Black-capped Chickadees but not many. There were very few black-headed grosbeaks too. Wilson's warblers and macgillivray's warblers were not to be found, but yellow warblers were there early this morning. Red-breasted nuthatches were really active today. I saw an adult with a fledgling "begging" along behind it. The lack of birds has become quite fascinating. Even the rufus hummingbirds and swainson's thrush didn't make an appearance. Weird. This could all relate to the increasing amount of mowing they're doing at the refuge. I must say that I'm quite disappointed in the EE Wilson management team. Not only are birds hunted at this refuge but so are large game (deer) and cottontail rabbits. My horror keeps growing as the bushes and grass become less. It all seems a little too "canned hunt" for me. Anyway, the best part of my day was watching an adult female norther flicker (red-shafted) chasing an adult female american kestrel. An adult female cooper's hawk made a very brief appearance as well. How do I know it was a female? The bird was quite large, in fact at the large end of the cooper's hawk size spectrum.

On the way back to the truck I consumed a large quantity of blackberries. They were delicious! I ran into a family picking berries too. The husband and wife were armpit deep in blackberry bushes and their son was standing in the middle of the "road" staring at me. It was rather amusing.

As I walked I pondered life. What I'm doing right now seems valid, at least I keep telling myself that. Both sites are managed for a very specific person. Finley is managed for the dusky canada goose and EE Wilson for the hunters. While I should feel like I'm doing a good thing I feel like it is rather pointless. This could be hormones talking, sometimes I get dejected when I'm hormonal. Either way what difference do the songbirds make? They won't bring money to either refuge. In fact EE Wilson doesn't even charge for its permits . . . they manage for the hunters who don't pay them a dime to hunt there. They pay for the license obviously, but what is the point of the permit if there is no charge? I suppose to keep track of how many hunters are coming through the area. Elk hunting on the outskirts of Finley opens soon. There is an extended season because of the elk population. People that live near the refuge complain about the elk coming onto their property and causing damage. My opinion? They're some of the last elk in the valley . . . shouldn't you think it's neat to see them? I know I do, and I've seen elk in Southern Oregon and near the coast. All of this brings me to my final point. I used to think I would rather live in a community kind of like Corvallis. Now I don't know. Maybe I'd rather live in a quasi-urban area so that I can try to restore what has been altered, and work to prevent damage as urban areas expand. Eh . . . this whole grad school thing has me perplexed.

On a more positive note, huckleberries should be ripe soon. The research paper I've been doing on huckleberries has them permanently on my brain. They are my favorite fruit EVER and they're really good for you (as are pie or tart cherries and the cherries native to the Willamette Valley). I need to go huckleberry picking, maybe it'll ease my mind.

Finley Day 3

Where were all the birds today?! I'll tell you where, hiding. I could hear some of them in the centers of the bush islands I survey, but say not nearly as many as usual. Oddly enough I also saw some lazuli buntings and common yellowthroats begging, which I haven't seen in a few weeks. There were a few western tanagers out and about and the white-tailed kites were actually in the unit today, not to the south as they usually are. Saw a juvenile macgillivray's warbler and a few male finches (purple and house). Doug says the males are probably hiding out, molting right now. That makes sense since I haven't seen many compared to females and juveniles. Molt is probably why I didn't see many birds in general today, they all hide out since they can't really fly.

The highlight of the day was first thing this morning. It was foggy this morning, a very dense fog. As I was walking I could hear elk talking to each other to the SW-SE. Their calls are pretty eerie as it is, when its foggy it is even more so! I was almost to the start of my surveys (still foggy) when I heard a loud noise to the W. I looked and there was a spike elk and a young cow, staring at me. They turned E so I looked where they were looking. There was a herd of about 50 elk, one bull with really big antlers. I started talking to them, telling them that they needed to move because I didn't want any trouble but needed to be where they were. They didn't move for quite some time, and then when they did . . . they disappeared! With the elk gone I went to the first island. Just as I was getting ready to pull my binoculars and notebook out of my backpack I hear a large animal slamming on its breaks. I look up and there were two young cow elk staring, wide-eyed, at me. After about 60 seconds they turned on their heels and ran. It was pretty crazy!

Busy Day

Today has been very productive. I did a lot of housework, finished a book for FW 470, made backgrounds for Julie and myself, played with the dogs, and contacted Les Schwab, Qwest, and my adviser.

Julie reminded me that rough drafts of our papers are due next Monday, I'm not nearly prepared for that! We need to watch a video for FW 470 too but the Olympics are on, so who knows if or when that'll happen! I should do some data entry today too. I applied for a position as Compost Coordinator at the Student Sustainability Center today. I love dirty jobs so I'm pretty sure that collecting and maintaining compost will be right up my ally. It'll also be an on-campus job to bring in a little extra money (hopefully avoiding another loan). My days will end up being REALLY busy, but oh well! My adviser gave me a list of schools that have researchers/graduate advisers that work within my interests. Most of them are in the South/Southeast and Midwest, which I think is really interesting. Why aren't we doing more to study urbanization and resource use in the west? University of WA is the only college that he recommended for the west coast. So odd. If Julie ever gets a list from her adviser it'll be interesting to see if any of the universities "line-up".

Finally, the men's 4x100 freestyle relay was amazing last night! Jason Lezak was AMAZING. Well and truly, amazing. USA gymnasts were expected to do superbly, thankfully it was just the qualifying round that they messed up so badly during, Sean Johnson was fantastic though. The 33 year old German gymnast, Oksana C., did amazing at the vault last night too. 33 and still a gymnast, I remember her during the Barcelona Olympics! There is also a female swimmer that is older than most. She's 41, Dara Torres, and I think it is fantastic to see "older" people competing this year.

RIP Bernie Mac and Isaac Hayes

Sadness has struck the entertainment world. Bernie Mac died roughly 36-48 hours ago and Isaac Hayes died about 24 hours after Bernie Mac. Two very funny, very talented people have now left us all short. Even worse is that for the most part the Olympics have taken precedence over reporting their deaths! I mean not really, they're deaths were mentioned on the news, but it just seems like a pretty big deal to me and it makes me sad that they haven't received more coverage.

Also, the wall arch in Arches National Park has fallen! Erosion claimed it and is likely to claim more arches in the future. Nature creates some amazing things, and is never shy about claiming them. It is really quite fascinating.

Finally, I've been entering birds into my computer for my survey for several hours. At this point I've entered well over 300 birds and still have about four days and 30 pages of data to enter. I didn't realize that I've seen so many birds!

Fun times

Today was a delightful break from five hour bird surveys and homework. Our original weekend plans included the Siletz pow-wow, but upon realizing that may require the dogs to stay kenneled up all day. As a result we headed to Newport (we go at least two times a month). For the first time we decided to pay the $7.00 to visit the BLM run Yaquina Head. There are many hiking trails in this area and it ultimately was well worth the money. We'd like to get an annual pass because it would be a great place to watch winter storms from. We visited cobble beach, a beach where the rocks and pebbles literally look like cobbles. Then we took the dogs to Agate Beach, just south of Yaquine Head. The dogs and I ran like maniacs among the dune-like piles of sand and played in the ocean for a little while. Freyja can't resist drinking the ocean so we don't go in too much anymore (she made herself sick last time!). After the dogs were well worn out we headed to the Newport Aquarium (where we are also members) for lunch (why not support the aquarium if we're spending the money anyway?). We also watch sea lions being goofy and otters being fed. We also visited the sea birds before heading the Hatfield Marine Science Center. We LOVE HMSC (I actually often wish I was taking classes there, just to be there). After that we headed back to Yaquina Head and bird watched for a bit. There were a tone of white-crowned sparrows. Thankfully it allowed me to realize that I haven't definitely not seen or heard any of them at my study sites. We also saw Brandt's, double-crested, and pelagic (only a few) cormorants, brown pelicans, pigeon guillemots, common murres, song sparrows, barn swallows, and a ton of gulls. The lighthouse was open for a twilight tour so we hiked up Salal Hill while we waited for it to open. From the top the view is amazing (1000 ft above the ocean!). There were a lot of people at the lighthouse so the tour was shorter than I would have preferred but still awesome. After that we headed to Quarry Cove. In the cove the Harbor seals were plentiful, the icing on the wildlife cake were the gray whales that were just off the coast. This is one of my favorite times of year at the Oregon Coast, the whales are a big part of this. Anyway Quarry cove is this amazing place that was once a rock quarry, then given to the BLM with the rest of Yaquina Head. The BLM created artificial rocks, which became real tidepools, then the sand and the seals came, creating a place that at first glance is very real. It was completely magickal and is possibly my favorite place on the OR coast now. Finally, seeing Quarry Cove gives me hope (at least a little) for preservation, conservation, and restoration efforts worldwide. Now we're watching the Olympics. This is something I have avoided for the last several games (for the most part). I'm so opposed to the competitiveness. Now that I am older and wiser I see them for the beauty that they can be. People from small countries that I've never heard of competing on a global level, just because they can, even when the rest of the world is laughing behind their hands because these people have "no hope" of winning (say the commentators). It really can be a cool thing.

OYE

The managers at EE Wilson have mowed some of my shrubs! In some small sections they're completely gone, in others they're just thinner. I'm not sure how this affects the survey. I saw a juvenile and adult female Orange-crowned warbler today. There were a ton of juvenile Cedar waxwings too. Normally I see predominantly adult Cedar waxwings and wonder where all the young are, today it was the opposite. There were three American kestrels too, an adult male, adult female, and a juvenile. Other birds of prey included an Osprey and an adult female and juvenile Northern Harrier. The female Northern Harriers always fly really close to my head, sometimes I honestly believe they are thinking about landing on me. The males never fly as close and the juveniles sometimes do, sometimes don't. At one point the female was perched in this ridiculously small, dead tree or bush. Above her five Purple finches were rockin' out, it was so funny. Another weird phenomenon is that I rarely see adult male Purple or House finches. I see what could be young of female (some combination of both is likely) but they are infrequently accompanied by males of their species. In the second site of the day there was a Western tanager female. I'm sure there were more but I couldn't find any (I tried really hard). Otherwise there weren't any new birds today. It was oddly another day with no Bushtits, I wonder where they've gone? My curiosity about bird behavior is certainly being piqued by this experience. Maybe I'll end up trying to find some combination of urban ecology/landscape dynamics and bird populations with consideration of their behavior in influencing how they respond to the things we do. That was a little wordy, but I think I got my point across! I almost forgot the craziest thing that happened today, well one of them. At one point near the "lake" that I pass by, between the first and second site I did today, I have to pass through some very tall cottonwoods. As I approached them I could hear European starlings in the trees. Not just a few either. I'd say there were probably 60 of them! They created such a cacophony like none I've ever heard before (at least not recently). The other weird thing was that I ran into a young coyote. It ran ahead, but never very far. I ended up running into it three times before it finally ran in the opposite direction. I love coyotes, they're so weird. There was a pack I used to watch when I was in Murrieta, CA. They were at the Santa Rosa plateau (on Nature Conservancy land) and would let me get VERY close to them before they disappeared. Often they'd start talking . . . they seemed quite unphased by my presence. Anyway, I'm off to work on Ecology and History of the Columbia River Basin homework (videos).

Fixed the comments

Apparently I had my blog comments set as userID only. Julie showed me how to fix that so anyone who wants to comment now can. I also had a great blog going but my computer ate it!

Today I was at EE Wilson. There didn't seem to be as many birds today, but I came away with more data. So, there must have been more birds and it just didn't seem like it. My flock of Bushtits wasn't there today. I love watching these guys because they're so full of character, having to count them is another story though! They're super small and are often in flocks of 20-40 birds (though I've seen them as small as 10, I've heard stories of them being up to 50). The Western wood-pewees were out in force. They were being hilarious, chasing each other around and calling endlessly. There were a ton of Black-headed grosbeaks too, even in the small black hawthorn. The Cedar waxwings made a strong appearance too, also in the black hawthorn. I saw the Great-horned owl again. It is in the site I went to first today every morning that I'm there. I also saw a juvenile Great-blue heron and an juvenile Turkey vulture. At one point a covey of about 20 quail flew out of one of the blackberry bushes. Two males stuck behind, watching out for the others maybe? Otherwise there wasn't much excitement today. The Common yellowthroats are not singing anymore and they didn't call much today at all. I'm starting to wonder about the Song sparrows. Some of "them" are so dark, I have to wonder if they're actually song sparrows. They seem like it, I'm just beginning to doubt myself!

Eh, this is really all for today. I'm tired and have a lot of work to do. We'll see what kind of birds tomorrow brings!

Finley Day 2

I'm back home after another five hours at Finley. I forgot to reset the alarm from this weekend so it didn't go off until 5:30 (I'm supposed to be at Finley at 5:30). Thanks to my organizational skills I was out the door by 5:33, three minutes to get dressed, throw my shoes on, grab my gear, give Julie a hug and run out the door. It was a HOT day. I also ran the lines in a different order today, hoping to make things faster. It didn't work, I just ended up in the plot that takes 1-2 hours later, with the sun almost directly in my eyes when I looked up at the bushes/trees. However, I saw many wonderful things today. I saw another MacGillivray's warbler (heard a few in the bushes), heard my Wilson's warblers again, saw two and heard two Western wood-pewees, watched a juvenile Brown-headed cowbird, saw a ton of immature Cooper's hawks, a White-tailed kite, a handful of House finches, and a juvenile Yellow-headed blackbird.

For the most part I'm hoping we get to band out there next year, or that these calls start sinking in a little better than they are! My call ID is not what I'd like it to be and sometimes I get overwhelmed thinking about the potential ramifications incorrect IDs on my results. Though in reality there are quite simply a lot of Lazuli buntings, Common Yellowthroats, and Savannah sparrows (to name a few) and not many of the others, making it more obvious when a new bird is in the mix. As I reach hour 4 things start to sound the same (a little) and then I know I'm in trouble.

I find the results of these two weeks of surveys to be quite interesting, even if they are slightly inaccurate (though I don't think they REALLY are). Wilson's warblers aren't scrubby birds, there were Northern flickers in the black hawthorn, they certainly didn't nest there. Eh, I don't know what'll happen, either way I like what I'm doing so I suppose it doesn't matter too much.

Data entry is not going as quickly as I'd hoped. I still have several pages from my visit to Finley last week. Oh well, I suppose I have a little while to work on the data entry portion of the program. Now, back to homework, data entry, maybe a nap, and hopefully some necklace making (though that may wait until this weekend).

vows, confirmed.

This weekend went well. I had the opportunity to take Julie to one of my favorite places in the world. We got lost a little when first getting into Charleston, three years since I last went and I apparently couldn't remember 100% of the directions. I was tired due to the lack of sleep and the long drive so getting lost made me grumpy, I got over it though. We went to Shore Acres via Simpson Beach (Shell Cove). Upon seeing the cove Julie decided we should have our ceremony there. I, of course, agreed because it is my favorite place EVER. There were a lot of Rufus hummingbirds and Cedar waxwings at the botanical gardens. Just around the Northern bend of the Cove there were Common murres going crazy in the water. We couldn't count them all but it sounded like there were well over one hundred! The ceremony went very well, we're now bound for life (which I'm just fine with). Today it's back to the grindstone. Tomorrow it's back out at sunrise. Hopefully things will go a little smoother at Finley than they did last week, though I suppose only struggling through one place it alright. What would life be without a little struggle?

Sleepy First Entry

This blog is an effort to record the processes of my first research project. Currently I attend Oregon State University as a post-bac student. My first B.S. (received in June) is in Natural Resources and my second will be in Fisheries and Wildlife Conservation. My research project is an off-shoot of some research that has been done in the Midwest on early-successional forests and mature-forest birds. The two sites are at EE Wilson Wildlife Refuge and William L. Finley Wildlife Refuge. Growing up in Southern Oregon I didn't have a lot of experience with non-serpentine wetlands. The Willamette Valley used to be a rather extensive wetland. Today only about 1% of Willamette Valley wetlands are left. Thankfully both of these sites are marshy and I've come to realize that I LOVE wetlands/marshes. They provide for a very diverse array of bird species, from Western Wood-pewee, Pacific-Slope Flycatchers, Black-Headed Grosbeaks, American Goldfinches, Bewick's Wrens, a ton of Northern Flickers, American Robins, and European Starlings, Northern Harriers, Osprey, Red-tailed Hawks, Turkey Vultures, Wood Duck, Pied-billed Grebe, Great Blue Herons, and Green Herons to name a few. Today I watched an adult female coyote teaching three young coyotes to hunt. They were adorable! Two of them kept staring at me, until the wind shifted and they caught my sent, then they disappeared.

We're going to the coast tomorrow and on Sunday we'll be confirming our vows. Then back next week for more school and more EARLY mornings. Speaking of which . . . I've gotta' go to bed.