Storm on the Bay

Yesterday afternoon, fed by warm, humid air from the Gulf of Mexico, thunderstorms began to form east of Sarasota Bay; their slate-gray base...

Greeted by Storms & Kites

After some hiking in the Cumberland Plateau, we continued southward toward our condo on Longboat Key, Florida.  Approaching the Tampa area, ...

Lookout Mountain of the Southeast

Like the Allegheny Front in western Pennsylvania, Lookout Mountain, which stretches from Chattanooga, Tennessee, to Gadsden, Alabama, repres...

Grundy Forest Natural Area

Driving southeast on Interstate 24, one encounters the first ridges of the Appalachian Plateau (known in Tennessee as the Cumberland Plateau...

The Nature of Soldiers

Throughout human history, young men and women have been the fodder for war.  Whether they volunteered or were drafted into service, they hav...

Cattle Egrets in the U.S.

Though cattle egrets were first observed in North America in the 1940s and were breeding here by the early 1950s (see Global Egret ). they a...

Mountain Plovers

The only thing "mountain" about mountain plovers is that they summer and breed in the Mountain Time Zone.  Preferring short-grass ...

Southern Plains Monsoon

The annual Southwest Monsoon, which develops during the summer months, results from low pressure over the northern Baja and high pressure ov...

Summer Mode at Eagle Bluffs

After months of hosting frenzied migrants, beginning with snow geese in February and ending with various songbirds and shorebirds in early M...

Genetics & Disease

The study of human health reveals that there are a group of diseases that are clearly genetic in origin, caused by defective genes or chromo...

Rivers of the Flint Hills

The scenic Flint Hills of eastern Kansas are composed of Permian strata, lifted and carved into a maze of ridges and valleys by numerous str...

In Rattlesnake Country

At the trailhead for the Sharptail Ridge Open Space preserve, south of Denver, a sign warns of rattlesnakes in the area.  Of course, similar...

Lazuli Buntings

On a hike through Roxborough State Park yesterday morning, I encountered most of the birds common to the foothill shrublands of Colorado...

The Nature of Thought

Thought is the intellectual process of digesting personal experience, acquired knowledge and the ideas of others; it is through this process...

Swallow Squadrons

On this cool, sunny morning along the Colorado Front Range, we headed down to South Platte Park.  In the course of our hike, the resident bi...

Ditch Digging

Prior to this morning, my volunteer activities with the Carson Nature Center, at South Platte Park, had consisted of participation in waterf...

Westward into Winter

Heading back to our Colorado farm yesterday morning, we left Columbia under hazy skies; the temperature at dawn was 71 degrees F and the dew...

Life's Tragedies

Many humans face tragedy in their life, whether from war, accident, illness or natural catastrophe.  For some, such events are accepted as f...

More Mothers than Fathers

On this Mother's Day, it's appropriate to acknowledge that, in nature, there are more mothers than fathers.  Among the many inverteb...

Grass Plovers at Eagle Bluffs

Thanks to a heads-up from a friend and fellow birder who was arriving at Eagle Bluffs as I was leaving, I was fortunate to observe four upla...

Preventing Dementia

As the Baby Boomers enter their late sixties and seventies, increasing attention is focused on dementia and other diseases of the elderly, e...

Blocking Highs

Domes of high pressure may sit above an ocean or land mass for an extended period of time, shunting storm systems around their periphery; in...

Along Grindstone Creek

Grindstone Creek Nature Area, in Columbia, Missouri, is another excellent area for birding.  Riparian woodlands line the stream and limeston...

Public Prayer

Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the right of government organizations to begin their meetings with a public prayer, as long as that...

Heavenly Days at Eagle Bluffs

Eagle Bluffs Conservation Area, southwest of Columbia, is an excellent destination for birding during any season.  However, the diversity of...

Evening Visitors

As I am prone to do during the pleasant weather of mid spring and early autumn, I stepped out back last evening to see who might be visiting...

Warbler Weeks

The last week of April and the first three weeks of May are of special interest to veteran birders.  During this period, warblers are stream...

Returning to October

After more than a week in the balmy, humid air of Ohio, we returned to Missouri yesterday afternoon, arriving at dusk.  Stepping from my pic...

Birth, Death & Survival

Following the gradual thaw of March and the steady transition of April, an explosion of life occurs in May and June across the Northern Hemi...