Alex Palmer's Natural History Notes and Thoughts

One thing birdwatchers like to do is count birds.  Counting birds, though, is not just an arbitrary pastime of avian fanatics, but is in fact an important citizen science project that assists professional wildlife biologists with the tracking and monitoring of the national and global distribution and abundance of the planet's bird life.  The following  is a list of bird species (common names) and their count that I and another volunteer conducted this morning: Date:  September 22, 2013 Time:  9am-10:45am Location:   Lake Artemesia and adjacent portion of Indian Creek Trail (see Map 1) Weather conditions:  ~65 F, Clear skies, NW Wind at ~7mph Weather past 24 hours:  Showers, ~70 degrees F, calm wind Habitat:  Woods, streams, open shallow water, wetlands, swamps, old fields Blue Jay: 4 American Crow: 2 Common Grackle:  1 Gray Catbird:  6 Northern Cardinal: 6 European Starling: 8 American Robin: 16 Carolina Wren: 1 Downy Woodpecker: 3 Yellow-bellied flyc

I've always had an infatuation with small urban creeks and streams.  Perhaps it's because I grew up around one, or maybe it's a glaring reminder that the natural landscape history of our vast cities still exists and still deserves our care.   Sligo Creek and it's surrounding valley provides an oasis for native trees and wildlife in a densely urban setting.  Sligo creek flows through the Maryland suburbs of Washington, DC, and I had the opportunity to track its entire course through Montgomery and Prince George's County via the Sligo Creek Trail . The stream collects runoff and perhaps some spring water from the Franwall Avenue neighborhood in Silver Spring, Maryland (see Map 1).  The water then collects into a storm drain, which ominously emerges into a stream channel from an underground culvert (see Photo A).   Map 1:  Headwaters of Sligo Creek.  The green pushpin is the location of the residential neighborhood that drains water into the creek. View

This morning I was awoken not by sirens or random people shouting, but by the call of a Carolina Wren .  It then gave way to church bells ringing, then to my housemate turning on the shower, and ultimately into the usual anthropogenic noise of a groggy Monday morning. Yet I felt at peace hearing that bird singing in the back yard, and I wonder how many people have the chance to slow down and listen to a Carolina Wren or other sounds of nature first thing in the morning? Probably not a whole lot of people appreciate those subtleties.  Or maybe it's more than just the fact that they can't or won't appreciate something like that - maybe it's a sign of their disconnect from nature, and their disconnect from the world around them. Perhaps I'm being over-analytical.  I still think, though, that waking up to the call of a backyard songbird is a necessary overture to anyones workweek.

Please note:  The opinions and commentary expressed in this blog post are my own, and are not intended to represent the views and policies of the Norfolk Botanical Garden Society or any affiliated organizations.   Before I can even finish saying "There's a bald eagle!" people on my tour boat jump up and practically tip the pontoon over as they scramble to get a look at the majestic bird.  The Norfolk Botanical Garden in Norfolk, Virginia is situated in an ideal location to view birds and wildlife of all sorts.  Not only is it the largest single green-space in a densely urban port town, but it is also surrounded by lakes, tidal estuaries, wetlands, and lush maritime forest.  A canal winds through the 155 acre garden, going past fragrant roses, exotic fan palms, and brightly colored flowering trees.  The canal connects the garden to a 700 acre freshwater reservoir, and visitors to the garden can take pontoon boat tours that go out onto this wildlife-abundant lake. For m