Peakview Park

Donated to Jefferson County Open Space and opened in 2018, the 58 acres of Peakview Park stretch across the north wall of the Bear Creek Valley in southwest Metro Denver.  Primarily covered by attractive grassland habitat, the Park also harbors riparian groves of trees and shrubs and is hemmed in by woodlands and a residential area.

Two fine trail loops, one paved and the other earthen, offer access to the Park, where views extend to the southern Foothills and Palmer Divide highlands; Mount Blue Sky and Pike's Peak poke above the swath of foothills.

Today, my wife and I made our first visit to Peakview Park, heading over to hike in the cool morning air.  In addition to the fresh air, exercise and scenic vistas, the Park hosts an excellent variety of Piedmont grassland wildlife.  Western kingbirds were especially common this morning and I suspect that western and mountain bluebirds are common visitors during spring and fall migrations. 

Love & Choice

Romantic love is surely the most complex of human emotions, mediated by all of our senses.  On the other hand, we cannot choose to love someone.

Neither are we loved by choice; rather, love is serendipitous.  Nevertheless, as many humans know, love is not always returned and, even when love is mutual, there is no guarantee of compatibility or ongoing happiness.  True love endures but relationships often fail.

Finally, we may (and often do) love more than one person in our life.  This is complicated by the fact that we cannot choose to unlove anyone. 

The Corruption of Bird Counts

Official bird counts, encouraged by local, State, National and International ornithology organizations, are primarily used to monitor avian populations, ranges and migration patterns.  Such information assists with conservation efforts and provides vital evidence regarding the health of natural ecosystems.

Unfortunately, bird counts have become competitive, partially in response to "birding holidays" and online tracking by eBird and other groups.  As a result, some participants focus on the number of species that they can report, spending several hours at a park or refuge to maximize their count.  In doing so, they tend to ignore the true number of common, "uninteresting" species as they scour the thickets and woods for additions to their list.  They are, it seems, missing the forest for the trees.

Perhaps the data evens out as computers digest the input but individual reports are often suspect.  How someone can observe numerous species over a prolonged visit while reporting only a few sightings of a bird that is especially common during that season is confusing to this birder. 

Flashback Post LVI

Yesterday's hydrothermal explosion at Yellowstone National Park, while a threat to nearby humans and wildlife, does not begin to match the eventual volcanic eruption that threatens the region and, potentially, the planet.

See: The Yellowstone Time Bomb

Fractured News

As the Presidential campaigns intensify, Democrats, many Independents and some Republicans are surely energized by the nomination of Kamala Harris.  She and her running mate (yet to be named) will have plenty to say about the many threats to American society that a second Trump Administration would pose.

Their arguments will surely be sincere, accurate and well-delivered but, unfortunately, may only reach about 60% of Americans.  Our fractured news industry consists of conservative channels, liberal channels, traditional news outlets and a vast number of online programs, podcasts and "influencers," some reliable but most fueled by personal opinion, conspiracy theories and a wide variety of misinformation.

Whether we receive the truthful words and sentiments of the Harris campaign will depend on how we receive our news.  Therein lies the challenge for all candidates in modern democracies..  An engaged, open-minded populace has given way to politically entrenched factions, receptive only to their favored source of news. 

Kamala for the Planet!

Now that President Biden has honorably withdrawn from the Presidential race, it will be Kamala Harris and a yet-to-be-named Vice Presidential candidate who will take on Trump and his MAGA cult.  What better candidate to compete with an old, white misogynist, criminal and racist?

No longer hampered by the Biden question, Democrats can now squarely address the many issues that separate Trumpism from the great majority of Americans.  Human rights, reproductive rights, civility, law and order, economic fairness, cooperation with our allies and our democracy itself will now be vigorously defended during this election period.

Finally, America's leadership in addressing threats to our natural environment will be front and center in November.  We will remain committed to the Global Climate Accord and Trump's promise to "drill, drill, drill" will, among many other MAGA decrees, seal his defeat.  Vote for the Planet.  Vote Democratic! 

Birding, Seasons & Climate

Many birders, myself included, primarily enjoy the seasonal aspects of the pastime: witnessing the change in diversity and populations of these mobile creatures throughout the year.  While I do participate in bird counts, it is the ever-changing nature of the overall experience that keeps me enthused.

This morning, at Eagle Bluffs Conservation Area, I encountered the largest number of great egrets and red-winged blackbirds that I have seen all summer.  The reason, of course, is that they are beginning to gather in larger flocks as their breeding season comes to an end and they prepare for the coming challenges of autumn and winter.  The egrets will migrate to warmer climes while the red-wings will congregate in massive flocks (often in the company of other blackbird species) to improve their chance of finding food and surviving the colder months.

Now, as the climate warms, our life-long observations might become less valid; seasonal ranges and migration patterns will begin to change.  Nevertheless, birding will remain one of the best means of assessing the health of natural ecosystems and field trips will surely retain their appeal. 

Crossing Glacial Landscapes

Returning to Missouri from Northeast Ohio, we crossed a series of glacial landscapes.  While the term "glacial terrain" brings to mind rivers of ice, carving mountains or calving into the sea, past glacial effects are not as evident to the casual traveler.

Having spent a week atop the glaciated region of the Appalachian Plateau, we initially dropped onto the vast Lake Plain of Northern Ohio, the product of Pleistocene glacial erosion and a post-glacial meltwater lake (Lake Warren, the much larger predecessor of Lake Erie).  Angling southwestward  through Northeast Indiana, we soon passed the site of The Maumee Torrent, which marked the birth of the Wabash River Valley.

The remainder of our journey was across the Glaciated Plain of the Midwest, where the Pleistocene glaciers pushed southward, flattening the terrain.  As they retreated, they enriched the soil with glacial till, setting the stage for prairie ecosystems that have since given way to crop fields and cattle ranches.  Of course, the massive sheets of ice also determined the course of the Ohio, Mississippi and Missouri Rivers, which now drain the central U.S., from the Rockies to the Appalachians.

 

The Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad

Cuyahoga Valley National Park stretches along the river's lower valley, just south of Metro Cleveland.  The Valley Railroad, established in 1880, carried industrial materials to Akron and Canton until the 1960s.  Taking advantage of its abandoned rails, the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad began operation in 1975, offering a unique experience for Park visitors and convenient access for hikers and bikers.

Having visited the Park many times in the past, my wife and I took the train for the first time today.  Currently limited to the stretch between Akron and Peninsula (due to reinforcement construction along the Cuyahoga's banks), the train offers views of the more western sections of the Park, characterized mostly by tracts of forest.  Though some marsh and small lakes are encountered, the river remains unseen until the train approaches Peninsula.  Knowing that more scenic landscapes are found across the Valley (especially along its eastern wall), we were somewhat disappointed by the two-hour round trip.

As a naturalist who supports the exposure of others (especially children) to the sights, sounds and smells of nature, I recommend that the train be converted to open-air cars in which visitors will be more closely exposed to the Park's ecosystems and wildlife.  Transportation should be secondary to education by  immersing riders in the Valley's riparian landscape; of course, stops along the route could be used to offer brief introductions to the natural and historic features of the Cuyahoga Valley.  

West Creek Reservation

This morning, we visited West Creek Reservation, in Parma, Ohio, a relatively new addition to Cleveland's famed Emerald Necklace of parks and preserves.  The creek itself is a tributary of the Cuyahoga River and the Reservation is a combined project of Cleveland Metroparks and the West Creek Conservancy.

Stretching across 278 acres of the creek's upper watershed, the Reservation harbors a pleasing mix of forested hills, a large valley meadow and a long stretch of floodplain woodlands.  It is accessed by a fine network of trails (though the trail to the West Creek Cliffs Scenic Area was unfortunately closed today).  Nevertheless, we managed to complete almost five miles of hiking during our two hour visit and observed a large variety of forest and grassland birds.

In my travels across the country, I have encountered few cities that have protected as much open space as Cleveland has.  Denigrated in the past for its industrial pollution, this city, with its famous river and lakefront, has become a champion of urban conservation.  

Fooled by our Brains

We humans, endowed with a large brain, dominate the planet.  Unfortunately, that dominance has threatened the welfare of all natural ecosystems and their component species.

Since our brain power has also fueled an active imagination, we have concluded that we are the chosen species, created by a god and entrusted with the stewardship of Earth.  Such beliefs have led to our divorce from nature and to its gradual destruction.  Polluted air and water, ecologic disruption and climate change are some of the more significant consequences.

In reality, our planet's ecosystems would thrive in our absence.  Despite what we imagine, we are the most expendable species on Earth.  Accepting that truth and acknowledging the impact of our large brains are the keys to saving our planet. 

Violence, Guns & Politics

Every sane American condemns yesterday's assassination attempt in Pennsylvania.  It was a tragic event  for several individuals and nearly fatal for Trump himself.

Of course, this latest shooting, by a 20-year old man, will not cool the violent rhetoric that has permeated Trump's election campaign; indeed, it will likely energize Trump and his supporters.  Though Republicans have blocked efforts to impose gun control in this country, they will find a way to blame Democrats for the attack.

The motive for this shooting remains uncertain but it was most likely carried out by a disturbed individual with easy access to an assault rifle.  Mass shootings of school children have not turned the tide in America and Trump's close call will only widen the political divide. 

Back with the Martins

We have returned to my wife's family cottage on Sandy Lake, a small kettle lake on the Glaciated Plateau of Northeast Ohio.  During the summer months, this peaceful location is dominated by a large flock of purple martins that occupy a collection of apartments near the shore.

Noisy and active, the martins spend most of their day strafing the lake's surface for insects.  There they are often joined by a handful of cormorants, cruising about the calm waters or diving for fish, and by a pair of osprey that soar overhead before plunging into the lake to snare their prey.  Flocks of Canada geese and mallards forage along the marshy shoreline while a belted kingfisher moves among the docks, searching for schools of fingerlings.

This lakeside retreat is a pleasant escape from the summer heat that ravages most of the country.  Indeed, many climatologists believe that the Great Lakes region will be least affected by our warming climate (with the probable exception of heavy, lake-effect snowstorms).  Time will tell but, for now, we'll visit when we can.

A Blogging Milestone

As is evident in the right-hand column of this page, Nature's Blog has just passed one million pageviews.  I should be thrilled but I know that a significant percentage (perhaps most) are by bots, search engines and, most recently, AI readers.

Nevertheless, I'll keep it on the page to inform those focused on the business of blogging.  Besides, we humans tend to place emphasis on volume when it comes to sales, readership and consumer engagement. 

I do appreciate those who regularly indulge my opinions, rants and pontifications, especially those who share my naturalist philosophy; indeed, I know some of them personally.  My thanks to everyone who stops by, even if only once or simply by mistake.  

Artists and their Work

Recent revelations about Alice Munro, one of my favorite writers, are disturbing and made me think about how we view the relationship between artists and their work.  No doubt, we can all name a significant number of authors, playwrights, musicians and other artists who engaged in behavior or expressed views that we found disappointing, if not deplorable.

The question is: can we still admire, enjoy and support the work of these artists while acknowledging such behavior or should we boycott their work despite their exceptional talent and creativity?  In other words, how do we react when we disrespect an artist but love their work?

Some might suggest that "we are all human" and, perhaps for their own gratification, continue to support the artist.  Others, unwilling to indirectly associate themselves with immoral behavior, eschew his/her work.  While it is relatively easy to boycott a company based on their policies or products, the choice to deny ourselves the craft of an accomplished artist is far more difficult.  We recognize that celebrity often spawns unrealistic expectations but it also may cloud our judgment.

The Tropics reach Missouri

The remnants of Hurricane Beryl are now streaming NNE across northern Arkansas and the southern half of Missouri.  Here in Columbia, the outer edge of that tropical moisture is curving through our area and rain is expected for most of the day.

Since we have already received significant amounts of precipitation over the past week, this influx from the Gulf of Mexico is not welcome.  Indeed, a flash flood warning has been issued for our region.

From here, the storm's remnants will progress northeastward through the Midwest and into the Great Lakes States.  Fortunately, sunny conditions are expected over the remainder of our week, allowing the soggy landscape to dry out.  By then, we'll be complaining about the heat and intense summer sun, hoping that another storm will arrive. 

Feeding the Crustaceans

While we no longer own dogs or board horses, we are raising crustaceans.  These pill bugs reside in our compost bin, where hordes of their young mingle with the adults.

Our duty is limited to filling the bin with vegetable, fruit and yard waste.  This weekend, hosting family members for the Holiday, we produced a large amount of watermelon rind, a clear favorite of the pill bugs.  Drawn to the hot, humid confines of the bin, these crustaceans are, in turn, agents of compost production.

Unlike pets that require expensive nutrition, vet care and occasional boarding, wild creatures are a bargain.  This is especially true of invertebrates that engage in pollination or recycling; then again, they do not offer companionship or unconditional love. 

Beryl heads for Texas

As Hurricane Beryl crossed the Yucatan Peninsula, it weakened to a Tropical Storm.  Now, re-emerging over the exceptionally warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico, it is expected to strengthen.

The entire Gulf Coast of Texas (and perhaps Louisiana) is at risk for a significant storm impact.  The longer Beryl stays over open water, the more powerful it will become, possibly developing into a major hurricane before landfall.  High winds, torrential rain, flooding and storm surge will surely ravage coastal areas but inland flooding may occur throughout East Texas, if not farther north and east.

Following Tropical Storm Alberto's impact in South Texas, Beryl is just the latest threat in what will likely be a long and destructive Hurricane Season.  Climate change, still ignored or denied by many Republicans, is taking its toll on our planet.  

Aging & Selfishness

As the controversy continues regarding President Biden's fitness for office, one questions why he decided to run for a second term.  Given his age, many of us would have preferred that he turned over the reigns of government to a younger generation of Americans.  Does he really believe that he is the only candidate who can beat Donald Trump, a chronic lier, misogynist, racist and convicted felon?

Like many successful individuals who reach an advanced age while still in office, Biden has declined to retire gracefully.  We have recently observed the same phenomenon with a Supreme Court Justice and a few Senators and may personally know individuals who refused to abandon their professional practice or family business despite declining mental or physical fitness.

It is not age discrimination to criticize those who place their career above the welfare of their country, their clients or their employees.  Family, colleagues and close friends who encourage their obstinance are, in my opinion, complicit in what may be tragic consequences. 

Flashback Post LV

As the Paris Olympics gear up, I decided to republish a post from February of 2013. Go USA (with a few exceptions).

See: Rooting for Champions 

Overnight Deluge

Following the most stifling heat and humidity of the season to date, a "cold" front arrived overnight, igniting thunderstorms and torrential rain.  Official precipitation totals for the Greater Columbia area exceed 5 inches, the greatest we have experienced in our 27 years of residence.

Due to a failed gutter, we received minor flooding in one bedroom but more extensive evidence of the deluge was evident throughout the neighborhood.  A normally placid creek had risen to leave "high water" debris across lawns and gravel bars still snake along adjacent roadways.

Since we remain in a long term drought, the rain was welcome but its intense arrival was not.  Compared with Jamaica's residents, who face the wrath of a Category 4 Hurricane, our local damage was a minor inconvenience but climate change surely plays a role in both.  Indeed, despite the deluge and the frontal passage, warm, humid air still envelops central Missouri and more rain is expected this afternoon and evening. 

Solitude, Nature & Music

To paraphrase Janis Ian, they'll be Weeks Like These.  Trump's incessant lies, Biden's meltdown and a corrupt Supreme Court dominated the news.  Time for stress management.

In my case, that means solitude, nature and music, alone or in combination.  This morning, I retreated to the front porch where, in the cool morning air, a hummingbird explored one of our flower beds.  As per my usual habit, music rose from my I-phone.

We all have our comfort choices and these are mine.  Besides, they are healthier than ice cream. 

Imposing Religion

The separation of Church and State has long been a guiding principle in America.  Christian Conservatives want to change that policy.

Recently, political leaders in Louisiana announced that the Ten Commandments must be posted in public school classrooms.  Now, the State of Oklahoma has required Bible study in its public schools.

Among other alarming developments across America, this in-your-face effort to impose religious dogma is exceptionally offensive.  As we know, religious faith and immorality often coexist, especially among racists, misogynists and child abusers.  While the Supreme Court put down such zealotry in the past, our current Justices are more inclined to side with States Rights.  Vote Democratic!