Reports from all over the Willamette Valley, aka The Swamp, are coming in on Oregon Birders Online with the news of hummingbirds from the California border to the Columbia River. According to one account: “Our hummingbird feeders are exploding with hummingbirds right now. This is the most spring hummers we’ve had in a very long time. […]
Natural World
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Woodpecker Festival Ahead
On April 1, registration will be open—no foolin’—for The East Cascades Audubon Society‘s premier birding event, held in Sisters: the Dean Hale Woodpecker Festival. The event itself will run from May 30 to June 2. This isn’t “just any old” birding event. People from all over the world take in this one because they’ll have […]
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Wild Thinking
Local students learn about the importance of wildlife corridors
I get invited to lots of places to speak, but my favorite locations are schools. The bright young minds of kids who ask great questions keep me young, despite my 91 years. A recent Monday morning, found me in the classroom of Anne-Marie Eklund at Cascades Academy in Tumalo. We were joined by Michelle van Hilten, […]
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Turkey Vultures are Back Again
In spite of all the snow and cold, turkey vultures are on their way north, to their summer haunts. While air temperature does play a role in the movement of turkey vultures and other birds, it’s really the sun’s relationship to the horizon and the amount of daylight that controls their migration calendar. If you […]
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On Flies in Winter
Those annoying residents sitting in a stupor on your wall? Your neighbors have them, too
“Hey Jim,” a recent email read, “How about a Source article describing the nature and intent of ‘winter flies?’ They come into our houses—fly around slow and stupidly—do not feed—and within a day or two, they die. When they do, they seem almost completely dehydrated and they actually crumble to dust and body parts when […]
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Eagle Watch
In the wake of the federal shutdown, the annual event that almost wasn’t in 2019
Eagle Watch, the premier event of spring in Central Oregon for the last 24 years, is set to happen Feb. 23 and 24 at the Round Butte Overlook—a little way from Culver on Lake Billy Chinook. If you’ve been taking part over the years, you know what fun it is for anyone wanting to know […]
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A Reason to Love Oregon: The Sunstone
Gem of the Oregon Outback, and the official Oregon state gem
The Oregon Sunstone has an appropriate name, reflecting, as well as absorbing, the light from the sun in all its hues and beauty. For just that reason, it’s the official state gem of Oregon. But you can’t just go out in your back 40 and pick one up—unless you live in the eastern part of […]
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They’re on the Move!
On birds in winter, and all those robins you’re seeing right now
If you haven’t seen them, you’re either not paying attention, or you’re really busy doing something else. It’s really hard to miss them, especially if they’re pooping all over your deck like they are at my place, or on your car if it’s parked under the juniper tree at the edge of your driveway. Robins! […]
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Newts Deserve Respect, or Else…
Victor Berthelsdorf, who lives over in The Swamp on a farm near McMinnville, recently sent me an email with a photo of a great egret posing with a mouthful of rough-skinned newt. Berthelsdorf’s note read: “I was wondering what your take might be on this. Taken Dec. 13. Dazed & confused? Washing it off? Flipping the […]
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Where Have All the Insects Gone?
I‘m not a pessimist, at least I try not to be one. But… Early last summer, I noticed something that really bothered me. While driving between Riley and Sisters on a warm, early summer day, I noticed I didn’t have as many smashed insects on the windshield of my 4Runner as I did earlier that […]
