Coyotes are back—or always seem to be—in the news. One tried to run off with a small dog out near the Sisters Airport a while back, but the owner's big dog changed the coyote's mind and it dropped the little dog. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) has, over the years, really tried […]
Natural World
Posted inOutside
The TVs are baaaaack!
One of the most wonderful things I enjoy about writing this column is all the help I get from friends who enjoy the wild things around us as much as I do. The great American writer and illustrator Maurice Sandak used the title, “Where The Wild Things Are” for his delightful 1963 children’s book. This […]
Posted inOutside
Spiders in the Northwest
Revisiting hobos, widows and violins
Judging from the phone calls, emails and text messages, things have gotten out of hand in the spider world, especially regarding those thought to be dangerous. Hence, right from the get-go, let’s put the real “Bad One,” the brown recluse, also known as the violin spider—behind us. One, it does not and cannot live in […]
Posted inOutside
Bee Well
Backyard beekeepers buzzing along
Tumalo Bee Academy is led by long-time local beekeeper Stephen Harris, who has been working with bees in Central Oregon for about the past 40 years. His business card reads, “Saving the honey bee one new beekeeper at a time.” The goal of the bee academy is to educate and encourage as many new beekeepers […]
Posted inOutside
Oregon’s Moose Count
Every time I drive over the Ochoco Forest summit I start looking for a moose. The willows along the banks of Marks Creek and quiet switchbacks with the deep forest close by give one the impression of really great moose habitat, and, if that were in the Umatilla or Wallowa-Whitman forest, there would probably be […]
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The Life and Times of a Golden Eagle Family
The Central Oregon country is blessed with people who are always ready to pitch in, and “get the job done!” That’s why the free cam streaming the only life-and-times of a golden eagle nest is up and running again this year: www.GoldenEagleCam.com. As anyone who has set up this kind of system knows, it ain’t […]
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Natural World: Bird Walks at the Old Mill
The Old Mill District and the East Cascades Audubon Society (ECAS) are again offering free weekly bird walks to any one of all ages every other Friday, April 1 through the end of May. The free walks are guided by an ECAS bird expert and wind around the trails of the Old Mill District that […]
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Natural World 2/24-3/2
Eagle Watch 2016 is Coming
Set aside Feb. 27 and 28 to attend the 2016 Eagle Watch ceremonies at Eagle Village in Round Butte Overlook Park’s visitor center, 10 miles west of Madras. The two-day celebration runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sat., Feb. 27, and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sun., Feb. 28. This will be the 21st […]
Posted inOutside
Natural World 2/17-2/24
Counting beaks
It was the winter of 1963 that I decided to go on my first official eagle count. National Audubon was starting counts to establish trends in populations, and eagles occupied my life like never before when I was issued my Federal Banding Permit in 1962. I became more aware of eagles because of banding, (finding […]
Posted inOutside
Natural World
Robin red breast
The American Robin is one of the most common native birds found throughout Central Oregon and it's usually the first on the list for anyone who develops an interest in birds, whether age six or 96. Robins are everywhere, but there’s more to a robin than meets the eye. The robins seen here in winter […]
