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1 January 2014
2013 Yard List
Here’s our birding yard list (species seen in/from our yard) for the past year. You can compare it with 2012’s list here. Canada geese Goldfinch Tufted titmouse Dark-eyed junco Mourning dove Black-capped chickadee White-breasted nuthatch Downy woodpecker Hairy woodpecker Blue jay Brown creeper American crow Red-bellied woodpecker Pileated woodpecker Red-shouldered hawk Carolina wren Turkey vulture Eastern phoebe Turkey Purple finch Red-tailed hawk Northern flicker Barred owl American robin Eastern bluebird …
5 December 2013
The Snoring Bird, by Bernd Heinrich
Some time ago, when I reviewed some books here, Thomas Hodgson left the suggestion that I might enjoy The Snoring Bird, by Bernd Heinrich. So I asked the library to order it, and they did, and as soon as it arrived, someone else checked it out. Then I got my turn, and today, when I returned it, it instantly got whisked off to another eager reader! Wow – a popular …
20 November 2013
First shots from the Fort Bentley wildlife cam
I was hoping for some more exciting wildlife than this… Three tufted titmice – Not what I was shooting for. Instead, I was hoping to catch sight of what I initially inferred must be a flying squirrel nesting under the eaves of the house. But I guess not – must just be a mouse in the wall…
23 October 2013
The business end of the limb
Last week, we had two wildlife deaths at Fort Bentley. The first was a mole (cause of death unknown), and the second was a screech owl (hit by a car). Here’s the mole: A look aft, at the digging apparatus: What astonishing “paddles” it possesses! There forelimbs are easily five times the size of the hind limbs, and equipped with such extraordinary claws… Here’s an iPad (i.e. low quality) photo …
5 October 2013
Birdprints
A long time ago, I posted here an image of an “owlprint” – the pattern of duff left on a pane of window glass when a screech owl smacked into it. We’ve had a couple of new avian impacts lately out at Fort Bentley… Here’s a clear mourning dove imprint on the upper level window glass (viewed from below, both inside and outside). No flash in either case… And here’s …
1 January 2013
2012 Yard List
Here’s our “yard list” of birds since we moved to the new place in June: Pileated woodpecker Red-bellied woodpecker Eastern phoebe Great blue heron White-breasted nuthatch Scarlet tanager Whippoorwill Chipping sparrow Ruby-throated hummingbird Tufted titmouse Black-capped chickadee Indigo bunting Chimney swift Red-eyed vireo Turkey vulture American crow Great crested flycatcher Louisiana warbler Broad-winged hawk Eastern bluebird Turkey Carolina wren Downy woodpecker American goldfinch Veery Yellow-billed cuckoo Brown-headed cowbird Mourning dove …
Vulture petroglyph from Castle Gardens, Wyoming
Happy new year! Time marches on – and here’s a reminder of times past… Check this out – a couple of what appear to be vultures, etched by native Americans into the siltstone at Castle Gardens, Wyoming: Diameter of the outer circle is probably 1.5 or 2 feet. My annotated (and generally embelished) version: I love the “hunched” shoulders on these birds, and their expressionless faces. What’s the small inner …
8 September 2012
Yard bird
We had a turkey in the yard this week: Pretty cool. These photos were taken from my “office” on the second floor of our house, through the window overlooking the front “yard.” I saw a flock of about 15 individual turkeys strutting through a neighbor’s field last week, too. I love living out here in the Fort.
7 May 2012
Clark’s nutcracker on Sulphur Mountain
Friday it was geese. Today, it’s a Clark’s nutcracker: The Clark’s nutcracker is a beefy alpine corvid (perching birds related to crows) of the American west. It’s a great bird in my mind, because if you’re looking at one, it means you’re up in the high country. It means you’re out where the good stuff happens. The bird is named for William Clark, of the Lewis & Clark Expedition. There …
4 May 2012
Geese at NOVA
A couple of visitors above the entrance to my building on campus today: They’re honking greetings to all the students showing up for 8am exams…
Callan Bentley is Associate Professor of Geology at Piedmont Virginia Community College in Charlottesville, Virginia. He is a Fellow of the Geological Society of America. For his work on this blog, the National Association of Geoscience Teachers recognized him with the James Shea Award. He has also won the Outstanding Faculty Award from the State Council on Higher Education in Virginia, and the Biggs Award for Excellence in Geoscience Teaching from the Geoscience Education Division of the Geological Society of America. In previous years, Callan served as a contributing editor at EARTH magazine, President of the Geological Society of Washington and President the Geo2YC division of NAGT.