A CMO day

The weathermen forecast 100%  chance of rain at the oasis at 3:00 PM. I don't remember a forecast like that before, so I couldn't resist going down there. My feeders needed servicing anyway. Incredibly, it started raining right at 3 PM. Got a little over half an inch in two separate showers. If it had all come in one, I likely would have had some water to pump. As it is, I don't plan on watering for 4 or 5 more days.

Deer were still coming in to drink before the rain. Probably won't need to for a while now.

I got my own Orb-weaver Spider photos today. It's always fun photographing new species.

I even photographed a different Orb-weaver Spider species (I think), as it was dispatching a wasp.

Living vicariously

Since I'm stuck in town, I get my adventure vicariously through my sisters. Today they climbed the mountain looking for a particular flower in bloom, an Arroyo Fameflower (Talinopsis frutescens). There's lots of it up there, but we've never caught it in bloom. The only bloom we've seen on it is when Ann brought one home and put it in water. But we want a photo of it blooming in the wild.

They also photographed a cool Orbweaver spider. Makes me want to pay more attention to spiders.

Promise of rain

 My sister said she got a little rain in the night and more is forecast. It'll be great for the vegetation even if my tanks don't fill. My sisters and I are into flowers on our lands. Since it's really difficult for Ann and me to scour the mountain for species, our other sister, Julia, and her daughter are filling in for us. My niece takes awesome photos of the flowers with her cellphone. Here they were yesterday doing their thing, as I photographed them high above from the comfort of the oasis.

It's always a thrill for us to discover a new species, or just to enjoy the endless beauty surrounding us. Ann consults with expert Dr. Michael Powell, whose book on the area flowers is invaluable to us. Using his book as my reference, I made a digital file of 2,000 photos of all the flowers that could occur on our land as our guide. We're a team, it's fun, and it's contributing to the knowledge of the area's flora. If you want to see our progress so far, you can check out my Christmas Mountains Flora blog. 

https://christmasmountainsplants.blogspot.com/

Meanwhile, I'm stuck in Alpine watching spiders prey upon butterflies. The  butterfly is a Hackberry Emperor. Don't know the spider.

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UPDATE: Brian says the spider is some kind of Jumping Spider of the Salticidae family.

Taking another look

 

Sunrise this morning

While watering trees today, I got to wondering about how last winter's record snowfall and cold had truly left everything, not how it looked this spring and summer, or what I imagined it should look like at this time. So I walked around and assessed everything objectively, not just seeing all the damage, like I normally tend to do. It wasn't as bad as I had expected. For one thing, no trees had died. The heavy snow had destroyed a lot of limbs, but the long term "uglification" was all due to bears. The three trees (one pinon & two junipers) missing tops are due to bears. (Next month is bear month. Lots of acorns. Yikes!)

The trees that tolerated the cold best are the oaks, Velvet Ash, pinyons, Arizona Cypresses, Chisos Rosewoods, madrones, and Alligator Junipers. That's a lot. All those are evergreens, except for the Velvet Ash and Chinkapin Oaks. The Huisache trees all froze back, but all but one have leafed out all the way to the top, although sparsely. I knew that Huisache were iffy when I planted them, so to be expected. Can't complain. Native bushes that I didn't plant, like sumac etc. were all fine. I think the soapberries in the arroyo were hurt more by lack of water than by the cold.

Besides the Huisache, another tree froze back. That's a volunteer mulberry tree. But the growth at the bottom half is lush and the dead top makes nice perches for birds. Mulberry trees grow fast, so it'll be fine next year. Normally, I would have pruned the bottom new growth off, but considering the stress the tree was in, I left it. Had I pruned it off, perhaps the top would look better. Don't know. Not sure whether I'll prune it this winter or not.

Volunteer mulbery tree

One other tree that died back is one of the few trees that were along the arroyo at the oasis before I began planting anything. So for starters, it's old. It's a Netleaf Hackberry. And it was way smaller before the dams were built. Here's a reminder of what it originally looked like after we built the first dam, but before the trees I planted had started to grow. Beside that hackberry tree were a couple of other trees, a juniper, sumac, persimmon, etc. creating a little thicket. I think this photo was taken in 1997. (That dead tree is something I planted next to our first tank so the birds would have something to perch on.)

I've lost other hackberry trees that grow along the arroyo in wet years, and then die in dry years. Last year was record drought so I think that's why it died back. But because the arroyo fills with runoff for a week after a monsoonal rain because of the dam, it didn't totally die. My opinion. Here it is today.

Old Netleaf Hackberry

I'm glad I re-evaluated the situation. I had been just noticing the damage and not noticing the trees that are doing fine, which are the majority, and especially the most important ones. It's like when you have a sick child you barely notice the well ones. All my care was focused on the trees that were in trouble

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The soapberry thicket in the arroyo is spindly, but alive. Nothing is real lush. The pecan tree has hardly any leaves on it. Not sure if that's due to the cold or the drought. 

Pecan tree

The cottonwood tree has very few leaves on it, but those it does have are healthy. I'm not giving up on any trees at this time. The cherry tree is another that has few leaves, but is alive. I realize that trees that aren't suitable for the oasis will eventually die, and that's OK. As long as I get my tanks full once a year, there'll be plenty of vegetation for the birds.

We have a chance for rain later in the week and if this winter isn't horrifically frigid, the oasis could look great next year. Especially, if my tanks fill up this late in the year. I'm dreaming, of course.

Dickcissel

Bell's Vireo

Time flies by

Can't believe it's been nearly a week since I blogged. Today I came to the oasis and finished my roof project. No one will even notice it unless it's pointed out to them, but that's fine. Don't need it to stick out like a sore thumb.

More shade, more rain catchment. The three roofs are all the exact same color but because they're at slightly different angles to the sun throughout the day, they seldom look matching from the back side.

Migration is poking along a bit slower than normal The Chinese Pistache tree is loaded with berries that draw the birds, but since the mockingbirds patrol the tree, the other species are in and out so quick that I can't get decent photos. An immature Red-naped Sapsucker came in to drink, then went on about his business of damaging what's left of my poor trees.  They all survived last year's record freeze, but some are decidedly much shorter than they had been before.

Family in Alpine

 Last night I went to the Holland Hotel to see my son, Lee, play his drums in a band there. I didn't stay very long because I treasure my perfect hearing and don't like to subject myself to loud noise.

On the way to the inner courtyard where they played, I walked past a large photo hanging on a wall that features my sister, Andrea, taken before she retired as an archeologist at Sul Ross's Center for Big Bend Studies.

Her daughter, Julie, manages Front Street Books just a block or two away from the Holland Hotel, and also teaches at Sul Ross. 

Then there's my oldest son, Eric, who owns the Triangle Market in town. He's been real sick with Covid the past two weeks. One of those who refused to get vaccinated. He mainly had an unbearable headache, extreme fatigue, and loss of taste. Today finally, his headache is somewhat better, so over the worst. Julie was real sick with Covid a year ago, before the vaccine was available, even while taking all possible precautions, and still doesn't have her taste back.

I'm so grateful for the miracle of vaccines.

Good migration day

Finally, migrants are showing up, although mostly warblers, flycatchers and vireos, not hummers. But a cold front is arriving next week that might help, although it's a very mild cold front. 

The last two days I've been watering and working on my blind project. I'm putting pipes on top of the plastic to eliminate any chance of wind blowing off the plastic and also it'll give the plastic some protection from the elements. My idea is to make it look a bit like a sotol shade, which has dappled sunlight. I'm about halfway through. Have to cut and paint more pipes. It's fun.

Here are a few pics I took yesterday and today while watering.

Dusky Flycatcher

Juvenile Painted Bunting

Gray Vireo

Warbling Vireo

Better watering day today

I took plenty of allergy medicine before I started watering yesterday and it made so much difference, plus it was a few degrees cooler than last week. I really enjoyed spending two days at the oasis, even though I was working most of that time. Always pruning etc. to do, plus I'm working on the roof span between the two viewing structures.* 

But I found time to sit and take photos of what few migrants are coming through. Just got lucky on this Black-capped Vireo. He foraged for less than a minute in a bush right next to where I was sitting. Almost too close to get him all in the frame. I think it's a juvenile male. Considering he was always in motion, and there were branches blocking my view, I'm pleased that I got this much.

So much fun at the oasis the two days a week I'm there that it makes me wonder what I'm all missing when I'm not there. I was surprised to discover a pair of Blue Grosbeaks feeding three hungry nestlings. I figured nesting activity was through for the year.

Deer are starting to come to the oasis to drink, so I assume watering holes are drying up.

During one of my frequent rest breaks I captured this Townsend's Warbler coming to bathe.

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* I'll post photos of the viewing blind when I get it finished.

Living vicariously in town

I've been staying indoors today so I won't have to take allergy meds, but I get interesting photos from friends and family that I enjoy. 

Here's one taken on August 27th by Mike Gfeller, a visitor at the oasis. He says this juvenile male Lucifer was really feeling his hormones. He displayed to male and female alike. On this photo an annoyed female got her beak grabbed by the naughty youngster! I've never seen anything like that before, much less captured it on camera. Kudos to Mike!

Awhile ago, here in Alpine, my son saw this cute little Horned Lizard.

I have plenty to keep me busy. For starters, my sisters and I see so many wildflowers we're trying to ID. Here's a few white ones from our properties that we ID'd recently.

McVaugh's Bladderpod (not a new species for us) Physaria mcvaughiana

Gregg's Keelpod (Synthlipsis greggii)

Linearleaf Four O'clock (Mirabilis linearis)

I could go on and on, but you get the idea.

Misery with benefits

Got to the oasis yesterday after lunch only to have my allergies erupt. Something's blooming that my body objects to. Strenuously. I tried to start watering but was too miserable, so I retreated to my cabin and took Claritin.

Having gone to bed too early, I woke up at 3 AM and couldn't get back to sleep. Then at daylight I took another Claritin in order to face the watering ordeal. After taking it, I read on the bottle to not take more than one in a 24 hour period. Oops!. It had only been 12 hours. So I started watering amid insufferable gnats. Tried to cover my eyes with goggles and ears with insect repellant and carried on. Maybe because of too much Claritin and Fluticasone, my nose bled off and on all the while I watered. 

By the time it got really hot (102°) a vestige of migrants visited the water drip, so that felt very rewarding. Made me forget all my misery. Looks like the birds had it so good where they were that they were in no rush to migrate. I caught this Townsend's Warbler preening after a bath.

And this Nashville Warbler caught in the act of bathing. It's a long hot trip for them, but they probably dared not procrastinate longer for fear of getting trapped in a freak blizzard.

A couple of Wilson's Warblers made their way down to the hose where I had it watering a tree, but they wouldn't bathe there with me watching.

This weekend I had my son cover the space between the two blind sections. I'm sure the wind will wreck the plastic soon enough. Eventually. I hope to cover it in metal.

While watering it occurs to me how much water I expend on a single tree to get it to 15-20 foot tall, only to have a killer freeze take it down to the ground. And I'm just thankful they all survived. But still.....  And this is one of my most native trees, a Netleaf Hackberry.

I don't know what kind of grasshopper this is, but I've never seen one like it before.

Hybrid hummingbird at CMO

Just to show you the value of taking photos, On August 27th a new birder at the oasis took lots of hummingbird photos. This person (Caley Thomas) posted them on ebird, where I came upon them. Several that were among Lucifer photos didn't look right to me so I sent the images to expert Kelly Bryan. He said it is indeed a hybrid Lucifer/Black-chinned, and the first photo documentation he's seen of a juvenile male hybrid of that particular hybrid, so that's exciting.

No photo, didn't happen, is my motto.

Nice soaking rain

During the night last night the oasis got over a half inch of rain. No runoff. It all went into the ground for the vegetation. There are endless flowers blooming all over the property. It's keeping my sisters and me busy trying to locate and identify them. While looking for diagnostic flowers on this tiny vine, that we think might be Spearleaf (Matelea parvifolia), I found a caterpillar. Hoping Brian can ID it for me.

Remember the Tree Tobacco I planted around the new tank a couple of years ago? What remains of it is blooming. I'm still hoping it'll go to seed and form a lovely thicket of them. We'll see.

Flowers and butterflies everywhere, but few birds.

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Update: Brian says that's just a moth caterpillar. Nothing of interest.