We are headed to Costa Rica for a 3-day trip later this week! Courtesy of lashonharangue, so it’s sure to be a treat! Fine print: except for the snakes (shudder). May I just add that I hope to never meet a tarantula in real life? ~WG
Albatrossity
In late June we took a small road trip east, to visit some friends who live in Decatur IL. We had not seen them for a while, and it was good to catch up and just be in the presence of friends again. Now, if you have ever been there, you understand that central Illinois is not exactly scenic (unless you like corn and soybean fields stretching to the horizon). You might also know that the state’s nickname, The Prairie State, is more historic than actual; there is very little prairie left in that agricultural landscape these days. But we found some nice places to hike and birdwatch, so I thought I could share a few of those images from another patch of Flyover Country.
The Dickcissel (Spiza americana) is abundant on the prairies and old fields in my home range in Kansas, and was also abundant in the right habitat in central IL. This handsome male (identified by his spiffy black bib and vocal prowess) had a different dialect than the birds in Kansas, but that’s not surprising. Folks who can listen a lot more carefully than me can detect Dickcissel dialects even among the birds in a single county!
On The Road – Albatrossity – Summer in the Prairie StatePost + Comments (12)