GardenGrrl's WunderBlog

Posted by: GardenGrrl, 19:56:GMT den 14. juni 2013

Went to visit the Black Prairie Raptor to take photos of these beautiful birds. You may ask how they got these birds. One (screech owl) was hit by a car and can't survive on it's own in the wild. The others were found by well meaning people that did not know how to rehab raptors. Most were young and became too imprinted to humans to survive in the wild.
So please, if you find a young or injured wild animal, if you can catch it without harming yourself or the animal, please turn it over to a wildlife rehab center.

This is the Falcon Blog featuring the American Kestrel and the Peregrine Falcon.

The American Kestrel also know as a Sparrow Hawk, is the smallest of all falcons. It is I confess my favorite of all the wild birds out there and I have spent a lifetime resisting the urge to make one a pet. They are about the size of a Blue Jay. Kestrels prefer fields and open spaces bordered by woods or tall manmade objects like power poles and street lights to perch high and watch for prey.

Kestrels like to eat field mice, grasshoppers, crickets and voles. They are good to have around unless they run out of their favorite foods. Then they will eat smaller birds.

Kestrels tend to form strong pair bonds and often mate for life. The female is the one who picks her mate. She is slightly bigger than the male and the boss. (No wonder I like Kestrels.) Right now there is a live Kestrel nest cam sponsored by Cornell University. Here is the link;

Kestrel Cam

Peregrine Falcons; the fastest animal on the planet.
During a dive into its' hunting swoop the Peregrine reaches speeds of 200mph! One was clocked at 242mph. When they strike their prey it's lights out for that bird. Yes, Peregrines are cannibals and mostly eat other birds. Because they nest on the highest place possible, cities often encourage Peregrines to nest on office buildings so they can take out the local pigeon population. I have no idea how they encourage peregrines to live downtown. Large Eagle realtors? When they do nest downtown the Peregrines tend to become well loved local celebrities with their own bird cam.

Don't Think I'm bad because I eat other birds.

If you want to see the rest of the falcon shots go here Link

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Baby Cardinal Video

Posted by: GardenGrrl, 03:04:GMT den 01. juni 2013

Ta-Daaaa, my first video on You-Tube. A cardinal family has built a nest in my climbing rose bush. There were three eggs and two have hatched. The video isn't real great because it's being shot at the far end of my zoom as not to pester the parents.

So this is going to be the baby bird and nature photo blog :-)

img src="">

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Wild Flowers

Posted by: GardenGrrl, 00:25:GMT den 20. mai 2013

Here is the conclusion to the Austin trip. The Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center.
President Lyndon Johnson's wife Ladybird, loved wildflowers.
She was concerned that even back in the 1970's, Texas wildflowers were becoming scarce.
It is through her work and the work of her center that Texas highways are lined with bluebonnets and what were nearly extinct native wildflowers.

So here are a few pictures from the collection at the Wildflower ...

Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center

Updated: 10:30:GMT den 28. mai 2013

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Grandbury Tornado #32

Posted by: GardenGrrl, 16:19:GMT den 10. mai 2013

Just off IH-35 going to Georgetown, Texas is a cheesy billboard with bad graphics of prehistoric animals. It has an equally unappealing name; Inner Space Cavern. Of course we had to check this out.

This is a gem of a small limestone cave found while the highway department was core drilling samples back in 1963. When they broke into a hollow pocket an adventurous/crazy highway worker decided to ride the drill bit forty feet down into the unknown. That was ...

Updated: 14:52:GMT den 16. mai 2013

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Texas State Capitol

Posted by: GardenGrrl, 17:30:GMT den 27. april 2013

Had a great mini-vacation exploring the Austin area.
We went to a cave in George Town and then on to the State Capitol.

The Texas State Capitol was designed in Italian Renaissance Style of local granite. Construction started in 1882 and was completed in 1888 labor provided by thousands of convicts and migrant workers.

The rotunda is a showcase of Texas history. The floor has a mosaic of all six flags that have ruled over Texas. Indigenous ...

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