Comings and Goings

The number of bird species migrating into, out of and through Bexar County throughout the year is quite remarkable. I have at least mentioned this in several posts, most recently in the one this past Tuesday with the photos of the Cormorants. I included a little more detail in the post on July 12th about the birds at Elmendorf Lake.

This is the time of year when many birds are arriving to spend the winter and others are leaving to return to their winter homes. The Yellow-crowned Night-Heron will soon be headed to their winter home along the Gulf Coast:

This set of photographs was taken on the Mission Reach of the San Antonio River upstream from the U.S. 90 bridge on Friday, September 13, 2013.

The Water's Edge

Whether it is the shore of an ocean, the edge of a pond or a lake, or the bank of a river; the water's edge is ecologically unique and vital. Life forms of all kinds live here that can live nowhere else, as well as others that could live elsewhere, but much prefer to be where water and land meet and overlap: the wetlands.

Here is just a small sample of the plants growing along the bank of the Mission Reach of the San Antonio River:

These first two photos are Water-primrose (Ludwigia peploides), growing in great abundance along the riverbank.

The next three photos are Curlytop Knotweed (Polygonum lapathifolium).

This photo is Torrey Rush (Juncus torreyi). This is a true rush in the Juncaceae Family. Based on my own personal observation, this is one of the most common rushes growing in the wetland areas in Bexar County.

These last two photos are where things get complicated. These are two species of Bulrushes. Bulrushes, however, aren't rushes. They are sedges in the Cyperaceae Family. I don't know enough about them to take the identification any further.

The first photo in this series was taken on the Mission Reach of the San Antonio River downstream from the Roosevelt Park Trailhead on Friday, September 13, 2013. All the other photos were taken on the Mission Reach of the San Antonio River near the VFW Blvd Trailhead on Monday, September 30, 2013.

In Perfect Alignment

Sometimes light, color and form come together in perfect alignment and I happen to be there to see it:

This is a Dayflower, also known as Widow's Tears, growing next to one of the stone steps on the bank of the river. Both of the common names for this flower have a good explanation. The flower bloom only lasts for a day, but there are usually four or five buds in a cluster that open over a succession of several days, thus the name Dayflower.

Widow's Tears has a less obvious, but more interesting story. There is a modified leaf called a bract below the flower. If one gently squeezes the bract, a small drop of water will form on the tip of the bract. This is the widow's tear. So the story goes, the widow will shed a single tear for her deceased spouse and then move on.

This set of photos was taken on the stone steps at the canoe / kayak put-in point on the bank of the Mission Reach of the San Antonio River at the VFW Blvd trailhead on Monday, September 30, 2013.

Yes, the Blue Star Arts Complex Is That Direction

I have been trying to find something clever to write about this Snowy Egret all evening. I think this bird may have potential as a Mission Reach tour guide. I'll leave the caption up to you:

This series is a progressive zoom-in of the same photograph taken at the pedestrian bridge below the Roosevelt Park trailhead of the San Antonio River Mission Reach on Friday, September 13, 2013.

Much to Celebrate

The Grand Opening celebration of the final completion of the Mission Reach Ecosystem Restoration and Recreation Project will be held this Saturday, October 5th. This is the largest urban riparian ecosystem restoration to be completed anywhere in the United States. While this celebration marks the completion of the infrastructure construction, an ecosystem restoration of this magnitude is generational, requiring up to 75 years to fully mature.

The project is the result of extraordinary cooperation involving the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Bexar County, The City of San Antonio, the National Park Service, the San Antonio River Foundation and the San Antonio River Improvement Project with the San Antonio River Authority (SARA) serving as the managing partner. Kudos to all those at SARA who have worked so hard and continue to work to make this project a reality.

In celebration, all the posts here on While on a Walk this week and next will be of photographs taken along the Mission Reach.

The cormorants were very active along the river this past Monday. This is the time of year when the Double-crested Cormorants begin returning to spend the winter. Numerous flocks of  nine to fifteen Double-crested Cormorants were flying upstream in the V-shaped formations most people associate with geese.

Meanwhile, a pair of Neotropic Cormorants were flying downstream:

This set of photographs was taken along the Mission Reach of the San Antonio River not far downstream from the Southcross Blvd bridge on Monday, September 30, 2013.

Beyond Explanation

This morning (Monday, September 30, 2013) along the Mission Reach of the San Antonio River:

I am fairly certain these are Variable Dancer damselflies. The damselflies kept perching on the end of the lens of my dSLR, so the two photos of the one perched on my finger were taken with my phone camera.

I'll Trust the Experts' Word On This One

Not all hawks are birds. Take, for example, the Tarantula Hawk wasp (Pepsis sp.). These are among the largest of wasps; up to just over two inches long for adult females. The larval host for these wasps are spiders stung and paralyzed by the adult female. The adults, however, feed on flower nectar.

This Tarantula Hawk is enjoying the nectar of the Marsh Fleabane growing abundantly along the bank of the river:

I happened across one bit of trivia about the Tarantula Hawk in one of my references that I find of particular interest. These wasps rarely sting humans and will only do so if provoked. On the rare occasion when they do sting, it is said to be the second most painful insect sting of any in the world. I don't think that is something I want to personally test to find out if it's true.

(Apparently, the most painful insect sting is caused by the Bullet Ant. These ants live in the rain forests of Central and South America. I think this ant's name says it all.)

These photographs were taken along the Mission Reach of the San Antonio River downstream from the Roosevelt Park Trailhead on Friday, September 13, 2013.

A Distinctive Bark

The Sugar Hackberry is easily identified solely by the appearance of its bark. There is no other tree that I'm aware of with a knobby bark that looks anything like the Hackberry:

Unfortunately, the Sugar Hackberry has acquired the reputation of being a weed tree, especially in urban landscaping. They reseed easily. The ground along a chain link fence is prime territory for Hackberry seedlings that spring up from seeds in bird droppings. The branches tend to be weak and break off with relative ease, so they are definitely not desirable close to houses or driveways.

On the other hand, the Sugar Hackberry is one of the most valuable trees for wildlife in the United States. Over 200 species of animals depend on the Hackberry. The Hackberry is the larval host for at least four species of butterflies. Migratory birds rely on the Hackberry fruit as a primary source of energy for their fall and winter migration as the fruit and seeds are high in essential oils.

This pair of photographs was taken along the Hondondo Creek Nature Trail in Alamo Heights on Monday, September 9, 2013.