One Critical Thing These Three Share

Thursday, March 31, 2016

A good question to ask a class to begin a discussion might be: "Which of these species is not like the other two?"

The most obvious answer would be the turtles. But, among many other things, the Red-shouldered Hawk has a different way of catching its prey than the Red-eared Slider turtles and the Snowy Egret. So, there really isn't one simple answer to the question: which of these is not like the other two?

There is, however, one thing in particular that all three species share in common: the river. All three depend on the riparian habitat of the river for food, water, shelter and space: for survival.

These photos were taken along the Mission Reach of the San Antonio River upstream from the upper Mission Road trailhead to just past the pavilion on Monday, March 14, 2016.

Click on the first photo in a post to open the photos in slideshow view.

A Leap Day Stroll Along Salado Creek

Tuesday, March 8, 2016

About the only flowers blooming along the Salado Creek wetland on Leap Day this February were the Huisache fully covered with their fragrant yellow blossoms. Fortunately, there were more than enough birds and a few turtles to photograph. The Northern Shovelers, a pair of Black Vultures, Mallards with what suspiciously appears to be a Ruddy Duck mingling amid the flock, Red-eared Slider Turtles and a flock of Gadwalls had no idea it was Leap Day and could have cared less:

And while they are not the best photos of birds soaring I have taken, I thought these two were worth including here just to show more of the avian diversity present along Salado Creek this time of year. The first is a Caracara and the second one flying into the frame is a Red-shouldered Hawk:

These photographs were taken along the Salado Creek Greenway trail between Lady Bird Johnson Park and the end of the boardwalk near Wetmore Rd on Monday, February 29, 2016.

Contemplating a Deep Blue Sky

Midday Monday, the sky was the purest deep blue that I have seen here in San Antonio in a long time. The intense blue of the calm river water is a reflection of the sky. The slider turtles were out taking full advantage of the bright sun shining through the clear sky. Turtles, like most other reptiles, take advantage of the sun to help regulate their body temperature:

If we could communicate with turtles, I suspect we would learn much about life. They spend a lot of their time silently observing all that occurs around them. From the personal experience of having shared my backyard with a Red-eared Slider Turtle for twenty some odd years, I know firsthand just how observant and surprisingly intelligent these turtles are.

This set of photographs was taken on the Mission Reach at the confluence of the San Antonio River and San Pedro Creek on Monday, October 7, 2013.

Ahead of a Cold Front

Friday, November 23, 2012

San Antonio River, Mission Reach, Mission Rd Trailhead upstream

Today"s photos:

Technically, the leading edge of a cold front had passed through Bexar County before I arrived at the Mission Rd Trailhead, but the higher winds and cooler temperatures didn't arrive until much later in the day. It turned out to be a far more pleasant day for a walk than had been forecast.

Typical of most of my San Antonio River posts, this is a sample of the photos I took today. There will be at least two additional posts from the remaining photos.

A Walk in the Garden

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

San Antonio Botanical Garden, Texas Native Trail once around the pond

Today's photos:

There was much to see and photograph today at the San Antonio Botanical Garden, especially along the section of the Texas Native Trail (pdf map link) that circles the pond. This particular section of the trail emphasizes the plants of the East Texas Pineywoods region.

I would like to have had more time to spend walking today, but physical therapy for my shoulder took priority. As can be seen in the photographs, there is much more to the Botanical Gardens than just plants.

So that there is no confusion, the butterfly in the first photograph of the series is a Queen butterfly. It is one of at least a couple of butterfly species that closely mimic the appearance of the Monarch butterfly.