Feeling the Rain After a Deluge, The July Edition

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

San Antonio River, Eagleland Reach

Today's photos:

"Some people feel the rain. Others just get wet." 

-  Bob Marley

This morning began with a summer tropical downpour over Bexar County. By the end of the day, the official rainfall total was 2.83 inches with some areas receiving considerably more rain than that. So, in one day, just over the average rainfall for the entire month of July fell. As I have mentioned in other posts, getting more than a month's worth of rain in one day is not all that unusual in South Texas.

The rain presented a challenge for getting out for a walk. The National Weather Service had issued a flash flood warning and an urban small stream flood advisory both of which lasted the entire morning. As can be seen in many of the photos, the San Antonio River was still raging mid-afternoon. And this in spite of the fact that the Eagleland Reach of the river is within the elaborate flood control system that protects central San Antonio.

A light shower was falling. My walk was relatively short, but well worth the effort. The rain felt good.

Black-bellied Whistling Ducks (They Don't Quack)

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

If it looks like a duck, swims like a duck, and…  whistles like a song bird? Could it possibly still be a duck? Yes, quite definitely it is a duck, Dendrocygna autumnalis in the family, Anatidae, to be exact. So much for the "duck test"!

According to whatbird.com, "The Black-bellied Whistling-Duck is an unusual species among North American waterfowl. With its long legs, peculiar appearance, and odd habits, it was described by one early American ornithologist as 'most un-duck-like.'”

Black-bellied whistling ducks really don't quack. They make a whistling sound that may be described as "pe che che ne." They make a particularly stunning sight when in flight as the white feathers on the top of their wings stand out.

These ducks spend the winters further to the south. They began to return to the San Antonio River in late April. This set of photos was taken on my walk on Wednesday, July 4 on the recently opened segment of the Mission Reach:

By The Way

Monday, July 9, 2012

Hardberger Park, Water Loop Trail

Today's photos:

To give this post just a little more context, I walked the Water Loop Trail at Hardberger Park today in the late afternoon / early evening.