Red-bellied woodpecker

Just before this guy stopped by the suet feeder, a marauding squirrel made off with a mouthful. The squirrel was guilty, apparently, of leaving the cage door open.

Mourning dove on power line

Tufted titmouse

This was my first real attempt at birding with the new camera. It was late-day and my hands weren't steady. Plus, little birdies almost never sit still. Ideally, I'll try shooting with a tripod—some day when I can camp out long enough for them to ignore me and go about their business.

The day before yesterday I filled all the feeders for the first time in forever. I didn't feed at all last winter. That was a matter of economics. But now that I have the new camera, it's a must. I'll make it part of our "entertainment budget." I filled the hanging feeder pictured here with cardinal/songbird mix, one tray feeder with black oil sunflower, the finch feeder with black thistle, and I hung two suets. No one got wise to them yesterday, but today everybody found 'em. I saw:

• Blue jay on suet (I expect the downy woodpeckers will find it soon)
• Titmice and cardinals at hanging feeder
• Towhee at tray feeder

Looking forward to more adventures in photography. Stay tuned!

Chasing unicorns and clean coal

I heard Al Gore being interviewed on the radio today about my favorite topic: that fabled "clean coal" the industry would have us believe is already powering our salvation from global warming. The way you hear everyone prattling on about it all the time, you'd think it was more than a hypothetical.

So it was music to my ears when Al told NPR's Robert Siegel: "If it can be created, if it can be paid for, if it works, then wonderful. But let's don't pretend that it exists now. It does not."

Finally, I didn't have to stick my fingers in my ears upon hearing the words "clean coal" and say: La-la-la-la-la-la-la!

Then later tonight ... the Reality Coalition aired this ad on TV.



Even when it tastes bad, sometimes reality is just the tonic you need. Drink up, people!

Yellow-berried nandina

Nandina domestica 'Leucocarpa'
Today, J.C. Raulston Arboretum

What are you looking at?

I upgraded my camera last week and gave it a trial run while visiting The Farm for Thanksgiving. It has a great 20x zoom that allowed me to get closer to this gal than she would've liked otherwise.

I can just envision her saying, "Good day, sir. I said good DAY!"

One of these things is not like the other

Remember that game where you have to circle the item in a sequence that doesn't belong?

These photos were taken in Utah—three of them are natural wonders in Canyonlands National Park. The odd man out is the row of oil derricks. As a parting blow from our Commander-in-Grief, 50,000 acres of oil leases near Canyonlands and Arches National Parks will go on the auction block Dec. 19.

"This is the fire sale, the Bush administration's last great gift to the oil and gas industry," said Stephen Bloch, a staff attorney for the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance. "The tracts of land offered here, next to Arches National Park or above Desolation Canyon, these are the crown jewels of America's lands that the BLM is offering to the highest bidder."

Thanks, Georgie!


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Mesa arch, Canyonlands National Park
Oil derricks in Utah
Pothole Point, Canyonlands National Park
Ancient Indian petroglyphs, Canyonlands National Park
Royalty-free photos taken from CNP's Web site

Keeping hope alive

I'm not sure if there will be firm numbers on how many thousands of people volunteered for the recent political campaigns. But I believe it's safe to say that there was unprecedented involvement. As President-Elect Obama said in his victory speech Tuesday night, there is still work to do.

I predict that in the wake of this election, volunteerism will surge—among young people as well as older ones who had lost their faith. People longed for empowerment, and their efforts paid off.

No matter what issues are important to you—poverty, hunger, environmental protection, health care reform, youth mentoring, literacy, care of the aging, etc.—I think we've all learned that even an hour or two of one's time can be influential. Let us all resolve to contribute as much as we can afford. As the great fighter Muhammad Ali wisely said: "Service to others is the payment you make for your space here on earth."

Yes, we did.

Cactus

Sunday was the annual fall cookout in our neighborhood. It was an unexpected but delightful surprise to be joined this year by the adorable Cactus. With grace and patience, he gave gentle rides to many of the kids. Cactus is owned by one of our neighbors, who keeps him at a remote location. I wish Cactus could live here! But alas, the city only allows dogs and cats in this part of town.

Paving over paradise

Back in May, I wrote about an ongoing plant rescue taking place at the site of a future road extension project in Raleigh. Local conservationists and plant lovers were granted permission from city and state officials to dig and claim plants from the forested site—from diminutive spring wildflowers to larger shrubs and trees. Over a period of a few years, hundreds of people did just that. Tom Harville of the North Carolina Native Plant Society has compiled a list of at least 70 species of native plants that were collected. Tom took this photo of the site this week, where construction of the road is finally under way.

"I am saddened by this loss for many reasons, but I take a bit of solace in the fact that we did move thousands of native plants that would otherwise be gone," he says. "It also reinforces the idea that when we find a site like this, we should not procrastinate. If you know of a site that is going to be developed, let me know—please!" (You may contact Tom at tomhar@bellsouth.net.)

I'd like to use this forum to thank Tom for his tireless efforts throughout the project—for showing up mornings and afternoons to help us navigate the woods (in all seasons, rain or shine); for locating, identifying and pointing out specimens; for retrieving lost trowels, gloves and keys; and not least of all, for securing permission from the proper authorities and seamlessly coordinating the effort. He must be a real smooth talker to convince landowners that we're not all a bunch of loonies!

Black River, Sampson County, North Carolina

This is where I grew up. I'm a little bit homesick.

Willow-leaved sunflower

I took a quick snapshot of my perennial sunflowers before I went on vacation. I'd hoped to get a better photo when I returned, but most of them have flopped and gone to seed now. The willow-leaved sunflower, Helianthus salicifolius, is among several native perennial sunflowers that are, as garden author Peter Loewer puts it, “akin to many American originals: tough, rugged and, like the American skyscraper, tall and bold.”

The North Carolina Botanical Garden selected a cousin of the willow-leaved sunflower, the swamp sunflower (H. angustifolius), as the 2007 Wildflower of the Year, calling it “the giant exclamation point at the end of the growing season.” As its name suggests, swamp sunflower lives in the wild in swamps, marshes and savannas, but it will thrive in wet to average soil.

In exchange for a self-addressed stamped envelope, the Botanical Garden will give you free seeds of its Wildflower of the Year selections. The 2008 flower is white wood-aster. Send your request with SASE to: 2008 NCWFOY, North Carolina Botanical Garden, CB 3375 Totten Center, UNC-CH, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3375. I don't know whether they still have any sunflower seed, but it wouldn't hurt to ask. You can e-mail them at ncbg@unc.edu.

Please press rewind

Back to work today. Sigh.