September 25, 2008 by OrientSee.

We mostly edit what we see. You see what you expect to see or look where you always look. As I entered Rosie’s Thicket today, I stumbled on a rock in my usual graceless fashion. As I twisted catlike (really more hippolike) I saw a stand of these flowers. Under the overcast sky it was like a borrowed bit of sunlight. The flowers had to have been there for days but I just never looked in that particular direction.

Then further along I was amazed to find this bit of human strewn indifference. Golf balls are hardly a common item in a thicket which specializes in dead tree limbs and rose thorns.  Your next assignment for short story class is write a narrative that explains this ball in a thicket next to a casket factory.

I watched a Snowy Egret in the pond stretched out motionless and horizontal on the surface of the water. For a moment I thought that it was dead but suddenly its head popped up. I have never seen an egret hold such a pose for so long a time. It must have been one big fish that it was hunting.

Still in the thicket, I looked out between some low branches and witnessed this Great Egret take off.

Finally leaving the thicket, a Monarch was catching an early lunch.

Rosie’s thicket was full of wonder today. The Long Thicket was not so filled. Catbirds, Robins, Crows and mosquitoes were the rule. The overlook had a Yellowlegs and several ducks and little else. Walking over to the Boardwalk, I caught  a picture of this late season dragonfly, a sort of insect Audrey Hepburn.

The Crow posse was very vocal and omnipresent today. Behind the Boardwalk one of them vented very loudly its outrage at my presence. I wasn’t very sympathetic.

Today I had very low expectations and yet I got to see a lot, things that I didn’t expect because I hadn’t looked in the right place before or things which just didn’t belong there were nonetheless there. An educational sort of walk today.

Ciao!

-Jorge

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September 23, 2008 by OrientSee.

Sometimes I feel the need to explain what I do but today I realized that I needn’t bother. I walk. I look. I take pictures. It gives me enormous pleasure and peace to do these things. I share them because it may give some one else the same experience.

Flame in the grass. Actually it’s just a random sumac leaf caught in the marsh grass but it looks like a gasp feels.

There is still plenty of life in Belle Isle. There are even still some dragonflies. The bugs are busy before the first freeze arrives. So the bumblebees are frantically busy before they must return to their burrows. The birds were not plentiful today (except for a biggish cloud of starlings) but low tide and noon are the usual culprits for the low turnout. This Yellowlegs was calmly feeding in a small puddle out by the Overlook.

The plant life still hosts a variety of critters like this orange and black dude.

The best sight of the day was this milkweed pod exuberantly bursting with seeds. The bundle of fluff was a sensuous delight to my fingertips.

The equinox has passed but the year is far from over.

Ciao!

-Jorge

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September 20, 2008 by OrientSee.

Signs of the time. The other day before sunrise I saw Orion, the winter constellation.  Today I saw speckles. The Starlings are putting on their winter plumage, spots instead of solid black, green and purple.  The best sign is that I no longer need to coat myself with bug spray.

The thickets were fairly empty and a few egrets were wandering around. At the Boardwalk two Great Egrets were feeding in and by one of the pannes.  It was a moment of still beauty. These two were not quarreling and the morning quiet was full.

Overhead a flock of southbound cormorants flew by.

An enjoyable walk this morning.

Ciao!

-Jorge

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September 19, 2008 by OrientSee.

 Today was definitely windy, cool and fall. The rich greens are fading. Reds and golds are clearly evident everywhere. It’s my kind of weather and a walk today was the best treat.

The only better way to have toured the marsh today was by rowboat and these people certainly knew best.

The thickets were quiet except for a few insects. No catbirds squawking, no crows calling out alarms.  Just dappled shadows and crickets. Out by the Boardwalk, two Snowy Egrets were bothering each other. One had his crest up and it looked like a mating dance of some kind. A few Great Egrets were spread across the flats but far out. A Great Blue Heron was on the Winthrop side of the creek.

Walking through the park meadow, I found the milkweed pods opening up. The seeds were tugging with the wind to get free.

On the way out of the park, this plant did purple with boundless enthusiasm.

I didn’t get to see the Whimbrel which some one spotted yesterday but it was still a great day to be out.

Ciao!

-Jorge

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September 15, 2008 by OrientSee.

The last gasp of summer. The wind was fierce from the southwest and fragrant with the smell of grass and flowers. It was humid and heavy with sunlight but it is mid-September and likely to be the last summery day till next May or June. We can still have a bright nearly hot day or two in October but none of us will count on that.

The seed heads of the phragmites reeds are turning already. The magnificent silver display will soon turn into a waving ocean of silver. The occasional florist or interior designer may come by and cut a dozen canes to use in an arrangement. They are just one more of the usual migrants who stop over at Belle Isle.

The wind was so strong that nearly nothing was flying. At the start of the Long Thicket, four crows took offense at my presence and protested loudly.  I was surprised that they let me stand beneath their perch in a tree without taking flight. Usually all I have to do is point my camera or binoculars and they take off. Not today.

The Overlook was quiet but just beyond the Long Dike I saw some egrets and so creeping up and over the dike, I watched the Great Egret clan with a few Snowys and a Great Blue Heron gathered in one of the small pools. The wind kept them down on the ground and so far they have not left for the warm south but I expect any day that they’ll be gone just like the swallows here today and gone tomorrow.

The  creek was filling up as the tide was coming in. In North Dakota you can see a fields of wheat in September that look this ripe. No wheat grows here and it’s probably not possible to bake a loaf of spartina bread but this stand of marsh grass  looks as full and rich.

It was slow today but noisy with the wind roaring above. It was calming to walk beneath the speedy clouds and watch.

Ciao!

-Jorge

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September 11, 2008 by OrientSee.

 I got up early to drive some one to the airport and since my kitchen window looks out over Short Beach between Revere and Winthrop, I saw this through my sleep disabled eyes.

Much later by the edge of Rosie’s Pond, the dew had silvered the spartina.

The south flats were quiet except for a lone Osprey on one of the poles. No swallows, no starlings, no dragonflies. Nice views but nothing much else.

Finally along the Long Thicket, some catbirds and these two visitors who were passing by on their way down to the Carolinas.

Yellow-rumped Warbler

Red-eyed Vireo (thanks to Soheil for the identifications)

Out by the Overlook, it was even more empty until I turned and saw three crows and two mockingbirds harassing this magnificent Redtail hawk. One of the mockers actually dove and hit it. I was rooting for the hawk to turn and take the annoying mocker but finally he just got tired of the fuss and flew off.

From the Boardwalk, you could see the Great Herons and Snowys further out. This group of three were feeding and bickering while I watched. A few mallards and yellowlegs were feeding but the place still felt empty.

Over in the creek by the Bennington St. bridge, a dozen Redwing Blackbirds were in the reeds feeding.

The sky was clear and the temperature was pleasantly lower. Just another day to enjoy Belle Isle.

Ciao!

-Jorge

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September 8, 2008 by OrientSee.

I’ve been busy painting and doing home owner things lately. So it has been a little while since I’ve been out in Belle Isle Marsh. As I started my walk, I came across this plant which neatly summed up the state of things season wise.

It’s less than two weeks to the autumnal equinox and that means fading beauty. There will be bright fall leaves but there will be no more flowers bursting with color.

Rosie’s thicket was very quiet and the flats were still except for a few Great Egrets and one Great Blue Heron. Two Osprey were still about. The swallows seemed to disappear overnight. One day great swarms and today not a swallow to be seen anywhere. The big attraction was the Dragonflies. They were moving about in flocks that were amazing to watch as the sun caught their wings and so they appeared to made of gold. Of course they are nearly impossible to photograph in flight and at rest, they are less attractive.

The Long Thicket was very quiet except for one Cedar Waxwing and a few Catbirds. The Overlook had a few ducks and some Yellowlegs feeding in the shallow water. Quite suddenly I heard a noice close by and I turned to see a young Osprey perched in a nearby dead birch tree. It was vocalizing a lot and I think that it was a juvenile who was facing the test of growing up without Moms and Pops. It was not happy.

It was fairly close to the Overlook platform. Then over to the Boardwalk. In one of the pannes further out, a small crowd of Egrets was gathered. The Great Egrets seemed to be in bad spirits as there were all sorts of agressive displays.

Back and forth, wings spread in full threat mode. I don’t think that they are really gregarious like the Snowy Egrets who love to hang out with any bird around.

Since Belle Isle is an urban oasis, there is often a human touch which can be depressing and then by turn be whimsical.

First the urban wild creature’s footprint.

Now the whimsical.

I can almost see my granddaughter sitting on the bench.

The creek had a surprise. Drabber than usual and certainly quieter, a dozen or so Redwing Blackbirds were feeding in the Phragmites.

It’s like they were a different species.

The skies were blue and it is still warm. Today was another great day for a walk through Belle Isle.

Ciao!

-Jorge

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September 1, 2008 by OrientSee.

 Today was a little cooler but still a beautiful day. As I walked along Rosie’s Pond Thicket, I found this pile of feathers. Obviously a predator has been at work. It was probably the work of a hawk. I haven’t seen this for some months now. With the movement south, more and more hawks will be passing through. All last winter, there was a resident Cooper’s Hawk and a big Red-tailed Hawk. It was a common to find such a pile of feathers and even on occasion to see them feeding off their prey.

The thickets have been quiet. A few warblers have popped up and disappeared in the leaves. It is incredibly difficult to get a good view. They move so fast and the leaves are terrific camouflage.  The Overlook panne was itself quiet except for a few Yellowlegs and ducks. Out beyond the eastern edge of the panne are a few little puddles. That’s where this small crowd of Egrets and two Great Blue Herons were busy jostling each other for space.

The Boardwalk was quiet except for the whirling mass of Tree Swallows overhead. Out in the park, the Bumblebees were still busy feeding from the flowers.

Out along  Bennington St., this Mockingbird was perched in a dead tree.

anthropomorphism
Attribution of human motivation, characteristics, or behavior to inanimate objects, animals, or natural phenomena.

It’s hard not to look at this bird and think mean or evil.

Finally, I would like to pass on a mesmerizing experience.

Dreamlines ( http://www.solaas.com.ar/node/4 )   You enter a word(s) of an image and then watch the result. (You need Java for it to work.)

Another great day at Belle Isle.

Ciao!

-Jorge

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