December 14, 2007 by OrientSee.

As the leaves have fallen, all kinds of nests have been revealed. This nest is in a willow tree in a much trafficked part of the park at Belle Isle. I have walked past it on an almost daily basis and never realized that it was there. For some reason, I looked up today and saw what I had not seen before. The clouds of obscurity parted and the mystery was revealed. It is surprising how much depends on lighting and chance. One day you see nothing, the next you see what had been hidden before. The little satisfactions of walking in the marsh.

Ciao!

-Jorge

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December 13, 2007 by OrientSee.

Snow is coming this afternoon, so I was out earlier in the morning. I saw six hawks all out looking for food. I wonder how aware they are of impending storms. The barometer hadn’t dropped yet so the air pressure couldn’t have been a clue. Not surprisingly, the smaller birds were making themselves scarce as all the predators were out in force. A Cooper’s Hawk was actually sitting up on the Osprey platform while at the other side of the flats a Red-tailed Hawk was looking down from a perch high up in a tree. If anything had moved but me, either bird was ready to stoop. The creek was filled up with ice and so the buffleheads were not in view. As I am writing this, the promised snow has arrived. Tomorrow the marsh will have a very different wardrobe.

Ciao!

-Jorge

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December 12, 2007 by OrientSee.

I walked over to the marsh this morning. It was warmer but it was damp and spitting rain drops. I looked up and watched a Cooper’s Hawk try to take a pigeon. I was conflicted because the hawk was just feeding and swept down like a wraith. It was an exciting performance. The pigeon on the other hand flew like its life depended on every twisty turn and dive. The pigeon was amazing and it got away as the hawk would only spend so much time on this particular hunt. I also got my answer on what has been taking pigeons and leaving feather piles behind. A little later when I got to the overlook, the wind dramatically changed. I turned to the west and could see the horizon and the blue skies beyond. The weather is about to change again.

Ciao!

-Jorge

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December 11, 2007 by OrientSee.

Bright and shiny. In contrast to the last few gray days, today dawned with brilliant ice gleaming off the trees and a light cover of snow. The day continued to warm up and the ice disappeared but it has been a delight. The clear skies and sun gave us all a breather from the winter blahs. There will be more of the nasties but at least we had a chance to recharge our batteries.

Ciao!

-Jorge

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December 10, 2007 by OrientSee.

Dribbly, drippy, freezing, not-freezing, raining, not-raining, not-snowing, almost-snowing, not-quite-sleeeting and definitely not sunny, that was today. It could have been worse weather but not by much. Watching the precipitation and fog blowing in off the ocean across the marsh, I spent the day on the inside thankful that I don’t live out in that unkind world of the outside. I did happen to notice as I drove past the creek at noontime that there was a small flock of bufflehead ducks busy at fishing for their lunch. The marsh is still alive even when it would be better to hide away from the awful weather. I’m not so resilient.

Ciao!

-Jorge

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December 9, 2007 by OrientSee.

The marsh has plenty of ponds that are totally obscured by the thick stands of phragmites reed. Still I was amazed to see this pond eye view. These reeds are towering ten to twelve feet above the frozen surface. They are our version of redwoods. The pond is challenging to get to in the summer even with knee high rubber boots. The wet mud can suck the boots right off your feet as you try to walk in. It’s a lot better with the ice but still it’s not thick enough to trust yet. With the really cold days and nights, you can wander off the paths and visit the places only the ducks and muskrats know about in warmer days. I’m actually looking forward to more colder weather.

Ciao!

-Jorge

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December 7, 2007 by OrientSee.

Halloween has been gone for over a month but just this week some one decided to chuck three pumpkins into the grass. It seems that the marsh is fair game for dumping stuff. These frozen pumpkins are very visible but plenty of other things aren’t so easy to see. If you wander around even in the more remote parts of Belle Isle, you’ll find construction waste and metal junk. This isn’t stuff that the high tide or the wind has left. It is amazing to see how far people will carry things just to dump them out of sight. People are the strangest animals to be seen out in Belle Isle.

Ciao!

-Jorge

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December 6, 2007 by OrientSee.

Bedraggled and forlorn. Mind you, I don’t mind the cold but sometimes it can feel like it’s beating on an already defeated victim. Bright yellow and still green, this plant is certainly plucky with its roots in ice and an air temperature of 18 degrees F. It is most likely frozen in place and will soon dry out. Winter is inevitable but sometimes not everyone gets the message. Right now it’s obvious that the shortest day of the year is at hand and with it, the official start of winter. I’m all layered up and this little plant still makes me shiver.

Ciao!

-Jorge

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December 5, 2007 by OrientSee.

This is a stand of phragmites that grew up to cover a burn earlier this year. That’s why they are all the same size. For some reason, their leaves all flopped over pointing towards the northern horizon. Unlike the older untouched part of the phragmites, these reeds also appear to be sun bleached. The result is this eerie image of wraithlike plants. Today has been warmer but paradoxically felt colder even though it was less windy as well. There were certainly plenty of birds around, especially ducks but it felt emptier. A strange day.

Ciao!

-Jorge

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December 4, 2007 by OrientSee.

An American Tree Sparrow. This is one of the few sparrows that I can readily identify. The key is that the lower bill is yellow and the upper bill is black. Makes it easy for an inexperienced observer like myself. The surprise of the day was that I saw anything. The day was cold, cloudy, windy and filled with snow flurries. I was dressed for the arctic and yet there were sparrows, pigeons, crows, mockingbirds, gulls, a red tailed hawk, a flock of some northern finch and a great blue heron. The thickets were filled with bird chirps and yet it was only 24 degrees F. It was actually a good day to be out watching the marsh. The grasses were showing off their orange red colors and a few trees still bore green leaves. A good day.

Ciao!

-Jorge

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