What's up?

My post titles really are not very creative, but one afternoon at break-time, instead of making a cup of tea or working a crossword puzzle, I went outside and lay on my back in the grass.  The intensity of the sky's blue was mesmerizing - how can I just lie there and look at a blank sheet of blue?  Well, it has depth, it has nuance, and time spent gazing at that sky freed my mind from the moment-to-moment clutter - break-time indeed.

Sycamore, Platanus sp.

I expected a few birds, and indeed goldfinches and mourning doves flew through my sphere of blue at the level of the treetops. Just at the lowest margin of the tree's leafy branches, two different species of dragonfly zipped through, and a few small tufts of white drifted by - I guessed thistledown.  But that was all - no gulls, no hawks, no planes even.

Maple, Acer sp.

Most of the West Campus bird species this week were counted in the usual way, while walking around or driving through campus.

Bird list for the week of July 23-27, 2012:

Canada Goose - the flock is back
Wild Turkey - a mama with two youngsters
Herring Gull - fly-overs
Killdeer - three are seen regularly in one of the parking lots

Oak, Quercus sp.

Mourning Dove
Northern Flicker
Fish Crow
Barn Swallow
American Robin
European Starling

Locust, Gleditsia sp., with the moon visible.

Northern Mockingbird
Gray Catbird - pretty quiet these days
Yellow Warbler - a few singing down in the old leaf pile
House Wren - still defending territories near the nest boxes
Black-capped Chickadee - one in the woods
Tufted Titmouse - several in the same woods as chickadee

Spruce, Picea sp.

Northern Cardinal
Song Sparrow - nobody singing, but one softly chipping
Chipping Sparrow - loudly trilling in the A-21 parking lot, along with numerous cicadas, which just appeared this week
Common Grackle - one down by the river
House Finch
American Goldfinch - so many, and so vocal
House Sparrow

Dawn Redwood, Metasequoia glyptostrobiodes.

Twenty-three species for the week, a week of clear skies mixed with storm clouds and brief rain showers.  A week of dry pleasant days and hot humid days - but that's summer - and it's Friday afternoon so what do I say now - get out and enjoy it!!