Evening Walk

It was a beautiful evening in the Napa Marsh. I got there when it was still light. Some of the birds I saw were American White Pelicans, Black Necked Stilts, Avocets, Mallards, Great Egrets, Snowy Egrets, Great Blue Herons, and many Black Crowned Night Herons feeding along the canals. I hiked out a couple miles and took a few long exposure photos when it got dark.

Moon Walking

It was a perfect night for a walk in the marsh - full moon, left over rain clouds, and plenty of animal action.

Puff Remembered

Today was Puff's birthday in 1985. She was our loyal cocker spaniel for 17 years, and was one of the sweetest dogs ever. If you had food in hand, she could also learn new tricks in a flash.

Puff's puppies nipping at Nick's toes in 1987.

Andria and Puff entertain the class with Puff's amazing tricks.

Serious Moments

At IBRRC, we have many laughs throughout the day (often when someone is struck by projectile feces or barf) and good times chewing the fat while we chew our lunch. You would never know it, though, from the photos of us when we have birds in hand, and the birds are at our mercy. Thanks, Jeanine, for sharing your photos.

Framed by the bill of a Brown Pelican.

Here, Monica and I assist Marie in washing an oiled Common Murre. He would have died from the large oil patch on his abdomen, but was brought back to health and released a week or two later. Monica is an intern from Norway, who just turned 20. I think IBRRC is the land of current and former redheads!

Today at IBRRC

Below is "Holding One", where most of the indoor birds are kept. there is another bigger area, "Holding Two" for major bird events like oil spills. None of the birds are open to viewing in order to lower stress, or in the case of baby birds, to prevent imprinting.

Holding One, looking the other direction.

Jeanine, Tina, and I had a Great Blue Heron as one of our assignments today. I brought it up from Santa Cruz on Thursday, along with a loon, and a duckling. Here Jeanine is holding it's foot.

I am drawing blood from a vein - often tricky to find. I asked Monica, our intern from Norway, to take a picture. She proceeded to take a bunch. Blood information is essential for making decisions such as washing, release, first night out, etc.

Since the heron was somewhat dehydrated, finding the vein was even more difficult. Jeanine, in the middle, is an interpreter for the deaf, and Tina was a CHP officer until injuring her back. We're a diverse group of volunteers, which makes it all the more fun.

Blood, at last! From here, the little crit tubes go into a centrifuge, and then are read.

Checking the head. This heron had some head injuries. He was found in a mall on Soquel Ave. in Santa Cruz - definitely not a healthy sign.

Jeanine checks the pupils for reaction to light.

A look in the mouth to check for dehydration and parasites.

Then outdoors for the first time to "Spa 5". Here I'm giving him a vitamin.

Then a little tubing of water to help hydration. This is a real test of dexterity, as you have to make sure you get the tube past the glottis (trachea), hold the tube on the syringe so it doesn't pop off, press the plunger with your chest, all while being bitten. With wild birds, there is an infinite number of ways to screw up.

Finally, the heron gets to hide in his new outdoor enclosure. Can you spot him in the middle of the picture? They are masters of hiding in plain sight.

Next, I did a little repair job on this Surf Scoter's pool door. Self releases are an embarrassment to staff, and usually not good for the patient.

Indoors, we have these 3 baby Green Herons - and a lot of other birds.

This is a baby Great Blue Heron in the ICU, where he can be kept toasty warm. Well, that wraps it up for today.

Back to the Pallisades

I had a nice hike, today, back up to the Pallisades area above Calistoga

The howling wolf rock formation above has caught my eye before.

I often have lunch at the spot where this picture is taken. It is off of a side trail, near a little hidden cascade, with only wildland in sight.

I looked up this plant when I got home. It is called Virgin's Bower, and is a woody vine that can get up to 35 feet tall. Native Americans mashed the leaves and bark to make medicinal soap and shampoo, and boiled the leaves to apply to sores and rashes. Tea was made from its leaves or bark for heaadaches, sore throats and fevers. Dried seed floss is an excellent tinder and the stems have been used to make string. Heck, it must have been the Native Americans' Walmart!

I looked this butterfly up, also. It is a Chalcedon Checkerspot. At higher elevations, its catterpillars can hibernate for several years. That's all.