Did you know?! Today, and every year January 5th rolls around, is National Bird Day! Whoo! Hoo! Or should I say “Tweet!” Have you hugged a bird today?
“National Bird Day, celebrated on January 5th, is a day dedicated to the conservation, preservation, and appreciation of birds. It aims to raise awareness about the importance of birds and their habitats, and encourage people to take action to protect them.”
Back Story
(or Why this seemingly random information nugget has popped into this blog post, and what happened to those fascinating Full Moon stories?)
Since my Full Moon project came to a close in November, I’ve been pondering over my list of ideas that might become a fun project. With elbows propped on my drawing table and chin cupped between the palms of my hands, my eyes and mind began slowly drifting outside to a winter scene where patches and drifts of snow had collected from our last storm. Readjusting my focus to the bird feeder right outside my studio window, I watched as 15-20 dark-eyed juncos engaged in minor skirmishes, competing for seed. Birds on the feeder and the ground ravenously plucked and scratched for tasty morsels before they were stolen by another hungry junco.
That’s when it hit me …… the constant activity at the feeder, every day, brought to mind the number of holidays, events and sometimes solemn to whacky occasions we the people have designated to commemorate and celebrate. The published lists (official? who knows) are long, cover every day of the year, and often include a dozen (more or less) International, National, State and Local happenings/day!
The topics are boundless; some familiar (Valentine’s Day), some hilarious (National Pass Gas Day), some educational (Learn Your Name in Morse Code Day); some raise awareness about a cause (National Save the Eagles Day), while some satisfy your appetite (National Curried Chicken Day) ….. your thirst (National Green Juice Day) …. your sense of play (National Fruitcake Toss Day) … your sense of self (Measure Your Feet Day).
Apparently, if you can think it, there’s a “Day.”
So here goes ….. I’ll be tackling a “Day” a month during 2024, that is likely to make a good fit for my Nature Journal. Then Flambé, not to be left behind dog paddling in a sea of flounder, has agreed to play too. Kat will pick a “Day” each month where the event is more light-hearted, laughable, fantastical.
And there you have it! Scattered among my regular nature journal pages and Flambés Misadventures will be our interpretations of a few dozen of the hundreds of notable events we think are worthy of recognizing this and in future years!
Enjoy! What’s your favorite (backyard) bird? Oh and please share how you celebrated National Bird Day!
What comes to mind when you see a group of pigeons perched on electrical wires high above your head, or when a large flock or band of these birds suddenly flushes from under a highway overpass to escape a winged predator, or when you’re walking through a grocery store parking lot full of discarded food scraps and must shoo away pigeons to avoid stepping on them?
click the link below for the entire post, and learn if you believe this large bird is a pest or a prize
Welcome back to my nature journaling blog! Today I’m excited to introduce my grandniece, Alivia Rapp. Livi, who is a very creative 15 year old, and the daughter of one of my brother’s daughters, came to visit for 3-1/2 days with “Grandpa Bob” (that’s my brother).
Livi with her new love …. A Greater Short-horned Lizard
During the past year, Livi and I have been chatting online about her art, her storytelling skills and her keen imagination in character development which she has honed through many years of daily practice. Then last year, enrolled in a beginning art class where she quickly demonstrated her artistic skills, her teacher bumped her into the advanced class. It was obvious Livi was in her element! She excelled in all of her art assignments which included still life and nature studies, portraits and perspective drawing, using a wide variety of tools such as pencil, pen, watercolor, acrylic, and colored pencil. Her first love of Anime and fantasy storytelling showed in her work too, and one of her creations was awarded a ribbon at her local spring fair. Congratulations Livi!
Now back to nature journaling. Every morning, Livi and I (equipped with sketchbooks and pens), Bob and Roy (carrying daypacks with water), set out for a bit of hiking and sketching nature discoveries along 3 different trails. Roy and I picked trails at different elevations with different habitat zones and views, knowing we’d have a variety of sketchable subjects. We weren’t disappointed!
My brother, Bob and granddaughter Livi on the Sandia Mountain Crest Trail
Hike #1 took us to the top of Sandia Mountain (10,679’) where we enjoyed many spectacular views of Albuquerque and the Rio Grande Valley a mile below, as we passed through a high elevation conifer forest on our way to the Kiwanis cabin. So many sketching opportunities ….. we each tackled the cabin, and Livi added a few of the 50+ lady beetles she discovered, then created a page with a raven, painted lady butterfly, a red paintbrush flower and aspen leaf. I chose a view, some wildflowers and the charming “Snack bar” marker (haha). Back at home we completed our sketches, adding watercolor pencil, with Livi being careful to note the names of my supplies she tried out.
The Kiwanis Cabin and CCC construction plaque; a few of the lady beetles Livi discovered near the trailhead
Livi and Barb hard at work sketching the Kiwanis Cabin
Livi’s wildlife composition along the Sandia Mountain Creat Trail
Hike #2 and we all hiked the upper loop trail at Golden Open Space which sits at about 6300’. The scenery and views were some of Bob’s favorites, so Livi and I spent about 5 minutes sketching one of the prettiest looking East towards the Ortiz and San Pedro Mountains and South Mountain. Then a great surprise discovery along the trail ….. an Eastern Collared Lizard! That was the first collared lizard Roy and I had ever seen at Golden, and after a few photos he decided to rise up on his tippy-toes and run like the wind! Then our second surprise …. we nearly stumbled over a beautifully ornate Greater short-horned lizard ….the lizard referred to by many as a “horny toad.” Before he could get away, Roy was able to snatch him up, roll him over on his back so he could get a belly rub that put the lizard to sleep. Sort of. Then after being entertained by a few erratically running fire engine red velvet ants, we had our 3rd great surprise, thanks to Livi’s eagle eye! A baby greater short-horned lizard that was trying to escape our view was also snatched up by Roy, and also became very sleepy. So cute. Livi was so glad we didn’t encounter any tarantulas, but declared that she loves the horned lizards! Back at home we finished our landscape sketches, and created pages illustrating the lizards. As an exercise in comparison, Livi dissected then sketched a few prickly pear “tunas” (the fruit) and a dried fruit from one of the chollas. She also cut into a large banana yucca fruit ….. which reminded her of a cucumber. Very interesting and fun!
Livi’s sketch of the San Pedro Mountains, colored with pan pastels
Golden Open Space was full of surprises! Livi’s journal page illustrating just a few!
Livi holding the baby greater short-horned lizard she found.
Hike #3 and we were back up Sandia Mountain and hiked the out-and-back 2.5 mile Tecolote Trail which sits at about 8500’ elevation. We had more beautiful views of the valleys below and the Sandia Mountain ski slope (which we sketched), and identified quite a few wildflowers, trees and shrubs. On the way down the trail we were surprised by a lovely mule deer doe as she quietly and carefully picked her way through the forest. Back at home we completed our sketches which included a wildflower drawing of a buckwheat plant, the seed and a leaf of an alder leaf mahogany shrub, and several sketches of oak leaves which we each tried as a blind contour drawing and a contiguous line drawing. Hey, they looked pretty good too! Back at home we rested, exhausted by our artistic efforts. But after Livi returned to her home near Seattle, she completed all of her pages and shared them with me.
Livi and Bob about to embark on the Tecolote Trail
Livi’s journal page with on location sketching exercises
Roy and I had fun sharing our love of New Mexico with Bob and Livi. And I especially loved getting to know Livi and sharing my love of nature journaling with her! Livi and I will definitely be staying in touch throughout the school year as she begins grade 10 and a new session of the advanced art class. I can’t wait to see shat she learns and creates!
Thanks for wanting to come visit and sketch, Livi …. and thanks to Grandpa Bob for bringing you along. It was awesome!
Here’s my sketches from the 3-1/2 days. I loved every minute!
Until next time ……. Take a friend nature journaling!
Come on along with us for 5 days of camping fun in the Land of Enchantment, where we had some weird and close encounters with botanical beauties, a bare-butted gopher, a swarm of bees, and voracious leaf-footed beetles! All this, and more while exploring a National Conservation Area, a Desert National Monument, and a New Mexico State Park, all within the Chihuahuan desert ecosystem.
The much anticipated finale, Snowbirds, and wrap-up to a grand anniversary week celebration in and around Tucson, AZ, follows!
Despite an unexpected snow the evening of our arrival, we never seemed to slow down, taking in as many sights and good eats as humanly possible. …… Open the full post for a recap of our week, and a bit about some of the birds we found while traveling around.
We totally get it! Why Mt. Lemmon is nicknamed “Tucson’s Great Escape.” Why the scenic highway is ”Cool!” From the Lower Sonoran Desert and the Tucson Valley (2,200 feet) to the upper reaches of a Spruce-Fir Forest (topping out at about 9,200 feet), the popular Scenic Highway up Mt. Lemmon offers breathtaking views, plants to discover, geology to learn, recreation opportunities, and temperatures often 30 degrees F lower than the desert below. That means a lot, especially when Tucson’s summer temps are in the triple digits!
But on the day of our driving adventure we found snow ….. on the highway, at scenic overlooks, and on walking trails. The storm hit 4 days earlier forcing closure of much of the highway. But on this day, most of the roads were clear and so was the sky.
So come along and learn what there’s to see along the Mt. Lemmon Scenic Highway.
We certainly enjoyed visiting Saguaro NP – East. Most of the Rincon Mountains Unit is wilderness and only accessible on foot; no dogs allowed. But the cactus Forest Loop Drive was scenic, with views of the Rincon Mountains to the East, and saguaro everywhere!
Really couldn’t seem to get enough saguaro! The highlights of this day were finding another crested saguaro while hiking an area Luna could enjoy, standing next to some shoulder high fishhook barrel cactus, and enjoying the Phainopeplas with their shimmery black feathers.
If you’re up for more saguaro botany, read on. This post will be dedicated to this largest of all North American cactus, Carnegieagigantea. (Beware. This post is long, so settle in!)
This day we explored areas as far as 50 miles north of la Casita. Following the old highway between Tucson and Phoenix, we first came upon a roadside rest area and memorial to the legendary cowboy, Tom Mix, who died at this spot 83 years ago. Tom who? Of course we had to stop and learn more about this interesting bit of history.
Then on to Casa Grande Ruins National Monument where history dates back more than 1700 years, well before the first Spanish explorers showed up, exploring. Even Luna was permitted to wander around this cultural monument, but we may have appreciated the stories surrounding the Hohokam more than she did.
Then to complete our tour for the day, we came upon a lonely ranch road on the way back to la Casita, where the saguaro stood tall over countless cholla, barrel cactus, iron trees and palo verde. It was here, in the middle of “where-are-we-now?” that I peered under a creosote bush and found the weirdest puffball fungus ever.
Before getting too far ahead of myself, I thought it would be a dandy idea to build a map of the circles we traveled in and around Tucson. This will not only aide those of you who are following along on our travels to see just where all these places are, but it helped me relive the week and will refresh my memory in years to come when browsing my journals.
Read on to view our trip highlights, and see just where all those parks, monuments, and mountains are found, and where to go to soak up the flora and fauna unique to the Sonoran Desert. Also, this map gives you a sneak peak of journal posts to come.
We woke early and excited, ready to explore. But wait! We woke to snow! What? Snow in Tucson?!!! Not unheard of, but a surprise-for-us coating of fluffy white covering everything. No matter ….. we changed out of our shorts, donned long pants and heavy coats and set off from la Casita south, towards Tucson and Saguaro NP West, the Tucson Mountain District.
Come along and see what we discovered this day in the Sonoran Desert!
a curious nature 