Journal of a Sabbatical

July 13, 2001

dove learning

Today's Bird Sightings
Plum Island
snowy egret (6)
redwinged blackbird (15)
short billed dowitcher (90)
willet (4 including one chick)
least sandpiper (42)
semipalmated sandpiper (32)
least tern (4)
killdeer (2)
eastern kingbird (4)
common grackle (1)
northern mockingbird (5)
gray catbird (10)
Canada goose (43)
American goldfinch(2)
common tern (1)
mourning dove (12)
American robin (5)
barn swallow (3)
house sparrow (2)
brown thrasher (4)
osprey (2)
herring gull (12)
starling (100)
yellow warbler (2)
double crested cormorant (58)
purple finch (4)
great black back gull (2)
cedar waxwing (2)

Today's Reading: A Conscious Stillness by Ann Zwinger and Edwin Way Teale

Today's Starting Pitcher:
David Cone

The Lists

2001 Book List

2001 Plum Island Bird List

Plum Island Life List

The Photos

Butter and Eggs (Linaria vulgaris)

Those aren't leaves!

The suicidal mourning dove pair actually, for the first time ever, moved away - flew away - from my car instead of running toward it today. Both of them flew up and perched on the fence by the side of the road. Can doves learn? After all this time?

Today's most evident weed in bloom is butter and eggs. It is introduced from Europe. Seems like every flower I see these days is introduced. Where are the native plants? Anyway, butter and eggs has been in bloom on the refuge for about a week. It supposedly blooms May through October.

The botanical name for butter and eggs is Linaria vulgaris. The European starling is Sturnus vulgaris. For some reason it amuses me that both of today's photo subjects are "vulgaris". Evidently my sense of humor has gone beyond weird.

In other news: Saw the downy young willet today too, near the nest, with both parents. Young ospreys too. They don't seem to have left the nest yet. They weren't doing any flapping or hopping this time, just sitting there on the nest as if waiting for the adults to bring them fish.