Photo of day: Sitting around
October 26, 2012
Category: Arkansas
Woodpeckers: Downy vs. Hairy
October 25, 2012
I finally saw my first Downy Woodpecker at my aunt’s house in Little Rock. OK, I might have seen it before but its hard to distinguish from the Hairy Woodpecker. Both are the only common woodpeckers to have vertical white strips on the back. They also have black and white wings with a comma-shaped black mark, although the mark is more obvious on the Hairy.
According to The Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Project FeederWatch, the easiest way to tell which one you are looking at is by the size — the Downy has a short, about one-third long bill and is smaller at about 6.5″ long while the Hairy has a long, chisel-like bill about the size of its head and is about the size of a robin, 9-13″ long.
It also helps that Downys are more likely to be found in suburban areas. The Downys have weaker, squeakier calls with a slower drum than the Hairys, which have louder, more powerful calls and a faster drum.
Strolling the boardwalk
October 23, 2012
I had a stalker on Saturday. The above Red-Headed Woodpecker kept landing on trees near me as I traveled down the boardwalk near the White River National Wildlife Refuge. It was a gorgeous day full of birds and fall leaves.
Photo essay: Last day of fall
October 21, 2012
We took full advantage of one of the final days of fall weather with a kayak trip on Lake Ouachita. We paddled to one of the many small islands and set up camp. We swam, ate lunch and generally enjoyed the good weather. In the spring or summer, I wouldn’t mind going back and spending the night. They even have a grill on the island for us to use. Not bad.
Mushrooms galore
October 19, 2012
I visited Pinnacle Mountain State Park in Little Rock for the very first time recently, and fell in love. It was peaceful, beautiful and had plenty of activities to do. During my visit, I walked the park’s Arkansas Arboretum trail. It’s an easy trail with plenty of audio sign panels to learn about the various plants and trees lining the trail. There was also a good variety of mushrooms as well. Here’s a few mushrooms that I saw.
Photo of Day: Just a baby.
October 18, 2012
OK, so this is probably not the best picture, but the little guy was screeching. He hated the fluorescent lights.
This is my co-worker’s new pet — a baby sugar glider, similar to a flying squirrel.
Photo of day: Ballet!!
October 17, 2012
Last night, I attended Ballet Arkansas’ performance of American Images at the Grand Prairie Center for work. It’s the second year the company has traveled to Stuttgart.
The performance took audience members on a trip through U.S. history with six sections ranging from the American Civil War-based Times Torn to the American Dream to Nowhere/Now Here, which is based on everyday struggles.
Bird Island
October 16, 2012
In August, I completed my first Bird Island sunset tour at Lake Ouachita near Hot Springs. I was in awe. There were literally hundreds of Purple Martins coming in to roost for the night.
Bird Island, designated an Important Bird Area by the Audubon Society, is Arkansas’ largest known pre-migratory Purple Martin roost. It is 1,260 feet long and about 100 feet at its widest point. According to Audubon Arkansas, an estimated 8,000-50,000 birds use the area between late July and early August.
Lake Ouachita State Park now offers Purple Martin boat tours, which has the boats circling the tiny island at sunset so viewers can watch the Purple Martins and other birds come in to roost.
For my visit, one part of the island housed egrets and other larger birds, such as Little Blue Herons, Cattle Egrets and Great Egrets. The Purple Martins filled the trees and the skies covering the rest of the island. It was a nice way to end the evening — watching the birds glide across the water towards the island with a beautiful sky behind them.
Photos of Day: Calling it a night
October 16, 2012
Cattle Egrets and Little Blue Herons settle down for the night on Bird Island at Lake Ouachita State Park in early August.
Photo of day: Early Stuttgart
October 15, 2012
The Arkansas Historic Preservation Program brought its “Walks through History” program to Stuttgart Saturday to highlight the community’s commercial historic district. The nearly 3-hour walk took us from the intersection of Third and Maple Streets to Sixth Street. From Sixth Street, we walked up and down Main Street learning about nearly every building.
The history included this undated picture, which shows the former Hotel Price (left) and Riceland Hotel in Stuttgart. Hotel Price was originally the Metropolitan Hotel and its northern half was demolished in 1921 to make room for the Riceland Hotel. Riceland Hotel is infamous in Stuttgart for its bad luck as well as its hayday when it was the place to see and be seen.
To the far right is the oldest brick building on Main Street (now Wilkerson’s), which was built just after an 1889 fire nearly destroyed the entire commercial district.
Memos for Me 