Recreation – Memos for Me

Wapanocca NWR I

July 9, 2013

My aunt has lived in Marion since I was a little girl. My sister and I would stay with her to make cookies at Christmastime and to visit the Memphis Zoo. I have tons of memories of visiting her house, however, none of them include Wapanocca National Wildlife Refuge in Turrell.

Wapanocca is about 15 minutes north of her house and, apparently has a long history with my family. My grandmother and dad both visited the refuge from time to time. I was just introduced this year.

Previously the site of the Wapanocca Outing Club (a hunting club), the 5,485-acre refuge was established in 1961 to provide habitat for migrating and wintering waterfowl and consists of mainly agricultural land, bottomland hardwood forest, reforested hardwoods, open water and flooded cypress/willow swamp.

My first visit there was with fellow birders. I spent the night with my aunt and slowly made my way to the refuge to meet the others. I knew it was going to be a great trip when I spotted the below coyotes (oddly, my first viewing) just outside of the refuge.

Here’s some more of my non-bird sighting:

Drumroll … New bird visitor at my home

June 4, 2013

I’ve lived in Stuttgart for three years this August. During this time, my main feathered visitors have been house sparrows, cardinals, doves, American robins and blackbirds. And, of course, the occasional cedar waxwing.

Now, I love having these constant birds. Don’t get me wrong, but I decided late last summer I wanted for more variety. And I finally took action after months of just thinking about it. I actually kept my feeders full, switching to a more fruitier blend to attract another variety of birds (which my usual crowd still likes) and put up my first hummingbird feeder.

The results were slow. I received my first hummingbird late last summer. This spring, I woke up to a rose-breasted grosbeak singing at my feeder. And I recently discovered the below American goldfinch. Today, I finally had what I believe was a House finch.

I see most of the birds first thing in the morning, around 7 to 7:30. And honestly, the finds are a great energy boost for my day. So, hopefully the birds will keep on visiting.

The Cat House

April 30, 2013

My family has a habit of “rescuing” kittens … although in hindsight they might not have needed saving. My sister rescued a kitten she found running down a sidewalk after two boys. I rescued a kitten playing in the street while HUGE dogs ran its way. My mom broke the tradition by rescuing a one-eyed cat that was really annoying (it has since disappeared) and later rescuing the meanest kitten I have ever met (we gave him away). Our cat collection literally began in that order.

All of these cats now live at my parents’ house in the country along with my parents’ older yorkie and occasional visits of the pets my sister and I have. Needless to say, we were out of room for pets. Well, my dad put his foot down — no more.

So, this past weekend was a shocker. It started off typical with my dad needing to run by the local Knights of Columbus Hall to check on things. Well, apparently it was more to check on the two kittens he found abandoned at the back door.

Why was this shocking? My dad knew by bringing my mom to the KC Hall that those kittens were going home with them. He later kind of admitted to it. However, it’s a decision I don’t think anyone has regretted. I’ve never seen a cat so sweet or playful as these two.

From the beginning, the two ran up to us to play or give us kisses. We’re already in love with them. So, welcome to the family Gray and Marble. 🙂

First day of spring

March 20, 2013

Spring, which officially starts today, is my favorite season. To celebrate, I spent my early Tuesday evening working in my backyard. OK, it was mostly lazy yard work. I cleaned up, made plans for a proposed project and put up new hummingbird feeders.

After I finished, I just happened to glance over in time to see a bird leaving my hummingbird feeder. I. Was. Excited! Could it be a hummingbird, already? Nope. I sat by my window for an hour watching house sparrows, northern cardinals and American robins come up to feed. I’m now positive that it was a sparrow that went to the wrong feeder.

Whatever happened, I enjoyed my time outdoors and watching the birds. It’s not a bad way to pass the time. Here’s some of my visitors:

All day birding

March 7, 2013

Lately, my days have been pretty bare of after hours, work-related events. I had to take advantage of my good luck by heading out to bird in Arkansas County and around Little Rock. It paid off — I rediscovered four state birds. The birds were House finches, a Brown-headed Nuthatch, the American Goldfinch, and Green-Winged Teal Ducks. The duck pictures aren’t the best since the ducks were practically on the other side of the lake. But hey, at least you can tell what they are. 🙂

Anyway, here’s my pictures of the birds plus sky pictures that I like: