Category: Kathy’s blog
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The Bull Snake, a Welcome Valley Resident
by M. Kathy Raines Unable to ignore our blue heeler’s fervent barking, I peered outside. A long, plump snake, creamy with dark blotches, glided towards our glass door, its tail just beneath the fence. Shoving the dog inside, I locked the door—as if the snake might slide it open. I thought it a rattlesnake, but…
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Stunning, Clever Green Jays
by M. Kathy Raines Bright blue caps its head, suggesting woodland shadows. Black velvet encircles its eyes, draping cheeks and throat. Olive back feathers and a lemon underbelly wash into milky green as it flutters off, dissolving into foliage, yellow blossoms and Spanish moss. Green jays, South Texas’ pride and joy, possess startling beauty. And,…
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Crested Caracara, the Mexican Eagle
by M. Kathy Raines With its sky-blue bill and facial skin reminiscent of candy corn, I instantly recognize this handsome, flat-heated, black-capped fellow—even as I zip down Highway 281 at 75 mph. The bird has an unmistakable silhouette. A slender raptor, the crested caracara (Caracara cheriway) has a large, black-crested head, orangish facial skin, white…
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The Elegant Gray Hawk
by M. Kathy Raines The elegant raptor, its chest adorned in alternating white and cloud-gray scallops, sat on a bare willow branch along the boardwalk one December afternoon at Sabal Palms Wildlife Sanctuary. Beak ajar, it repeatedly cried out a high-pitched WheEEEooo! What a treat! Had the hawk sat silently, I might not have…
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The awesome Osprey
by M. Kathy Raines Its upper bill a massive catclaw, its gaze penetrating, the perching osprey swiveled as it scoured the Laguna Madre for ripples and the glint of a fin. I’m glad I’m not a mullet, I thought. The Valley hosts an everchanging array of birds— resident populations, summer nesters, the flux of…
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Some Bird!
by M. Kathy Raines Grackles—people either love them, or they decidedly do not. From first glimpse of a sleek, iridescent, purplish-hued great-tailed grackle (Quiscalus mexicanus), I have been smitten. I admire grackles’ regal tails, brash bearing and intriguingly varied vocalizations—clacks. shrieks, croaks and ascending whistles; they create a poignant symphony reminiscent of Stravinsky. Yet these…