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Borrego Springs, CA

Thursday, February 17, 2011

Not all those who wander are lost…

This morning, I attended the first volunteer meeting we’ve had here since I arrived.  There is supposed to be a meeting each week, but that just hasn’t happened.  I think these meetings are necessary to let volunteers know what’s happening on the refuge, and what projects have the highest priority.  My work on the bird surveys won’t begin until March, so it has left me in a bit of a quandary as to what the heck I’m supposed to be doing to put in my 32 hours each week. 

 

I had noticed that there were several blue bird houses scattered about the front of the refuge, and I wondered if anyone was monitoring them.  So, during the meeting, I asked about them.  Doug, the volunteer coordinator, agreed that they needed to be cleaned out before the nesting season began, but hadn’t had time to think about them.  The male blue birds are already singing, so I told him I would take care of them.  (at least that gave me something definitive to do!)  Doug said he would get me a map of where they were all located, and the meeting continued.

 

It turned out that he couldn’t find the map, and that I’d have to walk around the savannah to find them.  I was OK with that, and told him that “Not all those who wander are lost…”  :)  I was pretty excited about this assignment.  It put me outside wandering through the savannah, and I could take my exuberant, trusty companion (aka: wild child) with me! 

IMG_8745With a bleach solution spray bottle and gloves in hand, Emma and I headed out into the bush.  You’ll have to use your imagination to picture our trek (minus the path).  I had put on my heavy waterproof hiking boots, and that was a good thing.  This is a wet pine savannah, you know.  There are quite a few hidden downed trees in the area, and grasses that were almost as tall as I am as we I trudged along.  Emma was bounding about on her spring loaded feet, and thoroughly enjoying the experience.  She wrapped herself around some trees occasionally, which gave me a little break as she figured out how to undo herself.  :)

 

The sun was blazing down, and I soon wrapped my sweatshirt around my waist.  We were able to find 14 nest boxes in all, which was the number that Doug had said that were out there.  About 11 of them were used last year, and had old nests in them that I cleared out.  All boxes, but one, were sprayed with the bleach solution, and I had to put one disheveled box back together.  I’m proud to report that I only took a header through the rough terrain once!  My right foot went down into a chuck hole while my left leg became entangled in vines.  An equation for a fall, for sure.  It was a pretty soft fall, and I was glad that no one saw me spread eagled on the ground.  :)

 

The one box that I didn’t spray contained two blue eggs in it.  I carefully put the nest back into the box and closed it up.  I’m really not sure if this was an abandoned nest from last year, or the first nest of this year.  I will check this box again in two days to see if there are any additional eggs.  If not, I will clean it out.  Female bluebirds usually lay one egg per day, and don’t incubate the eggs until there is a full clutch.

 

Both Emma and I should sleep well tonight after the exhausting miles we put on today!  It’s a good tired, however.  :)

 

Thanks for stopping by…. talk to you later,  Judy

15 comments:

  1. How did you learn so much about birds? I wish I were out there walking around. I would like to volunteer at some of the refuges, but I don't know much about birds or wildlife.
    Re: comment to my blog, I need a dog to take walking with me, but I have a 15 year old cat that my daughter left behind when she moved in 1999 - so I won't be getting a dog while the cat is around.

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  2. Will you be able to get pictures of babies?

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  3. Our work camping experience was not a very organized affair either. Sometime I don't think they realize we are there to work. They could accomplish so much if they were organized.

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  4. Glad you didn't sprain/break anything when you took the tumble -- be careful out there. Glad you have Emma to tag along.

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  5. I'm glad it was only a soft fall, and love your foggy sunrise picture!

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  6. You ARE the Bird Lady!! We have one Bluebird house here in our waaaaay out back yard....Maybe we should clean it???

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  7. What a wonderful way to spend a day!

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  8. Glad you are finding things to do for your time there... and cleaning the boxes sounds like a wonderful job!

    ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
    Karen and Steve
    (Our Blog) RVing: Small House... BIG Backyard
    http://kareninthewoods-kareninthewoods.blogspot.com/

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  9. It is good to have a purpose for a good hike. You feel like you accomplished something worthwhile and got some exercise.

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  10. So glad that you didn't get hurt during your trek into the wild. How fun when Emma can join you in your duties.

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  11. Thanks for the walk through the “wet pine savannah”. I also appreciate you sharing your knowledge of the Bluebird. I didn’t know they didn’t incubate until a full clutch, very interesting.

    John
    relaxedrush.blogspot.com

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  12. Way to go Judy, I'll bet Emma loves going to work with Mom, Be carefull you don't want a hard fall to break something, and yes I do make my own lasagna, but Donna has the killer recipe that we use on Christmas Eve, about 4 inches tall. Be safe out there. Sam & Donna....

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  13. What a fantastic day! Thanks so much for sharing it with us. I could almost feel the humidity, smell the pine and see Emma bounding around!!

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  14. Looking forward to the report on the Bluebird nest. You are so smart about all this stuff.

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  15. And I always believed the only Lady Bird came from Texas . . . :)

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