Avian Ecologist

Indigenous Bird Names

This is going to be a running list: I’ve been looking for etymological origins of Indigenous names (which as you can imagine is pretty hard to find, so any leads on resources are very much appreciated). I’m collecting Indigenous names for birds that are onomatopoeic (for languages from what the continent now known as North […]

Chase Lake NWR

On the way home, we stopped at a pasture grazed by cows in Kidder Co., ND and were treated to the sight of 4 Sprague’s pipits around 10 AM! On the way back to the highway from Chase Lake National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), we saw a white-tailed jackrabbit.

WI Butterflies – 2nd Week Aug

As a reminder, a peak can be very small by the way I sorted these butterflies! I even have “high” occurrences for vagrants, so I hope the lists aren’t too misleading. Also, I only listed each species once (so far) even if they have more than one peak. checkered white – disturbed fields sleepy orange

Theodore Roosevelt National Park

This morning, we walked the CCC trail from Peaceful Valley to Paddock Creek. Then, we saw a regal fritillary along the trail to Elkhorn Ranch! We walked out to the former ranch site, and then just backtracked because it was the hottest part of the afternoon by the time we went for a walk.

Teddy Roosevelt National Park

This evening, we saw lazuli buntings in a scuffle! We visited Peaceful Valley at the end of the day, and walked down to the Little Missouri river around sunset.

Little Missouri National Grassland

During the heat of the day, we visited some sights in Bismarck to pass the afternoon, most notably the Heritage Center & State museum. Then, we checked into Teddy Roosevelt National Park in the late afternoon to get a pass and drive around a little. We spent the evening driving some roads in the grasslands! […]

Sibley Nature Park

We drove around the farm fields in Kunkel School District and saw a Richardson’s ground squirrel. Then, we saw our lifer black-headed grosbeak at Camp Neche!

ND Vacation!

Today our vacation kicks off. We made it to Fargo tonight to get a good start heading west tomorrow!

Anthropology & Ornithology

It’s interesting to me that so many ancient cultures named birds by their sound, and I think it’s related to why birds are so relatively easy to sample today: they make noise, and somewhat predictably! When we do point counts, most species are detected aurally. So, in the soundscape, it would have made sense for […]

White M Hairstreak

This is the week to look for a rare stray butterfly…but admittedly, not likely up here!