June: Laccasine Pool

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The Laccasine Pool is one part of the Laccasine National Wildlife Refuge in Cameron Parish, southwest Louisiana. It is a freshwater wetland prepared for auto touring with an elevated gravel road around 16,000 acres of marsh. And it is best to stay in your car! On the day in June 2024 I visited, two rather large ‘gators got into a fight maybe 40 yards from me driving by. What a commotion! It didn’t last long and I don’t think any serious damage was done, but it sure stirred up the birds! For me, of course, birds were the primary reason…

March: Black Bayou Lake NWR

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Sorry, friends. I’m on vacation this week, having a wonderful time birding on Dauphin island. My #YearInReview has not been top priority, but this morning I’m taking a minute to let it warm up a bit outside before I head out again. Back in March 2024, my chapter of Louisiana Master Naturalists was making final plans for the statewide Master Naturalist gathering in April, which we were to host in northeast Louisiana. I was going to be leading a couple of kayak tours of the lake, so I was out scouting. I have kayaked that lake often but on this…

January: Backyard Birds

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Once again, a new year calls me to bravely begin my #YearInReview, namely a pilgrimage through my past year’s photographs to pull out one image a month that helps me tell the story of my photographic year. It takes bravery because I don’t always like what I see and I don’t always have much to choose from! Nevertheless, it has been a valuable exercise, so hear goes. I begin by breaking a rule. For January 2024, I will post multiple photos because I love the diversity of birds I sometimes have in my backyard. January is prime time–especially if there’s…

#Humility #AdventWord

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What is more humble in all creation than the sparrow? When humans are not trying to shoo them away from our feeders for “serious” birds, or otherwise treating them like a nuisance, we tend to pay them little mind. The Bible uses the sparrow to make a point about God’s extravagant attention to even minor, inconsequential details–like sparrows. Sparrows are small, commonplace and nondescript. Or so we think. Until something happens that draws our attention to them in a new way. For me it was the snow and ice storm of February 2021 that grounded dozens of hungry birds in…

Four Online

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October seems to be ‘online show month.’ Here are some options for your browsing pleasure. Ghost Dancers and Fibonacci on the Beach are two faves of my own work, so it’s fun that both are in a show called “Black & White.” Why black and white? Because when the main subject matter is filtering light and/or curving form, color is irrelevant, even distracting. Of course, I also love beach grass falling in perfect Fibonacci spirals and Spanish-moss draped cypress trees undulating to the light! This show is hosted by The Hummingbird & Dragonfly Art Gallery in Los Angeles, CA. You…