Summer of Salt

I have been asked to participate in the second season of the fantastic blog Summer of Salt.

If you've ever wondered what's so great about Great Salt Lake (or even if you haven't), this blog is for you.

I met with the main blogging crew this past week and we have a fantastic season lined up. Sun, salt, stars, hikes, tunnels, sailing, spiders, dusty roads, bugs and birds. It's all there and more. I look forward to getting to know Great Salt Lake, and the Summer of Salt crew, better. And I look forward to sharing it with you. 

So I hope you'll consider coming along this summer on our journey of exploration.

No-See-um Update

Well, hi. So less than 24 hours later I need to update the gnat info. They are now at the "drive you insane" stage.

I took a very brave and good-natured group out on a little adventure this morning down to the lake side. Once we got to the beach all was well. It was just traveling from the parking lot to the beach and back that gave everyone a wonderful taste (sometimes literally) of the extent of the gnats on the island. Everyone was covered in them. None of us had head nets. So all of us got swarmed and chewed on.

I've considered buying head nets for visiting school groups. I think I'll follow up on that idea.

No-See-ums

The biting gnats (no-see-ums) have been hatching for the past couple of weeks. For the most part they haven't really been a problem or noticeable at all. But today, they're noticible. Not enough to make you go mad, but enough to get your attention.

There are thousands of species that are commonly referred to as biting gnats, biting midges, or no-see-ums. What we think we have here at Antelope Island are Bodega Black Gnats. But the jury is still out on just exactly what we do have here. I mean, come on, with thousands of species, it's sometimes hard to narrow it down. Especially when the critter is mere millimeters in size. But here is what do know: they are very small and they bite.

But let me be perfectly clear - not every single insect a person encounters on Antelope Island is of the biting variety. We have many, many insects. There are four that are quite common: biting gnats, mosquitoes, non-biting midges and brine flies. There are others, like horse flies and such. But those four are the main attractions.

Biting gnats and mosquitoes, obviously, bite. While you can generally keep mosquitoes away with insect repellant, the gnats aren't bothered by it in the least. The solution for the gnats is a fine mesh head net. You may look funny to others around you, but believe me, they will be singing a different tune when they realize you are having a marvelous time on that hike, while they are being eaten alive.

The non-biting midges and the brine flies are quite harmless. They do tend to swarm in large numbers, but they don't bite. So how can you tell the difference between those that want to eat you whole, and those that could care less? Well, if you can see them, and they are in a large swarm, you are just fine. Remember, no-see-um perfectly describes the little biters - you can't see 'em. And mosquitoes, while they can be plentiful, don't generally swarm.

You will find the non-biting midges along the roads, generally, in large columns. Brine flies you will find along the beaches in staggering numbers.

Biting gnats you will find, well, just about everywhere. So go get yourself a head net, and come out to the Island anyway. This is a perfectly beautiful time of year.

And the birds are singing about it!

Badger

I saw one today. I was pretty shocked, and really wanted to jump out of my car and chase it. But I decided that might not be the best idea.

But there it was, running across the road just in front of my house. I stopped and watched it as it ran through the brush, stopped to look at me a couple of times, and then continued on out of sight. I was, and still am, pretty excited about that. We have indications that we have badgers out here, but very few people ever report seeing one. Now I can say we really do have them...well, at least one. :)

Males have a home range of up to 2100 acres, and female ranges vary from about 1700 acres in the summer, down to as few as 5 acres in winter. So, with that in mind, there may only be a few individuals on the northern 2000 acres of Antelope Island. And they are generally nocturnal. That may explain why they are so rarely seen.

Until this morning.

Wildlife Sightings

One of the things I love about Antelope Island is that the wildlife is so accessible. I love to be able to tell  visitors where they can go to see the bison or the pronghorn, and be pretty certain they will see something when they head out.

Quite often folks will come in just so excited to share that they saw a pronghorn right next to the road. Or a herd of  bison, or a rabbit. I was excited today when I found a barn owl nest, with the owl hunkered down low, hiding from our prying eyes. I'm not going to tell you where I saw it. You'll have to come out to the island, and then MAYBE I'll show you.

Speaking of barn owls, they are fast becoming my favorite owl. I think the reason may be because of the number of times I have had the opportunity to see one since I've been out here. Quite often in the morning I will startle or be startled by one hiding up in the rafters of the visitor center. I almost got splattered by one who seemed quite annoyed that I spooked him off his perch. This past winter I was frequented by a barn owl who would come and dine just outside my window on my window AC unit. He would leave castings, droppings and the occasional innards of a mouse.

Plus they're pretty owls, and exceptional hunters. When they are feeding a young brood, they consume an unimaginable number of mice throughout the summer for themselves and their young. That makes me happy for a number of reasons; fewer mice to invade my home, and plenty of castings (owl puke) for me to gather and use for educational purposes later.

Thursdays are becoming my after work bike day. I rather like it. Today I just did the 6 mile loop from my house, around the Visitor Center, past the beach and back up to my house. It's only 6 miles, but it had me feeling pretty queezy. Nice head wind, and a few short but intense hills about did me in. Not to mention the cool breeze penetrated right into my ear canals, and about froze them all the way down to my brain. I'm rather out of shape on my bike. It will be nice to see how that ride progresses as the summer goes along.

Anyway, my point of all this is that I was able to pass by the beach as the sun was setting lower in the sky. The gulls and other birds were out just having a marvelous time making all kinds of noise, no doubt enjoying the setting sun as well. I took this short little clip - again with my phone, so not the best quality, but hopefully you get the idea.

It really is pretty awesome out here right now.

A Neighborly Visit

I am sitting in my living room with the blinds open to the "front yard". The air is perfectly pleasant, and I just replaced some of the damaged screens, so I had the window opened a crack to let the air and the sounds in.

Do you know the sound of a Western Meadowlark? If not you really should click on that link back there, because I can't mimic them, especially in writing. But they have a wonderful song. It's most cheerful in the morning and the evening. So their voices filled the room and brought a smile to my heart.

As I was thinking about writing about them, I heard a crunching noise outside just behind where my chair sits. As I craned my neck around, this is who I saw:

Pictures don't really do justice to how massive this guy is. And I wish the detail on his face was visible (this pic was with my phone and through the window, but still). It certainly increases the intimidation level to see that black face, and those dark, round eyes staring you down.

He watched me for a few moments, then continued on his way, past two large boulders and an apple tree. I hoped these might help you visualize his size. I'm still not sure it really does it. I bet he weighed upwards of 1700 lbs (maybe more).

Now the clouds are rolling in. A few drops of rain have fallen. It promises to be a very windy, worry about your satellite dishes blowing off the roof, night.

And the Meadowlarks are still singing.

Simple Focus

I always have such big ideas about blogging, and getting my blog up and active again. Okay, maybe not big ideas, but ideas, nevertheless. Sometimes big.

I make token efforts from time to time. Those efforts succeed to varying degrees. I've always wondered why that is. There is so much to write about. So much to discover and explore. Especially now, working and living out here on Antelope Island 4 days a week. Antelope Island and Great Salt Lake are treasure troves of natural discovery.

And then it hit me. The abundance of opportunities to explore and discover, and then the desire to write about those things has overwhelmed my ability to do just that. There is so much to blog about I actually feel overwhelmed and inadequate to do any of it justice. And so it has actually made my mind go blank with regards to blogging. I think I want to do too much, say too much, go into such great detail that I end up feeling overwhelmed and not writing anything.

So I'm making a mental change of focus. Rather than thinking I need to be all eloquent and full of wisdom, I simply wish to share some of my experiences with nature in short, simple ways.

So here you go:

I was out with a school group on a short hike out to Lady Finger Point. The day was incredibly windy and little chilly. I expected to see few if any wildlife, maybe a few birds, and if lucky a rabbit. We did see one rabbit, and a few birds. But we also had a nice surprise by a visit from a somewhat cold, and slow-moving Gopher Snake.

I carefully picked it up and talked about some of the ways you could tell it was a gopher snake, and non-venomous. Then the only girl in the group wanted to hold it, while the boys took turns being nervous, then relenting to touch it.

After a minute, we let the snake go into the bushes, and continued on our way.

That was a highlight for my day.  I'm a simple girl.

Athena - The Goddess of Wisdom

Yesterday a co-worked and I had the chance to visit the Kennecott Nature Center of Murray. The director there is a good friend of ours, and she invites us both down once a year to do a presentation for visiting classes and then we all go out to lunch to celebrate our birthdays. :) It's just a fun excuse to get together, do some fun programming, eat and chat.

Yesterday was especially fun for everyone, as we had a new co-presenter.

Athena

 This is Athena, a Great-horned Owl. My co-worker houses and takes care of her because she is non-releasable. Her wing was broken several years ago and it didn't heal right which limits her ability to fly. So now she gets to live her life as an education bird.

Me and Athena. Those fun necklaces are part of our birthday celebration. :)

This was the first time I'd met her personally, so Kathy,  my co-worker let me do the handling. We are both permitted to handle education birds through the State of Utah and U.S. Fish and Wildlife.

Teaching kids about owl adaptations.

Kathy also houses a Peregrine Falcon which I've handled several times. And let me say, Athena is so much heavier than he is. Okay, maybe you wouldn't think 3.5 lbs is heavy, but just try holding it up for a while. It is. :)

Female birds of prey are about 1/3 larger than males. She's a big, beautiful girl.

She did great. Kathy said she never hoots, but to our great wonder, at one point she tried to fly off my arm and in the process let out a few low "hoo-hoo-hoo"s. It was very cool. The kids loved her. Who wouldn't? I mean, she's an owl after all.

I have a pretty good job.

What's Wrong With This Picture?

Can you tell me?

Yeah, those are 1500 + pound bison that this photographer continues to approach.

Don't worry. I called this individual back to the road, and then gave a reminder of how dangerous that was.

Remember, they can move 30 + miles per hour. You can't.