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Coot Feet are the Best Feet
One of my absolute favorite birds showed up at the park this winter: an American Coot (Fulica americana). They seem like a fairly plain bird, until you get a look at their amazing feet! The first picture in the gallery above is zoomed in on the best shot I could get of the coot walking…
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Feral Winter Lace
This was the scene I arrived to at work several weeks ago. Snow overnight had glazed the unkempt meadow just outside our gates. My footsteps crunched and my breath fogged in the cold air as we got the park set up for the day. I paused briefly to snap this photo before continuing on my…
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Snow Rangers
Like I mentioned in my last post, we tend to get a little silly sometimes at work. Especially when several of us are there early in the morning, without a visitor in sight. Earlier this winter, I think it was after our first snow of the season, a bunch of my coworkers and I were…
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Snow Silliness
At my park, one of the things we do to open up each morning is to take a walk around the park and the boardwalk as a group. It’s a nice way to start our day, checking in with each other and looking for cool wildlife. Several weeks ago we got a light dusting of…
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When Polka-dots Go Bad
My friends and family know I love bugs. It makes me really happy to be known as the person you can send random bug pics to, whether for ID help or just to share something cool. Unfortunately, this summer I’ve had several instances where my reply has been negative. It hurts a little to do…
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Ground-nesting Bees
A couple weeks ago at work, one of my coworkers mentioned he had found the largest group of ground-nesting bees he’d ever seen, right behind our office. I peeked out the window but couldn’t see anything. When I went outside, though, I finally saw what he meant. There were hundreds, maybe even thousands, of little…
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Ranger Life
One of the central parts of my job is opening the park every day. All of us who are on duty for a given day unlock the gates and then make our way to the Visitor Center. Once we’ve opened our offices and deactivated the alarms, we go on a walk around the ponds and…
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Nature is for Everybody
There’s been a lot of chaos in the last few weeks. US politics has swung drastically to the right. And the people now in power have been whittling down our freedoms at a pace that’s frankly terrifying. That being said, I want to go on record that this blog supports trans and nonbinary people, 100%.…
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Resolutions 2025
I like setting resolutions. Sometimes I think of them more as goals, especially if it’s something concrete and measurable (like post at least 12 blog entries this year). I’ve heard other folks refer to them as setting their intentions for the year. That speaks to me too, in particular for less definable things. Be more…
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12 Days of Solstice
What if we celebrated 12 days from the winter solstice, instead of from Christmas? What kind of things might we celebrate and honor? Here are my suggestions.
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The Contented Naturalist 