"Both photography and art open my eyes to the infinite beauty of nature in her every detail."

~ Kim Moore

 

 

Sights of February 2024 - Wetlands

March 01, 2024  •  Leave a Comment
Our very wet winter continued into February. Along with rain came snow in the mountains. On a sunny day, after the rains, the air is so clear and the scenery and greenery is beautiful. I did a little 'chasing' this month and saw some lovely warblers: Palm, Cape May, and Black-throated Green. I went to the sketchier parts of the LA River with a grou...
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Sights of January 2024 - Proof

February 01, 2024  •  Leave a Comment
I hope all of you have been waterproof this month. As is typical in Southern California winter, we get our rain, but summer not so much. The cold wet winter should bring us glorious spring wildflowers, if we don't flood or mudslide away. Although the rain, and my husband's second bout of COVID, kept me in a bit, I used the good weather to my best a...
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Sights of December 2023 - Another year around the sun

December 31, 2023  •  Leave a Comment
While most of the month was spent packing and moving my mother from New York City to live with us in California, we arrived back home in time for the Audubon Christmas Bird Counts (CBC). As usual, I participated in two. First was the El Dorado Audubon CBC. I covered Signal Hill. It was a little slow, but I found what I believe to be an Orchard Orio...
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Sights of November 2023 - Near and Far

December 01, 2023  •  Leave a Comment
I spent most of the month of November making arrangements to move my mother from New York to live with us in California. Next month I will go to New York to help her pack. She will miss New York, but the time is near that she should no longer live so far away and alone. Despite any regrets she has about leaving, I think she will enjoy the Californi...
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Sights of October 2023 - Always Something New

October 31, 2023  •  Leave a Comment
There is always something new to find or learn. Sometimes I feel overwhelmed by the number of videos about nature that I want to watch on YouTube, much less all the books I have yet to read that sit on my desk. That is why I like to give talks from time to time, or take up a new project. At least it keeps me focused on my research. I gave a talk on...
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Sights of September 2023 - Change of Seasons

October 01, 2023  •  Leave a Comment
September is a month of change. It is both Summer and Fall. Butterflies and Dragonflies are abundant, and at the end of the month warbler migration is full on. We can't wait for the sparrows to come back any minute now. The weather can be hot during the day, but it is very pleasantly cool at night. We even had a sprinkle or two of rain this month,...
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Camp de Benneville - Art Camp 4 Grown Ups

September 14, 2023  •  Leave a Comment
This month I attended an art camp held in the San Gabriel Mountains. I never went to sleep-away camp as a child, but now can relate better to the many movies based on the subject. Although the focus of the camp activities was on art workshops, there were other activities such as group hikes, yoga, and archery. We slept in bunkbeds (lower for us old...
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Sights of August 2023 - Moments

August 31, 2023  •  Leave a Comment
They say, "Live in the moment". I live for the moments. It is the special moments I have with my camera and nature that fill my spirit. It doesn't have to be a rare bird (although they are special and I'm always looking for one), nor a new insect or place (although that brings another level of happiness), but the moment I imagine some secret bondin...
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Sights of July 2023 - Hot Under the Collar

July 31, 2023  •  Leave a Comment
July 2023 was the hottest month recorded on the planet, and that's not just hyperbole. Locally it was hotter than usual, but we didn't suffer the devastating heat that others had across most of the country and parts of California inland. I am grateful that I live near the coast, and that we installed efficient mini-split heat/air conditioning units...
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Sights of June 2023 - Fast and Slow

June 30, 2023  •  Leave a Comment
June gloom continued for much of the month. It was gray and overcast. It kept temperatures down which made it pleasant to get out. It was only at the end of the month that the temperatures started to rise. I had a hard time getting a focus this month. The month seems to have gone by very fast, but birding has been slow. We use the term slow when we...
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Sights of May 2023 - Welcome Visitors

June 01, 2023  •  Leave a Comment
One of the great things about visitors is taking them to see our local nature. At the beginning and the end of the month this was the case. And, in between, I went birding of course. We started the month visiting with my husband's daughter and her beau who were visiting San Diego from the UK. We had a lovely time with them and went out whale watch...
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Sights of April 2023 - Full-on Springtime

April 30, 2023  •  Leave a Comment
Every year I look forward to April, even though it is usually a very busy month. Spring migration ramps up and one must go out often because the birds pass through the area in a matter of weeks. Also, Palos Verdes/South Bay Audubon does a Spring Butterfly Count, for which I am now the coordinator/compiler, and it is City Nature Challenge at the end...
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Sights of March 2023 - Staying in

March 31, 2023  •  Leave a Comment
In my blog last month, I said I might take a break in March. I did, at least from birding and photography. Between the rain and physical therapy, I decided to stay in and get some things done. I got a new laptop which took time to set up. I started preparations for coordinating the spring butterfly/dragonfly survey for PV/South Bay Audubon (coming...
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Sights of February 2023 - Spreading my wings

February 28, 2023  •  Leave a Comment
I enjoy birding and looking at nature close to home, but this month I really spread my wings and ventured out of county and out of country. It was time for some new adventures. February opened with a pelagic birding trip out of Dana Point in Orange County. This one was on a catamaran, lower to the water. Although a little brisk, the seas were flat...
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Baja Sur - Travels Part 1: Field Arts Bootcamp

February 25, 2023  •  Leave a Comment
I need a vacation from my vacation. The trip was so jam-packed with habitats, nature, and learning, that I am breaking up the experience into three blogs. This is Part 1 and covers an overview, trip organization and people, and field arts. Part 2 will focus on Magdalena Bay, Gray Whales, and Whale Camp. Part 3 will cover Isla Coronado, The Mountai...
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