The Hays Humm - February 2020
The Hays Humm
February 2020
HCMN Newsletter
Tom Jones - Betsy Cross - Constance Quigley
Meet Your Master Naturalist
Peggy McGonegle – a.k.a. Ivory Gunn
2018 Class - Foxes
About Me: I am a Midwest farmer’s daughter. My email address, txnyflcowiia@… tells you where I've lived and which state I like the best - Texas! I've lived in San Marcos since 2016 and almost thirty years in Austin. I've traveled to Mexico, England, France, Spain, and Portugal. I am a retired financial accountant and analyst, with a degree from UT Austin. Classes in environmental biology focused on the aquifers and geography/weather science stuck with me.
About My Alias: I wanted some version of my last name - gone, eagle or Gunn since McGunnigle is an alternate spelling. And I admired Joe D Gunn (Giant of the Texas Labor Movement) for using out of the box methods to accomplish things. I also have an out of the box approach to persuade people about protecting natural areas and resources.
You May Not Know: The thing in life I value is an excellent college education. I am less gullible, broader minded, understand the economy, and have many more interests than before I attained that goal at age 35.
FAV Project: Invertebrate sorting - bug picking. Contributing to knowledge of river health is satisfying. The hours are flexible and it's out of the sun and heat.
Favorite Bird: In Florida, I had a feeder visited by fifty birds a day. The cardinals were my favorites for their beauty and their flight.
MY “UNOFFICIAL” PROJECT
Story by Peggy McGonegle, photos by Tom Jones
Drainage Ditch - showing flow from adjacent creek
An “Unofficial Project” is one a MN does routinely to improve the areas where they live. No volunteer time logged, but the effort has many benefits. I've been using my HCMN training to inform the management of Champions Crossing of improvements that can be made to the property. Sixty families were flooded out during the Halloween flood. The Management is now cutting back the invasive weeds weekly which grow adjacent to the creek. I have talked to them about the harmful impact of volcano mulching (an improper mulching technique where mulch is piled high against the trunk of a tree), and hopefully they will change that. They do have a lot of nice trees and I gave them the booklet on tree care from the San Marcos Discovery Center. A big issue is residents littering. I rake out the trash, pull out the invasive plants in the water and do my part to educate how important it is for flood prevention.
I'm weeding the ditch, along Post Rd., of the invasive plants that have blocked drainage from the property to the Blanco River. It’s not theory to me. In Iowa you didn't enter school without knowing the deeper the ditch and the cleaner the ditch, the faster water flowed to the creek or river.
The cattails were gone yesterday!
Cattails & invasive plants blocking drainage along Post Rd. - before and after removal
In November, the Assistant Manager called me “her worst critic” and asked me to give an opinion on the new landscapers. I guess I wasn't too harsh. Persistent influence and help have paid off. Those cattails were the biggest garbage dump and an effective dam. So with that done, I have completed my ¾ mile of water now running freely.
I also work to remove debris and clear a nature trail which runs next to the creek on property adjacent to the complex. The nature trail is along an elevated area next to a buried gas pipeline. The creek has good flow and the adjacent area is flooded during the wetter months of the year. This creates good habitats for many birds that feed and nest there.
Mimi Taylor
dirty bare feet, in the garden with my Son! yep… that’s me!
2019 Class Horned Lizards
About Me: I lived in Bangkok, Thailand when I was a kid. The Thai people instilled in me a deep respect for nature and our connection to it. I worked as a travel writer / photographer / graphic designer / social media consultant in Fredericksburg / Texas Hill Country for twenty years. I sold my business three years ago and moved back to my sublime 20 acres, in northern Hays County, so that I could take care of my preschool grandson, who is already a fine young master naturalist!
“And into the forest I go, to lose my mind and find my soul.” - John Muir
FAV Project or Activity: Birds and pollinators are my passion. I feed the birds and I plant my gardens with pollinators in mind. Lots of zinnias! #createhabitat #feedthebirds I also manage the Hays County Master Naturalist Facebook Page. Join us! https://www.facebook.com/HaysCountyMasterNaturalists/
You May Not Know: I am the Music Buyer for Hondo’s on Main in Fredericksburg, Texas. Last year we were one of five finalists in the Texas Country Music Awards for Best Live Music Venue in Texas.
I have always had a kinship with blue herons. They fly over me frequently and we have had surreal encounters.
Beverly Gordon
Beverly 2013 Class - Sages
Beverly with her first fish on a fly, a Guadalupe bass, caught at the Slab on the Llano River near Kingsland.
About me: I was raised in Midland,TX by avocational archeologist parents, who were active members in the Texas and New Mexico Archeological Societies. Today the Texas Archeological Society has a ‘Francis Stickney Field School Award’ named in memory of my father. Growing up camping and working in the field with my family instilled in me a love of the outdoors. Upon leaving home for college, I attended West Texas A&M (formerly West TX State) and then completed a BS in Psychology at the University of Texas at Arlington. My husband and I moved to Kansas City for a short stint, returning to Texas as quickly as we could. I took a position in accounting for the oil and gas industry, first in Midland and then in Dallas. I continued to work in accounting until retirement. As we approached our retirement, we knew we would like to be closer to our son in Austin, and in 2008, we purchased our current home. Immediately before our move to Hays County, I learned about Texas Master Naturalist from a friend who understood my love of nature and the outdoors. I applied for the program just in time to join the 2013 Class of Sages in February.
Beverly in her “tricked out” fishing kayak on the San Marcos River.
You may not know: Prior to retiring in January 2013, I had never fly fished or kayaked. Yet today, I am an avid member of the Texas Women Fly Fishers, whose mission is to create opportunities and encourage, educate, and mentor women’s responsible participation in the recreational sport of fly fishing. In addition to specialized fishing gear and waders, I have a “tricked out” fishing kayak. Our club hosts organized fishing trips six times a year. We mainly fish in the cooler waters of Texas rivers and streams for trout and Guadalupe bass, but occasionally take trips out of state to Colorado and Oklahoma. I also have three beautiful granddaughters, twins in Washington, DC, and one in Portland, OR. I also enjoy quilting.
Favorite MN Activity: My favorite MN activity is being a docent at Westcave, where I also work with the conservation director and participate in trail building and workdays. In addition, I’ve enjoyed my HCMN Board work, learning the rules and policies of the organization, coordinating the Advanced Training component, and maintaining the chapter calendar.
Bird I most ID with: Hmmm - Roadrunners are number 2 and Wrens are number 1. Wrens have a lot of personality. One built a nest in my husband’s shoe in our garage. They are busy, busy little birds, and they love to sing. You often see them in pairs. We have both Carolina and Bewick’s Wrens at our house.
Water Fair - Jacobs Well Elementary 5th Grade Students
January 16, 2020
Wimberley Outdoor Educators
HCMN Supporting the Water Fair
Where in the world is the water:
Jackie Mattice, Connie Boltz, Becky Denton
Aquifer station: Sarah Carlile, Paula Glover, Susan Evans
Watershed station: Lauralee Harris, Mel Seib, Deb Bradshaw
Water Drop station: Irene Bonde, Keith Collignon, Celia Clowe
Photographer: Jane Dunham
Also Supporting the Water Drop Station: Dana Nabers
Westcave Preserve Grotto - January 2020
Photo by Meagan Whitehouse
Bobcat Story
I took this bobcat photo back in October from my house, which is located about half-way between Driftwood and Dripping Springs. I was sitting in a chair reading a book waiting for the weather to come on TV. I just happened to glance up to look out the window to see what birds were at the feeder and saw this bobcat sauntering down my front porch. It sat down at the south end of the porch and was looking through the brush at something before it finally noticed me standing at the window taking pictures.
Before this, I’d only caught a glimpse of a bobcat one time in the 29 years that I’ve been living here.
Steve Janda
October 2018
Article and Photos by Art Crowe
Project FeederWatch is a cooperative research project of Cornell University and Birds Canada. It started in Canada in the mid-70’s and has since grown into Big Data with over 20,000 current participants from all across the USA and Canada. Since it has been going on for so long, scientists are able to use the data to detect and explain gradual trends over time and changes in distribution. For instance, along with complementary data from other surveys the steady decline in Florida of painted buntings during the 1980s became apparent to the Florida Game and Freshwater Fish Commission which begin a systematic monitoring program. On the other hand, you can go to Explore Data then Map Room on Project FeederWatch webpage and choose white-winged doves and see how they have expanded their range from isolated observation in Texas and Florida to a steady expansion of their range to all the Southern states during the 1990s-2000s.
This is a winter bird distribution project so the dates are November thru April. You can do it in your own backyard or at any number of different nature centers in the Hill Country. The cost is $18/year which gets you a year end report, a detailed handbook and instructions, as well as a cool poster of common birds you may see. You can do it as often as once a week or as infrequently as you like. It is an approved Master Naturalist Project.
One of the things FeederWatch likes you to do is keep track of when one species displaces another from the feeder. Mockingbirds are notorious for this, but they seem to have met their match when it comes to White-winged Doves.
These pictures really tell the story. Left Image: Mockingbird displaces the Cardinal. Right Image: White-winged Dove displaces the Mockingbird.
by Betsy Cross
A number of HCMNs, birding enthusiasts,Texas State students, and Zone leaders met before sunrise on Sunday morning, December 15, for the 2019 San Marcos Christmas Bird Count. It was my first time to participate in such an organized event. Colton Robbins was my team’s leader and driver. We were on a mission, similar in intensity to the ‘Amazing Race’, to identify and record as many species as possible in the allotted time. Our first target species was owls, and we were not disappointed. Colton knew where to go and was successful in calling in a Barred Owl!
My group reported +/- 80 different species of birds. Among all the participants, 125 “naturalized” species and over 14,000 birds were counted. Organizer Rebekah Rylander remarked that there were a number of noteworthy finds - White-faced Ibis, Lesser Nighthawk, Winter Wren, Lesser Yellowlegs, and American Woodcock. A full list of the birds reported during the 12-hour event is contained in the photos section below.
