Spring Creek Offerings

Thursday, due to the heat, I took an easy drive south of Rapid City down Sheridan Lake Rd. I have three spots along Spring Creek, which runs both east and west out of Sheridan Lake, that I like to visit. Two spots are small parking areas with a narrow trail to the creek nearby, mainly used by fishermen...the third stop is a picnic wayside area, usually deserted. I didn't feel that I was going to see anything of interest that day (which rarely happens), but I wanted to get out into the forest....my first stop spot was full of neat surprises, however...

A katydid and its beetle buddy were hanging out on a stiff goldenrod next to the trail at my first stop, that leads to the creek...

The path along the creek at this stop is short before it dead-ends, and this is what it looks like looking back the short distance....

The dragonflies were cooperating that day and I got photos of this one with a pale gold body...

And there were several pretty red-bodied dragonflies, I believe a red-veined darter...

And this blue colored one, a lance-tipped darner...

I was delighted to find a sunbathing painted turtle, unconcerned about my presence...

What a relaxed sun worshiper...it is actually called basking, something they do because they cannot regulate their body temperature...this is a female I believe, because...

There was a second, more shy turtle nearby...and it was smaller, which the males are in this species... 20% smaller than the females...this guy hit the water as soon as I neared, but when I came back up the path he was back on the log, standing his ground...less than 2 feet from the female...

At another turn-out stop, I only snapped this fritillary on a thistle...the seedy, larger thistle flower behind it looks kinda cool...another aged thistle a few feet behind this cluster was losing seeds in the breeze. Time marches on.

A Sparrow's Tail

Ok, normally when the house sparrows come to our backyard feeders, we hear the faint chirping. The windows are closed, we have the a/c on this time of year. So it was highly unusual to hear birds making contact with the sliding glass door, both on Sun. and Thurs. What the heck was going on?! ....

Some in the usual small flock of female sparrows were busy checking out one of the folding camp chairs...

...Quite literally...would this make good nesting material?!

"Mildred, look! Just look at this meshy stuff...are you thinking what I'm thinking?! OMG!"

Holy cow, just think! If we could hang this in a tree, it'd be a whole nest-in-one! No more of those ten zillion trips back and forth, building, building...always with the building...

"I hear ya Delores! And what about this meshy stuff over here?!"

"Hmm, not sure I can peck thru this without a major amount of effort...dang it all..."

"Keep trying Millie! I'll keep an eye out for the humans..."

"Hallllooooo?"

"Ladies, pull yourselves together...dang it Mildred, Delores, can we just get back to our luncheon already?!"

As I finished creating this post, there was a scratching sound at the window of my office...I looked out to find a female house finch clinging to the window trim! And, looking out in the yard, I see the female house sparrows at it again with the camp chairs.....

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A couple of questions were posed with my last post I'd like to answer...the bison and the buffalo are the same animal...the proper name for N America's largest land animal is bison...they were nicknamed "buffalo" because they resemble the water buffalo. So, either name works and I tend to use both....the other question, are the antelope native to S Dakota...here's what Wikipedia says..."Pronghorns were brought to scientific notice by the Lewis and Clark Expedition, which found them in what is now South Dakota, USA. The range extends from southern Saskatchewan and Alberta in Canada south through the United States (southwestern Minnesota and central Texas west to northeastern California), to Sonora and San Luis Potosí in northern Mexico, with a small disjunct population in northern Baja California Sur." I have seen them in S Oregon also, by the way.

Cruisin' Custer

After an extended absence (for me), I took a drive along 2/3rds of the wildlife loop in Custer State Park last Friday, to enjoy the familiar ol' wildlife...

Looks like prairie dogs kissing but it's some other form of communication, having to do with my close proximity I believe...reassurance? Hmm...

One of many grassland areas in the park...the two tiny dark specks on the left and right just below the tree line, are bison...

The antelope were looking as healthy as usual...

...And not overly concerned about the people around...

Now this is a herd you don't see every day at the park! Some sort of tractor 'parade'...there were dozens putting along, thankfully in the opposite direction...

A male bison bull (2nd from right) was herding females and their young, towards the NE end of the loop...

A bit further north still, I came upon a real large herd of bison; this photo only shows a portion of them.

Stages and Sages

On Friday, I finally took a drive into the county road network that is just West and then South of the town of Custer. I've been eyeing that area on the map for at least a year...turns out it's all ranches out there once you get past the initial group of regular homes, incl. some real nice new ones...

I drove across Custer Park on Rte 16A to reach C.R. 715, and stopped along (upper) French Creek for a quick look-see...found this squirrel clinging to the side of a tree and not much else...

Once I was heading down C.R. 715 S. of Custer, I came upon this large rock with a sign next to it...

Wow...nothing like being immortalized and infamous...have I mentioned that the buffalo were slaughtered in an attempt to make the Native Americans go away? No buffalo, no Indians...cripes...

Some Absinth wormwood (aster) was growing on the rock...

Just a few paces from the rock was this small metal sign...C. R. 715 (or part of it) was a stage coach route for a brief two years...

Broom snakeweed is in bloom now, another aster...

And the fringed sagewort, another aster...

A red-tailed hawk was soaring overhead when I stopped...

...To take photos of the Rocky Mt. gayfeather, yet another aster. The similar, dotted gayfeather also grows in the Black Hills.

Back at the Watery Nursery

Western S. Dakota is having a heat wave right now; the temp's supposed to reach 99F tomorrow, not much lower today, so I'll be indoors...good thing I got out yesterday...but first, here's photos from the second half of my outing on Tuesday...

I left off in Vanocker Canyon at my Elk Creek stop...walking along the gravel road looking for birds, I heard but didn't see any...no sign of the common yellowthroats...just this chipmunk eyeing me curiously...

Driving back towards home, I couldn't resist turning off onto Elk Creek Rd. for another look at the ducks on 'The Pond'...lots of widow skimmers were clinging to the grasses by the water...

The gravel roadside is dotted with dusty sunflowers...

I had to ponder this...a female mallard and a pied-billed grebe chick...babysitting? Adoption? Or just a confused chick following the wrong mama...

Another pied-billed grebe chick...they look ticked off, don't they?!

A male ruddy duck, its bill no longer bright blue as breeding season is past...

Swimming along with the male, a female ruddy duck...it's always touching to see the couples...

Nearby, another female ruddy duck with five chicks...ok, now where's pops?

Not to be outdone...gulp... count 'em, eleven chicks! Look out Kate Plus Eight! (Gawd no, I'm NOT a fan of that show)...I thought this was a ruddy duck but the head coloring is all wrong...closest match is a female redhead...or a-typical ruddy? Dunno...

I didn't see the eared grebes at first, but they were on the north side of the road instead of the usual south side pond...the chicks are definitely larger...

Another mom eared grebe and her chick...they're just too cute.

Speaking of chicks...back at home, we've got a sad situation...a fledgling house sparrow is hiding in a shrub by the bird feeders...it cannot fly and it may be abandoned, don't know if the mom/dad come around...it comes out and looks to the other sparrows when they arrive to feed...am assuming it's injured but it also could be ill, doesn't seem 'all there' (maybe due to weakness)...I've put water on the ground for it but am not expecting it to survive.

Cucumbers, Mint, Queen Anne, and a Monarch

...Sounds like a visit at the palace, huh? I took a drive Monday, after a ten day break...it was nice to get out again, even tho tourist season isn't over yet...but at least Bike Week is...I drove up County Rd 234 along Box Elder Creek, to Nemo Rd. and then Vanocker Canyon, one of my common routes...

The wild cucumber blossoms are abundant along Box Elder Creek...

The cucumber pod can be found on the vines below the blossoms...

Another one of the 11 mints that grow in the Black Hills, the field mint...

The Nuttall's sunflower, easily distinguished by the lance-shaped leaves, which the Maximillian sunflower also has but the Nuttall's rays are larger and the flowers grow in smaller groups.

Queen Anne's lace has gone to seed, but is a pretty color...

A cliff swallow couple was taking turns bringing food to their babes on a rock face along the creek...

A monarch nectaring upside down on spotted joe pye-weed...I gave up waiting for an upright, open-winged photo...

A silver-spotted skipper on creeping bellflower...the skipper was ignoring me, only a few inches away...

An Edwards' fritillary I believe...more cooperative than the monarch...

The marsh aster is one of several late-blooming asters, found near streams...

Some frilly 'shrooms growing on the side of a tree, near Elk Creek in Vanocker Canyon.