Watching Wildlife

Saturday, October 22, 2016

As I approach the bridge this late afternoon, a large family poses for photos using the bridge and river as a scenic backdrop. The young women spend more of their time running after the littlest ones who are far more interested in running across the bridge, and petting dogs walking with their owners.

The sun hides behind a dense cloud cover. Fishermen in boats are waiting, kayaks launch and children enjoy feeding ducks on the boat launch ramp. Other people stand on the bridge watching the fisherman.

The evening always brings out people to enjoy the river and watch wildlife, boats and the setting sun from the bridge.

A few years ago various groups and individuals regularly enjoyed picnics on the bridge to sit and watch the moon rise and the sun set. I rarely see people picnic on the bridge. Many walkers, very few “sitters.”

woodpeckerRiding along the parkway this afternoon, I heard the distinctive sound of a woodpecker working in a nearby tree and stopped to watch. We may call it pecking. Officially, woodpeckers “drum.”  I watched the woodpecker at work near the top of the tree for several minutes until it decided to fly across the road to another tree.Read more

Woodpecker Watch

Sunday, November 13, 2016, afternoon

Continuing my afternoon bike ride traveling to the east side of the Fair Oaks Bridge. I approach a tall and long dead tree on the side of the path that I have passed by hundreds of time. The trunk is ghostly gray with a dozen dead branches laying at its feet. Why is this tree still standing?

Riding by the tree I hear knocking and stop to look. A family of three woodpeckers are lined up on the trunk drumming on the tree. The trunk from the ground to the uppermost remnant of the trunk is covered with scars from the woodpeckers.  At the very top of the tree are two more woodpeckers. They have created a nest out of the hollow at the top of highest branch. From now on, I will be on woodpecker watch passing this tree.

American River Parkway, tree, bike path, Jedediah Smith memorial trail, woodpecker
Look for two adults standing near the tree in the lower left of the photo to visualize the size of this tree
woodpeckers, tree, American River Parkway, jedediah Smith Memorial Trail
Two woodpeckers at work