Prairie Notes #189 - Drought, Fire, & Flood
Prairie Notes are monthly photo/journal observations from Tandy Hills Natural Area by Founder/Director, Don Young. They include field reports, flora and fauna sightings, and more, mixed with a scoop of dry humor and a bit of philosophy.
They are available free to all who get on the FOTHNA email list.
Drought, Fire & Flood
PRAIRIE NOTES #189
September 1, 2022
1) Drought, Fire & Flood
2) Field Report - August
3) New Species Report - August
4) PrairieSky / StarParty Report
5) GreenSource DFW: Dirt Trails in DFW
6) Sam K: The 100K Man
7) Giving Day Approacheth
8) Prairie Proverb - Black Elk
1) Drought, Fire & Flood
August was a rough and tumble month at Tandy Hills Natural Area. The extreme drought with many 100+ degree days nipped summer wildflowers and grasses in the bud. That led to a scarcity of birds and insects that feed on those plants. Sightings of other critters were few and far between. Then, in early August, a good sized fire burned through a section of the natural area, the third such wildfire of the year. Sounds like Climate Change, no?
The place was looking pretty grim until a bit of dampness occurred on August 9th that offered a little hope. But it was just another tease. The heat and dryness continued to bake the prairie.
Finally, on August 22nd, a record-breaking rain event dumped at least 6” of rain on the parched hills flooding the trails and creeks. The seeps swelled with water and the new trail system got its first real test since work began. It was a real pleasure seeing water running under the new bridges and winding through the curvy hills.
As of August 29th, the sun and heat have returned, the trails dried out but more rain is on the horizon. As I type this newsletter on August 30, just 20 steps from the prairie doorstep, the smell of rain is in the air. Storms are expected tonight. Check out a few photos below of the brutal and beautiful month of August 2022.
DY
2) Field report - August
As stated above, few flowering plants or critters were spotted at Tandy Hills during August. Even the usual hardy species like Two-leaved Senna and Gumweed were seriously stressed. But there were a few, unexpected bright spots and signs of life, especially after the rain of August 22nd. You can access the Tandy Hills Project page on the iNaturalist website, HERE:
https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/tandy-hills-natural-area-stratford-...
3) New Species Report - August
The species count grew by 1 in August with only a handful of observations. The only new species was the observation of a mating pair of iridescent, Common Green June Beetles. Quite exciting! The aforementioned, Zizotes Milkweed and Walnut Sphinx Moth, (pictured in #2 above), had only been observed one time previously. You can access the Tandy Hills Project page on the iNaturalist website, HERE:
https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/tandy-hills-natural-area-stratford-park-city-of-fort-worth
4) PrairieSky / StarParty Report
The heat of summer did not keep a crowd of 50 people from attending the August star party. They were greeted by members of the Fort Worth Astronomical Society (FWAS) who had 12 telescopes aimed at the sky. I’m told that Saturn and its rings made an appearance after 9 PM. For a commentary on the September party, heeeeere’s FWAS rep, John McCrea:
“For our September 3rd FWAS/Tandy Hills star party, we will continue our Summer Under the Stars with our favorite summer constellations plus some fall constellations. The center of our galaxy can be found in the constellation, Sagittarius (the Archer). Also, visible will be some of the well-known constellations such as: Scorpius (the Scorpion), Lyra (the Lyre), and Cygnus (the Swan). The remaining are Ursa Major, Cancer, and Hercules. Virgo will be setting and Pegasus (the Winged Horse) and Pisces (the Fish) will be rising. The summer triangle (Vega (25 LY), Deneb (1,411 LY), and Altair (17 LY)) will still be visible.
The sun will set about 7:49 PM on September 3rd. The moon will be at first quarter in Scorpius. The “Lord of the Rings” of our solar system, Saturn (♄) will be in Capricorn (the Sea Goat), and will be up all evening, about 827 million miles away. Jupiter (♃) will be in Pisces and will rise about 9:00 PM at 374 million miles away. Our telescopes will become time machines and we become time travelers, providing a look into the past as Saturn was, about 1 1/4 hours earlier and Jupiter was 33 minutes ago.
The autumnal equinox, on September 22nd, is when there is equal light on the Northern and Southern Hemisphere. It is also when the earth’s tilt causes the Northern Hemisphere to receive less and less direct sunlight.”
5) GreenSource DFW: Dirt Trails in DFW
Writing for Green Source DFW, author and journalist, Amy Martin, penned a report titled, “Dirt Trails Lead to Close Encounters with Nature.” Naturally, Tandy Hills was featured on the Tarrant County list. Good reading from our friends at GreenSource DFW. Check it out by clicking HERE:
Part 1
Part 2
Image from GreenSource DFW website.
6) Sam K: The 100K Man
On August 15, our dear friend, Sam “Mr. iNaturalist” Kieschnick, earned a new nickname: The 100K Man! Sam recorded his 100,000th observation on the iNaturalst website. That’s a big number and we heartily congratulate him. Here’s what Sam had to say about his latest accomplishment:
It's sorta silly to celebrate factors of 10, but I've so thoroughly enjoyed making daily observations on iNaturalist for the past like 7 years -- every day I get to engage with nature. So far, I've been able to engage with around 9300 unique critters/plants/fungi, etc -- we share this planet with so much biodiversity! That's the real celebration. If you're curious as to why I'm making lots of observations, here's a little journal post: https://www.inaturalist.org/.../67922-why-do-i-make...
7) Giving Day Approacheth: 9.22.22
On September 22, 2022, your can celebrate the autumn equinox AND support the year round work done by Friends of Tandy Hills volunteers. That’s right, North Texas Giving Day is here again. You can actually start making donations on 9.01.22, if you prefer. We are VERY grateful for your support in any amount. The Giving Day website link to make an EZ donation is HERE.
8) Prairie Proverb - Black Elk
“You see, I had been riding with the storm clouds, and had come to Earth as rain, and it was drought that I killed with the power that the Six Grandfathers gave me.”
Killing the Drought, 1931. One of 30 drawings made by Black Elk's friend, Standing Bear
Prairie Notes© is the official newsletter of Friends of Tandy Hills Natural Area, a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization. All content by Don Young except where otherwise noted.
