Lauren's Life Book

This is my life book- a place to collect a list in pictures of the different forms of life I have seen. I have tried to include the date/time/location of each subject. This list might be heavy on the birds because they are my current interest, but there will be other things featured as well. Some of the pictures are great, and some not so great- I never know when I'll come across something interesting and sometimes all I have is my camera phone on hand to capture an image.

Sunday, December 5, 2010

American Pipit (Anthus rubescens)

I saw these American pipits at Summit Lake (12,863 ft) while traveling to the summit of Mount Evans. Summit lake is a tarn, which is a lake formed in a cirque that was carved out by a glacier. You can read more about Summit Lake here. American pipits are one of a few birds that are located above the tree line in Colorado. You can read more about these pipits here, and you can read more about the tundra here.

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Northern "Red Shafted" Flicker (Colaptes auratus cafer)

A pair of Northern "Red Shafted" Flickers (Colaptes auratus cafer) at the top and bottom of the picture

Northern "Red Shafted" Flicker (Colaptes auratus cafer)

I saw these Northern Flickers in Old Town Fort Collins today in my backyard around 11:30AM. They blended in with the tree trunk, so I didn't immediately see them when I was tracking the Black-capped Chickadees. Once I did see them, I ended up getting some so-so pictures of them, with the last one really showing the typical coloration of these birds. According to the literature, these birds are in Florida too, so be on the look-out in your back yards, Easties! You can read more about this bird, and how it's name was assigned in error, here.

Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)

I saw this bird on Mulberry Street in Fort Collins, Colorado today around 11:30AM. I was walking home and ended up tracking it around the block to my back yard of all places. These pictures aren't the best, mostly because they were far away and I was just using a point and shoot style camera. This is the first time I have seen these birds, so that is kind of cool. Also perched in this tree was a pair of Northern Flickers and an American Robin. More on those birds later. For now, you can read more about this kind of chickadee here, including how they smash seeds on things to break them open.

U P D A T E:
I saw this chickadee on Green Lake in Seattle, Washington on May 31st, 2011 in the afternoon.

Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)

I saw this chickadee in Bothell, Washington in the morning on June 1st, 2011.

Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)

Saturday, October 30, 2010

Upland Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum)

I walked by this cotton field while on my way to a beaver dam near State Route 609 in Capron, Virginia on the afternoon of Thursday, August 19, 2010. I ended up seeing the dam, but there were no beavers in sight. One day I will go back there and find one of nature's engineers for this blog. In the meantime, you can read more about this variety of cotton here, and about harvesting cotton here.

Dusky Grouse (Dendragapus obscurus)

I saw this grouse while hiking in the Rocky Mountain National Park on September 4th, 2010 around 6:00PM. My sister actually spotted it by chance from about 15-20 yards, which was quite impressive since she had no clue what she had seen. This grouse is typically hard to spot by the casual observer because of it's cryptic coloration. I believe this is the female, and given that they place their nests on the ground, sheltered by tree stumps, this looks like it might be the location of a nest also. You can read more about this bird here.

Great Egret (Ardea alba)

I saw this egret in the Urban Wetlands of Greenwood Cemetery in downtown Orlando, Florida in the afternoon on August 11, 2010. You can read more about these egrets here.

Monday, October 11, 2010

Gray Jay (Perisoreus canadensis)

I saw this gray jay hiking on the Twin Sisters Trail in the Rocky Mountain National Park on September 5th at 6PM about a mile from the trailhead. I was sitting on the ground in one spot for a while and the jay flew up to inspect what was going on, probably looking for food. I was in a crazy amount of pain from what appears to only have been a sprained ankle, but being able to see this bird somehow made it better. Or at least it was an interesting way to pass the time while waiting for mountain rescue, and my sister had to take the pictures because I was a little incapacitated. Yes, even in the middle of a little mountain emergency I still take the time to look at birds. The cool thing about these birds is that they mate for life (but if one of the mates dies or goes missing they will find another mate). An interesting thing about the offspring of these mated individuals is that once they are out of the nest, but still living with their parents, they kick the less dominant offspring out of the nesting area where it most likely won't be able to survive on its own. The dominant offspring are the ones that go on to live with the aid of their parents. Gray jays are usually found in forest regions where there aren't that many people, so sorry all you city people. You won't be seeing these jays anywhere around. You can read more about these jays here, and even though this isn't a strict example of siblicide, you can read more about siblicide here.

Blue Peafowl (Pavo cristatus)

Blue Peacock (Pavo cristatus)

Blue Peahen and baby (Pavo cristatus)

I saw these peafowl in Orlando Florida in a neighborhood in the vicinity of Michigan and Conway sometime around August 10th in the late afternoon. These peafowl have been occupying that neighborhood in some form or another since I can remember. On this particular occasion there were seemingly hundreds of them everywhere, all over the roads and trees and yards of the neighborhood. I have many more pictures somewhere on a hard drive that I'll add once I find them. I really adore peafowl since I had lived in the Conway neighborhood for over 10 years, and have learned how to do a really good call from hearing it so much. Also, the peafowl is a really good example of sexual dimorphism in action and a good example of sexual selection via displays. You can read more about peafowl here, and you can read more about sexual selection here. Since it turns out some people don't like nature and want to get rid of the flock, you can read more about the Conway area peafowl drama here.

Crow Awareness Day: American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos)

American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos)

I saw these crows walking down Howes Street in Fort Collins today at about 11:15AM. The only thing that is interesting about this fact is that they were in about the same location I saw the Vulture Bees a while back. American crows are very common to most places I've been to in America, and they just end up blending into the background of every day life. It is for that reason I hereby declare today Crow Awareness Day at Lauren's Life Book HQ. To commemorate such an event, if I see any more crows today on my adventures I will take pictures and post them here. You can read more about crows here and wait with bated breath until I spot a raven and do a comparison post.

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

White-Lined Sphinx (Hyles lineata)

This moth was spotted at a house in Cheyenne, Wyoming near F.E. Warren Air force Base in July 2010. You can read more about these moths here.

Vulture Bee

These bees were spotted during late August 2010 eating out the inside of a dead bird on the sidewalk of Howes Street in Fort Collins, Colorado. These bees are stingless and they feed on rotting flesh rather than the usual humdrum plant-based nectar or pollen. You can read more (but not much more) about these bird eating bees here, and you can read about bee eating birds here.

American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis)

These finches were spotted drinking out of a puddle somewhere near a cotton field in Capron, Virginia on Friday, August 20th at about 11:00AM. The female is on the left, and two males are on the right. You can read more about these finches here, and you can read more about sexual dimorphism here.

Green Heron (Butorides virescens)

I saw this heron in the Urban Wetlands of Greenwood Cemetery in downtown Orlando, Florida in the afternoon on August 11, 2010. I think that the last photo is the bird in flight, but I am not 100% sure. If you know otherwise, please feel free to comment. You can read more about these birds here.

Sagebrush Lizard (Sceloporus graciosus)

This lizard was spotted Memorial Day weekend 2010 in the mountains of Wyoming somewhere near Laramie Peak. This joker was the source of constant porch rustling that was just the sounds of him in a watering can near the front door of the cabin. You can read more about Sagebrush Lizards here.

Sunday, September 5, 2010

Mountain Goat (Oreamnos americanus)

These mountain goats were spotted near and at the summit of Mount Evans yesterday afternoon. Even though the trip up the mountain was mostly driven, I did hike up to the 14,264 feet summit with my sister. I've always thought mountain goats have such noble faces, but they can't be bothered to show them because apparently they are hungry sorts also. An interesting side note: after having spent over an hour above 14.000 feet my mind was a little loopy and I spotted some sort of raptor bird on the trip down. I struggled to get my camera in time to take a picture, and missed the opportunity. At which point I said, "Man! I really wanted a picture of that bird but I don't have my homework." Altitude is fun. I will have more posts later featuring the vegetation up above the tree line, and really I could do a whole blog dedicated to subalpine tundra vegetation alone, it is so fascinating. You can read more about mountain goats here.

Sunday, August 29, 2010

Deer

I don't know what kind of deer this is, but I just had to post it right away. I just spotted this mama and her two fawns on the way home from the garden, somewhere in Fort Collins near Timnath. The fawns still had their white spots, and even though you can't make out the second one, there are two. You can read more about deer here.

Saturday, August 28, 2010

Rambouillet Sheep (Ovis aries)

I saw this Colorado State University mascot, CAM the ram, at the farmer's market in Old Town Fort Collins this morning. I actually walk past the pen where CAM lives on campus to get to most of my classes, and so I have seen this particular ram on a weekly basis for over a year. For me the interesting thing about rams is that you can tell their age sort of like you tell the age of a tree- you count the rings on the horns. I am not sure how many rings equals a year of age, and I think that when rams are older they don't grow in their horns every year, but I am sure there are people out there who know these things and could tell how old CAM is. You can read more about the history of breeding this type of sheep here.

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Red-bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus)

I saw this woodpecker in the Urban Wetlands of Greenwood Cemetery in downtown Orlando, Florida in the afternoon on August 11, 2010. You can read more about these woodpeckers here.

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Crustose and Foliose Lichens

These lichens were spotted growing on a boulder on the banks of a river somewhere in the Routt National Forest in Wyoming in 2010. Unfortunately, I am not a lichenologist, and I have no experience identifying different species of lichens, so I don't know what these particular specimens are. If you know, please leave a comment. In the meantime, you can read more about lichens here.

Crimson Marsh Glider (Trithemis aurora)

Crimson Marsh Glider (Trithemis aurora)
Photo credit: Kristina LeCours

I saw this dragonfly in the Urban Wetlands of Greenwood Cemetery in downtown Orlando, Florida in the afternoon on August 11, 2010. You can read more about the Crimson Marsh Glider here.

Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes)

I saw this fox, complete with squirrel in its mouth, while walking down Howes Street in Fort Collins, Colorado one May morning in 2010. The interesting thing about this sighting is that the fox was walking down the sidewalk seen in the picture straight towards me. When it reached the driveway it made an approximate 90º turn, then another, then another, then another (making a square around me), and then continued down the sidewalk behind me. You can read more about the red fox here.

Chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus)

I saw these chickens on Thursday, August 19, 2010 in someone's backyard in Capron, Virginia. You can read more about domesticated chickens here.

U P D A T E
This chicken was seen in the backyard of a friend in Fort Collins sometime in late 2010. It's eggs were delicious and made the best pasta dough.

Chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus)

Broad-tailed Hummingbird (Selasphorus platycercus)

I saw this bird May 31, 2010 on the porch of a remote cabin near Esterbrook, Wyoming. You can read more about hummingbirds here.

Black Vulture (Coragyps atratus)

I spotted this bird August 19th, 2010 around 11:30AM while driving in the Mennonite country of southern Maryland somewhere in the vicinity of Great Mills. It was in a front yard along with two others eating roadkill. You can read more about this bird here.