Big bird

Photo taken by Conservancy staff at a Conservancy preserve, 2025. With this article is a photo of a Great horned owl (Bubo virginianus) in flight. It’s on one of the Conservancy’s marsh complexes. While the Conservancy has prepared the preserves mostly …

Owl overdose?

Photo taken by Conservancy staff at the Conservancy’s BKS tract, 2025. Yes, a lot of Burrowing owls (Athene cunicularia) are posted on this blog. Yes, Burrowing owls are one of our favorite of the NBHCP’s “Covered Species.” We admit it. Here, however, …

Rodent exterminator, no charge

Photo taken by Conservancy staff on a Conservancy preserve, 2024. It’s often difficult to view, but part of the Conservancy’s job is to see that wildlife has access to sustenance on the preserves. Here, a Snowy egret (Egretta thula) manages to nab a qu …

Tomato King

(Photo taken on Conservancy mitigation lands by Conservancy staff.) This is extraordinary. A beautiful specimen of a Swainson’s hawk (Buteo swainsoni) in a freshly-harvested tomato field on Conservancy mitigation lands. And there were at least 10 other …

A very good sign

The photo that is shown with this post is of a Burrowing owl (Athene cunicularia), photographed in the Conservancy’s Central Basin Reserve Area. It has become a “friend” of Conservancy field crews since it is so gregarious. Conservancy crews always rec …

Habitat values…to humans

As the photo with this post shows, the Conservancy was again host to a team of budding Giant garter snake (GGS) scientists learning from the professionals. Here, GGS experts from the U.S. Geological Survey instruct young scientists on the methods and p …