Category: HOLLER HAPPENINGS

All things holler related such as animal interactions: with cattle updates, raptor stories, all interactions with birds especially roadrunners and quail, rattlesnake updates and coyote pack issues. Some time there might be human interactions as well, but there aren’t many humans near the holler!

Sandhills at The Salton Sea~

On By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, Wild Life236 Comments

With all their birdie buddies!

The heavy rains have filled the seas making happy and healthy birdies (click to enlarge).

The Sandhill Cranes have flown here en masse,

to take advantage of the bounty.

This is the first time they have allowed me close enough to get decent photos.

Sandhills are big birdies,

standing up to 4 1/2′ tall when fully extended,

They winter in the Salton Sea,

and head north soon,

to breed.

I have seen them doing their mating dances,

in the far Arctic.

Sorry to be out of touch. We are traveling, and wifi is unreliable.

Cheers to you for the wintering Sandhill Cranes~

For a Ceanothus Moth~

On By cindy knokeIn Conservation, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, Wild Life230 Comments

(click/tap to enlarge)

A lifetime,

lasts,

ten days.

Only four days,

are spent flying free.

Cheers to you from The Holler’s briefly flying beauties~

Sovereigns of the Skies~

On By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, Wild Life270 Comments

Holler Mockers (click/tap to enlarge)

are way too smart. They saved me from a rattlesnake when I was young.

Cardinals are luscious little beauties.

Lark Sparrow’s,

song makes your heart fly.

While Scrub Jay’s beauty,

is belied by their name.

Egyptian peli-cans,

are effortless comedians.

Cheers to you from your Holler feathered friends~

The Power~

On By cindy knokeIn Conservation, Flowers, GARDENING AT THE HOLLER, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES210 Comments

of a flower (click/tap to enlarge)

lifts our spirits everyday.

Cheers to you & stay safe and well~

Along Came A Spider~

On By cindy knokeIn Conservation, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, Wild Life241 Comments

Who sat down beside her.

Tarantulas measure around five inches in length, eleven inches if accurately measured. See:

https://www.nwf.org/Educational-Resources/Wildlife-Guide/Invertebrates/Tarantulas#:~:text=Adult%20tarantulas%20average%20five%20inches,weight%E2%80%94more%20than%206%20ounces.)

And she frightened (click/tap to enlarge photos).

Mr. Tarantula away.

Tarantula Hawks sting large tarantulas to the point of paralysis, and lay their eggs on them, which then feed on the paralyzed tarantula until it dies. Tarantula hawks have the second most painful insect sting in the world. This is the closest I have ever gotten to one even though they are here all the time. I happened to be sitting next to this one as it peacefully gathered pollen. Unfortunately I didn’t have my full zoom camera or there would be more up close detail.

https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/the-most-painful-wasp-sting-in-the-world-explained.html#:~:text=’Number%20two%20is%20broadly%20comparable,that%20of%20a%20velvet%20ant.

Reflecting pool Ritz Carlton Rancho Mirage.

Sunnylands Garden Rancho Mirage.

Cheers to you,

from The Holler~

God is in the Details~

On By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, GARDENING AT THE HOLLER, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, Psychological Self Care, REVERIES, Wild Life179 Comments

And everything (click/tap to enlarge),

is detail.

Cheers to you from The Holler gardens~

Centurial~

On By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, Flowers, GARDENING AT THE HOLLER, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, Wild Life226 Comments

Century Plants look like giant asparagus and are members of the aspargus family.

Their name is derived because they are said to bloom,

once a century,

and then die.

We have at least a hundred or more at The Holler.

When they bloom,

the stalks are well over 20 feet tall.

They are magnets for pollinators,

especially bees and hummingbirds.

The hummingbirds fight relentlessly for control over the massive stalks.

Our century plants bloom about every ten years and reproduce prodigiously via underground root systems.

Cheers to you from The Holler Centurions~

Goldies~

On By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, Wild Life214 Comments

Holler Lesser Goldfinch,

females,

posing up a storm!

Coiffed,

and ready for their close-ups,

Mr. DeMille.

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Mr. Goldfinch, refusing to be outdone, wants a portrait too.

Cheers to you from The Holler posers~

Fiore di Cacti~

On By cindy knokeIn Conservation, Flowers, GARDENING AT THE HOLLER, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES255 Comments

Cactus blooms, (click/tap to enlarge)

celebrate,

the winter rains,

with spring blossoms,

in exuberant,

fiery hues,

and pristine white,

with pale pastels.

The Holler is,

a blooming,

glory!

Cheers to you from The Holler’s prickly beauties~

Baby Grosbeak~

On By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES214 Comments

Is learning to feed himself (click/tap to enlarge).

Although he’s not quite sure yet,

what to do with the seeds!

He’ll figure it out,

now that he is on his own,

learning,

by watching the grown ups.

Cheers to you from The Holler Black Headed Grosbeaks~