Holler Lakes & Birds~

On November 18, 2018 By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, Wild Life270 Comments

There are several lakes surrounding The Holler that provide wonderful places to hike, picnic and birdwatch.

This osprey was vigilant,

intently watching the lake for her next meal (despite the feather stuck on her beak.)

Bald eagles are congregating in greater numbers around Holler lakes,

which thrills me to no end, because they were almost wiped out locally, and I went decades without seeing them here.

Brewer’s Blackbirds are common at The Holler. They are very friendly birds and often eat out of my son’s hands.

Ring necked ducks were on the lake in force,

resting from migration.

The area around The Holler burned extensively in 2007, destroying 1000’s of homes and extensive habitat. You can see the progress of regrowth and the burned trees on the horizon.

Cheers to you from beautiful, burning, California, my native state~

Castle Rapture~

On August 26, 2017August 26, 2017 By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, TRAVEL REVIEWS, Wild Life316 Comments

Near Haut-Koenigsbourg in France is a castle called Kintzheim that houses only raptors.

These are bateleur eagles that I photographed in the wild in Africa and never expected to see again in France!

Of course you recognize these beauties, who I also never expected to see in France.

The castle runs a program called “La Volerie des Aigles,” which is dedicated to breeding, conserving and educating the public about vulnerable raptors. Birds are flown daily, and are an unusual sight soaring over the old towns and orderly fields of France. The castle has bred many endangered raptor species including Andean condors, and stellar, imperial and white-tailed eagles, and many other species, including vultures.

The white-headed vulture is endemic to Africa. Populations have been declining steeply in recent years due to habitat degradation and poisoning. Our planet needs vultures, they are designed to keep our world clean.

The cinereous vulture has an impressive wing-span of 10 feet. It is under serious threat. There are only an estimated 4,500-5000 of these amazing birds left in the wild.

The golden eagle is distributed across Eurasia, North America, and parts of North Africa, but has been eliminated from much of it’s prior habitats.

Harry Potter’s snowy owls are here too!
The public can visit the castle for a nominal fee which not only supports the raptor conservation program, but also provides an up close experience with these incredible birds which will, unless your heart is made of stone, cause you to become enraptured by them.
Admission also enables you to explore the quite impressive old castle ruins.

Cheers to you from Castle Kintzheim’s gorgeous and threatened raptors~

Nature’s Soul~

On November 16, 2016November 16, 2016 By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, TRAVEL REVIEWS343 Comments

Some humans relax in natural places,

and are less content in human spaces.

While other’s thrive in the social whirl,

a nature’s soul will find depth of meaning,

far from the thrum of a human being.

Nature’s souls go to wild spaces,

for it is here they find their sacred places.

Cheers to you from a nature’s soul~