Tag: Cindy Barton LCSW

Froggie Went A’Courtin~

On By cindy knokeIn Conservation, GARDENING AT THE HOLLER, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, Wild Life236 Comments


Either Mrs Toad is expecting, or she is feasting on far too many bugs! She is over 5 inches long and quite chubby.

Dragon, the fly, needs to keep his distance, because Mrs T can spring into action quite suddenly.

Mrs T is a clever critter, who waits patiently at the right time of day for the drip line to start emitting precious water, providing needed relief for an overheated toad on hot summer days.

T is a California Western Toad, a threatened species of ‘special concern,’ due to die offs caused by fertilizer contamination, disease, and habitat destruction.

Western Toads are terrestrial, and we have a thriving colony of them inside The Holler fences.

Cheers to you & happy weekend from the comfortably chubby, and quite toadish, Mrs Toad~

Baby Valentine~

On By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, Wild Life346 Comments


Sleepy owlet Valentine wears his heart on his face. (Click to enlarge and see Valentine better).

Mama has left him, and it is his first day alone, out of his nesting box.

Valentine doesn’t know what to do,

so he decides to fly down near the human,

watch her out of one eye,

until he falls asleep, clinging to his cactus bed.
Cheers to you from Valentine the confused little owlet~

Note: We have a barn owl nesting box at The Holler, usually woodpeckers nest in it, but this spring a barn owl family actually moved in. Valentine is their chick. I kept an eye on him for his first 24 hours out of the box, which was easy because he seemed quite unafraid of me. I think he was a bit shocked and confused. He passed his second night last night, and I could hear him in the oak groves. Today I haven’t seen him, but have heard him in the trees, so I think he is starting to figure things out.

La Quinta~

On By cindy knokeIn Conservation, EXTERIOR & INTERIOR DESIGN, Flowers, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, TRAVEL REVIEWS268 Comments


La Quinta Resort was built-in 1926.

It is located in the town of La Quinta, which is in the northwestern portion of The Sonoran Desert, in Southern California’s Coachella Valley.

The resort is adobe, made of over 100,000 handmade adobe bricks. The roofing contains over 60,000 handmade terracotta tiles.

Hand painted Talavera tiles are everywhere.

The resort is famous for it’s extensive floral gardens and fountains.

It is especially beautiful when the cactus are blooming!

Cheers to you from hot, but lovely La Quinta California~

Paradise Lost~

On By cindy knokeIn Conservation, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, TRAVEL REVIEWS210 Comments


Bombay City on The Salton Sea,

a graveyard for ships that will not sail,

and houses with no one home.

People live here and create art out of trash,

“Scrap was here!” (Click to enlarge and see.)

And this artist thinks we should, “Take the Day Off.” (I agree with him/her.)

This artist made a tree out of trash,

while boats still point, “Straight on til’ morning!”

Hopefully if the sea can be repaired,

Bombay City can be too.

Hope & Cheers to the people in Bombay City who make art and order out of chaos~

Note: I was surprised to see an in-depth story on the history and crisis in The Salton Sea, in ‘The Daily Mail’ a few days ago. Check it out if your are interested in this sad story, which is, of course, all of our stories:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5839677/A-ghost-town-making-Salton-Sea-went-busy-resorts-public-health-disaster.html

Reflections on a Silent Sea~

On By cindy knokeIn Conservation, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, TRAVEL REVIEWS, Wild Life223 Comments


The Salton Sea,

in summertime,

is scorching,

stark,

solitary,

and stunning.

No one here but you,

and the silent sea.
Good news for a change! California voters passed Proposition 68 this week which will allocate $200 million dollars towards saving The Salton Sea. The monies are earmarked towards rebuilding the wetlands that are so crucial to migrating birds and to conserving all the wildlife that depend upon the sea. Funds are also allocated to mitigate the harmful dust that is damaging human health. Everyday, amidst all the negativity, so many people do very good things! Thank you California voters for protecting our wild creatures and wild spaces.
Cheers to you from the soon to be saved Salton Sea~

Black Necked Stilts in The Salton Sea~

On By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, Wild Life282 Comments


Black Necked Stilts (BNS) are found from California to as far east as Florida, and as far south as Central America and the Galapagos.

They are waders and have the second longest leg to body proportions of any bird in the world excepting the flamingo (Cornell Lab of Ornithology).

These birds were photographed in The Salton Sea in Southern California.

The Salton Sea is the largest lake in California. It rests directly above The San Andreas Fault, and lies 71.9 meters below sea level.

The Salton Sea is under serious threat, is shrinking, and is heavily polluted.

The sea is considered the second most diverse and significant habitat for migrating birds in the US. Over 400 species have been identified here, and it is a critical migratory winter resting stop on The Pacific Flyway.

BNS populations are in decline due to habitat destruction and wetland pollution.

If the sea were to dry up, the millions of birds who rely on it during their annual migration would be imperiled.

It would become a giant toxic dust-bowl threatening the public health of millions of Californians. The shrinking of the sea is already emitting toxic dust and chemicals harming human health. Effective plans do exist to save and refresh the sea, but no plans exist to date, to implement them.

Cheers to you from the threatened Black Necked Stilts at the vulnerable Salton Sea~

(For more on The Sea read: http://www.latimes.com/science/la-me-salton-sea-20151001-story.html).