wildlife Archives

What’s Not to Love about Bariloche, Argentina?

December 13, 2025December 7, 2025Posted in Birds, blogging, environment, history, Mountains, Travel, writingTagged birds, environment, national parks, Nature, travel, wildlife2 Comments

Two hour flight from Buenos Aires to Bariloche, Argentina was informative as my plane neighbor was arriving in the area for a 3 day, 18 mile per day run or walk, and camp each night competition. He has been training for the past year; very excited to participate in the upcoming activity! And don’t you know, a few days later when we drove to Puerto Varas, Chile we see the runners. I knew exactly what they were up to!

Bariloche I loved! It is the “Gateway to Patagonia” or the “Gateway to the Lake District” and the “Heart of the National Park”. The national park has grown around this town… all of it beautiful! It reminds me of Park City, Utah, USA with the mountains, a walkable downtown with outdoor clothing and gear shops, restaurants and breweries. The architecture though reminds me of Swiss chalets and some refer to the town as the “Switzerland of South America”. True to what I remember of my 2013 trip in Patagonia, the wind is always blowing. Locals refer to little wind as no wind. I walked the lakeshore and did see a variety of birds!

Nahuel Huapi National Park is the oldest national park in Argentina, established in 1922 and reconfigured in 1934. Our guide mentioned Teddy Roosevelt encouraged people in Argentina to protect this land. Glad they did!

Bariloche on a huge lake and mountain scenery

We met with a Mapuche tribe member. Their love of the land and nature surely reminds me of many native tribes around the world. Unfortunately too are the atrocities they persevered. His message: dependent on the political system in power, then determined if they were considered human or not. Only then could some constitutional changes be made. Their fight continues; however, they also believe all native tribes are keeping the rest of the world in balance.

Mapuche tribal member and our guide translating.

Our local guide provided a demonstration of their drinking Yerba mate. The cup with metal straw in the mate and hot, not boiling water, was a refresher for me. I wondered if I had kept my cup from my past trip. What’s also fascinating is the Argentinians easily pass it from one person to another to drink the tea. Americans could never imagine sharing a drink from one cup with another person; I’m sure!

What fun! We had a horseback trail ride. Thankfully my horse knew where it was to go as I watched 2 European hare run off in the distance. This activity was part of a home visit. Our “home host” family was originally from Germany in 1850 and ranched 1000’s of acres of land. They were very generous with their time as we rode the horses, asked many questions about their life, and enjoyed a BBQ of lamb, beef and sausage… and delicious German-style potato salad!

Another activity, another day, was a hike through a forested area to a viewpoint. It was wonderful to stretch our legs each day we stayed in this area. We saw a very expensive hotel as we looked down from the top of a hill. On another mountainside we took a chairlift up and down. Everywhere one looked, it was beautiful and the weather truly cooperated for us!

We spend a good amount of time in Bariloche to enjoy meals… I did try wild boar which was tender meat, … chocolate and craft beer. We also had a speaker tell us about the Nazi war criminals caught decades later in Argentina. One was caught at the speaker’s school when she was just a young teacher. It was interesting to see the magazine and newspaper headlines as she told us the facts.

There are many universities in Bariloche. Universities provide free education for all. Brazilians come here to see the snow in winter. Argentinians go to Brazil for their beaches. Many Chilean school groups were visiting now on their summer vacation. Don’t come mid-May to mid-June as that is the rainy season. Also, look both ways when crossing the road, make eye contact with driver, as they don’t slow down otherwise!

Some of my fellow travelers floated the Limay River. I did not. My time was instead walking along the lakeshore. Many yellow-billed teal, 2 ashy-headed geese and a Patagonian tyrant were now new birds to my life list. How wonderful to also see some birds again: chimango caracara, neotropic cormorant, and black-faced ibis.

I’ll write again in a few days as we travel by land from Bariloche, Argentina over the Andes Mountains to Puerto Varas, Chile.

Buenos Aires, Argentina! Part 2 of 2

December 12, 2025December 7, 2025Posted in blogging, environment, history, Travel, writingTagged environment, Nature, travel, wildlife4 Comments

There are many places to stop and visit in Buenos Aires. It’s a large city. Of course I was always looking for birds. I did see a couple of new birds, but I’ll create a post regarding birds another time.

We visited the first public cemetery, 1822, which comprised only of mausoleums. There was no required style so it was interesting to look at them. Each mausoleum had steps down to where shelves held the individual caskets. Our local guide shared background info about a few of the inhabitants of some mausoleums and the “keepers” paid by families to maintain the mausoleum.

They all are deep into the ground, like this one being built.

There is a huge stadium in Buenos Aires! It seats 86,000 people and holds 100,000 people. Amazing! People from around South America come here for concerts. Popular musicians may perform for 4 -8 nights to many thousands in the audience.

Bookstore: a theater was transformed to a bookstore. Absolutely great use of a beautiful space!

Paraná Delta- is as large an area as metropolitan Buenos Aires! We took a boat ride and saw the houses built on stilts, with rocks or concrete wall in front,electrical lines, septic tank, gas tanks and Direct tv satellites. There is no drinking water, but if people put out their huge water containers, water is delivered. I noticed some places had multiple filters on water they were pumping to their property. There is a mail boat, supermarket boat and many people kayaking from place to place besides the tourist boats on the water. The delta is a huge, muddy area from what I can see, yet solid enough to have all these homes, church, schools, etc. Amazing!

In 2013, I saw the tango show, so I skipped it this time. But we had a tango lesson! The professional dancers were convincing as they said, “ If you can walk, you can do the traditional tango.” That statement may be debatable, but we had a good time!

This is NOT the traditional tango!

Solo Time in Santiago

December 2, 2025November 22, 2025Posted in Birds, blogging, environment, Travel, wildlife, writingTagged birding, birds, parks, solo travel, travel, wildlife4 Comments

Santiago can be walked if you are a patient person. I decided to walk to the Costanera Center, the tallest building in the city and maybe in South America. Next door was a five floor shopping mall. I had no interest in going to the sky deck bar at the very top of the center to see the entire city. I continued my walk to a Japanese Garden, an area of the huge city park.

The uphill walk to the Japanese Garden was worth it. Long and hot weather today. Soon it will be summer here. At the Japanese Garden you walk along paths passing quiet pools of water with lily pads, waterwheels, streams and sculptured trees.

Very pleasant place as I also listened for birds. Another new bird: white-crested elaenia.

On my way down the hill, I interacted with employees putting up insect traps in fruit trees. Not knowing any Spanish on my part, my apologies to them, I photoed an information sheet so I could know what fly they are trying to capture.

So many places to eat in the city! I settled on my tour guide’s recommendation for a meal: pastel de jaiba… a crab cake … and as I write this, the electricity went out in one-third of the restaurant. I have my water, bread with butter and salsa, wine and meal so I am set… and then the electricity was back on! Unfortunately the chocolate cake has strawberry layer within, so glad I mentioned no strawberry please, so I’ll finish my wine with flan. Ah yes, I now remember that dessert is a South American staple!

I walked to Parque Bicentenario where hundreds of start-up tech and other companies had displays. Further along I spent time at a pond. Much to my surprise, I saw a plumbeous rail walking along the pond’s edge onto grass. Rails are typically hidden from sight. To see this one so easily was amazing!

Two other birds were new to me: yellow-billed pintail and yellow-winged blackbird … a male and a female. I was happy to have my camera available for these observations.

Then I was looking at this next bird wondering is that a mockingbird? Yup.

Finally, I had been hearing the rufous-collared sparrow and the noisy monk parakeets. Now I had photos! My bird life list has grown by 8 new birds. Soon off to Easter Island in the mid-Pacific Ocean!

Monk parakeet landed on the ground. Usually in the trees.

I’ll be back in a few days after I discover Easter Island!

Chile & Argentina … Here I Come!

November 29, 2025November 21, 2025Posted in adventure travel, Animals, Birds, blogging, environment, Travel, wildlife, writingTagged Mountains, Nature, travel, wildlife4 Comments

Chile is a new country for me to visit! Argentina is smack-dab right next door to Chile, just look at the map below:

Argentina hugs Chile, or is the other way around!?!

My last adventure to this area of the world was a hiking trip in Argentina where I fell in love with the mountains near El Chalten. This trip I’ll be in the Andes again with an opportunity to visit more of the area: Easter Island, Chiloé Island, Torres del Paine and Iguassu (Iguazu) Falls from the Brazilian and Argentinian sides. When I was in Buenos Aires, so many years ago, Pope Francis was selected Pope … and the people of his church celebrated here! I also remember seeing tango dancing and on this trip I may even get a tango lesson!

Plenty of history to be learned, wildlife to view, UNESCO sites to visit, hikes to enjoy, wines, craft beer and food to taste, local and indigenous people to meet, and new birds for me to discover! Now for the adventure to begin!

November Nature Journal & My Brain

November 16, 2025November 16, 2025Posted in Animals, Birds, blogging, environment, wildlife, writingTagged Arizona, birds, Nature, Tucson, wildlife1 Comment

I went for a walk to bird watch, stretch my legs, and see if any other interesting animals were at Agua Caliente Park this month. As I approached my usual walking path, I decided to change things up. Often walking the same direction, why not change it; I’ll walk in the reverse direction in the park.

My brain is wired in a particular way, no doubt reinforcing my habits. So I got thinking about myself as a right-handed person and how different it feels when I use my left hand for simple tasks. Now how would I feel to walk in the direction opposite from my usual path?

Walking in the opposite direction on the paths I have walked a hundred times at this park was at first strange. My brain prompted me to stop every so often and determine where exactly I was on the trail and to assess some of my usual birding opportunities from the different angle. It was an interesting time to realize how simply changing the direction of my walk offered me a different perspective on my outing. I enjoyed the walk and will continue to change things up as my walks continue here in the coming months.

Have you ever changed things up? Were there any advantages or disadvantages to the change up? Maybe you were forced to do things differently from your normal routine, share if you wish.

Nature Journal: Our Backyard November 2025

November 13, 2025November 2, 2025Posted in Animals, Birds, blogging, Plants, wildflowers, wildlife, writingTagged Arizona, birds, Nature, wildlife2 Comments

Nature abounds in our backyard as I watch almost 100 Western honeybees at one of 2 Baja fairy duster plants! Look closely to see a bee:

We are also very excited when we see hummingbirds stopping at our desert willow trees and Baja fairy duster plants. Especially when they rest on a tree branch since one rarely sees a hummingbird not moving. The javelina continue to walk past my bedroom window and coyotes are in the neighborhood, as are bobcats. I’m soon off on another adventure so I will return with backyard 2026 nature journals.

The woodpeckers have been noisy at the feeder.

Nature Journal: Our Backyard

October 26, 2025October 13, 2025Posted in Animals, Birds, blogging, environment, wildlife, writingTagged Arizona, birds, Nature, wildlifeLeave a comment

Our backyard has had a couple of different lizards scurrying around and an occasional butterfly. I wish I could capture a photo of a butterfly! Red-tailed hawks have flown overhead, as do common ravens. The usual birds are at the feeders or in the trees. My October nature journal:

Nature Journal: Agua Caliente Park in October

October 23, 2025October 13, 2025Posted in Animals, Birds, blogging, environment, Travel, wildlife, youthTagged Arizona, birds, Nature, travel, Tucson, wildlifeLeave a comment

Three high school students were peering into the water’s edge and calling out to each other, “There’s long neck. Look how large he is. This is the second day seeing him.” I frequent this park and could not imagine what they were observing. And to name an animal, “long neck”? So I went to where they were standing and asked what they were looking at in the water.

It was a turtle with a long neck! Yup, good name! I mentioned I had never seen one in all the years frequenting this park. Many red-eared sliders were in the water too. They were the usual, and most numerous, turtles for us to see. This long-necked turtle was new to me!

I immediately used the Inaturalist app with a photo of the turtle to determine what it was we were looking at in this water. We discover it is a spiny softshell turtle. These students, who were visiting from New Hampshire, saw the turtle the previous day too. Yes, this was a new turtle for me too! The students also now aware of the Inaturalist app.

I enjoyed talking with the students. They would only be in Tucson another day but had hopes of seeing a javelina. Unfortunately they missed the parade of javelinas through our yard last month. And they will not see javelinas at the Grand Canyon where they will visit next. But they are having an educational Arizona visit in towns and parks around the state.

As I walked the park’s paths this month, I saw my first phainopepla. Of course the Gila woodpeckers were busy and noisy as usual. The vermilion flycatchers with their bright red color is easy to see, just as a northern cardinal that also tried to hide itself in some shrubs. Off in a distance on an electrical power pole I saw what first looked like a black vulture. I did not have my camera that day, but after talking with another birder, I decided it was a juvenile turkey vulture. Few wading ducks, only a couple of ring-necked ducks. About 17 different bird species are usually seen. Now I can keep my eyes open for the spiny softshell turtle too!

The harvest moon and hunter’s moon, the rain and rainbows, and migrating wildlife this month has been fascinating to observe. Here’s my October nature journal for Agua Caliente Park:

While Birding: Be in the Moment

October 19, 2025October 13, 2025Posted in Animals, Birds, blogging, environment, wildlife, writingTagged Arizona, birds, Nature, wildlifeLeave a comment

One never knows what the birding day will be like till having spent the time. I hoped to see as many birds as I could this October day. Soon I found myself in the middle of a Gila woodpecker festival. They seemed to be all around me and busy collecting food. Here are some photos of those observations.

Gila woodpecker with something in its beak.

Male Gila woodpeckers seem to be busy today.

Here’s another Gila woodpecker at another place in the park on a Saguaro cactus.

I listen to various birds and am still learning their calls. I wonder if one call I hear is a phainopepla. Is that squeaky call a phainopepla? It is most helpful when I finally see the bird while calling! Yeah!

I hear the call of a bird I know! Most every time I will find this bird scratching around on the ground, so that is where my eyes search for sight of an Abert’s towhee. I follow the call. No bird is around on the ground as I walk the trail, but I know it is here because I hear its call. I could not believe it as I look up in a tree and see the Abert’s towhee!

An Abert’s towhee in a tree and not on the ground!

A favorite bird of mine is a curve-billed thrasher. It is a challenge to find this bird, but the call helps me head in a correct direction. Then, will the bird be on the ground or in a tree? It hides so well in the shrubbery. Finding it today was easier than usual as I see it on a tree branch!

Easier to see a curve-billed thrasher when in a tree and not in the shrubbery.

It’s important to not distract yourself while birding with other thoughts, things to do, or whatever. Can you? Sure! But I find it more relaxing and believe I see more birds when I tune into the sounds and sights around me in nature. Being in the moment today provided me with seeing 17 different species of birds at this one park. I pointed a couple of birds out to people who were simply walking by. They appreciated the info, and there is a northern cardinal to point out so easily with its red color!

Northern cardinal almost missed by people passing by.

Jane Touched My Heart

October 16, 2025October 13, 2025Posted in blogging, environment, historyTagged environmentalist, Nature, wildlife3 Comments

Jane Goodall was always an inspiration to me. In the 1970’s, I knew of her observational work with chimpanzees and time in an African forest. At the same time, I was a science teacher, backpacker and loved science, nature and the outdoors. To record factual info, spend time in a natural environment and observe nature was one of the reasons I enjoyed the subject of science. I was also aiming to encourage my science students to be aware and involved in environmental activities. While listening to Jane Goodall speak a few times at Cornell University, I knew my goal in encouraging my students to care about their local environment would be beneficial. She spoke to me in a way that further opened my heart to the love of the natural world. I wanted to do the same with my students. To touch another’s heart with a compassionate and loving message, there is a better chance the individual will join your project.

Jane Influenced My Approach to Teaching

My junior high school science students learned the usual info in science books, but also had outdoor activities. In the beginning, each class simply went on an outdoor walk around the school yard with me, observing and discussing what they noticed. Eventually each student with a partner did “adopt” an area of land in our school’s deciduous backyard. Students had a piece of land one foot by one foot at its surface and also took measurements approximately a foot above and below the land’s surface. They recorded the organic and inorganic matter in their plot, once a month for 8 months in the school year. (Yes, there was snow, much to the chagrin of my school administrator who wondered how the students would do their outdoor observations on those days.) Students enthusiastically accomplished their observations and made some surprising, at least to them, notes. I think to be outdoors doing science was so unique to the students there was no question it intrigued them to participate.

A group of my science students also started a paper recycling club. They made sure every classroom had a bin just for paper. Students collected the bins throughout the school on a regular basis and stored the paper waste. Old textbooks had their pages ripped from the binders. At locker clean-out time per quarter, students collected the notebooks thrown out and ripped out those pages of paper. (Fortunately these were years when the group received money for the paper they recycled at recycling centers.) They also collected pencils, sharpened what was left to many of them and made them available to the student body.

While I was not in Africa with chimpanzees, I continued to motivate young people in projects so they could appreciate our natural world. Decades later, 1991, Jane Goodall began her “Roots and Shoots” program for school groups. It was similar to what I was doing within my teaching. As I suspected, Jane had touched my heart and that was motivation for me to do the work I did as a science teacher.

As a Cadette Girl Scout leader, I took my troop camping once a month year-round. I wanted the young campers to realize every camping trip is not easy. We wish weather to be beautiful, bugs to be non-existent, campfires to light with a first match, and rain to stop … there is much to be learned when things do not go as planned. My hope was they would be problem-solvers and remain optimistic even when challenges grew larger. I saw this too with Jane Goodall as the decades went by. She had talks with opposing groups to understand how their side could help to make all a bit better. If we could all work together a common goal, no matter how small the goal. There was an importance in compromising to meet a goal: small positive action moved forward rather than a full stop and no goal met for decades or ever.

The Future is in our Youth Leaders

I followed Jane Goodall’s work throughout the years with info from the Jane Goodall Institute. She worked tirelessly. To this day I can recall her chimp welcome when she began her talk at Cornell University. I was moved seeing the photographs and videos of her work in Gombe. Her shift to working with young people with “Roots and Shoots” program was what I believed to be most important since they are the inheritors of this planet. Hearing young people speak so intelligently about the natural world is heart-warming. I believe we are in good hands as the younger generations move forward with knowledge and understanding of the natural world and how to have a healthy planet. Soon they will be in position of power to make the decisions needed. Our generation may think we know it all, but we are spending time trying to fix the mess we made and at times I’m not even sure we are doing that! The younger generation wants a healthier planet for them and their future generations.

To quote another influencer in my lifetime, Nelson Mandela: “It always seems impossible until it’s done.” Jane Goodall accomplished so much during her life till the day she died … touched many a heart … and one is mine! Thank you Jane!