Heralds of Spring in Texas
"It is a basic part of human nature to anticipate a new cycle of growth in our natural world and to recall fond memories of earlier springs. But the signals of spring are varied and personal. They differ from one person to the next and often are very special to the beholder."—from the Introduction
We know by the calendar when spring officially begins, but how does nature tell us spring has come? In Heralds of Spring in Texas Roland H. Wauer walks us through Texas, from the Rio Grande to the Panhandle, as spring arrives.
In addition to offering us his own special memories of spring in Texas, Wauer brings together here the thoughts of other Texas naturalists, professional and avocational, and augments both with background information about the particular herald being considered. Harbingers of spring explored include birds, trees, flowers, mammals, even the night sky.
For many along the Gulf Coast, the arrival of the first purple martins signifies the season. As Petra Hockey of Port O'Connor says, "I run outside to welcome them, and they seem just as happy to be back as I am to have them. Now spring has arrived." In the Trans-Pecos, two welcome signs of spring are the blooming of the Big Bend bluebonnets and the arrival of Cassin's kingbirds in the Davis Mountains. But for Mark Adams of the McDonald Observatory, "as the Earth swings closer to spring, . . . Pegasus, the Winged Horse, emerge[s] from the solar glare into the pre-dawn sky. . . . My spring herald."
For many in Central Texas, spring has come when the Mexican buckeyes and redbuds begin flowering and the golden-cheeked warbler arrives. But for Burr Williams, in the Western Plains, "spring is best expressed by the myriad of invertebrate tracks that he finds on the sand dunes at Monahans Sandhills State Park."
All those who love outdoor Texas will relish this delightful celebration of spring and enjoy the artwork of Ralph Scott, who has done an illustration of each spring herald.
What people are saying - Write a review
We haven't found any reviews in the usual places.
Blooming Spanish Daggers at Laguna Atascosa
Field Sparrow Songs at Guadalupe River State Park
Anemones at Dripping Springs
Chimney Swifts Aerial Acrobats
Mountain Laurel Blooms
Greening Cottonwoods at Barton Springs
The Northward Passage of American Robins
Whitethroated Sparrow Songs in Austin
Migrating Upland Sandpipers
Greening of the Coastal Prairie
Matagorda Island Stonehenge
Purple Martins Arrival at Port OConnor
Alligators The Roar of Spring at Brazos Bend
Crane Flies in Friendswood
Yellowthroated Warblers Arrival at Sabine Woods
Violetgreen Swallows along the Rio Grande
Blooming of Big Bend Bluebonnets
Turkey Vultures Returning to West Texas
Cassins Kingbirds in the Davis Mountains
Spring Skies at the McDonald Observatory
Boutonniere Plants in the Guadalupe Mountains
Violets at Old River
Gray Squirrel Nest Building at Port Arthur
Carolina Jessamine of the Big Thicket
Flowering Dogwoods in the Forest Midstory
Falcate Orangetip Butterflies in Sam Houston National Forest
Warbler Songs at Caddo Lake
Mexican Buckeyes and Redbuds Twin Heralds
Goldencheeked Warblers at Balcones Canyonland
The Texas Bluebonnet Official State Wildflower
PRAIRIE AND LAKES REGION
Cliff Swallows near Victoria
Our Little Huisache Tree Is Famous Worldwide
Buffbellied Hummingbirds at Mission Valley
The Unmistakable Scissortailed Flycatcher
Northern Cardinals Provide Our Earliest Spring Songs
Southern Plains Trout Lilies near Waco
DevilsElbow in the Northern Plains
Spring Beauty on the Heard Wildlife Sanctuary
PANHANDLE AND WESTERN PLAINS
Invertebrate Tracks on the Monahans Sandhills
Cassins Sparrow Songs in Midland County
Migrating Peeps near San Angelo
House Finch Songs and Pin Clover Blossoms on the Llano Estacado
Three Early Wildlowers at Amarillo
Western Meadowlark Songs on the Northern Prairie
Common and Scientific Plant Names
active birder agarito American anemone arrival begin birder birds bloom blossoms buds BUFF-BELLIED HUMMINGBIRDS buff-belly butterflies Cassin's cave swallows chachalacas CHAPTER chimney swifts cliff swallow coast coastal prairie color cottonwood County dunes early eastern meadowlark falcate orangetips February feed feet flight flocks flowering dogwoods flycatchers flying fruits golden-cheeked warblers grass gray squirrels green habitat hackberry harbinger of spring huisache hummingbird inches insects jessamine leaves male March Matagorda Island mesquite migration miles mockingbird mountain laurel native nesting grounds northern cardinal northern mockingbird numbers Oberholser occur Panhandle perch Pineywoods Plains plant purple martins redbud River robins roost scissor-tailed scissor-tailed flycatchers season seeds shrubs sing song songbirds South Texas southern sparrow species spring beauty spring herald springtime summer tail territory Texans Texas bluebonnet Trans-Pecos turkey vultures upland sandpipers usually Valley violet western western meadowlarks wild wildflowers Wildlife wings winter wood wrote yellow yellow-throated warbler yucca
Page 14 - Whereas, Ornithologists, musicians, educators and Texas in all walks of life unite in proclaiming the mocking bird the most appropriate species for the state bird of Texas, as it is found in all parts of the State, in winter and in summer, in the city and in the country, on the prairie and in the woods and hills, and is a singer of distinctive type, a fighter for the protection of his home, fallIng, if need be, in its defense, like any true Texan.
Page 35 - And yet they's a point worth thinking about — We note that the old mesquites ain't out! Well, it may be spring for all we know — There ain't no ice and there ain't no snow. It looks like spring and it smells so, too. The calendar says it plenty true — And still they's a point worth thinkin...