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The Bosque is many things to many creatures, but it is primarily a home. For others it is a transitory place to rest and recuperate. Balloons land here, people bike here, water birds rest here, the raptors hunt here.

 

This acequia drain is usually a popular fishing hole when the water levels are higher. The fish are now long dead from anoxia and the water quality is likely worse than the odor. But, it is still home even though the recreation value no longer exists for the humans.

Young bullfrogs that were lucky enough to metamorph quickly, need permanent water to survive. Many other amphibian species can burrow, like the woodhouse toads. Water is also how the frogs avoid some predators. A green frog on a brown background shows up too well if it is moving. The white crust on the ground is the residual salts left over after heavy evaporation of alkaline water.

Bullfrogs can change their color slowly. Here is a brown looking frog on a green background. The frogs forage for insects in the cattails and tall plants growing along the borders of the ditches. In the evening the frogs would likely have to disappear into the foliage because the raccoons come out and use their long sensitive fingers to feel for frogs and crayfish in the shallow pools.

It is always a bad idea for many frogs to be in a small area. Mostly because the largest bullfrogs will cannibalize the smallest, but they all seem to be able to made do when water becomes scarce. This concept in Biology is termed refugium. Modern humans likely went through a similar process at some point in the last ice age.

 

The egrets are benefiting from the easy access to fish. While the small mosquito fish can survive in these difficult conditions, all fish have trouble avoiding predation when their movement is restricted.

 

Great blue herons are much better at fishing than egrets, but they are much more shy of people and cannot be out in the open during the day with so much traffic around.

Laker Drive in Corrales ends at a ditch remnant that does not seem to have an official name. This area still have open water that attracts wildlife. The recently arrived ubiquitous mallards have begun feeding here in earnest.

This is a warbler, one of the many small birds that are closely examining the sunflowers as they work out which seeds are easiest to get to each morning.

The newly arrived northern flickers should be with us for the winter. They, and the American thrush are very energetic birds with a lot of presence. This photo shows all the identification features of this bird; long thin beak, a black throat (gorget), the speckled chest, and stiff russet tail feathers.

Above is the wood duck (male) below is a female mallard. The wood ducks are always more likely to fly off, whistling in panic. The red eyes are a common feature of many types of male bird

A rather scruffy looking Coopers hawk is perched on this snag. These raptors are on the small side and often seem ill at ease until they have an established territory to defend.

The insects on the sunflowers are slowly disappearing and the tall plants are all drying out. These sunflowers will be dropping their seeds soon. While the wild flowers are nowhere near as prolific as the domestic sunflowers (cultivars), the high oil content of the many seeds will sustain many birds and more than a few insects throughout the winter.

This is dogbane The northern, open parts of the bosque seem to have fields of this short plant. It is often called toxic and invasive. It produces a bad tasting white sap to deter browsers. It does not seem to live up to its mean reputation, though. It does have impressively tough bast fibers that can be woven into nets, string, etc with a little practice. Natural fiber arts are followed by many people as a hobby.

Currently public enemy number one is this Ravenna grass that is slowly taking over the bosque. It's spread is more easily seen from the river bridges, especially Montgomery/Montano looking north.

A grocery bag's worth of seed heads is about three tussock's worth and takes about an hour to collect. Each tussock, however, takes about three hours to uproot and then the whole mass has to be disposed of...Just removing the seed heads in Corrales Bosque preserve would take about 5 people years. (one person 5 years, or five people 1 year) and that's if none of the plants grew more each year...

This is some sort of potter's wasp. These are caterpillar hunters that are active in the fall. The colors are very striking even for a wasp species. Like mud daubers they protect their eggs in little pots.

Not all caterpillars are going to be an easy meal for a wasp. This tiger moth caterpillar is not only camouflaged to look like a wheat stalk, but also makes it very difficult for a wasp to use it's jaws to eat it. The caterpillar becomes a tiger moth. The larva is often called a yellow woolly bear.

 

Grasshoppers are one of natures weirder creatures. Many people do not know grasshoppers are good swimmers, they do the breaststroke while kicking out with those powerful hind legs. In thick grass they often drop to the ground if pursued. They fly only as a last resort out in the open. Even their wings have bright, contrasting colors, as a form of dazzle camouflage as they escape.

 

Metallic flea beetles do not seem to worry about being hidden. They often congregate in large numbers on a specific plant. In many species, grouping together often is a defense against predation, or in preparation for hibernation or migration.

Obviously, many insects group together because they were born together. There are huge numbers of insect eggs around right now that most people will never get a chance to see. The range of colors and shapes are pretty impressive.

The economy seems to be doing better finally. Small businesses that are nimble and adaptable can thrive when there are lots of customers in a small area. Unfortunately, more people are also willing to take shortcuts. Corrales has a huge and thriving community of lawn care companies. One of those companies removed some vegetation and dumped the bags at the Cabazon trailhead. The area does have a rolling bin service generously donated by Road Runner Waste Service inc, for the public, but this dump is not their responsibility. Eventually, it will be the responsibility of those who call this area home...