Flying

 ""Until I came to New Mexico, I never realized how much beauty water adds to a river." - Mark Twain

Mark Twain used to be a river boat pilot and has a very deep understanding of rivers as seen in his book "Life on the Mississippi" Oddly, there does not seem to have been much improvement of our river understanding in the days since.

The physics of water allows all the life to grow around us. The vascular plants draw water up to their leaves by simple capillary action. The fact that plants do not need energy to pump water up into their leaves is a core concept of plant biology is called water potential. The physics is amazing and borders on magical. For those of a more lyrical bent, the vascular system of cottonwoods in the twigs look like a five pointed star when snapped, and many stories about this have been created through the centuries. Once a year or so, the temperatures, humidity, and oblique sunlight are just right to allow the vapor trees transpire to be visible. The ethereal smoke effect is a gift.

Plants transpire a large amount of water into the atmosphere during the process of transmogrifying carbon dioxide into simple sugars. Here you can see the droplets forming at the tips of saltcedar leaves. As the leaves evaporate off the water, the salts left behind force more water to rise up into the leaves by osmosis and is used by this particular plant to survive in brackish areas.

Amazing at it seems, the next crop of insects is already pacing around. The true bugs seem to be the first, but the midges also are swarming and actually pollinating some flowers. Elm seed bugs are present, but slow.

Carpenter ants are unfortunately named. although the appellation of "bi-colored" as apropos. The scouts appear as soon as a part of the day rises above 60 degrees. Most of these slow down markedly as the temperatures drop again, at least allowing for a good close up of an otherwise very fast moving subject.

The number and variety of ducks is continuing to increase. Each type of duck is a little different in temperament and habits. It is interesting to note the numbers of birds is actually very high right now, we are accustomed to summer being the time of the most variety of avian critters.

In the winter the flocks of large birds head south and into New Mexico. The open fields of places such as Bosque del Apache, Valle del Oro, and Bernardo Wildlife area are far more active with geese, cranes, and other species. Many visitors are surprised by the number of birds found in these hidden wetlands areas.

The smaller region of Corrales still interest these majestic birds. Mostly they like to explore, forage, and court in open fields. Many local people also put food out, where the birds quickly learn to trumpet for in the early morning. Feeding wild birds seems to have caused many unexpected behavior changes, but you can always guarantee a lot of mess and commotion.

The water in Corrales runs just below the surface and the many ditches act both as drains and irrigation, depending on their level relative to the water table. The terrain here is very flat, but a small change in elevation can have large consequences. A careful management system involving many large earth movers are necessary to keep everything "natural"

The conditions for growth of grasses and other plants is actually quite favorable right now. Water doesn't evaporate quickly and competition for space is quite low, especially if you are a plant able to grow on the edge of water, like this grass.

 

 Grasses are a relatively recent evolution, with the first pollen grains appearing about 55 million years ago, around the great dinosaur extinction event. Their major feature is that they can survive, and even thrive in periods of upheaval. They use fire and floods to extend their range, and they can tolerate heavy grazing pressures. They evolved to not need insects for pollination. They are tough, diverse, and now dominate many landscapes. Grass grows from "culms" and sends stems out sideways, as well as upwards

 

Many animals of the bosque rely on the boundaries of trees and grasslands. These areas have the widest mix of desirable features. So this raptor is able to use tall trees perch up high, hide among the branches, and survey an open field for prey, while also having room to pounce if prey is spotted.

Education, especially in biology, relies heavily on teaching students a model organism. This has the benefit of efficiency, but a lot of valuable learning is lost in the nuance. For example, these are mistletoe flowers, which is a species related to sandalwood. No one is ever going to put this into a floral display, so few people learn of the value of mistletoe to insects when compared to a daisy.

The common mullein is a European plant introduced to be used as a fish poison by early settlers. The hairs seem to help reduce insect herbivore attack and also insulate the leaves from desiccation. While many people swear it is used to help with symptoms of bronchitis, there is no actual proof it works. The plant thrives in wet conditions but has many adaptations to survive dry periods.

The recent rainy periods have encouraged the growth of some other strange plants. Mushrooms should be sprouting in the wet leaves soon. However the rarer growths are plants like the mosses, lichen, and  slime mold communities that are not often seen. Mosses are among the oldest known plants and many species can be found in areas of damp, still air, like in the deep creases of fallen cottonwood trunks found in the shade.

Lichens are a fungi that grows with an algae intertwined in its threads. This picture shows a shield lichen with the characteristic grey green "leaves" that give it the name.

The river levels have begun rising again to "normal" levels and the moisture can be seen everywhere. Rising in the damp soil in patches, along the river banks and in the ditches. It can even be seen in the delicate patterns of hoarfrost in the chill mornings. All of these sights occur because of the presence of the river and the water that lies just below our feet. Water is the main reason we all live in this beautiful location and we should not takes its beauty so much for granted