Friends of Lake View Hill

May 2007

A (Great Horned?) owlet.

May 2007

A barred owl that is nesting in the woods.

Sept 2006

April 2006

There are some False Rue Anemone (small white buttercups) at the edge of the path near the entrance on Havey. Blue bells are blossoming. May apples and Jack-in-the-Pulpits are everywhere and the first wild geraniums are open.

The past week I've been seeing a pileated woodpecker drumming on a large dead tree near on the North edge of the woods. Recently there have been yellow-bellied sapsuckers, white breasted nuthatches and flickers around. A couple a weeks ago there were half a dozen brown creepers. Last week I saw a Mrytle Warbeler and I heard a barred owl, like one that was around all last summer, but I haven't see him.

Gerry Novotny

I'm noticing LOTS of good species coming up in the Esch addition, many that are probably from the seeds Pat spread down there last year (when there was lots of barren soil packed down from the trucks that removed the locust piles). I've seen several of the species she planted, including bottle brush grass, black-eyed susan, short's aster, white snakeroot, purple giant hyssop (?), yellow cone flower, showy goldenrod, prairie thistle, solomon's seal, woodland sunflower, figwort, native sedges, and more. Yesterday I found a young oak sapling just south of the Drewry path. At least some of the shooting star plants we put down there in June are thriving. Pat--are you reading?? Thanks so much for spreading the seeds down there, even though you had your doubts about whether they would germinate in that compacted soil.

In spite of the black locust, buckthorn, nightshade, etc., the Esch addition looks a million times better than it did last year. Of course, all the rain has helped a lot, and the fact that we got all of the garlic mustard out of there in the spring also helped. Imagine what it will look like next year after we do a burn in the spring!!

Maria Powell

Back in May I was regularly seeing the Pileated Woodpecker but I don't think be stayed to nest. He was often drumming on a hollow tree.

July 15 I saw a sharp-shinned hawk I only noticed it because there were some waxwings making a fuss about it and I stopped to look up.

All summer the area with all the thistles by the parking lot was a haven for goldfinches. Dozens would fly up ahead of you while you walked the path. They love thistle seeds.

I have been hearing the barred owl in woods but didn't catch a sight of him until last week. Yesterday a hummingbird jetted ahead of me as I ran.

Two weeks ago I saw 2 sandhill cranes on the lawn between the cemetery and the woods. Its pretty startling to come out of the woods and find yourself eye to eye with a 4 foot tall bird!

I have been seeing lots of deer (no surprise). I've seen up to 5 spotted fawns together. It makes me wonder about the effect of deer on the restoration work.

There is not too much flowering right now but the bright red clumps of berries from the jack-in-the-pulpits are pretty striking. The recent rains have brought a bumper crop of fungi including some grapefruit and soccer ball sized puff balls.

Gerry Novotny