Category Archives: Nature and the Outdoors

progne (Prokne, daughter of Pandion and fabled to have been changed into a swallow) subis (a name applied by Pliny, Roman naturalist, to a bird that breaks eagles’ eggs) Tuesday, May 29, 1979 – 12:00 noon Lake Tomahawk, Wisconsin I … Continue reading →

petrochelidon (from petros, stone or rock, and chelidon, swallow) pyrrhonota (red-backed, in allusion to rump) Tuesday, May 29, 1979 – 10:00 am McNaughton, Wisconsin I was with my girlfriend and some friends. We stopped at the gas pumps in front … Continue reading →

carduelis (thistle) tristis (sad, in allusion to its plaintive call) Monday, May 28, 1979 – 2:02 pm Boulder Junction, Wisconsin I was sitting on a bench outside an antique store watching the Evening and Rose-breasted Grosbeaks. The goldfinch flew into … Continue reading →

pheucticus (inclined to avoid, retiring) ludovicianus (Louisiana) Monday, May 28, 1979 – 2:01 pm Boulder Junction, Wisconsin I was standing in a jack pine grove outside an antique store in town, watching a flock of Evening Grosbeaks on and about … Continue reading →

hesperiphona (hesperios, at eventide, and phone, voice) vespertina (belonging to evening) Monday, May 28, 1979 – 2:00 pm Boulder Junction, Wisconsin I spotted these birds outside an antique store, which was located in downtown (I use the term loosely) Boulder … Continue reading →