Mountain City Montage
by PAULINE TOM
“Oh my!” I squealed when a tidbit dinged in from Elaine Kiernan.
“Just thought I would tell you about the large black bird that took up residence in my back yard around three weeks ago,” she said. “This is the injured bird I called you about. I checked my Audubon Society guide book and he or she resembles a Black Vulture — with a broken wing and injured leg.
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“This bird has a mate that has fed and watered the injured bird and has kept her alive for all this time. The healthy bird brings water from our pool to the injured bird. He flies off and comes back to put food in the other’s beak. It is amazing to see the camaraderie and devotion of these two birds. At first I believed the injured bird would probably die, and I witnessed the healthy bird sit sentinel over the other for days. This has been very enlightening to me. I never knew they would be like this! All God’s creatures, large and small!”
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When Elaine phoned last month, I mentioned Googling “Texas Parks Wildlife Rehabilitators,” which brings up a list of rehabilitators by county. Challenge is, rehabilitators do not fetch injured creatures. A few days after Elaine phoned, concerned that “her” vulture might drown, Kym Navarro, half-way down Live Oak Drive, phoned about an injured Black Vulture. Same bird? Nope! Angel Kym gently caught the vulture and transported him in her car to Austin Wildlife Rescue, 512.4729453, one of the rehabilitators on the TPWD listing. So! Two injured Black Vultures on Live Oak Drive at the same time. You might know these birds as “buzzards.”
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James Polk wrote, “I read a report on what should be obvious to birders, and that is that due to the drought and the limited amount of flowers for our migrating hummers, everyone that possibly can should put out and keep full their hummingbird feeders because the hummers will start their southward migration in September and October. They are going to need our help more than ever to make the trip this year.” Thanks, James!
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Did I tell you that Jay and Betty Puckett on Live Oak Drive saw another coral snake recently? This makes six or seven in their yard in the past two years. Jay, a roofing contractor, was Johnny-on-the-spot with a $100 sponsorship check for the October 1 Fire & Ice Festival, the single event that raises money for yearlong “Loving Mountain City” events.
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If you’d like to send a donation to help fund the Fire & Ice Festival, contact Amy Hilton, 512.517.4222. Checks may be written to “Loving Mountain City.” Amy, a single mom who ramrods all our great city events, usually quietly loans money to Loving Mountain City in order to carry out the city-wide events.
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The Mountain City well has dropped to 43 feet above the pump. Pray for raindrops.
Drop me a tidbit if anything interesting comes up at your place. [email protected] or 512-517-5678 (iPhone) or 512-268-5678.
