This week I have a few items from my archives. I didn’t get a chance to go on a hike this weekend, but I fortunately have quite a backlog of photos. I hope you find them interesting.

First is a photo of young prickly pear cactus (Opuntia) pads I took last year. They’re quite small, just a few inches long. You can see them growing from the edge of an older pad. They’re a brighter green than the older one which has a bit of blue in it. What look like needles on the new pads are thick, and curved. I’m not sure they are needles however, because if you look closely you can see smaller, straight and yellow-colored needles too.

Did you know the pads are actually branches on the plant? The pads are spongy and hold water. And the needles are modified leaves. They are two of the adaptations for growing in dry climates.

Young Prickly Pear Pads

This is a winter sunset which I took almost 2 years ago. The grass has turned brown and dormant, but the live oaks (Quercus virginiana) still have their leaves. Live oaks are not evergreen. They won’t drop their leaves until the springtime and will get them back very quickly.

Winter Sunset

Here’s a small mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos) chick I saw at Blanco Shoals. It wasn’t afraid of me and I’m surprised the mother wasn’t close by. I’ve had mother mockingbirds dive-bomb me to keep me away from their chicks.

The mockingbird is the State Bird of Texas. They can sing about 200 songs, including the sounds of insects and can even imitate mechanical sounds. What an ear!

Mockingbird Chick