weathergaltx's Journal

While Lake Creek Pond Watch champion, Sue, was away galavanting around Scotland, Kathy McCormack graciously agreed to make the monthly observations.
One person (thank you, Mary Kay!) joined Kathy at Lake Creek this month.

It was still plenty warm out, especially for mid-September. The water was especially warm at 30C. Wow.

Environmental Conditions (at 19:40):
Air Temp: 26.3C
Water Temp: 30.0C
Sky: 0 (no or few clouds)
Water Level: Above Average (A little bit of water was flowing over the dam)
Relative Humidity: 50%
A little bit of rain (0.2 in ?) had fallen that morning with the passage of a cold front.

General Observations:
Saw Black Saddlebags, Eastern Pondhawk, Common Green Darner, American Rubyspot, several Green Herons, a Great Egret, and a Great Blue Heron before sunset.
Saw two young Blotched Water Snakes fishing below the dam just before we left an hour after sunset. This has become a common sight and adds a lot of fun to the evening.

Amphibian Watch Report:
Three amphibian species were observed.
Gulf Coast Toad tadpoles [C0, photos]: http://www.inaturalist.org/observations/4085382
Rio Grande Leopard Frog [C1, recording]: http://www.inaturalist.org/observations/4085395
Blanchard's Cricket Frog [C2, recording]: http://www.inaturalist.org/observations/4085444

Again, Lake Creek Pond Watch champion Sue was away, this time touring the Balkans.
Kathy McCormack graciously agreed yet again to make the monthly observations. Thanks Kathy!!!!

They rallied a big turnout for Lake Creek - nine monitors!
Thank you to Kathy, Carolyn, Bill, Randy & Sandra, Mary Kay & Chuck, Ruthann, and Mikael for monitoring the site in October. There were two new participants: Randy & Sandra Spurlock (randy@spurlock.us) are currently in the GWMN training class. They've been out to Berry Springs twice - they are great at catching frogs !!

Environmental Conditions (at 19:05):
Air Temp: 24.4C
Water Temp: 26.7C
Sky: 0 (clear)
Water Level: Average
Relative Humidity: 52%

General Observations:
In addition to a rewarding number of herps, the group also saw two scorpions at the stone wall (one was a momma with babies on her back), and some folks saw a Great Horned Owl fly over the creek before sunset.

Amphibian Watch Report:
There were four amphibian species, plus a Blotched Water Snake (last link below). Kathy was going with Cliff Chirping Frog at the time of observation (vs. Rio Grande Chirping Frog) until we all hear back from the curators.
Blanchard's Cricket Frog [C0 / photo]: http://www.inaturalist.org/observations/4315493
Gulf Coast Toad [C0 / photo]: http://www.inaturalist.org/observations/4315558
Cliff Chirping Frog: [C1 + photo]: http://www.inaturalist.org/observations/4315579
Rio Grande Leopard Frog [C1 + sound]: http://www.inaturalist.org/observations/4315600
Blotched Water Snake [photo]: http://www.inaturalist.org/observations/4315516

It is finally starting to feel like fall. Nice rains in the past week caused everything to green up and some blooms to return after several months of unusual heat and dryness.
Five of us enjoyed the clear air and pleasantly cool temps. Thank you Bill, Kathy, Carolyn, and Myra for coming out on a Sunday night with me this month.

Environmental Conditions (at 17:35):
Air Temp: 17.8C
Water Temp: 19.9C
Sky: 0 (clear)
Water Level: Above Average
Relative Humidity: 75%
Our general area in NW Austin had received between 2.5 and 3 inches of rain in the past 7 days, ending on Tuesday, November 8. There was some debris along the banks and below the dam from past high water flow. However, the pond water level was about 3 inches below the top of the dam, and the creek area below the dam was dry except for a very few stagnant pools. The pond area was clear of floating algal mats and the water was clear.

General Observations:
It was a quiet night all around. We saw an egret flock of five circling and heard several herons complaining - squawk!! There was very little insect activity, and we saw no water snakes for the first time in many months. We visited the big limestone block walls after the normal monitoring period and did see several scorpions, which totally glowed green in the blacklight.
Here is link to scorpion observation: http://www.inaturalist.org/observations/4571476

Amphibian Watch Report:
We did not hear any amphibians calling during the monitoring period of 17:35 to 18:35. We did not see any either during the official monitoring period.
Afterward, we did see two chirping frogs (C0) in the limestone wall, as well as one Gulf Coast Toad (C0). Here is the picture of the toad wedged into a crack between blocks:
http://www.inaturalist.org/observations/4571470