Something fishy is going on... 5/19/2005 6:46:43 PM
Author and animal expert, Diana L. Guerrero comments on the recent lake activities of the piscine kind. Last evening on my deck I could hear and watch the fish in the lake boiling. Boiling is when they hover on the surface and create movement. This time it is the carp in action.
Some of you might remember my chatting about the trout coming up the creek to spawn. They are done and I only see a few late arrivals.
However, the carp are having major parties. Just the other morning, during my walk, I saw groups of about 20 or so near the edges of the lake. The fisherman on the banks say it is because the water is warmer near the edges BUT I saw the boys chasing the female and nudging her incessantly. My theory is that spring has sprung and they are spawning up in the shallows.
Another surprise this week is that I spied a juvenile bald eagle! Most of the eagles left the area last month (they come here for the winter) but this juvenile stayed along with another mature bird.
Immature bald eagles are similar looking to golden eagles and are hard to tell apart. However, this bird is just getting in some of the white feathers on the back of his neck. It won't be too long before he will have a white head and tail.
I wasn't sure it wasn't a large hawk until he landed in a tree nearby. Then when he did fly off, I could see the white patch. When the sun is out it reflects the light. It is breath taking to watch these birds fly.
Anyway, there is lots of food and with the fish so close to the shore I am sure he is having a great time. Even the coyotes have developed a new strategy of fishing. They work in teams to herd the fish near the shore into the waiting jaws of another animal. They yip and yap when they are successful--a type of behavior I also hear when they have reunions.
I head out tomorrow for some adventures--an assembly for 140 third graders and an interview related to my new book project.
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