Night Fire

     Wildfire is still on the minds of Red Hills residents. However, prescribed burns are still much needed in grasslands to maintain healthy rangeland. This is not an attempt to highlight any issues, effects, or opinions related to fire on the landscape. This is simply a presentation of the artful beauty of nighttime prescribed burning in the Flint Hills, the sister prairie landscape to the Red Hills. A recent trip to the larger sister landscape offered ample opportunity to observe some pyric beauty.

A recent nighttime prescribed burn in the Flint Hills imparts an analogy of a
lighted prairie city with trails of car and streetlights on busy freeways.

Look carefully in the foreground and you can see the pile of rocks burning.
(There were actually some dried plants and duff that caught fire there.)  

A lone elm tree silhouettes against the backdrop of dusk and a headfire across the grassland.

Fire zig zags across the prairie.

The lead igniter throws a headfire into the heavy fuel (tall dead grass).
A mixture of diesel and gasoline is used. The following UTVs spray water
to keep the flames from backing into a field not intended for burning as
                              part of patch-burn-grazing practices.                                     

This old gate and corral is protected from the burn.

Much headfire is being laid down by the igniter. Careful planning is performed
to manage this fire appropriately.

                                 

"Engine" crews bring plenty of water to manage backburning
and any "breakouts" that might happen. Here, they appear
surrounded by fire but are quite safe.

The igniter lays down a mixture of diesel fuel and
gasoline to create a consistent line of headfire with the
 headwind. A UTV with water, sprays to keep this fire
from going backwards into a field where it is not wanted.

Hot Action at the Booming Ground

     In spite of wildfires, winds, and a bazaar political climate, the Lesser Prairie-chickens still have their ancient mating traditions to perform. Once again, my spring spirits are revived by joining the booming ground party. It is peak breeding time for these birds and they didn't dissappoint. In addition to their antics on the lek this morning, there were other visitors. A coyote came by. I've seen coyotes at this lek before and it's surprising how little effect they have on the behavior of the birds who hardly notice their presence! They may become quiet for a while but few, if any, ever flush. However, when two Northern Harriers swooped by, several birds flushed from the lek. I've never seen a harrier successfully take a prairie chicken but I've observed them diving on the chickens. Later, the coyote followed the two harriers as they hunted near the lek in the same pasture. I think since he knew he couldn't catch a chicken, perhaps he might steal a rabbit that the hawks catch. There's always interesting things to see on the prairie chicken lek besides the chickens!

A cock and hen get to know each other.

Several hens (6 total) visited the lek this morning 

and one, in particular, demostrated a defense of

her particular territory as a dominate hen. 

Watch towards the top.

A handsome coyote poses at the edge of the lek.
None of the birds flushed when he appeared.
They know he can't catch them.

It is approaching peak booming ground activity. 

The cocks face off at their respective territory

borders and chase other competitors away.

The males defend their territories  and often 
perform daring aerials in the process.

This hopeful suitor gets so pumped

that he even kicks up some dirt.

Two Northern Harriers came by and some of the birds flushed.
We watched the raptors work the field next to the lek
while the coyote followed them, hoping to steal any
kill they may have made. They certainly didn't have any
luck with the prairie chickens.

After the Fire

  

   The largest wildfire known to occur in Kansas in recorded history can be considered over except for some minor mopping up activities. After a week of burning over 600 square miles of land in Oklahoma and Kansas, the monster is quieted. Over 130 different fire units from across the state and some in Oklahoma responded. While 16 residences and probably twice that many other structures were destroyed, no one lost their life! This is amazing considering the intensity and speed of this raging firestorm and the ruggedness of the country. While there will be many months to talk about things to come and the lands and ranchers' recoveries, it would be good to look on a bright side. That is the purpose of this post--looking at some of the positive and the beauty of the landscape in the face of such disaster. 

A scorched, lone cedar tree on top of the iconic Flower Pot Mountain of the Red Hills signifies the intensity of this fire. It took a lot of wind and raging fire to reach that. A few remaining cedars on the downslope were screened from the flames.

  A white-tailed deer refreshes in the Salt Fork of the
Arkansas River near Aetna after
 some exciting times.

With the bark of stands of Soapberry tree
exploding off their trunks from the hot fire,
 they stand nearly naked in the ash as if their
pants were ripped off of them.

An interesting and observable landscape is revealed
with the green cedar blanket removed.

On Easter Sunday, the land was favored with over
three inches of snow. Cattle appreciated the
handouts of hay since there's nothing else
to eat.

Hundreds of hay bales were donated from many places
to help ranchers feed their remaining livestock.

The "Black Forest" was formerly green. But it
was essentially a green wasteland. It is now a
blackened wasteland with hopes of major
cedar skeleton removal efforts and a rebirth
of a healthy prairie. 

                         

This is the same "Black Forest" which was
whitened the next day, Easter Sunday.

A normal Red Hills landscape imparts beauty.
Right now, there is black added to the pallet. Soon,
there will be much more green and an
impressive stand of wildflowers.

A herd of Red Angus munching on wheat in the
middle of burned country supplies a
contrasting picture of color to a blackened landscape.

                                 

Countless loads of hay were brought in from many
places to help "neighbor" ranchers and their
remaining cattle herds survive the next couple
of months while natural forage emerges.

In just one week since the fire, the prairie grasses
are evident. In a couple more weeks, this landscape
will be mostly green and a beautiful sight.

A walk through a scorched stand of Soapberry (Chinaberry) trees
imparts an eerie sense of a woody graveyard. This is not a bad thing
as Soapberry Trees have become an invasive issue on the prairie
but not as severe as Eastern Redcedar.

 

Going Undergound

     Some of the most fascinating features of the Red Hills, and Kansas, are underground. While Kansas is not famous for its caves, it does harbor over 700 with most of these occurring in the Red Hills. They are here because of a gypsum layer which dissolves over time to create the underground caverns and crevices. A number of interesting creatures live in these caves including several species of bats, porcupines, skunks, armadillos, insects, salamanders, frogs and an occasional snake. These caves are all on private land and that is one big reason that they remain relatively pristine. They are very fragile and simply could not withstand a lot of human use. However, an occasional visit by students interested in conservation is a very worthwhile intrusion. A recent visit to two special caves was enjoyed by some very sharp high schoolers and a couple of younger students as well. These amateur spelunkers learned about Triple Arches and Dancer's caves and their special features and wildlife.

The journey begins at Triple Arches Cave. 

A special feature of Triple Arches is  the "Kitchen Table."

    No one knows more about caves and bats in Kansas than Stan Roth. Stan has taught students of all ages for a half century. Here Stan crawls through the "Dinosaur Backbone" throat of Dancer's Cave a few year's ago.

                      

The students made the long crawl through 

the "Dinosaur's Backbone" to get to the

 "Ledge of No Return" in Dancer's Cave.

Wildlife--Fifth in a series of the 8 Natural Wonders of the Red Hills

     There are so many iconic wildlife species from which to choose to represent this category. But, we would be completely remiss if wildlife of the Red Hills was not recognized as something very special and deserving of being on this list. While recognizing so many possibilities, this is a selection of some of the most beautiful, interesting, popular, creepy and fascinating animals that call the Red Hills home. There are very few, if any, places in the state where all of these particular animals can be found. A trip through the "hills" at the right time of year could yield any number of these incredible creatures. 

Painted Buntings are a fairly common summer 
resident in the Red Hills.

Big-eared Bats are fairly common in various
caves and old buildings in the Red Hills.

Bison are found at several ranches in the Red Hills. 

One of the largest herds is on the Z-bar Ranch in 

Southwest Barber County.

Watch out for Prairie Rattlesnakes.
They add to the wildness of the Red Hills.

Watch for Eastern Collared Lizards.
They can bite pretty hard!

The list would not be complete without the
Greater Roadrunner, very commonly seen here.

                         

There are some small herds of Pronghorn
 in the Red Hills region.

The Texas Brown Tarantula is common
and often seen during migrations in the
spring and fall. Otherwise, look under rocks.

And of course, White-tailed Deer--lots of em.

A very intersting and creepy resident is
the Giant Desert Centipede.

A Coachwhip lurks among paperflower. 

And last in this presentation has to be the Nine-banded Armadillo--a menace to yards but fun to watch. It is a very common resident of the Red Hills.

Icy Artwork in the Hills

     An ice storm hit the region to paint crystaline pictures on the landscape. While some suffered power outages and there was certainly additional stress on livestock and wildlife, the frozen artwork provided some special eye candy. Trees laden with excessive burdens strained to retain bowed branches. Stems, leaves and seed heads enjoyed a shiny, clear covering which enhanced their usually more mundane form. All the ice sculptures have now melted, yielding the land to a not-quite-so spectacular appearance. It was cool while it lasted, at least through the naturalist's photo-lens.

Green is still prevalent along the
                stream, even during an ice storm.               

Lemon Beebalm wears ice hats while
Indiangrass bows in respect.

Dog Creek, Barber County

A covering of ice presents a
new perspective of Cocklebur.

Nature's artwork achieves some its best work
when an ice-storm hits.



Melting ice creates a surreal but
beautiful earth moment.

Grasslands-4th in a series of the 8 Natural Wonders of the Red Hills

     Grasslands are awarded the distinction as one of the 8 Natural Wonders of the Red Hills.  As the fourth selection (the first three are St. Jacob's Well, Caves, and Wildflowers), this expanse of mixed-grass prairie is the second largest intact grassland in Kansas.   Composed of  short, mid and tall grasses, the primary species include Indiangrass, side-oats grama, little bluestem, sand and big bluestem, blue grama, rough dropseed , sandlove, buffalo and many, many more.  This grassland is sprinkled with well over 500 different wildflower plants adding an amazing floral display throughout the growing season.  I shall honor this category with poetry which hopefully expresses the feelings of all those who make a living in, travel through, or otherwise appreciate the Kansas grasslands.

***

Grassland Man

I've been on rocky mountains high,

with sculpted peaks that pierce the sky,

slivered with their crystal streams,

filled with anglers' shimmering dreams;

I've walked in desert solitude,

scorned by cactus wren or two,

and heard its sedent, silent wind,

whispering to large saguaro men;

I've spent some time in eastern woods,

watched busy squirrels stash their goods,

and sniffed the essence spring rains awakens,

of leafy perfume to a naturalist beckons;

And of these treasures I chance to hold,

these wonderful pleasures to the soul,

none quite satisfy my quest,

like the Kansas grasslands I like best;

To watch golden rays of slow sunset,

paint serenity on a prairie grouse lek,

hearing chuckled calls as night encroaches,

this scene no other delight approaches;

A thousand diamonds fill the nights,

sprinkling precious jewels of sapphire starlight,

to dance in eyes of nocturnal beasts,

who stalk for voles to fill their feasts;

Sunrise stirs an anxious breeze,

to caress the grass in endless tease,

bluestem applauds in rhythmic waves,

to greet each fresh spectral display;

And hidden midst these blades of green,

a pinkish face of an anemone,

specially picked in such quaint way,

set in its niche of this grand bouquet;

Now rustled by some scampering there,

known by whistle this bobwhite lair,

quickly silencing all quail talk,

the threatening form of red tail hawk;

Whose curious glance acknowledges me,

quite easily in this grassland sea,

its spirit sent on shrieking voice,

to meld with mine and give rejoice;

You may wish to play in mountain halls,

or sing to desert canyon walls,

you may like the feel of ocean spray,

or walk the forestland some day;

But plead ye not to this deaf ear,

those sanctuaries you hold dear,

I'm rooted to my prairie home,

the land I love, the land I roam.

***