Dad visit and incidental birding
I managed to squeeze in a bit of birding while my dad (from Florida) and aunt (from Texas) visited at the end of September. Luckily, my dad’s almost as enthusiastic about birds as I am, and, well, my aunt was outnumbered (and a good sport). I first took my jet-lagged relatives to Chapman Elementary School to…
Shillapoo and Frenchman’s Bar
As soon as I typed “breakfast burrito” into the search bar, that’s when the magic happened. Let me back up. Some time passed since I last visited Shillapoo National Wildlife Refuge so I decided to give it another go. Part of what makes birding fun is visiting regular haunts and seeing different birds each time. Indeed,…
How to Pronounce Pileated
Speaking of pronunciation, this one blew my mind. Pileated Woodpecker. Is it pronounced PIE-lee-ay-tid? Or PILL-ee-ay-did? I’ve always pronounced it PILL-ee-ay-ted, unaware there was even a debate. I’m a rule-follower, plus I like pie, so I’m considering switching. Sources imply PIE-lee-ay-tid is correct (and more common), but “Pill-ee-ay-did” is also acceptable. Probably how regional accents are accepted.…