Is it just me or has the wind been worse than usual this year? When we had the horrible wind storm that collapsed my west garage door, I thought maybe it would end. It didn’t. I’m usually fairly impervious to weather – over the years I have accumulated enough gear to outfit me and two other people, so I just go do whatever I planned. It hasn’t worked this year – the wind has shut me down more than I can remember.  

The wind is doing something else, also. It is sucking the water out of the Bottoms faster than I can remember. We have had dry years, yes; the Bottoms has been dry in previous years, but the loss of water seems faster this year than I can ever recall. It has revealed a lot of truly fascinating things. The large number of carp that have died is amazing. I see why the pelicans, herons, gulls and egrets stalk the low water with such intensity. The water snakes are getting fat. I don’t see how they can unhinge their jaw and swallow fish with sharp lateral fins without sustaining serious injury. Cormorants and grebes are gobbling small fish with serious intent.

The muskrats, raccoons, skunks, mink, and coyotes are also dining on the bounty of dead fish and such. The tracks in the mud of the receding water line tell lots of tales – tragedy and success are intermingled if you read the tracks.

One thing that we don’t think about is the risk of predation to the ducklings and goslings when the water is low. We also have some shorebirds that breed here – pretty soon you will be able to go to Quivira refuge and see Snowy Plovers and Black-necked Stilt babies that are off the chart! Most of the mammal predators are comfortable in low water and can access the babies without much trouble. I met Don Mai in the grocery store and he reported the fewest number of baby geese on his ponds that he can recall. I haven’t seen very many goslings at the Bottoms, either. I wonder if bird flu has done a lot more damage than we think. Our birds are not always safe and I am so grateful to Rob Penner and Mike Radar for watching and documenting the birds in our area. There is a study underway at the Bottoms to check waterfowl for bird flu – the diligence and dedication of our wardens and biologists can’t be over-estimated.

The rain was most welcome on Tuesday. It isn’t nearly enough to replace the evaporation at the Bottoms, but it will delay the process to some extent. I have seen some very happy farmers – everything needed the moisture. If you could access the dense cattails you would be amazed at the number of duck and goose babies. There are also a lot more snakes than you can imagine. Hunters and the hunted are very close to each other in the dense marsh.

Good news – it’s not that long until bullfrog season and frog legs are such a delicacy. I admire the folks that wade the Bottoms and get a limit of frogs. I have visions of crawly things that I’m not fond of wandering around between my knees ...

There are a couple of special birds to watch for right now. One is the Common Nighthawk, which is in the Whippoorwill family. They sit/sleep on posts or fences and are so very well camouflaged. I have also seen Whistling Ducks over by Ellinwood Packing on that little pond, and by the feedlot north of Great Bend on 10th. If you get a chance to go find them, you won’t be disappointed.

This rain is wonderful! I love Kansas!

Doc

Doctor Dan Witt is a retired physician and nature enthusiast. He can be reached at danwitt01@gmail.com.