A magical moment at W.F. Jackson Park in Alabama — at crepuscular. — Photo by Pat Bean
“Every spring I hear the thrush singing in the glowing woods. He is only passing through. His voice is deep, then he lifts it until it seems to fall from the sky. I am thrilled. I am grateful. Then, by the end of morning, he’s gone, nothing but silence out of the tree where he rested for a night. And this I find acceptable. Not enough is a poor life. But too much is, well, too much. Imagine Verdi or Mahler every day, all day. It would exhaust anyone.” – Mary Oliver
My Curiosity Never Killed a Cat
I’m reading Luke Dempsey’s “A Supremely Bad Idea,” which I had checked out from the local Tucson Audubon Library. It’s a book along the lines of Mark Obmascik’s “The Big Year,” which is about three’s men’s obsession to see the most bird species in 1998. Bad Idea is also about three birders chasing birds. .
A tri-colored heron, once known as a Louisiana heron, spotted on the Blue Water Highway between Surfside and Galveston, Texas. — Photo by Pat Bean
Anyway, Dempsey mentions seeing a Louisiana heron, which sets my mind roiling. I’ve seen every species of herons this country has to offer, and I had never heard of a Louisiana heron. So off I chase to Bing it, which is the same as Googling it, only I use Bing as my internet explorer. In no time at all, my curiosity is slated. A Louisiana heron is what a tri-colored heron was once called.
The discovery left me pleased that I had learned something new. Then Dempsey used the word crepuscular, which sent back to my computer and my online dictionary. Crepuscular, I learned, means twilight, and can refer to animals that come out at twilight, and which are often wrongly referred to as nocturnal.
I don’t know about you, but I love it when writers send me to a dictionary.
Bean’s Pat: Dawn Downey’s Blog http://tinyurl.com/q3l3vvb A blog that will make you thankful for only having to walk to exercise. I also love this author’s book, “Stumbling Toward the Buddha,” which I recently read.
Pat Bean's blog 
beautiful.
Thanks missstilleto
I’m a big fan of all things crepuscular, especially crepuscular rays…and this post! Oh, and though I’m from Louisiana, I had no idea what a Louisiana heron is. Now I know. Thanks!
Good to be informative. Thanks Alex
I also love it when writers send me to the dictionary. My husband and I were lazy birders for about a month, watching our backyard feeders from the kitchen window. Then he got tired of feeding them and I was just along for the ride, so now we watch the weeds that have grown from seeds deposited by all those birds (from both ends!). Thank you for the lovely compliment about my blog post, and for reading my book!
You’re welcome Dawn