“. . . the most important part of a story is the part you don’t know.”
Barbara Kingsolver, The Lacuna
Endangered Red Wolves
The Red Wolf on the left is one of a protected breeding pair in the Western North Carolina Nature Center. The wolf on the right sticking his head above dried soy beans, runs free. He is one of approximately 20 Red Wolves remaining in the wild. Once these wolves roamed freely throughout the southeastern United…
“An Interview with Leland Ferguson” by Kelly Goldberg, Ph.D.
An interview by Dr. Kelly Goldberg about my career in archaeology has been published this week in the journal Historical Archaeology (Springer Press). Click on this link to read.
Bonaparte’s Gulls, Congaree River, South Carolina
Since near the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, I have had writer’s block. I would sit down with what I thought were ideas, but the the text didn’t follow. At the same time, I was taking up wildlife photography, and for two years now two cameras, an iPhone 11 Pro, and a Nikon Coolpix P-950,…
OCTOGENARIAN, December 14, 2021
In recent years I’ve been thinking that my birthday should also—and probably more importantly—be a second Mother’s Day. After all, mother planned and prepared for the day, labored through the event, and of the two of us, she actually remembered my birthday. So, on this December 14th, I’m remembering my mother, Esther Brigman Ferguson (1909-1995)…
Elk in Cedar Creek?
Apparently, elk were in the Cedar Creek vicinity until about 260 years ago. Here’s the story: The last elk in the South Carolina was reputed to have been killed in what is now Fairfield County. And, Fairfield County includes much, if not most of the drainage of Cedar Creek. The following is from the “South Carolina”…
Picking Cherries with Batman
Back from one of his summer explorations, Adrian yelled, “Leland, get the bucket!” At nine I still aspired to be my brother’s side kick–Robin to his Batman–but at sixteen he didn’t play Batman anymore. He seemed most interested in bossing me around. “Leland, get the bucket! Come on!” “Where’s the bucket?” “In the basement, get it and wait,…
Cousin Maude: Gender Bending in the 1950s
When I was a boy, my father’s distant cousin Maude was the most unusual person I had ever seen. I suppose Maude was in her late teens or early twenties during those years of the early 1950s. I would see her when we went to funerals and reunions at my grandmother’s country church in rural North…
Red-headed Woodpeckers
While I find other woodpeckers in the uplands as well as along Cedar Creek, Red-headed Woodpeckers stick to the bottomland floodplain along the Creek. Adult birds of both sexes have the distinctive red head and black and white bodies, however immature Red-headed Woodpeckers aren’t red at all. Neither are they black and bright white. Plumage…
Little Blue Heron
This summer a juvenile Little Blue Heron visited the pond. Young Little Blues are distinctive by their size, pale, dull green legs and blue/gray bill. Most common along the southeastern and Gulf coasts of the U. S. From time-to-time juveniles show up here in the Midlands of South Carolina. My suspicion is that they are…
Mt. Pisgah Photos
Click on the above title to view pictures. July 6,7 & 8. Photo log, southwestern side of Mt. Pisgah, Great Smoky Mountains, North Carolina. Gallery followed by individual images with comments and identifications. Identifications, beyond the obvious and whimsical, are from the iNaturalist ap.