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	<title>Three Star Owl - Functional and Sculptural Clay Artwork with a Natural History &#187; yard list</title>
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	<link>http://threestarowl.com</link>
	<description>Three Star Owl clay studio</description>
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			<item>
		<title>I spy with my little pine: solar crescent-eye</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/i-spy-with-my-little-pine-solar-crescent-eye</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/i-spy-with-my-little-pine-solar-crescent-eye#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 21 May 2012 17:39:50 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[oddities]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=15292</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Since we aren&#8217;t equipped to either observe or photograph solar eclipses directly, E and I took to the yard during Sunday evening&#8217;s event to seek indirect eclipse images instead.  The classic pinhole method is simple and adequate &#8212; poke a small hole in foil or stiff cardboard, and let the sun shine through the hole [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/i-spy-with-my-little-pine-solar-crescent-eye/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Hoover&#8217;s hooves</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/birds/hoovers-hooves</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/birds/hoovers-hooves#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 19 Mar 2012 20:05:23 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Hoover the Dove]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=14898</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[It&#8217;s been a couple of months since the Cooper&#8217;s hawk (now long gone to its more northern, mountainous summer home) ate Hoover, the feral African Collared Dove who shared our garden.  I&#8217;m not mourning him &#8212; in fact I&#8217;m thankful that a proper wild hawk absorbed his nutrients and energy instead of a second-storey window [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/birds/hoovers-hooves/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>It&#8217;s not all about owls&#8230;</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/events/its-not-all-about-owls</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/events/its-not-all-about-owls#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 08 Mar 2012 04:44:11 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Events]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[art/clay]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[effigy vessels]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[three star owl]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=14850</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#8230; it just seems like it sometimes.
This Friday Saturday and Sunday, from 10am &#8211; 5pm March 9, 10, 11, it&#8217;s time for the spring Camelback Studio Tour, and if you visit the Sherwood Heights neighborhood of south Scottsdale, you can find lots of things besides owls, even at Three Star Owl Studio (Studio #3 on [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/events/its-not-all-about-owls/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>In memorian Hoover</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/birds/in-memorian-hoover</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/birds/in-memorian-hoover#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 08 Feb 2012 05:49:41 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Hoover the Dove]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=14783</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Hoover, the semi-tame feral African Collared Dove who frequented our yard, is no more.
I&#8217;ve been postponing the task of writing an obit for a couple of weeks, hoping that the white dove taken by the wintering Cooper&#8217;s hawk wasn&#8217;t Hoover.  But I can&#8217;t put it off: we no longer hear his soft, two-note cooing, and [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/birds/in-memorian-hoover/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>4</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Moonshots</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/moonshots</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/moonshots#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 10 Dec 2011 17:46:46 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[increments]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=14527</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Here&#8217;s the total lunar eclipse from the Phoenix area this morning, just before totality.  The desert skies were clear, so that we had a wonderful dark sky view of the first half of the event.  But totality began right at sunrise, so just as the whole moon was shadowed, it sank in a sky too [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/moonshots/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Her majesty deigns to be photographed</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/her-majesty-deigns-to-be-photographed</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/her-majesty-deigns-to-be-photographed#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 17 Nov 2011 05:14:28 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[owls]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[unexpected]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=14393</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I felt like a paparazza, drawing as close as I dared, trying to hold my proper camera with the big zoom steady in the failing light.  But she was calmly perched out in the open, low on our back fence, mobbed by smaller birds.  Hummingbirds orbited her, scolding, like cheeky electrons, but she ignored them. [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/her-majesty-deigns-to-be-photographed/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>5</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Face of a Sphinx</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/face-of-a-sphinx</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/face-of-a-sphinx#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 12 Sep 2011 17:20:44 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Invertebrata]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cool bug!]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[doom and gloom]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=14068</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The morning after our latest haboob I found an expiring Sphinx moth, battered by the winds and on its last legs.  It was a big one, not as colorful as some, but marked like bark in black and white, with three orange spots on its abdomen.  It&#8217;s a fairly large animal: about three inches long, [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/face-of-a-sphinx/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Haboob-o-rama</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/haboob-o-rama</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/haboob-o-rama#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 12 Sep 2011 06:58:31 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[unexpected]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=14052</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[This summer, there&#8217;s been much haboobery in the Phoenix area, causing a veritable Haboob-O-Rama.  Just this evening (Sunday) we had what was by my count the fourth significant dust storm of the 2011 monsoon season, which should be winding down, but isn&#8217;t.  There&#8217;s still dust in our yard from the first big one, which came [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/haboob-o-rama/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Tiny jumper</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/tiny-jumper</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/tiny-jumper#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 11 Sep 2011 00:18:32 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Invertebrata]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cool bug!]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=14031</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Doesn&#8217;t it look like a Jeep?
Those dark &#8220;headlights&#8221; are eyes, which jumping spiders, unlike most spiders, rely on to hunt.  I can count three pairs: two on the front (big and little) and one on the side (little).  See &#8216;em?  There may be more&#8230;

We photographed this tiny jumping spider before relocating it outside, since the [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/tiny-jumper/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Anna&#8217;s on an aloe</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/annas-on-an-aloe</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/annas-on-an-aloe#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 01 Sep 2011 02:36:11 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hummingbirds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=14006</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[
This isn&#8217;t a short-billed hummer, it&#8217;s just that the resolution on a zoom photo wasn&#8217;t up to capturing the thin bill against the rough-textured block wall.  Still, pretty good for a phone camera. (photo by A.Shock)
]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/annas-on-an-aloe/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>A new Spot the Bird&#8230; kind of</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/a-new-spot-the-bird-kind-of</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/a-new-spot-the-bird-kind-of#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 12 Aug 2011 22:25:48 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[etymology/words]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[reptiles and amphibians]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[spot the bird]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=13753</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Well, it&#8217;s not actually a bird.  Perhaps these posts should be called &#8220;Not the Bird&#8221;. 
Here is an appropriately faded Old West-y snap shot of a neighbor of ours, taken with my cell phone.  Can you spot the non-avian subject?  It&#8217;s a Desert Iguana, posing with dignity as if for a Victorian formal portrait, lurking [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/a-new-spot-the-bird-kind-of/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Another Potter</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/another-potter</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/another-potter#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 30 Jul 2011 17:40:04 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Invertebrata]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cool bug!]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[increments]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=13728</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Here&#8217;s a slightly arty image of an un-opened Potter Wasp nest on the front wall of our house, with a drawing pencil for scale.  Click here for more info on what these tiny clay pots are, and why the wasps build them.  One of these days, I hope to be in the right place in [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/another-potter/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Proof and everything&#8230;</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/proof-and-everything</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/proof-and-everything#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 17 Jul 2011 16:16:30 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Invertebrata]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cool bug!]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=13673</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#8230;of convergent evolution.
 

(photo A.Shock)
For those like me who need facts and a story, this is a Palo Verde Root Borer Beetle (Derobrachus geminatus, adult, fully 3&#8243; long), posing for what I thought were post-mortem portraits this morning after I fished her out of the pool.  However, she was clearly heard to state &#8220;I&#8217;m not [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/proof-and-everything/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>A small thing the rain brought out</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/a-small-thing-the-rain-brought-out</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/a-small-thing-the-rain-brought-out#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 11 Jul 2011 16:10:54 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[doom and gloom]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[reptiles and amphibians]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[monsoon]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[reptile]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[snake]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[threadsnake]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=13426</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Other parts of the Phoenix area had been rained on already in this monsoon season, but so far our part of town only had dust.  Big dust, impressive dust, haboob-style wall of silty grit in your eyes, teeth and hair dust, but no rain.  At about four this morning, however, that changed with the slow [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/a-small-thing-the-rain-brought-out/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>What luck!</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/birds/what-luck</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/birds/what-luck#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 08 Jun 2011 06:05:38 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[botany]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[drawn in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[oddities]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[unexpected]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=13321</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[This morning, I found a golden egg, high up in a tree.
Nestled into the rough bark of our backyard mesquite, a magical bird had laid a golden egg.  This was excellent: what a windfall! &#8212; my fortune was secured, if only I could reach it.
But it was too far over my head, so I had [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/birds/what-luck/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Cucumbers don&#8217;t usually have scales</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/cucumbers-dont-usually-have-scales</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/cucumbers-dont-usually-have-scales#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 06 Jun 2011 01:07:37 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[environment/activism/politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[reptiles and amphibians]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=13265</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#60;&#60; Here are my next-door neighbor&#8217;s cucumber plants, with a snake napping amidst them.  The neighbor noticed it when he was rummaging around in these leaves looking for cukes for dinner.  I happened to be in our backyard, and saw him and his wife standing just on the other side of our shared [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/cucumbers-dont-usually-have-scales/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Morning foraging strategies and their aftermath</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/morning-foraging-strategies-and-their-aftermath</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/morning-foraging-strategies-and-their-aftermath#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 02 Jun 2011 19:04:04 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=13192</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[This morning my foraging strategy was to cook oat bran, spangle it with almonds, and sweeten it a little with agave nectar.  This left the sink full of dishes.  Someone else&#8217;s foraging strategy &#8212; a fox? a coyote? &#8212; was to dig out pocket mice burrows, hoping for some warm, moist, furry, squeaking protein.  This [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/morning-foraging-strategies-and-their-aftermath/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>New out of the box</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/new-out-of-the-box</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/new-out-of-the-box#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 26 Apr 2011 03:21:21 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Invertebrata]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cool bug!]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[increments]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=12874</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Though the lady bug life cycle has been covered here before, I can&#8217;t resist posting this photo of a brand new Lady Bird Beetle and its recently exited pupal casing.
>> the bug and the box it came in.  Click to enlarge, it&#8217;s a nice big file (photo A.Shock).

Just a couple of days ago, I&#8217;d [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/new-out-of-the-box/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>4</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>The Hidden Egg</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/the-hidden-egg</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/the-hidden-egg#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 24 Apr 2011 15:43:32 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Invertebrata]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[doom and gloom]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[furbearers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[increments]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=12825</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[This time of year the world is pregnant with nests full of eggs, tiny cottontails hopping and hiding in the yard, fledgling birds following their parents food-begging insistently, new yellow-green leaves and catkins on the mesquite trees, and glorious cactus blooms.
&#60;&#60; Praying mantis egg-case on a Palo Verde twig (photo E.Shock).  &#62;&#62; close-up of [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/the-hidden-egg/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Owl? What owl?</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/art/owl-what-owl</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/art/owl-what-owl#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 15 Apr 2011 18:07:33 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Hoover the Dove]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[art/clay]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[effigy vessels]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[owls]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[three star owl]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=12533</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Yesterday an MLO (Medium Large Owl) emerged fresh from the kiln, all mute greens and golds, looking wind-blown and content.  I&#8217;d built this owl outside on the back porch, in a plein-air studio annex location during our in-between-not-too-hot-not-too-cold season, and I put it back outside to save indoor shelf space. Anything on the porch is [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/art/owl-what-owl/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>Heretofore missing eggs</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/heretofore-missing-eggs</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/heretofore-missing-eggs#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 08 Apr 2011 19:32:38 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Invertebrata]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cool bug!]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[increments]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=12430</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Last fall our herb garden hosted a successful crop of parsley, cilantro, and Lady bird beetles (AKA Lady bugs).  But we only noticed the bounty of bugs when we found roving hordes of hungry beetle larvæ voraciously devouring hapless aphids.  Pictures of the process of larval metamorphosis were captured  and posted here, but all the [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/heretofore-missing-eggs/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>A Little the worse for wear</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/a-little-the-worse-for-wear</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/a-little-the-worse-for-wear#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 29 Mar 2011 16:59:29 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[doom and gloom]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hummingbirds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=12164</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[They don&#8217;t all make it.  E found a dead fledgling hummingbird in the path across the wash, under the palo verde tree. It was dried, mummified, an inoffensive inanimate thing, not even worth the ants picking over.  We buried it under a nearby chuparosa, a favored food of hummers.  (Photos E.Shock)
Top: detail of foot, with [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/a-little-the-worse-for-wear/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Another Three Star Owl Studio Tour</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/events/another-three-star-owl-studio-tour</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/events/another-three-star-owl-studio-tour#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 17 Mar 2011 01:28:17 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Events]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[art/clay]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[three star owl]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=11749</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[It&#8217;s not every day a big red tour coach pulls up in front of the house to let people off.
Recently an opportunity came my way to take part in a tour series run jointly by Ultimate Art and Cultural Tours and the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art.  The event is the Behind the Scenes Artist [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/events/another-three-star-owl-studio-tour/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Hen Triumphant!</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/hen-triumphant</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/hen-triumphant#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 15 Mar 2011 13:56:27 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hummingbirds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[increments]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=11709</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[We&#8217;ve been watching a hummingbird Hen &#8212; we think she&#8217;s an Anna&#8217;s (Calypte anna) &#8212; on a nest since the middle of February.  Lots of people have passed close to her chosen spot, which was fairly low in a crooked Aleppo pine in our backyard, right over a gravel path through the side of the [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/hen-triumphant/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Open studio at Three Star Owl!</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/events/open-studio-at-three-star-owl</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/events/open-studio-at-three-star-owl#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 19 Feb 2011 04:35:40 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Events]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[art/clay]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[three star owl]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=11314</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Three Star Owl is proud to be part of the South Scottsdale Art Alliance&#8217;s Camelback Studio Tour next Friday Saturday and Sunday, 25, 26, 27 Feb, from 10am &#8211; 5pm, and you&#8217;re invited!


&#60;&#60; detail, Greenish Beastie Pitcher, breast &#8220;plumage&#8221;
Several homes in the &#8220;we could have been but we voted not to be&#8221; historic neighborhood of [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/events/open-studio-at-three-star-owl/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>I know where the Hen she sits&#8230;</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/i-know-where-the-hen-she-sits</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/i-know-where-the-hen-she-sits#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 10 Feb 2011 01:30:50 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[hummingbirds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[increments]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=11292</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#8230;and also why it&#8217;s called &#8220;Broad-billed&#8221;.
Although those two statements concern two different birds.
Update: as of Friday morning, &#8220;Bill&#8221;, the Broad-billed hummingbird, is still reporting in to our backyard feeders, passing the 72-hour mark (I first observed him on Monday afternoon).  We guess he&#8217;ll be here until he&#8217;s not!
Breeding season for Anna&#8217;s hummers is in full [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/i-know-where-the-hen-she-sits/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Lousy pix but exciting bird!</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/lousy-pix-but-exciting-bird</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/lousy-pix-but-exciting-bird#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 07 Feb 2011 10:38:29 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birding]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=11264</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Another update: going onto day three of &#8220;Bill&#8221; at the feeder.
Update: as of Tuesday late afternoon, the BBLH is still at our feeder, defending it against the local Anna&#8217;s hummers, happily zipping about under the pine and between our yard and the neighbor&#8217;s.
A series of rapid, smacking clicks and a rich chip caught my ear [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/lousy-pix-but-exciting-bird/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>An ill-timed Winter cold sets in&#8230;</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/yard-list/an-ill-timed-winter-cold-sets-in</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/yard-list/an-ill-timed-winter-cold-sets-in#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 02 Feb 2011 03:44:09 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[growing things]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=11237</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#8230; I mean in the air, and in my lungs, too.  When not pathetically curled up in bed with Bronte novels on the iPad (well, Jane Eyre,  at any rate, not Wuthering Heights; I remember finding Heathcliff a bit tiresome, although I may give him another try since it&#8217;s been so long), all [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/yard-list/an-ill-timed-winter-cold-sets-in/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>New Year&#8217;s first bird</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/new-years-first-bird</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/new-years-first-bird#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 01 Jan 2011 16:37:35 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=11083</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#62;&#62; A durable little male Costa&#8217;s hummingbird, perched two feet off the ground on an aloe-tip, in the gray light of a below-freezing desert dawn, the first morning of the year also the coldest of the season so far.  (All photos A.Shock &#8212; click to enlarge!)
Moustachios a-flarin&#8217; &#62;&#62;
Above: slurping at the feeder:
It&#8217;s surprising how [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/new-years-first-bird/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Query, possibly &#8212; or possibly not &#8212; political:</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/query-possibly-or-possibly-not-political</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/query-possibly-or-possibly-not-political#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 03 Nov 2010 18:33:10 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cool bug!]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[environment/activism/politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[oddities]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=10863</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Which feels worse, the hollowed out jalapeño or the worm what done it?
Go ahead; click on it just to make yourself miserable.
]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/query-possibly-or-possibly-not-political/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Three small pictures of four small things&#8230;</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/three-small-pictures-of-four-small-things</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/three-small-pictures-of-four-small-things#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 16 Oct 2010 22:33:46 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[botany]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cool bug!]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[etymology/words]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=10751</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#8230; I missed at first, when outside friday morning shooting passionflowers.
It really irked me to not have my own photo of a Gulf Fritillary to post yesterday, so once the sun was higher, I went out to fetch one, if possible (a photo, that is, not a flutterby).  I ended up encountering not only [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/three-small-pictures-of-four-small-things/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Purple in the herbs</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/purple-in-the-herbs</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/purple-in-the-herbs#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 15 Oct 2010 16:30:40 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[growing things]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=10724</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Our vegetable garden, like most vegetable gardens, requires continual effort.  For the majority of these domesticated types of plants, the desert is not a &#8220;shove it in the ground and it will grow&#8221; environment. Rabbits and diggy-beaked birds are constantly helping themselves, peak summer heat (now thankfully past) and dryness make frequent watering necessary.  So, [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/purple-in-the-herbs/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>8</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>The Week in Review: the last monsoon event?</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/the-week-in-review-the-last-monsoon-event</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/the-week-in-review-the-last-monsoon-event#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 10 Oct 2010 04:57:22 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cool bug!]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[reptiles and amphibians]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=10700</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Earlier in the week we had a storm &#8212; technically outside the officially designated monsoon season &#8212; and it was a colorful one.  Our microcosm of Phoenix received about a half inch of technicolor rain in a very short time, without the wind and hail that the same towering clouds dropped on neighbors less than [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/the-week-in-review-the-last-monsoon-event/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>And it goes on&#8230;</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/and-it-goes-on</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/and-it-goes-on#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 03 Oct 2010 15:16:04 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[increments]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[reptiles and amphibians]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=10648</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[It always makes me happy to see infant animals in the yard; it means the world is rolling along, as it should, species replenishing themselves and the natural systems functioning.  This is why people love seeing babies &#8212; it gives the same satisfaction: that the world is carrying on as usual, despite everything, and [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/and-it-goes-on/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>5</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Key to the Goldfinches Spot the Bird</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/key-to-the-goldfinches-spot-the-bird</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/key-to-the-goldfinches-spot-the-bird#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 21 Sep 2010 15:17:01 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birding]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[spot the bird]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/key-to-the-goldfinches-spot-the-bird</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[SPOILER ALERT!!

Here are the three goldfinches in yesterday&#8217;s Spot the Bird, highlighted in color for ease of viewing.

]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/key-to-the-goldfinches-spot-the-bird/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Spot the bird: Lesser goldfinch fressing</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/spot-the-bird-lesser-goldfinch-fressing</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/spot-the-bird-lesser-goldfinch-fressing#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 20 Sep 2010 18:21:30 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birding]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[botany]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[growing things]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[spot the bird]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=10358</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[We planted sunflowers in the garden for the goldfinch; it seems to have worked.
Now that the flower heads are mature and seedful on the stalks, the bushes are crowded with Lesser goldfinch. There are lots more flowers in bloom, which will keep the hungry finches supplied into the fall or even early winter.  The [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/spot-the-bird-lesser-goldfinch-fressing/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>We interrupt this flamingo&#8230;</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/art/we-interrupt-this-flamingo</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/art/we-interrupt-this-flamingo#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 10 Sep 2010 20:25:41 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[art/clay]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birding]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cranky owlet]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[owls]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[three star owl]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=10158</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#8230;to bring you a tiny owlet.  From Pink to Dink, with hardly a blink.
Friday morning, I came home from delivering E to campus, and blissfully opened the back door to let in the first blast of coolish late summer air.  Instead of the usual morning quiet, the back yard was chattering with angry bird sounds: [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/art/we-interrupt-this-flamingo/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>We call it &#8220;The Rock Lobster&#8221;&#8230;</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/we-call-it-the-rock-lobster</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/we-call-it-the-rock-lobster#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 07 Sep 2010 04:50:58 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Invertebrata]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cool bug!]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=10041</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#8230;but it&#8217;s not from the bottom of the sea.  If you had a hard time with the centipede or the solpugid, you may wish to look away.  Or not&#8230;
This is one of my favorite desert arthropods ever, in kind of an oscillating horrified/fascinated can&#8217;t look away from photos of the train wreck kind of way.
It&#8217;s [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/we-call-it-the-rock-lobster/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>More prehistoric wildlife of the back porch</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/more-prehistoric-wildlife-of-the-back-porch</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/more-prehistoric-wildlife-of-the-back-porch#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 01 Sep 2010 17:52:40 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cool bug!]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=9850</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[A centipede, a solifuge, now a dinosaur: all have recently made an appearance on our back porch.
Just now, I was sitting in the den with the sliding door open, when suddenly a winged dinosaur landed on the bricks right outside and ran up to the screen-door, its tail held high behind it like a velociraptor.
Greater [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/more-prehistoric-wildlife-of-the-back-porch/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Passing on the shnorr-gene</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/passing-on-the-shnorr-gene</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/passing-on-the-shnorr-gene#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 28 Aug 2010 05:13:52 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Hoover the Dove]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=9614</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Hoover, the semi-tame African Collared Dove who hangs out in our neighborhood, has been a bachelor for a while.  But earlier this summer, we observed him in the company of a female dove who appeared to be a smallish Eurasian Collared Dove, a naturalized old world species that has become very numerous across the [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/passing-on-the-shnorr-gene/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>The night of the enormous centipede</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/the-night-of-the-enormous-centipede</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/the-night-of-the-enormous-centipede#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 18 Aug 2010 21:07:07 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Invertebrata]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cool bug!]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[the cats]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=9317</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Last big monsoon event brought rain and a spadefoot to our Phoenix area yard.  Tuesday night&#8217;s big monsoon event brought even more rain and a centipede.
This guy is a Scolopendra polymorphus, a Sonoran centipede, sometimes called a tiger centipede.  This one is about 4 inches long (they can grow up to about 7 [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/the-night-of-the-enormous-centipede/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>5</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Further fun with spadefoot</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/further-fun-with-spadefoot</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/further-fun-with-spadefoot#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 02 Aug 2010 05:39:25 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[reptiles and amphibians]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=9056</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Saturday night in our yard, a Couch&#8217;s spadefoot emerged after a substantial monsoon event, and used our swimming pool as his stage to advertise his availability to females, and sovereignty to other male spadefoots.  (See previous post.)

&#60;&#60; Spadefoot in the pool net, after exciting dawnzerlylight rescue orchestrated with dramatic Great horned owl background music (photo [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/further-fun-with-spadefoot/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Words cannot describe the excitement&#8230;</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/words-cannot-describe-the-excitement</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/words-cannot-describe-the-excitement#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 01 Aug 2010 09:01:26 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[reptiles and amphibians]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=9028</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#8230;of finding a spadefoot in the yard!
A few minutes ago &#8212; just before one a.m. &#8212; I was awakened by a sound I haven&#8217;t heard in our yard or in our neighborhood for years: a loud bleating croak, with the slightly rising tone and resonance I can only describe as being like the noise a [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/words-cannot-describe-the-excitement/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
<enclosure url="http://www.reptilesofaz.org/Audio/SCACOU.mp3" length="529280" type="audio/mpeg" />
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Ladybug heaven was&#8230;</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/ladybug-heaven-was</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/ladybug-heaven-was#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 15 May 2010 22:44:57 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Invertebrata]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cool bug!]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[increments]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=7851</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#8230;our aphid-infested herb garden.
Last week, we found a lady bug (AKA lady beetle, lady bird beetle) wandering around on the ground; we scooped her up and put her on a cilantro plant badly infested with aphids.  A few days later, the flower stalks of the plant were alive with the black-and-orange alligator-like larvae of the [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/ladybug-heaven-was/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>4</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Two too-hot pear</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/two-too-hot-pear</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/two-too-hot-pear#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 05 May 2010 21:31:49 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[botany]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[growing things]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=7803</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Says me: few plants are more gratifying than prickly pear cactus, Opuntia spp.  At least, if you live in the desert, or any reasonably dry place.
Actually, even in not so dry places: we saw some naturalized in Aoteraroa (New Zealand), which seemed frankly bizarre, knowing how much rain that island gets (see the photo [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/two-too-hot-pear/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>Hoover at Sea</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/hoover-at-sea</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/hoover-at-sea#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 02 May 2010 15:21:50 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Hoover the Dove]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=7790</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Hoover the feral African collared dove has solved the problem of how to drink from the swimming pool: board the chlorine float.  The health ramifications of this (for the bird) may be dubious, but watching him neatly land on a floating, bobbing object with a smallish deck area is a thing to behold.  He fastidiously [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/hoover-at-sea/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>And, speaking of owls&#8230;</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/and-speaking-of-owls</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/and-speaking-of-owls#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 21 Apr 2010 03:37:58 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Hoover the Dove]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[owls]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=7718</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#8230; and we were &#8212; always &#8212; this Great horned owl (Bubo virginianus) was giving us the eye from our big backyard pine tree, right at sunset tonight.  The Gila woodpeckers, doves, and local hummers &#8212; both Anna&#8217;s and Black-chinned &#8212; were really ticked off at the eminence tigre, and zoomed and hovered threateningly.  I&#8217;m [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/and-speaking-of-owls/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Equal time: the Bird Spots YOU</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/equal-time-the-bird-spots-you</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/equal-time-the-bird-spots-you#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 07 Apr 2010 16:21:03 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Hoover the Dove]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[spot the bird]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=7598</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Just to even things up, here&#8217;s what it feels like to be BIRD-WATCHED:
(Photo E.Shock)
This is &#8220;Hoover&#8221; the semi-tame wild African collared dove who inhabits our neighborhood, wondering why we don&#8217;t have a handful of peanuts NOW.
To indulge in a moment of natural history, notice how the eye is set in a slightly pinched or narrow [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/equal-time-the-bird-spots-you/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>It&#8217;s the most bunnerful time of the year</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/its-the-most-bunnerful-time-of-the-year</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/its-the-most-bunnerful-time-of-the-year#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 27 Mar 2010 04:17:19 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[furbearers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=7421</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#60;&#60;  Two of these equals these. ↓
Desert cottontails abound in the yard right now.  The desert is green from the late winter rains, so there&#8217;s lots to eat.  Adult frolicking leads to tiny bunlets.  The two in the photo above on the right were stashed by mom in a shallow scrape right out in the [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/its-the-most-bunnerful-time-of-the-year/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>4</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Wild mantid-loaf: imagine another surprise!</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/wild-mantid-loaf-imagine-another-surprise</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/wild-mantid-loaf-imagine-another-surprise#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 22 Mar 2010 23:01:37 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Invertebrata]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cool bug!]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=7369</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[A praying mantis egg-case is not something you can easily find if you&#8217;re looking for one.  So, imagine our surprise &#8212; again! &#8212; when E  looked up at a random, leafy, and low branch of the big backyard mesquite, and said, &#8220;Hey, look!&#8221;  There was a tiny brown-loaf-looking mantid egg case, stuck to a [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/wild-mantid-loaf-imagine-another-surprise/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>President&#8217;s Day: Hoover himself shows up</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/presidents-day-hoover-himself-shows-up</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/presidents-day-hoover-himself-shows-up#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 15 Feb 2010 17:09:47 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Hoover the Dove]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=7281</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#8220;Hoover&#8221; the semi-tame  African Collared Dove who inhabits our neighborhood came around for a handout of sunflower hearts and peanuts on Valentine&#8217;s Day.  It&#8217;s a bit of a sad story, in that he used to have a female companion, but no longer.  So far this spring he&#8217;s spent much of the day in plaintive calling [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/presidents-day-hoover-himself-shows-up/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>6</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Picture of purples past</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/picture-of-purples-past</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/picture-of-purples-past#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 11 Jan 2010 23:56:11 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=6825</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[This is the very week many Costa&#8217;s hummingbirds leave our yard.  I know this because I&#8217;m keeping track,  not out of obsessiveness, or possessiveness (well, maybe a little&#8230;), but because each winter I participate in the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology&#8217;s Project Feeder Watch.  Like Christmas bird counts, it&#8217;s a way for science to harness [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/picture-of-purples-past/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>A close brush with a hunter</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/a-close-brush-with-a-hunter</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/a-close-brush-with-a-hunter#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 10 Dec 2009 00:57:48 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=6533</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Weeks out of &#8220;swim-season&#8221;, our pool is a bit dishevelled right now: a recent windstorm, a bit of a chemical imbalance, a bit of neglect, made it time to brush the pool.  It&#8217;s a task that in itself isn&#8217;t huge fun in cold weather &#8212; cold wet aluminum chills the paws fast! &#8212; but does [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/a-close-brush-with-a-hunter/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>This is not albino dog poop&#8230;</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/this-is-not-albino-dog-poop</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/this-is-not-albino-dog-poop#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 04 Dec 2009 17:35:22 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[growing things]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[oddities]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=6509</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#8230;it&#8217;s a coil of tube-slush that blurped out of the hose this morning &#8212; yes, ICE!  So, the frost-cloth and styrofoam cups are stratigically positioned, ready to be placed over newly-planted herbs, and on tender cactus-tips late this afternoon: tonight is supposed to be the first frost of winter.  The hummers are hitting the nectar [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/this-is-not-albino-dog-poop/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Still Lousy: Costa contra Costa</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/still-lousy-costa-contra-costa</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/still-lousy-costa-contra-costa#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:01:56 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=6305</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The post-breeding influx of Costa&#8217;s hummingbirds in our Phoenix-area yard continues.  This tough little desert hummer is present at the feeders year round, but the population goes up noticeably between about June and December.  Most of the birds we see are males, some in fully developed adult plumage, some with scraggly purple moustaches just growing in.  [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/still-lousy-costa-contra-costa/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>4</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Autumn newbies making the most of the gentle season</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/autumn-newbies-making-the-most-of-the-gentle-season</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/autumn-newbies-making-the-most-of-the-gentle-season#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 12 Oct 2009 16:04:17 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[reptiles and amphibians]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=6129</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Recently a neighbor came across the street to tell me in a concerned way that she had &#8220;had to&#8221; kill not just one but two non-venomous coachwhips in her yard out of fear for the safety of her pet, a feisty little terrier whom no self-respecting coachwhip would allow near enough for trouble.  So it [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/autumn-newbies-making-the-most-of-the-gentle-season/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Uncommon yard bird: Blackhawk fly-over</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/yard-list/uncommon-yard-bird-blackhawk-fly-over</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/yard-list/uncommon-yard-bird-blackhawk-fly-over#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 08 Oct 2009 03:34:30 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=6088</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The other morning around 6 am I was awakened by a neighbor: the Army National Guard&#8217;s Papago Military Station thumped deafeningly with the rotors of helicopters.  I went out to look: the National Guard is usually a quiet neighbor, with only occasional popping of target practice audible from our street.  The airstrip no longer hosts [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/yard-list/uncommon-yard-bird-blackhawk-fly-over/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Late Night Arthropod: Vaejovis aglow</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/late-night-arthropod-vaejovis-aglow</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/late-night-arthropod-vaejovis-aglow#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 05 Oct 2009 14:15:22 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Invertebrata]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=6075</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Scorpions are not a thing at our house.  We don&#8217;t see them frequently, and as previously posted, they&#8217;re more likely to be encountered outside as victims of the swimming pool than inside the house.  But last night E liberated one from the front bathroom, and temporarily incarcerated it in a pint glass.
In the morning, I [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/late-night-arthropod-vaejovis-aglow/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Seriously Cereus</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/seriously-cereus</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/seriously-cereus#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 24 Sep 2009 23:42:47 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[botany]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=6036</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The weather has cooled a bit, and even the succulents in the yard are perking up a little.  Here&#8217;s a shot of a luncheon-plate sized flower of a nocturnal, non-native Cereus aethiops columnar cactus, taken at dawn before it faded in the rays of the sun.
(Photo of Cereus aethiops blossom by A.Shock)
]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/seriously-cereus/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>The rare Scottsdale Aquatic scorpion?  afraid not&#8230;</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/close-in/the-rare-scottsdale-aquatic-scorpion-afraid-not</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/close-in/the-rare-scottsdale-aquatic-scorpion-afraid-not#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 16 Sep 2009 18:58:36 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Invertebrata]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[oddities]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=6000</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[This was weird, and sad for sure.
In previous posts, I&#8217;ve mentioned the unfortunate similarity of our swimming pool to the LaBrea Tarpits.  Especially in the summer months when there are lots of inexperienced young animals out and about, we often have to carry out water rescues.  Since my studio is at home and looks onto [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/close-in/the-rare-scottsdale-aquatic-scorpion-afraid-not/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Living with Pests, plus bonus barrel blossoms</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/living-with-pests-plus-bonus-barrel-blossoms</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/living-with-pests-plus-bonus-barrel-blossoms#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 13 Sep 2009 00:52:29 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Invertebrata]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cool bug!]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=5969</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[After our latest monsoon event, the yard was freshly rinsed and all dampy.  Everything was making the most of the moist: the succulents were sucking up water, the trees were drinking and dripping, and the whole world was washed in that most deserty perfume of creosote.
Also, the Cactus Longhorn Beetle came out.  Here is its [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/living-with-pests-plus-bonus-barrel-blossoms/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>The Presidential Motorcade&#8230;</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/environmentactivism/the-presidential-motorcade</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/environmentactivism/the-presidential-motorcade#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 17 Aug 2009 17:43:06 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[environment/activism/politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=5672</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#8230;just passed within a block of our house!
Turns out the street at the edge of our neighborhood &#8212; two houses away from ours &#8212; is a convenient north-south thoroughfare for Leaders of the Free World on their way between Sky Harbor Airport and resort row up on the shoulders of Camelback Mountain.  George W. Bush [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/environmentactivism/the-presidential-motorcade/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Cnemie-philia</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/art/cnemie-philia</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/art/cnemie-philia#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 16 Aug 2009 05:09:25 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[art/clay]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[drawn in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[etymology/words]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[reptiles and amphibians]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=5645</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Yes, that&#8217;s &#8220;Cnemie-philia&#8221; &#8212; the love of lizards in the genus Cnemidophorus, now more properly called by their current genus name, Aspidoscelis, or Whiptails.  Our locals are Sonoran tiger whiptails (Aspidoscelis tigris punctilinealis), and they&#8217;re the most commonly seen lizard in our Phoenix area yard.  They like it hot and are out and about during [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/art/cnemie-philia/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Screen-gecko-eat-moth</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/screen-gecko-eat-moth</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/screen-gecko-eat-moth#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 14 Aug 2009 23:38:25 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[reptiles and amphibians]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=5631</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Working nocturnally in the studio gives observation opportunities not available during the sunny daylight hours.  Geckos (the non-native Euro-variety) march up and down the raccoon-ravaged screens stalking moths larger than their heads.  Here&#8217;s a picture of the ventral surface of one with a successful catch, all swallowed but for the wings, the reflection of my [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/screen-gecko-eat-moth/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Lord of the Fly(catchers)</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/art/lord-of-the-flycatchers</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/art/lord-of-the-flycatchers#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 24 Jul 2009 01:24:51 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[art/clay]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[drawn in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[field trips]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=5362</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Late each spring, later than most other neotropical migrants, the Brown-crested flycatchers (Myiarchus tyrannulus) return to our neighborhood (and other places in southern Arizona) from their wintering grounds in Mexico.
They are relatively large tyrant flycatchers, about the size of the more familiar Cardinal, but unlike Cardinals they&#8217;re not usually seen on or even terribly close [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/art/lord-of-the-flycatchers/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Haboobery, indeed</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/yard-list/haboobery-indeed</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/yard-list/haboobery-indeed#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 20 Jul 2009 23:13:31 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[oddities]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=5307</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The sky on Saturday night was remarkable.
Somewhere south of the Phoenix area a big storm collapsed, and the gusty winds flowing down off the top of its towering cumulus clouds blasted a well-defined edge of dust that rolled outward for miles.  It&#8217;s called a Haboob &#8212; fans of the the movie &#8220;the Mummy&#8221; will know [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/yard-list/haboobery-indeed/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Lousy with Costa&#8217;s</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/lousy-with-costas</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/lousy-with-costas#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 18 Jul 2009 15:46:41 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birding]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=5275</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[When the Gophersnake made its appearance, I was about to post on Costa&#8217;s hummingbirds, because &#8220;informal censusing&#8221; (= what we see in the yard) indicates that this is the season when the Costa&#8217;s hummer population is highest in our Phoenix area yard: we are lousy with Costa&#8217;s right now.
I would guess it has something to [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/lousy-with-costas/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>A favorite slinky neighbor&#8230;</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/a-favorite-slinky-neighbor</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/a-favorite-slinky-neighbor#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 17 Jul 2009 18:40:51 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[reptiles and amphibians]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=5235</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#8230;was patrolling our yard yesterday, an overcast Thursday morning.
I was working in the studio and noticed yard birds scolding harshly.  But my brain was busy with clay, and it only spared enough attention to ID the calls &#8212; cactus wren, verdin, curve-billed thrasher &#8212; and forgot to be curious about what was setting them off.  [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/a-favorite-slinky-neighbor/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Have a Javelina, or two</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/events/have-a-javelina-or-two</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/events/have-a-javelina-or-two#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 15 Jul 2009 22:53:07 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Events]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[art/clay]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[drawn in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[increments]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[three star owl]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=5188</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Days are getting short until Three Star Owl&#8217;s third appearance at Southwest Wings Birding and Nature Festival, and I&#8217;m in a groove, making pieces for the event.  As posted, I&#8217;ve been making mugs, and also owls.  Lots of owls.  Even more owls than usual.
So recently I turned to the hairy side of Sonoran fauna, and [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/events/have-a-javelina-or-two/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Further adventures with the Hairhen</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/further-adventures-with-the-hairhen</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/further-adventures-with-the-hairhen#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 14 Jul 2009 13:11:25 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Invertebrata]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=5169</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Early Monday morning I nearly stepped on a raccoon kit.  We both came around a wall at the same time, from opposite directions.  Fortunately, no contact was made: the kits are well-grown now.  Also, the Hairhen is very watchful, so we were all very careful to not create an incident.  She and all four kits [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/further-adventures-with-the-hairhen/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Desert Dove-o-rama: White-winged doves</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/art/desert-dove-o-rama-white-winged-doves</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/art/desert-dove-o-rama-white-winged-doves#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 05 Jul 2009 19:00:31 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[art/clay]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[drawn in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=5098</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Arriving in the spring, they lurk like vultures for weeks on the crowns of blooming saguaros, waiting for the flowers to swell into fat green fruits.  When they do, the White winged doves (Zenaida asiatica) rip them open with their strong fruit-ripping beaks, exposing the sweet red fruit and feasting greedily.  Sometimes several doves will [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/art/desert-dove-o-rama-white-winged-doves/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Festival of Desert Doves: the Other Collared Dove</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/art/festival-of-desert-doves-the-other-collared-dove</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/art/festival-of-desert-doves-the-other-collared-dove#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 26 Jun 2009 13:08:06 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[art/clay]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[drawn in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[etymology/words]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=5015</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The Eurasian Collared Dove (Streptopelia decaocto) has an agenda well-befitting a Columbid: &#8220;Must Colonize New World.&#8221; 
Actually, it started before that, and a lot farther east: a native of central Asia, the Collared Dove had populated Europe as far west as Great Britain by the 1950s.  By the early &#8217;80s, a population had taken hold [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/art/festival-of-desert-doves-the-other-collared-dove/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Meet the Hair Hen&#8230;</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/meet-the-hair-hen</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/meet-the-hair-hen#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 20 Jun 2009 03:05:36 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=4998</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[This is the Hair Hen.  Actually, there are two; we call them both the Hair Hen because we used to not be able to tell them apart.  Now we can: one has two kits, the other has three.
This is a picture of the three-kit Hair Hen.  She lives under the Mexican Fan Palm in the [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/meet-the-hair-hen/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>My Hoodia Stinketh</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/my-hoodia-stinketh</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/my-hoodia-stinketh#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 17 Jun 2009 22:02:52 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[botany]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=4970</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[For a few days I&#8217;ve been whiffing a whiff, which has caused me to search for the dead mouse in my studio.
Then, I noticed the Hoodia is blooming.  It sits on the shelves right outside the work tables.  That window is always open, being the draw-source for the swamp cooler air.  So the stinkitude of [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/my-hoodia-stinketh/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Festival of Desert Doves: African Collared Dove</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/art/festival-of-desert-doves-african-collared-dove</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/art/festival-of-desert-doves-african-collared-dove#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 14 Jun 2009 16:47:43 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Hoover the Dove]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[art/clay]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[drawn in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=4953</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The desert suburbs of Phoenix are Columbid-rich, that is, there are many species of doves and pigeons.  Yesterday I was putting out seed in a neighbor&#8217;s gravel drive just before sunset.  The area is quite open, and at that time of day it fills with fat, free-loading doves and pigeons who are used to being [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/art/festival-of-desert-doves-african-collared-dove/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Gamboling Gambel&#8217;s Quailets</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/art/gamboling-gambels-quailets</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/art/gamboling-gambels-quailets#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 30 May 2009 04:09:27 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[art/clay]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[drawn in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[three star owl]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=4758</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[In our area, the first Gambel&#8217;s quail chicks of the year usually start showing up in early May,  clustered around their parents under the mesquite trees in the yard, pecking expertly at the ground like the precocial youngsters they are.  This year, since we weren&#8217;t around then, we missed the &#8220;nebula phase&#8221; of their [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/art/gamboling-gambels-quailets/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>So what about the Hen?</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/so-what-about-the-hen</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/so-what-about-the-hen#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 20 May 2009 19:37:59 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[increments]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=4544</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[You may be wondering about the much-posted Hen, a female Anna&#8217;s hummingbird, and her two nestlings, who were busy growing up in an Aleppo Pine in our back yard.
As far as we know, the Hen fledged her young successfully while we were in New Zealand. We&#8217;ll never know for sure, but the evidence supports a [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/so-what-about-the-hen/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Easter Nidification: Stalwart Hen update</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/easter-nidification-stalwart-hen-update</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/easter-nidification-stalwart-hen-update#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 12 Apr 2009 19:32:46 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[increments]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=4107</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Hen update with photo. The Stalwart Hen and her Nidlings (the Anna&#8217;s hummingbird and her nestlings in our backyard pinetree) are still hanging in there, despite a night of unseasonal wind and cool rain.  In this photo, the bottom side of the tip of one of the nidling&#8217;s beaks is just visible at the left [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/easter-nidification-stalwart-hen-update/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Nidification: Cloacal dexterity is next to godliness</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/art/nidification-cloacal-dexterity-is-next-to-godliness</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/art/nidification-cloacal-dexterity-is-next-to-godliness#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 06 Apr 2009 13:44:31 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[art/clay]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[increments]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[three star owl]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=3998</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[
The Anna&#8217;s Hummingbird Hen&#8217;s behavior has mystified me for the last few days.  What I see when the Hen is gone: an empty nest, no nestling activity (after that first exciting view).  Then when the Hen returns, she immediately sits tight; no feeding.  Wouldn&#8217;t you expect her to return and feed nestlings, if there were [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/art/nidification-cloacal-dexterity-is-next-to-godliness/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>The Curious Case of the Corpse in the Yucca</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/the-curious-case-of-the-corpse-in-the-yucca</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/the-curious-case-of-the-corpse-in-the-yucca#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 05 Apr 2009 14:08:46 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[doom and gloom]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[oddities]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=3848</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Cactus wrens are a large (for a wren), lively, and common presence all over the low-elevation deserts in the American Southwest.  The photo to left left shows one sitting on a cholla branch.  They do that a lot, often while making all sorts of  mechanical-sounding vocalizations like drbrdrbrdrbrdrr or krakrakrakrakrakra.  Cactus wrens are expert at [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/the-curious-case-of-the-corpse-in-the-yucca/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Nidification &#8212; Nestling is happening!</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/nidification-nestling-is-happening</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/nidification-nestling-is-happening#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 03 Apr 2009 03:16:36 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[increments]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=3793</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[It&#8217;s confirmed &#8212; the Hen&#8217;s egg(s) has/ve hatched!
This afternoon (Thursday April 2) just after one pm, I was finally able to catch the Hen away from the Nid &#8212; she&#8217;d been sitting tighter than usual this morning &#8212; and could look down on the nest from the upper window.  The first discovery was that the [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/nidification-nestling-is-happening/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Nidification: Is that or isn&#8217;t that&#8230;</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/nidification-is-that-or-isnt-that</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/nidification-is-that-or-isnt-that#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 02 Apr 2009 14:36:45 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[increments]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=3783</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#8230;a little pointy beak?
Here is this morning&#8217;s photo of the Anna&#8217;s hummingbird Hen on her Nid.  I began looking very carefully for evidence of nestlings yesterday, April 1, since that was my estimate of the earliest her eggs might hatch.  This morning, I checked first thing, and still didn&#8217;t see any sign of young birds.  [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/nidification-is-that-or-isnt-that/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Nidification: the Hen sits tight for sure</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/nidification-the-hen-sits-tight-for-sure</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/nidification-the-hen-sits-tight-for-sure#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 19 Mar 2009 03:56:13 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[increments]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=3220</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Here is the Hen today, sitting tight on her tiny cup nest built on two pine cones in our backyard Aleppo Pine.  She fills the whole opening like a cork, horizontally oriented.  Usually we see hummers either air-born or perched, in vertical orientation: it&#8217;s the horizontal arrangement, with her tail sticking out behind her and [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/nidification-the-hen-sits-tight-for-sure/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Nidification &#8212; Hen still constructing</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/nidification-hen-still-constructing</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/nidification-hen-still-constructing#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 17 Mar 2009 03:23:13 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[increments]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=3132</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Much building activity: as of today the Anna&#8217;s hummingbird hen in our Aleppo pine is still finessing her nid.  This morning, she could be seen bustling and fussing at the site (yes, I anthropomorphize, get over it please, I&#8217;m not an ornithologist!), making frequent trips away and to, coming back with light-colored fibers, some of [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/nidification-hen-still-constructing/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Desert Chimaeras in the garden</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/yard-list/desert-chimaeras</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/yard-list/desert-chimaeras#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 16 Mar 2009 14:36:56 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[botany]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[growing things]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=3074</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[We go from desert Gryphons to desert Chimaeras &#8212; of course, not real chimaeras, in either the mythological or the genetic sense.  I&#8217;m talking about planting desert perennials in clumps, so that with maturity comes an exciting mixed-plant combo that combats the tedious &#8220;Plug-a-plant&#8221; school of xeric landscaping we see so much of here in [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/yard-list/desert-chimaeras/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Nidification: the Hen is On!</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/nidification-the-hen-is-on</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/nidification-the-hen-is-on#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 14 Mar 2009 21:56:40 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[increments]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=3059</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The Anna&#8217;s hummingbird hen is on the nest! This morning I saw her bringing small beakfuls of fluffy white material like spider web or some kind of aerial seeds and adding them. She would then settle in the cup of the nest, and wiggle a little, as if to get the shape perfect, and run [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/nidification-the-hen-is-on/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Yard list &#8212; FOS Black-chinned hummingbird!</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/yard-list-fos-black-chinned-hummingbird</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/yard-list-fos-black-chinned-hummingbird#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 12 Mar 2009 23:06:26 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=3038</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Today I saw the First-of-Season Black-chinned hummingbird for our yard at the back door feeder.  It was a male, as the first birds always are.  He whirred in and made his characteristic little &#8220;chup-chup&#8221; feeding noise, pumping his longish tail and being generally tidy and well-defined in his gorget feathers, without moustaches.  Black-chinneds typically have [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/yard-list-fos-black-chinned-hummingbird/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Yard list: Dinky Dudes of the Desert</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/yard-list-dinky-dudes-of-the-desert</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/yard-list-dinky-dudes-of-the-desert#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 22 Feb 2009 05:20:26 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[etymology/words]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=2736</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[When I left the Mississippi River Valley to come back to the West, I thought, Hmmmmm, no chickadees in the low desert.  What&#8217;s that going to be like?
We were very accustomed to Carolina chickadees as ever-present &#8220;fee-bay-fee-bee&#8221;-ers in our St. Louis yard.  They accompanied us on hikes; we heard them in the parks, they were [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/yard-list-dinky-dudes-of-the-desert/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Thanksgiving saguaro plunge&#8211;Carnegiea carnage</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/thanksgiving-saguaro-plunge-carnegiea-carnage</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/thanksgiving-saguaro-plunge-carnegiea-carnage#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 15 Dec 2008 05:26:24 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[botany]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[doom and gloom]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=1429</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[It was leaning, but not that much.  On Thanksgiving morning while we had breakfast (E, the M, and me), it fell with a huge thump from no particular direction. Later, E found the saguaro (Carnegiea gigantea): under the back mesquite, lying split like a toppled Doric column on top of beloved cax and sux, some [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/thanksgiving-saguaro-plunge-carnegiea-carnage/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Close in &#8212; tiny mud pot forms on wall</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/art/close-in-tiny-mud-pot-forms-on-wall</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/art/close-in-tiny-mud-pot-forms-on-wall#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 09 Dec 2008 05:45:27 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Invertebrata]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[archaeology]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[art/clay]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cool bug!]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[etymology/words]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[three star owl]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=1544</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Every once in a while, I find a clay pot &#8212; a tiny, perfect clay pot &#8212; on the wall of the house.  They look like little half-buried Mediterranean amphorae, without handles, with a narrow neck and a flared rim, the entire thing only half an inch across.  But they have no openings: like the [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/art/close-in-tiny-mud-pot-forms-on-wall/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>6</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Botanical horrors: when grass grows bad</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/botanical-horrors-when-grass-grows-bad</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/botanical-horrors-when-grass-grows-bad#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 07 Dec 2008 22:02:26 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[botany]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[doom and gloom]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[oddities]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=1525</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Here is a photo of a lovely Red barrel cactus in Miss Thang&#8217;s garden.
The barrel is happy where it is, and is growing quickly and healthily.  Unfortunately, we&#8217;ve had a Bermuda Grass invasion nearby, and despite E&#8217;s manual, non-toxic efforts to control the grass, it&#8217;s spread up to the Red Barrel.  It was bad enough [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/botanical-horrors-when-grass-grows-bad/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Yard list &#8212; Miss Thang</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/art/yard-list-miss-thang</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/art/yard-list-miss-thang#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 23 Nov 2008 17:23:17 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[art/clay]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birding]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[etymology/words]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[three star owl]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=1345</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Meet Miss Thang.  She is a female Costa&#8217;s hummingbird (Calypte costae), and unlike her purple-mustachioed male counterpart, she&#8217;s a plain green-gray above, and a plain gray-white below, with a chunky round body, almost no tail, and no neck at all.  She holds territory right outside our front door, as Queen of the Desert Garden.  The [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/art/yard-list-miss-thang/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Yard list &#8212; Gray fox</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/yard-list-gray-fox</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/yard-list-gray-fox#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 16 Nov 2008 05:33:16 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[etymology/words]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=1310</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Saturday morning while walking through our neighborhood to the Park, E and I saw one of the local Gray Foxes. We didn&#8217;t have a camera!  Too bad; it posed obligingly and let us admire it for quite a while: a beautiful, delicate zorro with a most magnificent tail.  It looked just like this:

Desert Gray [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/yard-list-gray-fox/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>6</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Fierce-footed Cooper&#8217;s Hawk &#8212; Yard list</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/fierce-footed-coopers-hawk-yard-list</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/fierce-footed-coopers-hawk-yard-list#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 01 Nov 2008 20:59:21 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birding]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[etymology/words]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=1158</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[A couple of mornings ago, we saw our first Cooper&#8217;s hawk of the season, swooping nimbly around the big backyard mesquite in an unsuccessful attempt at snagging a dove or finch from the feeders under the tree.  It lit on the utility pole in the alley and, having an itchy face, primly scratched itself [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/fierce-footed-coopers-hawk-yard-list/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>New things in the yard and in the season: Canyon wren!</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/new-things-in-the-yard-and-in-the-season-canyon-wren</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/new-things-in-the-yard-and-in-the-season-canyon-wren#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 13 Oct 2008 04:49:15 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[birding]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=955</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[There are wrens in our desert world.  Big, raucous, busy Cactus wrens are always here. And there are wrens that pass through: eye-browed and long-tailed Bewick&#8217;s wrens in spring and fall; a Rock wren usually comes around a few times in the winter, and even a House wren once, on its way to its [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/new-things-in-the-yard-and-in-the-season-canyon-wren/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Yard list: Desert Iguana, spotted</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/yard-list-desert-iguana-spotted</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/yard-list-desert-iguana-spotted#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 23 Sep 2008 01:29:16 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[etymology/words]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[reptiles and amphibians]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=896</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The first day of autumn has been a red letter day in our yard.  Not only was there a Western screech owl calling last night &#8212; a new species for the yard, as far as my observations go &#8212; but this afternoon, in the heat of the day, a young Desert iguana raced under [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/yard-list-desert-iguana-spotted/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Autumnal Owlinox &#8212; new season, new yard bird</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/art/happy-owly-autumn-new-yard-bird-heard</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/art/happy-owly-autumn-new-yard-bird-heard#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 22 Sep 2008 17:27:23 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[art/clay]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[owls]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[three star owl]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=847</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Last night was a busy night in the yard.  Well, I suppose they&#8217;re all busy nights, but last night I was awake to appreciate it.  Before human bedtime, the geckos were at their posts under the porch lights (our yard residents are the non-native Mediterranean Geckos, not the indigenous Western Banded, but they&#8217;re [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/art/happy-owly-autumn-new-yard-bird-heard/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Yard list: Great horned owls part two</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/art/yard-list-great-horned-owls-part-two</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/art/yard-list-great-horned-owls-part-two#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 15 Sep 2008 18:10:35 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[art/clay]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[drawn in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[owls]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=803</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Update to an earlier post: 
Our local Great horned owl has a friend.  Last night from about 4 am we listened to two owls duetting and singing antiphonally for about half an hour, the higher hoots of the female alternating with the lower calls of the male.  It&#8217;s early in the year for [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/art/yard-list-great-horned-owls-part-two/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
<enclosure url="http://www.owlpages.com/sounds/Bubo-virginianus-1.mp3" length="98638" type="audio/mpeg" />
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Yard List &#8212; Great Horned Owl</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/art/yard-list-great-horned-owl</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/art/yard-list-great-horned-owl#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 11 Sep 2008 15:24:21 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[art/clay]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[birds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nidification]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[owls]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[three star owl]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=761</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Last night at 3.00am exactly, I heard the Great horned owl call. Very close, somewhere right in the back yard. The windows were open because a light monsoon event had brought fresh rain-cooled air, so the call, though soft, carried clearly.
Great horned owls are regulars in our area because there are plenty of perches, and [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/art/yard-list-great-horned-owl/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
<enclosure url="http://www.owlpages.com/sounds/Bubo-virginianus-2.mp3" length="16300" type="audio/mpeg" />
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Yard list: Coachwhip</title>
		<link>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/coachwhip</link>
		<comments>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/coachwhip#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 23 Aug 2008 18:40:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Allison</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[close in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[etymology/words]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[natural history]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[reptiles and amphibians]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[yard list]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://threestarowl.com/?p=367</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[It is a long thin snake.
Working this morning in the backyard, E heard the scolding of cactus wrens, thrashers and other regulars of our deserty neighborhood.  He tracked down the source: a sleek and mottled coachwhip marauding, trying to take advantage of the monsoon &#8220;bloom&#8221; of young animals.  Coachwhips (Masticophis or Coluber flagellum) [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://threestarowl.com/natural-history/coachwhip/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
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