We Rode In Trucks

Greetings from the land of many ducks and weird weather!  It's supposed to be spring time but we had average temperatures in the mid 40's last week.  The good news is the temperatures are supposed to improve by the middle of this week.  Thank goodness! A Southern boy isn't used to preforming cardio throughout the morning in an effort to not freeze to death.  It's pretty hard to write down data whenever your fingers lose dexterity.  I even overheard myself hurling insults at flushing birds or trying to reason with them saying leaving their nests wasn't a good idea in this cold weather. But, birds being birds, they decided having a rope dragged across their head was a good enough reason to abandon their nest for a little while. 

I decided it was high time to allow you a face with some of the names that I use in my writings.  Obviously, these pictures were taken from our last fishing excursion.  It didn't turn out quite like we planned, because we didn't catch any walleye, but we did enjoy reeling in a stringer of trout!

Jake

Scott

Jordan

Justin

And now a few pictures from the days catch.

He's watched Bass Masters one too many times

We all told him that was a "big fish" we don't want to hurt anyone's feelings around here.

Last Sunday, Jordan and I were folding the last of our clothes when we looked up to see a man talking to Justin as he was waiting for us in the truck.  This guy was becoming all animated and you could see how excited he was because of the huge grin on his face.  I looked over at Jordan and said, "Man, that guy must have really liked something Justin said because he's been talking to him for a solid 5 minutes now."  Jordan just kind of smiled and said, "Guess we'll find out soon enough.  You ready for Wal-Mart?"  After we loaded our bags into my pickup, the guy who had gotten giddy over Justin said to me, "So you're the one who goes to Mississippi State, huh?" I told him he had found the right person,  he went on to tell me that someone he knew had played quarterback for MSU many years ago.  I just sort of nodded my head because I didn't know who he was talking about.  The failed attempt at a connection didn't discourage this man though because he quickly asked,"Do you two work for those people with the duck TV show too?" Jordan and I looked at each other sort of surprised and then we said, "Yea, we do." (The first day I worked in the field my boss told me that the Ducks Unlimited TV show wanted to come film us at some point during the summer.  With that in the back of my mind and having watched the DU show on the Outdoor Channel myself, I thought surely that's what this man was referring to.)  Well, that man's face lit up brighter than a Roman candle when you look down the wrong end trying to aim the thing.  He got really excited and said,"Man, that show is awesome! I just watched an episode last night when they took that boy out in the woods snake hunting so he wouldn't wanna date one of their daughters or somethin'.  I never can remember those boys' names but I always know when their show's on because of those big beards they keep." The man told us how good it was to meet us and that he'd have to tell his nephew he had run in to us.  As soon as the fellow had gone out of ear range I whipped around to Justin and asked,"Did you tell that man we worked for the Duck Commander?" Justin started laughing as he recounted the entire story.  He said it started off when the man had noticed all the waterfowl stickers and the MSU logo on my back glass.  After that, he asked Justin who he worked for.  Justin told him but I guess this man didn't know the difference between Ducks Unlimited and Duck Commander.  To this man, we were the waterfowl researchers for the hit television show on A&E Duck Dynasty.  Justin said the man got so worked up that he couldn't bare to break the news to him that we weren't anybody special. http://www.aetv.com/duck-dynasty/



Although it is bitterly cold to us Southern boys, spring and the newness of life that it brings is in full swing!

goslings

Northern pintail ducklings

Mallard ducklings



Hey! He says he needs to count us!

We are all here!

From curiosity to career.

http://www.ducks.org/

That's What I Love About Sundays

If you know me well at all then one thing is for sure, you know that country music holds a special place in my heart.  It's true, to me, country music isn't just a bunch of twang involving some poor cowboy crying about his woman that ran off to Amarillo.  No, to me, country music captures the life I live everyday and puts it to a sweet harmony. 

I was up at 7:30 this morning, because to my body that was sleeping in, so I decided to put a quick post together about today.  Many of you know that I was concerned with whether or not I would be able to find a church before I left Mississippi.  Well, I found one.  And is God good to me? Absolutely.  Last weekend my roommate, Jordan, and I attended a small Southern Baptist church in Minot, ND.  I grew up in the Presbyterian Church of America so there are some subtle differences but the bottom line is, I have a place to fellowship with a community of believers.  And do you want to know the best part?  There is another 3 man crew a part of the same project that my crew is working on that live on the Audubon Wildlife Refuge.  Well, last night, I got a text saying that all 3 of them were coming to church this morning too!  Seeing how the Lord has answered my prayers has filled my heart with pure joy.


We don't have a washer or dryer at the house, and when I say we live in the country I mean 45 minutes away from the nearest Wal-Mart too, so after church we eat lunch, wash clothes, and grocery shop for the week.  After we accomplish all of this we are going fishing with the Auburn crew (out of their crew two went to Auburn and one went to small school in Texas) on the refuge.  And no boys, the large mouth bass is not king here, nor is the channel cat a prized fish either.  The fish that anglers drool over out here is the walleye.  So, trying our hardest to fit in with the locals, a bunch of rednecks will attempt  walleye fishing this afternoon.  Thank goodness for Field & Stream.


I woke up with Criag Morgan singing in my head, so I decided it would be a good idea to share the lyrics that I heard. 

That's what I love about Sunday:
Cat-napping on the porch swing;
You curled up next to me,
The smell of jasmine wakes us up.
Take a walk down a back road,
Tackle box and a cane pole;
Carve our names in that white oak,
An' steal a kiss as the sun fades,
That's what I love about Sunday,
Oh, yeah.

Words and a melody like that remind me of those that I love most and can't wait to see at the end of the summer.  Thank you all for your support!  And now for a few pictures.

ducks.org

Just Another Day in Paradise

An obvious question to ask me, after living in North Dakota for over a week now, might be,"How are you adjusting and what's it like living there compared to the Mississippi Delta?".  Well, fortunately for you, I am about to tell you. :)

I live in a four bedroom, two bath, house in the countryside of Douglas, ND.  I am a part of a three man crew working on a study for nesting success of ducks in winter wheat.  My job is composed of four major parts: nest searching (or dragging), nest checks, vegetation sampling, and data entry at the end of the day. 

The weather is quite different here than it is this time of year in Mississippi.  So far, the temperatures have ranged anywhere from 37-84 degrees Fahrenheit.  I have discovered the true importance of layering clothing!  The wind has become my greatest enemy.  Out here on the open prairies, trees are few and far between,(unless an intentional wind break has been planted) so the wind has no one to answer to as it rolls ferociously across the open space.  Windy days are a two-punch sort of deal; first, an unrelenting 36 mph wind is just plain annoying to work in, second, a wind like that blows enough fine dirt particles in to my eye to make the Sandman work overtime.  Oh, and I must not forget the absolute importance of chapstick.  Wind loves to dry lips out, so one must fight back with the all powerful Blistex.  Now I'm not talking about the plain ole Blistex that comes in a drab green casing.  No, out here one must kick it up a notch, (as Emeril Lagasse would say) and use Blistex Complete Moisture.  A few swipes of BCM and your lips feel like they are submerged beneath Niagara Falls! 

This past week we have been awaking up at 5:30 A.M. in order to be working on our northern sites by 7 A.M.  Our mornings begin with nest searching because we want to locate as many nests as possible before early afternoon when the females leave their nests to feed.  We search for nests in two different types of habitat, winter wheat fields and perennial cover.  Perennial cover is a broad term for categorizing CRP land (Conservation Reserve Program), pastures, and hay fields.  I spend all morning dragging a rope similar to what you would find on a barge through one of these types of habitat.  The rope is connected to two four wheelers and together they are able to drag the rope across the ground until a bird is flushed from her nest.  After a bird reveals the location of her nest, we quickly run to the spot and begin gathering data.

I have taken a good number of photos over the time I've been here so I'm going to take this opportunity to publish some of my favorites. Hope you enjoy them!

Blue wing teal

                                   

Yellow headed blackbird

                                                       
                                                           

Canada Geese

Blue wing teal nest

                                                              
                                                          

Northern pintal nest

                                                             
             

Mallard nest

                                                                  

      That's all for now but I will be posting again soon!

http://www.ducks.org/