Green String Society

02/02/2020

The marbled crayfish is a wonder of nature. This insect-like sea creature is unnaturally hardy, unlike any other species of crayfish.

11/01/2015

I spend a lot of time publishing the bad in our area. It's time I show some of the good that is being done, and the beauty in our area.

10/28/15 University Lake...more of the same

Wednesday morning was bright and clear! The weekends rain just a memory, except for the high water in the lake.

With the abundant sunshine, the turtles were out in large numbers, climbing over each other trying to find a place in the sun.

Two kayakers were ahead of me this morning, headed the same way I was. I hung back a little to give them some room and so that the birds wouldn't get spooked by too many people in one place. I found out later that they were both first time paddlers, out to enjoy the lake.

One of the major logs was covered in turtles and one Great Egret that feeds there every day. It wandered back and forth on the submerged log, occasionally reaching over the turtles to watch for fish. Once in a while it would plunge its head in the water, trying to catch a fish, but kept coming up empty.

All this was going on under the watchful eye of the Cormorant, perched in the top of a neighboring Cypress tree. I paddled over to get a better look at it and found a Green Heron walking around on the lotus pads. It was accompanied by Two Coots, that were feeding on the small grasses growing among the lotus pads. The Green Heron was busy trying to sneak up on a fish or two, which it finally did. Along with them was Snowy Egret, that was busy using it flash and feed routine trying to flush it prey using its wings. That worked too, and it also caught a fish.

As I started to leave the lotus bed, A Great Blue Heron came flying around a large Pin Oak tree and lit in the Cypress where the Cormorant had been. It sat and stared at me for a while and then settled in and calmed down.

I had a mission in mind and needed to go look for a tire I had seen here the last time I came. There it was against the bank where I had seen it. The only problem was the fact that two small turtles had chosen it as place to get some sun this morning. I hated to make them move, but the tire doesn't belong there.

With it loaded on the kayak, I headed back to the park. Of course the wind was blowing from the south, just like it was when I launched. The difference was that I was now paddling against it going back to the park. Luckily it was only a one foot chop, easily managed in the kayak.

A flight of Cormorants came in from behind me and landed near the park. They were probably looking for a place to rest as they headed south to escape the coming winter cold. They weren't feeding, just cleaning up as they paddled around.

Back at the park, it was obvious that the water level was up from the recent rain. Had it been any higher, I could have paddled right out of the lake.

I left the tire for B.R.E.C. to dispose of and headed home.

09/08/2015

Do you litter? Do you drive? Not for long if you don't pay your littering fine!

People who are ticketed for littering will see their driver's licenses suspended if they don't pay the littering fine or appear in court to protest the violation. The new law will go into effect August 1. Gov. Bobby Jindal signed...

08/30/2015

08/26/2015

They die, we die.

Pollinators are vanishing, and a silent spring could become a horrifying reality. So why won't the EPA do more?

08/24/2015

That 'green string' of life I talk about...

The creative class join forces in a bid to save marine life

06/20/2015

The sixth mass extinction is man made. Don't break the 'string'.

Paul Ehrlich and others use conservative estimates to prove that species are disappearing faster than at any time since the dinosaurs' demise.

12/12/2014

I'm happy the page still exists. Facebook said it had been closed down due to a lack of use.

02/17/2014

Find yourself behind a Louisianan government vehicle, and you will undoubtedly see that high-contrast bumper sticker, a plea in black ink on a canary-yellow background: Don't Trash Louisiana!Litter control varies from parish to parish, but when trash finds its way into an interconnected watershed, o...

11/14/2013

We will destroy ourselves if we don't learn to care about our home.

July 29, 2013, a s***m whale was stranded on Tershelling, a northern island in the Netherlands. A rescue attempt was attempted, but unfortunately the whale died. A young adult at 13.5 meters was taken for a necropsy at the port of Harlington. The s***m whale had plastic in its stomach, an increasing...

07/13/2013

How to date a beer bottle.
Across the top at the left is the number 15...that is the code for Waco, Texas..where it was made.
Next is the Makers Mark a circle with a capital I in it. That is the symbol for Owens Illinois Glass Company.
At the right is the number 59, that stands for the year 1959, the year the bottle was made.
Why is all this important? I found this bottle floating up side down in University Lake in Baton Rouge, La. yesterday. It has been there since 1959.
Trashy habits started here long ago. It will be years before this inherited habit can be changed...if at all.