More Ice Photos

A few more photos from the early January deep freeze before moving on to something else. These photos were taken on January 8, 2010. This one shows a leaf encased in one of the ice flows on the bluffs below our house.

Icicles on the waterfall below our house. Unfortunately, our house is on the same level as the top of the waterfall so it cannot be seen from the house. We must climb down into the ravine to view.

Water seeping into the overhang behind the waterfall formed icicles too.

Water seeping out of the bluffs above the creek froze and formed its own icicles and ice flows.

But now all the ice is gone, except for a few of the largest ice flows along the bluff. During the first several days of thawing, I often heard icicles crashing down into the creek bed as they melted and came loose from the rocks.

Today is sunny and the temperature is predicted to climb up into the lower fifties. There are no below freezing temperatures in our immediate forecast.

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More Ice Photos

SkyWatch: Blue Sky Over A Bad Road

The unusually cold temperatures that put the Ozark Mountain region into a deep freeze for a couple of weeks have moderated. On Wednesday I made a trip into town and re-provisioned for the first time in a couple of weeks. All is now back to normal.

The photos below were taken while we were still debating when we'd be able to make a trip out. We live a couple of miles off the blacktop and the last three-quarters of a mile of dirt road is a dead end down to our house, though parts of our "driveway" are used by our neighbor when checking his cows, cutting firewood, etc. We did not receive much snow and ice during the deep freeze -- only about an inch of snow. The problem was that our temperatures stayed so cold, the little bit of snow received would not melt.

The snow on sections of road receiving full sunshine on clear days melted fairly quickly. (I know this looks more like a dry creek bed, but it is a road. Trust me on this.)

Other sections of road stayed mostly in the shadows. The snow compacted and glazed becoming almost as slick as ice. Not negotiable by our 2WD vehicles with street tire, especially when trying to drive uphill.

We have many winter seeps. When they empty in to the road, an ice flow forms. One must be careful getting around these even when walking, especially when they're hidden under a dusting of new snow.

On the other hand, the red clay sections of road can become even more difficult to climb after they thaw.

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SkyWatch: Blue Sky Over A Bad Road

Prairie Lizard (Sceloporus consobrinus)

Identification: Gray or tan with eight (more or less) jagged crossbars on its back. Tends to be darker in cooler weather and lighter in warmer weather.

Distribution: Arkansas, Oklahoma, large parts of Texas and Missouri, and contiguous area of several adjoining states.

Habitat: Woodland edges. The Prairie Lizard prefers spending most of its time up off the ground perched on rocks, logs, fence posts or up in a tree. From these elevated perches, it can bask, search for prey and watch for predators. During breeding season, males often do "push ups" to show off their bright breeding coloration to nearby females and to warn off rival males. Males with the best lookouts are known to have an advantage in successful breeding.  (This particular lizard was basking on a tree branch at the edge of our garden in June, 2005)

Life Cycle: Breeding occurs throughout the spring and summer. Females lay 3 to a dozen or so eggs often in rotten logs or sawdust. Two egg clutches per year are normal.

Food: This species eats a wide variety of insects, spiders, and other invertebrates by either chasing them down or simply letting prey come within striking distance. 

Comments:  When I searched my photo archives looking for a suitable (i. e. easily identified) entry for my first participation in the House of Herps Blog Carnival, I thought this "fence lizard" was a good selection.  However, as I began trying to pin down my ID and find additional material, I found a lot of conflicting information.  Until relatively recently there was a large group of spiny lizards called Fence Lizards (Sceloporus undulatus) with numerous subspecies.  Under that classification, the lizard in the photos above would have been a Northern Fence Lizard (Sceloporus undulatus hyacinthinus).  However, DNA analysis led to a reclassification of this species.  The numerous subspecies became separate species and new common names were appended accordingly.  A PDF describing the DNA analysis is here if you are inclined to wade through it.

Many thanks to Kory Roberts of Herps of Arkansas for getting me straightened out on the reclassification.   The Herps of Arkansas species page is the source of most of the information contained in this post.

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Prairie Lizard (Sceloporus consobrinus)