Knob Creek Naturalist

21/01/2024

Watch nature in its full glory as this bald eagle feasts on a deer that met its demise on McDougal Lake.

Check out K**b Creek Naturalist's video.

05/01/2024

Enjoyed the opportunity to talk about my favorite subject, chelonians, with & . Go give it a listen if you have the chance. Link in the comments.

05/01/2024

Enjoyed the opportunity to talk about my favorite subject, chelonians, with RAD Reptiles & Two Turtle Tom. Go give it a listen if you have the chance.

‎Show Let's Talk Turtles, Ep Episode 27. Damon Barnes - K**b Creek Naturalist - Jan 3, 2024

04/11/2023

Kona is absolutely magical and I have so much more to share. But…had to share some of the sea turtles I’ve saw so far!

🐢

30/08/2023

Thought last night was going to be an absolute dud at the lake. Birds weren’t really out. Light quickly went away.

Then this happened….

25/08/2023

Who doesn’t like hummingbirds? They are one of my absolute favorites and a joy to watch. Fortunate to have many constantly here at our feeders and flowers!

Here in Kentucky it’s easy to know the species as we only have one, the Ruby-throated hummingbird (Archilochus colubris).

Enjoy the pics!

24/08/2023

Woke up this morning and baby tree frogs were everywhere around my office window. This is either a Cope’s Gray Tree Frog (Hyla chrysoscelis) or a Gray Tree Frog (Hyla versicolor).

Two extremely similar species that can only really be distinguished by their call.
Very tough little guys to photo as they love hopping around!

But a welcome surprise to my morning coffee.

23/08/2023

Got the camera out last night for a new series I call “pissing off my nocturnal pets”.

This is Herman. He is a White’s Tree Frog (Litoria caerulea) and was pretty ok with being #1 in this series!

22/08/2023

Early this morning was finally able to capture a decent photo of one of the many Great Blue Herons that frequent the lake.

26/07/2023

Make sure and get in this race!

Lolo's Run is on Sunday August 20, 2023.

17/07/2023

It would be an absolute shame if I didn’t make a post for National Snake Day! This is Squash who is a Banana Pin Ball Python. What’s super special about Squash is he is Lori’s snake. Lori specifically asked for a banana ball python as her first snake.

When Lori and I first met she had an intense fear of snakes. This changed to a respect, then an appreciation, and finally a love of (certain) snakes.

It’s a shame that so many snakes get killed because of outright fear or in many cases ignorance. Like anything else they have a place and deserve to be treated like any other living creature.

So remember today to give snakes the respect they deserve. Who knows you might even grow to love them.

03/07/2023

“Til death do us part”. These are words said at most weddings. The meaning of these five words really sinks in when it becomes true.

This morning surrounded by friends and family Lori passed away at home. The greatest gift Lori ever gave me was the best ten years of my life. However, the second greatest gift was leaving behind her written wishes for how she wanted her end-of-life to be. Something I would encourage everyone to do if they haven’t yet.

More information on those wishes will come out in the next few days as well as a place where donations can be made in her honor. Lori was loved and known by many but also was private in many aspects and requested no public funeral.

29/06/2023

Wanted to put out an update re: Lori.

This past year has been the toughest of our entire lives. But, there has been lots of joy and happy memories. We have traveled for fun and for answers or a quest to find something that would work and rid Lori of this awful disease. We have been shown love beyond our wildest dreams. The thanks we have we will never be able to show. We have met so many amazing people and while the healthcare system in this country is fu**ed beyond repair. The people in it are outstanding. That I’m sure of.

There’s not a lot else I can add or say with this post. As everyone who knows Lori can attest. There’s no such thing as quit in her. I know that we have literally exhausted every option available to us as well as creating many options nobody thought were possible.

On Tuesday Lori had an MRI and the amount of progression was frankly overwhelming. Lori has elected to end treatment at this time and we have switched to hospice care.

By all means feel free to message or text. Just know there’s a very good chance I won’t respond. I’m sorry for that. The big thing Lori needs now is rest.

Love y’all.

14/05/2023

Found two new Mothers around the house today. Enjoy!

14/05/2023

A few of the non-snake finds from yesterday.

**ping **ping **pingkentucky **pingtheglobe **pingphotography

09/05/2023

This morning when I first stepped out I thought there was a rather large Indigo Bunting (Passerina cyanea) on a feeder. Quickly realized it was a Blue Grosbreak (Passerina caerulea) so I snapped a shot. These two are in the same genus.

You can tell the difference as the Blue Grosbeak has a substantially larger beak as well as some reddish/rufous coloration on its wings. In addition to just being larger. This is a breeding male. Here in Kentucky we’re at the top of its breeding range.

04/05/2023

I don’t take many photos I like. I like these.

01/05/2023

I’m probably in the small group of folks who love vultures, especially New World vultures.

While I see Turkey vultures (Cathartes aura) daily. It’s a rare treat to come across a Black vulture (Coragyps atratus). Black vultures are easy to tell apart from Turkey vultures by their head color. Sometimes they can be seen in flocks together. The Black vultures sticking with the Turkey vultures due to their heightened sense of smell.

Luckily a couple of weeks ago I was able to observe this one for quite some time + get a few photos.

30/04/2023

For about two weeks I’ve been seeing multiple Indigo Buntings (Passerina cyanea) at my feeders. Seems like every time I tried to get a picture they would fly off.

Finally the stars aligned and I got this little male on camera! It’s unreal how vibrant they are!

16/04/2023

I’ve had this pair of Southern Alligator Lizards (Elgaria multicarinata) for about a year courtesy of ! Finally got them setup full bioactive. Kept the setup pretty simple. Tried to mimic a forest edge habitat.

03/04/2023

All the time we’ve spent in the hospital this week. Wanted to bring a bit of nature into the room.

1. Shows you don’t need fancy and expensive supplies to make a cool terrarium.

2. Is this “world’s first hospital terrarium”?

28/09/2022

Sorry girls…

11/09/2022

For a long time reptiles have typically been though of as “dumb” animals. A lot of the reason is we tend to view intelligence from a mammalian perspective.

Thankfully, that has started to change quite a bit. The genus, Varanus which are the monitors are a group that is proving to be exceptionally smart. Here’s our White-Throated Monitor, Nelson solving several different food puzzles. It’s a privilege to watch him figure them out and then improve. We mix it up to continue to provide enrichment.

14/08/2022

My second arid setup. I had planned to do a full background for this one but life had other plans.

This is for a juvenile Pilbara rock monitor (Varanus pilbarensis). It's been housed on paper towels for a few months so I could make sure it was acclimating well.

Seeded with several species of isopods and some springtails. It will be exciting to watch the terrarium grow out and also watch "Little Willie" grow!

08/06/2022

Our favorite species of turtle!

27/05/2022

The U.S. has more turtle species than any other country, but many populations are dramatically declining due to habitat loss, road mortality, and illegal collection. We need your help - check out some ways to help turtles!

is coming to a close, but you can continue to be part of ensuring that these beloved reptiles have a bright future by sharing what you’ve learned this week! You can also stay up to date on the latest h**p conservation news by signing up for ARC’s newsletter. Head to https://arcprotects.org/ and scroll to the bottom of the page to subscribe.

23/05/2022

https://reptilesmagazine.com/give-turtles-a-break-on-world-turtle-day-new-york-dec-says/

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation hopes awareness will help turtles safely cross the roads to their nesting grounds.

09/05/2022

One of my favorite facts to share about the Eastern Box Turtle is that they brumate in fall and winter. The turtles burrow into soft soil and enter a period of inactivity for several months. Here is a pic of our box turtles emerging from brumation.

08/05/2022

Rango is demonstrating how the sticky pads on his toes help him climb slippery surfaces. Scientists recently learned that the angle of the toe pads and a secretion of mucus were involved in helping with their ability to stick. Rango is a White's Tree Frog (Ranoidea caerulea) and is native to northwestern Australia.

07/05/2022

We want you to see this amazing transformation! I picked up our Eastern Box turtle Chodie and examined him after his brumation period. We were lucky enough to rescue him last year and noticed he had enormous aural abscesses on the sides of his head. After draining the abscesses and feeding him a diet high in vitamin A for several months, Chodie is looking amazing!