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Nighthawks
By Russell A. Graves
Cruising down a crunchy backroad just after sunrise, the dust from my tires drifts high in the air behind me. The wind is still and after a long, protracted span with little rain, the land is dry. Even at 8:30 a.m., the air is already stifling, and it’s going to be a hot day.
Up ahead, I see a familiar sight: sitting still atop a ragged and weathered cedar post is a nighthawk. Trying his best to stay camouflaged, the bird sits quietly atop the post. Its stippled coloration of blacks, grays and browns helps it blend into the post. If I weren’t specifically looking for this species of birds, I may have never seen it. It is one of those unique species that lives amongst us, but probably few ever notice it. I ease up next to it in my truck, kill the engine and proceed to press the button that brings my camera to life. A couple of dozen pictures later, I leave the bird behind and begin looking for more as summertime in Childress County is nighthawk season.
Beautiful yet mysterious, the nighthawk comes out to feed in the evenings and roosts during the day. Therefore, if you don’t know what you are looking for, you might just miss them even though they live amongst most all Texans. Scientifically speaking, the nighthawk isn’t really a hawk, but it belongs to a family of birds called nightjars. Nightjars are characterized by long, pointed wings, short legs and short bills. In Texas, species such as whip-poor-wills, poorwills, pauraque, and the common and lesser nighthawks are all part of the nightjar family. Also called goatsuckers, this family of birds was once thought to feed off the milk of goats.
While the nighthawk is a common bird, they are sometimes hard to find. Even though the common nighthawk is found over all of Texas and most of North America and the lesser nighthawk is found in southern Texas, they are still hard to casually observe. They are secretive, extremely well camouflaged and are mostly active at dusk and during the overnight hours.
To read more pick up a copy of the October 2017 NTFR issue. To subscribe call 940-872-5922.
One of my professors out at Texas Tech University always told us that we aren’t just raising cattle, we’re raising grass, because without grass there is no cattle business. The same applies to most livestock species and crops we seek to raise- without good land management, no good yield can grow.
To read more, pick up a copy of the November edition of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available digitally and in print. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
By Barry Whitworth, DVM, MPH
With the prolonged drought, most pastures in Oklahoma end up in poor condition. With the lack of available forage, animals may go in search of alternative foods.
If oak trees are in the pastures, acorns may be a favorite meal for some livestock in the fall. This may result in oak poisoning.
Oak leaves, twigs, buds, and acorns may be toxic to some animals when consumed.
To read more, pick up a copy of the November edition of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available digitally and in print. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
By: Tony Dean
There are a handful of grasses on North Texas grazing lands ranchers need to know, not because they are highly desirable, but rather because they are not of much value. I call them “decom” plants, which is am acronym for “Don’t Ever Count On Me.” Silver bluestem is a “decom” grass.
Silver bluestem is a perennial which grows in all areas of Texas. It can survive in almost all soil types, and in full sun conditions or in semi shade. It grows up to three feet tall and is easily recognized with the presence of the white fuzzy seed head. Also, one of the identifying characteristics of Silver bluestem is a bend in the stems at each node, causing the plants to take on a rounded shape as they mature.
To read more, pick up a copy of the November edition of North Texas Farm & Ranch magazine, available digitally and in print. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
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