Playa Lakes, Part 2

The other day, I told you about the playa lakes on our place.

On our adventure the other day, the kids and I saw several ducks and at least a dozen American Avocets. These birds are really cool looking--their beaks are long and skinny. They eat invertebrates in the water. When we came to the water, the ducks immediately flew off, but the Avocets stayed and talked to yelled at us. I'd bet they are probably breeding/nesting, since they wouldn't go far.

It is amazing to me how fast the birds found our water and how quickly the water has life in it that can sustain birds. Playa lakes are really their own little ecosystems.

Playa Lakes

Every morning since our big rain I have been fortunate enough to look out my east window and see the sun coming up over a lake in our pasture. We have several playa lakes around here. To make a long story short, they are lakes (pond might be a better term) that appear after rain and hold water for a short period of time. If we keep getting moisture, we might have them all summer. Or, we may just have them few weeks. Either way, they are fascinating as they create their own ecosystem.

Playa lakes are very important to birds--especially migratory ones. I noticed a pair of ducks on one the other day. Some people think they are important recharge areas for the Ogallala Aquifer--our underground water source (others question how much recharge they contribute because of their clay bottoms that help hold water.)

You can read more about playa lakes here and here.

My picutres are not the best--please note in the first one, the green you see is wheat. We had to disaster it already because of our dryness during the growing season. I'll post pictures of our pasture when it greens up.