Three Weeks in Kansas and my Hometown -Wichita

I suppose it is a trite saying that home is where you hang your hat. Well, I guess that is true of Wichita, Kansas. It feels pretty much like my hometown having, come to think of it, lived here at least part of all (nearly) seven decades of my life. I have family and friends here. It is pretty laid-back. And I like the nature here.

Speaking of which: My two favorite places to get my “Wildeinsamkeit” are, left, Sedgwick County Park on the city’s west side and, right, Chisholm Creek Park on the north side. Most of my Wichita nature photos here are from those two places. Well, except for one of the Canada Geese on a lawn. Those feathered beasts are everywhere. Watch where you step!

By the way, the usual German word is “Waldeinsamkeit” (“forest solitude“), but no place in this area qualifies as forest, so I settled on the “wild” part.

A Walk in the Park

Left: This Dwarf Russian Almond, Prunus tenella, is not native to America but is often planted as a winter-hardy ornamental. Center: Chisholm Creek Park has good signage as well as plenty of places to sit and wait for the wildlife to come to you. Or, as my wife and sister did, you can just go out on the wooden bridge and feed the ducks, turtles, and opportunistic carp. Right: Smooth Sumac, Rhus glabra, not looking very vibrant in this cold season, makes a delicious lemonade-drink. This is one of the three “lemonade sumacs” that occur in the Wichita area. Unfortunately, this was the wrong time of the year or I would have been tempted to snap off one of those heads. For those who do try this it is important to first strain the fruits through a cheese cloth (or a tee shirt that you don’t particularly care for!)

Red-tailed Hawk, Buteo jamaicensis. By far the most common raptor in the area. It is often unfairly saddled with the name “chicken hawk” though that name fits better (though only slightly) with the Cooper’s Hawk. I am quite happy with this photo. You can select it for a better view.

Top Left: American Robin, Turdus migratorius. This photo was taken in my brother’s backyard on the very day my new camera came. I was itching to try out the settings and the bird obliged to have his portrait taken. Top Right: Red-bellied Woodpecker, Melanerpes carolinus. I think a better name would have been “Red-capped Woodpecker” since the red on the belly is faint and not often visible. Bottom Left: Northern Cardinal, Cardinalis cardinalis. Bottom Right: Dark-eyed Junco, Junco hyemalis, also known as the Snowbird. It might seem silly or pretentious to add all of those scientific names with these very familiar birds but they are not familiar to everyone. I have readers of this blog from around the world, one who asked me to always give the Latin names as well.

The Pond Slider, Trachemys scripta, native to America and Mexico is, believe it or not, a troublesome invader in other parts of the world. They out-compete many native species wherever they spread, in most cases having been released as pets. They sometimes eat bird eggs and (according to one source) even hatchlings. I have seen them often in parks in Europe, Northeast China and Southeast Asia.

Mallard, Anas platyrhynchos

“What are you looking at?” Canada Goose, Branta canadensis. These last two birds are the most commonly reported birds of Sedgwick County, Kansas, largely a reflection of how common they are throughout the city of Wichita. Lawns, driveways, parking lots – not just parks and rivers – are all fair game for these birds.

These geese are feeding on Henbit, Lamium amplexicaule, a plant that covered many lawns the weeks we were here. The owners may not like it but I thought the combination of purple and the bright yellow of dandelions was more impressive than boring grass. The plant has many uses, culinary and medicinal.

Fox Squirrel, Sciurus niger

When the dogs aren’t chasing those squirrels they are getting rambunctious with each other.

Riding Around Town

Left: Steel statue of the bison that are no longer around these parts. I must say that the art pieces around town are a lot more interesting and varied than they were back in the 60’s. All I remember is that ghastly Tripodal parked like a crouching alien ready to spring onto the Century 2 building. Right: Exploration Place.

This beauty gem of a house is on the corner of Martinson and West 2nd Street North. The older sections of Wichita still have houses that retain the old style of architecture, but none as striking as this one.

‘Left: Downtown and the Arkansas River (Here pronounced “Arkansas”) Center: Sedgwick County Historic Courthouse Right: Looking north on Main Street. The old building on the right of the street is the Wichita Sedgwick County Historical Museum built 1890. It used to be the courthouse. I had to pay a fine here back in 1972 of 5 dollars for jaywalking.

Detail of the stately Kresge Building on Douglas Avenue.

Also on Douglas Avenue, across from the Kresge Building, is this building that used to be a bank. Not sure what it is now. As the brown sign indicates, this was part of the Chisholm Trail. Cattle were driven through here northern Texas all the way up to Abilene, Kansas. More on that later.

Next: Eldorado and wild horses of the Flint Hills!