First day of August. Went for a 9:30 morning exploration down by the river.
Through the short green tunnel of brush, Ampelopsis wild grape, and Cocculus snail seed vines twine new fresh tendrils, growing quickly into or above the little path. Robust Ambrosia giant ragweed, Amaranth pigweed, Ipomoea blue morning glory and Phragmites wild reed compete to fill the gap.
The 30 foot pool in the drainage ditch has shrunk to 4-5 feet and the trapped minnows need to be rescued, or they will expire in the heat of the day.
On the clean warm white sand of the broad levee, patches of Aphanostephus lazy daisies, Chamaecrista partridge pea and Oenothera primrose provide color and interest between the ranks of young Salix willow, Populus cottonwood and Tamarix salt cedar.
From the one foot sand cliff by the water and the two foot sandy dune above, the river is still churning and brown but the channel is becoming more heterogeneous. Shallower water in mid channel reveals new sand bars under barely a half foot of water that will soon be exposed.
  I walk across and find the deeper channel by the far bank. I can drift along the bank, up to my chest, shoulders or chin and surprise the normally wary young kingfisher perched on bare poison ivy, or in the shade and concealment of the old willow. From only six feet away the kingfisher flies away with a rattling call to another perch up river.
  Where a big cottonwood tree has tipped over, into the river, a thick bank of heavy clay interrupts the sand bottom and bank. A patch of Cornus rough-leaved dogwood grows down close to the water there and a population of Hetaerina americana rubyspot damselflies gathers. The red pedicels of the dogwood, bearing the unripe green berries are a perfect background field for the red and green damselflies. They align themselves to take advantage of the colors.
  Above the clay bank there are a few curious tennis-ball sized spheres of clay. I'd like to know more about how they are cut or formed.
  Back across the river the sandy banks and long shallow pools do not have the mats of algae that were common the last few summers. There are also no young corixids there to feed on the algae. In previous summers, the corixids numbered in the hundreds of thousands in a half mile of river. This morning I also see no bronze Bembidion beetles, where in previous summers (and earlier this summer) there were thousands per half mile of river, foraging and feeding everywhere along the wet sand. Today there are just a few Ephydrid shore flies at the water's edge.
  I watch a Mississippi kite dive to near the ground and then swoop back up.. perhaps after one of the big cicadas calling. The kite circles over the river, catching updrafts to regain its altitude. A small sparrow crossing the river diverts a few degrees away from the kite; but not much, as if it knows there is little threat.
  Along the sand cliff a loud splash like the sound of a beaver; but it is only a part of the eroding bank caving in and dropping into the water.
  Heading back up the path, a few small yellow Happlopappus vinegar weed and Coreopsis sunflowers and a family of four mockingbirds see me off, as I head for home.