Strong change at the river this morning. After weeks of bank to bank coverage, overnight,  a few large sand bars emerged in the center of the channel. It looks as though the river has suddenly dropped several inches. Odd. There is no dam upstream that should be making this difference.

Several torn or beaver-cut branches of willow and cottonwood were beached on the wet sand bars. I planted a half dozen of these upright in the wet sand bars to see if they would sprout roots and begin to grow where they were in the middle of the river. Their longterm survival should be about nil because the river will flood again in the next year or so.

On the south west bank I saw fewer of the Hetaerina ruby-spot damselflies. I did see a few pairs mating in the wheel or heart formation - the female with light green abdomen and lighter colored wings.

A greater diversity of passerine birds this morning foraging up and down the far bank. Still no big wading birds; however there was one shorebird, like a small plover, exploring the shoreline and energetically bobbing like a dipper.

As the river winds down to a lower flow volume, the insect life in its side channels and back pools will likely return. Nepid water scorpions, Belostomatid water bugs, Dytiscid and Gyrinid diving and whirligig beetles, Corixid water boatmen apparently were swept away in the floods and now may re-colonize this stretch. Bembidion beetles should return in large numbers to the wet shore of stagnant pools.

Along the jeep road approach just beyond the gate, there is now a great, rich yellow-orange cucurbit blossom.

No show from my (short notice - 20hr) invitation to 25 folks to join me, leaves me wondering if our culture here may have moved on from appreciation of, and need for contact with nature.. or maybe it is related to other causes, scheduling etc.

Large-ish animal plopping into the water after I passed by the cottonwood projecting into the flow. Turtle? Young beaver? I heard and saw the splash but didn't see the animal.