A vagrant in the Mississippi Flyway

Having spent very little time in any mid-western U.S. state, I am indeed a Pacific vagrant in the Mississippi Flyway.

Click the image to interact with the flyways at Audubon.

It has been a whirlwind journey. Having earned my PhD in July...

I was honored to have this very special guest as the commencement speaker.

... my spouse and I packed up our lives and our menagerie of domestic animals and headed east to St. Louis, Missouri. Maris is now a Research Fellow with the Institute for Conservation Medicine and we are settling in to life at the confluence.

Confluence of the Mississippi, Illinois, and Missouri Rivers (Image by Jesse Allen, based on data provided by the Landsat Science Team)

We made it just in time to greet fall migration and my head nearly exploded with the wonders of migratory warblers descending en masse on some of the greatest city parks I have ever been lucky enough to enjoy.

Click to see what birds have been seen at Forest Park!

Click to see what birds have been seen at Tower Grove Park!

Birding, and exploring the incredible Missouri Botanical Garden and some of the numerous Missouri State Parks within driving distance from St. Louis has been just what this long term student has needed. 

Alas, it is now time to buckle down, submit those last two chapters, and find a job!