Tag: Cochise County

Calosoma scrutator, the fiery searcher beetle. 

These were out in numbers during my last San Pedro House ramble. They are insectivores that favor caterpillars for food, so their arrival naturally coincides with the mass emergence of the western tent caterpillars that are now infesting every willow and cottonwood on the river. 

If you feel like picking one up, you should be aware they are very stinky and very bitey. The pain from the bite is negligible and brief, but the stink lingers.  

Stream dynamics.

I have been trying to read water and it’s amazing properties my whole life. This small meander on the San Pedro is full of instruction on a small scale. On the outside of the bend, where water moves fastest, there is a small cut bank where the flow collided with land, leaving a miniature cliff and a dark line of shadow and a step down to reach the water. Opposite the cut bank, where the river channel makes a tighter curve, the water flow slows. On this depositional side of the meander, the slower water drops sediments and sand and stones, and a gently sloped point bar forms. 

The physics of all of this—with it’s momentum equations and integrations and velocity calculations—is mostly more than I can fathom. And none of it is essential to enjoying such a beautiful spot on such a fine day. But sometimes it’s nice to reflect on why there is a pleasant sandy place to stand on my side of the river, and just a sheer drop off and deep water on the other.