Nature by the yard
Each day comes in bits and pieces. I try to hoard time. Staying close to where I am is soothing. Geese flew overhead in a ragged V, which made me wish the change of seasons didn't happen so quickly. There was a chill in the air and the mosquitoes had started wearing jackets. A pileated woodpecker flew as if swimming through the air. A flock of robins fed on the fruit of a hawthorn tree, a small tree (native to Minnesota) that has long and stout thorns. I've heard its red berries referred to as haws or thorn apples. The American robin’s scientific name is Turdus migratorius. I once called a friend named Robin "Turdus." It didn’t go over as well as I’d hoped. Northern flickers fed on earthbound ants.
Baltimore orioles had disappeared for a few days, but they kept this old bird herder company until Oct. 1. The last hummingbird was seen in my yard on Sept. 25. The purple finches showed up early this year. I’m sure their appearance isn’t meant to indicate a harsh winter because all our winters are harsh. Native sparrows migrated in — white-throated sparrows, dark-eyed juncos and Lincoln's sparrows. They were mere scraps of songs, but white-throated sparrows whistled while I worked. That was a fine thing.
A monarch butterfly showed up now and then. Some make a 3,000-mile journey to the Sierra Madre mountains in Mexico, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Monarchs have a life cycle that includes four generations each year. The fourth-generation monarchs are the ones that fly south.
The right amount of rain and sunshine allows trees to produce sugar, which leads to scads of red leaves. Albert Camus wrote, "Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower." Wind and rain could bring them all down in a huge leaf drop. Then I'll look for the reddest leaf.
The frost was hard on the plants. The flowers aren't doing well. Some are hooked up to an ivy. I cut down some buckthorn, a hardy deciduous shrub or small tree that keeps its leaves well into the winter. Reichard and Campbell (1996) documented that 85% of the invasive woody plants in the U.S. were originally introduced as ornamental plants and an additional 14% were introduced as agricultural plants. In general, native plants sustain other life forms more effectively than do nonnatives.
Q&A
Dennis Anderson of Hartland asks when pelicans leave. The fall migration for American white pelicans in Minnesota is late August to mid-November as lakes and rivers freeze. They winter along the Gulf Coast from Florida to Mexico.
"How often are cougars seen in Minnesota?" The DNR shows 31 confirmed sightings between 2004 and 2018. Other mountain lions have been verified since then.
"I think I heard a jay sounding like a hawk. Is that possible and, if so, why do they do that? Blue jays commonly impersonate red-tailed and red-shouldered Hawks. I’ve heard jays do broad-winged hawk and Cooper's hawk calls. The more I learn about birds, the more extraordinary they become. Only the jays know for sure why they are making the calls, but there are theories. When there are no theories, there are theories as to why there are no theories. I digress. One theory about jays impersonating hawks says they're trying to warn other birds of a hawk's presence. Another theory suggests jays strive to dupe other birds into thinking that a hawk is close, perhaps so the jays could gain unbothered access to a feeder. Yet another possible explanation is that jays merely mimic the sounds they hear.
Verna Erickson Hoppe wrote, "We have lots of blue jays. I noticed they eat black oilers whole and don't crack them. Is this OK? What happens to a stomach full of whole seeds? the feeder is empty in a few minutes." A blue jay stores the sunflower seeds in its throat and upper esophagus —an area called a gular pouch. It transports them in this distended throat and anterior esophagus to a secure spot where it coughs them up to eat or cache.
"Can garter snakes swim?" The common garter snake is a generalist, inhabiting a wide variety of habitats. It likes to be near water, and if threatened, will often flee into the water and is an excellent swimmer.
Thanks for stopping by
"There is always more goodness in the world than there appears to be, because goodness is of its very nature modest and retiring." — Evelyn Beatrice Hall
"I go down to the shore in the morning and depending on the hour the waves are rolling in or moving out, and I say, oh, I am miserable, what shall — what should I do? And the sea says in its lovely voice: Excuse me, I have work to do." — Mary Oliver
Do good.
©Al Batt 2020
The white-throated sparrow whistles while I work. I’m most appreciative. Photo by Al Batt
I miss the Monarch Butterflies. I wished them traveling mercies.