Naturally

 I endeavor to be a relentless witness to nature. It brings me wonder and joy. To a small child, most things feel like magic. I try to see the beauty that surrounds me through the eyes of a small child. In the named and the nameless, there is magic to be found.
 Weather folklore abounds. Rain before 7, done by 11. When the dew is on the grass. Rain will never come to pass. When grass is dry at morning light, look for rain before the night.
 Crickets provided sassy music in the evening. This is the time of the year that nature’s landscape designers show up. Raccoons and skunks dig up the lawn looking for delicious grubs in the lawn.
 Chipmunks chipped repeatedly. The sounds are emitted in the presence of a mammalian predator. The small animals also make a “chunk” sound in the presence of an aerial predator. The chipmunk is usually on an elevated surface when producing this sound. Some studies have determined chipmunks might also chip when an aerial predator is near.
 A no-see-um bit me. I didn’t see that coming. There are several barely visible insects that carry the nickname “no-see-um,” but the tiny biters tormenting me are minute pirate bugs (insidious flower bugs), good guys that sample me with a bite that far exceeds its weight class.
 Sanford Health News says that, on average, American children spend less than 10 minutes a day in unstructured outdoor play compared to seven hours in front of a screen. Going outdoors and finding astonishment in nature opens spaces in us, which fill with wonder and joy. Being outside provides an ad-free version of a day.
 White-throated sparrows, whistlers extraordinaire, have joined the flickers in gleaning the ground for foodstuffs. The omnivorous bird is a short-distance migrant that winters in the southeast, northeast, and lower midwest and as far west as Arizona and the Pacific Coast. The major breeding range of this species in Minnesota is in the northeastern and north-central parts of the state.
 The cardinal is the state bird of seven states: Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, North Carolina, Ohio, Virginia and West Virginia.

Q&A

 “When are those huge wasps that kill cicadas around?” Cicada killer adults are active in July and August. Cicadas are present from July to early September.
 “Why do some birds migrate at night?” The majority of songbirds migrate at night. These include warblers, sparrows, orioles, flycatchers, thrushes and cuckoos. Most of these birds are denizens of woods and other sheltered habitats and aren’t agile fliers. They use those dense habitats to avoid bird predators. Migration at night has its advantages. Birds don’t have to worry about falcon or hawk attacks. The air is usually less turbulent than during the day and cooler at night. A migrating bird produces excess heat that needs to be released. Most of the heat is lost from their unfeathered legs. The colder the air temperature, the quicker that heat can be lost. Some species of birds migrate during the day. These include hummingbirds, pelicans, hawks, falcons, swifts, and swallows. These birds are strong fliers. The larger birds take advantage of thermals that develop during the day. Swifts and swallows feed on the wing during the day as they migrate. Common nighthawks migrate both day and night, but the largest flights occur within two hours of sunset, with the highest numbers at dusk. They will detour to chase flying insects, swooping erratically on deep wing beats. It resembles the flight of a bat and the nighthawks can produce a booming sound from their wings as they pull up from a dive. This is the reason nighthawks are sometimes called “bullbats.”
 “Why are there so many grasshoppers this year?” The major factor affecting grasshopper populations is the weather. Outbreaks or exceptionally large populations are usually preceded by several years of hot, dry summers and warm autumns. Dry weather increases the survival of nymphs and adults. Warm autumns allow grasshoppers more time to feed and lay eggs. Dry weather (drought) likely meant we had a large grasshopper population going into this year, and the dry weather some parts of Minnesota experienced meant the population continued to grow. The reason we don’t have large grasshopper populations during rainy years is that wet weather promotes the development and spread of a grasshopper-killing fungus. This fungus infects grasshoppers, hijacking their bodies. If you see an unmoving grasshopper high on a plant, you are likely seeing a grasshopper that has been attacked by the fungus.

Thanks for stopping by

 “Before we set our hearts too much on anything, let us examine how happy are those who already possess it.”—Francois, duc de La Rochefoucauld.
 “Mistakes are part of the dues that one pays for a full life.”—Sophia Loren.
 Do good.

©Al Batt 2022

The Swainson's hawk is close in size and shape to the red-tailed hawk. Rodents and other small mammals form the bulk of its diet during the breeding season; insects at other times, especially grasshoppers. This gave the hawk its nickname, the “grasshopper hawk.” It also preys upon dragonflies and crickets. Nearly the entire population of Swainson’s hawks migrates to Argentina. Photo by Al Batt.

October 8!