Naturally
A robin sang in the rain, polishing my day. Why did it sing in the falling moisture? Why not? We sing in the shower. The robin was singing in the shower. What does it mean when a bird sings in the rain? It’s said to indicate that fair weather is approaching. That makes sense. My experience is that the rain always stops, and eventually, fair weather magically appears. A robin may sing to defend its territory or because it enjoys “Singin' in the Rain,” a 1952 musical and romantic comedy film starring Gene Kelly, Donald O'Connor and Debbie Reynolds. I find comfort in the robin’s rain song. I’ve used this written by Robert Louis Stevenson in eulogies, “Like a bird singing in the rain, let grateful memories survive in time of sorrow.”
Among the earliest to bloom in spring, woodland wildflowers have value for pollinators when food is scarce. Spring ephemerals bloom, are pollinated and produce seed during a small window of time between snow-melt and leaf-out. Ephemerals are a heart drawn in the sand and quickly give way to more shade-tolerant flowers.
The cracks in the sidewalk showed many small, volcanic-like mounds of soil. Pavement ants are tiny ants about 1/8th inch long and dark brown to black. The name for this ant comes from its habit of nesting under sidewalks and driveways and piling dirt removed from the nest in a mound on top of the pavement.
Q&A
“What should I do if I find a fawn?“ Leave it where you found it. Its mother is likely nearby. The doe returns several times a day to nurse her fawn. The young fawn's best defense from predators is to hide and wait for mom. A fawn has brown fur that blends in with dry grass and leaves, and white spots to mimic dappled sunlight. By the time this fawn is around two weeks old, it’ll be able to outrun most predators.
“Are wild strawberries good to eat?” This plant is deciduous, but leaves remain green throughout the winter. Flowers develop in May and fruits appear in June. Wild strawberries resemble cultivated strawberries but are smaller. They are delicious.
“Do purple martins send scouts?” The first arriving individuals aren’t scouts checking out a colony site for others. They are older martins returning to areas where they’ve nested before. Martins returning north to breed for the first time come back several weeks later. A martin colony is an aggregation of birds attracted to a common breeding site. The claim that martins eat 2000 mosquitoes a day is a myth. Martins forage at heights where few mosquitoes are found. Martins are insect-eating machines that could eat mosquitos, but they prefer larger prey such as mayflies, beetles, moths, flies, butterflies and dragonflies.
Leon Schoenrock of New Richland wrote, “ I’ve noticed when I’m driving that I can hear frogs croaking even though I’m going 40 mph with the windows up, radio on, fan blowing and the noise of a gravel road. What is it about a frog’s voice that makes it penetrate like that? And at the speed I’m traveling. I’m certainly not hearing just one frog, but the croaking seems to be continuous.” Your vehicle might have a frog in its throat. The western/boreal chorus frog, Minnesota’s smallest frog, sounds like a fingernail being dragged across a stiff comb. Little frog, big noise. They are loud and many. I’ve read their vocalizations can be heard a mile away. They are a rock band of frogs. Spring peepers aren’t found in your part of the state, but there are people who find them annoyingly loud. Emily Dickinson wrote, “How public – like a Frog –To tell one’s name – the livelong June –To an admiring Bog!” We can hear the chorus frog because they are yelling.
“How can I keep birds from hitting the window of my house?” Try marking the outside of the window with soap or tempera paint, which is inexpensive and long lasting. Use either a grid pattern of 2 inches by 2 inches, or get creative and paint patterns or artwork on your window. Let me know if it helps.
“How deep can an osprey dive?” About 3 feet.
Thanks for stopping by
“Knowing trees, I understand the meaning of patience. Knowing grass, I can appreciate persistence.”—Hal Borland.
“I spoke ... of the sweet singing of the western meadowlark ... among the most attractive singers to which I have ever listened; but with all bird-music much must be allowed for the surroundings, and much for the mood, and the keenness of sense of the listener. The meadowlark is a singer of a higher order, deserving to rank with the best. Its song has length, variety, power and rich melody; and there is sometimes a cadence of wild sadness, inexpressibly touching.”—Theodore Roosevelt.
Do good.
©️Al Batt 2024
A walk with friends of wonderment at Tamarac NWR. Don Kroodsma is the fine fellow pointing. Don said, “Somewhere, always, the sun is rising, and somewhere, always, the birds are singing.” He explores the mysteries of birdsong — how birds learn to sing, why some sing and some don't, and why songs vary from bird to bird and even from place to place. More information available at “Birdsong for the Curious Naturalist.” Photo by Al Batt
Rothsay is the Prairie Chicken Capital of Minnesota.
