Naturally
Hearing a cicada makes the day seem a few degrees hotter. Its call is easily heard because most of the long-winded birds have quieted with the season, with the indigo bunting, vesper sparrow and dickcissel being notable and welcome exceptions. Robins, house wrens, mourning doves, cardinals, blue jays and an eastern wood-peewee played limited parts in the diminished chorus.
There was a dead crow in the yard. The yard crows were having a cow because of that. I infrequently find one hit by a vehicle on a road. They’re typically blue-eyed crows—juvenile birds that hadn’t yet realized the perils of traffic.
A mother fed her fledgling downy woodpeckers at a suet feeder. Food was dropped from that high chair, but she was relentless. Good moms need patience. It was nice to see the red caps on the young ones, in striking contrast to the lack of red on the mother’s head and the red nape of the father.
There’s a good crop of young robins, spotted like feathered fawns, moving about the lawn this year. A male Eurasian tree sparrow has been initiated into a flock of house sparrows, a place where hybridization could occur. I see no sign of gray on his chestnut crown, so I doubt he’s a hybrid.
The rain pauses only long enough to catch its breath. As I write this, mosquitoes are planning their menus with me as the daily special.
Despite the soggy, hangry skeeters and the dead crow, I’m blessed by all the incredible things I see just by looking or hear just by listening.
Q&A
“Do loons migrate as a family?” No, the adult males leave first, usually in September, followed a few weeks later by the adult females. Prior to flying south, Minnesota loons congregate on Lake Michigan with thousands of other loons for around 28 days before heading to their winter homes on the Gulf of Mexico or along the southern Atlantic coast. Young loons follow a month or so later, sometimes as late as mid-November. Once they reach the coast, the young loons remain there for two years. In the third year, they return north, but may not breed for several more years. Males tend to return closer to their natal territory than females do. Minnesota has more common loons than any other state except Alaska.
“How do I move a snapping turtle off the road?” Be careful of traffic and snapping turtles with powerful jaws, sharp claws, and long necks they can extend rapidly. Don’t place your hands near the front half of the turtle or pick the turtle up by the tail, which can injure the bones of the tail and back. If you have an appropriately sized box or container, carefully push the turtle into the box from behind with a broom or a shovel. Gently tip the turtle out of the box on the other side of the road. You will emerge unscathed as a hero.
“How do I tell a dragonfly from a damselfly?” Dragonflies are bulkier than damselflies, and the resting wings of most dragonflies are held flat and away from the body like the wings of an airplane, while damselflies hold their wings folded at rest, giving them a slender appearance. If it breathes fire, it’s a dragonfly.
Joan Mooney of Waseca wondered how to make binoculars user-friendly. Eyecups position your eyes at the correct distance from the lenses. If you don’t wear glasses, leave them in the extended “out” position; if you wear glasses, turn them “in” so that your eyes aren’t held too far from the lenses. Line up the two barrels of the binoculars with your eyes so that the two circles converge into one image. Set the diopter. This adjusts for the difference between your two eyes. An online video can show you the procedure. This dialogue takes place in the movie “Moonrise Kingdom.” Sam: “Why do you always use binoculars?” Suzy: “It helps me see things closer. Even if they're not very far away. I pretend it's my magic power.”
Jennifer and Lily of Wells asked if flies, ticks and mosquitoes drink water? Flies drink water, but since their entire diet is liquid, most water is derived from the food they eat. It has been assumed that blood and water vapor are the only sources of water to maintain water balance and prevent the desiccation of ticks, but research found that lone star ticks also drink water. Mosquitoes achieve rehydration through three main routes: ingesting water, feeding on nectar and engaging in hematophagy (feeding on blood). Mosquitoes primarily obtain water from the nectar of plants.
Thanks for stopping by
“I realized that If I had to choose, I would rather have birds than airplanes.”―Charles Lindbergh.
“Anything will talk to you if you love it enough.”—George Washington Carver.
Do good.
©️Al Batt 2024
A beetle pair finds a small dead animal, like a mouse, and buries it in amenable soil, giving the beetle its common name: the burying or sexton beetle. The female lays eggs on the carcass, and the subsequent larvae depend on their parents for food. The parents regurgitate carrion for the larvae until they’re old enough to feed themselves. Photo by Al Batt.