Dear Readers -
Due to circumstances beyond my control, we are losing our internet service here at the VIC on 1 March. Hopefully it will only be for a couple weeks. But, this means I will be unable to blog for a while (until I visit the library again, which will be on the 8th or 9th of March).
I will miss keeping you all up to date on the latest nature happenings here (especially now that spring is just around the corner and things are happening), but I hope those of you who are my followers will not give up on me.
If anything really cool happens between now ad 5 PM Saturday, I will let you know. Otherwise, I will "see you" in a couple weeks at the library!
NatureGirl
Friday, February 27, 2009
The Howl-leluia Chorus Returns
Last night as Toby and I were strolling back homeward past the golf course, we heard a bark, then a series of yips, followed up by a full-fledged howl. I know it was a coyote, but for a fleeting instant as it howled I imagined it might be a wolf. Then the rest of the clan chimed in - yipping away and barking. And way in the distance, eastward, we hear a lone yip replying. The golf course gang was fairly close - I could almost distinguish the positions of individual members when they vocalized. Toby was very alert - ears perked, gaze focused. But then human voices broke in, screaming and talking. I tried to track them down, but never saw anyone. Hm. There were only so many places they could've been, but not a trace was found. I even heard their foot steps running down the road (the same road we were walking down). It was enough to make one think they were ghosts!
OH, and yesterday I had a redpoll at my office window bird feeder! It's the first one of those we've had since December.
This morning dawned sunny and mild, with the clouds scudding northward in the strong winds. It is ever so odd to see clouds moving in the opposite direction they usually travel. And the wind was gusting from the east - usually it's from the west. The sky is now dark grey. A storm is on its way.
OH, and yesterday I had a redpoll at my office window bird feeder! It's the first one of those we've had since December.
This morning dawned sunny and mild, with the clouds scudding northward in the strong winds. It is ever so odd to see clouds moving in the opposite direction they usually travel. And the wind was gusting from the east - usually it's from the west. The sky is now dark grey. A storm is on its way.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Robin Red Breast
Did I mention I saw a robin on Monday? I was cruising through Lake George en route to Glens Falls and it flew across the road in front (barely) of my car. First robin of the season. It'll be hard-pressed to find worms under 2' of snow!
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
The Latest Bat News
...and it's not good.
North Country Public Radio had another update yesterday morning on our local bats and white-nose syndrome. Our intrepid reporter (Brian Mann) was in a cave over in Vermont that "they" are now calling the epicenter of the disease (previously the signs indicated it started somewhere around Albany). Al Hicks (NYS Wildlife Biologist who is THE go-to guy for this problem) estimated there were 5-10,000 dead bats in the cave; they said the bodies were 3-4" deep on the floor of the cave! Sick bats were fluttering out of the cave, clinging to icicles and crashing into snow banks. The disease has been found in caves in New Hampshire and West Virginia now, too. It is an epidemic and it is spreading with lightning speed!
And there's still nothing that can be done!
The fungus has been identified (a new species), but they don't know how it got here, or from where. And they don't know why/how it is killing the bats, other than the fact that the bats are starving to death.
If we all thought the bugs were bad last summer, I fear we will be in for an even greater shock this year. Not only will we be facing more mosquitoes and blackflies, but agricultural pests will be on the rise as well. Which will probably mean a greater usage of pesticides. People will finally start to appreciate just how much we benefited from having bats around.
I feel so helpless! I love bats and they are so important. I want to help, but if all the experts can't figure it out, there's nothing a lone naturalist can do but spread the word.
So, if you should find bats in your house this year, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE don't kill them!!! The bats that survive this plague will need all the help we can give them to survive (afterall, bats reproduce at such a slow rate it will take years for their numbers to come back...if they ever do). Contact someone to remove them for you. If it is only one bat in your living room, open a window, close the doors, turn off the lights, and leave the room - the bat will fly out on its own. Alternately, you can gently place a large can over the bat, slide a card underneath, carry the whole thing outside and release the animal with your good wishes.
North Country Public Radio had another update yesterday morning on our local bats and white-nose syndrome. Our intrepid reporter (Brian Mann) was in a cave over in Vermont that "they" are now calling the epicenter of the disease (previously the signs indicated it started somewhere around Albany). Al Hicks (NYS Wildlife Biologist who is THE go-to guy for this problem) estimated there were 5-10,000 dead bats in the cave; they said the bodies were 3-4" deep on the floor of the cave! Sick bats were fluttering out of the cave, clinging to icicles and crashing into snow banks. The disease has been found in caves in New Hampshire and West Virginia now, too. It is an epidemic and it is spreading with lightning speed!
And there's still nothing that can be done!
The fungus has been identified (a new species), but they don't know how it got here, or from where. And they don't know why/how it is killing the bats, other than the fact that the bats are starving to death.
If we all thought the bugs were bad last summer, I fear we will be in for an even greater shock this year. Not only will we be facing more mosquitoes and blackflies, but agricultural pests will be on the rise as well. Which will probably mean a greater usage of pesticides. People will finally start to appreciate just how much we benefited from having bats around.
I feel so helpless! I love bats and they are so important. I want to help, but if all the experts can't figure it out, there's nothing a lone naturalist can do but spread the word.
So, if you should find bats in your house this year, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE don't kill them!!! The bats that survive this plague will need all the help we can give them to survive (afterall, bats reproduce at such a slow rate it will take years for their numbers to come back...if they ever do). Contact someone to remove them for you. If it is only one bat in your living room, open a window, close the doors, turn off the lights, and leave the room - the bat will fly out on its own. Alternately, you can gently place a large can over the bat, slide a card underneath, carry the whole thing outside and release the animal with your good wishes.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
View from the Window
It's been slow here lately - hence no posts. Stormy weather, cold winds - who wants to go out in that unless he has to? Even the dog shook his had and said no - trying to dodge past me back into the house last night!
But today the sun is shining and I snapped these photos from my office window ("Don't jump!" my co-worker said, as she walked by and saw me crouched on my desk leaning partway out the window.)
This first shot is the overall view (for now you will have to imagine this photo - I've tried for two days to post the pictures, and it's just not working - I'll keep trying and maybe someday they will show up): fox and bird tracks (surprisingly, no squirrels). As I tell the kids when they are here for tracking classes, I can just about always guarantee fox tracks here. The birdfeeders provide a cafeteria for the foxes: all sorts of small mammals are snarfing down the fallen seeds, day and night. Easy pickings for a fox - much easier than hunting through the deep snow in the woods!
But the really neat "tracks" are the wing prints made by the chickadees as they forage for the fallen seed, courtesy of the greedy pine siskins who hog the feeders.
Folks often bring us photos they've taken of bird prints (or animal tracks, or plants, etc.) that they want identified. We usually claim that bird prints are those of raptors, and certainly many an owl has left a gorgeous set of wing, body, and even face prints in the snow while hunting. But I know that the prints in my yard are not from raptors - most likely they are from blue jays or crows. Just like with footprints, size can be an important clue. Before you snap that photo, get a ruler into the shot.
But today the sun is shining and I snapped these photos from my office window ("Don't jump!" my co-worker said, as she walked by and saw me crouched on my desk leaning partway out the window.)
This first shot is the overall view (for now you will have to imagine this photo - I've tried for two days to post the pictures, and it's just not working - I'll keep trying and maybe someday they will show up): fox and bird tracks (surprisingly, no squirrels). As I tell the kids when they are here for tracking classes, I can just about always guarantee fox tracks here. The birdfeeders provide a cafeteria for the foxes: all sorts of small mammals are snarfing down the fallen seeds, day and night. Easy pickings for a fox - much easier than hunting through the deep snow in the woods!
But the really neat "tracks" are the wing prints made by the chickadees as they forage for the fallen seed, courtesy of the greedy pine siskins who hog the feeders.Folks often bring us photos they've taken of bird prints (or animal tracks, or plants, etc.) that they want identified. We usually claim that bird prints are those of raptors, and certainly many an owl has left a gorgeous set of wing, body, and even face prints in the snow while hunting. But I know that the prints in my yard are not from raptors - most likely they are from blue jays or crows. Just like with footprints, size can be an important clue. Before you snap that photo, get a ruler into the shot.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Love is in the Air
What a glorious weekend this was! The sun was out, the sky was blue, and despite the wind, it was perfect skiing weather. Yep, Toby and I hit the golf course for our first skiing of the season Sunday morning, and again Monday morning. Toby has a ski-joring harness, which hooks via a bungee-type cord to a special belt I wear. I was a bit trepidatious at first, since I haven't been on skis for a year and I wasn't sure how sturdy the snow surface would be, but the crust held us both and off we went! Toby enjoys it because he gets to zip right along - no limitations at the end of a 6-foot leash, held back by a human who refuses to go faster than a quick walk. Well...sort of. I still won't let him take off into the woods (although preventing his curiousity-driven dashes is a bit harder when one is being dragged along on two slick sticks strapped to one's feet).
Our big find (and not a camera in sight to record it) was one, probably two, and possibly even three, actual coyote mating sites! Coyotes tracks ran all over the golf course, and in one spot they unmistakenly showed that mating had occured (complete with blood drops on the snow). The second spot was also highly suggestive of the act, and a third area was a possible, but it could also be that the animal just sat down for a while and sifted about. Either way, it was all very exciting to find. Another peek into the secret lives of our local wildlife.
The birds can feel that spring is in the air as well. Chickadees have been singing their spring-time song for about a week and a half now. And this morning, when Toby and I headed out for our constitutional, the quality of the sunlight, combined with the chorus of birds (bluejays, pine siskins, chickadees), made it seem that at any moment a daffodil would erupt from the ground by someone's foundation! There are even patches of bare ground under trees and along south-facing slopes!!!
But, alas, it is not to last. Snow is in the forecast for the rest of the week. So, today we shall revel in the last of the sunshine and file it away in our memories to get us through a few more weeks of snow.
Our big find (and not a camera in sight to record it) was one, probably two, and possibly even three, actual coyote mating sites! Coyotes tracks ran all over the golf course, and in one spot they unmistakenly showed that mating had occured (complete with blood drops on the snow). The second spot was also highly suggestive of the act, and a third area was a possible, but it could also be that the animal just sat down for a while and sifted about. Either way, it was all very exciting to find. Another peek into the secret lives of our local wildlife.
The birds can feel that spring is in the air as well. Chickadees have been singing their spring-time song for about a week and a half now. And this morning, when Toby and I headed out for our constitutional, the quality of the sunlight, combined with the chorus of birds (bluejays, pine siskins, chickadees), made it seem that at any moment a daffodil would erupt from the ground by someone's foundation! There are even patches of bare ground under trees and along south-facing slopes!!!
But, alas, it is not to last. Snow is in the forecast for the rest of the week. So, today we shall revel in the last of the sunshine and file it away in our memories to get us through a few more weeks of snow.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Close Encounters
As I drove across the Hudson this morning on my way to work, I saw a deer coming downstream on the ice. I pulled over to get it's photo, and by the time I got out of the car, a line of turkeys was coming down the ice as well. The deer stopped and turned, looking at the turkeys.
Apparently seeking companionship (?), the deer set out in hot pursuit.
The turkeys were not impressed. They turned around and beat a hasty retreat back upstream.
Bambi followed. "Maybe if I casually cross the ice, they won't notice."
Finally, the Feathered 13 made their escape.
Apparently seeking companionship (?), the deer set out in hot pursuit.
The turkeys were not impressed. They turned around and beat a hasty retreat back upstream.
Bambi followed. "Maybe if I casually cross the ice, they won't notice."
Finally, the Feathered 13 made their escape.
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