Spring equals color. Wildflowers bloom. Butterflies appear. And, of course, neotropical migratory birds return. Though migration is well underway, the brightest and most colorful birds have not yet arrived. Give them a few more weeks. But get your hummingbird feeders up today; they’re coming back early this year (www.hummingbirds.net/map.html). To most of us, nature’s colors [...]
To avoid having chimney swifts invade your home this spring, get your chimney capped — as soon as possible. Swifts usually return in mid-April, but precise arrival dates are tied to weather, particularly temperature, which determines the activity of flying insects. Swifts eat flying insects exclusively. You can check their northward progress at www.chimneyswifts.org. Chimney [...]
The Platte River flows past Kearney, Neb., and in March it can be a cold, inhospitable place. It certainly was back in 1982. I was there for a professional meeting, but I spent my first afternoon shivering in a blind overlooking the river. Waterfowl, mostly Canada geese and mallards, covered the shallows and sand bars. [...]
Crime stories make national headlines every day, but violations of wildlife law usually escape the spotlight. But that doesn’t mean federal conservation laws are ignored. Recent stories Here are just a few recent stories featured on the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Web site. In Florida, two Georgia-based construction firms were fined $70,000 and put [...]
Mounds of fresh top soil and ridges from tunnels just under the sod mean one thing — moles. Have to offer But before you succumb to the pest industry’s annual campaign against moles and rush to the local home improvement center for traps and poison, consider what moles have to offer. The presence of moles [...]
Large predators are difficult to study because they’re relatively uncommon and they roam widely, so I was thrilled when I heard two good news stories about big predators. Lost and found Back in November 2006, Dr. Todd Katzner, Director of Conservation and Field Research at the National Aviary in Pittsburgh, and biologists from the Pennsylvania [...]
It may seem a bit early to be listening for frogs, but wood frogs rush the season. They emerge from beneath forest leaf litter in late winter, and as soon as the ice melts, they sing. A wood frog’s voice is hardly frog-like. One field guide describes a wood frog chorus as sounding, “like a [...]
If your daily commute takes you along a stream that meanders through a wet meadow, watch for early signs of life as spring approaches. Skunk cabbage Even as snow or ice still covers the ground, skunk cabbage begins to grow. I first noticed skunk cabbage while riding the school bus many years ago. Every day [...]
From late winter through early spring, whenever I’m in the woods, I keep my eyes peeled for shed antlers. Sheds, the antlers white-tailed deer bucks lose each year, are a terrific addition to my collection of natural artifacts. The first few I found were still attached to skulls, antlers of unlucky road kills, so it [...]
The highlights of this year’s Great Backyard Bird Count Feb. 13-16 are likely to include reports of northern species moving south in huge numbers. White-winged crossbills, pine siskins, common redpolls, and snow buntings only occasionally visit our latitude, but 2009 has seen an impressive southbound invasion by these species. The Great Backyard Bird Count is [...]
