November is usually a dismal month, thanks to cooler temperatures, gray skies, rain and mud. But not this year. The first week of November has been perfect — bluebird skies and 70 degrees. It has felt like spring. But weather forecasts report more seasonable weather will return; I doubt we’ll see such mild weather again [...]
With bird seed prices at record highs, resentment toward unwanted visitors at backyard feeders is likely to increase this winter. Who wants to spend nearly a dollar a pound for seed to feed deer, squirrels and pigeons? If you’re willing to pay any price to feed any critter that visits the backyard, you can stop [...]
Whenever I get a series of letters asking the same question, it’s time to address that issue in a column. Over the last few weeks, a handful of readers have asked about winter roosting boxes, so here goes. Bluebirds, chickadees, titmice and nuthatches nest in cavities and readily use nest boxes, but did you know [...]
Mid-October marks the end of the ruby-throated hummingbird migration season, so it’s time to take down nectar feeders, clean them thoroughly, and store them until April, right? Generally, that’s good advice, but if you’re a hopeful birder, keep one feeder filled all winter. You may get to see a wandering hummingbird from the west. Hummingbird [...]
With the official start of fall and chilly morning temperatures, it’s time resume feeding backyard birds. But if you haven’t purchased any bird seed since spring, you may experience sticker shock when you return to your favorite seed supplier. I feed birds year-round, so I’ve felt the pinch over the last 12 months. The price [...]
As summer winds down, here are a few observations I’ve made or expect to make over the next few weeks. Purple Traps As I’ve traveled in Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia this summer, I’ve noticed strange purple objects hanging in tree tops along major highways. They suggest a purple box kite. In fact, they are [...]
Roger Tory Peterson died July 28, 1996 at the age of 87. On Aug. 28, the world will celebrate the 100th anniversary of his birth. The spotlight will be focused on Jamestown, N.Y., Peterson’s birthplace and home to the Roger Tory Peterson Institute. In a recent phone conversation, Jim Berry, president of RTPI, explained that [...]
Summer’s nightly music festival began a few weeks ago. As daylight dims, I enjoy sitting on the back porch waiting for the concert to begin. Male katydids sing from early evening well into the night. The song is harsh and burry and sounds something like “Ch-ch” or “Ch-ch-ch” or “ch-ch-ch-ch.” The phrases are repeated about [...]
Few habitats seem as sterile as a sandy New Jersey beach. Waves of salt water constantly wash the shoreline. The only obvious indicators of life are pieces of broken shells washed ashore by the last high tide. But appearances can deceive. Plenty The biota on a sandy beach can’t compare to a tropical rain forest, [...]
A coal-fired power plant seems an unlikely location for a wildlife refuge, but that’s exactly what I found on the second Sunday in July. Monty Mason, a friend and a heavy equipment operator at the AEP Kammer-Mitchell Plant south of Moundsville, W.Va., invited me to join him for a few hours in a blind near [...]
