Follow the Arrows!

While walking the dog in the neighborhood, I suddenly spotted a light blue arrow on the bike trail. As you can see, the arrows continued right down the path. They even went around the bend. What was this?

Was it something from workers who were looking to install cable lines? I kept following it to the main road.

Once I hit the main road and crossed, I was pleasantly surprised to find more arrows.

Then low and behold, I found this written on the sidewalk.

Yes, someone had chalked tadpole pond and drawn one last blue arrow pointing to the water. . This pond is not really a pond, but a spillway for excess water that pours off the streets when it rains. My curiosity piqued, I wandered down to the water. Tadpoles were everywhere! Thousands of them lay on the bottom, floated and darted around in the water.

The grass was already full of tiny frogs that had made the transformation into adulthood, although they were still very tiny.

What a wonderful idea! I am not sure if it was a parent with a child that made the arrows, or some children out on their daily bike rides, but they marked the spot so that everyone could enjoy these wonderful steps of a tadpole becoming a frog!

I have been unable to identify the frog yet, as it is so tiny and is just a gray color right now.

I have added a link to UW Madison's Field Guide to Frogs in Wisconsin. It is a site that is easy to use for children.

http://seagrant.wisc.edu/frogs/field_ids.html

I think we should have more arrow nature hunts in the neighborhood. Maybe I will add one of my own to the trail and mark a plant or tree for the children to find!

Teenage Squirrels

We looked out one afternoon to see a bunch of squirrels around the birdfeeder. After we looked at them for a few minutes we realized that they were young squirrels, teens, if you wish. They were not as big as the other squirrels in the yard. They had a grand time climbing, leaping, chasing and eating what tidbits were around.

Baby Blue

Hearing repeated chirping, I headed under the deck to investigate. There was a nest tucked up under the deck boards. I could just barely see the bird peeking out.

The nest had wires sticking out of it that the mother must have tucked in, maybe so they could hook up their IPods or computers.

After watching the nest, I learned that the baby bird was a Blue Jay. This is what the baby will look like when it is an adult. Credit for the picture is http://www.morguefile.com/archive/display/33969  by juditu

I found a great website that has information on the Blue Jay. I like the site because it has pictures, videos, and also sound clips so that you can hear the Blue Jay sing. The site is called All About Birds.

 

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Blue_Jay/id.aspx?spp=Blue_Jay&gclid=CJLPjcyL3qkCFUvCKgodPGaUYw

 

Here is a piece of information from this site.

This common, large songbird is familiar to many people, with its perky crest; blue, white, and black plumage; and noisy calls. Blue Jays are known for their intelligence and complex social systems with tight family bonds. Their fondness for acorns is credited with helping spread oak trees after the last glacial period.

 

I had no idea they helped move acorns around so that we had more acorn trees in the world.

Santa Cruz Nature Hike

12

Jun. '11

Santa Cruz, California has wonderous places to observe, touch and photograph nature. This seagull was taken when we were on a hike along the coast. The wind was in a nasty mood that day as it churned the water into foam, but the animals held their ground. The sea gull looked no worse for the wear, but we had frozen fingers and crazy wind swept hair.

While at the tidal pools, my cousin told me to put my finger into a sea anemone! It was one of the coolest things I have ever felt. The tentacles of the anemone slowly closed up around my finger and I could feel a suction type pull at my finger. My daughter said she wished she had a video of me because I was screaming I was so excited. They were beautiful there, just under a few inches of water, waiting for a fish or some other small organism to land in their tentacles. Here is a little info on anemones from the National Geographic webpage.
The ornately colored sea anemone (uh-NEM-uh-nee) is named after the equally flashy terrestrial anemone flower. A close relative of coral and jellyfish, anemones are stinging polyps that spend most of their time attached to rocks on the sea bottom or on coral reefs waiting for fish to pass close enough to get ensnared in their venom-filled tentacles.

Roots of a redwood. I just liked this picture because it showed the enormous roots that help a redwood survive. I am not sure how many thousands or hundreds of year old these would be. They almost look like deer antlers piled up or bones. A bit philosphical here, but we must learn to protect nature and the environment more than we do. I think we take it for granted. I would like others to see Santa Cruz they way that I got to see it when I visited.

Succulent Glory

12

Jun. '11

Succulent Glory

The heat of the Livermore, CA climate has only allowed my daughter to grow succulents on her deck. These two photos were taken when I was visiting her at the end of May. As a biologist, I am intrigued by the shape and form of these plants. In the top photo I was thrilled to see the silvery grey, green leaves that grow outward in radial symmetry. Such perfection can be found in nature, as there are few blemishes, if any on the leaves. The bottom photos shows her little garden and the other species that occupy the space. While there, I purchased a new succulent for her birthday, called a split rock. It looks just like a rock has been split into two pieces and new growth comes from the middle of the split. Awesome!

Succulent Information:Succulent (Latin: succos = juice, sap) plants from more than 60 families and 300 genera have evolved special water-storage tissues in thickened or swollen leaves, stems or roots as an adaptation to arid environments. By making the most of scarce available moisture, succulents can survive in habitats that are far too dry for most other plants.   http://www.succulent-plant.com/succulent-plant-families.html

The New Bird Species!

New Bird Species

After I started feeding the birds, I didn’t think it would be long before the squirrels learned that the food was floating near them. Here is a squirrel that William caught a picture of one afternoon when he got home from school. The squirrel was swinging and dangling to try to eat. He did get a belly full.

I also had a feeder hanging for goldfinches which was torn open. I am assuming the squirrel leaped onto the little white sack and hung on until it ripped open. Can’t you almost hear the squeals of delight knowing that food just landed everywhere!

I don’t mind the squirrels eating the food, it is there for all, but it does mean I have to buy more to keep everyone satisfied.

Squirrel Facts
Eastern Gray Squirrel Sciurus carolinensis
At-a-Glance
• Mating: Polygamous
• Peak Breeding Activity: Two periods of the year—December-January and May-June
• Gestation: 44 days
• Young are Born: February to March and July to August
• Litter Size: 2 or 3
• Young Leave Parents: At 14 - 15 weeks
Number of Litters per Year: 1 or 2
• Migration Patterns: Year-round resident
• Typical Foods: Nuts, seeds, and fruits of hickory, beech, oak, black walnut, tulip tree, sugar maple, flowering dogwood, buckeye, wild grape, pawpaw, persimmon, butternut, and black cherry, also insects.
* Found on the Ohio DNR website http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/Home/species_a_to_z/SpeciesGuideIndex/graysquirrel/tabid/6646/Default.aspx