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September 11, 2006
FALL IS NEAR-- As the days get shorter and the temperatures begin to get cooler, it's time for Mother Nature to prepare for winter. Our Chipmunks are working with vigor, their cheeks puffed out with sunflower seeds, scurrying from the bird feeders to their den in the forest. Fall has changed since I was a kid on our Iowa farm. Then I looked forward to the many flocks of honking geese in a "V" passing overhead. Today most of the geese where I live in Maryland are "domesticated" and live on most farm ponds and lakes year-round. Also, I hate to see the hummingbirds leave for their long migration. They bring so much joy flitting from flower to flower or snacking at the nectar feeder. Yesterday for the first time, I saw a male Ruby-throated sitting on the edge of the birdbath, resting. Oh well, I can always look forward to their return in the spring.
By Scott Shalaway
EVENING FLIGHTS of Chimney Swifts swirling down to roost, Nighthawks feeding by the lights at high school football games and nightly Katydid choruses confirm the inevitable. Summer is fading fast.The sun sets a few minutes after 8 p.m. this week, and in the morning the bedroom brightens at about 6:45 a.m. Ever shorter days send clear signals to migrating birds, hungry rodents and amorous deer - - cooler, shorter days will only get cooler and shorter.
As I walked my favorite trails Wednesday, I noticed many other signs of the transition from summer to fall. Juvenile goldfinches have joined the adults on my finch feeders and some adult males have begun to lose their brilliant luster.
Among the most conspicuous changes in the landscape is the appearance of... Read On
By Janese Heavin
COLUMBIA, MO-- Armored troops from the south are making their way into Central Missouri, but experts say the soldiers are relatively harmless-- even if their numbers are increasing. (Nine-banded Armadillo is a cat-sized, armored, insect-eating mammal.)Other than decorating roadsides, Armadillos have little use, said Mike Schroer, wildlife regional supervisor for the Missouri Department of Conservation’s Columbia office. "We wouldn’t regulate them or put a season on them," he said. "They’re more in a class of rats."
Armadillos have been making their presence known in this state for about 20 years, mostly in southwest Missouri. The conservation department is watching the migration with moderate interest. The animal has a 15- to 17-inch body, plus 14- to 16-inch tail and weighs 8 to 17 pounds. Litters nearly always produce four babies.
"They have just migrated north from Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas," Schroer said. "It’s just one of those phenomenon of..." Read On
By Byron Crawford
THE GROWING Black Bear population in Kentucky is venturing ever closer to the bright lights.Black Bears have been sighted recently outside Somerset, Berea, London and Mt. Sterling. A bear was trapped last year in Henry County between Campbellsburg and Interstate 71, and one was struck and killed crossing the Mountain Parkway near Winchester recently.
(Black bears--Ursus americanus--are the most abundant and widely distributed of the three species of North American bears and found in all states except Hawaii.)
At least 18 bears have been killed on Kentucky roads in the past 19 years, as bear sightings and nuisance complaints have increased in Eastern Kentucky and the south-central part of the state.
"These bears that we're seeing are roaming, sub- adult males that are typical of what you'd expect to see this time of year, just trying to establish a territory and home range -- and where they turn up, you just never know," said Steven Dobey, Black Bear biologist with the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Unfortunately, the bears often follow forest and... Read On
By DL Ennis
WILDLIFE BRIDGES obviously serve a very important role in our ability to traverse over lakes, streams, rivers, roads, railroads and a multitude of other obstacles.(Wildlife have a safe easy route to use over a highway which looks just like any other bit of countryside to them.)
In our travels we typically drive across bridges and give little thought to what might be residing beneath them. But did you know that bridges are important for wildlife too? Some of you may be familiar with the highly publicized Congress Avenue Bridge in Austin, Texas where 1.5 million Mexican Free-tailed Bats and their young roost.
Or, perhaps you have seen Osprey or gulls nesting on bridges along the coast. But you may be surprised to know that there are a number of different species that have adopted bridges as a place to rest, feed, or raise their young.
Because bridges have become an important habitat structure used by wildlife, the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (VDGIF) have begun documenting where and how wildlife is using bridges in Virginia.
What started out as "opportunistic sightings" has turned into... Read On
Looking For Food
If your feeders are empty, you might want to look up into the nearby trees. When this Cooper's Hawk, photographed by Bill Garber of Richmond, IN arrived, Bill's feeder birds quickly scattered and didn't come back until the hawk flew away.
For more nature photographs, see
the Gallery on WindStar's web site
and Nature's Best Photographs Album in the American Wildlife Blog.
Mad Bluebird Mugs
Set of 4 (12-oz. each)
$29.95 Order NowUsually he's the "Bluebird of Happiness" but here he appears ruffled and disgusted with the onset of colder weather in this reproduction of the photograph by Michael L. Smith. This is one of the most famous nature photographs ever created and originally was seen in a National Geographic Society birding book.
Here it has been reproduced on 12-oz. porcelain mugs that are microwave and dishwasher safe. Makes a terrific gift!
Live and Let Live
I WAS somewhat alarmed when I read the story about the Copperhead Snakes in New Jersey. I can't imagine why someone would try to 'pin down a snake with an ice scaper' and not expect to be bitten. It then sounded like the family went on a snake hunt and I assume they killed the remaining snakes that they found after the incident.The ending remark that "they are getting too close" is a classic example of our inability to live in harmony with wildlife...Read On
If you are registered to receive the FREE American Wildlife Blog, you can add comments to any of the articles, and if you want to pen your own article, send it to wildlife@windstar.org with the subject line "New Blog Feature."
That's it for this week. Be sure and sign up for the American Wildlife Blog for the latest commentary and please feel free to add comments of your own.
Have An EXCELLENT Day in your WILDLIFE HABITAT!
(Rocky Mountain Elk)
Tom Patrick
WindStar Wildlife Instituteemail: wildlife@windstar.orgphone: 301-293-3351web & blog: http://www.windstar.org
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