Top Photo: Saucer magnolia bursting open. A week ago and the saucer magnolia flower buds were obvious but not yet open. Then, they all seemed to burst open at once. Squirrels are eagerly gathering up food and consuming it on the spot. The black walnut pictured here is just one of the many choices available, having been cached in the fall and relocated when other food is scarce. While standing on the Main Wetlands Overlook I spied a small pieceRead more
Posts filed in: AZA
Bluebird Nest Box Season
Top Photo: Eastern bluebird, (male). This is the first nest box inspection of the season on our 6 nest box Bluebird Trail. All the boxes had been previously cleaned and readied for occupation. Only one of the boxes showed activity. The Cow Pasture nest box is empty, no activity. The Explore the Wild nest box too, is empty. The nest box on the service road to Into the Mist has an empty berry basket inside. Not surprisingly, the nest boxRead more
Geese, Opossum, Pollen and Turtle
Top Photo: Canada geese return to wetland. As they do every February, a pair of Canada geese have arrived to stake a claim on a piece of our wetland. More will likely show up as we roll into spring (last year we had six pair vying for space in our three acre wetland). An opossum spent the entire day some twelve feet up a vine that wrapped itself around a tree next to the Dinosaur Trail. It’s not unusual toRead more
Estrus
Top Photo: Carolina our female red wolf right, Jacques left. A quick note for red wolf watchers: Our female is showing signs she is in proestrus which may last from 9-16 days, depending on what source you reference (I read one study which says proestrus lasts 6 weeks in red wolves. I’m sticking with 9-16 days, though in truth, I’ll leave the length of proestrus to the experts). However long proestrus is, our female, Carolina, is there. I don’t knowRead more
Insects(?) On Ice
Top Photo: Yellow-rumped warbler forages on frozen pond ice. I was standing on the boardwalk looking down at an ice star a dozen feet or more below me. Something else caught my eye. A handful of small birds were hopping along on the ice of the pond pecking at some unseen, to my eyes, objects on the ice. The birds were warblers, yellow-rumped warblers (butter-butts), a species that can take the winter cold far more readily than most other warbler species.Read more
Red Wolf Time Approaches
Top Photo: Carolina on the left, Jacques on the right. Each year, usually around the middle or third week of February, I notice the red wolves exhibiting mating behavior. They may begin earlier, sniffing, nuzzling and scenting but I typically witness them actually coupling somewhere around the 14th – 17th of February. Our new red wolf pair, Jacques and Carolina, have yet to show anything in the way of courtship or pre-copulatory behavior, but I’m sure it’s right around theRead more
A Light Dusting
Top Photo: Raccoon tracks across floating walkway in Explore the Wild. All it takes is a light dusting of snow and the fun begins, a chance to practice up on your tracking skills. A half inch of snow is all you need. In fact, a half inch is perfect for showing detail in animal tracks. Both raccoon and gray squirrels are common and very much at home here at the museum and its woods and exhibits. Both animals are wellRead more
Great Blue Heron
Top Photo: Great blue heron relaxes alongside Floating Walkway in wetlands. Over time, I’ve seen six different species of heron in our 3 acre wetland at the Museum of Life and Science. They include great blue heron, great egret, little blue heron, green heron, black-crowned night heron, and yellow-crowned night heron. By far, the most often observed species is the great blue heron (GBH). GBHs are year round residents, they nest locally and they’re used to sharing their habitat withRead more
Bears and the Fox
Top Photo: View of rock wall in Black Bear Enclosure through fence at Secondary Viewing. When outside temperatures drop from teeshirt to long john level, black bears get drowsy and look for a cozy spot to sleep it off. They enter a state of torpor where they may sleep for days, weeks or more only rising occasionally. It seems torpor hits individual bears differently. Some bears may sleep through nearly the entire winter while others will wake frequently. Little bearRead more