As I walked past the northeast corner of the Wetlands, the area near the Red Wolf Enclosure, I noticed a small hole in the ground a foot or so off the path. I pass this area numerous times during a typical day and I always look down at this same spot. Why? Because last June a Yellow-bellied Slider that I’m familiar with was seen laying eggs on this very bit of landscape. As some of you know, I catch andRead more
Posts filed in: Spring
Snappers
What are all of these people looking at? Why, it’s a tiny snapping turtle! Just minutes earlier the little snapping turtle was spotted crossing the macadam that makes up the path through Explore the Wild. With mud still caked onto its shell and body from the dig out of its underground nest, the turtle wasted no time hustling around the giant feet of Museum guests and across the pavement for what would be its first dip into the Wetlands’ muddyRead more
Bluebird Update 4/8/14
The second week in April and we have eggs, chickadee eggs, seven chickadee eggs! All six nest boxes have complete nests within. Three chickadee nests and three bluebird nests. The nests at the Cow Pasture, Amphimeadow, and Picnic Dome all have bluebird nests but, as yet, no eggs. The chickadee nests are at the Bungee, Sail Boat Pond, and Butterfly House. Two of them, Bungee and Sail Boat Pond, have eggs, four in the Bungee nest and three in theRead more
Just Add Heat!
All it took was a bit of warm sunshine and all of the critters came crawling out of the mud and from under logs, rocks and the leaf litter. The amphibians and reptiles made the news this week with new arrivals and increased numbers of previously seen species. Although I’d seen several Brown Snakes earlier in the season, the snake in the photo was the first one I’ve seen alive and making its way across the path here at the Museum.Read more
Bluebird Update 4/1/14
The first thing to report is that there were no eggs in any of the nests this week. I had predicted there would be eggs in at least one of the boxes. Proof again that the birds know better than I when it comes to when and where to lay their eggs. A few of the nests were worked on but several looked to be unchanged since last week. Chickadees have had a hand in the construction of four ofRead more
Waxwings, “Just stopping by.”
The wandering nomadic flocks of Cedar Waxwings are always a pleasure to see. I usually hear them before I see them, their trill, high-pitched calls signaling their presence, either flying overhead or perched above in some tall tree staging for an assault of a nearby fruiting tree or shrub. Hearing high-pitched sounds is not as easy for me as it once was, so it was by sight that I first became aware of a flock here at the Museum lastRead more
Red Wolf
If you’re standing in front of the Red Wolf Enclosure when any of the Animal Keepers are in the vicinity, you may be lucky enough to get a close view of the wolves as they walk, or run, around the enclosure trying to get a glimpse of what the keepers are up to. You may witness one of the wolves climb the small dirt mound directly in front of the overlook, stop and stare out in your direction long enoughRead more
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
There was a considerable amount of flycatching going on in our Wetlands on Wednesday. Besides the local Eastern Phoebes and winter resident Yellow-rumped Warblers (butter butts) sallying forth from their willow branch perches to capture winged insects over the Wetlands’ water, two Northern Rough-winged Swallows showed up. They are aerial specialist, only perching to rest on occasion. Of the six swallow species you’re likely to see in our area, the Northern Rough-winged Swallow is the one that I’ve most oftenRead more
Bluebird Update 3/25/14
All six of our bluebird nest boxes are spoken for, three have been claimed by Carolina Chickadees and three by bluebirds. Although there was minimal work done on two of the bluebird nests in the past week, just a few needles added and moved around a bit, the chickadees have been working in earnest. The little parids have completed three nests and in one instance began building on top of one of the bluebird nests before the bluebirds recaptured it. ThereRead more