As a follow-up to the Spring? posting of February 25th regarding the questions on the Red-tailed Hawks: A few hours after posting the above, I was out in Catch the Wind and observed a pair of Red-tailed Hawks performing their aerial courtship flight. I didn’t get the whole sequence of events on film (digital), and the birds were way up there requiring a bit of enlargement, but hopefully you’ll get the gist of what the birds are doing. The nextRead more
Posts filed in: Winter
Spring?
Spring is wound up and ready to pop! Sure, it was colder than usual the first two months of this year. And, it seems as though it has snowed more this year than within memory. It’s predicted to snow today! But, there’s much evidence pointing to a new season springing forth. The days are getting longer. Both the maples and elms are ready to burst open their buds and Hazel Alder is nearly in full flower. The sun is coming upRead more
The Day of the Fox
Gray Fox are seen here at the Museum throughout the year. I sometimes see their tracks in the mud on service roads and there is a den in the woods near the Dinosaur Trail. The frequency of sightings usually picks up in mid-winter. Over the past few weeks there have been numerous sightings by myself, Museum Staff, and Museum Guests…. It was near closing time on Saturday (2/13) as I stood at the entrance to the Dinosaur Trail looking inRead more
Aloft at the Museum
If you look skyward while walking the trails through Explore the Wild and Catch the Wind you’re likely to see one of five hawks or vultures which are regular visitors to the Museum. Turkey Vultures are a daily sight as they soar, dip and bank across the Museum’s airspace. The slightly smaller Black Vulture, while seen at least once a week here at the Museum, is not as frequently encountered as the Turkey Vulture. Hardly a day passes without seeingRead more
Another Snow Day in the Wild
I’ve been working on a couple of new entries to the blog and had hoped to have them posted by now. The recent snow which came to town on January 30 closed the Museum for a few days and I haven’t had the time to complete my work. I did, however, manage to get a few photos of some interesting happenings out on the Outdoor Exhibits trails… Finding tracks in the snow is fun, but it’s fleeting. The snow thatRead more
Find the Bird
Just a quick quiz posting. See if you can find the bird, then identify it. Don’t scroll down to the bottom of the page until you’ve had a look at the first image. Good job. Now, what kind of bird? Great, a woodpecker. Now, what kind of woodpecker? If you still don’t have it, here’s s a clue. Have a good one,Read more
Winter Break
Although the temperatures for the day were still below normal for this time of year, January 13 did bring with it a slight break in the cold we’ve been experiencing lately. I was able to shed one layer of clothes for the day. Further proof of a definite warm-up was evidenced by a Groundhog seen browsing in the grass next to the Ornithopter in Catch the Wind. This mid-January date is nearly two weeks before Groundhog Day! Unfortunately, I don’t haveRead more
Cold?
If you have any doubt as to whether or not it’s been cold outside in the past week or so, I’ve taken a few digital images that may help to convince you that it is. OK, OK, we’re not in Watertown, NY where, as I write this, it’s 13° F, or Duluth, MN where it’s currently 0° on the Fahrenheit scale. We’re in the south, and down here, if the day’s high temps never climb out of the thirties, it’sRead more
The Springtails
It was Leon Bradford, Insectarium Manager at the Museum, who first discovered them. Dogged, persistent, Leon was determined to find insect activity on that cold December day. It was supposed to be a warm day, but the clouds lingered longer than predicted and the temps hovered in the thirties throughout the morning. I had told Leon that I hadn’t seen much insect activity (not even a Yellowjacket or fly on the Fatsia on the Dinosaur Trail) for several days. SeeingRead more