Spring!!

It seems the lengthening days and warm weather of last week created a stirring in some of the local wildlife. As I drove in to work Friday I saw two Black Vultures copulating on the side of the road. On Wednesday (4/19) I saw one of our local Red-shouldered Hawks aloft, stooping, soaring, and screaming for all the world to see and hear his desire to procreate. I later saw the bird land next to another red-shoulder and mount the otherRead more

The Week Ahead

You can expect to see more scenes as depicted in the above photo for the duration of the week, the temperatures are expected to be in the 60s with at least one 70 thrown in. I saw six turtles out basking this morning. I expect to see more this afternoon. In fact, I expect to see many more later today. The turtles are waking up and I’m anticipating that every available perch, every rock, boulder, log, and bit of shoreline outRead more
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It’s February

You don’t need a calendar to know that it’s February, just take a hike around the Wetlands here at the Museum. If you see two Canada Geese, it’s February. These two geese drop in every February, very often its within a few days of the first of the month. The geese are absent during summer through winter, spending only late winter and spring with us. I guesss their arrival could be termed as a harbinger of spring. It may beRead more
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Still need convincing that spring’s here?

Today! Truth is, both Lightning and Rocky are frantically licking the same treat placed on the tree by the Animals Keepers, but they had me going for a minute or two. Please read on. Ranger Rock spotted two Red-shouldered Hawks either passing an object between one another, or placing sticks on a potential nest. I’d heard the birds calling from that location just minutes before but passed it off as simply red-shouldereds doing what red-shouldereds do, making a lot ofRead more

And the sap is flowing!

On Tuesday of this week I noticed a large wet area on the trunk of a Carolina Maple in Catch the Wind. That could only mean one thing, a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker had been at work. This is the same maple that I mention each year around this time. It seems to be a favorite of our visiting sapsuckers and it’s easy to observe (it’s right next to the path). I’ve been keeping a casual eye on this tree but hadn’t seenRead more
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Spring, er, Winter Update

I saw two butterfly species on this second day of February, several Sleepy Oranges and a Mourning Cloak. Spring Peepers have been calling, as mentioned in an earlier post. Today, I actually saw one. Besides the snake being captured by a Red-shouldered Hawk last Friday, Kent (Animal Department) reported seeing what was probably the same hawk catch one in the Lemur Yard on Sunday (1/29/12). From the descriptions given it doesn’t seem as though they were Brown Snakes so, although IRead more

Time to Nest

If there was any doubt as to whether or not winter is behind us, the cheerful singing of the cardinals, titmice, Song Sparrows and chickadees should belay those thoughts. Woodpeckers and nuthatches are working on drilling nest-holes, and titmice and chickadees, who are not as well equipped for drilling into wood, are hunting for old nest-holes left over from last year’s spring flurry of activity by the woodpeckers and nuthatches. The photo above is of a Carolina Chickadee giving the onceRead more
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Fish Crow and Lep Update

Though Fish Crows have been seen and heard in our area (Piedmont) for several weeks, Saturday (3/6) was the first sighting for me at the Museum. If I hadn’t heard them first I would have passed them off as American Crows. Although Fish Crows are a bit smaller the two species look very much alike. Luckily, their calls are a bit different. Fish Crows sound like an American Crow with its nose pinched as it calls, it’s very nasal. It’s veryRead more