After the excitement of the last few months, all is quiet on the bluebird front. All six of our nest boxes are empty. We’ve had nests started by one species and finished off by another. Two nests were well on their way (with eggs) and subsequently destroyed by a competing species of bird. One nest was begun by one species (chickadee), completed by another (bluebird) and destroyed by yet another (house wren). That same nest was cleaned out of its 6 eggs by what wasRead more
Posts tagged: #wetlands
A Trapped Turtle
Top photo: common snapping turtle below the surface. It was morning on the 12th of May. I received a call from Animal Keepers, Autumn and Sarah about a snapping turtle seen near the entrance to the bear compound. When I arrived on the scene the snapper had entered a small swamp between the compound and the open water of the Wetlands and was heading towards the water. The turtle had probably been out laying eggs and was now headed back toRead more
Turtle Time
Top photo: Courtship display by male (foreground) yellow-bellied slider. By this time of year I should have seen six, eight, even a dozen female turtles walking along the paths here at the Museum. Each spring, our aquatic turtles leave the water in search of safe places to dig a nest and lay eggs. I’ve only seen three turtles out and about this season. Two of those were relayed to me by Animal Keepers Autumn and Sarah. One was an eastern musk turtle, theRead more
Bluebird Update 5.19.15
Top photo: Nest box at Cow pasture. All of our six nest boxes are empty! The bluebird nestlings that were in the Cow Pasture, Amphimeadow, and Butterfly House nests have all fledged, an additional twelve bluebirds (4 in each nest) have joined the local avifauna. One nest box has been relieved of it occupants, and two others are waiting new residents. The nest boxes at both the Bungee Jump and the Sailboat Pond are empty and waiting for occupants. The Bungee nestRead more
A Primrose, a Pea, and Snakes!
Pink evening primrose, or pink ladies, are just coming into bloom in Explore the Wild. There are two patches of these attractive flowers within fifty feet of one another in Explore the Wild, one on either side of the vending area. Partridge pea, a plant that I try to cultivate in Catch the Wind here at the Museum has started to sprout. The seed leaves broke the surface last week and are starting to show the beginnings ofRead more
Baby Turtles and Buttercups
Top Photo: Recently hatched eastern musk turtle. Now showing… Come on out and see for yourself! Read more
Some Spring Happenings
Top Photo: Immature plumaged hooded mergansers lingering in wetlands. I’ve been negligent in my duties and haven’t been reporting as often as I’d like to on the goings on in Explore the Wild and Catch the Wind. So much is happening, as it does every spring, that it’s tough to keep up. Here’s just a couple of handfuls of things that we’ve seen in the Wild over the past few weeks (not necessarily in chronological order). During the first weekRead more
Some Old Familiar Faces
The fine weather of the past week has brought out some old friends. A large female northern water snake that likes to spend her spring days basking in the sun under the still bare branches of the dawn redwoods at the base of the boardwalk is back doing just that. Look for her on the right side of the boardwalk as you walk down the last descending portion of the boardwalk. Although a few common snappers haveRead more
Bluebird Update 3.31.15
I can now say that there is at least some nest material in each of our six nest boxes here at the Museum. And, one nest has a few eggs. Here’s the low down. The Cow Pasture nest box, which for the past two weeks has had nothing at all inside its cedar walls, now has one single pine needle. A male bluebird has been in the box and signaled his interest in perhaps starting a nest. Will more pineRead more