Wild Lake Monticello

Why Birds Feet Don't Freeze

2012-01-23T06:10:00.001-05:00

Job 12:7,9 - "But now ask the beasts, and they will teach you: and the birds of the air, and they will tell you: Who among all these does not know that the hand of the LORD has done this?"

© Donna L. Watkins - Song Sparrow on Winter Morning
Have you ever wondered why it is that ducks can spend all day in near-freezing water and it doesn’t seem to bother them?

For that matter, birds never seem to be bothered about cold feet. If we ran around in the ice and snow with bare feet, it wouldn’t be very long before we had a good case of frostbite. So why don’t birds need socks?

Birds have a network of arteries that take the blood down to their feet. These arteries are interwoven with the veins that return the blood from the feet. This network of arteries and veins is called a “wonder net.” The blood going down the arteries is hot at 106 degrees but the temperature of the blood returning in the veins may be as cool as 37 degrees as it leaves the foot. The warm blood reheats the cold blood coming from the foot before it enters the body.

The result is that the bird loses very little body heat, and the blood going into the foot never becomes dangerously cold in normal winter weather.

Source: Creation Moments

Wilderness: Where We Meet Our Ancestors

2012-01-16T01:58:00.000-05:00

One thing that’s very clear from the current PBS series on our national parks is that the generations before us had a love for our wild places and had the good sense to preserve many of them. What’s also clear is that access to the wilderness is also access to significant aspects of physical and spiritual health.

The contemplation of the natural world and its relationship to the spiritual has historically taken place in wilderness settings. A significant aspect of wilderness is that it is one of the few places where we can connect emotionally and spiritually through shared values with those who have gone before: where we can relearn the lessons our ancestors learned. Read the entire article.

Winter Hanging Basket

2012-01-09T01:49:00.000-05:00

From Birds and Blooms

Instead of purchasing a winter flower arrangement, I made my own from a hanging basket. I used different varieties of holly, blue-spruce cuttings, magnolia leaves and pinecones. The arrangement lasted several months and was attractive from both inside and out. -- Janet Walsh, Bel Air, Maryland

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Winter's Garden Pondering

2012-01-02T17:29:00.000-05:00

From The National Gardening Association

Let's make one thing perfectly clear: winter is not my favorite season. It's cold and there is ice and snow. Yet I find myself enjoying it for a variety of reasons. For one thing, it is the interlude when I'm not totally wracked with guilt for not working in the garden 24/7. (Already the plant and seed catalogs are luring me into thinking I can, once again, have and do it all.)

But from a more positive perspective, winter actually makes me more aware of plants, the landscape, and my environment. Read the entire article.

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Nest Boxes Provide Winter Retreat

2011-12-26T08:48:00.000-05:00

From The Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Ever wonder what you should do with your nest boxes during the winter? After you clean out old nesting material, consider leaving them in place throughout the colder months.

Non-migratory birds seek sheltered locations to stay warm during chilly winter weather. Cavity nesters, such as titmice, chickadees, wrens, nuthatches, woodpeckers, and screech-owls, may consider your nest box to be the perfect place to spend a cold night or wait out a storm.

The body heat of birds can keep the air temperature inside nest boxes about 10 degrees warmer than outside. This means that birds burn much less energy sleeping indoors. Some species prefer to roost alone, but others are more social and may roost in groups.

Although not much research has been done to determine preferred specifications of winter roosting boxes, some species seem to like having perches and ledges to sleep on. Wrapping boxes in foam insulation and blocking ventilation holes may help keep them warm.

Also, don’t forget to make sure that the boxes are well protected from predators. You can help your backyard birds maintain their body fat reserves by providing them with suet and keeping your feeders filled with black-oil sunflower seeds. Check out Project FeederWatch for more information about how you can help birds during the winter.

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Beak Deformities in Birds Rapidly Increasing

2011-12-19T01:50:00.001-05:00

From Alaska Science Center

Over the past several years, Alaskans have witnessed a startling increase of beak deformities among local birds. Large numbers of Black-capped Chickadees and smaller numbers of many other species of birds have appeared with grossly overgrown and crossed beaks.

We began research in 1999, and have since identified more than 2,000 deformed Black-capped Chickadees in south-central Alaska—the highest concentration of such abnormalities ever recorded in a wild bird population anywhere!

More recently, rapidly increasing numbers of other species, including Northwestern Crows, Downy Woodpeckers, Steller’s Jays, and Black-billed Magpies have also been reported with beak deformities by biologists and local residents throughout the state.

Although we do not yet know the cause of this widespread problem, we continue to investigate potential agents, including environmental contaminants, nutritional deficiencies, and disease. Nearly all of the species affected are year-round residents, and we suspect that factors responsible for this cluster of deformities may be unique to Alaska and the Pacific Northwest.

We are currently pursuing additional studies to determine where these deformities are occurring and why. Reports from the public help us to determine where and how many birds are affected.

Share this information with other bird watchers. If you see a bird with a deformed beak, please report it to the Alaska Science Center. Get more information on beak deformities.

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Winter Birds in the Wildlife Garden

2011-12-12T07:10:00.000-05:00

by Carole Brown

Birds are especially visible in our wildlife gardens in winter, and they are not as fragile as we may think. Access to food, water, and shelter will help them get through the cold winter days.

Water is one of the most important elements to provide for birds in the wildlife garden in winter. While birds are able to melt snow to drink, this consumes a lot of energy. Providing clean unfrozen water will help them conserve their energy. I use a heated dog dish in which I place a brick to allow the birds to drink, but not bathe.

Cold birds are slow birds, and frozen feathers are not helpful in escaping predators. During the winter, the Robins line up at this water to get a drink, which is so much fun to watch! Read the entire article with bird photographs.

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Top 10 Things to Do For Birds For Winter

2011-12-05T05:41:00.000-05:00

From George's Top 10 in Birds and Blooms Magazine.

• Double your number of seed and suet feeders, as birds are now flocking and there are many more mouths to feed.

• Check the condition of feeders and squirrel baffles to make sure they will make it through another winter. Replace the ones you can't repair.

• Stock up on sunflower seeds in any form. They offer the greatest amount of energy for the birds in winter.

• Birds that are migrating south need water to both refresh themselves and to maintain their flight feathers.

• In the North, revert exclusively to suet and seed, as the fruit and insect eaters have gone south for the winter.

• After all the orioles and hummingbirds have passed through the area, remove all sugar-water feeders.

• Revert to simpler, shallower birdbaths that you can heat when the temperatures drop below freezing.

• Plant evergreens around feeders to protect birds from predators, and to provide safe roosting sites during cold winter nights.

• Take down most birdhouses and clean with a solution of 10% bleach.

• Leave several birdhouses up all winter as roosting sites for chickadees, bluebirds and woodpeckers.

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Mourning Doves

2011-11-28T06:01:00.000-05:00

by Donna L. Watkins

Now that Winter is on its way, we don't hear the songs of the male mourning dove cooing. In Spring, the cooing claims territory and begins the mating process and raising of more doves. Mating is for life, so when that task is settled, there is the job of maintaining territory and making more mourning doves for their soft cooing in our woodland setting.

Mourning doves are in the same family as pigeons but are slimmer with a soft grayish-brown body with a gray patch on the head. The black dots on the wings and single black spot below the eye are identifying marks. When they take off in a loud clapping of wings flight, you can also see the white-edged tail that is very conspicuous.

The nests are built of twigs, weeds, grass and pine needles at a height of 5-25 feet. Some build in the corner of a porch. The ones I've seen you can see through the bottom and they make me very nervous since eggs have been known to drop out if the mama dove flies off suddenly from being startled.

For this reason dove nests are best left alone or viewed with binoculars from a distance. Abandonment of the nest with eggs or nestlings is common with doves if they sense any threat from human or animal.

Generally two eggs are laid and incubated for two weeks. The young will be fed for about another two weeks before fledging. The babies are fed what's called 'pigeon milk' although it's not a milk. It produced by the glands in the crop of the parent bird. The nestling sticks its head inside the wide open mouth to feed on this food. Since they begin early in Spring, they will raise 2-3 broods and reuse the same nest for all of them. Both parents incubate and care for the young so that gives them both time to feed while the eggs are incubating.

You can provide a safer and more sturdy nesting area by placing a nesting shelf in a tree or under the eaves of your house, but be sure to place it where they will not have to deal with any human or animal traffic flow nearby.

If you'd like to supply food, preferences include cracked corn, proso millet, sunflower seeds and even chopped peanuts. We enjoy seeing the doves in our yard. They mate for life and seeing them wander about gathering a meal of seeds from the ground is a delight. They seem to so enjoy each other and the cooing is like a romantic lullaby to my ears.

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The photo(s) and article are copyrighted. You may use them if you include the following credit and active link back to this website:
© 2011 Donna L. Watkins - This article was reprinted with permission from TheNatureInUs.com.
The link URL is: http://www.TheNatureInUs.com

Wildlife Gardening for December

2011-11-25T02:27:00.000-05:00

Here in Central Virginia (zone 7) we can enjoy these wildlife gardening activities:

• Great Horned Owls are pairing up this month to breed. Listen for their calls to each other.

• Prepare planting beds now with compost and manure to be ready for spring planting. Get compost how-to here.

• Breeding begins for Fox and Gray Squirrels, while Chipmunks hole up for the winter.

• Start pruning wisteria by removing longer canes

• Prune evergreen trees and use the trimmings for a cozy brush pile for the birds and other wildlife

• Keep the feeders full and add a warmer to your birdbath. Water is critical for birds in winter too.

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Finding Wildlife in the Leaves

2011-11-21T11:36:00.001-05:00

One of the best things about having a wildlife garden is that you have a natural classroom right outside your door where you can teach children to discover the wonders of nature and get to know the wildlife that lives there.
And, truth be told, they will teach you, too.

By seeing the natural world through the eyes of a child you’ll remember what it feels like to be filled with wonder. You will take delight in the simplest of things. And you’ll discover that you’re never too old to play.

Get a fresh new look into the wonders of nature in Autumn. Read the entire article.

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Real Tree or Fake Christmas Tree

2011-11-12T01:56:00.001-05:00

Is it getting to be that time of year when you’re wondering if buying a fresh Christmas tree is the environmental thing to do? Do you dream of the sweet smell of pine but then feel a vague sense of guilt wash over you? I love trees so it breaks my heart to see any tree taken down, especially to be of use for such a short period of time and then hauled off to the landfill.

Are you wondering which is the greenest solution ... or the healthiest solution? Here is a quick guide to help you make your decision.

If you do choose a live tree, after you're finished with its use indoors, consider adding it to your yard outdoors to provide shelter and protection for songbirds through the winter. When the needles have dropped to the ground, rake them together and use them to mulch your flower beds.

Monarch Tagging and Release

2011-10-29T11:30:00.004-04:00

by Donna L. Watkins

We recently attended a Monarch workshop in Charlottesville, Virginia, at Ivy Creek Natural Area. We became a certified Monarch Waystation Habitat years ago so we garden for butterflies. We were already a certified Backyard Wildlife Habitat, so it fits right in with our emphasis on gardening for the benefit of the other creatures of our planet.

After learning more about Monarchs and listening to the answers given to the children present (who know how to ask great questions), we went outside to learn how to identify male and female Monarchs.

Then the fun part! We learned how to tag, record data and release Monarchs. This project helps the Monarchs.

There have been 11,000+ Monarchs recovered since 1994 and the data is all online available to scientists and citizens alike. View Monarch Recovery Website.

Tagging kits can be ordered and anybody can join in on this fun project. I wish we'd ordered a kit before this year's migration through our habitat. We have determined we will be prepared for next year. It's already on the calendar. Get Info On Tagging Program.

It was a fun time and although there were excited children all around, I still managed to get a few good pictures of the step-by-step process. View My Monarch Tagging and Release Workshop Photos.

Sheep Sorrel Solution

2011-10-13T01:59:00.001-04:00

by Donna L. Watkins

If anybody is dealing with Sheep Sorrel in their yard, you know it's not an easy thing to eradicate. When I researched online to find a natural way to get rid of this plant, I found a lot of comments like, "nothing works" and that was among the chemical herbicides also.
Since it was growing right down in front of the property where it could be easily seen and complained about, we needed a natural solution. It grows faster than you can pull it since it sends out zillions of little rootlets.

Besides, it's not a pretty plant since the flower is too tiny to see without a magnifying glass. The photo to the left shows how much it seeds, so we knew we had a big problem that we couldn't ignore.

It's actually a great herb for medicinal purposes and you can use the leaves for salads (they have a zesty lemon flavor), but if you have Sheep Sorrel, you've got a lot of it because it seeds profusely and spreads by roots also.

These plants also contain oxalic acid that is not beneficial if too many plants are eaten raw since oxalic acid interferes with mineral absorption. Cooking seems to destroy this chemical property.

The plant is rarely more than a foot tall and has alternate leaves with arrow-like bases on the leaf. The plant is generally distributed in old fields and other disturbed areas of North America and Canada.

The most important thing I read was that they grow on nitrogen-deficient soils. Aha! So, why not put some nitrogen into the soil so it would not provide such a great habitat for it to grow and spread!? Would that be the solution?

© Photo: www.sandmountainherbs.com
The delight of it all was that we had moved a bunch of cedars and pines on that bank to provide a cover area for the birds since we had hardwoods on the property. So, adding nitrogen (ammonium sulfate) to the soil around these trees where the Sheep Sorrel was growing would only benefit the trees. It was worth a try.

We pulled out as much Sheep Sorrel as we could get our hands on above the soil and the roots below the soil and then spread the nitrogen, made sure it was dug into the dirt, and let it go. This year the area we did was totally free of Sheep Sorrel except for a few small babies which would've come up from seeds. We pulled those in the Spring and it stayed clear for the entire Summer. We are now working on another area where it's growing around forsythias.

How cool to find a solution that's natural and beneficial! If anybody else has tried this please make a comment. I would love to know that it's worked for others also.

Sheep Sorrel is considered an invasive plant which means it will crowd out other natives that are important for biodiversity and wildlife. The photo to the right shows you the shape of the leaf. Since it's pretty unique among plants, it's an easy one to identify.

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The photos on this article are copyrighted by other websites and may not be used. You may forward or use the copyrighted article on a website if you include the following credit and an active link back to this site:
© 2011 Donna L. Watkins - This article was reprinted with permission from TheNatureInUs.com.
Link URL is: http://www.TheNatureInUs.com

Planting Bulbs

2011-09-27T08:59:00.000-04:00

Bulbs provide a good investment for money spent and supply years of spring color in your yard. Fall is the prime time for planting of hardy spring flowering bulbs. Most bulbs can be planted until the ground is frozen.

Here's a site that provides a lot of information and instruction on how to get the most out of your addition of bulbs to your landscape.

Leave Some Flowers For The Birds

2011-09-20T00:28:00.000-04:00

Dead-heading will give the plant more energy and resources to produce more flowers, but one thing I consider is whether the bloom that will turn to seed is one that will benefit the birds.

We have feeders placed around our yard in the summer, but I know that the variety of native flowers have important nutrition for birds that they don't get in the feeders, so I like to leave some seed heads for the birds.

When Fall is drawing near, I leave them all so the migrating birds will have food. They remember where they found food on their last migration so each year we see more and more species because our yard is full of dietary choices.

The migrating and local birds are begging gardeners to do No Deadheading!.

We really enjoy gardening for wildlife. Here's a couple of links that give you information on which plants birds like so you might choose to plant more that will benefit the birds:

Flowers For Birds
Planting For Birds

Don't Cut Back Perennials

2011-09-09T04:53:00.000-04:00

Summer is ending and you want to clean up the garden, but DO NOT cut down those stalks of plants that have bloomed and left seeds.

Plants like Black-eyed Susans, Salvias, Coreopsis, Cosmos, Sunflowers, Coneflowers, and any plant that has obvious seed heads, need to be left for the birds. These are natural bird feeders and the diversity of seeds is important to their dietary needs. Birds will be migrating through and these seeds are an important part of their ability to store energy. Birdfeeders do not handle all of their nutritional needs for migration.

If you just can't live with dried dead flowers, at least cut off the flower heads and leave them on the ground before removing the stalk and leaves. Rain will spoil these seeds much easier than if they were left standing, but at least you'll be leaving some. If your plants spread by seed, you will also have more plants for the following year that you can share with other gardeners.

Bird Tip:
When you clean your bird houses this Fall, put some fresh pine needles or straw in them so they can be used for roosting during the winter cold.

Cats Are No. 1 Enemy of Birds

2011-08-30T07:06:00.000-04:00

While public attention has focused on wind turbines as a menace to birds, a new study shows that a far greater threat may be posed by a more familiar antagonist: the pet house cat.

A new study in The Journal of Ornithology on the mortality of baby gray catbirds in the Washington suburbs found that cats were the No. 1 killer in the area, by a large margin.

Nearly 80 percent of the birds were killed by predators, and cats were responsible for 47 percent of those deaths, according to the researchers, from the Smithsonian Institution and Towson University in Maryland. Death rates were particularly high in neighborhoods with large cat populations.

Predation was so serious in some areas that the catbirds could not replace their numbers for the next generation, according to the researchers, who affixed tiny radio transmitters to the birds to follow them. It is the first scientific study to calculate what fraction of bird deaths during the vulnerable fledgling stage can be attributed to cats. Read the entire article.

Lake Monticello HOA rules do not allow roaming animals, but it seems many pet owners are not concerned with the safety of their pets, much less the disadvantages to wildlife.

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Downy Woodpeckers Build New Home

2011-08-20T07:05:00.000-04:00

My dear neighbor, Ken Bushell, and I share photographs of the natural world. He and his wife, Yvonne, are both fascinated with the antics of the wildlife around us, as we are.

© 2008 Ken Bushell - Downy Woodpecker
Ken sent me a photo documentary of a pair of Downy Woodpeckers that were building a home in a nearby tree at his house.

Unlike most folks who like to take down dead trees, we all enjoy leaving them up so the variety of woodpecker species we have here in Central Virginia will have plenty of places to set up housekeeping. And that provides endless hours of enjoyment with no admission charge.

I know you'll enjoy Ken's photo story as much as I did:

We have just had the delight of watching a pair of Downy woodpeckers build a home right in front of our eyes. They chose a small dead tree (trunk 4 inches diameter) situated 50 feet from our living room window and with the nest hole conveniently facing us.

All photos were taken with a Panasonic FZ18 with x 18 zoom (= 504mm in equivalent 35mm terms).

© Ken Bushell - Downy Woodpecker
My initial photos were taken from inside the house and later I took some outside. The close-ups at the bottom have digital zoom of approximately x3 (making it over 1500mm equivalent).

We are not exactly sure when work started, but we think it was on October 18 when we first noticed activity and when the first photo was taken. The red head signifies the male bird. The second photo shows lots of speedy drilling which provided many fuzzy shots like this.

Downy Woodpeckers readily visit backyard feeders where suet and peanut butter are offered. Their familiar drumming rolls are commonly heard in the spring, and have awakened many when they choose a drain spout, mailbox or other metallic surface to announce their territory and attract a mate. One might think that the woodpecker is trying to hammer a hole in the side of the house, but this type of drumming is much different than the drilling that they do to excavate a cavity nest. It's purpose is to send out a mating call.

© Ken Bushell - Downy Woodpecker
The female usually selects the nest site in a dead deciduous tree or branch, but they will also use fence or utility poles if necessary. The location can be from 8 to 50 feet high off the ground. Who excavates the cavity is of differing opinions when you research the topic. Some say it is mostly accomplished by the male, some the female, and other that both of them drill.

From our observation and these photos, this pair of Downies are doing it together. On October 19, this female was spotted helping with the digging.

This couple was building in the Fall to have a good roosting place for winter in a spot that was near seed and suet feeders. They will most likely choose a different location for their nesting season.

Downy Woodpeckers begin nesting in late Winter and some are known to mate for life. Some pairs stay together through the year, and the supply of food available seems to be a factor in determining whether mated pairs stay together past the breeding season. Where food is more plentiful it is more likely that pairs will stay together year-round.

© Ken Bushell - Downy Woodpecker
As the day progressed, the male got further and further inside as he regularly inspected their work being done. Late in the day, they had excavated enough for the male to get almost totally inside for the first time.

Seems they would be drilling in the dark after they get the entrance tunnel built and then have to head downwards for the nesting area.

On October 20 the male continued the task of drilling, but at one point a White-breasted Nuthatch came by to inspect the cavity also. These birds also nest in natural cavities or abandoned woodpecker cavities.

When the birds are drilling the initial entrance, the chips of wood fly about and get on their feathers. After they begin drilling downward for the cavity, they have to remove all the fragments chipped away, so they are seen carrying them out as evidenced in this photo.

All research online stated that it takes about two weeks to excavate a hole big enough to start a nest; however, this one seems to have been made in three (3) days. We can only surmise that building a roosting place is much different than building a nest.

© Ken Bushell - Downy Woodpecker
Photographs of the inside of the hole showed that the excavation did go deep as a typical nest would. Maybe it was completed so quickly because this particular tree is in pretty bad shape with many holes on the backside. Matter of fact, you could see light coming through the rear of the area they had just drilled.

When they are finished with an actual nesting cavity they don't furnish it with anything fancy. They just drop wood chips into the hole. The male is shown here removing wood chips from the excavation process.

Woodpeckers depend on fungi to weaken dead wood before they start excavating it. Polypores, such as the Spongy-toothed Polypore, are the main types of fungi which prepare dead trees for woodpeckers.

Some people believe woodpeckers are killing live trees when they see them climbing and pecking away, but they are actually providing a service by getting any bugs out of the wood that might injure it or create a disease problem. Keeping dead trees is important because they not only provide sites for nesting, but also provide food for the woodpeckers. One of the special anatomical trait of woodpeckers is the long, barbed tongue that searches crevices and cracks for food. The salivary glands produce a sticky, glue-like substance that coats the tongue and, along with the barbs, makes the tongue an efficient device for capturing insects.

© Ken Bushell - Downy Woodpecker
Woodpeckers are a family of birds sharing several characteristics that separate them from other avian families. Most of the special features of their anatomy are associated with the ability to dig holes in wood. The straight, chisel-shaped bill is formed of strong bone overlaid with a hard covering and is quite broad at the nostrils in order to spread the force of pecking.

A covering of feathers over the nostrils keeps out pieces of wood and wood powder. The pelvic bones are wide, allowing for attachment of muscles strong enough to move and hold the tail, which is important for climbing.

What fascinates me most about the entire process is how they get the hole the exact diameter that's recorded for the species to nest in. Incredible!

Red Admiral Butterfly

2011-08-10T08:18:00.001-04:00

The Red Admiral Butterfly belongs to the vanessid group of butterflies. All vanessid butterflies have special taste organs located in their feet.

It feeds mainly on flower nectar. It also feeds on nettles and clover in the Spring and Summer, as well as on common flowers such as buddleia, Michaelmas daisy (New York Aster), and ice plant.

It particularly likes daisies of the family Asteraceae because each flower contains a high concentration of nectar. The Red Admiral also feeds on ivy flowers and the juice of rotting fruit such as apples, which it shares with wasps.

The female Red Admiral Butterfly lays up to 100 eggs per day, one at a time, on a wide range of food plants, generally choosing nettle, or occasionally the hop plant, on which to lay them. When the eggs hatch, the caterpillars pull the leaves around them to form a protective enclosure and then spin silken threads around themselves as protection from predators as they feed.

Many gardeners have found these types of leaves and removed them from the plant not realizing that they are destroying butterflies in progress. Inspect leaves of favorite plants from May onward for eggs.

The Red Admiral caterpillar has spiky extensions on its body that deter most birds, except the cuckoo. They are also vulnerable to attack by wasps and flies.

Once fully grown, the caterpillars move to a hidden spot on the plant where they shed their skins and spin a cocoon (chrysalis) with gold-colored markings. It only takes 4-7 days to go from egg to chrysalis and 2-3 weeks from chrysalis to pupation. During the time of pupation, the adult structures of the insect are formed. The wingspan of this butterfly is 2-3 inches.

Although this butterfly is commonly seen in temperate areas, it is actually a migrant from the Mediterranean regions of Europe, Guatemala and the Antilles.

It flies north each Spring to its breeding grounds and the offspring remain at the breeding grounds through Summer and into Winter, lacking the instinct to return south as cold weather approaches.

It attempts to hibernate in tree hollows, rocky crevices, or among plant debris, but the cold weather soon kills it. The lifespan is about 10 months. They fly at 5-9 miles per hour.

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All photos remain the property of Donna L. Watkins and may not be republished without written permission. You may forward or use this copyrighted article on a website if you include the following credit and an active link back to this site:
© 2000-2008 Donna L. Watkins - This article was reprinted with permission. Visit the author's website, TheNatureInUs.com for more articles and free email subscription.
Link URL: http://www.TheNatureInUs.com

Monarch Butterfly

2011-07-30T08:00:00.000-04:00

Perhaps the most popular or well known of butterflies is the Monarch (Danaus plexippus). Here at Lake Monticello we get to see these beautiful creatures arrive in September as they migrate south to Mexico to winter over.

© Donna L. Watkins - Monarch on Butterfly Bush

Their incredible migration is what has made the Monarch so well known. Monarchs west of the Rocky Mountains travel to small groves of trees along the California coast. Those east of the Rocky Mountains fly south to forests high in the mountains of Mexico.

In all the world, no butterflies migrate as far as the Monarchs of North America. They travel up to 3,000 miles and are the only butterflies to make such a long, two-way migration every year.

Amazingly, they fly in masses to the same Winter roosts, often to the exact same trees. Their migration is similar to some birds or whales; however, unlike birds and whales, individual Monarchs only make the round-trip once. It is the fact that their children's grandchildren are the ones that return south the following Fall that fascinates the mind.

As the days grow longer, they begin to mate and they leave their Mexican roosts during the second week of March, flying north and east looking for milkweed plants on which to lay their eggs. These are the only Monarchs left that can produce a new generation. If they return too early, before the milkweed is up in the Spring, they will not be able to lay their eggs and continue the cycle.

The migrating females each lay hundreds of eggs on the milkweed plants they find in the southern United States before they die. The eggs hatch about four days after being laid and the first Spring caterpillars hatch, consume the milkweed plant which is the ONLY plant that Monarch larvae will eat.

© Donna L. Watkins - Monarch and Chrysalis

Within 30 days of the eggs being laid, you will have an adult butterfly emerge from the chrysalis as is shown on the photo here one taken one morning on my way to the mailbox.

Butterflies are not like humans, who grow in size as they mature into adults. When an adult monarch butterfly emerges from the chrysalis, it emerges at its full size and its wings do not grow larger. While there is some variation in the sizes of adult monarchs, they measure around 4 inches wide with wings open.

It is these newly emerged Monarchs that recolonize their parents' original homes. Summer Monarchs live a much briefer life than the overwintering generation. Their life span as a butterfly is only three to five weeks compared to eight or nine months for the overwintering adults. The summer produces three or four generations of Monarchs, depending on the length of the growing season, until once again there are millions of Monarchs all over the U.S. and southern Canada.

© Donna L. Watkins - Monarch on Butterfly Weed
If you'd like to help the Monarchs survive, planting various species of Milkweed (such as Butterfly Weed) would be very beneficial as hosts for the eggs/larvae and also for nectar for the adults. Other favored nectar sources are verbena, zinnia, purple coneflower, buddleia, and Mexican sunflower.

You can get involved in many Monarch projects shown on the MonarchWatch.org website. We participate in the Monarch Waystation Program by providing habitat that includes plant sources for all stages of the Monarch's life.

Copyright and Reprint Information
All photos remain the property of Donna L. Watkins and may not be republished without written permission. You may forward or use this copyrighted article on a website if you include the following credit and an active link back to this site:
© 2000-2008 Donna L. Watkins - This article was reprinted with permission. Visit the author's website, TheNatureInUs.com for more articles and free email subscription.
Link URL: http://www.TheNatureInUs.com

Releasing Butterflies - Follow The Rules

2011-07-20T08:40:00.000-04:00

There are hundreds if not thousands of classrooms across the country raising butterflies. A question arises: "Will new species disturb local ecosystems?"

I was surprised to discover that there is a $50,000 fine for illegally transporting a butterfly across a state line. Read this article for the do's and don'ts.

Bird Leads To The Bees Nests

2011-07-10T08:19:00.000-04:00

From Creation Moments

"But none saith, Where is God my maker, who giveth songs in the night; Who teacheth us more than the beasts of the earth, and maketh us wiser than the fowls of heaven?"

It has long been known that an African bird known as the honeyguide leads badgers to bees' nests, where the badger tears the nest apart to eat the honey. The badger always leaves more than enough for the honeyguide.

Now it has been learned that the honeyguide has a similar relationship with the Boran people of Kenya. When the bird has found a bees' nest, it will alert the Boran, bidding them to follow it the honey site. On the other hand, if the Boran want to know where honey is, they know how to whistle and call for a honeyguide.

The honeyguide also calls to the people so that they know which way to go. When the Boran reach the honey, they always make sure that they leave some for the honeyguide. Researchers also reported that they saw honeyguides scouting out bees' nests at night so that they had good sites to lead the Boran to the next day.

While the honeyguide does get its reward of honey in return for its help, the intelligence of the honeyguide in establishing these relationships with human beings is impressive. But while the honeyguide can help teach us that the creation is the Work of an intelligent Creator, it cannot teach us how to have a relationship with Him. For that we must go to the Bible.

References: Honey Hunters Follow Bird to Reach Bees. Science News, vol. 135. P. 172.

Red-spotted Purple Admiral Butterfly

2011-06-30T10:29:00.000-04:00

The Red-spotted Purple Admiral is part of the brush-footed butterfly (Nymphalidae) family with a wingspan of 2-1/4 to 4 inches.

Like many butterflies having an elaborate defense mechanism against predators, it mimics the Pipevine Swallowtail, whose larvae feed on plants of the birthwort family containing the chemical aristolochic acid which is unpalatable to predators.

Since butterflies cannot fly until their wings are warmed, they often sun on rocks and pavement to absorb the heat collected there.

Adult food includes sap, rotting fruit, carrion, dung and only occasional nectar from small white flowers with viburnum, spirea, and privet being favorites. You will often find these butterflies in groups taking nourishment from mud puddles on the ground. This butterfly is usually found in deciduous or mixed forests, moist uplands, valley bottoms and coastal plains.

Red-Spotted Purple males engage in "puddling," which is a gathering of many butterflies at a patch of mineral rich muddy ground, dung, urine, or carrion.

Using their long proboscises, they extract salts and nitrogen which they form into a spermatophore, a sac containing sperm and nutrients that are passed to the female during mating.

The female uses the nutrients during egg production and the pheromones of the spermatophore ward off other would be suitors. There are generally two broods from April to October.

As with all butterflies, eggs are laid on specific plant hosts for the caterpillar or larval stage to feed. Red-spotted Admirals prefer leaves of a variety of trees and shrubs such as poplar, oaks, hawthorn, birch, willows, wild cherry, aspen, basswood, cottonwood and shadbush.

Eggs are laid singly on the tip of a host plant leaf and the caterpillar emerges to eat the leaves, spin a chrysalis and emerge as an adult butterfly. The larvae stage of this particular butterfly resembles bird droppings which is a protective provision of nature. The photo of the caterpillar stage was taken on a Black Willow tree, as was the one that was beginning the spinning of the chrysalis out of which would emerge a butterfly.

Several years we have had these caterpillars consume most of one of our Black Willow's leaves, but the tree seemed to do better than the one they laid few eggs on. Maybe there is a symbiotic relationship between caterpillar and host.

Our philosophy for our yard has been that we garden not only for ourselves but also for wildlife, so we watch and see what nature does with what is considered to be a pest. Often it turns out to be a beneficial experience for all.

Copyright and Reprint Information
All photos remain the property of Donna L. Watkins and may not be republished without written permission. You may forward or use this copyrighted article on a website if you include the following credit and an active link back to this site:
© 2000-2011 Donna L. Watkins - This article was reprinted with permission. Visit the author's website, TheNatureInUs.com for more articles and free email subscription.
Link URL: http://www.TheNatureInUs.com

How Do Heavy Bumblebees Fly?

2011-06-20T09:17:00.000-04:00

From Creation Moments

What keeps the big-bodied bumblebee with those little stubby wings in the air? Scientists are still trying to learn the secret of bumblebee flight. And while they are learning some astonishing things about the bumblebee, they still don't know how he does it.

Scientists have been testing bumblebees by monitoring their energy use, placing them in wind tunnels, and measuring their oxygen use. No, they haven't been able to make little oxygen masks for the bees - bumblebees have 24 breathing holes.

Scientists have learned that a flying bumblebee flaps its wings 160 times per second and consumes the equivalent of 180 candy bars per hour! A flying bee uses the same amount of oxygen for its body weight as a flying bird or a bat. However, unlike birds, the bumblebee uses no more oxygen when hovering than when flying. This is only one of the discoveries that contradict scientists' theories. In fact, the director of the latest studies on bumblebee flight admits that they still have no idea how the bumblebee stays in the air. He warns other scientists to stop using the current theories on the subject because they are far too simple.

Of course, our Creator God knows how to make a bumblebee fly, even if the best of modern science can't figure it out.

Reference: Cowen, R. 1990. Bumblebee energy: What's the buzz? Science News,
v. 138, Oct. 6. p. 215.

Source: Creation Moments