Nature’s World by Al Batt

My neighbor Crandall stops by.

“How are you doing?” I ask.

“Everything is nearly copacetic. Every morning is still too early. Mice are entering my house like peasants storming a castle. I’ve put out enough mousetraps to make Chuck E. Cheese nervous. I think I might be allergic to mice. I sneezed so hard that my socks fell down. I’m just glad that didn’t happen while I was in the dentist’s chair. I remember when taking care of my gums involved Wrigley. I have some plumbing repairs to do. It’s either sink or swim. Weasel is going to help me install a new used sink. Weasel isn’t much of a joiner. He’s not even a member of the human race, but he could be the fourth Stooge. He had all his passwords tattooed on his body. He flosses religiously. That means he flosses more often than he goes to church. Weasel likes to shop. He loses all shelf-control when he’s in a store. He drinks a lot a coffee. He doesn’t like tea. The tea bags get caught in his throat. Weasel talked me into buying some lottery tickets. He claims I have a 50-50 chance of winning. Either I win or I don’t.”

 

Tweety Bird

I spent a few months in a hospital as a youngster. Someone gave me a Tweety Bird figure. I’m sad that I don’t remember who gave it to me. It was my favorite toy while I was hospitalized. In the TV cartoon, Tweety was in constant danger of falling prey to Sylvester the Cat, but never did. I found hope in that. This year, I spent three hours at the Fairmont Photo Press booth at the Martin County Fair, over 25 hours at the Albert Lea Audubon Society booth at the Freeborn County Fair, and six hours at the Friends of Rice Lake State Park booth at the Steele County Fair visiting with fairgoers about natural wonderment. I have worked at many other fairs in the past. I have sat countless hours at the Minnesota Ornithologists’ Union and Minnesota Audubon booths at the Minnesota State Fair. Each time, I have been not only impressed, but amazed by the caring and concern for nature evidenced by those who stopped by for a chat. Nature is enthralling. Knowledge is comforting. Thanks to all who endeavor to make this world a better place. You give me hope.

 

Q&A

“Do blackflies really pollinate blueberries?” I have heard that all my life. It might be a bit of a myth. There is no evidence that blackflies increase blueberry fruit set. They might just be opportunistic nectar thieves.

Kim Otten of Hayward asked how solitary bees survive our winters. Native solitary bees are common ground-nesting or wood-nesting bees that are important pollinators of native plants. They usually nest in sun-exposed, dry areas or in the pithy centers of plants. Although there is just one bee per nest, many of these bees nest close to others. They rarely sting people. Their eggs hatch quickly and the larvae (white grubs) go through several stages before pupating and emerging as adults the next year.

“Do you have any advice on buying seed mixes for birds?” Don’t purchase mixes that include oats, wheat or milo. Those things may decrease the price per pound, but they aren’t eaten by Minnesota birds.

“Is it possible that moths are feeding at my hummingbird feeders.” It is. Sphinx moths, that often resemble hummingbirds, will occasionally sip at sugar water day and night.

“Why do birds poop on my white car while leaving cars of other colors alone?” A study sponsored by Halford’s (an auto supply company) measured the frequency in which cars in the UK were hit by bird exhaust. Red cars received the most deposits. Green cars were bothered the least. Red was followed in descending order by blue, black, white and gray or silver. Remember, these were UK birds, so the data may not hold true elsewhere. The problem with your white car likely has less to do with the car’s color than with where the car is parked. Parking beneath trees, power poles or wires where birds might perch increases your odds of being hit.

“How high do monarch butterflies fly?” They have been seen flying by the top of the Empire State Building, but they go much higher. Pilots have reported monarchs flying as high as 11,000 feet. They typically fly much lower. When winds are from the south, monarchs fly low. If the winds are strong enough, they may not fly at all. The average pace for a monarch is around 20 to 30 miles per day, but they are capable of flying 150 miles or more in a single day if conditions are favorable. A monarch’s flight speed is 4 to 12 miles per hour, but can be much faster if the butterfly is carried on a wind current.

 

Nature lessons

In 1993, Devils Lake in North Dakota had a surface area of 44,230 acres. By 2011, it had increased to 211,300 acres.

Frass is the debris or excrement produced by insects.

The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection confirmed that DNA tests showed that a 140-pound male mountain lion killed on a Connecticut highway had walked more than 1,500 miles east from the Black Hills of South Dakota.

Petrichor is that pleasant smell of rain falling on dry ground. It’s produced by oily, yellow-gold globules that derive either from certain plants or the air itself.

 

Customer comments

Bob Hess of Mio, Mich., writes, “At a lecture at Audubon by a Michigan State mammalogist on the topic of squirrel studies at MSU woodlots (social structure of squirrels, family interactions, territory size, etc.), during the question and answer period, a lady asked him what he would recommend to keep squirrels out of bird feeders. He quipped. ‘What I’ve always wanted to create is a bird-proof squirrel feeder.’”

 

Thanks for stopping by

“Life isn’t a matter of milestones, but moments.” — Rose Kennedy

“I am a product of libraries.” — Louis L’Amour

 

Do good.

 

Al Batt of Hartland is a member of the Albert Lea Audubon Society. Email him at SnoEowl@aol.com.