Column: Al Batt, Nature’s World

My neighbor Crandall stops by.

“How are you doing?” I ask.

“Everything is nearly copacetic. Winter doesn’t agree with me. It’s so cold, I can’t feel my toes.”

“They feel like fingers, only shorter,” I add helpfully.

“You are unusually unusual. There aren’t enough days in the weekend for me to avoid everything I should be doing. My thermometer never seems to tell the correct temperature. It always reads warm. Weasel says it’s because it gets direct sunlight. He says I should stick that thermometer where the sun doesn’t shine. A fellow could take that more than one way. I stopped at the Grab N Gulp. Thoughts of Santa’s flying venison always make me hungry. Gertrude with the Attitude was waitressing. I was generous enough to leave her a coupon for another restaurant as a tip and she still had the gall to say to me, ‘In case you happen to lose your wallet, just remember that you didn’t pull it out here.’ I offered to lend her a nice tip.”

“You are a brave man,” I say. “That’s a big cut on your head. How did that happen?”

“Gertrude hit me with some tomatoes.”

“I can’t imagine how tomatoes could make a cut like that,” I remark.

“They were still in the can when they hit me.”

In the backyard

When you go outside tomorrow, take a good look at the first wild creature you see — bird or mammal. Learn something new about your subject. Put up a bird feeder and pay attention to the visitors. According to The Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s FeederWatch, the bird most likely to appear at your feeder in the winter is the downy woodpecker. The rest of the top 10 in descending order are black-capped chickadee, dark-eyed junco, blue jay, American goldfinch, white-breasted nuthatch, northern cardinal, hairy woodpecker, house sparrow and house finch.

Q and A

“How large does a wild turkey get?” The largest on record was a bit over 37 pounds.

“How can I tell if it is a tundra or a trumpeter swan?” Trumpeter swans are the largest native waterfowl species in North America. A tundra swan is nearly as large as a trumpeter and both have a white plumage and black bills. Field guides state that a tundra swan has a yellow spot at the base of the bill near the eye. This is a good identifier, but not all tundra swans have this yellow spot. Trumpeters do not have this yellow spot. The trumpeter’s bill is longer than the bill of tundra. These slight differences make accurate identification difficult in the wild. The two birds are more readily distinguished by the differences in their calls. The trumpeter swan has a deep, loud trumpet-like call. The tundra swan has a high-pitched, quavering call that sounds similar to a Canada goose.

“What is a group of rabbits called?” The most common collective noun for rabbits is “herd.”

Nature lessons

Most woodpeckers have zygodactyl feet — two toes in front and two in back. This allows for a tighter grip on vertical surfaces.

When I was a boy, I called the rough-legged hawk the “Christmas hawk” because of its appearance during our winters.

Purple martin numbers have decreased 78 percent since 1966, but you could see up to 80,000 of them roosting on Lake Osakis in late August.

At least 100 million birds are killed and more are injured each year in North America by collisions with windows.

Christmas gift ideas for nature lovers

There are so many wonderful Christmas gifts for those who love nature. Here are a few.

Bird feeders. The best ones are sturdy and easy to fill. A birdbath heater. Birds bathe regularly because clean feathers are warm feathers. Warm gloves and socks for humans, not birds. A squirrel baffle. A pole or umbrella baffle will help deter squirrels from their quests to rob feeders. Bird feed — sunflower seed, nyjer, safflower seed and suet. Field guides. There are field guides for almost everything found outdoors. Wildflower guides can turn a walk into a saunter of discovery. Get an insect guide because we each have wondered what kind of a bug that is. Bird field guides. My favorite is the “National Geographic Society’s Birds of North America,” but other good ones include: “Peterson’s Guide to the Birds East of the Rockies,” the “Golden Guide to Birds of North America,” “Ken Kauffman’s Birds of North America,” “Stan Tekeila’s Birds of Minnesota,” and “The Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Eastern North America.” I prefer guides with paintings rather than photographs. I think the paintings more accurately portray the birds in a usable fashion. Calendars, stationery or notecards featuring birds and mammals. Bird posters such as the Birds of the Garden Winter and Birds of the Garden Summer. A membership to the Audubon Society, the Izaak Walton League or a local bird club. An annual permit sticker good for admission to all the state parks. CDs of bird songs. A Federal Duck Stamp. This stamp gives free admission to the National Wildlife Refuges and nearly all the money paid to buy the stamp goes toward habitat preservation. Binoculars. Binoculars are to birding as a football is to a quarterback. A good pair of binoculars gives a good field of view, is able to focus quickly, fits into the hands well, absorbs a bit of bouncing around, can take some rain and fog, and allows the user to see objects near and far. Binoculars in the seven- and eight-power range are great for looking at birds. Try them out before you buy.

Make your birds count

Please join me by counting the birds in your neighborhood or at feeders. The Albert Lea Christmas Bird Count will take place on Tuesday, Dec. 28. Please contact me at 845-2836 or at snoeowl@aol.com for information on reporting birds.

Thanks for stopping by

“Live your life each day as you would climb a mountain. An occasional glance toward the summit keeps the goal in mind, but many beautiful scenes are to be observed from each new vantage point. Climb slowly, steadily, enjoying each passing moment; and the view from the summit will serve as a fitting climax for the journey.” — Harold B. Melchart

“In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous.” — Aristotle

DO GOOD.

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