Lots of things are happening out there right now in the Northern Hemisphere, as animals prepare for the coming winter. Today’s post is full of
interesting facts about everything from black bears to butterflies, aspens and oaks.
WeightWatching – In summer, the North American black bear must amass weight to survive its winter hibernation. It gains as much as 30 pounds a week eating a variety of foods,
such as berries, nuts, fish and leaves.
…
Wow. The colors in the foliage everywhere are changing, and it’s like a living, breathing change, altering the world minute by minute as the
light shifts from east to west and north to south. Who can help but love this time of year!
Today I selected some quotes on nature’s beauty. Enjoy!
“Though we travel the world over to find the beautiful, we must carry it with us or we find it not.” — …
So many rocks – so little time.
Here in New Mexico, that has become my motto.
If you’re not a rock lover, you won’t understand this post. But if you are a rock lover …
I can’t remember when my love of rocks began. I’m sure I was pretty young, because I still have the first rock shop bracelet my dad ever bought for me. No way it fits around my wrist now, but I
can’t bear to part with it. The …
Wow! Have you ever seen a bobcat? We had a chance to get up close and personal with one just this past week. When we got home to our New Mexico adobe, a momma bobcat
and her half-grown kitten were hanging around in our yard!
No reason to call animal control – because we live parttime in an addition of homes in the scrub desert of New Mexico, and we share the area with wild creatures who are used to sharing their habitat
with …
These hot September afternoons I’m looking for the shade of the tree, a place to relax and contemplate the change of the seasons.
Today, I’ll read once again this poem by Robert Frost, and think about it. Will you join me?
“I have wished a bird would fly away,
And not sing by my house all day;
Have clapped my hands at him from the door
When it seemed as if I could …
It’s in the Air.
What?
Hmmm. I think Fall is coming.
Once again, as the days roll past I begin to anticipate fall.
It’s in the air – it’s in the slant of the light.
The days are slightly cooler in the mornings, and the sun rises later and sets earlier. We begin losing daylight quickly, and it won’t be long before leaves begin to turn in the northern states and
higher altitudes. It will be a few weeks before my …
(reprinted from the 2013 Farmer Almanac)
Imagine coming home with bags of salad greens and mushrooms, sacks of delicious nuts and baskets of berries and not having to pay a cent for them. Many people do just that by foraging, gathering
wild edibles in fields, forests, and lawns.
If you’d like to try this, be certain that you identify each plant before eating it: Many have look-alikes that could prove deadly. Be especially careful with mushrooms and berries. Studying
illustrated field …
I am struck by the truth and wisdom of today’s quotes from Aldo Leopold, who is one of the fathers of Conservation. I hope you will read them closely, and
think about them not just today, but all week.
“We abuse land because we regard it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect.” — Aldo Leopold, A Sand
County Almanac
…
From bats to damselfly’s, today’s post offers a variety of information about all things nature. These are more amazing facts from Chris Hardman’s Ecological Calendar
2013.
BatBridge In Houston, Texas, a colony of Mexican free-tailed bats finds shelter under the Waugh Bridge. During the summer, the colony reaches its peak size of about
300,000.
MaizeSilk The strands of silk that protrude out of a head of corn are the elongated stigmas of the …
I’ve been watching the skies – have you?
Once again, we’ve been exposed to treats in the summer skies. Just over a week ago, it was the annual display we call the Perseids. This meteor shower peaked around August 12 – but put on a show for
several nights prior to and after that date. Hopefully, you were in an area unaffected by cloud cover or light pollution, and were able to see the phenomena.
It so happens that I was having …
Mary Coley Writes 