Site Discussions

Dave, GREAT article!  I did a similar method years ago!  One thing you neglected to mention: providing a “foundation” for the stacks.  I used cinder blocks and 2x6s as the base, allowing no ground contact. Thanks, Bruce

Fascinating article. Thank you.

Maybe the dragonflies are gathering there to feast on other insects that are coming for a sip of nectar?

We are retired and live on 5 acres of land retained from our farming years.  We are blessed to have Mourning Doves every year.  This year we had about 100 of them here and absolutely loved it!  Now, in October, we have had some cold temps, they are gone.  We truly miss them.  My husband takes such delight watching and listening to them.  I do also.  We miss them during the winter months but look forward to having them back next year!

There are so many sound variations, and even after a couple of hard frosts, I’m still hearing katydids during these warm days. Here’s a good resource for the sounds of specific species: http://songsofinsects.com/.

I was happy to see your very accurate article! It’s difficult to find correct information about these species online, because wives tales often predominate. One thing I will mention though, is that shrews do eat bird seed. They will also eat sweet corn that is cut off the cob and offered to them in a cage situation. At Blendon Woods Metro Park in Columbus Ohio, there is usually one shrew that lives directly under the bird feeder near Walden Nature Center. This shrew is overweight and eats bird seed predominantly.

What should I do with the tadpoles that are in my fountain? I have to empty for the winter as the fountain cannot have frozen water in it or it will crack.  Can I take the tadpoles out and put them in a near by pond?  I live in Middle Tennessee and we can get cold winters.

It was just after 9pm on a mid October night. When I went outside to the back porch to put some recycling away. It was then that I heard the scurry of leaves and the nipping noises. I had a flashlight that had a red cover on it if there were animals in my back yard I wouldn’t scare them off with the bright white light. That’s when I saw their sleek grey bodies. Their long black tails with just a tip of white at the ends.They sauntered on the edge of forest line and then right across my lawn. As they moved they were sniffing the ground forging for anything they could find. They moved slowly but gracefully. They were so beautiful. I am unsure if they were male and female or siblings. They crossed to the other side of the lawn reaching the forests edge where they followed it until it led them into the woods. I was sorry to see my new little friends leave. I do hope they return. I am anxious to see them again.

We have a sugar maple in the backyard which is split forming a v shape a couple of feet up. I have seen this many times in other trees.  I have often wondered what causes this, as opposed to having one single trunk. The tree is about three feet in diameter just under the split so I would estimate the tree to be one hundred or more years old. I’m wondering what causes this. Any ideas?

The songs of crickets, Katydids, Grasshoppers, and Locust are the song of summer. 

Do you happen to know which Katydid/Grasshopper is the one that sounds like teeth chattering? 

Why can’t infected moose be sprayed to save their lives instead of letting them die?

It all depends on the wood. If I saw someone trying to split with an axe I’d gladly pick up a beer and sit back and laugh. Our spongy black pine will bounce an axe like a thick piece of rubber. Maul is the only way to go here in the PNW.

Just wondering, I have tadpoles in a small water fountain base, bought seaweed for them, My fountain will freeze solid, Will they live thru winter in the solid ice?

Thanks Dave. As an emerging writer, it is always nice to hear these reminders in a down-to-earth tone with a bit of humor :)

Enjoyed reading this, especially your paragraph on creativity.

Was ready to smack you aside the head at the beginning of the article but you redeemed yourself by the second paragraph in regard to our mothers’ wisdom in sampling plants of our forests and fields. Good job.

We have a couple of what I believe are big-leaf maples. The leaves come on sooner in the spring and shed much later in the fall. In fact most other trees have already turned and shed before these leaves have even started to turn. My thinking is genetics developed over the years from perhaps a colder climate these trees were indigenous to originally. Any thoughts?

Here in Red Hook, Dutchess County, we’ve had an unusually tick free season - from spring through fall.  We have a dog and cat and we spend a lot of time walking our property - 35 acres of woodlands and meadows (with trails).  Few ticks on pets and no ticks on my wife or self.  I’m guessing it was the unusually warm winter with the heavy late snow in March.  We do have more chipmunks than I’ve ever seen before.

In response to your comment, HRC, yes, if you kill all the deer on an island and don’t let any more back on, Lyme rates drop. But this doesn’t really apply in any practical way to mainland areas, where there isn’t a natural barrier that prevents reestablishment and (thankfully) the idea of deer elimination is a non-starter.

Sandra, if you’re in an area where bears pass through, I recommend against leaving food around outside. However, from a chipmunk perspective, they would be delighted to add your shelled seeds to their winter larders. See: http://northernwoodlands.org/outside_story/article/chipmunk