Blue bird house
May 17, 2011
By dnpjames

Our baby bluebirds fledged this AM leaving behind in the nest, one unhatched egg and a dead and emaciated downy woodpecker. Strange?

After all these years later, bluebird observation remains a joy and a privilege
December 1, 2010
By Barbara Baird

Chuck and I began coming to Galena in the summer of 1994. Our number one stopping off place was the Wild Turkey Bed and Breakfast. Their array of bird life was stunning, and we soon became addicted to Galena and all of its natural beauty.

Birds had always been a top priority with us, but it was here that we became serious birders.

It didn't take long to become involved with the Natural Area Guardians. They provided the educational opportunities to learn about the care of bluebirds, wildflower identification, fire control, bird counts, and a whole host of other environmental topics.

We soon bought property and erected our first bluebird house. A nesting pair took up residence shortly thereafter. At this time, my personal experience with bluebirds was very limited. At the workshops we were advised to monitor the boxes at least once a week. That was no problem since our weekly visits to Galena were a must.

Our bluebird box soon held eggs and then babies. I had no idea that baby bluebirds were dark in color. The nest appeared to hold a batch of lifeless brown feathers. How could this be a healthy nest of bluebirds?

Since my confidence was so lacking, I decided to call the bird lady: Grace Storch. Her reputation and expertise were widespread. She didn't hesitate a minute and was on the scene in a very short time. Grace removed the whole nest from its shelter and revealed to me a living, breathing example of tiny bluebird babies clothed in brown feathers. They were content and all was right with the world.

Golden Crowned Kinlet of Morley Road, Elizabeth, Illinois
October 14, 2010
By Rich Mattas

I was walking the dogs through the woods on our property in early October and spotted a tiny bird flitting among the branches. I was upset with myself for not having my binoculars with me, but the bird obliged by perching about ten feet away. It stayed long enough to be identified as a golden crowned kinglet, and I have added another bird to my life list.

Henslow's Sparrows at Wapello
May 21, 2010
By Jeff Horn

The Henslow's Sparrows have stuck around at Wapello, and Sedge Wrens are present now as well!

Cold, Wet Weather Bluebird Fatalities
May 18, 2010
By Sheila Weydert

Check your bluebird boxes! With last weeks very cold rainy weather, it was so sad to see 5 bluebirds dead in their nest with only a couple days left until fledge.

Highway 20 Whirlabout
May 17, 2010
By Guigo Aviani

16 pelicans flying over the US 20 bridge at Dubuque -- what a way to stop traffic!

Bluebird in the White Snow
January 7, 2010
By M.Birder

I still find it a thrill to see a cardinal in the wintertime, that outrageous almost-sinful red siren against a field of white and black. But today's sighting just about made me jump and shout: the flash of brilliant blue in a snowstorm on my muffled early-morning dog walk. I prefer a background of spring green leaves, but a splash of blue on brilliant blinding blowing white made a beautiful start to the day.

One Man's Weeds...
January 7, 2010
By jankowski

This fall, I decided that I wouldn't trouble myself with the task of cutting down and then forking under the miscellaneous wild flower and weed remnants still "decorating" our rain garden, backyard, and vegetable garden. Turned out to have been a great idea. Not only have I seen more of my neighborhood's typical winter visitors, but I've had the opportunity to spy real strangers, including chickadees, cow birds, grackles and even a small flock of cedar waxwings that hung around one afternoon last week. One bird that I've only seen rarely, and in very small numbers, has been the mourning dove. Last year, I typically counted twenty in my backyard on any given winter day. This year, the most I've counted has been three. Anyone else notice a decline?

Finally, my family has been adopted by a starling named "Loki." He has become a most cherished but also very needy member of our clan. He needs protein; and while he seems satisfied with the dog food we offer him, I'd like to keep his diet a bit diversified. Sooooo...if there are any Guardians willing to part with any of their pesticide-free ladybugs, box elder bugs, millipedes, etc.--DEAD OR ALIVE--please e-mail me to make the necessary arrangements. I can be reached at jankowski8@verizon.net. No reasonable offer will be refused!

End-of-Year Birding
December 31, 2009
By ChuckW

We’ve re-learned a Charlie Winterwood rule of bird observation. If you see a flock of birds, any old flock of starlings, grackles, blackbirds or sparrows, look more closely, you may be pleasantly surprised. For weeks, we’ve looked out the windows and noticed and tried not to pay any attention to the house sparrows. The Blackmores were by last week for lunch and Mary said look—a tree sparrow, oh look again—a song sparrow. They were mixed in with the juncos and the house sparows and we never noticed. So, now, we know to double check for a treat or two, the unusual, mixed in with the ordinary.

One last story, which even Keith Blackmore couldn’t explain: The other day, when the snow was still nice and fluffy, a blue jay landed in the snow and using his wings started to dig a hole in the snow. He dug down to the grass and start pulling out the grass, breaking the stems off. After a few minutes, he started a new hole and then he worked on that hole for quite a while and, finally, before giving up, he dug a third hole. In the hour or so that we’ve been enjoying our coffee and watching the birds the sky went from a dull, lifeless gray to a merry, bright blue. A pleasant note to start the New Year.

Bird Feeder Frenzy
December 21, 2009
By ChuckW

I often write about my bird feeders because nearly every day there’s something new to report. In nearly thirteen years, we’ve never had more than a solitary squirrel and then he was only passing through, just staying for a week or two when the snow cover was the deepest.

I guess I should be grateful. When ever I go into Wild Birds in Galena to buy peanuts for my peanut wreath, there is always someone complaining that the squirrels, raccoons and possums have taken over the their yard. When we were back in the city, some mornings we had more squirrels than birds at the feeders. My neighbor used a “have a heart trap” to trap them and then release them in the cemetery a mile away. However, he always moaned and groaned that they would beat him back home and they would be busy having lunch when he arrived.

Till now, I’ve been happy with our one squirrel and I’m delighted to see him make his first appearance of the year. But now, wait! As I write this, Patty reports another squirrel has just appeared at a different feeder on the other side of the addition. Now two squirrels; perhaps, I’ll have to reconsider what my old neighbor said about first one, then two and then before you know it they’ve taken over the whole yard. But for the moment, I am quite happy to have two beautiful squirrels at the feeders.

For the last couple of days, we have had a small flock of about two dozen birds at the feeders, under the cedars, out front—simply all over the place. We just assumed that they were starlings. We didn’t pay much attention. And then this morning, Patty took a closer look. It turns out that they’re cowbirds. In the summer we’ve often seen a solitary male and in the fall we’ve sometimes seen cowbirds flocking with other blackbirds and grackles getting ready (we thought) to head south, but cowbirds at our feeder in winter is a first. According to Peterson, the cowbird is a year-round resident.

Acrostic, BIRDING
November 11, 2009
By BarbR

Blue skies welcomed the sun

Intrusive gunshots frightening sounds

Refuge offers welcome rest

Ducks by the hundreds, dots against the

Iowa shore

Nearby geese announce their presence

Gossiping about the weather, same as we.

Kamikaze Crashes
November 6, 2009
By ChuckW

Washing the windows had been on my honey-do-list for nearly two years. Patty says three. A couple of weeks ago on a nice fall day, I finally washed the windows. It has been like Armageddon ever since.

Crash! Splat!! Boom!!! Kamikaze birds have been flying into the windows right and left. Fall migratory season makes the whole situation worse. Tiny little warblers, including a magnolia and a black-throated blue, which we probably would never have seen, end up dying on the deck. A goldfinch just went down in the bushes. A couple of cedar waxwings literally hit the deck and a mystery bird or two has met their demise by crashing into the windows.

Before I washed the windows a gray film covered the windows and the windows looked like part of the house’s off-white siding. Now the windows, sparkling clean, look like a passage to greener pastures. Little do the birds realize that what they perceive to be a bucolic heaven is really certain death?

Right now, we’re looking for screening to cover the windows, but she who must be obeyed has declared that I can stop washing windows.

Jays and Redbellied Woodpeckers Unite
November 4, 2009
By ChuckW

Almost three years ago, Joe and Maureen gave us a peanut feeder wreath from Wildbirds. For two years the nuthatches, downy and red-bellied woodpeckers came to the wreath every day. They would hold on tight, often upside down, and peck away at the shells. They would drill a small hole in the shell and either extract the nut or pulverize it and eat it on the spot. A lot of work. It took them three or four days to finish all the nuts.

This year, their modus operandi is completely different. First of all, the downy woodpeckers and nuthatches seem to have been driven off and replaced by a pair of squawking blue jays. The jays and the redbellied woodpeckers have a new system. They pull the nuts, shell and all, out of the wreath and fly off with the whole peanut in their beaks. Occasionally, a red bellied will use the side of the garage to steady the nut while he breaks it open and devours the contents, but more often they fly across the field to the weed trees in the old fence line on the far side of the field, a fair distance. But they’re back in a flash. I don’t know if they’re stashing the nuts someplace or what’s happening, but the birds make the peanuts disappear a lot faster this way. Beats me.

Junco Juju
November 2, 2009
By ChuckW

I said, “It looks like the juncos are back.” She said, "Ugh!” And really, who can blame her? The junco is after all the harbinger of winter. We do forget, however, that with a little bit of luck (for us) the first snows and really cold air won’t blow in from the juncos’ summer home for at least another six weeks.

I thought that I had seen a flash of white tail feathers a week or so ago, but by the time I tried to get a good look, they were gone. But now they’re definitely here and in substantial numbers so that there is no mistaking them for anything else.

I’ve always admired them. Even on the coldest, windiest, nastiest day when every other bird is hidden under a cedar branch, the juncos are all over the ground, under the feeders scavinging anything that that the doves or squirrels might have left behind.

I tried to tell her that the juncos have to get down here early; they don’t want to be caught traveling across Canada or northern Wisconsin in a blizzard. Relax, I said look outside right now, look what a lovely day we have to enjoy right now. But nothing could assuage her. She was in a funk, thinking of winter and ice storms, blizzards and snow drifts. And all because a tiny little bird is out bouncing around the yard.

Falcon's Dinner
Oct. 12, 2009
By Guigo Aviani

I was walking along, thinking, "Oh, no, it can't be another early October snow." But on closer look it wasn't snow, but feathers, everywhere in the sky above me. Then I spied the source: a falcon on a very near ledge was dining on a rock dove.

Blackpoll Warbler Takes a Break
September 26, 2009
By Guigo Aviani

The blackpoll flew into my Galena garden, sat on the end of a yellow cone flower, and ate seed, slowly, for a good hour or more.  Then it rested, as if the flight in from Minnesota was tough and if it really didn't want to migrate further.

Chimney Swifts
August 31, 2009
By Feathers

This Spring I eagerly awaited the return of the chimney swifts as I have for many years. The false chimney on my house had been occupied by the swifts from the beginning, but it took three seasons for them to finally use the one I have on the shed. I take great pleasure in watching them careen around the sky and over the house. As with many species, habitat loss, as well as other factors, has affected swift numbers and I am happy to provide nesting/roosting facilities for one of my favorite birds while they take care of flying insects for the short months they are here. At 8:30, near-dusk on August 2, I again watched with great satisfaction these incredible birds descend the quarters I built just for them. For more info, contact me or go to www.chimneyswifts.org. I would love to help you build your own swift home.

The Thistle Bird
May 27, 2009
By Julie Bruser

The American Goldfinch is a bird of many aliases: wild canary, yellowbird, lettuce bird, and thistle bird, just to name a few. Which name a person uses often reveals a lot about their interests and hobbies.

Serious birders call it by its “official” name of American Goldfinch. Ask a gardening enthusiast and you might hear the name “lettuce bird” due to the bird’s practice of nibbling at the tender young leaves of this vegetable. Most causal birdwatchers simply use the term “wild canary” because its magnificent yellow and black coloration remind them of a pet store canary.

A rarely used, but debatably more accurate name, is “thistle bird.” It has long been known that thistle plants and goldfinch are almost inseparable, and even its genus name, Caruelis, is from the Latin word carduus, meaning “thistle.”

Goldfinches rely heavily on thistle plants as a source of food and for nest-building materials. So much so, that during a research study in Michigan that observed over 250 nests, no nest was ever found more than 300 yards away from an abundant supply of thistle seed.

Goldfinches delay the start of their nesting behavior until the thistles come into bloom so they can anticipate an abundant and reliable supply of seeds for their young. Look for those blossoms any day now, and keep your finch feeder filled with fresh Nyjer® (thistle) seed to welcome the nesting “thistle birds” to your backyard refuge. Wild Birds Unlimited on Main Street in Galena has a fresh supply of seed as well as a variety of finch feeders from which to choose.

Brush There
By JeffH
April 27, 2010

The Indian paintbrush is blooming at Wapello.

Spring's Here Already
By ChuckW
March 7, 2010

Today is a cold, gray, wet, damp, misty, dreary, windy, God forsaken, miserable day. I want to crawl back into bed. I want to sit by the fire and dream that I’m really sitting by the window with the sun streaming in and the birds are flitting back and forth from one feeder to another. I curse under my breath and complain that spring will never get here. Curses!

According to the calendar it’s still two weeks until spring officially arrives. The weatherman has predicted snow showers for next week. Every year, I complain that spring is late—then spring sneaks in, hangs around for just a day or two and then takes off and I never even see it. I never look.

Spring is here right now. The deer have retreated back into the woods; a pair of opossums are not playing possum as they chase each other around the yard. The ice is beginning to break up on the River, the columbine out front is beginning to green up even though they’re still surrounded by melting snow. The birds are beginning to pair off.

Maybe, it’s my imagination, but I think that there are fewer juncos at the feeders. We’ve never seen so many hawks and never have we seen so many eagles this far from the river. If I stay focused, next week I’ll see the maple buds beginning to swell. Slowly, the cedars will recover their green sheen. And if I pay attention and follow the birds, I can see where they built their nests.

It’s time to celebrate. We did it. We survived another winter. Spring is here and every day will be a bit brighter, a bit warmer and a bit lovelier.

Winter Deer and "The Long-Shadowed Forest"
By ChuckW
Febr. 7, 2010

Orginally there were four. The one with the bad leg and the painful limp hasn’t shown up in quite a while, but the other three have been here since the first heavy snow back in November. And even though they’re now “our deer” and we look forward to seeing them every morning, still, we do admit that they are very destructive. And right now, we’re just a bit jealous that instead of being right here, they’re out in the fields with another small group, making nine all together.

Watching the deer this morning reminded me of Helen Hoover, the author of three country books. I got them down and I’ve been reading bits and pieces all morning. She was a fine writer with an observant eye. She also had a great desire to learn everything she could about the life around her. Today, she would be called a citizen scientist. Today, she would be on the internet. Fifty years ago, she did it all by mail and later by phone. She called the local DNR guy, wrote the scientists at Cornell and checked her growing collection of field guides. She wanted to know for herself and she wanted to get it right for her readers.

In the 1950s, they left Chicago, good paying and professionally rewarding careers and moved to the Boundary Waters near Ely, Minnesota. They loved it. Her husband Adrian Hoover, Ade, a professional illustrator, illustrated all Helen’s books. However, he wasn’t handy and it is painful to read about some of the jams he got into around the house and yard and about his scraped knuckles and wounded ego. But they didn’t care that the house would never measure up to the standards of Country Living magazine, that there was, for many years, no electricity, no indoor plumbing, no car, forty miles to town, three miles to the mailbox, impassable roads, no phone, and that the critters ate their gardens.

After twenty years, the paved roads, the telephone poles, easier access for big boats, noise, lights, weekend parties and hunters finally came and drove them away. But what a twenty years it must have been! Maybe they ate too many cans of beans and maybe they didn’t see as many friends as they would have liked, but they lived in one of the last nearly unspoiled places in the lower 48.

They had moved to Minnesota because in the 1950s if you wanted to see white tail deer that was one of the places one had to go, or so they thought. They saw everything, wrote it all down, drew pictures and finally published their stories. The stories are wonderful—the stories about the animals are worth the price of the book, the drawings could be in a museum, but the memories of two people who said that they could live in the country, figure out how to make a living and survive are even better. And for Helen’s readers it is a reminder of how beautiful nature is, how easy we can lose it ( even then, before development came to their neck of the woods, they knew that each year there were fewer and fewer birds) and how we could if we wanted to, live more in harmony with nature. And finally when you’re finished you’ll count the Hoovers as friends.

Her books are: The Long-Shadowed Forest, the Gift of the Deer and The Years of the Forest, Published by The Fesler-Lampert Minnesota Heritage Book Series 1998-1999.

Nice Mice
By ChuckW
Febr. 2, 2010

Now don’t get me wrong, we do not have a mouse problem. We only get a mouse or two every once in a great while. Repeat! We do not have a mouse problem. We’re not like our friends who had a serious mouse problem until a weasel showed up in their attached greenhouse (the breeding and staging area for their mice). But occasionally, we do catch a mouse. Not mice, a mouse. Whenever we catch a mouse I throw the little bugger in the bushes. The other day just for fun to see what would happen, I tossed the carcass on the drive and within an hour it was gone.

I had no idea what could have happened to the little body. Our visiting cats have disappeared for the winter. They must be staying, warm and snug, indoors. The raccoons and opossums, at least the ones by us, are still hibernating and the lone squirrel seems so preoccupied with the bird feeders that he never strays. The crows are nearby, but they never deign to stop by. The next day, I tossed out another mouse and hung around and watched. Quite soon a blue jay showed up. He tossed the little guy around in the air for awhile--probably trying to get a good grip and in moment the jay and the mouse were gone.

Mystery solved. Now I know that when I catch a mouse, he’ll soon be supper for one of “our” many jays.

Bleak and Gloomy — Not! (Brown Thrasher)
By ChuckW
Dec. 18, 2009

"At first, this morning looked just like any other grey, wintry day — bleak and overcast — gloomy and depressing. But a second look lifted my spirits. The yard was full of life.

I don’t know if the birds realized that it was a sad, sorry morning, they were too busy gorging themselves on sunflower seeds and fighting for the best perch on the best feeders.

A hairy and a downy woodpecker were jockeying for position on a suet basket.

I couldn’t help but feel sorry for the mourning dove who, all scrunched together, was simply trying to keep warm, oblivious to all the commotion around him.

The juncos who had just traveled over five hundred miles to be right here were the most energetic.

A regal jay and his buddies had taken over the bird bath and a dainty, delicate looking nuthatch was nearby enjoying breakfast.

The brown thrasher was back. I can’t imagine what he’s doing here or why. Grace confirmed that he should have been long gone by now.

A second cup of coffee and a few minutes at the picture window watching the bird can change any dull drab winter morning into one of life’s small pleasures."

Giant Swallowtail Dazzles Forest Walkers 
By Barbara Rutherford, Laurie Mattas, and Dan Wenny. Fall Forest Walk, Schurmeier Teaching Forest

"The highlight of the event was a sighting of a Giant Swallowtail caterpillar which is camouflaged to look like a bird dropping and, when touched, extends a red, forked projection called an osmeterium."

As Golden Leaves Rained 
By BarbR
Oct. 29, 2009

"11 intrepid birders braved the storied Sentinel Trail yesterday. Skies were cloudy as golden leaves rained around us, prodded by strong gusts of wind. Glistening green moss covered the mammoth rocks overlain with walking fern, columbine,and hepatica among others. Pam Johnson narrowly missed a perfect shot of a piliated. As we headed to lunch, the rain began. We did it!"

Still Wonderful 
By ChuckW
Oct. 14, 2009

"Fall is by far the best time of year. Even this fall has been wonderful. Maybe not terrific, but still wonderful. If you don’t believe me, go outside right now. Day or night, rain or sun, it doesn’t matter. I just came in and I had thought, “Cold, damp and grey, a bitter wind, all in all, a sad sorry day.” Wrong. After I minute or two I forgot about the chill. The wind was different. Only a month ago when the wind blew through the trees, the leaves moved and hummed. Now the leaves are shriveled, ready to drop and when the winds move through the trees, the sound is a rattle. And when the wind moves through the dying corn it is a harbinger of winter, proclaiming that after the corn is harvested the snows will arrive. Today,the rabbits have disappeared, but not for good; I’m afraid. The chickadees, the nuthatches and the titmice are as active as ever. The goldfinches are dominating the feeders and the jays and woodpeckers are devouring the nuts in a Wildbirds’ holiday wreath feeder. The clouds are neither majestic, grand or breathtaking; they are foreboding portentous. We could let the clouds and a bit of rain ruin our trip to Wisconsin tomorrow, but we won’t let it. We’re determined to enjoy the weather, even if we have to search a bit for its beauty."

Rain Birds  
Oct. 1, 2009
By BarbR

"The birding yesterday was fine until the rain commenced.  It is hard to cancel at the last minute, so we had six diehard birders. We were rewarded with many white pelicans, four sandhill cranes, pintail ducks and many others. What happens when it rains?  We keep in touch by radio, followed by lunch. It works."

Dragonfly Drama
Sept. 24, 2009
By BarbR

"Saw a beautiful dragonfly.  Just loved the way it blended into its surroundings so that if you took your eye away, she disappeared."

Pandorous Sphinx Crosses Road
Sept. 17, 2009
By BarbR

"We have had three gorgeous days for the beginning of our fall birding season. We never know what might appear. This morning as we walked on River Rd., we found an interesting larvae crossing to the other side. Charlie identified it as the larvae of the Sphinx moth. Pam Johnson took this great picture."



 

Pelican Pathway
October 1, 2010
By Rich Mattas

A white pelican sighting at Casper.

The Perfect Perch
November 2, 2009
By M.Birder

On a blustery Saturday morning, we headed out to Casper Bluff to see what we could see. Hiking stick in hand, swinging along the mowed path, we first encountered a slow-moving load of cut wood being towed by Dave Casper. With a quick, smiling wave, we pushed on. We only had a little bit of time, but then Casper Bluff is only a little bit south of town. We headed towards the tall woods on our right, sure to find woodpeckers, maybe a hawk. What we actually found was a welcoming bench, perfectly sited to lean against with binoculars in hand, enjoy a picnic lunch in good weather, and simply remember a good friend. Thanks, Pat.

Friendly People
September 12, 2009
By Dave Andersen

While taking a self guided tour of Casper Bluffs, we were greeted by a woman who gave us the grand tour. We had no idea it was an area filled with indian burial mounds. It was so nice that she took time out of her day to show us around. After telling us about the area and showing us the different mounds, she intoduced herself to us. She was, Mrs. Casper, the owner of the property the reserve is on. Thanks again, Mrs. Casper.

Pileated Woodpecker
June 8, 2009
By Birding Enthusiast

While on a walk at Casper Bluff, I was enjoying the views of the site and as I looked up in the trees, saw the biggest woodpecker I have ever seen! I later found out it was a pileated woodpecker. What a magnificant bird!

Casper Count
May 11, 2009
By Feathers

This year we went by the Casper Bluff sign and came to a screeching halt. All three of us said yes, we backed up and we went in for the very first time. Wow! What a place. We didn't have time to walk the trails, but walking to the river overlook we saw four red-headed woodpeckers.  That was terrific.

 

Ornamental Penance
November 2, 2009
By ChuckW

This tale is a warning, so please take heed. About eight years ago, we bought some lovely ornamental grasses. We dug a few holes by the drive, planted them, stepped back and waited. That’s all it took. In a couple of years, we had a lovely, beautiful clump of grass. In late summer and early fall, the seed heads waving in the breeze were gorgeous. Birds would stop by and rest in the top of the bush-like clump of grass or use it as a perch to launch airborne attacks on insects or dive bomb crawling and hopping insects in the lawn. But of course they never ate the sterile seed heads. Even in the dead of winter the deer ignored the dried grasses.

We soon learned that planting non-native grasses was a mistake. No problem—the seed heads were sterile, even the birds didn’t eat them and my mower would get any that spread from the clump; we were safe. I assured my wife “don’t worry” And then, across the road, first one and then two and by now four or five small clumps of ornamental grass are waving in the breeze. The clever little devils have positioned themselves right next to the corn, but not too close to the field so they will be destroyed by the farmer’s plow and herbicide and not too close to the road so they’ll get cut down by the county’s mower.

A learned friend said yes you’re right they don’t reproduce by seeding themselves, but they can and do spread by underground roots. 'All the way under the road, across the ditch and up the opposite side?' I asked. 'You betcha.'

Much to my chagrin, I’ve had to dig up my original clump and like penance every time I look out my front window I see the spreading clumps across the road reminding me to ask first and pay attention."

An Eighteenth Century Prairie Right Outside My Window
Febr. 6, 2010
By ChuckW

As I squinted through half closed eyes this morning, I could see that the clouds were heavy, full of snow, hanging low in the sky, embracing the earth, obscuring the horizon. The mists, the lingering fog and a few swirling snowflakes seemed to hide even more of the landscape, especially the man-made objects, telephone poles, fence posts and out buildings. There had been just enough snow in the night to obliterate the road. The farmland has been covered with snow for over a month and even the corn stubble has disappeared.

As I looked across what in reality is fallow corn ground, I swore that the landscape looked much like it must have looked three hundred years ago. Our house is on top of a small hill and as I looked out and across the fields, all I could see was the original rolling topography of the land. I stayed by the window and continued to scan the fields. I saw paths that the deer had made in the last month or so. Even with the windows closed, I could hear the jays and crows in the weed trees in the ravine at the bottom of the hill. I know that instead of weed trees there would have been oak and hickory, but in my imagination they too were transformed. I know that someplace close by, but out of sight for the moment was the resident redtail, and I knew if I stayed at the window I would see soon see the occasional kestrel as he sweeps low over the fields and even the rarer rough-legged hawk.

It was a sobering sight. For a moment I saw what we had lost. In the kaleidoscope of my mind’s eye, I saw the land transformed over the last two hundred years, the prairie plowed under, the farm plots growing ever bigger, the farm machinery bigger still; the humble homesteads burned and plowed under and later other homes and out buildings abandoned and derelict all in the name of progress. Only the deer and the turkeys remain to remind us that once the land had been a marvel.

There's No Critter Like Home
November 2, 2009
By ChuckW

"Patty is making me a special photo album. It could easily be pics from out west, Greece, San Francisco or any of the other wonderful places we’ve been together. But what I want (and she’s humoring me) is an album of critters from our backyard. I love breathtaking photos of soaring eagles, diving hawks, the unusual American dipper; but I want a photo album of the birds at our feeders, in the trees, on the telephone wires, emerging from a bb box, grabbing a worm from the lawn, eating beetles on the beans, devouring the cherries and mulberries. The list is endless.

"I want a picture of the G_D_ rabbit and her off spring and her grandchildren who feasted on our garden all summer long, the snakes we keep finding in the basement, the ground squirrel who keeps hiding sunflower seeds only to forget about them and then have them sprout in the most curious places. I crave a picture of the once-a-year visit from a hawk sitting in our lilac waiting to catch a slow, dimwitted goldfinch at the feeder; the lone turkey who gets separated from the group and comes wandering into the yard.

"I even want a picture of the deer (plural) that feast on our cedars when the snows refuse to melt and cover the earth with ice. I want pictures of the views, the horizon when the corn has been harvested and the vistas are restored; the moon hanging in the sky, the clouds moving toward us from the west bringing rain and possibly more.

"I can’t explain why I find these simple everyday pictures so appealing, but I’ll trade all the pictures of far away places for ones of our home place."

Spring 2011
By Jeff Horn, JDCF Land Stewardship Specialist

In my previous post, bobcats (Lynx rufus) were highlighted and their importance in the ecosystem established. They have adapted to the changing landscape over time, as have the other plants and animals native to the area. In this post, we’ll discuss the feral cat (Felis catus) and its impact on those native species.

The domestic cat was brought over mainly by European settlers on their ships and then became part of American farms. Their numbers have increased dramatically in recent years, and over 100 million cats are now estimated to live in the United States, with between 10-50 million of those being “feral” or free-ranging. The feral cat is a solitary species that mainly eats mice, birds, and reptiles. An average adult cat weighs 8-11 pounds with an average total length of 30 inches. They can have multiple litters per year and average three kittens/litter. Research indicates that the survival rate of feral cats is under 20%, so about one of every five cats born outside is surviving to adulthood. Male cats in Illinois can have home ranges of over 500 acres in size. Females have ranges of about half that size or less.

The impact of feral cats on the environment is difficult to quantify, but their role as a vector of diseases has been well documented. Cats are the definitive host for Toxoplasmosis gondii, a protozoan that causes illness and death in many different wildlife species and humans. They can also transmit several other diseases to wildlife, livestock, pets, and humans.

Another documented role of cats is that of predator. Cats impact wildlife by reducing prey and making it harder for native predators to find food. Many cats receive food from humans, thus maintaining higher densities than native predators and dramatically influencing wildlife populations. Cats have decimated entire populations of animals on islands. Patches of forest and prairie fragments in Illinois are similar to islands, and the impact of cats on these fragmented populations could also be severe.

Pet owners can take steps to prevent their cat from impacting its environment. First, limit or prevent cats from going outside. The Audubon Society has launched a Keep Cats Indoors program which educates the public on the importance of keeping cats indoors. Second, provide proper veterinary care for your pets. The disease-related impact can be limited if all cat owners keep their cats vaccinated. Third, place bird feeders or other wildlife attractants out of the reach of cats. Studies show that cats will capture prey if they are well fed.

As conservationists we should not only be mindful of the impact we have on our environment, but also the impact our pets have. I would also caution our readers that there is a great deal of information is available regarding cats, but much of it is not peer- reviewed, unbiased, or scientific in nature. For further reading I recommend the following peer-reviewed scientific articles:

• Warner, R. E. 1985. Demography and movements of free-ranging domestic cats in rural Illinois. Journal of Wildlife Management 49:340-346.
• Gutilla, D. C., and P. Stapp.2010. Effects of sterilization on movements of feral cats at the wildlife-urban interface. Journal of Mammalogy 91:482-489.

Winter 2011
By Jeff Horn, JDCF Land Stewardship Specialist

With the onset of winter, I thought it would be a good time to write about the elusive bobcat. It is difficult to see this animal in the wild but easier to find signs of them in the snow.

The bobcat has a short tail, hence the name. They stand about two feet high at the shoulders and average three feet in length. Males weigh around 22 pounds, with females being 25% smaller. Their fur is brownish or grayish with black spots. They also have distinctive black-tipped pointed ears and white spots on their backs.

As a biologist, I have always been amazed by the skill and agility of cats as hunters. They will often stalk their prey, but can also sit and wait for hours for prey to go by and will then pounce. The bobcat is a strict carnivore; its diet consists mainly of rabbits, voles, and squirrels. They are also known to eat mice, woodchucks, chipmunks, opossums, muskrats, shrews, and deer. Bobcats will attack a deer as it sleeps and suffocate it by biting its throat. They will then cover the carcass with snow or leaves to eat later.

Bobcats occupy a variety of habitats across their range. Here in Illinois they use mainly forested lands with immature trees, thick underbrush, clearings, cliffs and timbered swamps. Common homes include fallen trees, hollow logs or trees, thickets, caves and rock piles. Some bobcats make their dens in abandoned or little-used barns and buildings.

Like most felids, bobcats are solitary animals. The male and the female interact during the mating season, but interactions between the same sex are very rare. Bobcats have home ranges of several square kilometers and sometimes cross the entire area in one night. Male home ranges will overlap with female ranges, but not with ranges of other males.

Bobcats were once common in Illinois but declined due to trapping, hunting, and habitat destruction. They were listed as a threatened species in Illinois from 1977-1999, but have increased in recent years. They are now seen more frequently, especially in southern Illinois.

A study conducted in southern Illinois found that 61% of the core areas used by bobcats are forested, therefore destruction or loss of that habitat is detrimental to the species. Free-ranging domestic (Felis catus) cats may also cause problems. They compete for many of the same prey species and can spread several diseases — such as Toxoplasmosis gondii — to bobcats as well as other wildlife, pets, and humans. This disease is spread through oocytes shed in the feces; these oocytes can remain viable for months in the soil. It is important to keep your cats inside to prevent these interactions. More to come on feral cats in a future post.

Fall 2010
By Jeff Horn, JDCF Land Stewardship Specialist

The monarch butterfly is perhaps the best known of all North American butterflies. Its wings feature an easily recognizable orange and black pattern, with a wingspan of 3.5 to 4 inches. The monarch is famous for its southward migration and northward return in the summer in the Americas, the only butterfly to migrate this way and this far, some 2,500 miles. However, no single individual makes the entire round trip.

Monarch butterflies go through four stages during one life cycle and through four generations in one year. The four stages are the egg, the larvae, the pupa (chrysalis), and the adult butterfly. The four generations are actually four different butterflies going through these four stages during one year until it is time to start over again with stage one and generation one. In February and March, the final generation of hibernating monarchs comes out of hibernation to mate. They then migrate north and east in order to find a place to lay their eggs. This starts stage one and generation one of the new year for the butterfly.

In March and April the eggs are laid on milkweed plants. In about four days they hatch into baby caterpillars, also called the larvae. The young caterpillars don’t do much more than eat the milkweed in order to grow. After about two week, the caterpillar will be fully grown and find a place to attach itself so that it can start the process of metamorphosis. It will attach itself to a stem or a leaf using silk and transform into a chrysalis. Although, from the outside, the 10 days of the chrysalis phase appears to be a time of little action, it is really a time of rapid change. Within the chrysalis, the old parts of the caterpillar are undergoing a remarkable transformation, called metamorphosis, to become the beautiful parts that make up the butterfly that will emerge. When the adult butterfly emerges, it will fly away, feeding on flowers for only two to six weeks. This first generation monarch will then die after laying eggs for generation number two.

The second generation of monarch butterflies is born in May and June, and then the third will be born in July and August. These monarchs will go through exactly the same four stage life cycles as the first generation did, dying two to six weeks after becoming a butterfly.

The fourth generation is a bit different than the first three. It is born in September and October and goes through the same process as the first three with the exception that it does not die after two to six weeks. Instead, this generation of Monarchs migrates to warmer climates in parts of California and Mexico and live for six to eight months until it is time to start the entire process over again.

Monarchs cannot survive in the cold winters across most of the United States, so they migrate south and west each autumn to escape the weather. If the monarch lives in the eastern part of the country (east of the Rockies) it will migrate to Mexico and hibernate in oyamel fir trees. If the butterfly lives west of the Rockies, it will generally hibernate in central coastal and southern California, notably in eucalyptus trees in Pacific Grove and Santa Cruz. Despite the fact that these are the new forth generation monarchs, they use the exact same trees as their predecessors year after year. How the species manages to return to the same over wintering spots over a gap of several generations is still a subject of research.

Given the large population of monarchs, that gather to migrate each season, estimated at up to 100 million by the organization, Monarch Watch, it is hard to imagine that the species could face any threat of extinction. The reality is, however, that monarchs and their migration are seriously threatened by human activities in both their summer and overwintering sites. In the north, monarchs face direct habitat destruction cause by new roads, housing developments, and agricultural expansion, all of which alter the natural landscapes the monarchs call home. They also face the loss of their Milkweed host plant which is considered noxious by many people and therefore destroyed. In their southern range, logging and population pressures threaten the monarchs overwintering sites. Conservation groups such as Monarch Watch are responding with efforts such as the Monarch Project, which works to protect these sites in California most often through conservation easements on lands that are prime monarch habitats.