Critters gotta to eat, too

 Now that February is finally drawing to a close, we've been getting the occasional warm-ish day, causing the frozen ground to soften up a bit. I was out in the yard the other day and I noticed numerous little piles of mud erupted out of the grass. These piles of mud are joined by long ridges of disrupted soil, soft and mushy underfoot. Are you curious yet? This is the handiwork of moles. I suppose most homeowners would get upset over this defacement of their grass, but it really doesn't bother me that they're out there busily tunneling across our yard. Moles are not rodents and they don't hibernate. They're active during winter and they are insectivores - they eat insects, worms, centipedes, and the like. They're actually helping us by eating various pest insect grubs that are tucked underground, among which are Japanese Beetle larvae. Thank you, moles!
 It pains me to see the various poisons in garden centers that are used to kill not only insect pests, but moles too. I prefer to let nature operate undisturbed as much as possible, plus I think moles are interesting little critters.
 One species of mole we have around here is the star-nosed mole. Talk about bizarre - this thing is simply crazy looking! Moles are odd looking to begin with, but the star-nosed really kicks it up a notch. It looks like someone gave it one of those cartoon exploding cigars. Here is a good article about them, with photos. While I have seen star-nosed moles out there now & then, the molehills were more likely the work of the eastern mole, the kind that comes to mind when you think "mole". But anyway, why would you want to kill any mole? They're fascinating ( as all creatures are to me ) and they're just doing their job out there.

I extend this same philosophy to spiders and snakes - they're just doing their job. They gotta eat, too. I personally have a strong aversion to spiders. Okay, well, they freak me out. All right, I admit it - they make me scream and jump around as if I grabbed an electric fence... But that's only when I suddenly see one. Once I know where a spider has set up housekeeping, I leave it alone to make a living - giving it a wide berth, mind you. ( This only applies to outdoor spiders. If they're in the house, I'm sorry to say they are, er, disposed of. )
I think spiders and snakes are just as fascinating as any other critter. Last year I was trimming back a clump of irises when I was startled ( okay - I screamed. And jumped around. ) by a large wolf spider in between the sheltering leaves. After I recovered my nerve, I noticed it was sitting on its egg case. Believe it or not, I got my camera & documented it. I liked how it was guarding the egg case. So I worked around it and left those few leaves standing there, which served the double purpose of saving the spider and avoiding putting my hands anywhere near it. Eventually, it moved on. But there's more of 'em out there - LOTS more - doing their jobs and eating insects.

                                                         
                                                       Arachnid mother love


As to snakes, we leave them alone too. I'm not freaked out by snakes like I am by spiders. I used to catch them when I was a kid. We never kill snakes. ( I hope you don't either! ) They're another helpful creature to have around the yard & gardens, since they eat all manner of things, many of which are garden pests. We commonly see garter snakes and black rat snakes here. We see garter snakes quite often around our yard. I frequently come across one as I'm weeding the landscaped areas. We see them all the time in the vegetable garden, which is great since insects are a large part of their diet. It's nice to know that they're out there patrolling for pests and helping us.

 

                                          Garter snake - a helpful garden ally


 We don't see black rat snakes as often - maybe two or three times a summer - often enough to know they're out there. These snakes are quite large, often 6 feet long. They eat a lot of mice and chipmunks. Unfortunately, they also eat birds. But that's part of nature - snakes gotta eat, too. You might recall my first blog post about bluebirds - we install snake-proof guards under the bluebird boxes. Yeah, snakes gotta eat, but we put the bird boxes there so we have to be responsible about it!
 One summer Mr. Curious & I were doing yard work when suddenly there was a shrill racket and commotion in one the rhododendron bushes. Robins were screeching and fluttering around the bush. I guess you know where I'm going with this... The robins had a nest with young in there and a rat snake had found it. By the time we got close enough to see it, the snake was coiled around the nest - and the young robins. It sat there looking like a nightmarish fist clenching the birds. Beaks protruded from the coils at different angles. Rat snakes are powerful constrictors. We let nature take its course. At first it was horrifying. I hate to see any animal die. But it's life, too. So we crouched there and watched. Then I ran for my camera. It was actually an awe-inspiring spectacle. And it's astonishing how a small snake mouth can unhinge and consume a nearly grown robin! The snake ate 3 birds. Below is a picture of it with its body stretched out of proportion, stuffed with young robins.

                                                           I need a nap now

It's also cool how a creature with no appendages can expertly climb trees and shrubs. I have to say that this was one of the most amazing things I've ever witnessed in nature. Hard to watch, but amazing. Shocking, perhaps, to some of you. But nature needs predators to keep things in check. If not for moles, spiders, and snakes ( not to mention bats and countless other creatures ) we would be completely overrun with bugs, mice, and what have you. It would be impossible to grow anything, diseases would spread - it would be a disaster of epic proportion. Usually when you think of predators, you think of the big mammals like tigers & wolves. But you don't need to watch a documentary to see predators in action - just think smaller and you'll see all the action you ever wanted to see. Thousands of little life & death dramas play out every day in our yards & gardens. That's how it is, and how it should be. Critters gotta eat. And their quest for food can provide the curious and observant person with some incredible experiences! I'm quite happy to live here, thank you very much, with a lumpy lawn, spiderwebs festooning the gardens, and snakes hanging from the shrubs. So, who's ready to come over for a cookout this summer? Ha!

Groundhogs & Grandpa - a legacy of curiosity

Today is Groundhog Day. Every year it brings vivid memories of my grandfather. I give him a lot of the credit for my lifelong fascination with the natural world. Although I'm pretty sure I was just born curious & outdoorsy, he did much to really bring it out of me. When I was a kid I often spent a few weeks staying with him and Grandma during summer vacation. They lived in a 150 year old house on several acres at the edge of the suburbs. Oh, how I loved going to stay with them! To me, it was a kingdom to explore. There was a small creek running through the middle of the property and Grandpa had built a little wooden bridge over it. Beyond the bridge he mostly let things alone, so it was brambly and overgrown there, with a small woods. I spent countless happy days roaming through this mini paradise, making forts and castles with branches and building little dams in the creek. Grandpa showed me how to flip over stones in the creek to find crayfish and answered the typical thousand questions a kid can come up with.

There was a groundhog burrow by the creek, and Grandpa spent hours in front of the hole, sitting motionless on a lawn chair holding rye crackers until finally he tamed the groundhog. I can't say how long it took him to win the critter's confidence; it seemed to me at the time that it had always been that way. I can never forget going out to the burrow with him to feed it. He did his best to get me to sit quiet and still in my lawn chair, cracker in my outstretched hand. And I did it! I was ecstatic when the groundhog slowly came towards me, took the cracker, and then sat there in front of us nibbling away. Somehow the local newspaper became aware of Grandpa's tame groundhog and did a little piece on it. Grandpa cut it out of the paper and hung it over his desk in the kitchen. I have the article now. I framed it and put it over my desk and I smile every time I look at it:

 

 

 

                                                      Thank you, Grandpa


I can recall every detail of those days - the dry and tasteless rye crackers ( of course I tried them! ) and the maroon metal cigar tin in which they were kept on the screened porch railing. The hollow sound my feet made on the old wood floor when I ran across the porch to get the tin. Grandpa telling me to calm down and be patient... One time we were out there by the burrow at dusk when I was startled by a sudden noise overhead in the trees. I was scared, but he explained to me that it was a screech owl, it wasn't going to bother me, that was just its call, it was looking for mice, etc. I settled back down in my chair, absorbing my newfound owl knowledge.

Grandpa also made apple cider. There were two ancient drooping Baldwin apple trees in the yard which yielded bushel baskets of sweet and tangy fruit. He had a cider press and would sit in his trusty lawn chair out by the porch, pressing and straining. Honeybees and yellowjackets would be hovering around him in a cloud and crawling on his arms. I was alarmed at first until he once again exerted his influence over me, teaching me to be quiet and patient and enjoy nature. He told me that if I didn't swat at them and hurt them, they wouldn't hurt me; they were just looking for food, and if I held still they would just crawl around tickling me and licking up the sweet juice. He was right of course. I actually held out my hand and let a bee crawl on it. I always think of that, too, now that we are beekeepers.

I also must give some recognition to my grandmother ( on my dad's side ) for my appreciation of nature. Granny had bird feeders on her back porch, and I would stand at the window with her, watching the birds as she explained to me what each bird was. The winter wind would be making the hanging feeders sway while we were toasty warm in the kitchen with the little potbelly stove. In summer she told me stories about "Jenny Wren" as we watched house wrens darting in & out of the birdhouses on the fence posts. One summer she pointed out an oriole nest to me, hanging high in the maple tree by the driveway. Their house was out in the country surrounded by cornfields. She told me tales of wandering the fields and picking berries. It was another little paradise to me and I spent hours in those fields. One time I found a ring-necked pheasant nest and was totally smitten by the clutch of beautiful greenish-brown eggs. I took one and kept it as a souvenir. In retrospect, Granny should have made me put it back; maybe she suggested that and I resisted; I can't remember. Anyway, I saved the egg and brought it home with me. Then I took it to school for show and tell. I do remember that. How could I forget it?!  I had an old egg in a baggie in my bookbag. You can guess what happened... I proudly brought it out & plopped it on my desk, where it exploded and funked up the whole room with an awful stench. The teacher had to open the windows... luckily I was only in 3rd grade, so my embarrassment wasn't too traumatic. Served me right for egg stealing!

 I still enjoy exploring, patiently observing any creature I find, flipping over rocks in creeks to find crayfish and salamanders, and peeking into bird nests. When I was a kid I made countless collections of feathers, shells, dead bugs, rocks, bones - you name it & I had it glued to cardboard and labeled. Nowadays I take photos instead. Well, I do tend to keep interesting rocks. And bones, mostly skulls. Okay, I have a hummingbird nest too. But mostly photos.

                                                        the hummingbird nest


So I'm very grateful to Grandpa and Granny for instilling in me a wonder and curiosity for the outdoors. Their legacy has given me a lifetime of enjoyment. It also illustrates how powerful the little things can be. My grandparents didn't spend a lot of money on me, but they did spend a lot of time. Quality time teaching me things while having fun at the same time. Now, I try to pay it forward, doing the same things with my nieces and nephews and anyone else who will listen to me. Frankly, I can't help myself!

Happy Groundhog Day!