The only way to stop a duck’s tail from curling is by taking away its little broom

This Mallard drake has recurved black central tail feathers, which give him the curly-tailed look he seeks. The only way to stop it from curling is by taking away its little broom. Photo by Al Batt

Naturally
“Dead skunk in the middle of the road. And it's stinkin' to high heaven.”
Loudon Wainwright III crooned that love song. The first dead skunk I saw on the road near the end of my driveway this year was on February 10. Settled into its winter home, the striped skunk becomes dormant but doesn’t enter a full state of hibernation. It goes into torpor—a deep sleep from which it awakes occasionally. As the season changes from winter to spring, skunks emerge to seek mates and sometimes get in harm’s way as the one did on the road at the end of my drive. Striped skunks are a polygamous species and a male takes multiple mates from late February through April. The scientific name for the striped skunk is Mephitis mephitis, meaning “bad odor” or “noxious vapor.” The word “skunk” comes from an Algonquin word.

I heard woodpeckers drumming. I typically hear them beginning in mid-January and regularly in February. They drum most frequently in the morning. Drumming rates are highest before nesting, lower during nesting and increase after the young fledge. Both sexes drum. Drumming is a response to longer day length and helps establish and maintain breeding territory, attracts a mate, maintains contact and strengthens pair bonds.

I have a heated dog dish that sits on a stand. It has an armored electrical cord to keep animals from gnawing on it. It works well as a bird waterer. When cleaning the dish, I discovered a mouse had entered through the hole for the cord and built a nest under the dish. It had an apartment with a heated ceiling and the rent was reasonable. It didn’t have to break out the long underwear.

I’m noticing more yellow on the bills of starlings. A starling’s bill is dark in winter, but begins turning yellow as the breeding season nears.

Q&A
“What kind of mixed seed should I put in my bird feeder?” None. I don’t use seed mixes in a feeder. Too much goes uneaten, clogs the feeder or falls to the ground. I use single ingredients in a feeder and like black oil sunflower seeds the best. I also feed nyjer seeds for the finches. Occasionally, I put millet on the ground when there are large numbers of native sparrows (which includes juncos) around. I offer suet and peanuts, and some folks feed safflower seeds to lessen squirrel activity at the feeders. I enjoy providing room service to the birds at my feeders. Busy feeders mean I’ve gotten many referrals. Feeding birds provides a positive therapeutic effect on those who feed their avian amigos. I know it makes me happy. Watching birds is one of the greatest shows on earth.
“Last year, I watched a male cardinal feeding sunflower seeds to a grosbeak. Why was it doing that? And do cardinals mate for life?” He wanted to offer you a photo opportunity. Male cardinals occasionally feed nestlings or fledglings of other species, although not because they have taken over another bird’s nest. This may happen because another chick is begging nearby and the cardinal has a strong parental instinct. Birds often feed babies that aren’t their own. The instinct to stuff food in an open mouth is strong. Perhaps the threat of not feeding one of your hungry chicks is greater than the risk of feeding someone else’s. A brown-headed cowbird will lay an egg in a cardinal’s nest and the cardinal will raise the cowbird as its own. I’ve watched a male cardinal fly down to the edge of a pond and feed koi. Cardinals don’t mate for life and new pairs form during the breeding season, although some cardinals remain paired on the breeding territory all year and others get amicable divorces.
“Why doesn’t a duck’s quack echo?” A quack can be a fading sound, with a gradual decay, making it difficult to tell the difference between the quack and the echo, but a duck’s quack echoes.
“Do opossums carry rabies?” Any mammal can get rabies, but it’s extremely rare for an opossum to contract the viral disease. It’s believed that the low body temperature of an opossum inhibits the virus and makes it difficult for it to survive.
“When does the sap run?” Maple sap runs best when daytime temperatures are in the high 30s to mid-40s and overnight temperatures are below freezing. In Minnesota, sap usually runs from March 15 to April 20, but the dates can vary. Sap is converted to syrup by boiling, taking 40 gallons of sap on average to produce one gallon of maple syrup.

Thanks for stopping by
“I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought, and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.”—G.K. Chesterton.
“An early-morning walk is a blessing for the whole day.”—Henry David Thoreau.
Do good.

©Al Batt 2022

Minnesota State (20-5) defeated Winona State 78-55. Joey Batt (shooting in photo) had 14 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists. Emily Russo scored 14, Tayla Stuttley tacked on 10 points and 5 assists, and Mikayla Nachazel added 10 points and 5 rebounds.

Ratchet-jawing on the radio about birds and such.

Joey Batt, making a point above, made it to the NSIC all-conference first team. Way to go, Jo.

I had hoped these two flamingos would form one of those cutesy avian hearts and pose patiently, but they had a heartfelt spat instead.

Whatever is eating the sign.

It’s either an emu or my driver’s license photo.

I miss Bird Watcher’s Digest

Naturally

 Mild days can lessen activity at the birdfeeders, but the yard offered a highlight reel of birds. As always, seeing a cardinal is a reason for a party.
 I noticed deciduous trees holding their leaves in the winter. It’s hard not to notice them. I saw young red oaks and sugar maples stubbornly hanging onto their leaves. Perhaps the leaves protect next year’s buds from browsing by deer and from drying winds. Ironwood and European buckthorn are smaller trees that cling to their leaves. 
 I watched purple finches at the feeders. They seem tamer than the house finches. Blue jays can shift winter strategies between migration and overwintering. The supply of acorns might determine that decision.

Bob Janssen 
 We all have heroes. Mine are mostly people I know. Minnesota is about 360 miles by 407 miles with 87 counties. One of my heroes is familiar with the roads and birdy places in each of those counties. Bob Janssen is that man. He’s a great guy, a great birder and the godfather of birding in Minnesota. Wherever I go, Bob has been there. He has seen a black-billed cuckoo in every county in Minnesota except Freeborn County. He asked me what the chances were of seeing one. I joked that there were so many in the county that the DNR was considering having a hunting season on the cuckoos to make room for other birds. That might have been a fib. They’re seen here, but not commonly. Bob made his way to my home. My wife fed him and I took Bob to a spot where I’d seen and heard the cuckoos. I had to leave for an important meeting. I wished Bob good luck and told him to take his time. He took all day. Bob is still without a black-billed cuckoo in Freeborn County.

Bird Watcher’s Digest
 For umpteen years, I was a regular columnist for Bird Watcher’s Digest and Watching Backyard Birds. These two wonderful magazines were the brainchildren of the beloved Thompson family of Marietta, Ohio. It was an honor and a pleasure to be associated with such fine journals. Both magazines have ceased publication. The deaths of principals and the pandemic were too much to overcome. I am saddened by the discontinuance of those wonderful pages, but I’m thankful for the many friends and memories I’ve made through my affiliation with those pleasing periodicals. 

Squirrel skirmishes
 Manley Olson wrote, “Years ago at a St. Paul Audubon meeting, a member shared he was live trapping squirrels and releasing them several miles away. At a subsequent meeting, another member said he had started doing the same thing. In the conversation that followed, he said he lived in Highland Park and was releasing in Como Park. This was greeted with laughter from the man who had brought the topic up at the previous meeting. He was trapping near Como Park and releasing in Highland.”

Q&A
 “Are there any bad birds?” No.
 “Do wild turkeys renest?” Yes. Hens that lose clutches to predation, human disturbance, or weather events often renest.
 “How do bumblebees spend the winter?” Bumblebees don’t maintain colonies throughout the winter. The last brood of the summer colony contains numerous queens. Each queen mates and then finds a safe place, a small hole in the ground or another protected spot, just big enough for her to spend the winter. Only the queen hibernates until spring. The rest of the colony dies.
 “Why do great horned owls nest so early?” Young great horned owls must learn complex hunting maneuvers involving trial and error. Early hatching means they’re ready to practice their flying and hunting skills when the weather is mild and prey is abundant, and have time to master their techniques before winter begins.
 “What birds drink sugar water other than hummingbirds?” Some birds with a sweet tooth that enjoy nectar are house finches, downy woodpeckers, warblers (including orange-crowned, Cape May and pine), mockingbirds, chickadees, thrashers and titmice.
 “How do birds stay perched while sleeping?” Recent research found a bird’s innate balance and the way its toes wrap around a perch are enough to keep a sleeping bird in place. Birds are built for what they do.

Thanks for stopping by
 “Whatever you do, always give 100%. Unless you're donating blood.”—Bill Murray.
 “You cannot begin to preserve any species of animal unless you preserve the habitat in which it dwells. Disturb or destroy that habitat and you will exterminate the species as surely as if you had shot it. So, conservation means that you have to preserve forest and grassland, river and lake, even the sea itself. This is not only vital for the preservation of animal life generally, but for the future existence of man himself -- a point that seems to escape many people.”—Gerald Durrell.
 Do good.

©️Al Batt 2022

In the House of Hoops, on Cancer Awareness Day, the Minnesota State basketball team remembered loved ones who had died from cancer and recognized cancer survivors. I am honored to have my granddaughter Joey (first row, third from right) hold a card bearing my name. These cards and others were prominently displayed on the wall at the Taylor Center during the games.

Words on birds, naturally, on the radio.

Minnesota State ran their record to 18–5 with an 80-72 victory over Augustana. Taylor Theusch scored 18, Joey Batt (shown twinkling the twine in a free throw) added 17 points and eight assists, Destinee Bursch tossed in 13 and Mikayla Nachazel had 10 rebounds.

Minnesota State (19-5) clinched the NSIC South Division title with a 91-67 win over Upper Iowa at Fayette, Iowa. Joey Batt (#1 playing tough defense) had 17 points & 6 assists. Rylee Menster scored 15 and both Tayla Stuttley & Destinee Bursch tossed in 10. Molly Ihle & Mikayla Nachazel each had 6 rebounds to the lead the team.

Not a real walrus, but a good reminder to floss regularly.

A Common Redpoll is uncommonly handsome. Photo by Al Batt

Is that a purple house finch?

Naturally
Two crows swaggered up the drive. I suspect it was the same pair in the same place yesterday, but I couldn’t say for sure because I don’t have cawer ID. They stayed close together as if they were vel-crows.
The blue jays were not subtle in their comments about a great horned owl in the yard. When I looked in their direction, I could see the suggestion of a cat’s ears in a tree. The blue jays saw more than that. They saw danger from an enemy. The owl’s presence made the jays an offer they couldn’t refuse. They expressed their outrage with gusto. A great horned owl is under a lot of pressure. They nest in the winter and their name begins with “great.” That leads to a lot of expectations. I anthropomorphize to further my understanding.
Another day passed without a single sighting of the Bath Bigfoot. Rumors insist the Bigfoot family there is larger than the population of Bath before it became a ghost town. That would mean there are at least two Bath Bigfeet or Bigfoots. Seeing the avalanche of common redpolls in the yard more than makes up for the lack of any Bigfoot sightings.
There is an emptiness in winter. I miss things. The ticks weren’t bad last year. There have been years when I’ve been a tick magnet. I don’t miss them or the mosquitoes, but I do miss the “click-it” sounds of barn swallows. They kept the skies busy. Insectivorous barn swallows needed to catch an early flight out of town. They are never here in the winter, but I still miss them.
In 1902, Frank Chapman wrote one of the earliest guidebooks: “Handbook of Birds of Eastern North America.” Of the American goldfinch, he wrote: “Their flight is expressive of their joyous nature, and as they bound through the air they hum a gay ‘per-chic-o-ree.’ Their love song is delivered with an ecstasy and abandon which carries them off their feet, and they circle over the fields sowing the air with music.” The goldfinch, which my father called the wild canary, is the state bird of Iowa, Washington and New Jersey.

Q&A
“What are the advantages for a bird to be part of a flock?” The behavior offers many benefits, which can vary by species. Protection. A flock offers more eyes to spot predators and then mob, distract or confuse them. Foraging efficiency. More birds find the best food. Finding mates. Continuing education. Young birds learn from their elders. Flying in formations can conserve energy and increase communication effectiveness. Roosting can aid in identifying predators and offer shared body warmth.
“Will birds roost together in cavities in cold weather?” Many cavity-nesting birds roost in natural cavities, nest boxes, or roosting boxes. Bluebirds, chickadees, titmice, nuthatches, woodpeckers, screech owls and Carolina wrens roost in cavities and readily use nest boxes. Nuthatches and bluebirds find warmth by roosting together. Winter wrens are noted for that behavior.
“What wild birds lay the most eggs in a clutch?” Some birds lay a single egg; others lay clutches of eggs. Gray partridge up to 22 eggs, ring-necked pheasant 15, wild turkey 17 eggs, mallard 13, wood duck 16 and black-capped chickadee 13 eggs. These numbers don’t factor in any dump nests, which are the work of more than one female. Ostriches can lay up to 50 eggs per nest and I’ve read of a rhea having 80 eggs. You can bet rhea parents don’t remember all their offspring’s names.
“Is there a simple way to tell a house finch from a purple finch?” The male purple finch is purplish and looks as if he had been dipped in red wine or raspberry juice. This color bleeds onto the back and wings. A male house finch has localized color, reddish only on the head, breast, and lower back. The upper back and wings are a streaky brown. If the flanks from below the wings to the tail are streaked with brown, it's a male house finch. If the flanks are white, with a hint of pink, it's a male purple finch. A female house finch has a brown face, while a female purple finch has a strong facial pattern marked with a contrasting white eyebrow.
“What do pheasants eat in winter?” Pheasants find food by scratching through the snow to get to grain in farm fields. Moderate thaws allow south-facing slopes to expose food. They will eat grasses, leaves, roots, fruit and nuts.

Thanks for stopping by
“Is life not a thousand times too short for us to bore ourselves?”—Friedrich Nietzsche.
“Joys come from simple and natural things: mist over meadows, sunlight on leaves, the path of the moon over water.”—Sigurd F. Olson.
Do good.

©Al Batt 2022

An ostrich can lay up to 50 eggs in a clutch. If you think that is a soccer ball by her feet instead of an egg, treat yourself to something nice for being right. Photo by Al Batt

This hotel clock in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, showed me it was later than it has ever been—or maybe not.

Minnesota State defeated the U of Sioux Falls 86-66. Destinee Bursch had 19 points, Maddy Olson 17, Joey Batt (pictured making a pass as her coach Emilee Thiesse watches) scored 13 & added 7 assists, and Mikayla Nachazel tossed in 10 points.

How many times have I said, “What a cool book”? I’m saying it again, “What a cool book.” Can a person have too many field guides? I think not.

How many times have I said, “What a cool book”? I’m saying it again, “What a cool book.” Can a person have too many field guides? I think not.

I saw camels on hump day.

And the wall said.

This Mallard drake has recurved black central tail feathers, which give him the curly-tailed look he is seeking.

A couple of American White Pelicans are wintering in my neck of the woods in Minnesota. They will have stories to tell if they can make it until spring.

All About Birds Midwest field guide. Guides are also available for other regions.

All About Birds Midwest field guide. Guides are also available for other regions.

A brilliant book written by the eminent birder Bob Janssen, a great guy as well as a great birder, who has seen 416 species in the state and at least 150 species in each of the 87 counties. The Black-backed Woodpecker cover photo is by David Brislance.

A sample page from Birding in Minnesota.

What would Pogo say?

Naturally
 Growing up on a farm, my father taught me that alfalfa loves snow. A thick blanket of snow increases the chances of alfalfa surviving winter. The alfalfa was smiling. On my way to church, I saw the white flashes of three large flocks of snow buntings, a flock of Lapland longspurs and many small groups of horned larks in my first three miles. I hadn’t seen many of these birds this winter because there was a lack of snow cover. They feed in the fields until deep or ice-encrusted snow covers their food and chases them to the roadsides where weed seeds and spilled grain are snagged by the gravel. They show up when the snowmobiles do. I saw a couple of rough-legged hawks later in my drive. I called them Christmas hawks when I was a precocious child (or was it a pestiferous child?). The roughies nest in the Arctic and have feathered pants with feathering to the base of their toes and small bills. Their feet are smaller than those of red-tailed hawks, which allow roughies to perch at the tip-top of small branches. 
 I watched a red fox tiptoe through the yard at daybreak. They typically weigh 8 to 15 pounds. Squirrels use the cheerful sounds of birds to infer the absence of predators. Gray and fox squirrels are scatter hoarders, which means they hoard food in scattered locations to access later. 
 Later, a murmuration of starlings weaved and dipped across my field of view. Airplane pilots wish they could do what those flying birds do. Crows in the distance looked like apostrophes perched in a gray tree. We’re getting winter in winter. No surprise. Some consider winter a bully, but I find the world big enough for both winter and me.
 I saw an opossum in the yard. Pink ears and tip of tail indicated frostbite. Pogo (and creator Walt Kelly) said, “We have met the enemy and he is us.” The local opossum might consider winter an antagonist.

LRGV
 On one of my first jobs in the Lower Rio Grande Valley, I flew into Harlingen, picked up a rental car and motored to the Valley Nature Center in Weslaco. It was small enough for me to roam about in the time allotted. The place was lousy with birds. I was greeted by green jays, great kiskadees, clay-colored robins (now clay-colored thrushes), golden-fronted woodpecker, buff-bellied hummingbirds and plain chachalacas. They are common birds at this small oasis, but they were a red carpet rolled out to me.

CBC
 I found a pair of American white pelicans on the water on a Christmas Bird Count of December 31. My first instinct was that one was injured (I couldn’t see any visible injury) and that its mate refused to leave it. They are serially monogamous and form pairs for one breeding season. Pairs form through courtship rituals once they arrive at the breeding colony. So why are the two still here? I don’t know. They have to be somewhere, I guess.

Kevin Carlson
 I enjoyed visiting with Kevin Carlson via Zoom. It has been many years since I first visited with Kevin at his home in Cape May Court House, New Jersey. Kevin and Pete Dunne have written at least three books together, “Gulls Simplified,” “Bird Families of North America” and “Birds of Prey.” Kevin is a skilled photographer, a talented fellow and a good guy.

Q&A
 “Would an owl lay eggs in an eagle nest?” A great horned owl might because the bald eagle pair wouldn’t be present at the time of the owl’s nesting. The fierce great horned owls don’t build nests, preferring to appropriate the stick nests of hawks, crows, ravens, herons, squirrels and occasionally, eagles.
 “Where do juncos spend winter nights?” They prefer to roost in conifers at night, but will use tall grasses and brush piles. They return to the same roost locations regularly. I see them frequently in cedars and arborvitae. I love hearing the junco’s “tew-tew-tew” call, which is reminiscent of the sounds of a ray gun in some old, cheesy sci-fi movie at the drive-in.
 “Do we have butterflies that overwinter in Minnesota as adults?” Yes, they include commas, tortoiseshells and mourning cloaks.
 “I was in northern Minnesota in January and saw some waxwings. How can I tell which species they are?” A Bohemian has a reddish tinge on its face and is grayer overall than a cedar waxwing. A Bohemian has chestnut coloring under the tail, while a cedar has white. Bohemian waxwings have yellow and white wing markings lacking on cedars.
Thanks for stopping by
 "There's nothing wrong with having a tree as a friend."—Bob Ross
 “Never stay up on the barren heights of cleverness, but come down into the green valleys of silliness.”—Ludwig Wittgenstein.
 Do good.

©Al Batt 2022

My yard is crammed with Common Redpolls and I couldn’t be happier. It’s as if I’d driven the entire yard to a gas station and said, “Fill ‘er up with redpolls,” which is impossible because there are no full-service gas stations anywhere in my realm. Photo by Al Batt

My yard is crammed with Common Redpolls and I couldn’t be happier. It’s as if I’d driven the entire yard to a gas station and said, “Fill ‘er up with redpolls,” which is impossible because there are no full-service gas stations anywhere in my realm. Photo by Al Batt

Hadley Batt about to put in two points in New Ulm’s 66-31 victory over Blue Earth.

My late brother Donald’s birth month is January. He owned a hardware/implement. I spent many hours in the saddle of a WD-45. I miss that fine man.

My late brother Donald’s birth month is January. He owned a hardware/implement. I spent many hours in the saddle of a WD-45. I miss that fine man.

I love seeing those I love having fun. Thank you, Hadley Batt.

It’s -16° and a House Sparrow has a nap attack.

A Fox Squirrel was doing a little seed mining in my snow-covered yard.

A Fox Squirrel was doing a little seed mining in my snow-covered yard.

A Fox Squirrel was doing a little seed mining in my snow-covered yard.

A Fox Squirrel was doing a little seed mining in my snow-covered yard.

Nature natters on the radio.

The weather forecast called for strong winds, rising temperatures and falling squirrels

Naturally 
 I shouldn’t have been surprised when a fox squirrel fell from the roof of the house onto a window feeder held in place by suction cups. The result was, as would be expected, the squirrel and the feeder both crashed to the ground, creating a blizzard of fleeing songbirds. Why I shouldn’t have been surprised was that the weather forecast had called for strong winds, rising temperatures and falling squirrels.
 I saw many red-tailed hawks as I drove about the region. This hawk has a football shape when perched. I stopped in a small city and watched house sparrows eating street food. It was food on an actual street. Your doctor might not approve of that diet.
 Crows and jays demonstrate bird identification skills, as evidenced by their mobbing of a great horned owl in the yard. I put peanuts in the shell into a bird feeder. Like a great magic act, the peanuts disappeared and were replaced by blue jays.

My favorite conspiracy theory
 From their official site: “The Birds Aren't Real movement exists to spread awareness that the U.S. Government genocided over 12 Billion birds from 1959-2001, and replaced these birds with surveillance drone replicas, which still watch us every day. Once a preventative cause, our initial goal was to stop the forced extinction of real birds. Unfortunately this was unsuccessful, and the government has since replaced every living bird with robotic replicas. Now our movement's prerogative is to make everyone aware of this fact.” The creator is joking.

Q&A
 “I’m seeing flies in my house in the winter. What are they?” They could be cluster flies, sometimes called attic flies. This fly is large and sluggish, with golden hairs on the thorax. Their larvae feed on earthworms. They snuck into your home last fall, congregated in the walls, found openings in window frames and appear on warm winter days. They like the southern exposure of a home. The other possibility is the blowfly, which resembles a housefly, but may be shiny green, blue, bronze or black. These metallic-colored flies are called blow or bottle flies. They gather around windows and produce a buzzing sound. They lay eggs in decomposing organic matter, like garbage, animal manure, decaying vegetables, dead animals and grass clippings.
 “Everywhere I go, I see downy woodpeckers. Are they in every state?” I hope you’re not seeing them everywhere you go, as that would be kind of creepy and would drive your dentist crazy. They are in all states but Hawaii. You won’t find them in the deserts of the southwest. Males feed more on small branches and weed stems during the winter, and females feed on larger branches and trunks of trees. 
 “What eats milo?” Milo or sorghum isn’t a favorite food of birds. Wild turkeys, pheasants, pigeons, Eurasian collared-doves, cowbirds and cows may feed on it. I think grackles might eat some and I’m told some western quail species will. Milo is a waste of money as food for wild birds. 
 “I didn’t see many cardinals when I was a child, now I see them. Why did they move north?” Their breeding range has expanded northward for several reasons. A warmer climate has led to a reduction in snow depth and greater winter foraging opportunities; suburban growth has increased suitable edge habitat; and backyard winter bird feeders have provided food. 
 “Why are juncos called snowbirds?” They are characteristic of our winter months. They probably got the moniker because they appear not long before the snow. It’s as if they arrive early to get things ready for the snow. The juncos become more visible against a blanket of snow. Both juncos and winter could be described as having leaden skies above and being snowy white below. 
 “What’s the difference between a dove and a pigeon?” There’s no difference between a pigeon and a dove in scientific nomenclature, but colloquial English categorizes them by size, with doves being smaller.
“How strong is a great horned owl?” That owl’s strong, clenched talons require a force of 28 pounds to open. I’ve also read that the grip strength in those feet is 200 to 500 pounds per square inch and up to six times stronger than the handshake of a bodybuilder, but I don’t know where those numbers come from. Sorry. Hold a bathroom scale between your hands, its face toward you and with your hands on the side of the scale, squeeze as hard as you can. Divide that number by the square inches of your palm and it will give you your grip strength.

Thanks for stopping by
  “Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does.”—William James.
 “If the only prayer you ever say in your entire life is thank you, it will be enough.”—Meister Eckhart.
 Do good.

©Al Batt 2022

I just heard a chickadee singing it’s fee-bee song. “Spring’s here,” it whistled. I love the tiny bird’s optimism. Photo by Al Batt

Today, I’ll dream of electric socks and think warm thoughts while listening to Hawaiian music. Tomorrow, I’ll try to get rid of the Don Ho earworm.

During times like these, it’s important to remember Minnesota’s state motto: It could be worse.

Every year, I ask for world peace. My wife gave me a can of world peas.

Joey Batt (#1) scored 18 points (4 assists & 3 steals), Rylee Menster 12, Emily Russo 11 (6 rebs.), Molly Ihle 10, Destinee Bursch 10 and Maddy Olson (#10) added 6 rebounds and 6 assists to lead Minnesota State to a 84-70 win over MSU Moorhead.

Minnesota State defeated Northern State 85-76. Destinee Bursch (#14 in photo above) led with 26 points, 5 assists and 3 steals. Joey Batt (shown passing) scored 14 (plus 5 rebounds and 3 steals), Tayla Stuttley 14 pts., Mikayla Nachazel 10 with 5 rebs. and Taylor Theusch 10.

Minnesota State defeated Northern State 85-76. Destinee Bursch led with 26 points, 5 assists and 3 steals. Joey Batt (shown about to splash a 3-pointer) scored 14 (plus 5 rebounds and 3 steals), Tayla Stuttley 14 pts., Mikayla Nachazel 10 with 5 rebs. and Taylor Theusch 10.

Wile E. Coyote didn’t leave tracks like those

I lucked onto this handsome Harris’s Sparrow and spent so much time staring at its perfection, I was late getting to my next bird on the Albert Lea Christmas Bird Count. I convinced an innocent bystander, who was stumbling past, to look at the sparrow lovingly. He kindly obliged. Photo by Al Batt

Naturally
 I’ve done many Christmas Bird Counts. A CBC is conducted on a single day from December 14 through January 5 each year in a 15-mile diameter circle. I count how many birds I see of each species. There are mysteries perched in trees and if I flip proverbial rocks, I find things. It’s fun even when the weather isn’t. The secret is to keep expectations high, never be disappointed and always be surprised. On a CBC, I visited an admirer of backyard birds who pointed at one of his feathered friends and said, “That’s my favorite bird. What kind is it?” Robert Frost would have answered, “They cannot look out far. They cannot look in deep. But when was that ever a bar to any watch they keep?”
 I heard the spring song of a black-capped chickadee, a simple two or three-note whistled fee-bee or hey, sweetie. The whistled fee-bee is given mostly by males, although not exclusively. He’s advertising his territory and attempting to attract a mate. His vocalization is spurred on by lengthening daylight hours. Longer days make avian hormone levels surge, leading to courtship behaviors that induce hormone production. The combination of day length and courting behaviors work together to cause this tiny pile of feathers to whistle, “Spring’s here.”
 I heard them in the far off. It was a flock of Canada geese. I stood in a parking lot in Fairmont as the flock turned into many flocks and the barking sounds intensified. The numbers and the honking were that of a spring migration, but it was January. The weather was imperfect, but not all flights had been canceled and the geese were headed to a watery bed after feeding in a harvested cornfield, enjoying man’s unintentional generosity.
 I examined footprints in the snow—fragments of a dark night. A dog’s steps in the snow were evident. Coyotes typically walk in a straight line, with each paw print almost directly in front of the next and with few meandering lines. Dogs aren’t as worried about conserving energy, so they wander while investigating things, frequently crossing their own paths. As I examined the writings in the snow, crows offered critical comments. I watched a pair walk up the drive. There is nothing quite like the swagger of a crow. Daniel Otten of Hayward sent me photos from otterspace. Something had been sliding on the snow along a river—river otters. Why do otters do that? Because it’s fun.
 When hunting, rough-legged hawks frequently face into the wind and hover, scanning the ground below for small mammal prey. I saw light morphs doing this near Albert Lea and Fairmont, and a dark morph roughie using this hunting technique outside Blue Earth.
Q&A
 “When do coyotes and red foxes breed?” Coyotes mate at age two and may pair for life. The mating season begins in January and lasts through February. Five to seven pups are born in April. When they're eight to 12 weeks old, the female teaches them to hunt. From autumn until mid-winter, the pups leave the den and search for territories. Red foxes mate at one year, breed in February and 52 days later five to 10 young are born. The kits, cubs or pups nurse for 10 weeks and are independent at seven months. Breeding occurs in late winter and gestation is about two months. Litter size averages four, and the young stay with their mother until fall. Red and gray foxes don’t hybridize.
 “Do crows and gulls have landfill breath?” Yes.
 “Are shrews carnivores?” The ones in my yard eat meat, but they’re omnivores. They eat insects, worms, spiders, mice and other small mammals, plant material (like the seeds under my feeders)—anything to stoke their high metabolic rate. 
 “Do snow buntings dive into the snow to sleep?” They roost in slight scrapes in the snow in open areas. Extreme cold might cause one to roost behind a snowbank. According to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, extreme conditions of -35°C might cause them to burrow into the snow.
 “Is it a good idea to trap squirrels and haul them elsewhere?” Not without asking permission of the owner of the land where you are depositing the bushytails. The owner might not want more squirrels. Relocating squirrels creates an opening for other squirrels to fill and they are always looking for a good territory to move into. It might be easier to deal with the squirrels you know than have to negotiate bird feeder battles with new squirrels with new notions and clever tricks.
Thanks for stopping by
 “There's only one age: alive.”—Agnes Varda.
 “The most important discoveries will provide answers to questions that we do not yet know how to ask and will concern objects we have not yet imagined.”—John N. Bahcall.
 Do good.

©Al Batt 2022

Phish has a song about cluster flies.

Bloviating about birds and nattering about nature on the radio.

This temperature feels warmer than it used to. Wind is a key factor and clothing has improved, but I think it’s because my winter chores have diminished with time. I was once in love with snowballs. I threw a snowball on this gelid day. That might have warmed me.

My yard is crammed with Common Redpolls and I couldn’t be happier. It’s as if I’d driven the entire yard to a gas station and said, “Fill ‘er up with redpolls,” which is impossible because there are no full-service gas stations anywhere in my realm.

Pogo (creator Walt Kelly) said, “We have met the enemy and he is us.” The local opossums might consider winter an antagonist.

Minnesota State defeated UMary 74-60. Maddy Olson led the scoring with 15 and had 3 steals, Joey Batt had 13 points plus 3 assists & 3 steals, Destinee Bursch added 11 points and Molly Ihle had 4 assists, 3 steals and pulled down 5 rebounds.

Do male birds do all the singing?

Naturally
I watched through my binoculars as a crow flew down to a rural road and picked up a McDonald’s bag and flew away with it. I hoped it was a gift-wrapped french fry. Earlier, I’d seen a pair dive-bombing a squirrel carrying food. The crows wanted the squirrel to become a bird feeder.
I was watching a chickadee drink water from the tip of a melting icicle hanging from a shed’s metal roof on a sunny day when a murmuration of starlings flew over. It’s called a murmuration because of the collective sound produced by the flock’s wingbeats.
A woman at First Presbyterian in Mankato told me a David and Goliath story. A pileated woodpecker was dining at a feeder when a tiny downy woodpecker flew in, pecked in the general direction of the big woodpecker, which flew away.
During a Christmas Bird Count, a feeder of birds said, “Stupid birds don’t know enough to go south for the winter.” My smile might have been too wide. “I know,” he said. “They’re no smarter than I am.
National Geographic writer Doug Chadwick’s book, “Four-Fifths a Grizzly” reinforces humanity’s fundamental relationship with, and reliance on nature, plus the close relationship between human DNA and that of grizzly bears, with whom we share 80% of our DNA. We’re 60% similar to a salmon and 40% the same as many insects.
Q&A
“What time of the year do squirrels breed?” Fox squirrels breed from December to February and June through July, eastern gray squirrels from December to February and/or June through August, flying squirrels in early spring and red squirrels in late winter. The Ojibwe call red squirrels "ajidamo." Black squirrels are a melanistic color phase of the gray. According to a 1990 study, black squirrels were the dominant color of the eastern gray squirrel prior to European settlement. As the country grew along with increased hunting pressure (black squirrels were easier for hunters to spot than the gray), the population became grayer. Gray squirrels inhabited large tracts of woodland and forest in the eastern U.S. but by the 1870s, they were introduced to American parks to provide people with a wildlife experience. According to the DNR, a gray squirrel can hide 25 nuts in 30 minutes and can find roughly 80% of them later.
“Why is it called Kitty Hawk?” I’ve worked in North Carolina's Outer Banks and visited the Wright Brothers National Memorial. The area was chosen for its high, treeless hills ideal for launching the glider and broad sand beaches for soft landings. Orville made the first successful flight on December 17, 1903, but Wilbur had won the coin toss on December 14 for who’d make the first attempt. Wilbur's effort was unsuccessful, so when they tried again on December 17, it was Orville's turn. Most people agree the Native American name for the place appeared on English settlers’ maps as Chickehawk, Chickahawk or Chickenhauk in the 1700s. Settlers, confounded by the spelling, filed land deeds referencing Kittyhuk, Kittyhark, KittyHawk, and Kitty Hawk. Kitty Hawk is credited as the home of the Wright Brothers’ first flight, but it took place in neighboring Kill Devil Hills, which wasn’t incorporated until 50 years later.
Mike Rucker of Lake Wilson asked how many female songbirds sing and how many nesting bald eagles there are in Minnesota. For a long time, birdsong was considered a male trait. It’s true that in some species, only male birds sing, but in others, both sexes sing. In research done in 2014, 71% of the females (of the 323 songbird species studied) sang. Males are often louder and more observable. Some common female birds that sing include the cardinal, rose-breasted grosbeak, American goldfinch, Baltimore oriole, junco, house wren, house finch and barn swallow. I don’t have the total nesting pair count for 2021, but I have other years. In the 1960s, there were about 100 pairs of nesting bald eagles in Minnesota. In 1972, DDT was banned. In 1973, there were 149 nesting pairs, 181 in 1980, 1312 in 2005, 2300 in 2007, and 2017 showed 9800 nesting pairs of eagles.
Thanks for stopping by
“I would not enter on my list of friends, / (Though graced with polish'd manners and fine sense, / Yet wanting sensibility) the man / Who needlessly sets foot upon a worm.”—William Cowper.
“If a man would register all his opinions upon love, politics, religion, learning, etc., beginning from his youth and so go on to old age, what a bundle of inconsistencies and contradictions would appear at last!”—Jonathan Swift.
Do good.

©Al Batt 2022

This photo was posted in an earlier column, asking which accipiter it is. Is it a Cooper’s or sharp-shinned hawk? Coop’s have sturdy legs with large feet seeming capable of breaking pencils. Sharpies have legs as thin as pencils. A sharpie’s eyes are in the middle of its head, giving it a bug-eyed look. A Coop’s eyes are nearer to the front of its head. Juveniles of both species have yellowish eyes, adults red. A safe answer might be to say it’s either a shooper’s hawk or a carp-shinned hawk, but it’s a young Cooper’s hawk. Photo by Al Batt

Hadley Batt tossed in 21 points to lead New Ulm JV to a victory over St. James.

Short-handed Minnesota State led by seven points, but St. Cloud State finished the game on a 33-12 run to claim a 66-52 victory. Maddy Olson led the Mavericks with 20 points, Destinee Bursch added 11 points and Joey Batt had 8 points, 4 assists and 4 steals.

This might be my favorite T-shirt to wear while birding.

Be polite, ask a squirrel if it wants to move to a new address; winter is for the birds or at least some of them; and telling shooper’s hawks from carp-shinned hawks. Nature talk on the radio.

Minnesota State defeated Bemidji State 72-68 to retain first place. Joey Batt (#1) led the Mavericks with 22 points and 5 assists. Maddy Olson and Destinee Bursch added 13 points each, and Mikayla Nachazel had 7 rebounds.

Minnesota State defeated Bemidji State 72-68. Joey Batt (#1) led the Mavericks with 22 points and 5 assists. Maddy Olson and Destinee Bursch added 13 points each, and Mikayla Nachazel had 7 rebounds.

Where does the white go when the snow melts?

A cold case investigation discovers the answer.

The turkey vulture is unable to find a parka or a stocking cap to fit it properly, so we must make do without its company during the winter. Photo by Al Batt

Naturally
The feeders were bustling. “You eat like a bird,” an aunt was fond of telling me when I picked at my food when I was a boy. I was trying to locate and disarm anything that might have been good for me. But I didn’t eat like a bird. A chickadee may eat 35% of its weight in food each day and a blue jay might eat 10% of its weight. Generally, the smaller the bird, the greater percentage of its body weight is its daily food intake. They need more calories in cold weather.
It was 20° and the house sparrows were taking baths in, appropriately, a birdbath. The members of this avian polar bear club plunged in, flew out, shook off the water and warmed up. I’ve heard of several instances when a bird suffered from bathing in freezing temps. That might have been due to the steam produced by a birdbath’s water heater or perhaps the birds were ill. I see songbirds bathing in naturally occurring water in winter. There is usually no steam to worry about there. Birds have instincts and anatomy on their side.
A fox squirrel found its way to the roof of our house. It began running laps and sounded like something between an immense buffalo herd or wingtip shoes in the dryer.
Birding isn’t rocket science, but I birded in North Dakota with an actual rocket scientist.
My memory is excellent. I was talking to Dennis and Larry. I mentioned the time we had birded Seed Savers Exchange in Decorah, a place that preserves the past in heirloom seeds. Larry remembered our birding adventure. Dennis didn’t because he wasn’t along. I remembered him being there. Maybe my memory is too good.
Q&A
“Where do birds go at night during the winter?” As mentioned earlier in this column, birds have anatomy and instincts on their side. They find a protected place to roost, where they are sheltered from the weather and safe from predators. These could be cavities, tree trunks or branches, buildings or dense evergreens. I’ve watched pheasants and turkeys fly high into trees and hunker down for a long night. Crows form communal roosts and waterfowl rest on water. There are outliers, like grouse and redpolls that burrow into the snow. People get puffier in the winter by donning puffy coats. Birds tend to get puffier in winter. A bird’s body heat warms the air between its feathers. Birds fluff up in the cold to trap air in their feathers. The more trapped air, the warmer the bird. They make do.
Amos Vogel of Morgan asked where the white goes when the snow melts. Snow looks white because ice crystals reflect light better than water does. Water transmits light, allowing it to pass through. The microscopically rough surfaces of ice crystals act as tiny mirrors. Light is scattered instead of passing through. When something reflects all the colors of light and doesn't absorb any, you see an object as white—so snow looks white. Snow has so many ice particles that the light bounces around until it combines again and is reflected as white light. When the snow melts into water, there are no more ice particles to bounce the light off and reflect as white light. Most of the light passes through the water unreflected.
"Why don't turkey vultures stay here all winter?" The turkey vulture lacks the bill necessary to pierce the thick hide of dead animals. They prefer fresh carcasses, but sometimes have to wait for the skin to soften. Since most road-killed creatures suffer wounds that create large gashes or openings in the body cavity, the mangled remains are an ideal source of food for this bird. When coyotes tear open the remains of a deer, it prepares a carcass for a vulture's visit. When the weather is freezing, the bills of vultures aren't powerful enough to break into frozen carcasses to feed. Vultures migrate south to warmer temperatures where food is available to them. They move south not only in response to a drop in temperature, but also because of snow cover, winter storms and frozen carcasses that are hard for them to eat. Well-fed individuals are cold-hardy in captivity. The vulture culture is to purge the landscape of carrion. This member of nature’s clean-up crew is more than an avian garbage disposal unit. Their teetering presence in the sky is a beautiful thing to see for anyone willing to look.
Thanks for stopping by
“I took a walk in the woods and came out taller than the trees.”—Henry David Thoreau.
“If today you are a little bit better than you were yesterday, then that's enough. And, if tomorrow you are a little bit better than you were today, then that's enough.”—David A. Bednar.
Do good.

©Al Batt 2021

A Harris’s Sparrow is always a treat to see on a Christmas Bird Count in Minnesota.

American White Pelicans on a December 31, 2021 Christmas Bird Count in Minnesota. Brrrrrilliant!

I’d heard a chickadee singing its fee-bee song, “Spring’s here,” yesterday. I love the tiny bird’s optimism.

I think female Northern Cardinals are exquisite.

Some days are cold enough to avoid any other adjective than “cold.”

Minnesota State lost their first game of the season to Concordia-St. Paul 85-83. Joey Batt, with the basketball, had 19 points, Emily Russo 16 and 8 rebounds, and Maddy Olson added 10 points.

Minnesota State lost to UMD 61-52. Maddy Olson led the Mavericks with 23 points, Joey Batt (pictured) had 13 points and four assists, and Emily Russo grabbed eight rebounds. The Mavs were missing two starters in this game against an excellent UMD squad.

A shooper’s hawk

Naturally

Birds connect us to nature and to the world. I watched chickens on a warm December day before the tornado. They were outside feeding at a buffet of things on the ground. During my salad days, I heard the story of a chicken surviving a tornado after being stripped of its feathers. “Plucked clean,” I’d be told. I suspect that chicken might have been found alive after losing many feathers due to a fright or stress molt. Chickens are native to the tropical jungles of Southeast Asia and our domestic chickens descended from the red junglefowl. The chicken is the world’s most numerous bird.
Winter brings increased reports from readers and listeners of wild turkeys in backyards.
After the tornado passed, crows were vocal. Perhaps they’d found surviving the brutal December storm caws for celebration. I’m sure they had reason for the noise as crows didn’t make it to where they are today by being stupid.

Q&A

“How many kinds of mice are there in Minnesota?” Species include the house mouse, meadow jumping mouse, woodland jumping mouse, western harvest mouse, deer mouse (two subspecies: prairie deer mouse and woodland deer mouse) white-footed mouse, northern grasshopper mouse, plains pocket mouse and the largest member of the mouse family—no not the moose—it’s the Norway rat. I’m probably wrong, but I believe there had been a corduroy mouse. It went extinct because it was too easy for owls to hear them. Synanthropy refers to undomesticated species living near and benefiting from human beings. Synanthropes of the mouse world include house mouse, deer mouse, white-footed mouse and rat. They enjoy playing hide and squeak in our homes.
“How do I tell a Cooper’s hawk from a sharp-shinned hawk?” There are many factors to consider, but it can be difficult. It’s like looking at an elementary school yearbook and using it to identify attendees at a 50th class reunion. You need to look long and hard at distinguishing characteristics. As are most things in life, it’s complicated. Both hawks hunt bird feeders and they aren’t there for the seeds. They chase birds like a feathered Wile E. Coyote riding a jet-powered device from Acme. You’ll inevitably be unable to discern which species is visiting. Don’t fret, that confounds experts. Generally, the Cooper’s is larger, but you won’t see the two species perched together on a branch. Females are larger than males, with a sharpie male being the size of a blue jay and the female Coop’s approximating the size of a crow. Identification depends upon a combination of things: tail, the position of eyes, breast and belly streaking, thickness of the legs, nape color, head shape, eyebrows, favorite TV show, driver’s license photo and preferred pizza. Coop’s have sturdy legs with large feet seeming capable of breaking pencils. Sharpies have legs as thin as pencils. Coop’s have hackles on the back of their heads and sharpies don’t. Many field guides mention the square tail of a sharpie versus the rounded tail of a Cooper’s. I haven’t found that a reliable ID mark, but if you can see the back of a sharpie, notice a cleft in the middle of a squared tail with a thin white tip. Coop’s don’t have that cleft and usually have more white on the tip, but wear changes that. In adult birds, a Coop’s has a dark gray cap with a pale nape. A sharpie has a hooded appearance with no separation of color between the back of the head and neck. In flight, a Coop’s has a larger head projecting far beyond the wings compared to a sharpie’s small head. Sharpies fly with faster wingbeats. Juveniles of both species have yellowish eyes, adults red. A sharpie’s eyes are in the middle of its head, giving it a bug-eyed look. A Coop’s eyes are nearer to the front of its head. Misidentifying a bird is but a minor blip in your otherwise exemplary behavior. The hawks know which species they are. If you’re not sure, call it an accipiter species, a shooper’s hawk or a shoop’s.

The weekly tip

If you buy binoculars for someone, make sure they come with a gift receipt. Binoculars need to fit the user. Expensive binoculars offer ruggedness, craftsmanship, brightness, glass quality and make someone look cool, but many lower-priced models do the job. Any decent binoculars are better than no binoculars.

Thanks for stopping by

“I'd rather see a sermon than hear one any day; I'd rather one should walk with me than merely tell the way.”—Edgar Guest.
“What is Christmas? It is tenderness for the past, courage for the present, hope for the future. It is a wish that every cup may overflow with blessings rich and eternal, and that every path may lead to peace.”―Agnes M. Pharo.
Do good, be well and have a merry Christmas.

©Al Batt 2021

The tail of an accipiter. Which one do you think it is? All photos by Al Batt

It has yellow eyes, so it’s a young hawk.

I’m looking forward to my next backpacking adventure, so I can give these things a good use. They sound and look wonderful.

I’m hoping they will be a step up from the usual sandwich bags I travel with.

The great horned owl has been called the

The great horned owl has been called the tiger of the sky, the tiger of the night, the tiger with wings, the tiger of the night sky, the winged tiger, the tiger of the air, the tiger of the woods and the tiger owl, but never Tiger Woods.

Naturally

The sun brought a wind with it, causing the shadows of grasses to dance on the unblemished new snow.
Blue jays and cardinals are the flowers of our winter gardens. I watched a blue jay, obviously at the top of the jay pecking order, take its time shelling peanuts at the feeder as four other jays waited in a shrub nearby. The jay was like the guy ahead of you in line at a busy convenience store who takes his time scratching off the lottery tickets he’d purchased before getting out of a long line.
A caller referred to nuthatches as “nuthatchers.” She knew they were white-breasted nuthatches, but “nuthatchers” was her term of endearment.
The yard’s feeders become incredibly busy with the snow and cold weather, bustling right before snarling weather hits as birds are nature’s barometer. They need more calories in bad weather and attack the feeders as if the food holders were offering a Black Friday sale. The extended nice fall weather had made them more likely to travel and go out to eat at natural places.

Q&A
“Do crows migrate?” Some stay where they are and tackle the winter. Others move to warmer areas, returning when the cold had faded. Researchers at Hamilton College studied crows in New York and California, finding crows migrate to escape burdensome weather or to breed—with 73% of western crows and 86% of eastern crows migrating. American crows are considered partially migratory—some populations migrate, some populations don’t, and in other groups some individual crows migrate. Crows in the southern parts of their range aren’t likely to migrate but may adjust foraging and roosting territories. Crows migrate out of the northernmost parts of their range. Migratory and resident crows both move to urban heat islands during the winter.
Duane Swenson of Waseca noticed something had chewed on the plastic of his farm tractor’s lights and wondered who might be the culprit. Mice and rats can cause problems by chewing wires, but this sounds like squirrels. They chew on plastic, hard rubber and metal wires to slow the rate of their tooth growth.
“I watched a bird wiping its bill on a branch. Why is it doing that?” It’s because it has no napkins or sleeves. Feaking is a word used by falconers. It describes the act of a raptor wiping its bill on an object to clean it after eating. Bill-wiping is a behavior I witness in my yard after birds have been feeding on suet. A bird’s bill is made of keratin, the same stuff as our fingernails. There is observational evidence that some species wipe their bills to maintain the shape of their bills (beaks). Birds have oil glands for preening their feathers. This oil contains chemicals that may send scent signals to potential mates. A male might wipe oil onto branches with his bill to drum up female interest.
“How big a territory does a great horned owl have?” This owl doesn’t build its own nest, commandeering the nests of hawks, crows, ospreys, squirrels and bald eagles. They do no maintenance on the nest because they cannot watch instructional videos on YouTube. Because of that, they use most nests for only one year to prevent eggs or young from falling through the holes in a dilapidated nest. They will nest in hollows and on broken snags or manmade structures. Great horned owls vigorously defend their nesting territory from other owls and hawks. The nesting territories can range in size from one-third to 2 square miles.
“Why are they called cranberries?” Early German and Dutch settlers called them "crane berries” because their pink blossoms resembled the head and bill of a crane. Wet harvesting of cranberries is done by taking advantage of the buoyancy of the berries by flooding the bog with water. The floating cranberries are collected from the water’s surface by the collectors of cranberries. The berries are tart, but a fellow told me he enjoys eating them raw after dipping them into caramel.
“I’ve heard Minnesota has too many mosquitoes. How many is that?” One.

Christmas gift suggestions for nature nuts
Minnesota state park sticker/pass/permit, which allows unlimited visits to the 75 state parks and recreation areas in Minnesota. It’s $35 for a year and is available at any Minnesota state park.
Books, warm mittens, bird feeders and bird feed.

Thanks for stopping by
“I suppose it all started with the snow. You see, it was a very special kind of snow. A snow that made the happy happier, and the giddy even giddier. A snow that'd make a homecoming homier, and natural enemies, friends, natural.”—narrator from “Frosty the Snowman.”
“Remember, this December, that love weighs more than gold.”—Josephine Dodge Daskam Bacon.
Do good, watch out for jaywalking deer and have a Merry Christmas.

©Al Batt 2021

Minnesota State defeated Southwest Minnesota State 96-74. The Mavericks were led by Destinee Bursch with 20 points, Joey Batt (with basketball in photo) added 18 (4 steals and 3 assists), Maddy Olson 17 and Emily Russo 17. The Mavs record improved to 11-0.

A December tornado in Minnesota made a withdrawal from the local bank. The original portion of this bank building was constructed in 1912.

A December tornado in Minnesota made a withdrawal from the local bank. The original portion of this bank building was constructed in 1912.

This building was Hartland Hardware during my salad years. I called it Einar’s Hardware because Einar was the owner. My brother owned the business years later. No one dreamed a tornado would ever tear down Christmas decorations in Minnesota as it did on Dec. 15.

This building was Hartland Hardware during my salad years. I called it Einar’s Hardware because Einar was the owner. My brother owned the business years later. No one dreamed a tornado would ever tear down Christmas decorations in Minnesota as it did on Dec. 15.

A motor home that will not be joining the snowbird migration south. It was struck down by Hartland, Minnesota’s December tornado.

A motor home that will not be joining the snowbird migration south. It was struck down by Hartland, Minnesota’s December tornado.

The back of the Hartland Post Office. Thanks to an inconsiderate tornado, the nearest post office is now 7 miles away.

I took a photo of a lovely Northern Cardinal female, unaware it had been photobombed by a mischievous House Sparrow.

Einar’s Hardware had everything I’d be getting 

 The weather was up to something. It always is.
 My parents took me to town where Santa Claus (who resembled a neighbor named Merle Wakefield) set up shop at the Hartland fire hall. I’m not sure where he parked the reindeer. I was part of a group of humble, snot-nosed (we were snot walruses) children who needed to be prodded to ask Santa for things we weren’t sure we deserved. I asked Merle, who claimed to be Santa even after he responded when I’d said “Hi, Merle,” for what I wanted for Christmas, making sure it was available at Einar’s. Santa’s helpers gave every kid a brown paper bag filled with ancient peanuts, a mushy red apple whose skin (thicker than that of presidents) lodged between our teeth, and cavity-inducing candy so hard the city used it to fill potholes.
 Money can’t buy everything. You need credit cards to do that and Dad didn’t use a credit card. When it came to my father’s shopping habits, there were things money could buy as long as they were at Einar’s Hardware. If Einar didn’t have it, I wasn’t getting it from my father for Christmas. Work gloves were a regular gift. They were both handy and hints. There was little difference between my father’s subtle hints and a freight train.
 My mother told me nuts don’t fall far from the tree. It’s true, I live a mile from where I was hatched. My father had a strong sense of place and never considered home to be a place he needed to get away from and go somewhere else, but I couldn’t wait to get away after high school graduation and once away, I couldn’t wait to come back home. 
 The December weather had been sublime with temps into the 60s. It made people uneasy. I heard people say, “It’s too nice.” I don’t think Minnesotans are fatalistic, but it worries many when the weather does nice things in December. It was a righteous concern.
 The weather changed. On December 15, 2021, a tornado tore down Christmas decorations in Hartland. With apologies to every wonderful English teacher I’ve had, that ain’t right. The December tornado was an unprecedented event in the state’s weather history. There were winds up to 115 mph from an EF2 tornado. The tornado touched down a mile southwest of the city and tracked northeast, on the ground for 2.17 miles.
 It was as J.R.R. Tolkien wrote, “It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door.”
 The weather suggested Rossini’s William Tell Overture, a piece of music I listened to for years while shaving before giving up the habit in fear of decapitating myself in orchestral zeal. Like the tornado, the music begins peacefully before chasing up a wind that encourages threatening weather and culminates in a raging storm. The galloping finale of the overture is readily recognizable as being the famed theme for the Lone Ranger. Many galloped into Hartland to help—firefighters, police, utility crews, various government entities, volunteers, media, charitable organizations—the list is endless. Their good work gave the legion of woe no chance to form. Everything was a big thing. There are those important chores not thought of by everyone—as an example, using a magnetic sweeper to clear metal road debris. 
 A 3000-gallon poly tank from Hartland rolled into the rural yard of my neighbors and parked itself near their home. It left a path just as the tornado had.  
 Minnesota is the land of unseasonable weather. The unseasonably warm weather took the snow away, the tornado took away parts of Hartland. The bank, built in 1912, was severely damaged. The post office has temporarily closed. It had provided in-person interactions, the best kind of social media. Many customers must travel 7 miles to the New Richland post office to pick up mail and packages. Homes, businesses and vehicles were wounded. Hartland is my hometown and my home. I hurt when it hurts.
 If my father still walked this earth, he’d have a tough time doing his Christmas shopping. The Einar’s Hardware building, years after it had ceased being Einar’s Hardware, was damaged. 
 The tornado left the scene. There were no injuries, which  was a wonderful Christmas gift.

©️Al Batt 2021

The good kind of Christmas blues.

New Ulm native Joey Batt leads by example for No. 21 Minnesota State

https://www.keyc.com/2021/12/25/new-ulm-native-joey-batt-leads-by-example-no-21-minnesota-state/

Is it a pigeon or a dove?

Naturally
I went for a walk and scared up countless birds who were holed up in an arborvitae until the coast was clear and an accipiter had concluded its hunting. I found the hawk. It was a sharp-shinned male, about the size of a blue jay. I found him because blue jays had found him in a spruce tree and they made a fuss. The raptor was seriously outnumbered. There was a good crop of acorns this year, which will provide a reliable winter food crop for the blue jays.
Talking to people from around the state, I’m reminded that deer have never been uniformly distributed across Minnesota. I see many of them in my neighborhood.
I marveled at the beauty of a tiny eastern screech-owl. It was a red one. This species comes in three color morphs: red, gray and brown. I’ve heard it called a shivering owl because of the trembling cry it makes. For years, a few times each week, I saw a red owl. It was an important part of a building. Red Owl was a grocery store chain that opened its first store in Rochester and operated 441 stores in Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, North Dakota and South Dakota. In 1988, the rights to the Red Owl name were secured by the grocery wholesaler SuperValu. The title sequence of “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” featured the lead character in a Red Owl meat department.
I love honey. It makes my tastebuds buzz and dance. Bees in France made honey in shades of blue and green, alarming beekeepers and inspiring scientists to discover the reason was the bees had developed a taste preference for the residue from containers of the candy M&M’s processed at a nearby plant.
In another bee story, I learned elephants are terrified of bees. Bees tend to sting elephants around the eyes, behind the ears, in the mouth and inside the trunk. That would scare anyone. Live beehives are being used as fences to protect farm crops from foraging elephants in some African and Asian countries and the experiment has had substantial success.
Why did the crow cross the road? To find the chicken that tried to cross the road but was hit by a car.
Q&A
“What’s the difference between pigeons and doves?” The general opinion is doves are beautiful, fragile birds and symbols of love and peace, while pigeons are considered feral birds often thought of as vermin generally found in gray, brown and blue colors. Others might describe doves as pigeons lacking street smarts. Doves and pigeons are in the same taxonomic family of birds known as Columbidae. There are at least 310 species in that family. Doves are generally smaller than a pigeon, but that’s not always the case. The common name of our common barn or city pigeons is rock pigeon, which was previously called rock dove.
“Circumstances prevent me from having a feeder, but I’d love to see the birds at one. Any suggestions?” You could visit a park, a nature center or kind neighbors with bird feeders. If you’d like to do it without leaving your home, you could make a virtual visit to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology at https://www.allaboutbirds.org/cams/. It features live streams of feeders in New York, Ontario and Texas as well as many other bird cams.
“Who tops the pecking order at a bird feeder?” I watched wild turkeys feed at the Hormel Nature Center’s platform feeders. They were the ruling class and the champion of displacement behavior. Work at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology found the top five feeder regulars in descending order are American crow, common grackle, red-bellied woodpecker, European starling and blue jay. The chickadee sits at the bottom of the dominance hierarchy. The downy woodpecker rates higher than one would expect from its size and the pileated woodpecker falls lower than its size would indicate. As I watched birds vying for prime positions on the feeders in my yard, I must add that squirrels have teeth and will depredate some birds, so they have a great impact on feeders.
Susan Wegner of Maine asked why a nuthatch male raised its head, spread its tail, drooped its wings, swayed back and forth, and bowed deeply. A surge of testosterone sometimes hits birds in the fall. It provides brief urges.
“What preys on turkeys?” Wild turkeys aren’t easy prey, they’re large, can run up to 18 mph, fly 50 mph and are capable of swimming. Great horned owls, golden eagles, coyotes, foxes, bobcats and raccoons are possible predators on the turkeys stuffed with acorns.
Thanks for stopping by
“Nothing is more honorable than a grateful heart.”―Lucius Annaeus Seneca.
“We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures.”―Thornton Wilder.
Do good.

©Al Batt 2021

An Eastern Screech-owl has prominent ear (feather) tufts and white “eyebrows.” Photo by Al Batt

Minnesota State defeated Augustana 91-86 behind Joey Batt’s (left in photo) 22 points and five assists, and 14 points each by Maddy Olson (at right in photo), Taylor Theusch and Emily Russo.

Nature talk on the radio. Do birds smell or has my deodorant gone bad? Why do I smell dirty socks when I’m around highbush cranberries?

The superstition is that sprinkling salt on a bird's tail will render the bird temporarily unable to fly, enabling its capture. This female Northern Cardinal flew away flawlessly, so her tail must have been sprinkled with snowflakes.

Trying weather can be artistic as evidenced on this hawthorn tree palette.

The trees had an early white Christmas.

The tornado has passed and it took the snow with it, but the deer remains.

The Lady’s Hawk

Merlin photo by Al Batt

  It’s no shape-shifting wizard.  The Merlin's name comes from the French word esmerillon, meaning falcon.  Medieval falconers called the Merlin the “Lady's Hawk.”

Naturally
I want to notice everything. If you notice you aren’t noticing everything, is that noticing everything? I digress. Bodies of water become leaf soup in the fall. I miss seeing the NASCAR birds, turkey vultures, flying in circles. In Roman mythology, Romulus and Remus, twin sons of a princess and the god Mars, are the founders of Rome. The brothers quarreled over the location of their new city. Romulus wished to start the city on Palatine Hill, while Remus wanted to put it on Aventine Hill. To settle their disagreement, they agreed to consult augury, a type of prophecy in which birds are observed and examined to determine which twin the gods favored. Each brother prepared a sacred space on his respective hill and watched for birds. Remus saw six vultures, while Romulus saw 12 and began to dig trenches and build walls for the new city on Palatine Hill.
I’ve been looking for the Christmas hawk. That’s a name I called the handsome rough-legged hawk when I was a lad. The bird was as regular as Santa Claus but less giving. This hawk is an Arctic breeder in Alaska and northern Canada and comes south to places like Minnesota in the fall/winter. "Rough-legged" refers to feathered legs, which provide warmth. It, the ferruginous hawk and the golden eagle are the only American raptors to have legs feathered to the toes. Rough-legged hawks perch on thinner branches than red-tailed hawks can and they hover while hunting, with lemmings being favorite prey in their breeding range. While here, they’re likely feeding on voles and mice. Rough-legged hawks come in light or dark morphs. Studies have shown the dark raptors hunt more successfully during cloudy days and the light-colored hawks flourish when the sky is bright. I saw a Merlin, another exceptionally cool raptor. It’s slightly larger than a kestrel but often appears considerably larger. This falcon used to be called the “pigeon hawk” because in flight it resembles a pigeon. And I watched a northern harrier, once called a marsh hawk, skimming low over the ground of an open field as it hunted on the wing. This hawk is propelled on languid wingbeats with wings raised in a dihedral when gliding. It forages in a teetering side-to-side flight. An adult female harrier’s plumage is dark brown above and buff below. The male is pale gray above and white below, and the males fly lower and faster than the females. This hawk nests on the ground in Minnesota.
The November full moon is the “beaver moon,” a name Native Americans assigned to beavers active in preparation for winter. They don’t burn wood, but stored wood becomes their winter staple, especially willow, aspen, birch and maple. Beaver kits stay with their parents for up to two years and provide labor for building and maintaining the lodge.
Henry Beston wrote, “The three great elemental sounds in nature are the sound of rain, the sound of wind in a primeval wood, and the sound of outer ocean on a beach. I have heard them all, and of the three elemental voices, that of ocean is the most awesome, beautiful and varied.” I grew up on a farm with a definite dearth of oceans. It was the stage where everything played. The wind was the constant. It still is.
Q&A
“Why isn’t anything eating the highbush cranberries in my yard?” The fruit, which can smell like dirty socks, is desperation or starvation food for birds. The fruit stays on the branch and while the berries aren’t a favorite of many birds, they’re an important survival food in winter and spring.
“Is the golden eagle the national emblem of any countries other than Mexico?” It’s also the national animal of Austria and the national bird of Albania, Kazakhstan, Scotland, Serbia, and Germany.
Susan Wegner of Maine asked if I’d ever seen a crow catch fish? I’ve watched fish crows eat fish and I’ve seen them do a gull-like behavior, fluttering over surface water to grab small fish. I don’t get to see fish crows where I live, but I’ve been able to sneak into places where I could find them. American crows eat live fish when the situation allows their capture in shallow water. Minnows appear to be a prime prey item. When there was a species called the northwestern crow, before it was lumped with the American crow, I watched them in Alaska as they fed on shellfish and fish. Crows are opportunistic omnivores and eat nearly everything. Mom wasn’t talking about the crow when she accused me of eating like a bird.
Thanks for stopping by
“The earth is what we all have in common.”—Wendell Berry.
“You can't be suspicious of a tree, or accuse a bird or a squirrel of subversion or challenge the ideology of a violet.”—Hal Borland.
Do good.

©Al Batt 2021

You, too, can always look on the bright side for only $11.99 plus tax.

Joey Batt (in photo) scored 17 points, Destinee Bursch 16 and Taylor Theusch added 10 in Minnesota State’s 76-67 win over Winona State.

HBC TV 25 in Winona named Joey Batt the Player of the Game in the Mavericks’ win over Winona State. She battled foul problems for much of the game.

Joey Batt’s 19 points led Minnesota State to a 88-48 win over Upper Iowa. Destinee Bursch had 13 points, Mikayla Nachazel 11, Maddy Olson 10 and Molly Ihle 10. Rylee Menster had 8 rebounds, Bursch 7 and Batt 6.

Mankato, Minn. --- The Minnesota State women's basketball team (6-0, 2-0 NSIC) played host to the Upper Iowa University women's basketball team (1-6, 0-2 NSIC) in Thursday night in their conference home opener. The Mavericks pressure was immense and unrelenting for the entire game. The Mavericks would control this one start to finish and cruise to an 88-48 win to remain undefeated.

The Mavericks had five players reach double figures as sophomore Joey Batt led all scorers with 19 and six rebounds. Freshman Destinee Bursch drained 13 and snagged seven rebounds. Mikayla Nachazel, Maddy Olson and Molly Ihle had 11, 10 and 10 points, respectively. Batt continued her streak of 15 plus points per game as she has done it now all six games of the season. Senior Rylee Menster hauled in eight boards which led all Mavericks in the contest.

The Mavericks in the first applied their patented full court pressure and swarmed the Peacocks. They would quickly begin with two steals for back-to-back layups. The Peacocks would try and hang tight but, a 10-2 run would push the Mavericks lead in to double digits. The Mavericks would rack up eight steals and forced the Peacocks into 10 turnovers in the first and took a commanding 18-point lead to end the first. The Mavericks defense continued its strong effort into the second and converting on the offensive end as they only allowed eight points the entire quarter. The Mavericks would hold a commanding 54-19 lead at half.

As a team, the Mavericks shot 52.5% from the field, 4-13 from three-point range for just over 30%. From the stripe the Mavericks were 8-10 for 80% in the half. The Mavericks were dominant in the paint as they outscored the Peacocks 28-8 in the first half. They forced the Peacocks into 18 turnovers and turned that into 24 fast break points on the offensive side.

The second half continued to see Maverick success on both ends of the court as the Mavericks would lead by as much as 41 in the third and never have the lead fall below 30. The Mavericks ended the third up 73-36. The Mavericks would look to their bench in the fourth to finish off the Peacocks as they continued to take of care business as the Mavericks would run away with it with a final score of 88-48.

The Mavericks finished the contest shooting 43.7% from the field, 23.8% from three-point range and 67.7% from the stripe. The Mavericks out rebounded the Peacocks 52-37. In the end the Mavericks forced 23 Peacock turnovers and had 17 steals.

Desk calendars are ideal stocking stuffers for those on your Christmas list who have enormous feet. Workman Publishing Company produces a plethora of perfect ways to know what day it is.

Desk calendars are ideal stocking stuffers for those on your Christmas list who have enormous feet. Workman Publishing Company produces a plethora of perfect ways to know what day it is.

Mankato, Minn. --- The Minnesota State women's basketball team (7-0, 3-0 NSIC) traveled to Winona, Minn. to take on the Winona State University women's basketball team (4-3, 1-2 NSIC) in their third NSIC conference game of the season. The Mavericks were able to weather an early storm by the Warriors to remain undefeated with a final score of 76-67.

The Mavericks were once again led in scoring by sophomore guard Joey Batt, who continued her streak of scoring 15 plus points a game to seven by putting down 17 points against the Warriors. Freshman Destinee Bursch would score 16 and would haul in a team high seven rebounds and four assists. The Mavericks saw a third player hit the double-digit mark as sophomore Taylor Theusch had 10 points, three assists and two rebounds in the contest.  

The Mavericks in the first faced a barrage of points by the Warriors as they jumped up on the Mavericks with a 19-12 lead with just under four minutes left in the first. The Warriors outshot the Mavericks 66% from the field compared to 36%. From there, the Mavericks defensive press would start to force the Warriors into turnovers and were able to take advantage on the other end and re-take the lead 20-19 at the end of the first. The Mavericks ended the first on an 8-0 run. After facing the early surge in the first by the Warriors, the Mavericks struggled to find any consistency on the offensive end. The Warriors were able to find open shots and knock them down and ended the first half on a 9-0 run and held a slim four-point margin heading into the locker room with the score at 33-37. 

As a team, the Mavericks shot just under 40% compared to the Warriors 48% from the field. The Mavericks shot 35.7% from long distance as they went 5-14 in the first half. The Mavericks did not attempt any free throws the entire half. The Mavericks held a slim rebound advantage at 19-17. The Mavericks forced 10 turnovers but, also committed nine. 

The Mavericks offense would come to life in the third as they went on a 18-6 run to begin the third quarter and would take an eight-point lead, the largest of the game thus far. The Mavericks held the Warriors to only 10 points in the third as the defensive pressure began to take affect and force the Warriors into poor decision making on the floor. With the Mavericks holding the ball for the last shot to end the third, freshman Destinee Bursch had a beautiful entry pass down low to sophomore Emily Russo who finished with a lay-up at the buzzer to give the Mavericks a 10-point advantage at the end of three. Early in the fourth Batt and Olson would both get their fourth personal foul and would have to head to the bench. The Mavericks depth would prove to be ready for the challenge as they would hold strong for the team down the stretch. The Mavericks would stymie a late Warriors push that cut the lead to five and would hit seven of 10 free throws in the closing minutes of the fourth to put the Warriors down for the count with a 76-67 victory. 

As a team, the Mavericks would surpass the Warriors in field goal percentage shooting 45.2% comparatively to 43.1% for the Warriors. The Mavericks shot 47.6% from downtown and just 52.6% from the charity stripe. The Mavericks high intensity defense forced Winona into 23 turnovers and were able to turn that into 27 points on the other end.

Totem poles at Sitka National Historical Park.

Totem poles at Sitka National Historical Park.

A Snowy Owl was seen near my palatial estate, featuring at least one crumbling shed. This wasn’t that owl, but rather a photo I took of another Snowy Owl that I actually saw.

Eurasian Eagle-owls are apex predators

Eurasian Eagle-owls are apex predators. This large owl is found at the American Bald Eagle Foundation in Haines, Alaska.

Eurasian Eagle-owl.

Not all Eurasian Eagle-owls enjoy being near an exit sign.

Naturally
A couple of dandelions still bloomed in the yard. They do so to establish possibility. The red berries on yard trees offered a glimpse of another year. Fallen leaves amplified
the sounds of things that were and weren’t there.
The cloudiest months are November and December, with an average of 18 cloudy days each in Minnesota. November averages five days with clear skies and December six. But one day in November, the sky was so blue, gulls were swimming in it. Overall, Minnesota is warmer and wetter than in 1900. Ask anybody who was around in 1900, they’ll tell you. November has been blustery. The windiest month on average for most of Minnesota is April. Minneapolis is windier than the Windy City (Chicago), as are Milwaukee, Boston and a host of other cities.
Penn State University researchers and wildlife officials in Iowa found that over 80% of deer in their samples tested positive for the COVID-19 virus, with samples taken from April 2020 through January 2021 showing it’s spreading. There’s no evidence to suggest deer-to-human transmission. According to the study, the COVID-19 transmissions among deer in Iowa likely resulted from multiple human-to-deer spillover events and deer-to-deer transmission. Rachel Ruden, Iowa’s state wildlife veterinarian and an author of the study, said there are many opportunities for transmission given the 445,000 deer in the state, and the virus could be spread by people feeding deer, through sewage discharges or in an odd way like a deer licking a gob of used chewing tobacco spit out by an infected hunter. Ruden said, “All of this is a striking example that we’re all in this pandemic together.”
Nature by the book
I read a delightful book by Rosemary Mosco titled, “A Pocket Guide to Pigeon Watching,” subtitled, “Getting to Know the World’s Most Misunderstood Bird.” She dedicated the book to her father, who grew up in a Manhattan tenement, and knew only three kinds of birds: the gray ones (pigeons), the little brown ones (house sparrows) and seagulls. The book covers about everything you could cover a pigeon with. A pigeon can find its way home from unfamiliar locations. How? Scientists believe the birds use landmarks, smells, the position of the sun, earth’s magnetic field, and the female pigeon stops to ask for directions. I tossed that last one in there. Don’t blame a scientist for it.
In WWI, the Lost Battalion (US soldiers) was behind enemy lines in the Argonne Forest when they fell under friendly artillery fire. They released a messenger pigeon named Cher Ami, which is French for “dear friend.” Despite being shot, Cher Ani delivered the message to headquarters and saved many lives. Cher Ami received the Croix de Guerre, one of France’s highest military honors.
The author included a quote from Charles Darwin, “I will show you my pigeons! Which is the greatest treat, in my opinion, which can be offered to human beings.”
As I’d say when I was a ragamuffin, I had a fun time reading this book.
Q&A
Dale Waltz of Rochester asked about gray squirrels with white ears. They often have white hair behind their ears and on the chin, throat and belly. Gray squirrels may have white or brownish bellies and, in winter, white ear tufts. Black and white squirrels are variations of the gray squirrel. The black squirrels will not have white-tipped fur or white bellies. Eastern grey squirrels often have a lot of red in their fur. Underparts and eye-rings are buffy brown to white, usually lighter in winter. The backs of the ears, tan to cinnamon in color, have white tips in the winter
“If I feed just one thing to the wild birds in my Minnesota backyard, what should it be?” I’d recommend black-oil sunflower seeds. They have the greatest appeal to the broadest variety of winter birds we want to see and offer high energy content. This take-it-or-leave-it bird table saves you the time, effort and cost of having to post a daily menu.
“Why are birds banded?” According to the USGS Bird Banding Laboratory, bird banding data are useful in both scientific research and management and conservation projects. Individual identification of birds makes it possible to study dispersal and migration, behavior and social structure, lifespan and survival rate, reproductive success and population growth.
“Do birds have a sense of smell?” Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology and the Cawthron Institute in New Zealand provided genetic evidence that many bird species have a well-developed sense of smell, but the ability varies among bird groups. Vultures, seabirds, kiwis and parrots have well-developed olfactory glands.
Thanks for stopping by
“We are a landscape of all we have seen.”—Isamu Noguchi.
“There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all.”—Peter Drucker.
Do good.

©️Al Batt 2021

At this time of the year, a European Starling looks as if it’s covered in tiny footprints. Its bill has darkened along with the plumage change. Photo by Al Batt

A lovely place to visit in Haines, Alaska.

Haines, Alaska, in November.

The man in the moon was smiling.

The weather forecast in Haines, Alaska, was for snow and magpies.

The weather had been cold and birdy.

It’s not Soap Suds Al. It’s me—or is it? Haines, Alaska.

Both teams were cold to begin the game. Fortunately, it was played indoors.

Pa and Ma Downy Woodpecker sometimes get along. So do water witchers.

Pa and Ma Downy Woodpecker sometimes get along.

Pa.

Ma. They are on separate sticks.

Water witching 

Naturally
 I watched a great blue heron following its bill in flight. A brisk wind moved milkweed seeds around. Rivers of blackbirds flew resolutely to a destination at least one bird knew. Red berries were evident on highbush cranberry and hawthorn. Rose hips were another red color seen easily. 
 Dandelions bloomed in the yard. They bloom profusely in April-June, but when the days are long in the middle of summer, flower initiation lessens. In fall, when the days shorten, they might bloom a second time,  weather permitting. Flowering is initiated by day length and temperature. This second flowering ceases as days shorten or with severe frosts. Lilacs sometimes bloom twice. Some say the second blooming is due to stress, but there are varieties and hybrids of lilacs that are meant to do so. Lilacs are native to Eastern Europe and Asia. 
 Hardiness has made ginkgo trees a popular choice for landscaping and urban planning. Ginkgos lose all their fan-shaped leaves in one massive, simultaneous leaf drop. Buckthorn clings to its leaves and sports black berries.
 I put a canoe in the longest river in the US near Great Falls, Montana. Nicknamed “Big Muddy,” the Missouri River is the fourth longest river in the world, starting in Montana’s Rocky Mountains and traveling 2,341 miles through Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, and Missouri (according to the Montana Office of Tourism) before joining the Mississippi River near St. Louis. 
Q&A
 “Do raccoons hibernate?” They don’t. What they do has been called going into torpor, winter sleep, partial hibernation or becoming dormant. They retire to a den where they sleep for long periods, waking occasionally to hit the snooze button or to leave the den for lunch. Mating occurs in February and March. If the temperature drops below 27°, raccoons retreat to their dens, usually in hollow logs and trees. They can have more than one den and sleep in the one they determine is most secure. They can burrow underground to make dens and it isn’t unusual for raccoons to nap together and they’ve been discovered in chimneys, under decks and in abandoned buildings.
 Leon Schoenrock of New Richland wrote, “I did see a golden eagle this fall. When I see them, I think they seem bigger than a bald eagle. Are they?” Golden eagles and bald eagles are of similar size. Female eagles are up to 25% larger than males. Most resources have found that, on average, a bald eagle is slightly larger than a golden eagle. According to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, a golden eagle is 27.6 to 33.1 inches long. A bald eagle is 27.9 to 37.8 inches long. A golden eagle weighs 105.8 to 216.1 ounces and a bald eagle 105.8 to 222.2 ounces. Young bald eagles can be larger than adults because a young eagle's tail and wing feathers are longer than an adult's. The young eagles still weigh less than adults.
 “What trees produce the best branches to use for dowsing or water witching?” My father favored a forked branch cut from a live willow tree. You could use any kind of tree, but Y-shaped sticks from willows, witch hazel (not common in much of Minnesota), and various fruit and nut trees are the most popular. Cut a Y-shaped stick from a tree, making sure that all three sections of the Y are 12-16 inches long. Grab both the top ends of the Y in an underhanded grasp with your palms facing toward the sky, and hold the dowsing rod horizontally so that it points in front of you. Maintain a loose grip as you walk slowly in search of water. As you approach a water source, the bottom of the Y of the dowsing rod should bend towards the ground. Dad also used wire coat hangers and wire rods. I watched a tiler use a pair of pliers for that purpose. Does dowsing work? I’m not sure. I’ve seen it done. I guess seeing isn’t always believing.
 Barb Lamson of Mankato asked, “What happens to young offspring of deer—do they stay with their mother, do they become independent? How do they survive?” Although they may drift away for periods of time, female fawns could stay with their mothers for two years and young bucks leave after a year. If a doe dies, it’s believed by some researchers that a fawn could survive on its own if it had reached eight weeks of age.
Thanks for stopping by
 “I would rather be the man who bought the Brooklyn Bridge than the one who sold it.”—Will Rogers.
“You must not know too much, or be too precise or scientific about birds and trees and flowers and water-craft; a certain free margin, and even vagueness—perhaps ignorance, credulity—helps your enjoyment of these things.”—Walt Whitman.
 Do good.

©️Al Batt 2021

This golden eagle and a bald eagle are of similar size, with the bald eagle being slightly larger on average. The females are bigger than the males. Photo by Al Batt

Joey Batt (#1) had 21 points, six assists and three steals to lead Minnesota State past Wisconsin-Parkside 93-75. Batt was 12 of 12 at the free-throw line. Taylor Theusch added 18 points, Tayla Stuttley 16 and Destinee Bursch scored 10.

A yellow-bellied sapsucker may sound like an insult. Something to be yelled at a bad guy on the news.

But it’s a beautiful bird.

A sapsucker will occasionally visit a suet feeder.

This sapsucker wasn’t just visiting. It was eating.

There were six perches on the nyjer seed feeder and there were six American Goldfinches dining there. All six of them are the state birds of Iowa.

A Northern Cardinal shops in a natural foods store.

It was sample day.

The sample day was at the Cardinal Grocery Store. We used to have a Cardinal Grocery Store in my hometown. It concentrated its efforts on feeding humans.

KTOE is an episode of nature talk on the radio, naturally.

This is a lovely book.

This is is the lovely dedication in that lovely book by Rosemary Mosco.

This photo of Joey Batt, with the ball, was taken by that fine fellow Grant McGinnis. A tip of my Maverick hat to him.

Joey Batt had 32 points and 9 rebounds in the Minnesota State Mavericks 84-74 win over Concordia-St. Paul. Rylee Menster tossed in 12 points, Mikayla Nachazel had 11, and Tayla Stuttley and Emily Russo each added 9 points with Russo pulling down 9 rebounds.

Joey Batt #1 and Mikayla Nachazel #44 each had 16 points to lead Minnesota State to a 78-59 win over Texas A&M-Kingsville in a game played in San Antonio. Emily Russo had 6 rebounds and Rylee Menster added 4 assists. Every Maverick player got important minutes.

Joey Batt’s 17 points led four double-figure scorers in Minnesota State’s 81-72 win over St. Mary’s University in San Antonio. Batt (above) added 5 steals. Taylor Theusch had 15 points; Rylee Menster filled the stats sheets with 14 points, 7 rebounds, 5 steals, and 6 assists; and Destinee Bursch tossed in 12 points. Emily Russo pulled down 7 rebounds.

Hedgehog caterpillars hibernate

Hedgehog caterpillars hibernate

Naturally
The first week of November found me doing a lot of walking in Winona, often in the company of woolly bear (woolly worm) caterpillars. The caterpillar is the larval form of the Isabella tiger moth, a white to orange to yellow moth that flies around lights on summer nights. The woolly bear is the Punxsutawney Phil of insects. One folkloric belief is that the direction the caterpillars travel foretells the severity of the upcoming winter. If they’re headed south, they’re running away from the looming cold; if they crawl north, it means winter will be mild. There’s not much merit to that tall tale. More’s the pity. The more common woolly bear prognostication suggests the width of the caterpillar’s brown band can predict the severity of a winter. A wide band means a mild winter and a narrow band means winter will be harsh. Since the brown band typically grows wider with each molt the caterpillar completes, it’s more of an indication of age, nutrition and genetics. This caterpillar forecast has been around since colonial times, but it became popular in 1948, when the curator of entomology from the American Museum of Natural History, Dr. Howard Curran, did a study. He went to Bear Mountain State Park, New York, and examined woolly bear caterpillars, paying particular attention to the brown bands. Based on those, he made a winter prediction, which was picked up by the New York Herald Tribune. The wooly bear caterpillars had predicted a mild winter, which turned out to be correct and the story spread around the country. The caterpillars are woolly bears and they hibernate like bears, except the caterpillars stay cold. It’s beyond cold; they freeze. Some people call them hedgehog caterpillars because they roll into a ball and play dead when disturbed. Please don’t blame them for the winter. Another bit of winter weather lore I’ve heard often is for every fog in August, we’ll get a day with snowfall. I’ve always wanted to check that, but I never remember to count the fogs in August because of my brain fog.
I stood under a large oak. I often walk by the big beauty. Squirrels were squirreling away the fallen acorns. Oaks can be 900-year-old trees–300 years of growth, 300 years of stasis and 300 years of decline. Most species of oaks begin producing acorns at about 20 years of age, with peak mast production occurring at around 50 to 80 years. An oak tree is in the genus Quercus. “Quer” means “fine” and “cuez” means “tree” in Celtic. An oak’s root zone extends beyond the drip line of the tree. The drip line is the outermost edge of a tree’s foliage.
A single pair of breeding chickadees needs 6,000 to 9,000 caterpillars to rear one clutch of young birds, according to Doug Tallamy, a professor of entomology and wildlife ecology at the University of Delaware. A black-capped chickadee weighs as much as four or five pennies.
I’ve seen teams of workers wearing bright vests digging around utility poles. They check the poles for rot and decay. I wonder what all they encounter in their excavations? Soil is alive. There are far more species of organisms in the soil than there are aboveground.
Q&A
Duane Miller of Hartland asked if hummingbirds have a pecking order? Hummingbirds have an instinct to protect food sources, so they do have a dominance hierarchy. This leads to constant battles at feeders. If you know someone who enjoys watching movies featuring car chases, tell them to watch hummingbirds at feeders. The chases are nearly endless.
“Why do hummingbirds spend a longer time in a nest than many other songbirds?” The hummingbird nestlings spend 18-22 days in the nest, whereas the average songbird, if there is an average songbird, is in the nest for 12-14 days. It’s all about mobility. A young robin leaving the nest could hop, walk and climb until it’s mature enough to fly. A hummingbird nestling cannot do those things. It needs to be able to fly skillfully enough to find safety from weather and predators. The extra time in the nest allows it to become developed enough to give it a shot at survival outside the nest.
“What songbirds have the longest tails related to their bodies?” The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service says four North American songbirds have tails making up half or more of their body length. They are the black-billed magpie, yellow-billed magpie, scissor-tailed flycatcher and fork-tailed flycatcher.
Thanks for stopping by
“I seldom get down or depressed. I don’t want to waste a minute when I could be enjoying life.”—Dick Van Dyke.
“You can have all the money in the world, but there’s one thing you will never have… a dinosaur.”—Homer Simpson.
Do good.

©Al Batt 2021

A scissor-tailed flycatcher catches the eye. My mother told me to never run while carrying scissors. This bird’s mother didn’t tell it to never fly with scissors. Photo by Al Batt

Woolly bear caterpillar.

Woolly worm caterpillar.

It was white on top on Friday.

Common milkweed seeds are traveling on the wind.

I hope one day this will lead to monarch butterfly caterpillar chow.

I was surprised to see me on the wall of the wonderful Waseca Music Store and surprised again to see my image is just above Journey and just below Bob Dylan.

The bowed head of a sunflower plant gathered snow.

Turdus migratorius. His friends call him the American r.obin.

Lake Park on Lake Winona in Winona, Minnesota. Winona is named after the Dakota Sioux woman who was said to be the daughter of Chief Wabasha or Chief Red Wing and for the Dakota Indian word "We-no-nah" meaning first-born daughter.

A group of Double-crested Cormorants is called a gulp. And why not?

Oxbow Park near Byron, Minnesota.

The Blue Jay wet ‘em.

I’d have to be cuckoo not to love this bird clock my father-in-law gave me in 1997. It’s a field guide that tells the time in birdsong.

It’s always time to listen to the birds

Naturally
Roadkill goes unmourned in the crisp, autumn air, unlike someone’s dented car.
The warblers have left. The tiny birds live lives of perpetual spring and summer. Birds of passage and winter residents arrive more subtly than those in the spring.
Juncos, with pink bills and white outer tail feathers, are apt to feed on the ground. The earliest arrivals tend to rank higher in the pecking order than those arriving on later flights.
I strolled along the Mississippi River at Winona. Parts of 31 states plus two Canadian provinces drain into the Mississippi River. I walked in awe.
I’m cuckoo for this timepiece
My father-in-law, Gene Nelson, gave me a bird clock in 1997. It’s a field guide, featuring images of birds and authentic recordings from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. A different songbird gives voice to the top of each hour. The bird singing at noon is a house finch, an American robin sings at 1, northern mockingbird at 2, blue jay at 3, house wren at 4, tufted titmouse at 5, Baltimore oriole at 6, mourning dove at 7, black-capped chickadee at 8, northern cardinal at 9, a white-throated sparrow whistles at 10 and a white-breasted nuthatch heralds 11 o’clock. Darkness deactivates the sounds, allowing ears to sleep. I know when I hear the house finch, it’s either time to eat or to go to bed. When I hear the Baltimore oriole, it’s time to eat or to think about getting out of bed. When I hear the chickadee, it’s time to smile. The clock was a change from the cuckoo clocks I’d heard here and there in my youth. We weren’t fancy people, but an aunt gave us a used discount cuckoo clock that took a few hours off each day to rest up so it could utter a sound as if it were choking on a peanut butter on Wonder Bread sandwich. I’d miss the sounds of those birds if the clock my father-in-law gave me wasn’t hanging on a wall of my home. I miss my late father-in-law. It helps to listen to his birds.
Q&A
Mary Guggisberg of Freeborn asked where the nesting trumpeter swans near her spend the winter. Most Minnesota swans remain here through the winter months. They are short-distance migrants to sites where there is open water and an abundant food supply. Some, fueled by wanderlust, have been documented wintering as far south as Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas.
“Do hummingbirds migrate by riding on the backs of Canada geese?” No, it’s a myth. Other persistent myths include: Parent birds abandon a nestling touched by humans. Purple martins regularly eat 2,000 mosquitoes a day. An owl can spin its head completely around. The fruit of an Osage orange tree repels spiders. I’ve visited Osage orange trees in my travels and have seen spiders on the fruits (called Osage oranges, hedge apple, monkey ball, horse apple, hedge ball, mock orange or spider ball). I detected no panic in any of the arachnids. I suspect this misbelief began because spiders are in natural decline at the time of the year when the softball-sized hedge apples fall to the ground in September and October. Be careful around the fruit as its juice could irritate the skin. I have a pen made from hedge apple wood. It makes a great pen, but it doesn’t repel spiders either. The Osage orange tree, also known as bow-wood, bodark, prairie hedge, yellow-wood, naranjo chino, boduck and bois d’arc, is a durable hardwood used for many things including fence posts, archery bows, cutting boards and musical instruments. It was once used for railroad ties, wagon wheels and natural fencing.
“What are crows eating in the harvested fields?” What aren’t the opportunistic omnivores eating? They eat insects, spiders, snails, worms, frogs, snakes, carrion, garbage, seeds, grain, berries and fruit.
Jodi Bolinger of Osage saw bald eagles in a farm field near what looked like a pile of gravel and wondered what they were doing there. Lime (limestone) put on fields lowers the acidity of the soil and the eagles are likely feasting on a carcass—deer, opossum, etc. Birds of prey don’t need grit for the digestion of their food, but some falcons ingest and later regurgitate small stones for unknown or speculative reasons.
Thanks for stopping by
“That soft, autumnal time. The year’s last, loveliest smile. Thou com’st to fill with hope the human heart, and strengthen it to bear the storms awhile, till winter’s frowns depart.”—John Howard Bryant, often credited incorrectly to his brother William Cullen Bryant.
“Falsehood flies, and truth comes limping after it, so that when men come to be undeceived, it is too late; the jest is over, and the tale hath had its effect.”—Jonathan Swift.
Do good.

©Al Batt 2021

I’d have to be cuckoo not to love this bird clock my father-in-law gave me in 1997. It’s a field guide that tells the time in birdsong. Photo by Al Batt

Minnesota has a number of wonderful state parks.

Looking out at male House Finches gives me a rosy outlook.

Looking out at male House Finches gives me a rosy outlook.

Looking out at male House Finches gives me a rosy outlook.

Red-bellied Woodpeckers and peanuts go together like peanuts and Red-bellied Woodpeckers.

A robin with a sense of humor enjoys a haw.

A Cedar Waxwing is a berry nice bird.

Brown-headed Cowbird.

Getting birds to miss windows

The Northern Flicker is the state bird of Alabama, making it the Yellowhammer State. The flicker is also called the high-holer, the wake-up and about 100 other names.

The Northern Flicker is the state bird of Alabama, making it the Yellowhammer State. The flicker is also called the high-holer, the wake-up and about 100 other names.

The Northern Flicker is the state bird of Alabama, making it the Yellowhammer State. The flicker is also called the high-holer, the wake-up and about 100 other names.

Getting birds to miss windows

Naturally
 Long, twisting flocks of mixed blackbirds (common grackles and red-winged blackbirds) drift southward in migration. Robins and cedar waxwings feed on the berries of mountain ash, dogwoods and viburnums.
 White-tailed deer bucks begin rut in mid-October, sparring with small trees and other males. They scrape the ground to declare territory and make their presence known to does for breeding in November. As plants brown, deer seek green vegetation in open areas.
 There were fewer fireflies in my yard this year than most years. Lightning bugs need a moist environment to thrive. Dry conditions impact their populations. Firefly numbers are declining in some areas due to habitat loss, toxic chemicals and light pollution, which disrupt their communications.
Q&A
 “Why are the words birdie and eagle used in golf?” Birdie, meaning a score of one under par, comes from the American slang term "bird," meaning something excellent. Birdie originated when Ab Smith described a bird of a golf shot in 1899 and it morphed into being called a birdie. The term eagle extended the theme, being two under par.
 “What’s your favorite bird?” I hope I’m not offending other birds—I like them all—but the chickadee is my fave. All seven chickadee species that regularly occur in North America: Carolina, black-capped, boreal, mountain, chestnut-backed, Mexican and gray-headed chickadee are my favorites. 
 “How can I stop birds from flying into my windows and injuring themselves?” Birds crash into windows because they see reflections of vegetation or see potted plants or vegetation on the other side of the glass. Go outside and look at your windows. If you see trees or sky reflected or indoor plants visible through the glass, that’s what the birds see. The Bird Collisions Program of the American Bird Conservancy offers these suggestions. Mark the window’s outside with soap or tempera paint, using either a grid pattern no more than 2 inches apart across the entire window or get creative and paint patterns or artwork. Put decals, stickers, sun catchers, mylar strips, masking tape or other objects (even sticky notes) on the outside surface of the window. These are most effective when closely spaced so the birds won’t think they can fly between them. Hawk silhouettes do little to deter birds. Installing mosquito screens over windows is effective, as long as they are on the outside of the window and cover the entire surface. Cover the outside of the glass with netting at least 3 inches from the glass, taut enough to bounce birds before they hit. Small-mesh netting is best so birds don’t become entangled. One-way transparent film permits people to see out, but makes the window opaque from the outside. If you find a bird dazed from a window collision with its wings held properly, not dangling, and the eyes look normal, see if it can perch on a branch unassisted. If so, let it recover on its own. If the bird has a noticeable injury, get it to a wildlife rehabilitator as quickly as possible. Broken bones need proper attention to heal properly without surgery. Otherwise, place it in a dark container such as a shoebox and put it in a quiet place away from pets for 15 minutes. Don’t give it food or water. The darkness calms the bird. Open the box outside every 15 minutes—if the bird flies off, it’s a good thing. If it doesn’t recover in a couple of hours, take it to a wildlife rehabilitator. Sadly, birds often die from internal bleeding and bruising, even when they’ve flown away.
 “How do insects survive the winter?” Insect activity rate is driven by temperature. They are much busier at above 50° than below 50. A frost quiets insects. Many die when the cold hits. Some migrate, like the monarch butterfly and green darner dragonfly. Many insects enter diapause, a period of suspended or arrested development during an insect's life cycle when they spend a prolonged period in a single developmental stage. Some overwinter as larvae. The woolly bear caterpillar is freeze-tolerant and some larvae live in plant galls like those commonly seen on goldenrod. Others spend the winter as nymphs as dragonflies in ponds and streams do. Many moth and butterfly species spend the coldest season as pupae. Crickets, grasshoppers and corn rootworms winter as eggs. Ants and honeybees stay somewhat active in their homes, while watching more TV than they should. Mourning cloak butterflies hibernate. Boxelder bugs, multi-colored Asian beetles and others find hidey-holes (crevices in buildings, tree bark, leaves, etc.) to spend the winter. Sunny, warm winter days bring out snow fleas and crane flies.
Thanks for stopping by
“There is a crack in everything. That’s how the light gets in.”—Leonard Cohen.
 “Oh, would that my mind could let fall its dead ideas, as the tree does its withered leaves!“—Andre Gide.

©Al Batt 2021

The common green darner dragonfly migrates. Photo by Al Batt

A Northern Flicker or yarrup.

A Northern Flicker or yarrup.

Double-crested Cormorants could live on fish sandwiches, but lacking both money, and an understanding and compassionate banker, they eat small fish.

A parking lot gull, otherwise known as a Ring-billed Gull.

A White-throated Sparrow wearing a University of Michigan football helmet.

Some consider a Blue Jay to be a rascal, but this one is coming clean.

What color are a pigeon’s toenails?

.

A lovely mural in Hartland, Minnesota. The artist drew them from old photographs.

Beware. Many people fell for this scam.

“Joey has a motor that is unmatched. Her fire and intensity coupled with her speed and quickness make her a force on both ends of the court. As a First Team All-Conference selection last season, Joey led the Mavericks in scoring and is also a great decision-maker and creates offense for her teammates. In addition to being an outstanding and dynamic offensive player, without a doubt, Joey’s biggest impact on our team is on the defensive end! As the reigning NSIC Defensive Player of the Year, Joey ignites our full court pressure defense and brings a great deal of toughness on the ball. She never takes a play off and raises the level of intensity of those around her everyday. Joey is an exciting player to watch and a fun player to coach!”

Head Coach Emilee Thiesse

A page from “The Pocket Guide to Pigeon Watching.”

Sitka, Alaska.

Sitka boats.

Sitka gulls.

Sitka gulls.

In Sitka.

In Sitka.

In Sitka.

In Sitka.

Received this from a friend.

Hello, Al,

I hope you are doing well and have had a good summer. All is well here. Ethelle and I have stayed healthy and are looking forward to leading birding trip to Colombia in December. Meanwhile, I have been involved with local birders to help advocate for protection of a 77-acre grassland between the Battle Creek Regional Park and Ramsey County corrections land in Maplewood. The planner in charge of the Master Plan for the Battle Creek Regional Park did not address the opportunity to preserve this parcel even though it is used as nesting habitat for eight Minnesota species of special concern including the state-endangered Henslow's sparrow. Below are the comments that I have submitted through MOU for consideration by Mr. Karp. Comments are due by October 31. Please take a look at my comments. Let me know if you might wish to join in support to "join the chorus" and help spread the word on your blog.

Best wishes, Carrol

Send comments to:

Benjamin.Karp@ramseycounty.us

Dear Mr. Karp: I wish to submit the following comments regarding the proposed Battle Creek Regional Park Management Plan proposal.

I sincerely appreciate all of the work that has gone into preparing the master plan for the Battle Creek Regional Park. I would, however, like to point out what I consider a serious omission and flaw in the plan. In the initial request for public input on the planning process, there were 87 public comments that expressed concern for the need to protect the 77-acre grassland parcel between the southern boundary of the Battle Creek Regional Park and the Ramsey County correctional property south of the grassland. In the final version of the 2021 Master Plan, all reference to that input and the ecological and biological significance of that grassland parcel was totally ignored. It should have been recommended that the parcel be included within the proposal for protection and management of the eight bird species listed by the Department of Natural Resources as species in greatest conservation need, including the state-endangered Henslow's sparrow.

The other birds at risk include such iconic species as the bobolink, dickcissel, and eastern meadowlark as well as the grasshopper sparrow, clay-colored sparrow, field sparrow, and savannah sparrow. All those species have undergone dramatic population declines over the past 56 years in Minnesota-including destruction of their grassland nesting habitats through land development and land conversion to crop production. Those species have declined from 37% for the clay-colored sparrow to 97% for the grasshopper sparrow.

I strongly and enthusiastically suggest that the master plan include the 77-acre grassland parcel in the Battle Creek Regional Park Master Plan for preservation in its entirety with no development like trails or other disturbance to the grasslands. Preservation of this grassland for its ecological and biological significance would generate significant positive publicity for the vision of Ramsey County in preserving a gem of a natural wildlife habitat right within Ramsey County. I am not aware of any other comparable grassland songbird nesting areas in the county or adjacent metropolitan areas.

There is an additional enormous benefit for preserving this area: It holds the potential for designation as Minnesota's first "Birdability" site. This is national Birdability Week. This is a week in which national efforts are being made to promote access to persons with accessibility impairments to enjoy and have nature-based experiences. This includes blindness and vision impairments.

In the case of the Ramsey county grassland property, I suggest collaboration with Ramsey County corrections staff to discuss creation of a veranda-type seating area on the southern boundary of the grassland on northern edge of the corrections property. There blind and vision-impaired citizens with mobility impairments could sit and listen to the sounds of nature like spring and summer bird songs. There would be no access or trail creation on the grasslands. It could be called the "Birdsong Reserve." There could be bird feeders and nest boxes in the immediate vicinity of the veranda to add more interest and songbird activity near the seating area. When people think of accessibility issues, they usually think of making trails for people with mobility impairments--but people who are blind, legally blind, or vision-impaired are typically ignored by planners who just put in trails and think that accessibility issues are addressed.

We have a local national Board member for Birdability, Michael Hurben, who is legally blind, reknown and lifelong Minnesota birder and author Bob Janssen, Julian Sellers, and myself who wish to "join the chorus" to save the grasslands for the songbirds and their potential as an accessibility site for vision-impaired birders and nature lovers. This would generate an enormous amount of local, statewide, and even national publicity for Ramsey County for their vision in designating this site for its unique biological and accessibility benefits.

Thank you for the opportunity to share these ideas.

Carrol Henderson

A tacoraptor

It’s hard to miss a great-tailed grackle with its lengthy tail and an even longer repertoire of sounds. Photo by Al Batt

Naturally

 Red oaks show rich reds and browns. Red asparagus berries are evident. There was a red-breasted nuthatch in my yard on Oct. 12. Another milepost of a year. Skunk and raccoon carcasses litter the highways. Many are those of young animals unaware of the dangers found there.
 I watched a kettle of turkey vultures surfing on the wind over New Ulm. They performed an aerial ballet. Earlier, I’d seen a HAZMAT team (called a wake) of vultures working on removing a dead raccoon from the road. It’s a job that pays them all they can eat.
 I saw a belted kingfisher fishing at the edge of a lake. A kingfisher has a heavy bill that serves as a fishing spear. The species is sexually dimorphic—meaning the males and females look different—and the usual pattern is for males to be more colorful than females. The female belted kingfisher is bigger and more colorful than the male. This is called reverse sexual dimorphism. She displays an additional rust-colored patch across her belly. She has the belt. My wife says that means she wears the pants in the family. I’m not one to argue.
From the mailbag
 Bob Hargis of Riverton, Wyoming, wrote about my hand-feeding a Canada jay. Bob said his father-in-law was holding his hand clutching a PBJ sandwich out a car’s window. A camp robber (Canada jay) grabbed onto the sandwich and held on even when the PBJ was brought into the car. His father-in-law became a reluctant birder by inquiring, "What is that bird?”
Q&A
 Harvey Benson of Harmony asked why the birds had disappeared from his feeders. Cone, berry, seed and insect abundance change from season-to-season and year-to-year, causing birds to move about to take advantage of food and to escape areas with shortages. The dietary needs of birds change during the year, so they may move away from your feeders seasonally. Fewer birds at feeders during late summer and early fall occur as there is plenty of natural food available. Just like Arnold Schwarzenegger, they will be back.
 “Are great-tailed grackles found in Minnesota?” Yes, but most of this rare (in Minnesota) species have been documented in southwestern Minnesota counties. Breeding has been confirmed in Jackson County, where the species has been found repeatedly over the years. The long-legged birds are extending their range northward. I see and hear them everywhere in Texas. They sound like everything from a squeaky door hinge to radio static to rusty machinery to laughing whistles. Food trucks in Austin attract them and an acquaintance calls them tacoraptors.
 “Where do the vultures in Minnesota winter?” Turkey vultures are wonderfully adapted to the life of a scavenger. They winter in the southern U.S., Mexico, Central America and South America.
 “Was Woody the Woodpecker based upon a pileated woodpecker?” As happens in cartoons, the creators used artistic license to develop Woody. For years, I thought he was based on a pileated, but some reports claim he was inspired by a noisy acorn woodpecker that disrupted his creator, animator Walter Lantz's honeymoon by persistently calling and drumming on the couple's cabin. I’ve heard the collective noun for acorn woodpeckers is a bushel. That might have been said in jest. One of the acorn woodpecker's commonly heard calls is a loud, repeated waka-waka, but a case could be made that Woody sounds more like a pileated woodpecker. Woody once said he was a “Campephilus principalis.” That’s an ivory-billed woodpecker. One episode showed a picture of an ivory-billed and it looked like Woody. It’s safe to say Woody is a generic woodpecker and not an exact representation of any one species. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has declared the ivory-billed woodpecker extinct. Woody is  doing OK.
 “What is digging up my lawn?” It may be the guys replacing your septic tank. Or raccoons and skunks tearing up the lawn night after night, pulling back chunks of turf in search of grubs to eat. Raccoons roll up a lawn while searching for grubs and other larval insects. Skunks make small individual holes when they search for insect larvae. Squirrels dig holes when they bury food during the day. 
Thanks for stopping by
 “A mature person is one who does not think only in absolutes, who is able to be objective even when deeply stirred emotionally, who has learned that there is both good and bad in all people and in all things, and who walks humbly and deals charitably with the circumstances of life, knowing that in this world no one is all-knowing and therefore all of us need both love and charity.”—Eleanor Roosevelt.
 “Just before the death of flowers, and before they are buried in snow, there comes a festival season, when nature is all aglow.”–Emeline B. Smith.
 Do good.

©Al Batt 2021

The past summer’s Baltimore Oriole nest.

A flyless flycatcher.

This goldenrod has lost its gold, but it remains a beauty.

Common Mullein is the poor man’s Saguaro Cactus

Common Mullein is the poor man’s Saguaro Cactus.

This is from the wonderful True West Magazine and it shows the path of Jesse and Frank James, and the Younger Brothers in Minnesota after the Northfield Raid.

A Virginia Opossum coming

And going.

Like clockwork (it’s most like the bird clock hanging on my wall), the Red-breasted Nuthatches visit my yard at this time each year. They enjoy peanuts and offer cuteness in return. It’s a great trade for me.

The tiny Red-breasted Nuthatches enjoy sunflower seeds, too.

They were most kind in promoting me to the position of birdbrain. I will be forever humbled.

This is either a peacock or my driver’s license photo.

Nature nattering with Al Batt on Talk of the Town with Lisa Kaye.