Under a Tuscan Sunset
Wow. Just wow.
Sunday June 29, 2008 at 9:27am
Americana
I saw a great show in Dillsburg last night. We were at the Haar's drive-in, it was 20 minutes or so before sunset, the skies were graying considerably to rain (which it did for most of Wall-E, then it stopped and we were able to comfortably sit in lawn chairs for Get Smart). Families and kids getting fully prepped for the movie that was about to begin... and next to us...
Was a field, and we've just entered prime firefly season here, and there were more lightning bugs flying in the field than I've seen in a long long time. And that's a lot, because our neighborhood is loaded with them, too. The entire field looked like it had been heavily laced with Christmas lights, and I realized that this scene, of nature and farm and drive-in theater, couldn't have been more dramatic if Steven Spielberg had set it up himself. I had to stand at the end of the drive-in and just watch the field.
I've had a different thought today. Business has started to realize that the beauty of insects, and our own lack of understanding of insects, can lend itself to opportunity. That's why butterfly gardens, and insect zoos, and vacation tours to watch insects, such as butterflies, exist. There's money in this niche.
It seems to me that somebody could put together a "Firefly Tour" as well, if the businessperson can string together places like Haar's Drive-In. It really was a spectacular show until it rained.
Why not firefly tourism in Pennsylvania? There are actually some activities like this already. Oh, and check this out:
Summer is around the corner but now is the time to begin looking for lightning bugs with at least one location in North Carolina already launching its annual firefly tours, officials in Ohio are still waiting because lightning bugs haven't been seen there yet.Just outside Asheville, North Carolina there is a Firefly Twilight Tour on Saturday night offered by The Cradle of Forestry in America Historic Site in North Carolina's Pisgah National Forest.
During this guided program people will learn more about the insects as they enjoy the evening woods, forest officials announced Friday.
It's a good place to see the flashing luminous insects because most adult fireflies are found near where larvae hatch and "most firefly larvae are found in rotting wood or other forest litter or on the edges of streams and ponds at night," according to the website of the Museum of Biological Diversity at Ohio State University.
Although fireflies are found in many areas of the United States, only fireflies east of Kansas glow, scientists say they don't know why.
Hey, you Westerners - come east and see the fireflies.
Sunday June 29, 2008 at 9:05am
Curse You ,Small Herbivores or Omnivores!
Something chomped my birch tree AND my best growing almond tree, leaving no leaves. I've caged all four of the new trees in, hopefully the attacked will recover.
Maybe I should have thought about the fact that we live in the squirrel and chipmunk capital of the world before planting almond trees.
Friday June 27, 2008 at 6:08am
Birdwatching, Again, As Family Activity
When I was in high school, I had this great teacher - Mr. Carlson - who taught a one year course, Field Biology. It had lots of benefits, and field trips, including backpacking trips and after school hikes and trips to check out elephant seals and various other kinds of nature studying events. It became so popular in our school that a second year of curriculum was developed, brilliantly named Field Biology II, with more of these kinds of activities and studies.
At that time I discovered birdwatching, or more accurately for me, bird checking. We were given a long list of birds that at that time were known to be in California, either for the year or as part of their migratory trek, and we tried to see as many as we could through the process of all these field trips, and indicate what we saw. What it did for most of us was take us from noticing there were birds all around, to noticing what kinds of birds were around, and what that meant about the ecosystem as far as food and predators and water and botany was concerned.
I've had a trusty Audubon Field Guide to Birds ever since, and it's rubbed off on the kids. I get excited about seeing new types of birds in our neighborhood, and I'll consult the book, and the kids and I will figure it out, and one of them will excitedly tell Mom what we saw at the first chance they get. This usually opens up a discussion as to why they might be around here when we've not seen them much if at all before. Sometimes birds show up around here and are common for a season or two, but then disappear and aren't nearly as visible for a while. This happened a few years ago with Baltimore Orioles - Cal Ripken drove up - scratch that, stupid joke - one summer we saw them in our yard all the time, which was a first, but we haven't seen much of them since. Sometimes they appear and stay - about 5 years ago goldfinches started showing up, and they're here every summer now. This year I've been seeing more blue jays in our part of the neighborhood. And gladly, at least for now, less crows.
Anyway, I just felt like recommending the activity. Central Pennsylvania is rich with places to bird watch, for different kinds of birds - rivers and creeks, "mountains", farmlands, and practically every suburban neighborhood. And with the richness comes the fact that birdwatching is actually very inexpensive, and flexible - you can take five minutes or 3 hours, depending on how much focus you want to give it. Binoculars and a reference for determining on the spot what bird you're actually seeing and you're set. You can build your own PA Bird Checklist to monitor with your kids here or here.
Sunday June 22, 2008 at 6:47am
Nature's Perforating Machine
I discovered Saturday morning that we have a downy woodpecker that is chowing down on whatever is living in a dead limb of our lilac bush/tree. I heard the tap tap tapping and went to investigate, and there he was, and he didn't fly away until I was about 4 feet away. I inspected the branch - he's been busy, it's stripped almost all the way down to trunk, and a variety of hole depths. I looked on the ground, and found this stripped off bark - perfed by the woodpecker.
Wednesday June 11, 2008 at 12:46pm
Lawn Clippings as a Biofuel Source
Submitted to: American Forage and Grassland Conference Proceedings
Publication Type: Abstract
Publication Acceptance Date: August 9, 2007
Publication Date: January 26, 2008
Citation: Springer, T.L. Lawn clippings as a biofuels source (abstract). Society for Range Management-American Forage and Grassland Council Joint Meeting, January 26-31, 2008, Louisville, KY. 008. CDROM.Technical Abstract: Biomass yield from urban landscapes is an untapped resource. Lawn clippings, fallen leaves and tree limbs are all potential sources of biofuels and most cities already collect and transport these materials to disposal sites. Cities could alternatively collect and transport these biomass materials to a local biomass fueled energy conversion plant. In 2007, an experiment was begun to evaluate the yield potential of a bermudagrass [Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers.] lawn in Woodward, OK and to estimate the potential biomass yield for the City of Woodward. A typical lawn was thatched and fertilized with 13-13-13 (N-P-K) fertilizer at the rate 10 lbs bulk material per 1000 ft2 on 15 April. Mowing began on 18 May and every 10-14 days thereafter. The yield potential was estimated for each mowing date by harvesting four 166 square feet areas. The harvested material was weighed fresh, a 0.3-0.5 lb subsample collected and dried, and DM determined. The total DM of each sample was calculated by multiplying the percentage DM of the oven-dried sample by the harvested green weight of the sample. A preliminary estimate for 15 April-21 July shows that a typical lawn yielded 1,010 lbs of dry biomass material. This is equivalent to 4.6 tons/acre. It is also estimated that 3,600 tons of biomass material could be collected in the City of Woodward over that same period if every homeowner collected there lawn clippings. The typical growing season for bermudagrass in NW Oklahoma is May through September. Thus, it is possible that the reported biomass yields could double by the end of the growing season.
Monday May 26, 2008 at 6:37am
Bunny Season
In our neighborhood at least, there's a big cottontail rabbit population explosion this year. In the past week it hasn't been a shock to see 6 or 7 rabbits kicking around our back yard, from babies to mature adults.
Of course, bunny abundance this year means something else next year. Math equations!
Tuesday May 13, 2008 at 6:45am
Dandelions
Because you have to admit they're pretty, even when they're in your yard.
Mellow about yellow: We love those spectacular sweeps of yellow in the parks by the lake this May. Not only the daffodils, but the dandelions. After all, the only reason we call one of these Eurasian species a weed and the other a garden plant is because the dandelions annoy us by growing where we want only grass. The Chicago Park District has decided the annoyance is not worth spreading toxic chemicals and downright brags about its dandelions in a news release: "The sight of dandelions indicates grass that is healthy and safe for all park patrons to play on." Take that attitude about your own dandelions and you'll save yourself a ton of work. If you just can't stand it, hand-pull them from a small lawn.
Friday May 2, 2008 at 12:55pm
Like a frosted flake on the ground near an ant colony
Sometimes you can see the "ant" in people. Today is garage sale day in our neighborhood, and lots of neighbors have stuff out that they're trying to sell. Dozens of SUVs, trucks, vans going by all the time, checking out the merchandise.
If you open your garage door, and then go in the house to get some stuff to put in your car, you're likely to see a line of people walking up your driveway. At least I did.
Saturday April 19, 2008 at 7:40am
Putting Down Mulch
For those of you that will be pushing, shoveling and raking mulch on this fine spring weekend, here's an idea that will look appealing halfway through your job...
I didn't even think there was such a thing as a mulch blower.
Sunday April 13, 2008 at 8:52am
The Arbor Day Foundation
I'm going to be planting 3-4 small trees in our yard this spring, mostly to help out with absorbing water and assisting the drainage in our side yard. I really like The Arbor Day Foundation web site, it's been very useful as I research the kinds of trees I might use. Kudos.
Saturday March 15, 2008 at 11:11am
Spinning the Weather
Here's how NOAA pushes this winter's temperatures:
NOAA: Coolest Winter Since 2001 for U.S., Globe
Is that good news? In the first bullet point:
In the contiguous United States, the average winter temperature was 33.2°F (0.6°C), which was 0.2°F (0.1°C) above the 20th century average...
And then there's this point:
February was 61st warmest in the contiguous U.S. and 15th warmest globally on record.
Hardly seems like the headline is the best measure of the information.
Wednesday March 5, 2008 at 3:32pm
The Legal Minds of the Century!
I think these clowns ought to consider the legal requirements for proving fraud.
But more importantly, they should wear facepaint.
Monday March 3, 2008 at 11:06am
Big Rains Expected Tuesday in Ohio
The 1-2 inches of it during the day kind of storms.
Saturday February 23, 2008 at 7:36am
I've Heard Them Called Snow Days
Or make-up days.
But this is the first I've ever heard of them called "Calamity Days".
Thursday February 21, 2008 at 7:09am
Over One Half of One Percent
How depressing. At the age of 49, I've now reached a one-half of one percent chance of dying at this age. This is my highest odds since I was a newborn. On a brighter note, the average life expectancy for a man my age is to have another 28.94 years remaining, which does seem like quite a lot of time to have fun.
Monday February 18, 2008 at 7:19am
Our National Parks
What the deal about being outside?
If you love outdoor activities, apparently you're in a minority. That's according to Oliver Pergams, a conservation biologist and visiting professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago.Last week, he published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences a fascinating study co-authored with conservation biologist Patricia Zaradic. The study says that since the late 1980s, fewer and fewer Americans have taken advantage of the outdoors.
Participation in nature activities is down a whopping 18 percent to 25 percent since peak levels. Doesn't that bum you out? It bums me out.
This is Pergams' third paper on this subject. The first, published in 2004, looked at the rate at which Americans were visiting U.S. national parks. Back then, Pergams and fellow researchers found that the per capita visits to national parks have declined since 1987. But between 1939 (the earliest year data were available) and 1987 there was a steady increase in visits.
The study analyzed possible factors for the decline and found four primary ones: an increase in gas prices, along with an increase in the hours people were spending on the Internet, playing video games and watching movies.
I suspect that the aging American population is a bigger part of this than understood. I used to go to a lot of state and national parks for outdoor activity when I was younger, but it has reduced considerably. Of course, another part of that is raising small children - they have activities that compete with going to parks, and they also don't have the attention span and stamina for it, either. But our family is quickly getting past that point, and should be entering the prime of our National Park Visitation Years.
I started thinking about where we've been the past five years - not the more indoor national park museum-style properties, but the outdoor ones, and I only came up with two - Great Smoky Mountains, and Grand Canyon. The kids loved both. They were memorable. We should be doing more.
When we first moved to Pennsylvania in 1991, my wife and I made a list of places we wanted to go on the East Coast. We only have one left, and of course, it is a national park - Acadia in Maine. We will have to get there sometime in the next few years.
One of the things that wasn't mentioned in this article would be the promotion budget for the National Park System now, versus what it was when it was at peak. I'd be curious to know the comparison. Disney doesn't rely on the "if you build it, they will come" promotion model, and neither should the United States National Park System.
Monday February 18, 2008 at 7:14am
Meat May Be Murder...
but bottled water is immoral. Waste not, want not.
Saturday February 9, 2008 at 6:26am
Carnival
Some day I'm going to go to Carnival in Rio. I should have gone when I was a young man, but now, even at my age, I can't deny my curiousity for the raucous Bacchanalia that supposedly occurs.
Thursday January 17, 2008 at 7:20am
Every fifth living thing is a beetle
David Brzoska IS the Tiger Beetle Man.
And yes, I much appreciate news stories about amateur entomologists. But Mr. Brzoska is more than that, having spent so much of his life in the study of these animals.
Saturday January 5, 2008 at 5:23pm
Bad News For Future Guys Like Me
How can we compete with hot robot sex?
An artificial intelligence expert claims we will be having sex with robots by 2050.David Levy says by then robots will be nearly indistinguishable from real people.
In his book, Sex With Robots: The Evolution of Human-Robot relationships, he writes: ‘Great sex on tap for everyone, 24/7. What’s not to like?’
According to Levy, the people who are most likely to benefit from these sexbots are those so ugly or isolated that they have trouble finding human romance.
He said: "They’re lonely, they’re miserable. I think society will be a much better place when they have an alternative that satisfies them without doing any harm to other people."
Still, isn't the human romance, or the sexual tension, a major part of the whole experience?
Sunday December 30, 2007 at 8:05am
Note to Birds, Insects, and other wild animals
Oh, and if you think people are animals too...
It's against the law for animals to mate in the city limits of Dibble, Oklahoma.
Thursday December 13, 2007 at 6:58am
The Power of Beets
Ever since Akron announced late last week that it was going to use a dash of beet juice in its road salt, drivers have been thinking the worst.The city says nothing will be stained and nothing will be hurt. Not cars, not clothes, not people.
For starters, this stuff is actually a brownish color, not beet red. And it's so diluted that it's barely noticeable.
As for damaging your vehicles — well, the opposite is true. Beets cancel out some of the corrosive properties of salt. With beets beating salt, our clothes, cars and concrete should all last longer.
But the key to the switch is that beet juice allows the salt to work at temperatures as cold as minus-60 degrees, rather than salt's normal low of 17 degrees.
The stuff Akron is dumping on its streets is 5 percent beet juice, 10 percent calcium chloride and 85 percent rock-salt brine.
Thursday December 6, 2007 at 6:37am
Ecotourism in Brazil
There's a good article in the October/November 2007 issue of The Brasilians about Ecotourism, specifically in the Pantanal region. (They do need to work on their web formatting, however)
I was at Iguacu in 1990, and someday I want to take our whole family there and then on an ecotour of the Pantanal. Butterflies galore.
Monday November 19, 2007 at 4:19pm
Oiled Birds
The birds saved from oil spills are just a fraction of the population that will be killed by them.
While hundreds of birds have been rescued from certain death, even more are expected to perish in this disaster. Jonna Mazet, veterinarian with University of California, Davis and an expert on oil spills, said for every one bird that is rescued, an estimated 10 to 100 other birds die at sea.
Saturday November 17, 2007 at 7:20am
The Mamas and the Papas Might Need An Update
All the leaves are green, and stuck up on the trees...
THE NEW CLIMATE: LEGENDS OF THE FALL Seasonally adjusted trees staying green longer The Globe and Mail Ontario, CanadaStill, observers agree it's been one strange autumn, and the trees - some bare, some ablaze and others summer-green - tell the tale.
"I'm not an arborist, but I certainly have come to the conclusion that the colour-change season and the leaves on the trees are very different this year," said David Phillips, senior climatologist for Environment Canada in Toronto. "And I also know that it may very well be related to the kind of weather conditions that we've had this fall, because it's been very unusual."
October, with an average temperature of 14.3, was the warmest ever recorded in Toronto. The previous record high average for the month was 13.6, set in 1963.
"That's almost a full degree warmer than the previous warmest October," Mr. Phillips said. "I mean, in my business, we break records in 0.1 of a degree."
The normal average temperature for October is 8.9.
Further, there was no night cold enough last month to produce a killing frost, the key precursor to falling leaves, Mr. Phillips said. As of yesterday, there had been only five days this fall - one in October and the rest this month - on which the temperature dipped below zero.
"Typically, by this time of year, we would have 12 of those days," he said, including some far colder than we've seen thus far. "So we haven't had many frost days, it's been record warm, and that probably is answering at least part of the reason why we've had the kind of leaf situation we've had."
The fact that this year has been the driest on record also meant many stressed trees may have compensated by hanging on to their leaves for nourishment, prolonging the green season.
Mr. Phillips, who lives in Aurora, north of the city, is among the many getting antsy about whether his own leaves will drop in time for that city's last pickup, which looms on Monday.