The Nature of Things

  A roundup of the week's news of birds and the environment : Isn't he cute? He is a Black-crested Titmouse and he is the American Bird Conservancy's Bird of the Week . His range includes central and western Texas, Oklahoma, and northeastern Mexico. He is a cousin to the Tufted Titmouse , a resident of my yard, one that I frequently encounter, sometimes in company with Carolina Chickadees , whenever I am outside. The Black-crested often hybridizes with the Tufted when their ranges overlap. *~*~*~* Earth's temperature is soaring and that is a threat to our food supply as food crops must quickly adapt to those higher temperatures in order to photosynthesize. *~*~*~* Hurricane season started two weeks ago but so far the Gulf and the South Atlantic are quiet. *~*~*~* Monarch butterflies in the western states are beginning to reach their summer breeding grounds and so hope for their continued survival is kindled. *~*~*~* Ocean acidification passed a critical tipping poin...

Searching for a poem that described this time of year, I came across this one by a poet I'd never heard of.   I still know nothing about him/her. I wasn't able to find any useful information online. But I liked the poem and so I decided to feature it here anyway.  June holds many special memories for me, not least of which my wedding anniversary that will be coming up later this month. ( Has it really been fifty years? ) Perhaps June is a special month for you, too... June by Vinaya Joseph With skies of blue and sun-kissed air, June whispers secrets everywhere. In fields of green and blooming flowers, June paints the world with vibrant powers. Each petal dances in the breeze, A celebration of life's ease. With every dawn, a promise anew, In June's embrace, dreams come true. A time for adventure, for love, for play, As June guides us along our way. In June's light, memories are made, In laughter shared and joys displayed. A tapestry of moments, rich and bright, In Ju...

 A roundup of the week's news of birds and the environment: This little cutie is the Ash-breasted Tit-Tyrant , a bird of the high Andes of Peru and Bolivia. It is a bird that has a very limited range and whose numbers are decreasing. In fact, it is classified as endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature red list. Overgrazing and uncontrolled use of fire, as well as wood cutting for timber, firewood, and charcoal are threats to its habitat. The changing climate could also affect its habitat and the availability of its food. It is the American Bird Conservancy's Bird of the Week . *~*~*~* Wildlife tunnels that allow critters to pass under busy roadways are saving the lives of those critters. Amphibians in the northeastern United States, for example, have had an 80.2 percent reduction in deaths  from automobile traffic as they migrate to their breeding grounds. *~*~*~* The Monarch butterfly is one of the most closely watched and monitored of members of the ...

John Burroughs was an American poet, essayist, and Nature writer of the 19th century. He was a friend and champion of Walt Whitman and Ralph Waldo Emerson. His writing reveals a deep understanding and appreciation of Nature. "I go to Nature," he wrote, "to be soothed and healed, and to have my senses put in order." It's a sentiment with which many of us would agree.  June's Coming by John Burroughs Now have come the shining days    When field and wood are robed anew, And o'er the world a silver haze    Mingles the emerald with the blue. Summer now doth clothe the land In garments free from spot or stain— The lustrous leaves, the hills untanned, The vivid meads, the glaucous grain. The day looks new, a coin unworn, Freshly stamped in heavenly mint; The sky keeps on its look of morn; Of age and death there is no hint. How soft the landscape near and far! A shining veil the trees infold; The day remembers moon and star; A silver lining hath its gold. Again ...

  A roundup of the week's news of birds and the environment : The (to me) most beautiful member of the egret family is the American Bird Conservancy's Bird of the Week . It's the well-named Snowy Egret . The Snowy is found throughout much of the United States in migration and during breeding and it is a permanent resident throughout most of South America. It is smaller than the Great Egret  and its most prominent and recognizable feature are its "golden slippers," the yellow feet at the end of black legs. We almost lost the Snowy along with the Passenger Pigeon and the Ivory-billed Woodpecker , but, just in time, it gained protection and is now increasing in numbers.   *~*~*~* The Migratory Bird Treaty Act is the cornerstone of birds' protection in the United States and has been so for more than a century, so, of course, the current administration in Washington wants to gut it. The American Bird Conservancy is calling on people to contact elected representati...

This poem seems to me to perfectly describe this time of year as we move from one season into the next. See if you agree. Late Spring Easing to Summer by Deanna Samuels Early Spring has eased into late Spring, foliage is at its richest deep greens, trees thick, full branched, boughs heavy with leaves and budding fruits. Crop fields sprouting, growing, each day getting stronger, taller. Road verge grasses high, overgrown, lush, a would-be splendid meal for grazing. Birds chirping and tweeting loudly, hidden in the dense hedge rows while frogs croak intermittently, concealed amidst damp roots and long grass. Hidden streams gurgle sluggishly, slowly moving downstream, attracting menacing mosquitoes ready to eye a warm-blooded victim. Birds are nesting, patiently rearing young while pond and lake edges become platforms of discovery for young waterfowl to swim. Small mammals suckle their new born, teaching the brood to hunt safely in the wild while ants, bees and other creepy crawlies build...

  A roundup of the week's news of birds and the environment : This pretty little bird is Virginia's Warbler and it is the American Bird Conservancy's Bird of the Week . It is found in patches throughout the western United States in mixed coniferous/deciduous habitats. It feeds low in trees and shrubs and close to the ground. It is closely related to the more widespread Nashville Warbler and Lucy's Warbler , a species that is found farther south in the Sonoran Desert. *~*~*~* Acute global hunger surged for the sixth consecutive year in 2024. The number of people experiencing catastrophic levels of hunger more than doubled to 1.9 million. *~*~*~* The Blyde rondawels flat gecko has been confirmed to still be in existence more than thirty years after it was last seen. It was found atop an isolated South African mountain. *~*~*~* It seems that humpback whales have shockingly bad vision which may explain why they are so vulnerable to collisions with boats and entanglemen...

I remember that Frank Sinatra once sang about the September of our years and, goodness knows, September comes to us soon enough for, as Longfellow reminds us, "It is not always May." But May is one of the most pleasant months where I live and so, while it it remains, let's enjoy it! It Is Not Always May by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow   No hay pajaros en los nidos de antano.                 Spanish Proverb  The sun is bright,--the air is clear,   The darting swallows soar and sing. And from the stately elms I hear   The bluebird prophesying Spring.  So blue yon winding river flows,   It seems an outlet from the sky, Where waiting till the west-wind b...

  A roundup of the week's news of birds and the environment : The colorful Tropical Parula is the American Bird Conservancy's Bird of the Week . This beautiful bird can be found breeding as far north as the southernmost tip of Texas and is a resident through parts of Mexico and Central America and into South America. It is decreasing in numbers across its range. *~*~*~* Monarch butterflies are on the move and have reached as far north as Michigan, New York, and Ontario. *~*~*~* Our closest cousins, the chimpanzees, have been observed and documented using medicinal plants to treat wounds and other injuries . *~*~*~* The current iteration of the EPA is rolling back protections against "forever chemicals" in drinking water. (I don't think they are taking that middle initial very seriously.) *~*~*~* The fight against global warming does not need to conflict with the effort to end global poverty.  *~*~*~* A new report outlines how corporations have fought against a...

Mothers and our relationships with them can be complicated and it can be hard to put all of that into words, but Erin Belieu, I think, does a pretty good job of it.  Another Poem for Mothers  by Erin Belieu Mother, I'm trying to write a poem to you— which is how most poems to mothers must begin— or, What I've wanted to say, Mother. ..but we as children of mothers, even when mothers ourselves, cannot bear our poems to them. Poems to mothers make us feel little again. How to describe that world that mothers spin and consume and trap and love us in, that spreads for years and men and miles? Those particular hands that could smooth anything: butter on bread, cool sheets or weather. It's the wonder of them, good or bad, those mother-hands that pet and shape and slap, that sew you together the pieces of a better house or life in which you'll try to live. Mother, I've done no better than the others, but for now, here is your clever failure.

  A roundup of the week's news of birds and the environment : This is the wonderful little Pine Warbler , the American Bird Conservancy's Bird of the Week . We here in Southeast Texas are at the outer limits of the Pine Warbler's range but they do exist here and my sense is that their numbers in the area may be increasing, perhaps as a result of the changing climate. My neighbors have huge pine trees in their yards of just the sort that these birds favor and as a result we get to enjoy their melodic trill when we are outside. *~*~*~* Climate change is a reality and is likely to continue to worsen. How do we prepare? *~*~*~* So our current government, in its wisdom, has removed the protections from marine protected areas . What could possibly go wrong? *~*~*~* A new study confirms that North American bird populations are collapsing in places where they once thrived. *~*~*~* Utah's Great Salt Lake is no longer "great." It's drying up . *~*~*~* In Oregon, b...

Stolen from Daily Kos : 

I try to read at least one poem each day, generally picking at random, and occasionally, that randomness leads me to something that is absolutely perfect. Like this poem written by a poet I'd never heard of but who might have had me in mind when she wrote this. See if it resonates with you, too. Ode to Aging Bodies by Jan Mandell Aging bodies wake to blue veins that pop up and travel like river tributaries over paper thin skin pocked with freckles, tags and blotches that look like unidentified sections of abstract art Aging bodies Rise up to the chatter and  creaking sounds of thin, porous bone that feel like cheap metal pipes refitting poorly into their stubborn mates Waking up the aging body is familiar like an attempt to turn over the frozen engine of a used car left out overnight in a below zero day in the dead of Minnesota winter   The ache and noise of an aging body is like a constant companion, a highly extroverted friend  who simply won’t shut up,  yet i...

  A roundup of the week's news of birds and the environment : The American Bird Conservancy's Bird of the Week for this week is the Worm-eating Warbler , a bird that breeds throughout much of the eastern United States from southern New England all the way down to eastern Texas. It is a rather plain-looking bird of the forest interior and is not closely related to other warblers. Its name is a misnomer as it doesn't really feast on worms; rather its favorite food is caterpillars which, of course, are sometimes colloquially referred to as worms. *~*~*~* Here is a list of the top five fossil fuel companies that produce harmful emissions. They are mostly the ones you would probably expect. *~*~*~* Who needs to know about how climate change is affecting this country? The current administration in charge thinks the answer is "Nobody." All the scientists working on a report detailing that have been fired . *~*~*~* The current iteration of the Environmental Protection A...

One of my favorite late afternoon spring and summer activities from childhood even until the present day has been watching the Chimney Swifts as they crisscross the sky over my neighborhood. "Sky-scythers" and "earth-skimmers" traveling at two hundred miles an hour and cutting the air with their shrieks, they are marvels of Nature's engineering. Was there ever a creature that was more aptly named? Swifts by Anne Stevenson Spring comes little, a little. All April it rains. The new leaves stick in their fists; new ferns still fiddleheads. But one day the swifts are back. Face to the sun like a child You shout, 'The swifts are back!' Sure enough, bolt nocks bow to carry one sky-scyther Two hundred miles an hour across fullblown windfields. Swereee swereee . Another. And another. It's the cut air falling in shrieks on our chimneys and roofs. The next day, a fleet of high crosses cruises in ether. These are the air pilgrims, pilots of air rivers. But a sh...