Poetry Sunday: Country Summer by Leonie Adams

I grew up in the country and the summer that Léonie Adams describes in this poem is very familiar to me, especially the description of stars on a summer night. They seem so close that one could reach out and touch them...

Country Summer

by Léonie Adams

Now the rich cherry, whose sleek wood,

And top with silver petals traced

Like a strict box its gems encased,

Has spilt from out that cunning lid,

All in an innocent green round,

Those melting rubies which it hid;

With moss ripe-strawberry-encrusted,

So birds get half, and minds lapse merry

To taste that deep-red, lark’s-bite berry,

And blackcap bloom is yellow-dusted.

The wren that thieved it in the eaves

A trailer of the rose could catch

To her poor droopy sloven thatch,

And side by side with the wren’s brood—

O lovely time of beggar’s luck—

Opens the quaint and hairy bud;

And full and golden is the yield

Of cows that never have to house,

But all night nibble under boughs,

Or cool their sides in the moist field.

Into the rooms flow meadow airs,

The warm farm baking smell’s blown round.

Inside and out, and sky and ground

Are much the same; the wishing star,

Hesperus, kind and early born,

Is risen only finger-far;

All stars stand close in summer air,

And tremble, and look mild as amber;

When wicks are lighted in the chamber,

They are like stars which settled there.

Now straightening from the flowery hay,

Down the still light the mowers look,

Or turn, because their dreaming shook,

And they waked half to other days,

When left alone in the yellow stubble

The rusty-coated mare would graze.

Yet thick the lazy dreams are born,

Another thought can come to mind,

But like the shivering of the wind,

Morning and evening in the corn.

This week in birds - #645

 A roundup of the week's news of birds and the environment:

A bird of the shoreline - both fresh and salt water - is the American Bird Conservancy's Bird of the Week, the Spotted Sandpiper. It can be seen teetering, bobbing, and darting along the water's edge throughout most of North America. It is also called the "Teeter-peep" which well describes its actions. It breeds all the way from the northern Arctic to the southern United States. Its non-breeding range includes the extreme southern U.S., including south Texas.

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It should not come as a surprise that climate change is making forest fires more common around the world.

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Brazil's Congress has voted to weaken environmental protection rules despite fierce opposition from environmentalists. 

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Some animals seem to have an appreciation of music and are actually able to keep a beat.

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Light pollution is a serious problem especially for birds on migration, and some cities, like Pittsburgh, are taking action to reduce it.

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The loss of one predator has led to the rise of another on Fire Island and that is bad news for the island's birds.

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Tyrannosaurus rex was not the only tyrannosaur; here are ten others that came before him.

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Archaeologists have found the treasure-filled tomb of the first known ruler of a Mayan city in Belize.

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What appears to be one of the largest dinosaur courtship arenas ever found has been located just fifteen miles west of Denver, Colorado.

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Hummingbirds are truly amazing little critters and here are some interesting facts about them that perhaps you didn't know.

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The coconut rhinoceros beetle is a dire threat to Hawaii's coconut palms.

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The effort to save the Northwest's endangered orcas has not proved very successful to this point and it may require bolder action.

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The Sycamore Gap tree that was chopped down by vandals two years ago is sprouting vigorously from its stump, proving you can't keep a good tree down!

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Here is a Herring Gull with its chicks. I may be in the minority here but I quite admire these birds. They are survivors in an environment that is not always kind to them.

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Even a tiny forest can have a big and positive impact on the environment.

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Using ancient DNA, scientists have been able to map 37,000 years of disease across Europe and Asia.

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A 4,000-year-old flint arrowhead is still embedded in its victim's back. The victim was not killed by that attack - at least initially.

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The 140,000-year-old skull of a child may be a hybrid of humans and Neanderthals.

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Evidence suggests that different Neanderthal groups may have established their own unique culinary traditions.

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Do you need ideas for setting up a successful bird feeding station? Here ya go!

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The fossil of a 247-million-year-old reptile had a bizarre row of plumes sprouting from its back. This is particularly interesting because the reptile was not closely related to birds.

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Peat bogs can store exceptional amounts of climate-warming carbon which makes them a particularly useful tool in the fight against climate change.

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An ancient reptile had a colorful, corrugated sail on its back. What was its purpose?

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The world's largest known turtle nesting site has been discovered in the Amazon.

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Manas National Park in India has seen a comeback of endangered species after a crackdown on poachers.

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Regulation of the exotic pet trade should be extended to invertebrates. They need our protection, too. 

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The Kakapo, the flightless bird native to New Zealand, has seen an increase in its population since its protection, but the bird's parasites have dwindled in population. There is some debate as to whether that is a good or bad thing.

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Join the "Monarch Blitz." Report your sightings of Monarch butterflies from July 25 to August 3.

Poetry Sunday: Knoxville, Tennessee by Nikki Giovanni

Summers, growing up in the South, were the best of times. Nikki Giovanni described them well in this poem. 

Knoxville, Tennessee

by Nikki Giovanni

I always like summer

best

you can eat fresh corn

from daddy's garden

and okra

and greens

and cabbage

and lots of

barbecue

and buttermilk

and homemade ice-cream

at the church picnic

and listen to

gospel music

outside

at the church

homecoming

and you go to the mountains with

your grandmother

and go barefooted

and be warm

all the time

not only when you go to bed

and sleep

This week in birds - #644

 A roundup of the week's news of birds and the environment:

This is a Harpy Eagle, one of the largest and most powerful raptors in the world. It has a wingspan of 6.5 feet and talons the size of a grizzly's claws. Despite their size and strength, they are not known to be a threat to humans, but recently a woman in French Guiana was attacked by one. The woman was part of a tour group that it is thought may have interrupted the bird's hunt.  

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Kerr County, Texas recently suffered devastating floods. It turns out that the voice that might have warned of danger had been silenced by the so-called Department of Government Efficiency. 

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You may recall the story of the Sycamore Gap tree that was chopped down by vandals in September 2023. Now a section of the tree is going on display in England.

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U.S. Customs and Border agents at the border crossing in San Diego recently discovered fourteen Keel-billed Toucans, a threatened species of bird that it is illegal to bring to the United States. They had been sedated and hidden inside a vehicle's dashboard. The officers were alerted by their dog that detected that something was amiss.

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Manas National Park in India had been ravaged by poachers but it is now experiencing a resurgence of several endangered species thanks to increased protections.

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Monarch butterflies in the West have now reached all the way into the state of Washington in their migration and it is hoped they will soon be producing a new generation of fliers.

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Scotty, the Tyrannosaurus rex, is teaching scientists about how its species may have healed from wounds.

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The golden oyster mushroom is a species native to Asia but it has found a new home around the Great Lakes. In fact, it has become so common there that it may soon crowd out native species of fungi. 

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A previously unknown species of a tree-dwelling, lizard-like reptile has been identified by matching two halves of the same fossil stored at different museums.

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Analysis of another dinosaur fossil found in China has shown that it had a larynx capable of producing bird-like noises. 

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The Trinity River in California has come a long way toward being restored, but advocates warn there is still a long way to go.

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And along the northwestern coast of the United States and Canada, an even greater effort is needed in order to save and conserve orcas.

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Human cases of pneumonic plague are uncommon in the United States but recently a patient in Arizona died from the disease.

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A study of Neanderthals has revealed that they may have had their own unique culinary traditions.

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An ancient rock carving in Egypt may represent an early ruler. The engraving could be as much as 5,100 years old.

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Scientists warn that deep-sea mining could have deleterious effects for the planet.

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The coconut rhinoceros beetle is a major threat to the coconut trees of Hawaii, trees that are so much a part of the state's landscape and cultural identity. 

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The world's largest known turtle nesting site has been discovered in the Amazon.

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A Western Gull like this one hitched a ride on a garbage truck and took an 80 mile ride to a compost facility. 

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A species of mite is devastating western honeybees, an essential part of American agriculture that pollinates more than 130 types of plants.

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Invertebrates, as well as other types of animals, need trade protections.

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There's a spot in Colorado where 100 million years ago male dinosaurs gathered to dance in hopes of impressing potential mates.

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Here are some amazing snake pictures.