I will always remember the date, November 16, 2001, not only for an unforgettable deer encounter but also for another reason which I will tell you about at the end of this blog. On that day, David and I were doing many chores on our 2 ½ acre animal sanctuary. We, along with our horses, dogs, cats, chickens, ducks and rooster, live in a pine forest with many wild animals all claiming the same territory and calling it home. David was at the front of the property working on a project next to the street. I was at the back of the property on a sloped area digging holes in the ground to put in some new native hydrangea bushes. I was enjoying the unusually warm, sunny day and was intent on getting six new bushes planted and watered. As I was facing into the slope and digging, I became aware of a presence behind me. I quickly looked over my left shoulder and saw a deer quietly standing about 4 feet behind me. Knowing it was hunting season, I ignored the deer not wanting to familiarize it to people and make it easier to hunt and kill. I continued working for another ten minutes but kept feeling the presence of the deer. I finally looked over my shoulder again and found the deer in the same spot as before. This time it occurred to me that possibly the deer might be hurt. I turned around and sat on the slope facing the deer. The deer was perpendicular to me so I had a good view of it. It was a female, a doe, fully grown but still young maybe about 3 to 5 years old. Plan A: As I systematically began visually checking her out for injuries starting with her nose and ending at her tail, she moved closer to me as if to make it easier. She was now about 3 feet away and still perpendicular to me. No injuries were evident. The thought crossed my mind that I don’t smell like a human wearing my barn clothes. I decide to talk to the deer so she knows that I am a human. I say, “Hello, deer. What brings you here today?” I was amazed that the deer just continues to quietly stand there. Plan B: Touch the deer and she will then definitely take off. With a little hesitation, I gingerly stroke my fingers down her long neck as if I am caressing my horse’s neck. To my amazement she just stands there as if she has been waiting for this touch. Plan C: I now am talking to the deer as I am gently feeling her neck, back and legs while looking for any signs of physical problems. I find none. As my hands sweep across her body, I can see she has already shed her red, thinner, summer coat and I admire her glossy, thick, grey winter coat of hair. I know that each hair strand is doubly thick due to having a hollow tube running thru it to give extra winter insulation. I can easily feel her perfect muscular structure under her coat. She is very relaxed and seems to be enjoying and welcoming my touch and ongoing conversation. Plan D: I now sit down on the slope again trying to make sense of what is incomprehensible. At this point I have given up on logical explanations and I again ask the deer out loud why she has come to visit me today. She turns her head and looks me directly in the eyes. Her face is one foot away from mine. I am now going to try to put into words what was a wordless experience. I am engulfed in the most beautiful, gentle and tender gaze that I have ever beheld. Her eyes are huge and luminous. They are profoundly deep. As I look into them it is as if she has invited and allows me to see into her soul. I offer her the same invitation. My thoughts disappear and the moment is timeless. I am at complete peace. I understand everything and I want nothing. I experience love and acceptance and the divine all at once. I don’t know how long we both looked into each other’s eyes and this experience lasted. When my thoughts finally returned, the first thing I remember thinking is that if all people could experience what a deer really is, there would be no hunters hunting this profoundly beautiful, gentle being. I felt deeply that this deer allowed me to understand what made her a deer – what was the essence of a deer. Did she also understand what made me a human? Was that intense moment of connection as meaningful to her as me? Did she seek me out for that purpose and if so, why? Now, I am still sitting looking at the deer with many more questions going through my head, none of which had answers. It dawns on me that I need to share this experience with David who is still working at the front of the property. I know I have a five minute walk to get to him. If I go fetch him, will the deer still be here? I decide to get him and walk up the slope, across the front lawn and down our long driveway. When I reach him, I tell him I have been talking and patting a deer for the last hour or so and hope he believes me. We both walk hurriedly to the slope and I’m thinking surely the deer is gone by now and no one will be able to confirm my experience. My fears are unfounded. As we start crossing our front lawn, the deer emerges from the slope and walks towards us. The three of us stand closely together and I start telling David in more detail the story of what happened. Plan E: At this point I ask David to keep the deer company as I go into the house to call the police to see if someone has reported a pet deer missing. The policeman I speak to has not had any such calls and tells me he doesn’t know anyone in town who has a pet deer. I do not know what to think. I leave the policeman my telephone number and address in case someone calls inquiring about the deer. I go outside to join the deer and David. Soon, after one more long look at us, the deer starts slowly walking across the front lawn and onto the driveway. The telephone rings. I take one more long look at the deer, who is now walking down our driveway, before hurrying in to answer the phone expecting that it is the policeman saying he has found the deer’s owner. Instead, I am surprised to hear my mother’s voice which is softer and more subdued than usual. Calmly and slowly, she tells me her younger sister, our Aunt Tessie, died earlier that morning. My mother had 10 siblings. Aunt Tessie was special to all her 27 nieces and nephews because she had never married and was able to spend much time with all of us taking us to the drive-in and hanging out with us in so many wonderful ways. She was the one family member that joined me when I was living and studying in Mexico one summer. I introduced her to my Mexican friends, and explored Mexico City and Acapulco with her. After our Polish grandparents died, she continued to live in the big house, her father, my grandfather, had built for his large family. It was a ten minute walk from where I lived with my family. The door was always open and all family members came and went freely. It was my sanctuary and I spent as much time there as possible. When I went outside to report on the call to David, the deer was gone. She had walked down our driveway, across the street and disappeared into the woods. I never saw her again. I always remember that I saw her on November 16, 2001 - the day Aunt Tessie died after a long struggle with ALS. Note: You might wonder, did I ever find any logical answer to why this deer visited me? The simple answer is, no. The encounter left me with many questions that had no answers. I spent much time, even years, telling my horse, nature and animal friends this story and asking if they knew of or had any such a connection with a deer. I even spoke with people I know that are hunters hoping maybe this story would open them emotionally to seeing deer in a new perspective. In the past twenty years I have never heard of anyone having this type of experience with a deer. Although I have had many close and beautiful encounters with deer numerous times while on a horse, I have never had another experience with a deer like the one I have described to you.
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The deer are coming! The deer are coming! Did you know that late fall and spring is the time when your gardens and landscape are most vulnerable to deer damage? If you read my last blog which deals with facts about the white tail deer including their life stages and habits, you will know that deer are here to stay. Although many of us, including me, live in deer country, we can still have a beautiful and successful flower garden and landscape as well as a loving relationship with deer. In this blog I hope to provide you with the basic knowledge and information you need to make deer ‘resistant’ gardens and landscapes using organic and humane principals. Deer are not habitat specific. They are great adjusters that do well wherever there is food and a place to hide. Their current strength is their adaptability which enables them to thrive in man-made landscapes. Most of their natural landscapes have already disappeared and have been transformed into suburbs, shopping centers, roads, bustling cities and towns. Deer love edges and we find them thriving in suburbs because there is a dramatic increase in the amount of edge between lawns and woods. Home gardens are the main target for deer because of the new plantings as well as maintained gardens. We plant food that deer love: arborvitae, balsam, cedar, daylily, eastern hemlock, fir, geraniums and hosta. Think of these plants as ‘deer candy’. In our vegetable gardens we plant peas, broccoli, garlic, onions, tomatoes, potatoes, pumpkins, and squash. Pretty much any vegetable we eat, deer will eat! Deer are creatures of habit! Once they have found a new feeding area to their liking, future damage is easily predicted as your garden will become a constant stop on their nocturnal feeding forays. (Note: Think of the time you found a new restaurant and because the food was great not only did you come back often, but you told your friends about it so they could go as well!) One can break this pattern by the use of physical barriers, repellants and deer resistant plantings. By being consistent and persistent, deer may eventually give up browsing on your landscape. However, all bets are off when deer are under deep stress or are approaching starvation. At that point, they will eat just about anything they can find. PART 1 - A LIST OF SOME DEFENSES TO DETER DEER FROM YOUR LANDSCAPE: 1.Fences: This is the best means of defense and protection against deer damage. Make sure that fencing is at least 8’ tall and that it is not loosely constructed or deer will crawl under it. Permanent fencing is the most expensive but most effective way of dealing with deer. Electric fences also provide protection but require periodic maintenance and may need to be replaced more often. They are less expensive than permanent fencing. Look for the new generation of chargers called the ‘New Zealand Charger’. The least expensive form of fencing is to install posts around your gardens and run 50 lb heavy gauge fishing line between the posts starting at one foot from the ground. Then continue at two foot intervals until you reach the top of the 8’ tall post. When deer run into this ‘invisible barrier’, they really dislike it and will leave your garden untouched. Another trick is to lay mesh chicken wire or plastic netting, (like the type used to protect berry bushes or fruit trees), horizontally on the ground around your gardens or landscaping. Deer don’t like the feeling of walking on it and getting their feet tangled up in it. You can easily remove it to mow your lawn and then return it when finished mowing. 2.Repellents: Repellents provide an invisible although temporary and seasonal means of deer control. The duration of effectiveness on all repellants is much shorter than what is advertised. Make sure when applying the repellant that the temperature stays above 40 degrees until it is completely dried. Use organic chemicals or herbal repellants that: 1. Provide an odorous barrier – you can make a completely organic spray by adding 6 drops of peppermint essential oil and 4 drops of rosemary essential oil to a spray bottle with vinegar. You can also use garlic powder and cayenne pepper with vinegar effectively. Ready-made you can buy ‘Deer Away’ or ‘Deer Off’. This type of repellent must be reapplied after every rain! Deer do not like the smell of these herbs. Other natural herbs to try are mint, oregano, sage and thyme. You can also add hot sauce and liquid dish soap to your mixtures. 2. Systemic organic deer deterrents can be sprayed on the plant or scratched into the ground around the plant. They provide a slightly longer protection because they get absorbed into the plant itself and can not be washed off with rain. They should be applied every 2 to 4 weeks. A few popular and easy organic systemic deer deterrents are ‘Liquid Fence’ and ‘Deer Solution’ which repels both deer and rabbits. Deer do not like the taste of any systemic repellent. NOTE: Do not use any deer deterrents that contain coyote, fox or bobcat urine due to the extremely inhumane practices used in collecting it. NOTE: To get optimal results, don’t keep using one deterrent but alternate brands or herbal solutions! And, remember to spray any new planting as soon as it is in the ground! If the deer’s first encounter with a new plant is unpleasant, chances are they will avoid that plant in the future. OTHER METHODS FOR DEALING WITH DEER:
PART II - PLANTING BASICS FOR DEER RESISTANT GARDENS AND LANDSCAPES Deer are known to eat more than 500 different kinds of plants. Deer’s taste can change and depends primarily on the season, nutritional needs and the abundance or lack of favorite foods. Be assured that if and when times are bad, and preferred foods are scarce, deer will eat just about anything! Although many solutions and products exist on the market for controlling deer browsing, the most logical and cost-efficient way to prevent deer from making a meal of your garden is by using plants that deer simply don’t like. New landscapes and gardens can be designed and planned using only deer resistant plantings. In existing landscapes and gardens a transitional method can be used. As you slowly and methodically remove plantings loved by deer and replace them with more resistant plants, the use of repellents will be crucial to prevent devastation. Keys for choosing plants for a deer resistant garden: Toxicity – Daffodils, hyacinths, sorrel, rhubarb and spinach either have calcium oxalate or lycorine. These plants are both distasteful and even poisonous not only to deer but rabbits and other mammals. Foxglove and poppies are also toxic. Aroma – Aromatic foliage is more often than not shunned by deer. Most commonly cultivated herbs used for cooking, aromatherapy and medicinal purposes are deer resistant. Remember these plants also have an ornamental value and can be inter-dispersed in your flower and vegetable gardens. Examples: mint, fennel, yarrow, basil, lavender, catnip, oregano, rosemary and thyme. Fuzzy foliage – There is probably nothing more disagreeable to deer than a mouth full of fuzz! Plants with short hairs that cover the leaves are shunned by deer. Examples: lamb’s ear, dead nettle, dusty miller, catmint and black-eyed Susan. Prickly parts – Thornes, spines and needles provide plants with good deer resistance. Example: Evergreens with hard needle type foliage- spruce, pine and juniper. Example: Thorny stems and branches – roses, barberry, hawthorn and quince. However, deer will eat the buds and flowers of the rose bush. Example: Hard prickly edge leaves- holly, leucothoe. Example: Prickly flower heads - coneflowers. NOTE: For a complete list of annuals, biennials, ferns, groundcovers, ornamental grasses, perennials, shrubs, trees and vines that are deer resistant go to the web site of Rutgers Cooperative Research & Extension: www.rce.rutgers.edu Here you will find an extensive list of plants rated according to their resistance to deer damage. Plants are listed in the following categories: rarely damaged, seldom severely damaged and occasionally severely damaged. Only plants that have some amount of deer resistance will be found on these lists. NEXT BLOG: The third and final blog related to deer will be in a form of a deer tale. It is my story of a unique encounter with a deer that I had only once in my life. What happened during that magical hour has changed how I experience deer and other wild animals and has left me with many unanswered questions about the meaning and mystery of life. Many humans see deer only as a game animal or as a nuisance for eating plants in their gardens or landscape. I hope this blog will help you understand, appreciate and see what remarkable beings deer are. As with all species on this planet, deer evolved as an indispensable thread in the intricate web of life that sustains and serves the needs of our planet. The first ungulates, (mammals with hooves), appeared in fossil records 50 million years ago. These animals subsequently evolved into two groups: those with an even number of toes (Artiodactyls – cattle, sheep, pigs, giraffes, hippopotamus, camels, elk, buffalo, moose, reindeer, antelope, and deer) and those with an uneven number of toes (Perrissodactyls - horses, donkeys, zebras, rhinoceroses and tapirs). The first deer appeared on the scene about 25 million years ago. In comparison, the first bi-pedal beings from which homo erectus evolved made their entrance around 4 to 5 million years ago with Homo sapiens emerging only 200 to 300 thousand years ago. I mention this to emphasize that deer evolved millions of years before humans to serve needs other than how humans see them. In the United States we have two types of deer. The most numerous is the White Tail deer (Odocoileus virginianus). The White tail deer is found in almost all 50 states except for Hawaii and Alaska. The Mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus), which gets its name from its very large ears, is slightly larger than its cousin and lives in the Rocky Mountains area, the western Great Plains and in southwest United States. This blog is about the White tail deer which is the number one hunted animal in our country. Short History of the Deer Deer were plentiful when the colonists first arrived in America. Their meat was eaten and their skins were made into clothes. The skins became so valuable that they could be sold for $1. The word ‘buckskin’ soon evolved into the word ‘buck’ meaning one dollar. By the beginning of the 1700s, because of intense hunting, the deer population had become quickly decimated. Some of the earliest laws imposed by the colonies were enacted to restrict the number of deer that could be killed and limit the seasons they could be hunted. By 1900 there were less than 500,000 deer left in the entire United States. In 1901 after becoming president, Teddy Roosevelt, a well know hunter, in order to protect the deer population as well as other game animal species, devised a plan to perpetuate and protect the game populations from being entirely wiped out by hunting. He established 150 national forests, 5 national parks, 51 federal bird reserves and 18 national monuments on over 230 million acres of public land. Roosevelt also created the United States Forest Service to further protect wildlife and public lands. Today the population of deer is over 50 million. This increase is due to many factors including: restricted use of firearms; fewer hunters- only 6% of our population today consider themselves hunters; tougher hunting laws including the need for a license; ‘Not on my property’ attitude and especially diminished number of natural predators such as wolves. We are much more aware of deer populations because human sprawl has taken over the deer’s natural habitat and deer have had to adapt to living where people now live. Interesting Deer Facts: Males are called bucks and weigh between 130 – 300 pounds. They are the only ones with antlers which are shed after the mating season that extends from October to the first part of December. Females are called does and weigh between 90 to 200 pounds. The gestation period is about 6 ½ months. Does will have between 1 and 3 fawns a year based on how plentiful food supplies are. Fawn is the name given to a baby deer. At birth, they have no smell for three days so they don’t attract predators. When their mother leaves them to forage, fawns instinctively lay flat on the ground with their neck outstretched and don’t move. Their spots offer added camouflage but disappear after 3 months. They are nursed by their mother for 8-10 weeks before they are completely weaned. Young males leave their mother after one year and females leave after two. Deer eat woody portions of leaves and stems, grass, acorns, apples and forbs (broad-leafed plants). Their diet changes over the four seasons according to what food is available. They have a four chambered stomach which is extremely efficient at extracting every drop of water and nutrition from their food. That’s why when you see deer droppings, pellets, they are very small. Deer are crepuscular (they forage mainly at dusk and dawn). Because deer are prey animals for so many predators, (wolves, coyote, bear, bobcats and mountain lions) they eat quickly in a hypervigilant state. Once they have had their fill, they will retreat to a safe place and regurgitate their food and then slowly chew and digest it thoroughly. Deer chew their cud just like other ruminants, (mammals that regurgitate their food), such as cattle, cows, goats, sheep and giraffes. Lifespan – In the wild, deer live on average to be 3 years old. In captivity they can live to be 20. The chief causes of their short lives in order of importance are: hunters, predators, starvation/weather, car collisions and Chronic Wasting Disease (a degenerative disease that causes brain cells to die). Deer skin is covered with dense hair. In warm months the color is a reddish brown. When the days turn shorter and colder, deer shed their summer coat and grow a gray coat with hairs that are hollow. This adaption provides for a better winter insulation. The gray color also offers a better camouflage in the bleak winter landscape. Purpose of the white tail – The underneath of the deer tail is white. Deer flash their white tails to signal each other especially when danger is present. Does use their tails to communicate with their fawns and keep them close. Senses – Deer have been equipped with extraordinary senses to help them navigate their environment while avoiding predators. Vision: Deer have eyes that protrude and are located on the sides of their heads for 360 degree vision. They have 9 times more rods, (photoreceptor cells in the eye that enable vision in low light), than humans which allow them to see well in black and white at night. Hearing: Deer have large 6” by 3” cupped ears that can independently rotate 180 degrees. This allows them to detect, direct and triangulate sounds from all directions. In other words, it’s hard to sneak up on a deer. Smelling ability: With 297 million olfactory receptors, (compare this to a hound dog who has 220 million and a human who has a mere 5 million), the sense of smell is the deer’s ultimate superpower. Deer can smell water, food and predators a mile away! Speed – Deer can run up to 35mph. This ability helps them out-run predators. Jumping – Deer can jump over obstacles that are 8 ½’ tall. Lesson, if building a fence around your garden to keep deer out, it needs to be at least 8’ tall. Deer can also jump over a space of 30’. Swimming - Deer are excellent swimmers and often use rivers or lakes to escape predators. Next Blog: Part II - ‘How to Garden and Landscape In Deer Country’ My husband David and I feel fortunate to share our 2 ½ acre piece of land we live on in Ipswich, MA with many other species. Most of them I only know a little about other than I can recognize them by sight and sound. Over the past few years I have tried to rectify my ignorance about these animal and insect neighbors by learning more about them. To name a few, I’ve studied and written about wild turkeys, squirrels, skunks, fireflies, hummingbirds, beavers, bats and monarch butterflies. Today’s blog is about the red fox that I often see prancing gracefully through our horse paddocks or lazing in the sun with her kits. The other fox species in Ipswich is the highly camouflaged gray fox that lives in the dunes at Crane Beach, the gorgeous five mile long, sand beach in Ipswich. On one rare occasion, while walking near the dunes with David and our dogs, I was fortunate to see a one sitting absolutely still just 10 feet away from us. The colors of her fur blended completely with the sand and concealed her from sight. It was only the slightest movement in her alert eyes that allowed me to spot her. Much to my amazement, our dogs did not see her or pick up her scent. The gray fox (Urocyon cinereoeoargenteus), is distinctly different and not related to the red fox. Both are abundant throughout Massachusetts where I live. The red fox (Vulpes vulpes) is the largest of the true foxes and one of the most widely distributed members of the order Carnivora. They live throughout the continental United states from Alaska to Florida. True foxes are distinguished from members of the genus Canis, (Canines) by their smaller size, longer bushier tails and flatter skulls. Other true foxes are: Ruppell’s fox, corsac fox, Bengal fox, Arctic fox, Blanford’s fox, Cape fox and fennec fox. The red fox is a mammal of the family Canidae. Canidae currently includes 35 species of dogs, wolves, coyotes, jackals and foxes. All members are part of the subfamily, Caninae. and tend to be slender, long legged, have long muzzles, bushy tails, erect pointed ears and well-developed canine and cheek teeth. Canines were probably the first animals to be domesticated by early humans some 30,000 years ago. Interesting facts about the red fox: The typical lifespan of the red fox is two to four years but they can live up to a decade. The red fox weighs on average 8 to 17 pounds. (The smallest of the true foxes is the fennec fox which lives in deserts and weighs only 2 to 4 pounds.) The tail of the red fox is over half its body length. In fact, the tail is 70% of its head and body length. The forelimbs of all fox species have five toes while the hind legs have four. The earliest known fossils of a Vulpes are about 7 million years old and were found in South Africa. It was estimated that this animal weighed between 2 and 3 ½ pounds. Like most canids, true foxes have muscular bodies, powerful jaws and sharp teeth for grasping prey. Vulpes species, including red fox, have vertically-slit pupils, which generally appear elliptical in strong light like those of cats, which provide them with significant advantages in extremely excellent sight. The red fox like some other of the Vulpes, has a pungent “foxy” odor that arises from a gland located on the dorsal (back) surface of the tail, not far from its base. There is not much sexual dimorphism, (physical difference in appearance between sexes of the same species), that is displayed between males and females although males are slightly larger. The red fox, along with the Ruppell’s fox and Tibetan sand fox, possesses a white tipped tail. Most true foxes including the red fox are nocturnal, but they can be active during morning and dusk and occasionally hunt and scavenge in daylight during the winter. Most are solitary or nomadic, living most of their lives on their own except for mating season. They have monogamous relationship with a partner and breed between Late December and late March. Females are called vixens and like most fox species dig out dens to provide a safe underground space for raising their young. The female will have two to four kits per litter. Born deaf and blind, kits, or cubs, require their mother’s milk and complete supervision for the first four to five weeks. They are progressively weaned after a month. Once weaned, kits seek out various insects. The mother supplements this diet with a variety of small mammals and birds. Sometime in July, the kits are able to hunt on their own and soon move away from their mother. Foxes have supersonic hearing which allows them to detect prey and avoid becoming prey. They can hear a mouse squeak from 100 yards away. They can also run up to 31 miles per hour and jump over 6 ft high obstacles. They are good swimmers. Foxes are omnivorous, (feed on food of both animal and plant origin), and are prone to scavenging. They eat a variety of small mammals including mice, voles, rabbits, opossums, racoons and squirrels. They also eat insects, grasses, and some flowers. They eat just over two pounds a day and often cache (store) their food for another day. Foxes are eaten by bears and wolves. Note: Coyote do not eat fox but kill them to prevent resource scarcity. However, kits and juvenile foxes are prey to weasels, large snakes, and large birds of prey such as hawks and eagles. In a human populated area, dogs will often kill kits, juveniles and sometimes adult foxes. When afraid, red foxes grin as a sign of submission. They also arch their back and bring themselves lower to the ground while laying their ears back. How to help the red fox: Like all species on this planet, red fox need habitats to live, find food and raise their kits. Leave as much of your property wild or forested. Make habitat piles of tree branches and garden debris wherever you can on your property. If you see a den do not let your dog roam free. Final Thought: Although I have provided you with many fascinating facts about the red fox, all the information I have given you does not open your eyes, heart, understanding and appreciation of this unique being as does one singular encounter. The intense and brilliant orange fur color contrasted with white and black fur artistically placed, defies comprehension. The grace of movement and the intelligence of its intense gaze adds to the red fox’s spellbinding mystique. One chance encounter can take your breath away, change your life forever and open your eyes and heart to the beauty and mystery of our planet and priceless gifts it holds for us all. Fireflies are a sign that summer has arrived. All over the world they are among our most beloved insects. In their adult stage, the only stage most of us recognize, they are like glowing ethereal fairies that spark the night and our imagination. Known by many different names, including lightning bugs, glowworms and candle flies, fireflies are neither bugs nor flies but beetles. Beetles are so important to the health and workings of our planet’s ecosystem that of the over 750,000 species of known insects that live on our planet, beetles comprise over 30% of all insect species. The firefly family, Lampyridae, (Order – Coleoptera), includes more than 2,200 distinct species worldwide. Here in the United States, we have about 170 species. Eastern regions, particularly the mid-Atlantic and southeastern states, have the greatest diversity of fireflies. West of the Rocky Mountains the density of fireflies is lower and the populations are more widely scattered. Like many insects, fireflies are metamorphic, (go through many distinct physical transformative stages in their lifetime). They start their lives first as eggs. In the second stage they become small larvae-like grubs. They scramble through the dark subterranean world just below the top of the soil on the hunt for earthworms, snails and other small prey. At this larval stage, the main goal is to feed and grow. While on their pursuit for food, they aerate the soil thus increasing its health by making tunnels and spaces for rain and oxygen. Even in this intermediate stage, these larvae already light up. With a little luck, on a warm, wet spring or fall night one can see the juvenile fireflies crawling along and glowing dimly as they forage. In the northern part of our country where I live in Massachusetts, because the weather is colder, fireflies will usually spend two years in the larval stage. Farther south, this stage last just a few months. The third and final stage of a firefly’s life is its adult stage. As days get warmer and longer, in late spring or early summer, the firefly larvae will pupate, (change from its intermediary form to its adult form), and emerge as the flying adult that we all know. The adult stage of the firefly is the shortest of its life. As adults they have only a few more weeks to live. Their attention turns from finding food to finding mates thus ensuring their genes will be left in the next generation. Those amazing lightshows that grace our early summer night skies mark a brief but stunning finale to a life that’s been mostly hidden from our view. What purpose does the fireflies flash serve? Bioluminescence, (the production and emission of light by living organisms), is a common trait among sea creatures. We can see its effect at the ocean shore as the waves roll in. Although rare in the terrestrial world, fireflies, a few other insects and some fungi and earthworms have this ability. Scientists have traced the Lampyridae back to a common ancestor that lived more than 100 million years ago. That ancestor’s larvae generated the family’s first sparks of bioluminescence. This ability has been passed down for millions of years to today’s fireflies. Scientists believe that bioluminescence first evolved to help larvae ward off predators. Most beetles are bitter tasting even toxic to insect eating birds and small animals. Fireflies, in both the grub and adult flying stages, use their light as a warning sign to predators to stay away. And since fireflies, both as juveniles and adults, inhabit dark or dimly lit habitats, light is the perfect warning sign. The flashes, flickers or glows that we see are adults signaling each other during mating time. Simply put, the flashes are mating signals. Males and females use these light signals to attract a mate. Males as they fly, advertise their availability with a distinctive flash pattern to the females who are perched below. If the female, waiting in the grass or bushes below, likes what she sees, she responds back with a flash of her own. The pair keep up a flashing dialogue until the male finds the specific interested female and then they mate. Interestingly, each species of firefly has its own specific pattern of flashes so that an appropriate mate of the same species can be found. Worldwide decline of the firefly species- All insect species including the firefly species are declining world-wide. This is due to the use of pesticides on lawns, gardens and agricultural fields, destruction of and lack of habitat and in the case of fireflies, light pollution. A major cause of decline in all insects is the use of neonicotinoids. Neonics, (its short name), is a man-made chemically produced insecticide that until 2017 was the most widely used insecticide throughout the world. It adversely attacks the neurological systems of many insect species especially bees and pollinators. Many pesticides, like neonics are systemic, (spread through the whole plant including the nectar, pollen and roots and into the soil around them). They have a long life and may persist in soils for many years. Because this is where firefly larvae and their prey live, neonics are especially harmful. It is a common practice for many towns and cities to systematically use aerial insecticides that target adult mosquitoes. This activity can be especially harmful when spraying is done at dusk or evening when the adult fireflies are most active. Note: Due to its harmful nature to insects, especially pollinators, most European countries and other countries throughout the world have stopped using neonics. HOW TO HELP FIREFLIES IN YOUR ENVIRONMENT
“Fireflies are tiny messengers that whisper in darkness: Don’t lose hope because magic exists” author unknown I am writing a blog about skunks because of a chance and novel encounter that my husband David and I very recently had with a skunk. In the past most of my encounters with skunks were based on applying tomato paste liberally to many of our dogs after they were sprayed by skunks. This time, early one morning, I was feeding sunflower seeds to the wild turkeys that call our property their home turf. As I was broadcasting the seeds, I noticed a smallish skunk ambling my way. I watched it carefully and with some amount of fascination as it slowly passed within three feet of me. He (she), went on to check out the area under the front bushes that were directly in front of the foundation of my home. I did not feel threatened in any way from this seemingly gentle being but was intrigued as to what it was doing and where it was going. Was it a young skunk exploring the world it lived in, or just hungry and looking for food? Why wasn’t it defensive and bothered by me, a hulking giant? And most important, why didn’t it spray me? Eventually, it slowly turned the corner of our house and headed toward the backyard. I wondered if my husband David was still feeding the chickens, ducks and Copernicus, our rooster, their morning meal. At breakfast, both David and I couldn’t wait to tell each other about our skunk adventures. David told me that as he emerged from the outside enclosed fenced off chicken pen, and while he was fastening the door latch, he felt a tug at his pant cuffs. Much to his surprise when he looked down, it was the skunk! He slowly but steadily walked backwards to the patio about 20 feet away from the chicken coop. The skunk slowly followed him! Then the skunk took one more look at him and sauntered off towards our neighbor’s property. During this whole encounter, David was more amused, curious and fascinated rather than freaked out. The skunk seemed very friendly and curious. He too wondered why he didn’t get sprayed! After this chance meeting with this specific skunk, I realized that I did not know much about skunks. I decided to do some research so I might understand more about this species. Maybe I could get some insight why David and I did not get sprayed and had a gentle encounter with a skunk. Fun Facts about skunks: Skunks, along with the stink badger are mammals in the family Mephitidae. There are ten species that live in North, Central and South America and two species in Indonesia and the Philippines. Five species of skunks live in the United States but only the striped skunk (Mephitis mephitis nigra) occurs in New England. They are basically similar in size to a domestic cat, weighing 6-14 pounds. They have pointed snouts and small, triangular heads with a white stripe on the nose and forehead. Their coat is black with two white stripes that run down their back. These white stripes are as unique as human fingerprints, varying for each individual. The tail is wide, long and bushy and can be all black or have varying amounts of white. Because skunks have short legs, they appear to waddle when they walk. It makes them look cute and endearing. They are highly adaptable and use a variety of habitats including meadows, farmlands, woods, wetlands, beaches, agricultural areas as well as urban and suburban developments. Basically, they are everywhere! Breeding season occurs from February through March. In late April to early June, the female will excavate a den and give birth to 2 – 10 kits which are born blind and helpless. It will be 6-8 weeks before the kits will emerge from the den and follow their mother in search of food. They will be independent at two to six months. In the wild, the average lifespan of a skunk is 2-3 years. They can live up to 15 years in captivity. Skunks are not true hibernators. Whenever the temperature is above 30 degrees, even in the middle of winter, skunks become active and are out looking for food. They are prey animals and their predators include Great-horned owls, coyotes, foxes and domestic dogs. They are nocturnal and forage for food while many animals and most humans are sleeping. They are omnivores, (they eat both meat and vegetation). Their diet consists of plants, insects, larvae, worms, fruit, eggs, reptiles, small mammals and fish. They have sharp nails and their foraging involves digging and often appears as a single, small hole in a lawn, leaf litter or sand. The skunks defense, and most memorable trait, is its ability to accurately shoot a smelly, oily substance from a gland underneath their tail with a range of up to 10 feet. Before spraying a potential victim the skunk will give many warning signs. The last warning sign is when it raises its tail! The scent can last for days but isn’t harmful. Most animals leave skunks alone unless they can’t find other prey. Some skunks, included the spotted skunk, will do a handstand on its front paws and aim its tail without taking its eyes off its attacker. Skunks are typically docile mammals that tolerate humans in close proximity without showing aggression. If you encounter a skunk, remain calm. Speak softly and slowly move away in order to give it room to leave. Once you back away, the skunk will no longer feel threatened and will move off. It is currently legal to own domesticated skunks in only 17 states including Massachusetts. Domesticated skunks are those that have been bred in captivity. They are known to be docile, loving, curious and playful. They can be wonderful pets if trained properly. One must put in the same effort and time as is needed in training a cat or dog. Skunks can be successfully trained to use a litter box, similar to cats. The difference between a wild skunk and a domesticated one is that domesticated skunks are de-scented when they are between two and five weeks old. Although this is a relatively simple procedure, there is some debate as to whether or not de-scenting skunks is humane. A de-scented skunk is one that has been stripped of its only natural defense. They should not be allowed to roam freely and unprotected outside. Note: A week after my skunk encounter, I was talking with a member of the landscaping team I often work with on the property next to where I live. He told me that a week earlier he was working with another member of our team who had his dog with him. The dog saw the skunk coming his way and ran over to explore this new, small, possible friend. Needless to say, the dog got sprayed and the skunk ambled unharmed on his way! However, both the dog, and his owner were not able to join the work crew for some days. Also, the truck that the owner drove had to be thoroughly professionally cleaned. Lesson: Dogs and skunks, even friendly ones, do not mix! This past April my husband David and I spent a week volunteering at Best Friends Animal Sanctuary, (www.bestfriends.org), in Kanab, Utah. Best Friends is the largest no-kill animal shelter in the United States and over-sees close to 1,700 diverse animals on over 3,500 acres. They are known for starting the ‘No-kill Animal Shelter’ movement in 1984. Much of the following information is gathered from the many questions I asked Chris Ratches, the coordinator and program manager for horses, pigs, sheep and goats. It is because of her knowledge, generosity of time given to me, and especially her love of goats, that I was able to write this article. Where does one start? Being well prepared and fully informed before acquiring any animal gives you a better chance at being a successful and responsible owner, having a rewarding experience and ensuring your animal does not end up being surrendered to an animal shelter. Whether you plan to buy or adopt a goat, here is some basic information you will find helpful. Goats are ruminants, hooved, herbivore, mammals with a specialized stomach called the rumen. The rumen helps in digesting plant-based foods. They are hollow-horned mammals, (females produce milk), belonging to the genus Capra. They have horns that arch backwards, short tails and straight hair. Male goats are called bucks or billys and females, does or nannys. Immature goats are called kids. Goats make wonderful pets. They are highly intelligent, fun loving and curious. They love to go for walks and learn new tricks. Although they make great lawn mowers because they eat grass and weeds, they should not be purchased or adopted exclusively for this purpose. As a highly active and sentient being, they require much care including regular grooming and attention. Before getting a goat, it is highly recommended that you talk to a veterinarian and people that have goats. As everyone knows, goats are amazing climbers. They need an enclosure with a 4-5’ tall fence that is secure and predator proof. Fencing serves to both keep the goats in and wild animals out. It can be made of wire or electrified but make sure that your goats can’t squeeze under an opening near the bottom. In the enclosure you need a shed where the goats can sleep at night and also get out of harsh weather including rain and snow. The shed, if made from wood, needs to have metal applied to its edges so the goats can’t chew through it. (Note: check the internet for Tuff Sheds). Make sure you place many different types of toys and enrichment objects in the enclosure. These objects will mentally stimulate and entertain the goats, give them exercise and keep them from getting bored. Some simple objects that you can obtain easily are: large tractor tires, picnic tables, old small boats, dog igloos, tree stumps, logs, ramps, rock walls and piles of rocks. Goats also love Christmas trees and will use them to scratch themselves as well as eat the bark. Make sure all these objects are placed far away from the fencing to keep them from escaping their enclosure. (Note: many of these objects can be found free through Craigslist or your local classifieds). Goat manure should be picked up at least once a week to keep the enclosure clean. You can use a standard horse rake to do this chore. Goat manure is a good addition to your compost pile. Both male and female goats need to be fed a daily ration of ½ a flake of timothy or grass hay twice a day. Females can also have alfalfa. Both males and females will need regular access to mineral supplements which you can buy at your local feed store. Goat mineral supplements contain cooper and should not be fed to any other barnyard animal. Goats will also eat leaves, bark from trees, twigs, vines and shrubs. For an occasional treat you can give them celery, carrots, grapes, bananas, apples, pears, zucchini, black oiled sunflower seeds and watermelon. Make sure to supply your goats with lots of clean water. Medical care includes an annual tetanus vaccine. A veterinarian can also trim your goat’s hooves regularly every 5-8 weeks. With patience, the owner can learn to do this. Goats need regular deworming. This product can be obtained at the feed store. Goat’s horns should never be removed because they contain blood vessels in them that regulate their body temperature. If goats head butt, they can be trained not to do so. Keep in mind that goats have different individual personalities. Both males and females equally make good pets. Male goats will have a distinctive musky smell unless neutered. Wait until the goat is at least six months to do so. There are many breeds of goats including cross breeds and just like dogs, they all are capable of becoming long term friends some with a life span of up to 18 years. In Massachusetts, Nevins Farm in Methuen, which is the farm animal sanctuary for the MSPCA, has many goats ready for adoption. Because they have so many goats, they no longer accept any goats from owners who want to surrender them. When considering getting a goat, please think of adopting an animal that needs a forever home. Like many pet species of animals, there are more goats that need a good home than people that are looking for them. January is the perfect time to talk about ‘Bucket Lists’. Mine is to visit as many different environments, sometimes called “ecosystems”, as possible. This past September, 2017, my husband David, our daughter Elizabeth and I and went to the last primal forest left in Europe, The Bialowieza Primal Forest in Poland. In preparation for this trip, David and I studied Polish at the Polish Language School in Salem for three hours every Saturday for two years. To gain entry into this extremely valued and highly guarded forest, one has to hire a trained Polish guide. The simple definition of a primal forest is a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance. Sometimes it is referred to as an ‘old growth forest’. The Bialowieza Primal Forest is at least 8,000 years old and is the last remaining tract of primal forests that once stretched across the European plain. Its environmental importance is such that in 1976 it was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The forest in Poland is 547 square miles with another 835 square miles in Belarus, Poland’s neighbor on its eastern border. The forest is so dense that for most of its history only river travel was possible through this area. In the 14th century the Polish kings and later the Russian czars made this forest their private hunting grounds and excluded everyone else. This is the reason it exists today. The key to the uniqueness of a primal forest is that it is one of the last environments on our planet that is completely unmanaged by humans. Its ecological features include a multiple layered canopy, diverse tree species and intact soil. The richness of its soil is evident in a healthy fungal ecosystem. One of the highlights of this trip was the incredible number and astounding variety of mushrooms we saw everywhere we went! Another necessary feature of a primal forest is that at least 50% of its wood is in different conditions of decay. In managed forests it is only about 5%. This high level of decay contributes to a high amount of carbon rich organic matter that is responsible for the healthy substrate of moss, fungi, seedlings and micro- organisms in the soil, all which supports an abundance of plants. Open canopy gaps due to death of trees, forest fires and other natural occurring events in the forest provide the opportunity for new growth and regeneration of trees and other plant species. It is the reason that a primal forest has healthy mixed-aged stands of trees. We were awed by the sizes of trees including oaks and ashes that had attained the ripe old age of 500 to 1,000 years old! They were the guardians of the forest and their presence was imposing, mystical and magical. The primal forest provides food and shelter to a unique blend of animal species that we rarely see in our country because our woods and national parks are managed. Here live wolves, lynx, deer, moose, wild boar, many small animal species and the European Bison which is Europe’s largest land animal . This is an environment where only the strongest survive and the numbers of all animal species are kept in check and balance by a healthy population of predator animals and a healthy population of prey animals. We were there in September and were constantly serenaded by the sounds of bellowing male moose in search of a mate. It was both an eerie and delightful sound. Throughout the world, the last few primal forests are rapidly disappearing today due to logging, mining for metals and converting the land into farms or developments. This is tragic because their ecological value is priceless. Primal forests provide habitat to threatened, rare and endangered animal, plant, bird and insect species. Their rich soils provide unmatched water retention, water purification, and nutrient recycling. They provide an invaluable source of oxygen production while at the same time sequestering carbon. 35% of our last remaining primal forests are the rain forests of Brazil, Ecuador and Peru. The old growth and boreal forest of Alaska and Canada comprise another 28%. The paradise forests of Asian Pacific countries hold another 7%. The forests in all of these counties are losing thousands of acres a day due to human demands and activities. Primal forests are an absolutely necessary component for our planet and are part of the ‘Web of Life’. Their presence and the innumerable services they offer, is essential for a healthy planet and for the survival of all living species including humans. And then there is the “awe” factor. Where else can we humans experience Nature, untainted by human interference, in her full, majestic magnificence? This is one of the last environments left on our planet where all of its components, including trees, plants, animals, birds, insects, even soil microorganisms, get to live to their fullest potential! That is both a rarity and a marvel. To walk in such an environment is simply put, wonder-full!
Big Night is a mass migration of thousands of salamanders, wood frogs, spring peepers, and other amphibians that make their annual spring commute to vernal pools and other wetlands to breed. Although it is called Big Night, it rarely occurs on just one evening. Before getting into details about this amazing event, I would like to explain what a vernal pool is since it is central to this phenomenon. Vernal pools, also called vernal ponds, spring ponds and ephemeral wetlands, are water bodies, that are variable in size, and usually only exist for a short time. The name comes from the Latin word, ‘Ver’, which means, ‘production of spring’. These temporary bodies of water are seen throughout the eastern part of our country and may exist between fall and summer. Most of the water that collects in them is from snow melt or rain accumulation. By mid to late summer, they usually dry up. Whatever name they go by, these water bodies are absolutely essential for the life cycle of many of our invertebrates, (animals without spines), and amphibians, which are cold blooded vertebrates (animals with spines), that exist both in water and on land. Vernal pools provide many services and are an important component of the forest community. Besides serving as the destination point for the mating and breeding of many species, the nutrients from the fallen leaves of the surrounding trees support a rich food web. As the leaves decompose in the water, they become food for many invertebrates, amphibians and reptiles, (vertebrate animals with dry, scaly skin). These nutrients are ingested and cycled through these species and at their death are returned to the forest. The one aquatic vertebrate that is always absent in a vernal pool is fish. Fish would eat the eggs that are laid in these water bodies. The wet-dry cycle of vernal pools prevents these water bodies from having permanent populations of fish. “Big Night”, as referred to by herpetologists, (a person who studies reptiles and amphibians), is quite easy to predict. It occurs on the first or second consecutive rainy night when the ground has thawed and the temperature at night consistently reaches between 45 to 50 degrees Fahrenheit. In Ipswich, Massachusetts, where I live, that happens around March 17th or soon after. In my local on Big Night, hundreds and sometimes thousands of mole salamanders, (including the spotted salamander, the blue spotted salamander, the Jefferson salamander and the marbled salamander), the wood frog, and the spring peeper, emerge from their winter protection under leaves, under fallen logs or from tunnels in the soil and migrate en masse. Some of these winter habitats are as far away as a half-mile. No matter where these species are coming from their destination is to return to the exact pool of their birth. These are obligate species, (Their life cycles have evolved, adapted and 100% depend to the temporary conditions of the vernal pool). Their physical appearances and behaviors have also evolved with the wet-dry cycle of these water bodies. Once at their destination, they will spend a few days or weeks courting mates through song and often elaborate dances. In some communities including my own, this much loved and anticipated migration, sends teams of volunteers, including children from schools, to assist the frogs and salamanders safely across busy roads at night so to avoid becoming road kill. Some towns will even close specific roads to traffic on these nights. SPRING PEEPERS - I am going to focus on just two of the many main characters of Big Night, the spring peeper and the spotted salamander. The spring peeper is one of the first woodland frogs to dig itself out of its winter subterranean home. Every year I anticipate their sounds as a most welcomed harbinger of spring. Their shrill peeps, repeated roughly every second, are a love song that not only catches my attention but that of potential mates. As hundreds migrate to their water body destinations, a deafening chorus of shrill peeps rises in unison from the edges of water bodies. Spring is officially heralded in. As often as I have approached these water bodies to catch the sights and action this raucous noise proclaims, I am disappointed. At the site, silence is my only reward. Literally not a “peep” will I hear. However, with a little diligence and lots of patience, if I look under leaves at the edge of the pond or look up a foot or two from the ground on the bark in the nearest trees and shrubs, I will be rewarded with the sight of this small, ¾” being. They have smooth skin in shades of tan, brown, green or gray with lines that form an X-shaped pattern on their backs. Their bellies are white to cream colored and between their eyes they have a dark line. Female peepers are more or less silent with the male peeper doing all the singing. A male peeper repeats his sharp mating call about 4,500 times a night during breeding season. Besides the high-pitched whistle call that the male uses to attract a mate, the peeper has other distinctive sounds that are made to warn other males away from his territory, defense sounds and sounds that tells another male frog that he has mistakenly grasped another male frog. After breeding season, which can be from March to June, peepers leave their ponds and return to the woods where they will spend most of the year. They spend the summer and fall living on the forest floor eating spiders, mites, ticks and a variety of insects. They in turn are food for snakes, salamanders, large carnivorous insects, raptors and other birds. As winter approaches, they dig down into the soil below the frost line or dig under a log or find refuge in holes or loose bark in trees to hibernate. The cycle will begin again as they leave their winter shelter in the spring to make their annual migration back to the vernal pool or body of water where they were born to mate and lay eggs. The only requirement they have is that the body of water has at least three months’ worth of water. The female usually releases 800 to 1,000 eggs one by one on vegetation. The male while clasping the female in a hug called amplexus, releases his sperm as the female is releasing her eggs. In only a few days the eggs hatch and tiny tadpoles emerge. Within three months, if they are not eaten by aquatic invertebrates and salamander larvae, these tiny, legless, plant eating-tadpoles will transform into four-legged, insect-eating frogs. They will then leave the pond of their birth and migrate close by usually no more than 600 feet to a quarter of a mile. And the cycle continues. SPOTTED SALAMANDER - Not all mating rituals involve loud proclamations. Mating of some species, like the spotted salamander, take place under darkness and total silence. Their quiet annual mass migration to their ancestral vernal pool, although a most wonderous event, escapes the notice of most humans. Spotted salamander are 6- 9” long with shiny black skin and bright yellow spots. They are the largest members of the “mole” salamander family. Mole salamanders are so named because of their subterranean existence in shrew, mole or mouse tunnels. Normally, the only time they leave their below ground home is in the spring when they awaken from hibernation and migrate to the same pool where they were born so they can perform the mating ritual and breed. Often this pool is only several hundred yards away from where they hibernate. Although this mating process can extend over a two-week period, the majority of salamander will migrate on the first optimal night. With a little luck, any given salamander will live about 20 years and thus will make this trek 20 times in its life.
Whereas the spring peeper can mate in many types of water bodies including vernal pools, the spotted salamander will only migrate and mate in a vernal pool and it must be the same one of its birth. These vernal pools are essential to the continuation of several species of amphibians including the spotted salamander! It is vital that they be free of predators, especially fish, so that the eggs and then their larvae, have a fighting chance of survival. The salamander’s entire life cycle evolves around the brief viability of such temporary watering holes and breeding, egg laying, and larval development must occur within just a few months before the pool dries up. Salamander mating starts with the males often arriving at the vernal pool a few hours before the females. In the water, groups of males, from 12-100 salamanders, (called congresses), form slithering masses. Every so often a single male will leave the group and mate with a nearby female. The pair perform a courtship dance in which they circle each other on the bottom of the pool while placing their head under each other’s tail. The male will climb on the females back and repeatedly rub his chin against hers. If lucky, he convinces the female to swim to the spot where earlier he had deposited a sperm packet on the bottom of the pool. If he is successful, the female will pick up the sperm packet with her vent, (cloaca), allowing her eggs to be fertilized internally. The female will then lay her eggs, which are in a gelatinous envelope of about 2” across, on grass stems or branches at the bottom of the pool. Each egg is enclosed in a sphere of jelly about the size of a marble. The entire cluster of eggs is further enclosed in one big gelatinous envelope. Over time the egg mass doubles in size. It is often covered with algae turning the egg masses green. Algae provides a certain type of protein for the eggs turning them white and also offering some camouflage protection. The eggs will hatch in about a month and gilled larvae emerge. At this stage of their development salamanders are called efts. Efts are voracious predators and eat midges, mayfly nymphs, fairy shrimp and caddisfly larvae. Efts in return are eaten by snakes, birds and larger amphibians. One to four months later, the efts metamorphize, (change form), into juvenile spotted salamander. They are equipped with lungs that allow them to breath air and leave the pool and begin their largely subterranean life. These juveniles wait for rain to make this migration landward just as they will wait for rain to migrate back to the vernal pool to mate in the spring of next year. Spotted salamander continue to grow throughout their lives. Their diet consists mainly of earthworms, snails, slugs and spiders. They in turn are eaten by snakes and birds Concluding thought: Vernal pools and wetlands are specific and unique ecosystems that support a web of life consisting of certain plants, insects, birds and animals. All these species are bound to each other in an intricate food web. These environments provide habitat, food, shelter and opportunities for the next generation to be born and nurtured. Without these environments, the life forms that live within them and are dependent on them, will disappear. All ecosystems on our planet are important and essential, whether they are as large as a forest or as small as a vernal pool. Further resources on vernal pools, spring peepers and salamanders: Vernal Pool Association www.vernalpool.org Call your town’s/city’s conservation commission to find where your closest vernal pool is. Read: “A Field Guide to The Animals of Vernal Pools” by Leo Kenney and Matthew Burne “Vernal Pools: Natural History and Conservation” by Elizabeth A. Colburn “Insects are those little things that run the world.” E.O. Wilson Insect numbers are declining world- wide at an alarming rate. A conservative view is that the insect population appears to be declining at a rate of about 9% per decade. Insects are a necessary and integral part of a healthy planet. They are of fundamental importance to all life forms and all terrestrial ecosystems. They are so important that insects total over 73% of all species on our planet! They provide many services including pollinating crops, trees, shrubs and flowers that many species including our own depend upon for food. They are responsible for passing on the sun’s energy, which they received from plants, to all other species in the food chain including us. Besides our native bees and honey bees, there are many other species including birds, other insects and bats, that provide the valuable service of pollination. In Blog #7, I wrote about hummingbirds and in Blog #13, I wrote about bats. Both of those species are pollinators. This blog is about native bees, their role as the primary pollinator of our planet and how to attract, support and sustain them in your garden and landscape environment. Evolution of bees: All bees are directly descended from wasps. Wasps are predatory insects, carnivores that eat other insects. When flowers started to evolve around 120 to 140 million years ago, some wasps discovered that pollen was a rich source of protein that could be collected and fed to their offspring without killing or being killed by another wasp. Gathering pollen for food and nectar for fuel for flight required certain adaptations different from those of hunters. Wasps’ bodies started to change shape to meet these new requirements and consequently morphed into the shape of bees. They became herbivores with hairy bodies all the better to trap and collect pollen. Some bee species like the bumblebee, developed sacks on their rear legs to collect and transport pollen. They developed tongues of different sizes depending on the species and the preference of the flowers they collect nectar from. Ones with longer tongues will prefer tubular shaped flowers like columbine or honeysuckle while bees with shorter tongues will prefer daisies, asters and sunflowers. Bees’ sense of sight is highly developed. They have two compound eyes, made up of many tiny lenses, and three simple lenses on the top of their heads. This evolutionary adaptation allows them a wide view of their environment so that they can find flowers through color and patterns. Flowers evolved with different colors and patterns to attract different size insects and species to pollinate them. Bees can’t see the color red which is a color more attractive to hummingbirds and butterflies. They are drawn to purple, blue, white and yellow. They also developed a great sense of smell. Perfume is the evolutionary adaptation of flowering plants to attract insects to pollinate them. Bees’ memories are highly evolved so that they remember where the best flowers for nectar and pollen are located. Native Bees are our planet’s most important group of pollinators. In North America there are over 5,000 species of native bees. There are over 20,000 world-wide. There are 356 native bee species in Massachusetts. Most people can only identify and are familiar with the bumblebee! Except for the colonizing bumblebee, named for the sound it makes while foraging, all native bees are solitary insects. They are usually seen only a few weeks a year when they emerge from their nests. Nests are found in the ground, in old tree trunks, in logs or in hollow stems of flowers and bushes. Upon emerging they immediately seek pollen and nectar, and in doing so pollinate crops and flowers. For the remainder of the year these bees remain hidden from view in their nests. The majority do not sting or make honey. Native bees range in size from 1/8 of an inch to slightly over an inch. They vary in color from dark brown, black, to metallic blues and greens. They also vary in shapes, life styles, places they visit, nests they build, flowers they visit and season of activity. One of the reasons they have evolved into so many different sizes and shapes is to match flowers that also come in different sizes and shapes. About 70% of bees, including the bumblebee, are generalists and collect pollen from a wide variety of species of flowering plants. About 30% are specialists and gather pollen from one specific plant species. An interesting note: Because native bees have evolved with all aspects of their environment including weather, in New England we see bees even in the winter months if the temperature is above 45 degrees. In general, most native New England insects can fly if the temperature is between 45-50 degrees. At that time they emerge from their shelters to search for any source of food that might be available, such as the winter blooming witch-hazel bush, (Hamamelis virginiana). The bumblebee is able to gather pollen and nectar from a wide range of flowering plants from March through November. Honey bees because they evolved in a warmer climate are only active when the temperature is reliably above 57 degrees. Honey Bees are not native to our country. They evolved around the Mediterranean Sea and hence are acclimated to warm areas. They survive here only if attended by beekeepers who provide a bee hive for shelter from our cold winters. Honey bees are raised by people who collect their honey. Humans have been collecting honey since Paleolithic times, roughly 2.5 million years ago. We know that Egyptians kept and tended hives. Honey bees were brought to this country in 1621 by the early colonists. They are social animals that live in colonies. They have a painful sting. In the United States honey bees are often raised in an industrial site and then transported by large trucks to areas that pay for their pollination skills. Most of our commercial crops use honey bees for pollination. A good example of this is the almond tree industry in California. It depends on trucks from honey bee farms in Texas to bring in bees to pollinate their trees when they bloom every spring. Basic Terms To Understand Pollination is the act of transferring pollen from one flower, tree or crop to another for the purpose of allowing fertilization. The evolutionary goal of every living organism on this planet, including plants, is to create offspring for the next generation. Fruit and seeds can be produced only when pollen is transferred between flowers of the same species. One of the ways that plants can produce offspring is by producing seeds. Pollination helps to maintain genetic diversity and resilience in the population of trees, plants and flowers, and helps develop adequate fruit, seeds or flowers. Plants need to produce enough seeds for both dispersal and propagation. Pollen is composed of protein lipids (fats). It is a fine powdery substance of microscopic grains, typically yellow, found on the male part of a flower, called a stamen, which produces the pollen. Each grain of pollen contains a male gamete, (sperm cell), that can fertilize the female ovule of the flower. Pollen is transported by insects, wind and other animals. Pollen transfer is essential for sexual reproduction of flowering plants, crops and coniferous trees that produce cones. Nectar is composed of carbohydrates and amino acids. It is a high source of energy and is used to for fueling flight as well as food. Services provided by native bees: Bees keep the world of native flowering plants going. Native flowering plants are the key component of most land ecosystems. Bees are found anywhere flowers bloom and are essential to their growth. Through pollination they transfer grains of pollen from the flower of one plant to the flower of another plant of the same species. Bees gather pollen and nectar for their survival. They make a pollen loaf out of pollen and nectar and feed it to their offspring. The Queen bee lays one egg on each pollen loaf. The emerging offspring’s survival depends on this food. Native bees are more efficient at pollination than honey bees. Only native bees use a technique called ‘buzz pollination’ when gathering nectar and pollen. The native bee uses its legs to grab the flower’s stamen, the organ of the flower that is comprised of the anther and a filament. It then vibrates its flight muscles thus releasing a burst of pollen from deep spores in the anthers. The anther is a key structure in the reproduction of flowering plants. It sits on top of the filament. It produces the male sex cells, stores them and provides a place to stay until the time comes when they are dispersed by bees. Worldwide state of bees: The decline of native bee populations in the United States and the world is increasing at an unprecedented rate. Today in the United States nearly 25% of the native bee species are imperiled and at an increasing risk of extinction. Some of the main reasons for this decline are: flowerless landscapes, destruction and fragmentation of habitat, loss of meadows and other areas bees once called home, competition with non-native bees, climate change, pollution, the planting of non-native flowers, plants and trees, and the use of insecticides, pesticides and herbicides. How to support bees: Create pollinator gardens – Like all species on this planet, bees need water, shelter, and nesting sites, (a safe site to raise offspring), as well as landscapes with native flowers and plants. When creating a pollinator garden, plant flowers with many different colors, patterns and shapes to attract bees of different species and sizes. Native plants are of utmost importance because they and the bees have co-evolved together. Plant native flowers, bushes and trees that bloom in different seasons from early spring to late fall so that bees have a constant source of nectar and pollen. Some good examples of plants are: Herbs - basil, rosemary, sage, thyme, borage, lavender, chives, dill, oregano, mint. Perennial flowers -sunflowers, anise hyssop, bee balm, heather, aster, columbine, lupine, baptisia, black-eyed susans, coneflowers, globe thistle, milkweed, coreopsis, daisies, phlox, gaillardia, yarrow, goldenrod, helianthus, zizia, black snakeroot, cosmos and Joe Pye weed. Annual flowers – alyssum, cleome, zinnias, salvia, calendula and verbena. Bushes – witch hazel, serviceberry, iron weed, aronia. buddleia, ceanothus, St. John’s Wort, buttonbush, rosa rugosa, elderberry, virginia rose, viburnums, sumac, winterberry and dogwoods. Trees – redbud, willows, red maples, wild cherry, horse chestnut, tupelo, basswood and black locust. Fruit bushes and trees – raspberry, blackberry, blueberries, cherry and plums. Stop using insecticides, pesticides and herbicides - they kill all insects including bees. Grow plants and vegetables organically. At the end of the growing season leave hollow flower stalks, garden debris and leaves in your garden throughout the winter. These places are where eggs, next year’s new generation, are finding shelter. Leave old standing dead trees and fallen logs. Both provide homes and shelter for bees. If you buy a bee hotel, it must be maintained and cleaned every year so that diseases and fungi will not be transmitted. Or you can buy new ones every year. Reduce your lawn area. Grass is a monoculture and does not support native insects. Add a new garden bed. Educate yourself about bees and pollinators. Here are some good books to read: “Pollinators of Native Plants” Heather Holm; “Attracting Native Pollinators” the Xerces Society; “100 Plants To Feed The Bees” the Xerces Society |
AuthorConsultant, designer and educator transforming commercial and residential landscapes sustainably Archives
March 2023
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