Birds and Food Gathering

Observer: Eloise Bacher

Date: 20 September, 2008

Time: 1452-1509

Location: Mill Stream/Botanical Garden

Weather: Cloudy, no breeze.

I'm sitting on one of the large cut pieces of tree right near the bridge that leads to East Side. It's pretty secluded here; I haven't seen anyone come through yet. It also feels a little more natural, like this part of the Mill Stream would be this way even if campus wasn't here. There are a couple female Mallards wandering around a ways away, poking their beaks into the dirt and munching on something. Across the stream I can see a squirrel digging in the dirt as well, and a Scrub Jay that has something in hir beak. Looks like the animals are settling in for fall/winter. Does this mean actual fall weather is going to start soon? The Scrub Jay looks at me sideways and flys off with hir food. The ducks have wandered further away, and the squirrel continues digging frantically, but in a different place.

*Photo courtesy of http://buildyourownbirdhouseplans.com/images/Scrub%20Jay%20with%20prize%20by%20WIlliam%20G.%20Mancebo.jpg

Tyler Starr: 9/14, Martha Springer Botanical Garden

Tyler Starr

14 September 2008 from 1455 to 1517

Location: The Martha Springer Botanical Garden

Weather: Sunny, no clouds in the sky, about 80 ̊ F, little to no wind.

General: This was my first time in the Botanical Garden, and it was a great visit. I saw so many different types of animals, not to mention the variety of plants. The first thing I noticed was an answer to my question of where the mallard ducks go during the day—I saw about 15 of them in the Mill Stream next to the Botanical Garden. They were just paddling in place in the shade of a tree. They were largely inactive. I also saw a squirrel walking along the top of a fence. I saw another squirrel deeper into the garden. It was sitting on a rock, almost as if it was posing for the picture I took. I have seen a ton of these squirrels in the past few days. Since the last batch of baby squirrels were born already, most of the squirrels are probably beginning to stock up on food for the upcoming winter months. There are bees all over in the garden among all of the flowers—this must be a bee’s paradise. There are a few different species of bees as far as I can tell; some are fuzzy, and some are not, and there seem to be a couple of different sizes for each one. I watched a bee crawl into the narrow opening of a flower to gather its nectar, inadvertently transferring pollen between flowers. I also watched two mice scurrying around. They were tiny, gray, and maybe two inches long not including tails. Every time my camera made a noise, they would dart behind a tree or rock, so the picture above was the best I could get. I hear tons of different birdcalls as well, from screeches to tweets. I heard a distinct chickadee call, and so followed the call and saw two of the birds in a tree.

Mallards in Riverfront Park

Observer: Eloise Bacher
Date: 1 September, 2008
Place: Gravel bed, Riverfront Park
Time: 1010-1025
Weather: Sunny, some clouds, breeze


There are three Mallards eating in the quieter water of the stream before it does a U-turn and races into the slough. One of the ducks, a female, has drifted downstream and now stopped. How does she stay in one place like that? Paddling her feet constantly, like we tread water? Or maybe it’s shallow enough that she can stand up and lean into the current? The water seems fairly shallow as it drops down into the slough, but perhaps it’s not further up. There are mainly grasses by the edge of the water, and further up are shrubs and blackberries. Even further than that the trees start, although down by the slough it looks like they come much closer to the water. Also near me above the “rapids” there is a group of dancing bugs.


Weather Journal:

Condition:
Estimated
Actual *

Temperature:
65° F
65.4° F

Wind Direction:
South
South-Southeast

Wind Speed:
1 mph
0.4 mph

Humidity:
40%
69.8%

*Quoted from Weather Underground (http://www.wunderground.com/weatherstation/WXDailyHistory.asp?ID=KORSALEM32&graphspan=custom&month=8&day=31&year=2008&monthend=9&dayend=1&yearend=2008)