A Northwoods Almanac 11/1/19

A Northwoods Almanac for Nov. 1 – 14, 2019   

Acorns and Lyme Disease

Our northern oaks have had a boom year for acorns. Walking a woods trail lined with northern red oaks is like walking on a path littered with large ball bearings – there’s tens of thousands of acorns on the ground. In some areas, there may be more than 100 acorns per square meter.         Like most trees, oaks ascribe to a ‘boom and bust’ cycle, producing a pittance of acorns in a lean year and raining them down in a boom, or “mast,” year.

While chipmunks, squirrels, deer, blue jays, and a host of other acorn eaters are in seventh heaven during a boom year, unfortunately mice also gorge on acorns. They’ll store them for the winter, helping them to go into next year’s breeding season very well-fed. Acorn boom years thus typically cause a population boom for white-footed mice the following spring.

White-footed mice are fine fellows, but there’s a proven link between white-footed mice populations and an increased risk of Lyme disease. Field studies over 20 years have confirmed the relationship between boom acorn mast years, resultant mouse outbreaks, and the prevalence of infected ticks. 

It’s essential to note that ticks are born free of the pathogens that cause Lyme disease – they catch it from other animals like white-footed mice and chipmunks. Thus, the concern for a mouse boom.

Here’s how the complicated life cycle of deer ticks (also known as blacklegged ticks) works: Deer tick eggs typically hatch as larvae in late spring and spend their summer looking for a blood meal, which most often is a bird or a small mammal. Once a tick larva has found and fed on a host, it drops off and molts into a tiny nymph about the size of a poppy seed. It then seeks a host again, but this time ranging from small mammals to larger prey like deer, humans, or a dog. 

Once they attach to a new host, the nymph will feed for several days, drop off, and then molt into an adult tick, now about the size of a sesame seed. However, the larval and nymphal stages are the ones to be most concerned about because ticks typically pick up and transmit Lyme pathogens from a host during these stages. They’re so tiny that they’re hard to detect and, therefore, are less likely to be removed. I had ehrlichiosis, a form of Lyme disease a few years ago, and never knew I’d been bitten. Our daughter Callie just got over a bout with Lyme, and she also never knew she’d been bitten. And we’re pretty vigilant!

            As adults, male ticks seldom feed again, but adult females will seek a final blood meal from a large mammal, most often a deer (high deer populations thus also contribute to a higher incidence of Lyme disease). The male tick then seeks an engorged female to mate with on the host, the female is mated, falls off the host, lays her eggs, and dies. And the lifecycle goes around again. 

            A tick’s lifecycle can last two to three years, which means that for two years following a boomer acorn crop, there’s likely to be a high abundance of white-footed mice, and therefore of infected ticks.

            So, we’ll see if the tick-mouse-Lyme relationship holds true next summer. It will certainly pay to check ourselves for ticks even more carefully than usual.

Deer, Hemlocks, and Tannic Acid

I led a hike in September on the Raven Trail for UW Madison students from the “Biohouse,” a residential learning community created in a partnership between WISCIENCE and University Housing. BioHouse residents live on the same floor of a campus dormitory, and they work, play, study, and explore opportunities in biology together. Dr. William Karasov, the faculty director of Biohouse and a professor of forest and wildlife ecology, chaperoned the group. 

I stopped at an eastern hemlock tree seedling to talk about how hemlock reproduction is complicated, and, in particular, how deer heavily browse hemlocks in the winter. I went on then to talk about how hemlock bark contains 10% tannic acid and was used extensively in leather tanneries throughout Wisconsin.

At this point, Dr. Karasov interjected about how foods that contain high amounts of tannic acid are very difficult to digest for most animals. Tannins typically reduce palatability, limit digestibility, and increase toxic load. But not for deer. After his detailed explanation of how deer manage this, I asked him to send me the information so I could pass it on, and here’s what he wrote translated into simpler terms (if you want the pure science, read “Do Salivary Proline-Rich Proteins Counteract Dietary Hydrolyzable Tannin Laboratory Rats?” in Journal of Chemical Ecology, 9/2004): Deer saliva contains substances that basically neutralize the damage that tannins could do within the intestines. The tannins aren’t digested, but rather attached, or bound, to proteins that are expelled in the deer’s droppings. The deer lose a nutrient – nitrogen – in the process, but still gain some nutrition from the hemlock needles. 

Mulching Leaves

            I just finished grinding up the leaves in our yard with our mulching lawn mower, as I’ve done every fall for decades. Rather than rake, I mulch because I’ve always thought of leaves as free fertilizer given that they contain nitrogen. Leaves also insulate the soil, cover up root systems, preserve soil moisture (not an issue this year!), and suppress weeds.

            It’s also one heck of a lot less work, and costs less.

            Do I end up with a perfect thick, green lawn? No. I have an okay lawn, which is all I should have on the poor sandy soils in our area. This is the Northwoods after all. Our specialties here are trees, shrubs and wildflowers native to our area, not Kentucky bluegrass.  

Potato River Hike

            I, along with 25 others, hiked to the Potato River in northern Iron County on 10/25 as part of an ICORE (Iron County Outdoor Recreation Enthusiasts) sponsored event. We were led by Jim and Joy Perry, retired botanists, who clearly love the Potato River, and well they should – this little river hosts an array of rapids and waterfalls. 

an unnamed waterfall on the Potato River

The Potato is the eastern-most tributary to the Bad River which eventually flows through the Kakagon Sloughs and into Lake Superior. It originates in western Iron County, and along its course, it’s joined by Norman, Turntable, Apple, Alder, and Vaughn Creeks. The water runs rusty-colored due to the tannins and the iron in the watershed, but it runs fast. 

Like all the rivers in our area flowing north from the Sub-Continental Divide, it has a whole lot of elevation to lose before it reaches Lake Superior. The Divide wanders across central Iron County and then along the northern edge of Vilas County, averaging somewhere around 1,700 feet in height. Rivers flowing into Lake Superior, which is around 600 feet, thus have 1,100 feet to drop in often as little as 50 miles. Add to this elevation loss, the rocky geologic formation of the Gogebic Range, and it can feel like you’re in a different world from the sandier and flatter landscapes south of the Divide.

Along the Divide, headwaters of separate rivers often begin in close proximity to one another. Sometimes two rivers rise from opposite ends of the same marsh. The Brule and St. Croix Rivers may be the best-known example of the "one marsh-two rivers" phenomenon in northern Wisconsin. Both rivers originate in a large marsh off of Highway P near Solon Springs, the Brule flowing north, the St. Croix south. 

In Iron County, the north-flowing West Fork of the Montreal and the south-flowing East Fork of the Chippewa originate within two miles of one another. 

The Indians and Voyageurs knew about these watershed divides, and their knowledge turned this area into a sort of river-traveler’s switchyard. A relatively short portage permitted them to pick up a river that would eventually connect them to a network of other rivers flowing to nearly anywhere in the Eastern U.S.

Sightings: Snow Buntings, Northern Shrike, Cardinal, More Robins, Saw-whet Owl

            The North Lakeland Discovery Center Bird Club hiked Powell Marsh on 10/24, their last bird hike of the year, and had first-of-the-year sightings of snow buntings and a northern shrike.

            In Manitowish, we have had a male cardinal visiting our feeders in the last week of October, 

and it’s now been joined by a red-bellied woodpecker. Rusty blackbirds and robins continue to visit our property in large numbers, the robins now eating all of our crabapples which we like to provide for winter visitors like bohemian waxwings and pine grosbeaks. Oh well, we planted them for birds, and the robins have equal rights. I just wish they’d be less gluttinous. 

Sarah Krembs in Manitowish Waters emailed this on 10/15: “I was coming home last night at about 10 p.m. and I was just north of Bakken Rd on Hwy 51 [when] something ran into the side of my car! I thought it might be a rabbit, a fox, I couldn’t tell. I turned around and went back to see a little creature standing on the white shoulder line, and it was flapping its wings. It must’ve been flying just above the ground because it seemed to hit so low I’d thought it was a creature running on the ground . . . I shone the headlights on it and realized it was an owl. A teeny tiny saw-whet. He let me come right up to him with a sheet and pick him up . . . I went home (cuz it’s only a couple miles) to try to decide if I should call NWLC or what. He only had one eye open. But I had seen him flapping both his wings, so I figured that was a good sign. 

photo by Sarah Krembs

“In the end, I decided to ask Mum to drive me back to Bakken while I held him because he was starting to move around a bit. We got there, I gently unwrapped him and he hopped up and stood on my hand. He was soo tiny! He turned his head all the way around making it look like his eyes were migrating around his head. It was incredible. I’ve never seen that in real life.  I figured his neck muscles must be okay. Both his eyes were open and bright. And then after a few moments he flew away. Biggest sigh of relief ever. 

“I have never seen a saw-whet in the wild, but this was definitely NOT how I wanted to see one. But it ended in just about the best way possible. It’s amazing how resilient some birds can be.” 

September Temperatures

NOAA reported that this September was tied with September 2015 as the warmest September on record in data going back to 1880. Other agencies agreed that last month was near the top, although their placements varied slightly. Minor differences in rankings can arise because of how the various agencies handle data-sparse regions such as the Arctic, where few surface weather stations exist. NASA, for instance, ranked last month as the second warmest September on record, just behind 2016 and ahead of 2015.

The bottom line is that last month was among the three warmest Septembers globally in 140 years of recordkeeping. As NOAA pointed out in a news release, “The 10 warmest Septembers have all occurred since 2005, with the last five years (2015-2019) being the five warmest Septembers on record.”

Thought for the Week

“A river is the report card for its watershed.” – Alan Levere 

Please share your outdoor sightings and thoughts: call 715-476-2828, e-mail at manitowish@centurytel.net, snail-mail at 4245N State Highway 47, Mercer, WI, or see my blog at www.manitowishriver.blogspot.com

A Northwoods Almanac for 10/18/19

A Northwoods Almanac for Oct. 18 – 31, 2019  

Sightings – Frost, Witch Hazel, Kirtland’s Warblers, Robins, Rusty Blackbirds 

We experienced our first frost (and snowfall) in Manitowish on 10/12. Back in the 1980s when we first moved here, and then on into the 1990s, we nearly always experienced our first frost on 8/20 – green tomatoes were the rule! In the last decade, we are now harvesting ripe tomatoes and zucchinis late into September and early October.

Conversely, our witch hazel shrub flowered back on 9/17, an extremely early date, and it continues to flower.  

Kirtland’s warblers were recently removed as a federally endangered species. The songbird met recovery goals after years of intensive habitat management, mostly in lower Michigan where the core population lives. Listed as endangered since the late 1960s, Kirtland’s dipped to a low of 167 pairs in 1974 and again in 1987 before it began a steady climb toward recovery. The current population is estimated to be around 2,000 pairs. The delisting of the Kirtland’s Warbler is cause for celebration and proof that the Endangered Species Act works. 

            In Wisconsin, the bird remains endangered – as of 2017, we have 20 nesting Kirtland’s pairs.

Every early October, a large flock of robins appears in our yard to feast on our mountain ash berries. We’ve had the largest crop of berries ever, so they’ve been busy! I’ve planted another 10 mountain ash trees, so when they mature, I’m curious how many robins will find our little yard in Manitowish.

Bev Engstrom echoed the robin theme, writing on 10/10: “Migrating robins stopped off in my yard and found the crabapple tree. Cleaned 'er up in two days.” She also sent a beautiful photo of the robins.

photo by Bev Engstrom

Robin migration is in full tilt everywhere. Hawk Ridge in Duluth tallied 3,655 robins on 10/7, with a seasonal total on 10/11 of 8,650.

            Rusty blackbirds are also coming through now – look for the yellow eye to differentiate them from red-winged blackbirds. As of 10/11, 3,333 have been tallied, with 1,738 on 10/7 as the high count on Hawk Ridge.

Hawk Ridge

            Speaking of Hawk Ridge, as of 10/11, counters have tallied 166,682 individuals from 152 species of birds including the following: 

Broad-winged hawks: 22,910 total, with highs of 8,314 on 9/23 and 2,707 on 9/25.

Blue jays: 24,810 so far, with highs of 5,307 on 9/19 and 3,428 on 9/23.

Sharp-shinned hawks: 16,053 so far, with highs of 1,167 on 9/16 and 1,620 on 9/23.

Yellow-rumped warblers came through in big numbers on 9/25 - 1,227!

Unidentified warblers (think about trying to identify warblers as they fly overhead) totalled 13,470 on 9/24.

Cedar waxwings: 8,043 so far, with a high of 1,605 on 9/24.            

Hawk Ridge is not only along the flightpath of raptors and songbirds, but also of owls. On 10/4, they captured and banded a remarkable 168 saw-whet owls.

Trees Drowning

Water levels have been exceptionally high on most lakes this year with many shoreline trees and shrubs inundated all summer long. While paddling, I’ve seen very significant plant die-offs along shorelines, particularly on seepage lakes. 

high water on Pallette Lake in July

It’s unclear to me what the upper limit of tolerance for high water is for all of our trees and shrubs, so I got in contact with Dom Ciruzzi, a PhD candidate at UW Madison who is conducting a shoreline study at the Trout Lake Limnology Station. He noted the following:            “There is a gradient of responses in different trees to flood tolerance. Some trees (red maple, bur oak, elms, sycamore, and more) can tolerate several weeks to months of inundation, whereas others (sugar maple, pines, red oak, cedar, and more) will likely be severely damaged by a week or less of inundation. However, even the trees that can tolerate several weeks to months of inundation will likely die if lake levels do not drop in that growing season and into the next year.

“The mechanism killing these trees is primarily to do with the connection between oxygen and roots. Roots need air to breathe and when all of the pore space in the soil is filled with water, the roots cannot respire, which leads to root death, reduced nutrient uptake, and if prolonged enough, tree mortality. Once all the roots are dead, it is pretty hard for a tree to bounce back – but in some instances the tree can survive if the flooding recedes and has not killed off all the roots. 

“My research into trees and groundwater, and recently lake levels, has me considering how these current lake levels fit in the bigger picture. I'm speculating here, but it seems to me that the Northwoods in particular has experienced a wider variability in lake levels over the past decade than they have in the last 75-100 years. In 2008-2010, a severe drought lowered lake levels to an all-time low, and about 10 years later to the present, lake levels are at an all-time high. We know from previous research that these fluctuations occur about every decade, but the most recent fluctuation (from 2008-2019) has been very dramatic. One might expect within 10 years for the lake levels to decline again, as part of the natural cycle of water levels in the area, but we'll have to wait and see! 

“Likely, if water levels increase into next year, I'd expect a lot more trees to die. There is also a gradient of tree composition on the shores of lakes to the uplands. Trees in the 100- or 1000-year floodplain are likely not adapted to periodic flooding and would not withstand a season of high lake levels that reach these upland trees. I'd hate to see it, but if lake levels continue to rise in the area into next year and possibly into subsequent years, I'd expect unprecedented tree die off on the shores of most lakes in the area. 

“In some areas, I'm observing the shallowest groundwater levels I've seen in the past 5 years I've been monitoring these forests. I'd also expect in some areas that the groundwater will or has already reached the surface, and at these locations a very shallow water table will likely kill off trees that are not used to wetland conditions.”

On the plus side of this dismaying projection, Dom adds that “these dead trees on the shores of lakes will likely fall into the lake and provide very valuable habitat and space for fish to escape predators and reproduce safely, so another side of this is that with the death of these trees, there may be new life and safety for fish in these lakes.” 

Winter Finch Report

            Ron Pittaway, an ornithologist in Toronto, Ontario, issues his “Winter Finch Forecast” every autumn detailing the likelihood of Canadian finches moving south for the upcoming winter. His prediction for this winter flatly states, “This is not an irruption (flight) year for winter finches in the East. Most winter finches will stay in the north.”

The availability of food determines whether birds come south or not, thus Pittway goes on to detail the overall stock of seeds and fruits: “There are abundant spruce cone crops across the boreal forest in Ontario, Quebec, and Newfoundland. Most conifers (except pines), birches and other seed crops are good to excellent in much of the Northeast.” 

Pittaway then specifically looks at the needs of individual species and notes, for instance, that pine grosbeaks rely in large part on mountain ash berries, and there’s an abundant crop of them. Likewise, bohemian waxwings also rely on mountain ash berries, so they, too, should mostly remain north. Common redpolls, on the other hand, bank on birch, alder, and spruce seeds being bountiful, and they, too, are abundant. 

So, for these northern birds, when the cupboards are stocked, little reason exists to risk the dangers of migration. They’re highly adapted to cold temperatures, making winter food their major limiting factor.

This is Pittaway’s 21^st annual winter finch forecast, and while he’s not always been perfect in his prognostications, he’s usually a very good bet. 

Thus, our feeders may be lonelier than usual this winter. But take heart in the fact that this is very good news for the birds – they will be well fed further north and likely have a good reproductive spring because of a less stressful winter. Their absence, while our loss, is an overall gain for the birds. 

Celestial Events

            The peak Orionid meteor shower occurs on 10/21 – look for an average of 20 meteors per hour. 

            From 10/22-10/25, the average low temperature in the Minocqua area drops to 32° for the first time since April 22. Minocqua averages 183 days with low temperatures at or below freezing.

            New moon occurs on 10/27. 

            On 10/29, look after dusk for Venus about 4° below the waxing crescent moon, and for Mercury just above it, about 3° south of the moon.

Thought for the Week

            “The plain fact is that the planet does not need more successful people, but it does desperately need more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers, and lovers of every kind. It needs people who live well in their places. It needs people of moral courage willing to join the fight to make the world habitable and humane. And these qualities have little to do with success as we have defined it.” – David Orr

Please share your outdoor sightings and thoughts: call 715-476-2828, e-mail at manitowish@centurytel.net, snail-mail at 4245N State Highway 47, Mercer, WI, or see my blog at www.manitowishriver.blogspot.com

A Northwoods Almanac for 10/4/19

A Northwoods Almanac for Oct. 4-17, 2019  by John Bates

Loon Parents and Adopted Mallard Chick Update

I was recently asked what had happened to the mallard chick that was raised this summer by a loon pair in Oneida County. I contacted Linda Grenzer, who has been keeping an eye on this very rare adoption, and this is what she wrote back: “On 8/18, I was on the lake in the evening. For the first 45 minutes, the 42-acre lake was vacant of any loon or duck. Then the unbanded female landed and started wailing on and off for about 15 minutes. I then heard a duck quacking behind me, and here the duckling was making a beeline to Mom. I’m not sure if the duckling landed or was hiding in the heavy vegetation, but it joined Mom the rest of the evening I was there. It actually tucked its head in its back and napped for about a half an hour in the center of the lake as Mom stood guard next to it.                                                                                                              
"The home owner saw them on and off after that. She did see the duck take flight and circle the lake a couple of times, but always landed back by mom and dad. The homeowner told me other ducks flew in, but this duckling never went by them.  On 9/8, the homeowner had told me she had not seen the duck or loons for over a week on her lake.

“So, I’m not sure if the duckling is alone or with one or both parents on another lake. No one ever observed this duckling close to another loon other than mom and dad . . . The attached picture is the last time in early August that I captured the female feeding the full-grown duckling a fish.” 

So, the story continues with this autumn’s conclusion yet to be written. The adult loons will begin their migration soon, if they haven’t already, leaving the mallard chick to determine its own lot. The loons will almost certainly migrate to the Gulf of Mexico, while mallards in northern Wisconsin are DNA-imprinted to wait to migrate until the lakes are near freezing, and then fly a relatively short distance to wherever open water beckons, or perhaps on to the Mississippi River. A few may even remain the winter if a water source stays open and food is readily available. 

Loons and Fishing Lures – Time for This to End

Linda and Kevin Grenzer also sent me an email with attached photos taken by Marge Gibson at REGI (Raptor Education Group in Antigo) of a juvenile loon chick that was wrapped in fishing line. Linda and Kevin had captured the loon the previous evening in Eagle River. The good news is that Marge has worked her magic, and the loon appears to be recovering well. Nevertheless, this is not an isolated incident. Loons with lures protruding from their mouths and entwined in fishing line are not an uncommon story. Linda and Kevin are often tasked with recovering these loons, and with the loons in their hands, they therefore see the often gruesome impacts. Here’s what they want you to know:

“This time of year juvenile loons are looking for an easy meal as they are learning to forage for themselves. The public needs to help prevent such entanglements by fishing responsibly . . . do not fish near loons. And dispose of line properly, not leaving monofilament line in lakes or on shore. If you accidentally hook a loon try to land it, call REGI (715-623-4015). Do not cut the line and let it go . . . it is a death sentence for this loon. Also, we need the public to let us know if they see an entangled loon; report this to REGI, so the loon can be helped.”

On a Lighter Note, Autumn Spaceships 

In October, most of the plant world is shutting down ahead of a long winter, but simultaneously, many are also seeking new worlds by sending out their seeds. To help the seeds travel as far as possible, plants utilize an amazing array of strategies. Some put a final gift wrap over the seeds, something bright, colorful, and sweet-tasting to encourage transport by way of digestive systems – think of a black cherry. Other plants like thistle choose to make their seeds sticky or bristly in order to hitch a ride to another town. Some create an aerodynamic appendage, like a milkweed’s silk parachute or a sugar maple’s winged helicopter. Still others coat their seeds in a waterproof jacket that acts like a PFD, floating the embryo down rivers to rest on a shoreline. 

Once in their new world, the seeds have sensors that will respond to the right combination of temperature, light, oxygen and moisture to initiate growth. If the conditions aren’t perfect, the seeds may not germinate for years until their sensors detect the right conditions. The record for patience may be ten thousand-year-old lupine seeds which were found in 1954 and then placed on wet filter paper where six seeds germinated within 48 hours. One plant, upon reaching 11 months of age, and after 10,000 years of dormancy, then bloomed. 

Timing is everything in the dispersal of seeds. Sugar maples drop their samaras, their helicopter seeds, right before they drop their leaves to help germination and deter predators.

Red oaks have evolved a similar strategy, typically shedding their acorns just before dropping most of their leaves. Their acorns benefit from the cover of newly fallen leaves, which ensures that some acorns will be hidden from predators, while others will be found and dispersed by squirrels and chipmunks intent on hiding their winter stores. 

Banner years for acorns come every three or four years. One researcher tracked 15,000 acorns that were dropped by one prolific tree. Deer, squirrels, and other animals ate 83 percent of them; 6 percent were attacked by weevils and insect larvae; and about 10 percent were naturally imperfect and failed to germinate. Less than 1 percent actually sprouted, and over half of those died as seedlings. Fortunately, only one acorn needs to survive to replace the adult tree above it. 

Whatever the strategy employed, it’s clear that NASA couldn’t have designed better spaceships than the seeds of most plants.

Riding the Wind

            Silky milkweed seeds typically burst from their pods sometime in late September and into October. The long seedpods, pointy and warty on the outside, conceal a treasure chest of hundreds of seeds, each one attached to a tuft of silvery white hairs. The slightest breeze lifts them off on a flight that will last as long as the wind holds out, though the seed will often detach and drop from its silky glider after only a few hundred yards.

            Surprisingly, milkweeds produce only about four seedpods per plant–a very low number given that an average plant has eight clusters of flowers with seventy-five flowers per cluster. Botanists don’t know why they are so unsuccessful in producing seeds, but if every flower produced a seedpod, that would be 600 seedpods per plant multiplied by hundreds of seeds in a pod! 

Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park

            Mary and I hiked several trails in the Porkies last week. Over the years, one of our favorite trails has been the East Presque Isle River Trail, in large part because of the enormous white pine that one comes to quickly, and which had certainly lived for centuries before it snapped off two summers ago. We had measured the diameter at 49 inches (diameter at breast height) in previous years, but unfortunately, we had no way to measure its height. What’s intriguing about its demise is that it was hollow, and while the inside of the tree was charred, the outside was unscathed. If this was due to natural forces, the only theory we can come up with is that the tree was hit by lightning. However, it’s also possible that some yahoo(s) found a hole in the outer bark leading to the hollow core and thought it would be just great to stuff some flaming material through the hole and see what happened. 

            Who knows? I’m sticking with the lightning theory simply because it honors this grandmother tree that could well have been four centuries old. I’d like to think that we humans felt a deep wonder and reverence for this tree, and not an astonishing disrespect.  

            The estimated old-growth hemlock-hardwood forest left in the upper Midwest is only 72,000 acres – about 0.2 percent of what was here historically. Nearly half of that is in the Porkies, the only ecosystem-sized old-growth forest we have left. 

            A good portion of the Porkies was cut; of its current 60,000 acres, only 35,000 are classified as old-growth. Aldo Leopold, among many others, was instrumental in saving what was left during WW2 when it was about to be further cleared for the war effort. He wrote in his essay “The Last Stand”: “[The Porcupines] portray a chapter in national history which we should not be allowed to forget. When we abolish the last sample of the Great Uncut, we are, in a sense, burning books. I am convinced that most Americans of the new generation have no idea what a decent forest looks like. The only ways to tell them is to show them. To preserve a remnant of decent forest for public education is surely a proper function of government . . . I would like to see the remnant of uncut timber in and around the Porcupines (about 100,00 acres) acquired and preserved as an act of national contrition, as the visible reminder of an unsolved problem, and as an education exhibit . . . The mere existence of such a token-forest might hasten the day when the green robe again extends over the Lake States, and when the cutting and using of mature timber becomes an act of normal land-cropping, rather than an act of land-pillage.” 

Mushrooms!

bear's head tooth

tree ear

Rain and more rain has been the rule this summer and fall, and mushrooms continue to respond joyously. I’ve attached photos of four unusual looking ones: tree ear, bear’s head tooth, black trumpet, and crown-tipped coral.

crown-tipped coral

black trumpet

Sightings

            We have at least a dozen yellow-rumped warblers in our yard as I’m writing this (9/30), all taking bites of the crabapples and mountain ash berries that are prolific this year. Robins came in today as well, and are feasting on the mountain ash berries. I suspect the trees will be stripped in a few days, but we’ll see – it’s been a big year for mountain ashes. I also watched a red squirrel hanging upside down in one of our white spruce trees and nipping off spruce cones as fast as it could, creating a rain of cones to store in its winter pantry. 

Celestial Events

For planet viewing in October, look after dusk in the southwest for both Saturn and Jupiter. Venus will also appear in the southwest, but not until mid-month. Before dawn, look for Mars low in the southeast.

On 10/5, look for Saturn just above the first quarter moon. The peak Draconid meteor shower occurs in the predawn on 10/8. On 10/13, the full moon, variously known as the Hunter’s Moon, the Changing Season Moon, and the Falling Leaves Moon, will occur. And by 10/14, we’re down to 11 hours of daylight.

Thought for the Week

            “The cost of a solar panel has dropped 90 percent in the last decade. The cheapest, easiest way to produce electricity around the world now is with sun and wind . . . There’s no long-term future for the fossil-fuel industry . . . Fifty years from now we’re definitely going to run this world on sun and wind. The question is: Can we make the transition fast enough to avoid a broken world?” – Bill McKibben

Please share your outdoor sightings and thoughts: call 715-476-2828, e-mail at manitowish@centurytel.net, snail-mail at 4245N State Highway 47, Mercer, WI, or see my blog at www.manitowishriver.blogspot.com