Chickens in my Bluebird Box

My mother has a love / hate affair with the American Robin. On the one hand she admires the robin as a noble bird that has enough self pride to not visit feeders. On the other hand, mom sees robins as dirty birds that won't stop building nests in her hanging pots and on top of her exterior lights. I feel great empathy for the poor robin that selects my mother's place as she will stop at nothing to erect elaborate contraptions to deter their nest building. Those however who insist on building, will have their nests removed by whatever means she can muster.  And so the battle goes on all breeding season long.

I don't share my mother's diligence in these sorts of things; and so I found myself on the last day of March instead of the first, examining and cleaning out my bluebird boxes. I'm quite fond of bluebirds as they have a remarkable underdog comeback story and they eat a lot of insects. It seems peculiar to me that both the American Robin and the Eastern Bluebird are members of the Thrush family, even though robins nest in open nests and bluebirds nest in a nest cavity.  The distinction between nesting sites is in part why bluebird numbers dropped to the point of needing help. With the loss of rotten trees and open lands to development, along with the demise of wooden fence posts, bluebirds have fewer cavities in which to nest. Being timid birds, bluebirds also lost out to competition from other cavity nesting birds.

For my first brave attempt at cleaning the boxes, I reached for the latch only to be greeted with a quick peck through the hole and then frantic wings whizzing past my eyeballs. That was enough for that day - round one went to the House Sparrow. I waited several more days before I made up my mind to evict the invasive species in favor of a native. This time however,  I went in knowing what I was up against and I was wearing gloves. Still, not being as determined as my mother, I decided that I would abandon the project if I found eggs in the nest. I eased the latch open and  managed to open the front of the box before the sparrow left her nest. Eyeballs in tact I gently searched the nest for eggs among chicken feathers.

 I'm not exactly sure whose chickens those sparrows snatched bald to build their nest, all I know is that those darn sparrows must be mighty feisty!  Given the evidence, I fully expect this to be an all spring into the summer, ten round competition. Perhaps next year I will put up my no vacancy sign before the House Sparrows move in or else risk becoming my mother.

Bluebird boxes should be pole mounted, facing an open area, but not towards prevailing winds

Bluebirds use grasses and pine needles to make their nests

House Sparrows used chicken feathers to build their nest

Vernon Heart Hunt

Hi Nature Finds readers, would you like to have a little fun?  Send me pictures of hearts that you find while roaming the great Vernon outdoors and I'll post them here. Please make sure that you social distance while hunting.  If you have a story to tell or a caption for your heart finds, please include that too. Have fun and let me know what you are seeing out there! -Norma Manning

Yellow Birch Heart in the Village

Reconnecting From a Distance

With times being what they are, there seems to be more time to reconnect. I recently heard a celebrity promote that we aren't social distancing from each other so much as we are physically distancing ourselves.

So with no place in particular to go on a Saturday afternoon, Wayne and I extended  our walk to a farm field trail leading off of Lily pond's access road.  We hadn't intended to take this trail but there were two trucks in the parking area at the pond and lately three or four persons makes a crowd.

The trail follows the edge of the field along Lily pond's north east bank. About half way up the straightaway is where I have been trying to take the same photograph for each season and so we paused for a moment there. I was hoping to catch the beaver or otters out and about, but no such luck. We could see that the beaver lodge had lengths of freshly stripped, glistening white trees on top. We concluded it was reasonable that the beaver is still around though we didn't see any recently felled trees at this overlook.

We picked up some hoofprints and stepped around copious amounts of equine manure while walking to the end of the straightaway. There along the backside of the field, we found what must have been a very tasty tree for it had freshly chiseled teeth marks on new growth emanating from a previously felled tree's stump. Having decided to continue following the horse trail we walked around the next corner of the field and headed in the opposite direction of the pond in the direction of Pond road.

For the first time following this trail, we decided to not backtrack to the pond but instead turned left across to what we thought would be the field on Lily Pond road, however the horses had lead us to a VAST trail instead. The hoofprints lead down a charming wooded path back towards the pond. It was at the end of this path that we met Liam and his dad fishing. Daryl Clark came out to meet us when we did finally reach Lily pond road and we learned that his family once had a hundred head of dairy cattle on his farm. Before we could make it to Pond road the Galdamez family from our neighborhood greeted us from their bikes. I remarked to Wayne how nice it was to see so many people outdoors.

Maybe what we are actually doing these days isn't distancing at all. Perhaps what we are really doing is reconnecting. -Norma Manning

Wayne, Luna and Ginny 

A tasty tree if you are a beaver

Liam and his dad

Hardscape, Hard to Escape

Spending time within parameters set by people of the past became a way of life after I began blogging about Vernon. While Wayne and I set out to explore the natural beauty and curiosities within Vernon's geopolitical borders; this recent turn of events has limitations imposed by official government decree. Something we were doing by choice suddenly has a very different feeling now that it is imposed by people we don't really know.

What is a wildlife corridor? "A strip of natural habitat connecting populations of wildlife otherwise separated by cultivated lands, roads etc..." -Oxford Dictionaries

I once read a meme that said something like this: What if wildlife wasn't crossing over our roads, but our roads were crossing through their homes?

Yesterday my friend shared that MA Governor Charlie Baker urged travelers to not cross MA borders.  Huckle Hill is the next road up from mine and at the top of Huckle Hill is the VT - MA border. Right at that line you will find the most beautiful beaver pond located in an official MA wildlife management area. So by governor's decree and by my own self imposed limits for the purposes of this blog, that pond was forbidden fruit. How appropriate that a wildlife management area stops at the state border; but the actual habitat does not. How thought provoking that a road runs through it.

It is out of love and a sense of responsibility to others that our governors have ordered us to not cross borders or even our neighbors thresholds. Likewise it is by love and a sense of responsibility that we ensure wildlife corridors are preserved or reestablished. - Norma Manning

Just over the border

Coexisting 

Dedicated to my friend Eileen who travels across the boarder every weekday

The state line looking down Huckle hill into Vernon

From the Tree line by Remi

A Pileated woodpecker has been hard at work- by Remi

by Remi 

Otter Slide by Bob Spencer

When walking my dog Thursday morning I saw this otter slide. There was another one parallel to this one. We have been seeing them on Lily pond and Jenny saw some at Hatcher pond.

Otter tracks and slide by Bob Spencer

Bird Observations and Pictures by Paul Miller

For the last few years I have set up a blind for picturing birds behind our house.  It has been used to photograph quite a variety of species and also variations within such.  It is interesting as well to notice the variations from year to year and the changes over my lifetime. For example, last year birds were numerous with several I had not expected to see at a bird feeder.  This year very few birds were here.

When I was young, Starlings were just beginning to be evident.  My grandmother called them "Spatsies" and welcomed them. Today they are a serious nuisance.

Until recently Red-belied Woodpeckers had not been seen anywhere in the Northeast.  Today they are one of our more common woodpeckers.

Several years ago I started building Bluebird houses getting positive results.  Last year I think there were possibly seven or eight families on the Miller Farm.  When I was young, there was occasionally a pair and then for years there were none.  Thanks to citizen efforts to build houses, Bluebird populations have grown. Since they are relatively friendly,  I am able to picture them at my convenience for part of the year.

As a youth I don't remember having Mockingbirds at the farm.  However now their entertaining chatter is common.  I do have to chase them out of my blueberries, but that is a small expense for the joy that they bring.

Feeding birds during the winter has become a great hobby for many as well as a help for hungry birds.
 -Paul Miller and his family are well recognized for their interest and participation in conservation in Vernon, VT.

Male Bluebird by Paul Miller

Mockingbird at nest by Paul Miller

Starling by Paul Miller

Male Red-bellied woodpecker by Paul Miller

Dark Eyed Junco

One of my favorite birds to watch during the long winter months here in Vernon is a peppy medium sized sparrow, the Dark Eyed Junco. There are many variations of this bird with the two main being the slate colored which I often see below my suet and millet feeders, and the brown hooded which is also called the Oregon Brown Hooded due to its range being Western North America.

I more often than not see juncos hopping and pecking around in groups on the ground looking for seeds during non breeding seasons. When nesting time arises they seem to vanish from my yard.  I assume that they move into forested areas like the Town Forest with its abundance of Eastern Hemlock or perhaps Satan's Kingdom which is spruce and pine mixed hardwood forest.

So frequently I see Juncos in the winter, that I used to tell my young children that they were Snow Buntings. My daughter Helen who is now a bird biologist quickly corrected me when she began college at UMaine. Trust me when I say that it has been a steep learning curve ever since she realized that mom is often making stuff up.

One bird I still refuse to concede on its name however, is the Clown Sparrow. I won't tell you the funny little birds actual name though; because sometimes a mom should retain the right to preserve those sorts of memories; even when their children know better. -Norma Manning

This Slate Dark Eyed Junco seems out of place perched in my Lilac bush

Bring Your Story to the Woods

In my mind the meaning of a poem is only in part what the author set out to say.  The poem's meaning is in its entirety, only revealed through the reader's personal experiences. Take this picture of a tree Wayne and I came across while hiking in Roaring Brook wildlife management area. I stopped the mission in its tracks to evaluate exactly what I was seeing. Wayne on the other hand? Well, let's just say that Wayne is a very patient person with these things.

I first noted the big piece of flat rock to the left of the tree jutting up out of the ground and demanding my closer inspection. "It looks like an old gravestone don't you think?" I observed and then moved in closer to take the picture. I suppose that this was my first response to the scene because I love wandering around in old cemeteries reading epitaphs, admiring craftsmanship and wondering about life stories. Without words carved into them, the flat rock seemed fixed, dark and cold but still something about it suggested that it had a story to tell about the past.

On second glance, I encountered something less peaceful than the first. I witnessed the signs of a struggle with many rocks displaced and forced aside by the Hemlock tree that was growing tall in spite of their weighted complaints. No, this was not a place of final rest; but rather a testament to active, persistent growth over time. "Move aside!" the tree seemed to be saying, "I have a part to tell in this story and it's not over yet."

 Remnants of the Hemlock's trials persist at the tree's base; the rock's objections to the tree's presence made clear.  The root that pushed under and upheaved the rock that first caught my attention now terminates above the ground and I am sure that it will someday give way to the rock. This is not however a picture of a scarred, gnarled and stunted tree, this is a story of endurance and just one of many of your stories waiting for you in the woods. -Norma Manning

This Eastern Hemlock pushed rock aside as it grew, but some roots changed their direction.

The Beautiful Ordinary Pigeon

Wayne and I took a break from chasing waterfalls this weekend and I really can't say why. Perhaps it was the muddy trails, Ginny's bad fur day or just that with the world seemingly waiting for impending illness we just needed a break from the mission.

I feel like some days, even if you love the adventure of getting out into the unknown, plodding along on old stomping grounds provides a measure of much needed comfort. It's that place at the bend in the circle where the frogs are courting so loudly that you can't even hear what your neighbor is yelling to you. It's the tall dead tree across the cornfield but in front of the pond where the red tailed hawk scouts for food.  We once saw a fox duck into a culvert and now every time we pass that spot, Luna insists on sticking her nose in so deep that I have to tug and tug to get her out. How many geese do you count? Is there water in the brook? Do you want to go past the place with the Catalpa or maybe all the Hickories? Watch out for Poison Ivy. In all of Vernon that oak along Lily pond access road is my favorite, it's the one standing alone and draped with thick vines. Don't even get me started on rocks, I never saw one that I didn't dream about bringing home!

Late last summer I saw my first Scarlet Tanager and spent a considerable amount of time admiring him. Though I tried and tried I couldn't get a good picture of the coy bird; so like a fisherman's tale of the one that got away, you'll have to take my word on that. Yesterday while walking along a farmer's field my heart skipped a beat when my eye caught plump birds on graceful wing swoop down into the field. Once landed I couldn't pick them out from the rows of black dirt; but I readied my camera and let the dogs flush them. I captured the beautiful ordinary pigeon. -Norma Manning

The pigeon is native to North Africa, the Middle East and Europe

Treasure in Vernon"s Hills

I'm not saying where; but we found this while hiking today #treasure 

Rodents; Vermin or Amazing?

I hope it isn't true that Alexa keeps track of where I am and everything I ask her. If she does, as my in laws believe, than I wonder under what list she files questions like, "Alexa, how many kinds of rodents are in VT?  Perhaps she files them under Norma's odd character traits.

"I don't know that;  I know of 2,368 species and  1,759 subspecies;  There are more than 2000 species of mammals in the world today making them one of the most diverse animal groups" were some of her responses. Let's just be thankful that Alexa doesn't record some of my feedback to her answers.  Alexa you are my best friend, "Thank you, that makes me smile from speaker to speaker." (just in case)

It's strange to think of all of the members of the rodent family here in Vernon as they range from adorable, to peculiar to yuck. On the one end of the spectrum we have the beloved Eastern Chipmunk with its racing stripes, black marble shaped eyes and full cheeks, then we have the North American Porcupine with it's loping gait, poor eyesight and built in quill defense system, finally in my estimation and on the yuck side, we have the mollusk eating, fleshy nosed, oversized footed Star Nosed Mole.

I have previously posted pictures of the handiwork by Vernon's resident engineer and largest rodent, the North American Beaver.  Yesterday while out walking near Plain road, I came upon our second largest rodent grazing in an open  field like a Holstein. Seeing that American Porcupine in an open field caused me to question; except for the fact that they are vittles, what do these critters share that binds them together into an order?  As it turns out, the Tooth Fairy is going to love this answer! They all have incisors that never stop growing. Rodent comes from the Latin word Rodere which means "to gnaw." So whether or not they live most of their lives in water, forest, field, earth, in stone walls or between basement walls, these small mammals must wear down their front teeth. -Norma Manning

A porcupine has been dining on this tree near the Vernon Hatchery 

Like the beaver, porcupines strip the bark from trees to eat the sweet inner bark

A tree this damaged probably won't survive

Porcupines are nocturnal herbivores but this one was grazing in the afternoon near Plain road

Porcupines weigh around 20 pounds are 2 to 3 feet long and have 30,000 plus quills

American Porcupine predators include bobcat, cougar and fisher. This one wasn't worried about me. 

The Bobber Snatcher

Considered by some to be a nuisance tree, the Bobber Snatcher is commonly found along the edges of favored fishing spots in Vernon. This native to Vermont species is easily identified by the red and white fishing bobbers that adorn it's low hanging branches year round.  Upon closer examination however, you will see that the bobbers aren't actually produced by the tree, but strung there by fishing line. The Bobber Snatcher tree relies on fishing line and sinkers to snare and permanently affix it's prized bobbers. -Norma Manning

One of the most colorfully adorned trees found in Vernon, this Bobber Snatcher is at Vernon Hatchery.

First Grade Science

After a long winter and with the traditional pea planting day being St. Patrick's Day, Kim Kunkle's first grade class recently toured the garden at Vernon Elementary school to conduct a science experiment .  Students who harvested and tasted from the garden at the beginning of the school year planted a row of peas in the ground and planted a tray of peas to be started in the classroom. Unfortunately with school being closed until sometime in April, and peas taking three to seven days to emerge, students will not be able to witness our classroom sprouts coming up.

While our indoor peas may not be observed, I did find on a walk last weekend at Black Gum Swamps, that  several acorns I picked up from the trail had roots emerging. This is also a great time to explore in our own backyards tree buds, sprouts, earthworms in the compost, signs of tunnels left by critters who lived beneath the snow all winter and even rabbit,  porcupine and other animal scat (poop).

A fun family activity is to create a nature and or garden journal with our school aged citizen scientists. Students can date, draw and note their observations every day throughout the growing season.  - Norma Manning; Photographs by Kim Kunkle

Each of Kim Kunkle's first graders planted peas in a tray and in our school garden 

Students exploring what became of last year's garden at VES. Their row of peas are on the left. 

Old Barrel

We found a couple of these old barrels along Roaring Brook

Another Day, Another Trail

It seems that Wayne has waterfall hunting in his blood and so we set out on another adventure looking for what one Vernon resident called, "the high falls."  This time we entered the area via the Red trail in Black Gum Swamps because Wayne had noted on his map that a dotted line extended from that trail.

So after promising Ginny last weekend that I wouldn't take her back again, I put on her harness and we hiked into Roaring Brook wildlife management area.  For my part, this time I was a bit better prepared for what was ahead. - Norma Manning

Preparation is key

Plenty of mud on the logging road that connects to the Red trail

Ginny demonstrating that a hiker should always stay center on the trail even in wet conditions

Can you spot the trail marker in front of the pine?

Wayne ensuring his gear stays dry when crossing Roaring Brook.

We didn't find the high falls this trip but there will be another day.

I wish that all trails were this clearly marked! 

Serenity

A tranquil stand of trees in March at Roaring Brook - Norma Manning

Don't Go Chasing Waterfalls

It always takes me by surprise when one of my four adult children cites a song from back in the day. "Don't go chasing waterfalls," was our daughter's response to my text of  "Going in search of Roaring Brook wildlife management area's waterfalls. Will enter by way of the town forest on Huckle hill. If I don't text by say 3:00 reach out." Of course Kayden lives in San Diego which is three hours behind us, but as empty nesters it's still important to let someone know that you are going in.

Common sense doesn't always rule the day when your neighbor throws down a challenge like, "Have you been to the falls in Roaring Brook yet?" I could barley contain my coonhound's excitement when she sniffed the impending adventure.  I gave Wayne an hours notice to prepare. Wayne is a preparer and I'm a regreter in our adventuring partnership. We once hiked a full day on the rim of the Grand Canyon without water bottles because I insisted that we were just going to take a peek from the edge of the parking lot.  With some couple adventures only one partner is able to laugh about it years later.

Having hiked into the area before, I was of course confident that all of the excitement would be at the destination and not in the destination. The first sign of a challenge came with the discovery that while some of the trail was pond like and muddy as expected, other parts were smooth ice. "Navigating trails of ice with dogs on the end of long leads who insist on running in and out of scrub is more exciting and risky than playing Candy Crush Friends in the recliner on a Sunday afternoon" I kept telling myself rising to my feet over and over again. But then that was before the trail disappeared altogether.

Everybody likes to think that they can navigate themselves out of a situation and I do trust Wayne's instincts for the most part, and he was the one after all who thought to print a map .  Even so, I began to hang back a few paces to lay down big sticks in the form of arrows just in case. If you happen to come across them in your travels, go the other way it has to be much easier.

In the interest of not revealing all of the wonderful secrets in store for you on your own adventure into Roaring Brook I will stop here with three advisories: be wary of frozen earth covered with leaf litter on slopes, if you find the swamp at the top of the hill go to the left and finally, by all means go on chasing waterfalls! - Norma Manning

For the safety of wildlife we always keep our dogs on lead while hiking

I almost slid into the water taking this picture

Be prepared to cross over the brook several times

Sometimes we wish there was a sign letting us know we found the spot

We hope to see you on the trail sometime

Deer track in spring snow at Roaring Brook Wildlife Refuge in Vernon, VT - Norma Manning

Cattail Dinner

You may already know that cattails are an important food source for many birds and mammals; but did you know that they can be eaten by us humans as well?  Cattail pollen, flowers, roots and young shoots are all edible. Pollen and roots can be added to and made into flour. A young flower can be eaten like corn on the cob or even pickled. Young shoots can be stir fried or sautéed like asparagus.

Cattails should definitely be on our adventurous eating bucket list; but it's very important to only eat plants from non polluted areas and to make sure that you aren't harvesting from a protected area.

The wetlands adjacent to Lily pond used to have Cattails, but I haven't seen any there since the day I witnessed a truck leaving the pond access road with its bed overflowing with them. Lily pond and the wetlands around it are Class 2 wetlands. A Class 2 designation means that they are significant wetlands with a protected buffer zone of fifty feet.

Since cutting and removing vegetation from a Class 2 wetland  is prohibited, we are just going to have find our cattail dinner elsewhere. - Norma Manning

Cattails propagate by both seed and rhizomes

Cattails are a sure sign of wetlands at this Pond road location