History, Natural History & the Arts
What are round-ish, mostly orange and commonly found in October on front porches or near entryways?
Obviously the answer is Harmonia axyridis, a.k.a. the multicolored lady beetle or lady bug. This insect, although beneficial to gardens, is no treat when it gathers by the hundreds on your doors or exterior walls in autumn. And more than a few will find their way indoors. [Read more…] about It’s Lady Bug Season
Precocious, blanket-toting Linus from the Peanuts comic strip awaited the Great Pumpkin each Halloween night from 1950 to 1999. If anyone else had been stood-up that many times, they’d have thrown in the blanket for sure.
Perhaps Linus’ resolute faith that the mythical pumpkin would show up was because every year brings the world a greater pumpkin. [Read more…] about Great Pumpkins: A Ton Of Fun
“If I knew for a certainty that a man was coming to my house with the conscious design of doing me good, I should run for my life.” David Henry Thoreau’s statement, funny in a way, also brings to mind the grave harm done to cultures around the world by Western powers in the guise of “helping” them.
In a less horrific sense it applies to how we’ve “assisted” nature to disastrous ends. Cane toads in Australia, mongoose in Hawaii, Kudzu in the Southeast, and Asian harlequin ladybeetles that invade our homes each fall are a few examples of being too helpful. [Read more…] about Timber Stand Improvement: Helpful Enough, Or Too Helpful?
Even if you have a top-notch security system, you could still return from vacation to find that your prescription drugs, tobacco products, rice, dog food, or other items have vanished. And you’d be on your own to solve this crime because the police would tell you to bug off. [Read more…] about Drugstore Beetles & Other Pantry Pests
Conspiracy hypotheses, or theories as we like to call them, since “hypotheses” cannot be uttered without a lisp, seem to multiply unfettered these days, so I feel awkward birthing yet another.
But you may be intrigued to learn that the wide spectrum of color in the region’s fall foliage is largely the result of a Depression-era stimulus project ushered in by the Hoover Administration. [Read more…] about A Fall Tree Color Conspiracy
In 1981, former President Ronald Reagan famously pronounced “Trees cause more air pollution than automobiles do,” a statement which garnered endless ridicule.
Even though he also said “Facts are stupid things” during a 1988 interview, it turns out his claim about dirty trees was partly correct. [Read more…] about How Trees Cause – and Mostly Prevent – Pollution
As a tall person, I’m a bit size-conscious, ducking to get through doorways, wondering when I’ll find another decent shoe in a sixteen – stuff like that. One thing which came as a surprise is that I can’t operate most mid-size SUVs unless I were to either remove my left leg, the driver’s door, or the steering wheel, all of which seem like bad options. Yet there’s plenty of leg room in a little Nissan Micra. Size does matter in many cases, but not always in the obvious way. This is especially true when buying a tree. [Read more…] about When Buying A Tree, Size Surprises
I’m not one to shed a tear when authoritarian rulers die, but once they’re gone, picnics become a lot more dangerous. Toward the end of summer, just in time for Labor Day picnics and County Fairs, the original queen in every yellowjacket wasp colony dies.
It’s not the stuff of Hamlet or some far-reaching conspiracy, it’s just that having a few thousand babies in the course of one season is enough to tire any Queen Mum to death. [Read more…] about Bee Anarchy Is Bad for Picnics
Being first isn’t always a good thing. For example, trees that are first to have their leaves turn color are definitely losers. Premature autumn leaf color change is a reliable indicator of failing health, and the worse a tree’s condition, the sooner it begins to turn.
Although the display of colors that our hardwoods produce each autumn never fails to fill me with awe and appreciation, when it starts in late July or early August, it worries me. [Read more…] about Distressing Colors: Early Autumn Color Change
As the Dalai Lama once said, “If you think you’re too small to make a difference, try sleeping with a mosquito.”
Really all it takes is one or two of the little whiners in your tent to spoil a night’s sleep. I’m convinced their ear-buzzing is an adaptation to raise a victim’s blood pressure so they fill up faster. Makes you wish you could return the favor somehow. [Read more…] about Monster Mosquitoes: The Shaggy Legged Gallinipper