November 24, 2019: Are the Bears in Bed?

Several people have asked whether it's safe to put out bird feeders at this point due to the unusually cold weather we've had.  NH Fish and Game recommends not putting feeders up until December first, or "the onset of prolonged winter weather."  The definition of prolonged and winter weather is open to interpretation, but I lean towards it meaning lasting snow on the ground.  Bears do not go into hibernation because it's cold, but rather because their food supply is dwindling, and this year there are lot of acorns still available.  And even with snow on the ground bears can be on the prowl, and I've seen plenty of tracks in the snow.

These tracks are from last year on November 25 -  I have seen bear tracks as late as December 1st.

So use your best judgement regarding the feeders, and know that if you wait, the birds will be fine.

You don't want to see this at your bird feeder.

I used the term "hibernation", which though accepted by biologists, is not technically correct.  True hibernation is a state of such deep sleep that an animal cannot be woken, and as some people have been surprised to discovered, this is not the case of bears.

I recently heard an "Ask Sam" report on our black bears which provided some fascinating information.  For one, our bears will lose 25% of their body mass over the winter, burning some 4000 calories a day during hibernation.  They also have a remarkable ability to recycle their urine and their bones - if humans rested like that they would lose an incredible amount of bone density - except they would first die in just a few days from urea poisoning.

Scientists are studying these abilities to look for new ways to treat osteoporosis and kidney disease in humans.  You can read about the bear's unique ability to survive hibernation here:  Hibernating Bears Emerge with Hints about Human Ills, Elisabeth Rosenthal, April 21, 1992.  Oh, and don't forget, while female bears are fasting for months at a time, they are also gestating their young, which were impregnated way back in the spring and have been held at bay waiting for winter.  Multiple eggs may have been fertilized, but the number that are allowed to become implanted and develop into embryos depends on how much fat the mother was able to put on during the fall months.  Simply amazing stuff going on in that animal.

It has been over two weeks since I've seen the remaining loon parent and the juvenile (Davidson) that has been with her all summer;  this was my last sighting on November 5th:

Davidson and mom on November 5th.

I shouldn't do this because it's only speculation, but I'm going to say that Davidson and the parent left the lake together.  This is based on the fact that they were always together, and suddenly they were both gone.  Of course it's possible that the parent left Davidson, and in short succession Harley left as well, leaving Davidson alone on the lake - this just seems less likely.  Also, I've seen the remaining juvenile behaving very much like Harley has during the late summer.  So that's my best guess, and pending any additional data I'm going to record Davidson as having fledged on November 5th and we'll see about Harley.  I haven't seen him/her since November 17th but I'll wait another week to see what happens.  Marge Thorpe did see what was probably Harley practicing take-offs and landings on the southern end of the lake on November 18th, so he's getting ready.

Even if all the loons are gone at this point there are still plenty of birds on the lake.  We had the northeast conference of Mallards United spending a few days on the lake.

Meet and greet social hour.

The welcoming committee.

At one point I counted 63 ducks, and I'm sure I didn't get them all.

54 mallards in this picture,

and more coming in to join the party.

They would tuck right up against the edge of the ice that formed along the shore to search for food on the bottom.

"Bottoms Up" has a different connotation for ducks.

Back on August 19th I noted the acorn pip gall wasps that were attached to the many acorns landing on the dock as well as in the water.  This large collection of acorns is now on the bottom of the lake and appears to be a major draw for the ducks.

Acorns are highly nutritious and sought after by animals of all shapes and sizes, from mice to bears.

One study of 40 mallards performed in a bottomland hardwood forest in Texas [Ref:  Miller et.al via USDA Forest Service] found that over 89% of their diet was acorns, so they seem to take good advantage of this food source when it's available.

I'll close with evidence of one more bird active last week, one which also partakes of acorns, though only the land-based ones.

Tracks from a turkey trotting through the early snow.

The tracks of turkey are pretty easily identified based on their shape and size.  Hmmm, that makes me think of Thanksgiving.  I hope you all have a great holiday with family and friends!  Happy Thanksgiving!

November 17, 2019: The Foxes found the Apple Tree

There were more beautiful pre-winter scenes on display this week, courtesy of an early cold snap.

A frozen Beaver Pond in the Hamlin Conservation Area

Thankfully there were also some nice fall days to finish off the pre-season yard work before the real stuff arrives.  The lakes and the hills of Meredith provide abundant opportunities to soak in the beauty.

Perhaps all this early cold weather is preserving the apples that have fallen on the ground because the foxes and coyotes have found them still good enough to eat.

Fresh scat filled with apple left as a calling card in the middle of the trail.

Hundreds of apple trees were abandoned in the Lakes Region when the settlers vacated their farms to move west and many of them still produce fruit.   And then there are local farms that maintain either reclaimed or newly-planted orchards.  I expect the foxes know them all.

A few weeks ago the fox's diet was more protein-based than fruit-based as indicated by the amount of fur in this scat from October.

This October scat is loaded with hair.

But soon enough most plant material will be gone and the canines - as well as weasels, felines, and raptors - will all be living off of small animals.  Winter is a tough time to be a rodent.

Duck season peaks in the Lakes Region in November with many migrating birds stopping on our lakes to fuel up during their travels south.  There have been rafts of over a dozen mallards.

17 mallards ply the waters of Lake Wicwas.

They like to dabble along the shorelines, finding things to eat on the bottom.  Under the category of "you learn something every day" I discovered that mallards - and other ducks - eat acorns.

For a late evening snack, a couple of male mallards partake of acorns from an oak that hangs over the lake.

Diving ducks such as Hooded Mergansers tend to travel in smaller groups, often only just a pair.  Mergansers take much shorter dives than loons, usually less than 15 seconds, though they are just as adept at catching fish, as this female proved.

Mrs. Merganser comes up with a fish.

She had to work on it for quite a while before she was willing to swallow it.

Playing with her food before she swallows it whole.

I never realized just how much control a male hooded merganser has over its hood.

From a highly elongated hood.

All

the way

down

to a low, rounded hood. 

Stokes & Stokes don't have mergansers in their three-volume book of bird behavior, but I expect the male merganser uses this ability to communicate a range of signals to other birds.


Back on land I was a bit surprised to see a fresh deer rut in the snow this week, but I guess the deer are still in mating season.

A fresh rut in the thin snow.

Be aware that hunting season is in full swing now through December 8th, so be sure to wear bright clothing when in the woods.

We were also treated to the full harvest moon (or beaver moon in some circles) this week.

"Because I'm still in love with you
on this Harvest Moon"
(Neil Young)

It was just another moment in the ongoing art show that nature provides us, free of charge, just for the looking.

Journal Note:  I have started uploading to the nature journal photographs of the flora and fauna living around Lake Wicwas.  I started with mammals and will work my way through birds, amphibians, etc. over the coming weeks.  My goal is to have a record of the plants and animals I've observed around the lake.  You can find them in the tabs underneath the main photo on the home page.

November 10, 2019: Dragonflies in November

It's hard to believe dragonflies are still patrolling the skies in November.

The meadowhawk (Sympetrum vicinum) dragonfly is known to survive late into the fall.

I had seen several dragonflies out enjoying a warm sunny day this week, and then somehow this one managed to get into the house, and it posed for a portrait before I scooped it up and returned it to its proper domain.  This meadowhawk would have mated in late summer, so it has completed its life mission even if it didn't survive the change that was coming.

Wednesday was too nice to pass up one last quick fall hike between the yard chores.  It had been a while since I'd hiked Red Hill via Eagle Cliff, so for a short trip, that fit the bill. 

Squam Lake from Eagle Cliff.

The bare ledges on Mt. Whiteface are always a good identifying feature.

I saw only three people on the hike:  a couple at the fire tower, and Bob, a property steward doing his fall survey on the Eagle Cliff Trail.  (Thank you for your work Bob, it was good talking with you!) 

Then on Thursday the front approached; overnight the temperature dropped, and Friday, it hit.

Multiple squalls blew in on the northwest wind.

The squalls went all day and the temperature never rose above freezing, but on an afternoon walk I found I wasn't the only one out in the storm.  While I was standing near the shore, a flash of dark brown caught my eye, and there, five feet in front of me right at the water's edge was a young mink!

That little brown shape is a mink.

I had my phone in my hand and snapped one blurry picture before it saw me and ducked into a hole in the bank.  That was the nature highlight for the week!

Friday night the wind let up and the cold settled in, allowing the first ice of the season to form on Lake Wicwas.

Ice forms first in sheltered coves.

It then works its way out into the lake.

I love the ice formations when it freezes on a calm night in a protected area.

Jack Frost visited Sheep Island

There's no telling at this point if the ice will last as it all depends on the weather.  But as long as the lake is open we'll follow the loon story the best we can - until they depart.  I saw (what I'm calling) Davidson and mom on Tuesday, and I saw Harley on Saturday. 

Davidson and mom.

However, John Cooley, senior biologist for the Loon Preservation Committee, indicated that it really could be either chick with the parent.

One would expect the younger bird (Davidson), usually smaller and weaker, to need more help and thus stay close to a parent, but sometimes if the weaker bird is picked on by its bigger sibling and excluded from the family, it will venture out on its own.  And the juvenile we're calling Harley (the independent one) did start separating from the family quite early in the summer.  Harley is a very proficient fisher; I saw it bring up a huge fish which Harley worked on for a long time before it went down the hatch.  So we really don't know who's who, but we'll keep watching to see if we can tell when each leaves the lake, and if any of them leave together. 

Who knows, maybe Friday's weather and ice forming will have them saying "time to move on!"

Not "a fit night out for man nor beast"  (Yukon Cornelius)

Then again, now that we've gone back to beautiful fall weather, maybe they'll stick around a while longer.

Meredith Center Free Will First Baptist Church on Saturday

November 3, 2019: November, and Still no Hard Frost

Halloween came and went - it was a warm, 65 degree day, though a bit damp.  Soon after, a cold front came through bringing below freezing weather, but still not enough for a hard, killing frost.  Even the cold, open field barely had a touch of frost, though up north in the mountains it was cold enough for at least one ski area to fire up the snow guns.

Blowing snow at Sunday River with Orion shining in the sky.  Photo by Sunday River Resort.

Even though daisies were still blooming this morning, the first real taste of winter isn't far off.

Daisies, mums, and a few marigolds are still hanging on.

The cold front's 40 mph winds finished ripping the leaves off the trees, and it did a good job of moving them from any clear area and piling them up against the nearest wind-stop.  But before it did it's job the atmosphere was so calm that leaves had been dropping straight down, leaving an elegant red carpet for all who trod the halls of the forest.

Before the wind stripped everything bare, the blueberry and huckleberry bushes had painted the shorelines with brilliant red as well.

Royal red - the color of kings for this special Sunday.

The sun is setting early now.

At the other end of the color spectrum I found these dark blue berries in large clumps on a dogwood tree.

I think this is Silky Dogwood (Cornus amomum).

At least I think that's what this is.  At first I thought it was a viburnum, but the leaves and berries convinced me it's the dogwood.

There is a viburnum that had a very good crop of berries this year, and this one combines both ends of the color spectrum.

Mapleleaf Viburnum (Viburnum acerifolium)

The dark purple berries and deep red leaves of the mapleleaf viburnum contrast nicely in the fall sun.

On the animal side of the ledger, I saw quite a few ducks come by Lake Wicwas this week, but always on those days when it was "good weather for ducks" and in the morning when there was never enough light to take a decent picture.

A raft of woodies on a colorless morning.

I've seen mallards, buffleheads, and wood ducks so far, as well as our loons, at least one chick and one parent, always side by side.

Davidson and mom?

Davidson in a rare moment almost 100 yards away from mom, but looking for her.

There she is.  Mom is losing her summer colors, making it difficult to tell them apart from a distance.

There have been enough questions asking whether this close relationship is atypical that I sent the question on to the Loon Preservation Committee.  John Cooley responded that it is somewhat unusual this late in the year, so we'll keep an eye on things and provide an update as we approach ice-in.

With that thought...  it's the time of year when I wonder if every kayak trip will be my last for the season.

I hope everyone had a good, scary, haunted Halloween!

A haunted tree - complete with beard - alongside Tucker Mountain Road in Chemung.