Grodor/Froggies

It's fun to walk through the yard now, with all this rain, the frogs are hopping everywhere. There was a big Northern Leopard Frog that I tried to chase down, just to take its photo for Haylie - she loves frogs. But as I chased it through the yard, and down the hill, it beat me to the lake, and disappeared into the rocks. The neighbor asked what I was doing. All of this year's tadpoles are over by the little settling pond on the other side of the road, now little frogs. I'll have to try to photograph them tomorrow maybe.

But here's a photo of a leopard frog from the internet. (When my niece Jessie was little, she thought we were calling them Leprechauns. It was so cute.)

A Rescue Mission

When Haylie was here we found a hummingbird in the grass below our little pine tree. We all looked and looked for a nest, but couldn't see any in the boughs. It must have fallen out of the nest/tree? When we found it, the poor thing could barely move. I tipped some nectar out of my neighbor's hummingbird feeder into a cup, got a straw, put some nectar in it, with my finger over the other end of the straw to keep it there. The hummingbird ate and ate, it was so interesting to see its little tongue and beak at work, just like in a flower. It perked right up, and seemed revived. We put it back in the pine tree, hoping the mother could take over, or Mother Nature. I hope Mother Nature was at her gentle best that day.

Turtle Nests and Egg Robbers

At Itasca, on the walk from the parking lot/interpretive center to the headwaters, we saw two turtle nests (snapper or painted?) right next to the path that had been robbed by??? Raccoon? Skunk? Something else?

Leaves of Three, Leave Them Be!

We went to Itasca State Park on Monday, one of our favorite Minnesota places. The Minnesota state flower, Showy Lady Slipper were in bloom - I have NEVER seen one before, and there at the bottom of the steps down to the lake from Douglas Lodge, was a nice clump of them growing by the dock area. It also must be a good year for poison ivy. It was everywhere! We had to warn Odd, Helma and Roy about the dangers of it! It looks pretty benign, doesn't it? We walked across the headwaters of the Mississippi River. Here's Roy with the young Mississippi River in the background.

I'm running a chipmunk sanctuary . . .

My neighbors on each side of me have an unnatural fear of the little rodents and kill them at every opportunity, but I like chipmunks. It's really hard to keep my lip zipped.

Today I was sweeping my front step, and when I moved the decorative birdhouse Tracy gave me, I noticed that it was gnawed around the hole, leaves rustled inside, and a little chirp came from inside the hole. I peeked in and there was a little chipmunk living in there. I'll have to move it into the shade a bit more.

Waterskiing - I'm not as good as I once was, but I'm as good once . . .

I waterskied last week and left my skis down by the basement door. I've had them since 1972 or so, and we're in about the same condition! Both worn out and needing a coat of paint! But they were apparently the perfect thing for the dragonfly nymphs to cling to as they emerged from their old exoskeletons. It's creepy that they must crawl out of the lake and across the grass to the patio.

Painted Turtle Baby - A Tittel Tale with a Turtle Tail

Back in the olden days . . .

When we didn't know some fact, we went to the Encyclopædia Brittanica set which Lloyd had purchased, or we just argued about it, and finally said, "Forget it! I don't need to know." (after arguing for a while)

But now, to find out what a baby turtle is called, the internet is the place to look. Maybe! So far I've found that a baby turtle is a Tittel, a Hatchling, or a Guppy. Forget it, I don't need to know.

What is a herd of turtles called? A bale. Here's the website for any animal you would like:

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/animals/Animalbabies.shtml

Here's a tittel I found yesterday, walking across the road as I was walking down the road by the lake. Maybe it's from last year's hatch?

Mayflies and Hungry Fish

Really, Andrea, it's the sign of a healthy lake. They don't bite, eat, sting, nothing. Just hang out. Like teenagers around Legion Park on summer nights.

While only one fish was eating bread, the others were already on the appetizers - mayflies. The mayflies that don't make it up to the house to stick there and annoy us, actually flutter around on the top of the lake, and the fish are having a feast. Here is a video showing the underwater progress of a hungry fish eating mayflies.

Sunfish Training Has Begun

Every year we feed bread or buns to the sunfish at the end of the dock. Way more fun than catching them. Or cleaning them. It's why there are extra hot dog buns that don't quite match up to the number of hot dogs in a package. (Hot dogs come in packages of 10, and buns come 8 to a bag. Why is that? So we buy extra buns.)
Tonight I only had one customer, and lots of skeptics waiting nearby, plus several bass, who never eat the bread, but always come to see what the excitement is about. As you can see, there is some raking to do in the swimming area - maybe tomorrow when it's supposed to be 90 F and humid. It would be good to stand in the lake in the afternoon.

Mayflies

It's Mayfly season again. We've called it Old Country Buffet for the blackbirds. It's so funny to see the birds fly by with a beak stuffed full of Mayflies. Mayflies have an exciting, but short, adult life. Most of their lives are spent on the lake bottom as nymphs. Then for one short day, they emerge from the lake, become adults, mate, drop eggs, and die. Right now we can't walk through the yard without them flying up and sticking to us. I had one riding around on my back today, and Chuck told me I was moving pretty slow if I couldn't get away from a Mayfly.

A poem to drive Andrea crazy . . . although I've slightly misquoted it all these years, thanks to Google, I can get it right. They were at the end of the dock when we got to Lake Ida this evening. They work together to "herd" fish, and then scoop them up. When I was a kid here in Alex, I had NEVER seen one. Maybe DDT did the same to their eggs as to the bald eagle's eggs? Made the shell brittle? Now they are very common, and the fisherman aren't too happy about them.

A wonderful bird is a pelican,
His bill will hold more than his belican.
He can take in his beak
Food enough for a week;
But I'm damned if I see how the helican.

"The Pelican" (1910) by Dixon Lanire Merrith

Sorry Andrea, couldn't resist.

The Creek from Lake Ida to Lake Charley

The creek as it leaves Lake Ida is high this year, we had a lot of snow melt from the late winter snow. Last summer it was so dry, it didn't even flow over the dam.
The spring seems at least two weeks behind Minneapolis here in Alexandria.

Springtime nesting season at Lake Ida

The pond behind Bedman's is always a good place for Canada geese. Turn up the volume. In this video a pair of geese land in the pond, only to be chased by another pair. They are staking out their nesting sites. You can also hear the red-wing blackbirds in the cattails. "Pick me! Pick me!" It's my favorite sound of spring. The dock is in, we're gearing up for summer! We'll let the lake warm up before we get the kayaks wet for the first time.

Beaver Pond

We went for our daily walk. We have two routes, one takes us on the south end of the lake, down to the Lake Charley creek, which was pouring over the dam and quite high. There have been carp, suckers and walleyes in the creek.

The other route is to the north, to the end of Bedman Drive and then through the path to Oakridge Road. It passes a beaver pond and today it was a great place to stop and look and listen. The neighborhood wild turkeys were busy talking to each other. The beavers have really been thriving in the wetlands that run along the west side of this part of Lake Ida, and have cut down whatever is a soft wood, birch, poplar, willows. Oaks they don't seem to touch, so that explains why we have all these wonderful oak trees in the neighborhood and not too much else. Many decades of beavers choosing their food. There were still fresh signs of trees that had been cut down during the winter - newly gnawed wood, and the sap rising in the stumps today. The beaver lodge is on the left of the photo.

Black Ice and Morning Birdsong

I always marvel at how quiet it is here, how many birds I can hear at once. Out raking yesterday we heard the mourning doves, a killdeer, geese, and lots of redwing blackbirds. "Pick me! Pick me!"

I found these great websites to use with my class, that with just a click, pick the birdsong you want to hear.

http://www.learnbirdsongs.com/

http://www.enature.com/birding/audio.asp

The bigger lakes are still frozen, and in town on Lake Winona, which is open, the pelicans and loons are gathered together. But if you look at this Lake Ida ice, by next weekend we'll be looking at BLUE WATER! FINALLY! And those birds that eat fish can get down to business.

Spring, Raptors and other signs of life

The osprey pair are back on their nest this week, which at work is a sure sign of spring.
We went out to look at them, and just as we did, a bald eagle with a fish in its talons landed on the top of the next telephone pole. A nature center presentation on raptors at school added to the info. Add to that a good link from our local energy company where we can watch the peregrine falcon nest by Elk River, and raptors are the bird of the week!
Here's the link, right to the female is sitting on four eggs. We saw them when she was turning them, (or laying one, we weren't sure) and briefly when she left the nest.
http://www.greatriverenergy.com/environment/birdcam.html

They are the fastest animal, going 200 mph when diving from above to hunt other birds. (Pigeon being a favorite in cities.)

Lake Ida fishermen and an early morning fox

We got up at sunrise, and there were some die-hard ice fisherman out on south Lake Ida. The nights have been below freezing, but warmer in the daytime. I went out on the deck to take this picture, and the only noise I could hear was a robin singing, "Yes, it's spring!" and a Canada goose honking somewhere in the distance.
Then I got a whiff of skunky smell, which is also a sign of spring, when they come out of hibernation with warmer weather. And immediately get hit by a car. What a bummer. But this time it wasn't a skunk. Trotting along the near edge of the farm field across the road was a scruffy, little red fox, hunting for something to eat. They also have a skunky, musky smell. Chipmunks were already out, looking for food today.