The couple does not allow their cat, Sasha, to prowl in the yard. From her enclosure, Sasha is safely entertained watching birds forage, bathe, and enjoy the yard. According to the Audubon Society, cats kill 1.3 to 4 billion birds each year.
A plant root with soil particles attached as seen under the microscope. Plants pump out carbon-based foods through their roots to attract soil microbes such as a diverse range of bacteria and symbiotic fungi. These microbes exude sticky “glues” that help hold soil mineral and organic matter particles together. Living plant roots are critical for […]
The two brown strands, as seen under the mircoscope, are beneficial fungal hyphae from health forest soil. They are small parts of the web-like network through which fungi eat, grow, and build relationships with other and plants.
A migrating yellow-rumped warbler taking a bath in “Overlook Falls,” a rambling, flowing water feature installed in the back yard for birds and other wildlife. Birds need water for more than drinking. Birds bathe to keep cool, clean feathers, and remove parasites. A clean-water source is an often-overlooked “must have” for wildlife in urban and […]
The bird-friendly glass used for large windows has an imprinted web-like pattern of ultraviolet pigment. Birds see it easily, but to humans it’s visible only at a limited reflection angle from outside the window; A close up of the web pattern
While pictured here resting in a small tree, the dark-eyed junco spends most of its time foraging on the ground. This bird is found throughout the United States from Alaska to Mexico, California to New York, as well as our back yards in Minnesota. (photo credit: Travis Bono)
May 3, 2018leslieCommunity, Gardening, Insects, Pollinators About 15 years ago, MaryJo and Charlie Skemp started noticing unusual activity in a hosta planting that runs along the back side of their home. Beginning each spring, the garden would become an energy-filled flurry of what appeared to be bees, or perhaps wasps or hornets, hurriedly flying in […]
A soft landings planting of regionally native vegetation under regionally native host trees offers insects safe spaces to overwinter, complete lifecycles, and reproduce, and to find shelter and sustenance.
November 18, 2024leslieFlower-Visiting Flies and Bugs Much of the attention given to insect pollinators focuses on bees and butterflies with a passing interest given to moths and perhaps wasps. Flies and beetles are sometimes depicted when a photo to promote bee conservation is mistakenly a syrphid, bee fly or, on the rare occasion, a flower […]
February 15, 2017kariFeatured Outlaw, Invasive Species Common burdock is a mean one, folks! It loves to shove other plants out of its way and take over. At this very moment, the seed-laden cockleburs of this plant are lying in wait to catch a tangled ride on your dog’s fur. This wily weed is a stubborn, […]
November 29, 2022leslieCommunity, Food Garden Local food production is one of the key components of a climate crisis solution. The spread of the urban agriculture phenomenon across the U.S. is encouraging in this regard.Read More September 26, 2022leslieBees, Biodiversity, Birds, Butterflies, Gardening, Insects, Lawns, Native Plants, Pollinators, Soil How you can help wild animals come […]
Butterflies are likely the most beloved and recognizable group of insects because of their striking wing coloring and patterning. Butterflies are a subset of moths in the order Lepidoptera. Because our North American butterflies are active during the day, and no species is a pest to the average person, they get more respect than their […]
July 1, 2020leslieBirds, Gardening, Pesticides The ubiquitous American goldfinch can be found just about anywhere, at least sometime during the year, throughout the U.S. and southern Canada.Read More April 24, 2020leslieCommunity, Health and Wellness, Native Plants Kelly Cartwright, Ph.D., is a biology professor at the College of Lake County in Grayslake, Illinois where she teaches […]
January 3, 2018leslieBirds, Community, Waste As daylight transitions to nighttime “electric daylight,” the cosmos above never fully reveal themselves to most of us. According to the article, The End of Night, in the digital journal, aeon, “More than 60 per cent of the world, and fully 99 per cent of the U.S. and Europe, lives […]