Eagle Perched

The human spirit needs places where nature has not been rearranged by the hand of man.

~Author Unknown

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Photo by MatthewJHull
Connecticut, USA

Category › Friday Photo

Scheduled Birdwalks in Lansing

Walk the trails of Fenner Nature Center Saturday mornings to observe the spring migration through Lansing.

Saturday walks are led by Capital Area Audubon Society volunteers. All walks are free and no registration is required.

Some of the scheduled 2010 walks are:

April 10, 17, 24 at 9 am

and

May 1, 8, 15, 22, 29 at 8 am
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For more information contact:

Fenner Nature Center

2020 E. Mt Hope, Lansing, MI

517-483-4224 or http://www.fofnc.org/

Category › Family Fun , Fenner Nature Center

Nest With Eggs on Front Door Wreath

The birds aren't stopping their nesting even though the weather has turned frigid again.

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Kim in East Lansing, MI sent me a photo of a House Finch nest with five eggs on her front door wreath.

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Thanks for the photo. Keep us updated on their progress!

Category › Friday Photo

Warm Thoughts

I think we all need to think warm, sunny thoughts... because it's freezing outside!

This photo was taken on a trip to Galveston in April 2007.
Enjoy!
Mike Grimm

Category › Friday Photo

Are There Bat Houses?

Bats are finally being given their proper recognition as valuable to mankind in the ecological system. Their immediate appeal to people is their enormous capacity for consuming insects. One bat can consume half its weight in a night or as many as 600 or more insects an hour.

In Michigan the Little Brown Bat and the Big Brown Bat are the most likely to use Wild Birds Unlimited bat houses which meet the specifications determined by Bat Conservation International and the Organization for Bat Conservation. Bats find the bat houses just like birds find bird houses. If a house is in the proper location, meets the bats’ requirements and is needed, bats will move in on their own.
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Bats like it high and hot so you should place the house at least 15' above ground for the best chance of occupancy. Houses should have an open area below because bats like to "fall" out of their box at night and "swoop" back to the box in the morning.Bats like to get at least four hours of direct sunlight in the morning. If you don't have a place with enough direct light you can paint/stain your bat house a darker color to help it absorb more heat. Please note that these suggestions are for Michigan bat nesting boxes.

Bat houses are often placed on the side of a house, garage, or barn. Dead trees can also work, but live trees are usually too shaded. If the bats don't seem to like the placement of your box within a couple full summers, it's time to try a different spot. Sometimes we feel that we have the perfect place, but the critters just don't respond. Experimenting is the hallmark of wildlife attracting. Just remember, think like a bat.

A portion of Wild Birds Unlimited proceeds goes to the Organization for Bat Conservation to support research, rescue, conservation, and education projects. If you want to try making your own bat house, plans can be found at BatConservation.org.

Category › Product Highlight

What Bats Live in Michigan?

Bats comprise one-fourth of the world's 4,000 species of mammals. Fruit-eating bats are nature's most important seed-dispersing animals. Nectar bats pollinate many rain-forest trees, shrubs, and flowers and without their help the forest would be less diverse. The ability of insect-eating bats is phenomenal--one little brown bat can eat 600 to 1,000 mosquitoes in an hour. Over-sized ears and nostrils help bats to use a sonar system that experts believe is a thousand times more sophisticated than the best airport radar invented to date.
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Of the 43 species of bats that live in the U.S., nine insect-eating species of bats live in Michigan. All are nocturnal (active at night), and feed nearly exclusively on flying insects, including moths, beetles, and mosquitoes.

Bats in Michigan

1. The little brown bat is the most common and gentle bat found throughout Michigan and is the most seen species. A light brown bat with a wingspan of 8 1/2 to 11 1/2 inches, small ears, and large feet. In summer, colonies of the species live in hot attics and under shingles and siding or in manmade bat houses; in winter, they hibernate in caves, crevices, houses, hollow trees, or mines. Females form nursery colonies away from the males. Little brown bats like to feed on aquatic insects and are frequently seen dipping and diving over water but will also forage over lawns and pastures, among trees, and under street lights.
2. The big brown bat has a large nose, is reddish to dark brown in color, and sports a wingspan ranging from 12 1/2 to 13 1/2 inches. Its slow, steady flight, and large size make it fairly easy to identify. Beetles, wasps, mosquitoes and flies from pastures, lawns and vacant lots in the city make up its diet. They are late-dusk fliers that often swoop low to the ground. A colonizing species, big browns roost in buildings and under bridges in summer and hibernate in caves, mines, houses, hollow trees, and even storm sewers in winter. Efficient feeders, the species often roosts for a short nap after gorging itself. Porches, garages, and breezeways are good places to find them. The female gives birth to only one pup per year.
3. The hoary bat is Michigan’s largest with a wingspan of up to 15 inches and lives in the forest. It’s rarely encountered by people and migrates south in winter.
4. The red bat also migrates south and is a solitary bat of forests near water. Its long, pointed wings may stretch 12 inches, and it has short, rounded ears, and a furred tail. Color varies from a bright orange to a yellow-brown.
5. The silver-haired bat, considered scarce, lives in forested areas near streams and lakes. Similar in size to the red bat, it is black or dark brown with silver on the tips of its hairs.
6. The eastern pipistrelle bat does not migrate but hibernates in caves or abandoned mines through winter in the western Upper Peninsula year-round. A golden brown to reddish brown tiny bat with a wingspan of 10 inches or less.
7. The northern long-eared bat has very large ears make these bats easy to identify at close range. A brown bat with wings that stretch 12 inches, it typically roosts alone in buildings and under tree bark in the summer, small numbers hibernate together in caves, often with big brown bats.
8. The evening bat lives in extreme southern Michigan and is easily confused with the little brown bat except the evening bat has a curved, rounded fleshy protrusion (tragus) on the ear instead of a pointed tragus. Their wings span 10 to 11 inches. The evening bat flies low to the ground and is sometimes seen swarming around caves, which it rarely enters.
9. The Federally endangered Indiana bat in southern Michigan closely resembles the little brown bat.

Concerns: Scientific surveys of wild bats typically report rabies in less than 0.5% for most North American bat species. In addition, bats are not “carriers” of rabies; when a bat gets the disease it will die. Bats also tend to become paralyzed with the disease, often avoiding the aggressive form of rabies.

Bats prefer to live in dead trees during the summer. Without natural habitat, brown bats will take up residence in human-made buildings. Rather than killing these beneficial mammals, prevent entry into your home by locating and plugging potential entrance holes after sunset when they leave. Putting up a bat house nearby may discourage them from entering your home while keeping them in the area.

Original article: michigandnr.com Sargent, M.S and Carter, K.S., ed. 1999. Managing Michigan Wildlife: A Landowners Guide. Michigan United Conservation Clubs, East Lansing, MI. 297pp.

Category › Nature up close

How Do You Make Hummingbird Nectar?

Hummingbirds like nectar from flowers, sap from trees, small insects and spiders. If you throw your old banana peels in the garden it will attract fruit flies for the hummingbirds and make your plants green. Of course you can also attract hummingbirds by putting out a hummingbird feeder filled with homemade nectar.

To make nectar that is a little bit stronger than flower nectar, use a ratio of 4:1. That would be four parts water to one part plain white sugar. You may be tempted to use honey, turbinado sugar, drink mixes or brown sugar, but this is not a good idea. These sugars contain too many minerals for the hummingbird's system and can cause illness or death.

Powdered or confectioners sugar should not be used either. Powdered sugar has cornstarch added to it and that will cause the nectar to ferment.

Color isn’t required. There have never been any scientific studies done to prove red dye harms hummingbirds, but they come to clear nectar (sugar water) so leave it clear just in case the red is bad for the birds.

Nectar (sugar water) recipe
1 cup granulated sugar
4 cups water

1. Bring the water to a boil and then add the white sugar.
2. Stir the mixture and let it boil for 2 minutes.
3. Remove from heat and let it cool.
4. Fill your hummingbird feeder and refrigerate any unused nectar for up to 2 weeks.
5. If the hummingbirds do not come to the feeder within a few days, you can try moving it to another location near plants that have brightly colored flowers.
6. Be sure to replace the nectar and clean the feeder thoroughly once every three to four days. If you leave it out longer the sugar water could go bad and kill hummingbirds.

Category › Nature up close