May 7, 2010 - 1
Happy birthday to Clem in Flemington, NJ this week! A regular listener to the Backyard Report, Clem often shares his nature magazines with friends when he's done with them, which is a great way of recycling. Thanks, Clem! Many happy returns to you!If you'd like to have your birthday mentioned in the report, just send an email ahead of time along with the appropriate information and maybe a mention of something cool that you do to help the environment or your backyard creatures in some way. We'll give you a shout out.
Meanwhile, sunrise occurred in the backyard this morning at 5:52. Sunset will arrive at 8:02 this evening. Adding 15 minutes this week, we're up over the next hurdle to 14 hours and 10 minutes of delightfully dazzling sunlight today. Also, the tiny little bellflowers are blooming this week and we're just 45 days away from the beginning of summer!
Backyard Tip of the week: Try to get outside to enjoy spring in some way before it's too late. Summer will be here before you know it and this time of year holds many special surprises for you to experience. You may spot a unique plant or flower that you've never noticed before. Try looking specifically for the elusive jack in the pulpit that grows perhaps along your hedgerows in the moist undergrowth. An interesting looking plant, this species flowers from April to June and is pollinated by flies, which it attracts using heat and smell. So, remember to head outside this spring when you have a chance. See if you can find any jack-in-the-pulpit or other cool plants or spring happenings that you've missed before. Try it, you're sure to love it!
Backyard sightings for last week: Including northern cardinals, rose-breasted grosbeaks, blue-jays, brown creepers, chipping sparrows, song sparrows, tree sparrows, white-throated sparrows, house finches and goldfinches. American robins, Carolina wrens and Carolina chickadees, catbirds, mockingbirds. Red-bellied and downy woodpeckers, yellow-bellied sapsuckers, northern flickers, white-breasted nuthatches, tufted titmice, mourning doves. Red-winged blackbirds, crows, grackles and starlings. Chipmunks, skunks, bunnies, red squirrels, grey squirrels, ground hogs, at least three bullfrogs in the pond, and the overly optimistic, rust-ensconced backyard thermometer read 102 degrees in the sun last Sunday!
Continued on next page...
May 7, 2010 - Part 2 - Cool Sightings
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