Woods, bogs abound with colorful summer flowers, birds

The heat of summer is upon us. I may even have to water my garden which is scary with all the rain we’ve had this year.

The thundershowers that continue to roll through may do the trick. They are hit or miss depending on where the clouds are.

As long as they are not accompanied by winds we will be alright.

The folks in the Midwest who have had more then a dozen consecutive days with over 100 degree temperatures will be looking for a cool place to go.

Our days may get warm, but most nights it cools down to the fifties, or high forties like last week.

If you leave a night light on you will find some neat moths around them the next morning.

Several people have told me they have seen Luna, Polyphemus and Cecropia Moths on their porches, along with many other smaller moths.

The moths and mosquitos seem to be expanding in numbers without any bats to eat them.

The other night we were out trying to catch one of the Loons that got caught up in fishing line.

The bugs were so active on the water that we were constantly getting hit in the face by them.

Speaking of that, if anyone sees the Loon on the Fulton Chain with a big sinker hanging out of its bill, give me a call.

It was on First Lake for a few days, and seen on Fourth Lake another day. It can still can open its bill to eat but is not happy carrying the line and sinker.

I am putting out another plea to fishermen and women to place extra line from their reels in their pockets until they can get to a trash can. Do not throw it overboard.

The weather this year has been great for most flowers, and the orchids in the area are doing very well.

I found a nice patch of over 100 Dwarf Rattlesnake-Plantain plants while doing the Boreal Bird Survey along Brown’s Tract Stream the other morning.

The Small Purple Fringed Orchids along the railroad by Wheel Pond are doing great with over fifty plants in bloom.

The bog mat at Ferd’s Bog is covered with White Fringed Orchids and some Grass Pinks.

Out by the narrow beginning of Eagle Creek, which passes through the bog, there are many Rose Pogonias.

The taller yellow spikes that can be seen from the boardwalk are Swamp Candles (Yellow Loosestrife) and to the right of the boardwalk the patches of short yellow flowers are Yellow Horned Bladderworts.

The mat is also covered with tall Pitcher Plant flowers. Soon to come are little white flowers on all the Spatulate and Round Leaved Sundew.

At the railroad crossing north of North Street there is also a nice patch of Milkweed with a variety of butterflies working them.

Right at the crossing there was a singing Scarlet Tanager and Indigo Bunting—two of the most beautiful birds in our area.

I saw and heard a couple Mourning Warblers in that area which is also a very pretty bird.

Most of the lakes in the area have a pair of Loons with babies trailing not far behind. Make sure you give them some space.

When the chicks are separated from their parents they are more susceptible to predators like Snapping Turtles who just wait for such opportunities.

They lay in wait with their heads just above the water to hear commotion. Then, they move in to take what they can get.

This time of year the deer are building up their fat reserves lost during the winter. For the most part, they seem to like your flowers.

A way to keep them from eating your flowers is to spray them with an egg mixture.

Mix two eggs in a cup of water, then add it to a gallon of water. This should last you most of the summer.

Spray the mixture on your plants, and reapply every time it rains. If you spill it on yourself while mixing or applying you will want to wash it off as it has a rotten egg odor. That is what you want the Deer to smell.

This may also be offensive to other humans, which at times isn’t such a bad thing. I don’t recommend using it as a deodorant.

Loon Census Count is tomorrow, but that’s another story.

See ya.