Freezing temperatures could again affect bears’ natural food sources

We have had some up and down weather this last week with temperatures up in the 70’s and then down to freezing over the weekend. Many areas received three to six inches of rain over the weekend and to top that off, over 30 inches of snow fell on Whiteface Mountain.

That would surely dampen your camping or hiking trip to the high peaks over Memorial Weekend. One thing for sure is that it kept down the blackflies.

I remember one late snowstorm that occurred after the leaves had come out and the Plains were open.

The roads were full of downed trees and the temperature went up like it’s going to do today (5/27).

The blackflies came out mad and hungry as we cleaned out the trees to open the road. Blackflies on snow isn’t something that happens too often, but it did that day.

I had 30 degrees on my thermometer this morning. I washed off as many of my wildflowers as I could reach with the hose before the sun came out and toasted the leaves. 

I also sprayed my apple blossoms as it’s the first time two of my trees have flowered and I want to see what kind of fruit I’m going to get from them. Time will tell if it worked or not.

Ted Hicks and I went to Stillwater yesterday to band hummers. It was 42 degrees and raining when we arrived so we sat in the truck for about an hour.

The rain nearly stopped so we sat up shop inside to band.

The hummers were pretty active after a cold wet night. I caught 32 new birds and we also captured two that we had banded last May and two that we banded in September.

I believe we caught many more males than females. A few times we caught two at a time in the trap.

The sun peeked out twice in the two hours I was trapping but it didn’t last very long. Most of the folks coming for breakfast or to see the banding operation got to hold a hummer. The grandchildren of Marian Romano, co-owner of Stillwater Hotel, helped with the trapping.

Let’s hope this weather is the last setback for these little guys and they can get on to nesting.

The Ravens are about to fledge. When they do, their young are pretty noisy. They scream as they beg for food from their parents.

After a couple weeks from fledging they follow their parents around in search of food.

We had them at the pondsite a couple years ago and they were screaming from daylight to dark.

This pair nests on the ledge right in back of my property. They are quiet in the nest but not after they leave it.

Several of the local Loons have gotten on a nest early this year. That warmer weather must have perked up their hormones early as normally it is about June first before they start nesting.

Many of the nests are on platforms so all this rain shouldn’t affect them.

They should have young on the water well before the weekend of the fourth of July if the nests are successful.

It takes 27 to 28 days for the eggs to hatch. Being warm-blooded, the adults attract blackflies around their nest site where they sit for four weeks.

While watching them from a distance you can see them reaching out with their bills to catch the flies in the air.

Many times when I’ve zoomed in while photographing them I can see the little black devils all over the Loons’ heads.

I will be leading a hike into Ferd’s Bog next Saturday, June 8 that will depart from the Uncas Road corner in Eagle Bay at 7 a.m.

Along the way, hikers could possibly have sightings of gray jay, boreal chickadee, Lincoln sparrow and black-backed woodpecker. The little southern twayblades also should be in bloom.

A Bug net or spray might be needed as the blackflies will be around.

The freezing temperatures shouldn’t affect the leaves on most trees, but the fruiting flowers certainly will be.

This is what happened last year so there was no wild food for the Bears—so they moved into town.

The cherry, beech and some maples have set their fruit, which may be killed by the cold temperatures. Nature is in a challenging battle with the temperature change and it doesn’t seem to be winning.

More ups and downs are in the forecast this week and tornadoes will be hitting the Midwest again this week.

Brooktrout are on the bite, if you can see through the flies to tie on your fly, but that’s another story. See ya.