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Tadpoles
May 2012


Baby Squirrels
May 2012


Wave Action
May 2012


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April 2012


Bats Awakening
April 2012


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March 2012


Vertical Turbine
February 2012


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February 2012


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January 2012


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May
28th
2012
Mon
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Drew chainsawing wood: Drew keeps saying that “this is the last load of wood that I am going to cut up”, and then he goes out and scavenges more. Then, neighbor Ernie brings over more pallets…and Drew has to fill them! It is a never-ending cycle. We’ve almost got enough wood for two winters. We need another 1/2 cord to fill out the pallets and we are good to go!

By the way, Drew is using neighbor Ernie’s sawbucks to cradle the wood on. That makes his work so much easier. Thanks, Ernie!

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Drew splitting wood: Drew is just finishing splitting the last of the wood that he gathered on Saturday afternoon. It is gorgeous maple and ash.

May
27th
2012
Sun
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Tadpoles & Fingerlings at the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens:  The minute we entered the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, I insisted we hightail it to the Children’s Garden which is chock full of frogs, tadpoles, and salamanders. Fun!

May
26th
2012
Sat
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Greyhound Meet and Greet: We went to Pet Quarters today to visit with some greyhounds and their owners. Check out our Family Blog for the details. Unfortunately, we didn’t take photos because we were too busy petting and hugging dogs for two hours;-)

Have chainsaw will travel: Drew found more great wood along the roadside (ash and maple) to cut up and bring home. Neighbor Ernie helped Drew bring the wood home by filling the back of his truck a couple of times. Thanks, Ernie! The daytime temp. reached 82F, and it was very hot work. Drew will split the wood next week.

May
24th
2012
Thu
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Groundhog babies: Just a note to self to bring the camera to school to try and photograph the groundhog pups. There are at least 7 cute baby groundhogs inhabiting the den that has been active for over 12 years.

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Wood Stack: Drew has collected, sawed, and hand split all but one cord of wood on the wood pile. Free heat for the winter!

Wood Stack: Drew has collected, sawed, and hand split all but one cord of wood on the wood pile. Free heat for the winter!

May
21st
2012
Mon
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Update on the bats we saw in Florida: Our friends in Florida are now seeing baby bats dropping out of the trees as they learn to fly. Here is a letter that they sent.

     I’ve been trying to find the time to write you a note about a baby bat I rescued last week.  I noticed something draped on a limb in the butterfly garden and then saw a blue jay fly over and peck at it.  At that point the blue jay flew off and what was draped on the limb flew down.  I went outside thinking it was a hurt bird but found a baby bat on the ground.  I picked him/her up and took it over to the screen on the back porch and let it climb up on the screen.  Of course, I shouldn’t have just picked it up in my hand like that (as my husband told me), but it was just instinct.  He/she laid very calmly in my hand and luckily I didn’t encounter any teeth.   He/she climbed up a little ways on the screen and then turned upside down to hang.  I thought at that point that it would just stay there until dusk. While I was watching him/her hang, it just suddenly flew up into the trees.  I actually saw a blue jay try to get to it in the air, but luckily the little bat made it to the trees.  I don’t quite know what blue jays have against bats, but there must be something.  Even though I didn’t get a photo, I can tell you that this little guy was “not” a Brazilian free-tailed bat and appeared to be an evening bat……no tail extended like the free-tailed.  Of course, that’s just one bat, but my guess is that we probably have both species.
     Two nights ago I was out at dusk watering some plants when a small bat dropped from the trees and landed on a plant.  That also appeared to be an evening bat, but it was definitely getting dark so I wouldn’t bet my life on it.  It seemed to not be able to fly as of yet, but seemed to be in the process of trying.  Maybe Mom tosses the young out to learn????? A few seconds later, I heard what seemed to be another one come down, but couldn’t locate it in the dark.
     I’m assuming that the females may be nesting in the trees until the young are old enough for the bat houses.  That could account for the one last week flying up to the trees (in that same area).  I wouldn’t think that would be too safe with hawks, owls, and those blue jays but that’s what I’ll assume until I can find out more.
     If I encounter any more, I’ll try to grab my camera to get some pictures.  Just thought you’d be interested to know that we at least know we have some evening bats around.
Beverly
May
20th
2012
Sun
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Aaaaaachooooo!: The birch trees and grasses are releasing pollen at a fast rate, and I am spending the day sneezing, and sneezing, and sneez….Aaaaachooooo…..;-)

May
19th
2012
Sat
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Who’s looking at you?: We like photographing eyes and here are two of our latest. You can see the south facing side of our house in the eye of the red squirrel, and you can see the sun and the photographer (sort of) in the eye of the green frog. (Click on any photo for a closer view.)

Click on this Animal Planet link to learn about some interesting information about a frog’s eyes.

May
18th
2012
Fri
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Robin’s nest: The robins didn’t waste any time inhabiting the wood shed! This nest is on the north wall. They had been trying to nest in the garage, but there was so much bird poop on our cars that Drew put sheets of plastic over the garage door openings to keep the robins out. Success! We are going to see if we can mount a camera up in the wood shed to photograph the chicks after the eggs hatch.

Robin’s nest: The robins didn’t waste any time inhabiting the wood shed! This nest is on the north wall. They had been trying to nest in the garage, but there was so much bird poop on our cars that Drew put sheets of plastic over the garage door openings to keep the robins out. Success! We are going to see if we can mount a camera up in the wood shed to photograph the chicks after the eggs hatch.