Page 24 - Sentinel July 2017

WILD SIDE Continued from page 23

pond is free of deterrents if one does not mind a bunch of wil-
low branches whipping them in the face. And , serves as the THE SIGHTS
food distribution point, by the koi goddess, OF SUMMER
• Make sure the home encourages learning. Check. Well, they
are a “school” of fish.
• Get rid of unwanted frustrations by fixing broken objects.
Check.
• Spice up the love life with plants in the bedroom. Check. Lily
pods, water iris, water lettuce, and hyacinths, all conducive to a
romantic evening of fishy egg-laying and breeding.

A mail order shipment of koi instantly repopulated the pond,
only to have the
garter snakes, adept
swimmers, start eat-
ing the smaller ones,
as if there is not
enough other food
around, like yummy
earth worms, liz-
ards, rodents, am-
phibians, and whatever else strikes their fancy. It turns out that
the garter snake is closely related to the genus Nerodia for water
snakes. In fact, they can move back and forth between genera,
according to the ultimate source on the topic. Say what? Gen-
era is a taxonomic classification system for all flora and fauna,
and, yes, even the simple one-cell organisms. I just wish that
they would settle on being NON-water snakes.

Short Takes...
It’s that time of year when mid-July sees the raucous and ag-
gressive rufous hummingbirds return with their newly hatched
brats. Fortunately, they leave in time to give the broadtails
and black-chinned hummers some peace and quiet, along with
access to the feeders, in order to bulk up before their journey
south for the winter.

Seven years ago, I was sort of complaining about being inun-
dated with Evening Grosbeaks. So far, none have sauntered
through the neighborhood. Their incessant shrill calls in mass
can have one running for cover thinking that Hitchcock’s’ birds
have invaded. But now I miss them with their beautiful col-
oration and some with their punk hairdos inherited from a fre-
quent visiting ancestor of years ago. Flowers in brilliant colors abound in Colorado sum-
mers. These are at the Perry Park County Club.
This week celebrates National Pollinator Week. So be kind to
the butterflies and bees, ALWAYS.
*****
That’s all, folks, for this month. Gotta run – the bird bath is
empty and there is a long line of birds wrapped in their Turkish
towels.

How to Contact Me: Email is best at susan@larskpurconsulting.
com. Alternatively, call my cell phone at 303-725-6868 or send
a short write-up to 2255 Quartz Mountain Drive.

Page 24 - July 2017 Perry Park Sentinel