Page 20 - Sentinel June 2018

A WALK ON THE WILD SIDE... on top of it. But usually she just counts it as one of her brood.
Susan Peters... And cowbirds have been known to live to be 16 years old! That
is as old as Methuselah in bird years.
Stop! Smell the Roses and LIS-
TEN! An Alternative to Medita- Meditation in the Park
tion Short Takes Are you looking for a pleasant
way to spend a day in nature
Looking for a Great Symphony? at a beautiful venue? Pack a
Just sit outside on a warm day and picnic lunch and head out to
or, better yet, quietly do some weeding - shhhhhhh, listen. The the Hudson Gardens in Lit-
wild birds are at their peak in terms tleton off Santa Fe Drive. A
of gorgeous melodies and vibrant week day is best to avoid the
colors. The Western tanagers, the masses or maybe even a wedding at Monet’s Place. The ponds
black-headed grosbeaks, and the and streams accommodate various waterfowl.
robins have very similar songs, so
it takes a practiced ear to make out Meander through the song bird garden for still more symphonic
the subtle differences. The Ru- experiences. Check out the houses for honey bees, mason bees,
fous-sided towhees chime in with butterflies, and bats. Talk to a volunteer while they tend the
their “drink my teaeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee” call. This year the sel- water lilies. See how the pumpkin patch is doing. Go on a day
dom seen green-sided towhee joined the symphony, not bother- when the garden railroad is running for more entertainment.
ing with the “drink my.” He is just a “teaeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee” Just sitting on a bench under trees and next to water in an out-
guy. But the one with the most beautiful song of all is the wren. of-the-way place will lower your blood pressure as you inhale
Check out Youtube.com to hear what their song sounds like or the smells of the flowers, admire the statuary, and observe the
just to get a fix on a dreary day. birds and butterflies. If you don’t mind sharing your picnic and
the gardens with hundreds of unknown people, pop for tickets
The buzzing bees and whirring sounds of grasshoppers add the for one of the performances of their summer concert series. In
background sounds to the symphony. the summer a snack shop is open where you can purchase sand-
wiches and drinks.
Speaking of wrens, their unkempt nests of sticks resemble a
beaver lodge. They are the only bird that can tolerate a swing- If you don’t mind a longer trip, the Westminster Water Park
ing bird house. I would not be surprised to find their nests in grows plants that attract butterflies such as the Monarch. They
cavities of some of those Elitch Gardens wild rides. have Audubon-certified gardens and provide excellent ideas for
your own nature-friendly garden. The Grow section of the Den-
Recently while gardening, a friendly black-capped Chickadee ver Post for Friday, May 18th, had a detailed write-up.
landed on my knee, as if offering its help. They can be trained
to be hand-fed. Short Takes
So far, we have been fortunate not to have a destructive bruin
Our backyard blue spruce tree, which we raised from a twig, is invade our space, but we are still being vigilant in bringing in
now 18 feet high and houses not one pair of nesting chickadees, our many bird feeders at night. But even the corn cob squirrel
but THREE pairs. The fat Alberta spruce even provides a spot feeder chair – a great success to the squirrels - has not caught
for the house finches to raise their young. My only fear is our their attention.
birder pooch Ollie, may take out a few of the fledglings. Also,
the Alberta spruce resides by the side of the koi pond...no, these The Painted Lady and Tiger Swallow Tail butterflies grace the
birds are not big on the breast stroke. flowering gardens in our yard as they gracefully flit about. We
have to be on the lookout for the large Sphinx moths that lay
Summer time birdy check-in is now complete except for the those voracious tomato hornworms that decimate our peppers
raucous Rufous hummingbirds that arrive in July. And possi- and tomato plants.
bly we might see the high-flying night hawks on a hot summer
evening, scooping up the insects. Now the season has progressed enough to see some spazzy-
looking space cadets, I mean fledglings, come to the feeders,
The brown-headed cowbirds in these parts certainly had a suc- usually with mom or dad to pop some seed down their throats.
cessful past year thanks to the rearing skills of other bird spe- That requires some rapid wing fluttering, bouncing up and
cies. The cowbirds are the only brood parasites in North Amer- down, while gaping their mouths open and peeping like crazy.
ica and have no problem laying their eggs in every nest except
their own, because they don’t build nests. And the babes are That’s all, folks,for this month. Gotta run – the yellow jacket
egg machines, producing as many as three dozen eggs in a sea- wasps are as plentiful as the cowbirds this year, so it’s time to
son. Often there is a price to pay for the host bird’s young-uns. put out some bait traps for the little darlings.
Since their incubation period is shorter than other birds, they
get the attention and the food from the host parents. Sometimes How to contact me: Email is best at susan@larskpurconsulting.
the host mama sees the egg(s) as not being her own. If she is com. Alternatively, call my cell phone at 303-725-6868 or send
big enough, she can push it out of the nest or build another nest a short write-up to 2255 Quartz Mountain Drive. Photos by
Susan Peters.
Page 20 - June 2018 Perry Park Sentinel