Meet “Whistlin’ Will” the Whip-poor-will

June 13, 2015June 11, 2015 / jrmilson / Leave a comment

Old forests in the Ozarks Mountain Country, where the Little Red Bear stories take place, are home to Eastern Whip-poor-wills, one of my favorite birds. Strictly nocturnal and calling all thru the night, they have serenaded me to sleep on camping trips on many occasions.

While you may hear the Whip-poor-wills thru the night, finding them in the daylight hours is very difficult as they are largely inactive, hiding on the ground or roosting in the trees. Their mottled plumage blends perfectly with the grey/brown leaf litter and forest debris where they live, a natural camouflage.

A medium sized bird, the Eastern Whip-poor-will is a member of the Nightjar family of birds, sometimes referred to as Goatsuckers from ancient tales that they sucked milk from goats. Also in the nightjar family is the Nighthawk, another nocturnal bird, along with another and one the Whip-poor-will is frequently mistaken for– its close relative the Chuck-will’s-widow, which has a similar but lower, slower call. Both calls are hauntingly beautiful on an otherwise quiet summer night in the woods.

Whip-poor-wills are mentioned frequently in “The Adventures of Little Red Bear” stories, with “Whistlin’ Will” being one of Red’s friends, singing right behind his cabin on Honey Hill each evening.

Here is a recording for you to listen to the beautiful call of the Whip-poor-will. Like the recording, they go on and on, tirelessly all thru the night, a calming reassurance that all is right in the woods. Do you hear the “whip-poor-will, whip-poor-will, whip-poor-will” call for which they were named?

Sadly, as with many species, their numbers are in decline in several areas as open forests are converted for suburbs and agriculture, and as their primary foods- large moths and beetles- are also on the decline due to development.

More information and sound recordings may be found on the Cornell Lab of Ornithology page, and on the Audubon Society page.

If you would like to read more about Whistlin’ Will in “The Adventures of Little Red Bear” short stories collection, it is available on Amazon for Kindle and in Paperback. Just click the link below.

Thanks as always for reading and following! — Jim (and Red!)

Order Your Copy of “The Adventures of Little Red Bear”

Image via American Bird Conservancy, by Jacob Spendelow

“The Silent Voice of Nature”

June 6, 2015August 20, 2015 / jrmilson / 29 Comments

There is a deep and ancient wisdom held by the trees, wilderness and nature. Quiet your mind and be attentive for the voice you can only feel. Peace and answers await in the stillness.

“Close your eyes so the heart may become your eye,
and with that vision look upon another world.”

Birds- Hummingbird Art via TW, uncredited

“A Moment in Time” by John Kolenberg, available on Fine Art America.com

“There is a voice that does not use words. Listen.”

— Rumi

Happy Memorial Day Weekend– Sharing Our Seas & Shores!

May 23, 2015May 24, 2015 / jrmilson / Leave a comment

Wishing everyone a very Happy and Safe Memorial Day weekend!

If heading to the beach, inland waterways, or anywhere out with nature and wildlife, please remember this is nesting and babies season. Please teach the kids to keep a respectful distance for their own and the wildlife’s safety not to damage any nests, eggs or babies. When we are out on the beach, in the woods or on the rivers and streams, we are really guests and visitors in someone else’s home. Here is a link to a great article and advice from the American Bird Conservancy→ Fish, Swim and Play From 50 Yards Away

For more information, please visit the National Audubon Society→ Sharing Our Seas & Shores

Image via National Wildlife Federation, by Jim Gray

Hope everyone has a chance to have a picnic, go hiking or biking, play softball, go fishing, splash in the surf, go boating or swimming this weekend and enjoy the great outdoors, fresh air, exercise and the start of the summer season! Remember to bring the sunscreen. Stay safe and please keep an eye out for rip currents, pedestrians, bicyclists and motorcycles!

And please pause for a moment to reflect on the real meaning of the weekend.

Memorial Day this year is especially important as we are reminded almost daily of the great sacrifices that the men and women of the Armed Services make to defend our way of life.

Robin Hayes

“Memorial Day this year is especially important as we are reminded almost daily of the great sacrifices that the men and women of the Armed Services make to defend our way of life.”– Robin Hayes

Little Red Bear always reminds– “Remember when visiting in Mother Nature’s home, leave nothing behind but footprints, take nothing away but memories, and kill nothing but time.”

Memorial Day this year is especially important as we are reminded almost daily of the great sacrifices that the men and women of the Armed Services make to defend our way of life.
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/topics/topic_memorialday.html#lqIY9pTKYCMBMxPw.99

Memorial Day this year is especially important as we are reminded almost daily of the great sacrifices that the men and women of the Armed Services make to defend our way of life.

Robin Hayes

Have a wonderful weekend and visit back next week for an important update on “The Adventures of Little Red Bear” short stories collection. Hint- it’s coming very soon! — Jim (and Red!)

Birds- Little Blue Heron Family at Lowry Park, Pinterest, not photo signature

Little Blue Heron Family, Paul Fernandez Photography

Endangered Species Day

May 15, 2015 / jrmilson / Leave a comment

Today is “Endangered Species Day”, a day set aside by Congress to bring awareness and attention to the plight of endangered, fragile and threatened species. Folks of all ages can and are encouraged to learn more about the importance of protecting imperiled species and what they can do through their own actions to help.

For more information and links, please visit The Endangered Species Site.

Here are two other links for great information–

From the Park Advocate Site — Nine Endangered National Park Animals.

Black-footed Ferret in a Colorado conservation center. Photo by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

From the wonderful folks at BirdNote, a discussion of Piping Plovers and Golden-cheeked Warblers– BirdNote.

Golden-cheeked Warbler, via BirdNote, photo by Greg Lavaty

Please learn more and contact your elected representatives to help support the wildlife and plants struggling so hard to survive faced with oppressive habitat loss, climate change, illegal poaching and other dangers. And please get the children involved, as it is their future we are talking about, as well.

Thanks as always for stopping by! — Jim (and Red!)

We Are Part of Mother Earth!

May 11, 2015 / jrmilson / 4 Comments

Whoever was the first to coin the term “dominant species on the planet” should have also spent more time addressing the responsibility that comes with that assumption. We need to do better, for the sake of all species and the Earth, not just ourselves.

“Forest, Soil, Water, and Wildlife are mutually interdependent, and the ruin of one element will mean, in the end, the ruin of them all.”

~ Peter Matthiessen, “Wildlife in America” (1959)

Native Plants for Birds & Wildlife

April 29, 2015May 1, 2016 / jrmilson / 1 Comment

Getting ready to start work on the garden and yard work soon? Please consider using and decorating with plants, trees and wildflowers native to your geographical region. Here’s why it is so important– the birds and animals in your area have adapted to native plants over thousands of years and are dependent on them. Overrunning the landscape with non-native plants, trees and ornamentals can seriously impact the native wildlife’s food chain and resources.

“Because native insects did not evolve with nonnative plants, most of them lack the ability to overcome the plants’ chemical defenses so cannot eat them. Caterpillars, a particularly important food source for birds, are especially picky about what they feed on. Like the famous monarch butterfly larva, which must have milkweed to survive, more than 90 percent of moth and butterfly caterpillars eat only particular native plants or groups of plants.”

— Laura Tangley, National Wildlife Federation article.

And of course, the birds feed on the insects feeding on the plants. Not only are the insects directly affected, but the pollinators and those that feed on the insects as well, right up the food chain. As more and more imported varieties and ornamentals crowd out native plants, the birds, pollinators and wildlife have an increasingly difficult time. That plant at the nursery might be pretty, but is there another native to the area that might work just as well or better? Check it out. The birds and wildlife will thank you for it!

For more information and to read the article in entirety → “Chickadees Show Why Birds Need Native Trees”

Thanks as always for reading. — Jim (and Red!)