Anthony and I both had big plans for this week. A blog article to write and record. At least one “long” video and hopefully a shorter nature trivia video or two to create. A podcast episode to edit. Work on multiple projects that we’re planning to launch before the end […]
Out and About
21 posts
This past February and March were quite eventful and packed full of nature-related discoveries and observations. For starters, it seemed like many of the late winter blooming trees and early ephemeral wildflowers bloomed a little on the early side. Then, at least where I’m at, March’s weather was insane with […]
I hope you had an amazing holiday season and your new year is off to a wonderful start. I also hope that over the last couple of months you were able to make some time to get outside, relax, and enjoy some of the nature surrounding you. Below are a […]
Around here it was an amazing fall – full of fall wildflowers, late season pollinators, and beautiful fall colors. We were seeing and hearing reports of butterflies well into the first week of November! Then the seasons changed, almost overnight, as we were plummeted into early winter. However, I wouldn’t […]
I absolutely love fall! The temperatures are much nicer. The fields are a riot of color – lots of bright yellow, of course, but also purples, whites, pinks, oranges, and scattered other colors. Goldfinches are everywhere. And then there are all the butterflies, bees, wasps, and other “bugs” busily going […]
The last month or so has been incredibly hot, dry, and humid where I’m at. Heat indexes of over 100 have become normal. I’m very grateful for all the wildlife that I can view from the house while sitting in the air-conditioned comfort on those hotter days. Yet, even with […]
Where did this spring go? The last couple of months have been crazy busy, but so much fun too. I have had the opportunity to make some amazing nature-related discoveries both around my own property and while traveling. Below are a few of the nature-related discoveries I’ve made on our […]
It’s spring! The days have been getting noticeably longer. The birds are starting to sing in the mornings. The spring ephemeral wildflowers are starting to bloom. Spring tree top flasher firefly larvae are on the tulip poplar trunks. The first butterflies of the year are coming out. And the phoebes […]
Weather-wise, the last couple of months have been insane. In early December, I still had a few scattered goldenrods in bloom. They were all individuals that had been browsed or cut earlier in the year, which kept them from blooming at the same time as the other goldenrods. I was […]
What a difference a couple of months have made! The leaves have fallen off the trees and I can once again see the road from my house. The fall warblers have migrated through and my winter suite of birds are arriving. The flowers have stopped blooming and beautiful seed heads […]
It’s been a while since I shared some of my nature-related discoveries with you. So, I thought it was about time to do it again, especially since I found and was able to observe so many fun and cool nature-related discoveries in August and September. Below are just a few […]
June and July have been busy months filled with tons of nature-related discoveries! I missed most of our early lightning bug species, but they were insane in June and July. There were several nights when I picked out at least half a dozen different flash patterns. Each of those would […]
This has been a crazy year. The temperatures in May seemed cooler than normal to me and it was relatively dry overall. I mean, we would get a gully washer of a storm, then nothing….. until another gully washer came. We definitely didn’t seem to get the frequent, gentle May […]
This is always such an exciting time of year. The wildflowers are blooming. The insects are appearing again. The birds are starting to sing their dawn chorus in the mornings again. And the spring warbler migration is in full swing. Things are changing almost daily. There is always some new […]
After a crazy February and early March, spring has finally sprung! The red maples and elms bloomed at the beginning of the month. Now, the spicebushes are in full bloom and the early spring ephemeral wildflowers are starting to dot the woods. Not to mention the spring peepers are calling […]
Wow! February went just a wee bit crazy, didn’t it? Within about a week and a half to two weeks we had three different winter storms. (For friends and family living further north, that’s a lot of wintery weather in a short time for us.) That was after a relatively […]
As I write this, I’m looking out my window and watching the farm turn white. We’ve really only had one other snowfall this winter that produced any accumulation and that only lasted for a couple of hours. This one will likely last longer, but I don’t expect it to get […]
I hope everyone had a good a holiday season and start of the new year. December was kind of a difficult month for me this year – lots of personal stuff going on. But I was still able to get outside some and enjoy the nature around me. Here are […]
This has been a weird November. Whether it was a beautiful bright blue sky highlighting the last of the fall leaves on a warm day at the beginning of the month or an end of the month snow shower, I’ve enjoyed getting out and making little nature-related discoveries in my […]
Fall is my favorite time of year. I love the cooler, less humid weather, the distinctive fall smell in the early morning, the beautiful fall flowers, the busy actions of the butterflies and bees as they prepare for whatever winter looks like for them, and the transition from our summer […]
Over the past several weeks, I’ve been lucky enough to find some amazing critters and enjoy some beautiful wildflowers. In this week’s article, I just wanted to share some of the recent nature-related discoveries I made in my backyard and community. This weird looking wasp is an American pelecinid wasp […]