Aidan's Nature Blog
By Aidan Garrity
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October 30th, 2020 Framingham, MA
Baby winter took it's first breath today. Today was first snowfall of the year. Storm Zeta is still alive. Last night did not reach freezing, meaning the only explanation is that it is only above freezing at higher altitudes. It will reach freezing at about noon. Everything is covered by a half an inch of snow. Cars. Trees. Lawns. Houses.
My backyard during the storm
My road during the storm
It is now 10:15 and it is 30 degrees Fahrenheit. Right now is the first time this year that Framingham is below freezing temperature. The storm is NOT a blizzard. it meets 2 of the criteria but not all three.
visibility must be under a quarter mile. (I cant even see the church behind my house!)
There must be considerable blowing snow and snowfall. (There is!)
wind speeds must be over 34 miles per hour (wind speeds are 11 mph, about a fourth of what is required)
Almost every plant in our yard is bent over from the snow's weight and frozen stiff. After a walk around the block, the only animal I saw was a trio of grey squirrels digging in the snow for who knows what. Acorns? Birdseed?
Our magnolia tree (Magnolia stellata) under stress from the snow. you can also see maple, hemlock, and dogwood in the background.
Typically, these trees would shed their leaves in time for the snow, as to avoid carrying the weight, but this year the snow came early. I expect at least a few branches to snap before the end of the day.
-Aidan Garrity
October 29th, 2020 Framingham, MA
Today is a very wet, silent day. We, in Massachusetts are getting some of the aftermath, wind, and rain from a tropical storm "Zeta". The sky is filled with stratus clouds. The streets of Framingham are now crowded with puddles and are soaking wet. One of the only things I like about being outside in the rain is how easy it becomes to collect amphibians. They love the cold temperatures and humidity.
The only life i hear is the territorial call of a Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata), and blue jays do not sound nice.
Blue jays hunt and forage in packs. some of the blue jays will wait and watch for predators, while the other half eats, then they alternate roles until they are all fed. I also spotted a Lincoln's Sparrow (Melospiza lincolnii), and a Cardinal Bunting (Cardinalidae). Did you also know that blue jays are not really blue, but are silvery brown. Their feathers scatter and reflect light, causing them to LOOK Blue. But this post is NOT about Blue Jays. In fact, I will not talk about one specific animal, I am just recording everything I see out my rain-drop covered window.
One thing that I noticed quickly was that all chipmunks, red squirrels, and grey squirrels had vanished.
This is because mammals hate the rain. It can cause hypothermia, especially in October. Warm blooded animals, including mammals, and birds have to maintain a consistently high body temperature, as to not go into shock. On the other hand, cold blooded animals are usually tolerant of low temperatures. the only thing that matters to them is to prevent their BLOOD FROM LITERALLY FREEZING SOLID. So why are the blue jays and other birds still flying around?
Birds have a waterproof oily substance that they produce and spread over themselves to stay dry in the rain and while wading and swimming (Referring to water birds).
Yesterday, at the Biking park, I stayed out late, around 7:00 pm. No hoots. The Great Horned Owl (Bubo virginianus) was silent. After research, i realized that owl feathers are not waterproof because being water proof would impair there ability to hunt silently. All owls are hiding away in tree holes and nests. shivering.
When it rains heavily enough, the road floods about 2 inches deep, about 50 ft. from our house.
My family calls it "Lake Laverdure"(named after the street i live on). Bird's play in it, Worms drown in it, and I have seen mallard ducks swimming in it before.
-Aidan Garrity
October 28th, 2020 Framingham, MA
A few days ago, I was poking around at the Sudbury River. There is a secret path that goes down off the side of the bridge, into the water. I parked my bike and walked down into the marsh. I gazed downriver and IT WAS BEAUTIFUL.
After mucking around for a while, I began finding things. Eastern Skunk cabbage (Symplocarpus foetidus), Fragrant Water lily (Nymphea odorata) and a few birds such as House wren (Troglodytes aedon), House Sparrow (Passer domesticus).
I also begun finding footprints. I later identified them as Muskrat tracks.(Ondatra zibethicus).
I also found more evidence such as a clear path that lined up with the tracks. The track-covered path went up, out of the river, into mud, through a lot of tall grass, cattails, and weeds, then goes back into the water about 50 feet away from the river. it was a small pond created by flooding. both the pond and the river were crowded with aquatic plants for the muskrat to eat.
Muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus). Walked through the same route so many times, that a path was formed.
Footprint of Muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus). Tracks of animals are easily imprinted in the mud.
I hope to one day see the furry little guy.
-Aidan Garrity
October 27th, 2020 Sudbury, MA
A few days ago, I was at Assabet River Wildlife Refuge. I know. I keep beginning my blogs like that. That is because I am explaining every cool find i found on that trip. I usually discover many interesting things there. Today i will be talking about the spider that I found there. An Emertoni's Funnel Weaver (Agelenopsis emertoni). It has 2 black, vertical stripes on it's thorax. Possible disruptive eye mask??
I decided to try to keep the spider as a pet. I have attempted keeping spiders as pets 4 times. The first 2, I could not figure out how to feed. The third, i third, i ended up feeding to my gecko. The fourth escaped and is probably still wandering around in our house. (If my younger brother reads this, I am in serious trouble) below is the spider i have now.
Agelenopsis emertoni guarding it's burrow.
I am now much more confident in caring for this really cool animal, because it has eaten a wax worm already. I also have suspicions that this is a female and there are eggs in the funnel.
-Aidan Garrity
October 26th, 2020 Framingham, MA
Have you ever noticed how so many animals have black spots, stripes, and caps near their eyes? It is very common in nature. It is called a disruptive eye mask. The purpose of this type of coloration is to make it difficult for predators to attack the eyes of the prey by camouflaging them and making it difficult to find the eyes. There are so many examples. Osprey. Raccoon. Chickadee. Eastern newt. Large mouth bass. Fat head minnow. Golden shiner. Great blue heron. Wood Frog. Killer whale.
young Raccoon (Procyon lotor) frantically trying to climb a tree while I take a picture
Eastern Newt (Notophthalmus viridescens) with black stripe through eye
October 26th, 2020 Sudbury, MA
Yesterday, i was at Assabet River Wildlife Refuge. While i was there, I found many interesting things. Among them, i discovered a bald faced hornet (Dolichovespula maculata). I overturned the log to unveil an angry wasp. however, bald faced hornets are not as aggressive as some other wasps. Due to the freezing temperature, it would only be able to move slowly due to the fact that insects are cold-blooded.
Bald Faced Hornet (Dolichovespula maculata) shivering using only it's wings
Bald Faced Hornet (Dolichovespula maculata) Resting Briefly as to not overheat.
Bald Faced hornets are actually not true hornets, but are closer related to yellow jackets. They are in the family Vespidae. They are predatory, killing caterpillars, grubs, and spiders. They are also eusocial, meaning they live in colonies or groups, however, this was a lone wasp. I believe that when I overturned the log, I was lifting the wasp up into the cold wind. It began beating it's wings. Most people would probably think that it was trying to fly, but I believe that it was using wing friction to warm up, similar to how humans shiver. After taking some pictures, i rolled the log back into place, to allow it to warm up.
When I lowered the log, i realized that the wasp lined up perfectly with a small burrow that was clearly it's home.
-Aidan Garrity
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