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A Touch Of Nature
Donna L. Watkins, Editor
September 15, 2004 Issue

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What's Happening Here at Bluebird Cove
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My friends and neighbors here called me Saint Francine because of my love of wildlife and respect for living things. I think Randal will soon be dubbed Saint Francis after this event we had in our yard a little while back.

The big ladder he had to use to clean our gutters is stored under our deck since it╾s so tall. After placing it against the area he was to begin with, he noticed a black spider and asked me what kind it was. It was a Black Widow. We previously had one at our front door but it was a male and they don╾t bite, so we left it.

The next day it wasn't there, so maybe this female, that was now on the ladder, came along and had him for dessert. This Black Widow had an egg sac attached to the side of the ladder, so she wasn╾t wanting to go anywhere. There was a leaf attached by cob webs right above her egg, so she chose to hide in there as the ladder was moved to various places around the house.

Finally Randal placed the ladder back under the deck with everybody happy. So, I guess it's time to shop for a long robe for Randal, so he will fit the St. Francis description :-)

Have a wonderful Autumn! Enjoy the cool evenings and take some hikes!
Winter will be here soon enough - get out and enjoy nature!
Donna

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Critter Facts
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Katydids

We've had katydids in our garden this year. They liked the Castor Bean leaves. Even had one mating there one day. They are incredible the way they just blend in with the leaves. Their wings look like leaves with the shape and even the pattern matching the lines in leaves. We enjoyed them, but I haven't seen any for a couple of weeks now. I did learn a lot about them though, so maybe you will enjoy the information.

Katydids get their name from the way their songs sound. Some katydids have been called long-horned grasshoppers because of their long and slender shape. However, all katydids are more similar and related to crickets than grasshoppers. One of the things that makes them different from their relatives is their antennae which may be two or three times the length of their body. These antennae are covered with sensory receptors that allow katydids to find their way around in the dark, when most of them are active.

Crickets and katydids create sounds by rubbing a scraper on one forewing against a file on the other front wing. The hearing organ of crickets and katydids is located inside a slit on their front legs.

Being discovered often means death for insects. Katydids are eagerly sought by sharp-eyed and hungry predators, from bats and birds to snakes and shrews. To avoid becoming another creature's meal, katydids have had to evolve cunning and devious ways to hide.

Few other groups in the insect world have as wide a range of survival tactics as katydids. Katydids do everything from posing as remarkably life-like leaves to mimicking other insects in their attempts to make it through the day without being eaten. Check out The Wild Ones website to see some excellent pictures of katydid camouflage!

There are some 4,000 species of katydids in the world. Nowhere else does a greater variety of them exist than in the rain forests of the Amazon. About 2,000 katydid species can be found there! Katydids are an important part of the Amazonian rainforest community. They feed on the leaves, stems, flowers and fruits of a variety of plants. They also form an important part of the diet of many animals higher up in the food chain, especially monkeys, birds and bats.

Habitats

Katydids, like crickets and grasshoppers, are found in grassland areas because of the types of plants found in open fields. Many species of crickets and katydids that feed on trees are found in forests.

Life Cycle

Katydids have incomplete metamorphosis (egg-nymph-adult). Katydids lay their eggs in many places including the soil, in stems of plants, and in bark of trees. Here's a site with a picture of a female laying eggs.

Nymphs are very similar to the adults, except they are smaller and lack fully developed wings. The nymph goes through several molts (generally five), gradually developing into an adult.

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Those Amazing Birds!
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Ever Heard of a Poisonous Bird?

One day in 1989, Jack Dumbacher caught a bird, called a Hooded Pitohui, in a net in New Guinea. The bird bit and scratched at Jack while he was removing it from the net. At some point, Jack put his finger in his mouth. Sometimes, from such things are scientific discoveries made. Well, when Jack Dumbacher put his finger in his mouth, his tongue and lips went numb. After a little panic and a little investigation, it turned out that the pitohui (pronounced" pit-oo-eey," kind of like spitting) was poisonous.

The Hooded Pitohui (Pitohui dichrous, also called the "garbage bird") and the Ifrita (Ifrita kowaldi) from Papua, New Guinea are the first documented poisonous birds. The toxin (homobatrachotoxin, a steroidal alkaloid) is concentrated in these bird's feathers and skin, and is probably obtained from some plant that they eat.

The poison of the pitohui was identified, and it turned out that the poison is a very special one, and had only been seen once before - in dart poison frogs (of the genus Phyllobates in the family Dendrobatidae). Interestingly, the pitohuis and dart poison frogs are also somewhat similar in coloration.

Not much is known about pitohui biology. Major aspects of their life histories remain to be discovered. One of the most important unknown things is how they make homobatrachotoxin, and how the birds themselves survive the poison in their bodies. There is enough unknown to provide several people with lifetime research projects.

From: Mount Diablo Audubon Society

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Nature's Bounty For Us
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Get the Blood Moving with Walnuts

A new clinical study from the University of Barcelona shows that walnuts, in addition to lowering cholesterol, improve artery elasticity, thus increasing blood flow. (Circulation, 2004, vol. 109, no.13).

Unlike other nuts, walnuts are rich in alpha-linolenic acid, as well as the amino acid L-arginine and the gamma-tocopherol form of vitamin E, which researchers say help improve vascular flexibility and prevent harmful vascular blockage.

Herbal and Supplement Solutions by Health Topic

Do you need to build a body system for better health and wellness? Herbs work! They've been used by people all around the world for thousands of years. We've been using Nature's remedies since 1979 and found them to be so much help in gaining and maintaining health. This site lists natural solutions by health topic. Give herbs a try!

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Gardening For Wildlife - Restoring the Balance
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Weed Control Without Chemicals - People and Pet-Safe Choices

Weed control can be a daunting task. However, with regular maintenance and a few preventative tools, weeding can be manageable and even easy.

During the growing season, make a commitment to weed 20 minutes every week. Grab a hoe and disturb the little guys before they have the opportunity to grow big and tough. Circle hoes and asparagus knives/weeders are great weeding investments.

Mulch, mulch, mulch! Weed bare earth thoroughly and place 3 inches or more of wood chips, grass clippings, straw, and/or leaves over it. This will also help your plants conserve water and provide them nutrients. For pathways and other unplanted spots, place black landscaping cloth (or newspapers) under the mulch.

Plant beds closely and evenly, leaving little room for weeds to grow. As your plants grow, they will crowd weeds out as they drink all water and shade the bare ground.

Do not let weeds set seed. If nothing else, clip those weed flowers and seed heads as you see them.

For concrete cracks, kill weeds with a good clipping and boiling water. In the off-season, use cover crops or mulch to prevent weed growth. Rotate crops from year to year. Weeds hate that, as do pests. Your weeds make a great addition to a hot compost pile.

If you choose to use herbicides, consider non-toxic alternatives. DEAD LINK REMOVED ---Bioganic is one of them.

Corn gluten spread on bare earth has been shown to prevent weed growth. A handful of companies are providing gluten products. If your local nurseries do not carry these items, the Internet is a good resource.

Source: You Grow Girl

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Nature Around the World
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Building Community in Neighborhoods is Part of Nature Around Us

Residents wanted a community focus in their neighborhood, so they claimed a local street intersection as their own public square.

The neighbors first constructed representational elements of a public square: a Tea Station , where free, hot tea is available 24 hours a day; an Information Station; a Produce Station where people can get, give away or exchange food freely.

The neighborhood then held a block party and painted a design in the intersection to define the space. Although the City bureaucracy was initially opposed to the idea, the project soon won the support of the City Council and the Mayor of Portland.

In January 2000, the Council passed a City ordinance that allows any group of citizens to convert certain street intersections into public squares in their very own neighborhood.

This Community Demonstration Project was built almost entirely with recycled materials and volunteer labor. The total cost of the original installation was less than $200, mostly for the traffic paint used for the street surface design.

- DEAD LINK REMOVED - Read more about Share-It Square in Sellwood, OR.

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" Green" Info - Making It a Way of Life!
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Green Money Travels

As for recycling, I'd say dollar bills really get around. Do you ever wonder where your money goes!? It seems to disappear, right? Well, now you can find out where a bill has gone or where one you have has come from at an entertaining website.

All you need to do is enter the denomination, series, and serial number of any US dollar bill, and your current USA ZIP or Canadian Post Code and you'll find out if your money is a world traveler after it leaves your hands. There's a link for Canadian money also. Find out at Where's George?

Sunshine Concentrate - Detoxify Your Cleaning!

This environmentally-friendly cleaning and washing concentrate is nothing less than wonderful!! We've used this for 15 years and love it for laundry, hand soap, pet baths, soaking produce, dishwasher, cleaning, and a multitude of other uses. This product has saved us hundreds of dollars over the years. Makes life much simpler and takes away the "itch" of chemical soaps.

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Musings Of Nature
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" Look all around you, my daughters and sons, at the insects, animals, plants and trees of the forests and fields; at the fishes and the waters; at the birds and the air, and know that they do not need you to survive, rather it is you who need them! Therefore, treat all beings, all things which I have made for my purpose, gently, with love and compassion; respect them as if they were yourself. Only then can you be free, for truly, you are all my children."

--words from a poster entitled "words of the Great Spirit

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Featured Nature Center and/or Preserve
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Armand Bayou Nature Center

Provides environmental education and preserves the important and vanishing ecosystems with which it has been entrusted.  Armand Bayou Nature Center (ABNC) is 2,500 acres of diverse ecosystems located near NASA, situated in the Bay Area in Pasadena. 

Come explore our hardwood forests, walk our restored prairies of native grasses, and discover our wetlands. Wildlife abounds with bison, wild deer, rabbits, raccoons, and resident and migratory birds to mention just a few. 

Visit our turn of the century farm house to learn about rural life in the early 1900s. Join us in our efforts to preserve this valuable asset for our children and learn something along the way. Visit their site.

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Long Distance, Internet Access & Cellular Phone Comparisons
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If you enjoy this newsletter, please forward it on
to somebody you know. It's how we grow! Thanks!

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Disclaimer

The content, suggestions, and web links in this newsletter are for informational purposes only and not necessarily endorsed by our sponsor "The Herbs Place.com" This is a personal publication by Donna Watkins. The ideas and information expressed in it have not been approved or authorized by anyone either explicitly or impliedly. In no event shall Donna Watkins or " The Herbs Place.com" be liable for any damages whatsoever resulting from any action arising in connection with the use of this information or its publication, including any action for infringement of copyright or defamation.