Gleanings of the Week Ending October 29, 2022

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The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

How an asteroid impact would transform the food we eat – Thought provoking…and scary. Right now, I am beginning to wonder how the level of drought in the US is going to change the food we eat…or will we eat the same way but pay much higher prices.

A Field Guide to Unexpected, Out-of-Place Wildlife – Why wildlife shows up in the ‘wrong’ place… I had read about the shifting range of armadillos last spring (was reminded of it by the reference to the Virginia opossum in this post).

State Of the Birds Report: More Than Half of U.S. Bird Species Are Declining – Sad….another indicator that the Earth is changing.

Economic losses from hurricanes become too big to be offset by the US if warming continues – I’ve been wondering about this since Hurricane Harvey and finally there is some analysis of the data…but, so far, it does not seem to be changing the way we deal with the aftermath of these catastrophic storms. The dominate idea still seems to be ‘rebuild.’

Life expectancy improves in some countries after big drops in 2020 – but US and others see further falls  - The life expectancy at birth in the US was 79.8 in 2019 and was down to 77.4 in 2021. It might take a few years until the impact of COVID-19 on life expectancy is fully understood. It seems to me that there are other cultural changes that happened concurrent with the COVID-19 pandemic that could impact life expectancy in the US into the future: reduced vaccination rates, reduced trust in medical professionals, increased belief in whatever is said on social media and conspiracy theories, increased stress/mental health challenges, etc.

The Clean Water Act at 50: Big Successes, More to Be Done – The Act was passed the year I graduated from high school. I had done a project about algae as pollution indicator in the streams around Dallas, Texas in the fall before so I was aware of water pollution issues of the time. It is frustrating that there is still so much to be done….

New model of Alzheimer’s as an autoimmune disease – A new perspective….maybe leading to new therapies in the future.

Ancient Maya Cities Were Polluted with High Levels of Mercury – The Maya coated surfaces (walls and floors and bodies) with cinnabar…and the mercury from that leached into the water supply and soils. Chronic mercury poisoning causes tremors, weakened vision and hearing, and paralysis! The contamination at some sites is high enough that archaeologists need to use mitigation techniques and protective gear.

Young kids avoid one learning trap that often snares adults – Young kids are not as good at focused attention as adults which means they notice new things happening away from a ‘focus area’ more quickly…..but focused attention can also mean learned inattention in adults which might not be the best strategy in all situations.

After Three Summers, Man Finally Gets Photos of Hummingbird with Rainbow Wings – Beautiful pictures. They prompted me to look up why hummingbird feathers can show the colors of the rainbow. I found a Science Daily post from back in 2020 that offers an explanation.

Our New Neighborhood – October 2022

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It’s our first fall in Nixa, Missouri. The trees around the ponds in our neighborhood are full of fall color although they may be more muted than some years because of the dry summer we had. Still – there are plenty of reds and yellows that have been added to the greens still left from summer.

I am glad that there are maples around that are as brilliant as the ones we left behind in Maryland. My favorite time is when the tree has a lot of different colors!

At the edges of the ponds, I noticed some honey suckle blooming…and seed pods.

In the water there were two different turtles. Ones was a red-eared slider.

But I’m not sure what the other one was. It was larger than the red-eared slider…had very different markings and shell. Too bad I didn’t get better pictures. It’s good to know that there are at least 2 kinds of turtles in our neighborhood!

Gleanings of the Week Ending October 22, 2022

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The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

US National Integrated Drought Information System – 68.4% of the US is abnormally dry…46% is in moderate drought…27% in severe drought. Use the location tab of this page to select state or county level maps color coded for their drought status. Where I live, we are in moderate drought.

Autumn in the Adirondacks – Leaf color has not been impacted by the drought in the Adirondacks. The pictures are from the Landsat 9 satellite. I’m enjoying the color from the ground – even with the drought here in Missouri making it not as colorful as it probably was in prior years.

Why cork is making a comeback – The main product mentioned in the article was cork stoppers….but I thought of the calm I felt when I walked into the University of Michigan’s Law Library with a tour group and realized how much the cork floor muffled our footsteps. It was the highpoint of the trip with my daughter when she was considering the school for her undergraduate studies.

Blue fibers found in dental calculus of Maya sacrifice victims – Analysis of more than 100 sacrifice victims found blue fibers in the mouths of 2 of them. Are the fibers from blue gags left in the mouths of victims over and extended time? Similar pigment called Maya blue has been found in other sites where it may have been used to paint the bodies of sacrificial victims. Another archeological mystery…

See the buzzworthy winners of the Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition – Eye candy for the week.

Millions of Americans are losing access to maternal care. Here’s what can be done – 36% of the counties nationwide – largely in the Midwest and South – constitute “maternity care deserts,” meaning they have no obstetric hospitals or birth centers and no obstetric providers. That does not bode well for the health of mothers and the next generation.

These stunning satellite images look like abstract art – and they reveal much about our planet – 8 images selected from US Geological Survey satellite images of the Earth’s surface.

Engineers weave advanced fabric that can cool a wearer down and warm them up – Maybe the ‘cool down’ of this technology (if it can be developed) will help us deal with climate change more effectively. There are already beginning to be more heat related deaths and there will be some occupations that will become impossible without technology to cool the body in outdoor environments.

Rainfall is becoming more intense in most of the US – East of the Rockies…there is increasing precipitation intensity. Water resource management is more challenging. Flooding risk is going up too.

USGS Public Lecture Series – A wide range of topics including volcanoes in Alaska, earthquake early warning for all, migratory big game, droughts and groundwater quality, modernizing the national water information system….and many more. I am beginning to work my way down this YouTube playlist.

London, Ontario: Carpenter Ant

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My daughter and I waited for the warmest afternoon to eat outdoors at Morrissey House near our hotel. Shortly after we sat down, a small insect flew onto the menu. A case of wildlife in the city of London, Ontario! I began to take macro images of it and then realized it was shedding its wings! It looked like an ant to me. My daughter commented that it could be a termite.

The sequence above happened over less than a minute! The waitress returned and took the menu – ending my photographic opportunity.  

A little research using the photos….and I concluded that it was a carpenter ant.

London, Ontario: Thames River and Old Courthouse

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On my first morning in London, Ontario, I waited until it warmed up enough then walked down to the Thames River Kensington Bridge.

There was a hiking/biking trail along the river. I took the branch that went under the bridge and discovered the markers for the floods in 1883 and 1937.

There is a sign (in English and French) from 2000 when the river was designated part of the Canadian Heritage Rivers System.

I enjoyed taking pictures of the fall plants along the river (since there were only Canada Geese and Mallards in the water and the lighting was not good for photography of the river itself).

I walked back uphill toward the downtown area noticing that there were young gingkoes planted as street trees.

The Old Court House is up the hill from the river. It was built in 1827 and is covered with vines – used today as an event space. There was not an event happening while I was there (and a lot of construction in the immediate area), so I got a good look of the outside. The vines were turning red with the cooler temperatures.

I walked up to the front of the building and took some macro photos of the way the vines attached to the stone…and discovered that the vines had small berries!

Overall - it was a good walk on a sunny fall day….and a good orientation for my plans to explore the downtown area of London, Ontario!

London, Ontario Tree Sculptures and Murals

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Like many small cities, London, Ontario has street trees to break the monotony of concrete, asphalt, and brick. The tree sculptures make it different. They are positioned along the streets in similar positions that real trees might be desirable, but the sidewalk is too narrow or there is some reason that a real tree would not thrive. The pole (trunk) and the ‘canopy’ of the sculptures take less space…and they will be the same size year after year. I enjoyed the sculptures in the early fall and realized they would make the streets more colorful and appealing in winter when the real trees nearby would be without their leaves.

The city has buildings of various ages…some over 100 years old. Murals have been painted on some of the brick walls.

The sea mural was the largest…partially hidden by a construction project.

My favorite was the mural across from it – also partially hidden by the construction project.

Overall – the sculpture and murals always made my walks around the central part of London, Ontario more interesting!

Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory Grounds and Aquarium

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Continuing from yesterday’s post about our visit to Belle Island, Detroit, Michigan….

The conservatory has a koi pond that had some large specimens that seemed particularly dense near the waterfall. I liked the turtle fountain…reminded me of similar ones at Longwood Gardens in Pennsylvania. I wondered what happened to the koi pond during the winter. Detroit must get very cold.

The structure of the conservatory has some high portions and there are some plants that have grown very tall…filling the spaces.

The grounds are grassy areas with some flower beds that were beginning to fade. I took a few macro images

There was a black squirrel that zipped across the very wet grass (we dodged the soggiest areas). There were black squirrels in London, Ontario too – more than the gray/brown ones.

The grounds also included a Japanese lantern and tower.

We went into the Aquarium. It reminded me of the

Washington DC aquarium that was in the Department of Commerce building; it closed in 2013 but I remembered touring it when I was pregnant with my daughter back in 1989…and becoming very queasy from the fish smell.  The aquarium in Washington DC was completed in 1932. The one on Belle Island has been operational since 1904! They used the lull during the pandemic for renovation…it seemed to be in great shape (and no fishy smells). The lighting was such that it was easier to get reasonably good pictures through the glass! I particularly enjoyed the puffer fish, brittle stars, sea horses, and anemones.

Overall – our visit to Belle Island took about 2 hours. We headed back into Detroit to find a restaurant before we continued our journey to London, Ontario.

Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory

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The Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory is on Belle Island (in the Detroit River). It is the oldest continually-running conservatory in the US….opening in 1904. The original wood framing was replaced with steel and aluminum in 1949. My daughter and I stopped to see it on our road trip from our homes in Missouri to London Ontario.

The place is filled with interesting plants. It was challenging to get wide views from the relatively narrow walkways other than looking upward.  

I quickly reverted to macro type photographs.

Some plants interested me so much that I took multiple images of the same plant.

Curly crotons were new to me.

The Venus flytrap and pitcher plants were inside a terrarium type structure that somehow made it even easier to photograph them.

The cactus room was one of my favorites…my theme was to photograph the various configurations of cactus spines.

The conservatory is not the largest I’ve toured…but it probably packs more plants into its space than any other! Tomorrow’s post will be about the grounds around the conservatory (including a koi pond) and the aquarium.

Josey Ranch – September 2002

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Carrollton’s Josey Ranch Lake still had noticeable problems. The broken sidewalks and disassembled boardwalks were still the same as in August. The heavy crane was gone. 3 city trucks drove on the walkway to get to the other side of the lake to begin repair to the boardwalks while I was there. Maybe the broken walkways will come next….or they’ll wait until next summer.

I saw one swan in August but didn’t see any in September and there were a lot of white feathers in the water and mud near the remaining cattail area. They were not native swans…but they have been at the lake from the beginning. They will be missed if they are truly gone.

I did see some other birds which made for a good morning of bird photography.

Great Egret

Great Blue Heron


Green Heron

Snowy Egret

Hopefully the work around the lake will be done before the winter birds arrive.

Kittens! – Month 2

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The second month with our 3 kittens has continued the small adventures within our household.

The kittens had their first visit to the vet…which confirmed our suspicion that Puma was a female rather than the male her foster family had thought. The kittens took the visit in stride, traveling together in a large cat carrier and not being too traumatized by their first shots. They will have more shots in the coming month and are scheduled for surgery in early December (we don’t want more kittens!).

Their favorite toys often have dangling (snake like?) parts….like my husband’s shoes. They are hard on feathers (note the white fluff on the blue rug from the toy Pooky is clawing and knowing). My husband is on the hunt for toys that are more durable than feathers.

They are big enough to not generally sleep in a pile like they did when we first got them. They often are in the same room for their naps though. In the picture below Puma is in the blue chair, Pooky is in the box and Sooty is curled up in the gold chair. Note that my husband still leave things precariously perched on the end table….when the kittens play chase through the room, those items often end up in the floor!

The cats like high perches for both play and sleep. The cat tree is still popular (and shedding carpet fibers from their antics). Puma likes the bar stool in the big bathroom. She has to endure Pooky grabbing for her tail….but the height makes it worth the hassle.

All the cats seem to like being on top of the suitcase. I must always keep it zipped!

The unique aspects that we’re noticing at the end of the second month are:

  • Puma leaps the highest.

  • Pooky is the most vocal and will stay cuddled in a lap the longest.

  • Sooty is the biggest and can be the bully…maybe he’s feeling the pressure of being the only male. On the flip side, he enjoys being picked up more than the other kittens.

Previous Kittens! Posts: day 1, day 2, day 3, day 4, day 5, week 1, week 2, month 1

Gleanings of the Week Ending October 8, 2022

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The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

Photography Collective Highlights Washington State’s Beautiful Vistas in New Book – My husband and I were talking about a trip to the northwestern US before the pandemic…maybe it’s time to think about it again. It’s one of the few areas of the country we have not visited.

The people resurrecting India’s ancient fruit trees – Saving varieties of trees through grafting…mangos being the dominant example in this article.

Longhorned tick discovered in northern Missouri – I perked up when I saw ‘Missouri’ in the title…since I now live in the state. It turns out that this tick is originally from eastern Russia and Australasia…and was first found in the US in New Jersey in 2017. It has been spreading rapidly with Missouri being the first state in the Midwest. It has a negative impact on cattle.

Cactus holes and cobwebs: the weird nesting habits of birds – Some unusual bird nests.

James Earl Jones Retires from Voicing Darth Vader – End of an era….but not the sound because that will continue on recreated by a proprietary AI.

As carbon dioxide grows more abundant, trees are growing bigger – Increased CO2 accelerates photosynthesis and plants grow faster. The phenomenon is called ‘carbon fertilization.’ That can help reduce climate change if we can keep our forests intact (and increase forests). Drought, insect infestations, and wildfires are a big challenge toward that goal.

NASA successfully crashed a spacecraft into its asteroid target – A baby step toward defending Earth from space rocks.

Cacao consumption no limited to Maya elites – Cacao residues were found on jars, mixing bowls, serving plates, and drinking vessels used all over the El Pilar site.

Neonatal sepsis: the new threat posed by superbugs – Antibiotics were introduced in the 1940s, saving many lives…but they have been over-used – unintentionally breeding resistant microbes that no antibiotic can treat. In India, 20% of neonatal deaths are caused by sepsis.

US Plan to Add 500,000 EV Chargers in All 50 States Gets Final Approval – Hurray! I am enjoying my plug-in hybrid (Prius Prime) right now but want my next car to be an EV….and I still want to be able to take road trips! This project getting underway is a start toward making that easier.

Carrollton Yard (2) – September 2022

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A quick whirl around the front and side garden in Carrollton TX…

Then to focus on plants I looked at more closely:

Red yucca. This time of year the seed pods are always interested. As the seed pods dry, they tend to look burnt and black…the seeds inside are black as well.

After the sprinklers finished one morning, I took macro pictures of the Tradescantia pallida (purple heart or Wandering Jew) flowers.   The flowers act as small cups holding the water droplets.

Overall - most of the plants survived the severe weather earlier in the summer; it will be interesting to see how the fall progresses.  

Carrollton Yard (1) – September 2022

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The elderly mulberry with a thermometer is close to the garden room. The days I was in Carrollton TX in September started in the 80s and got up to the 90s every day! We did everything we needed to do outdoors before it got above 90! The sprinklers are keeping up although some plants have not recovered from the many days of 100+ temperatures with almost no rain in the first months of summer.

The chives are blooming with seeds beginning to form. By next month, the seeds should be visible. Crepe myrtle and hibiscus and cosmos weathered the heat…got enough water to make it to September and still bloom.

The surprise of September (for me) were orange spider lilies. Evidently, they have been there for years, but I just wasn’t visiting at the time they were blooming. They look great in the garden and can be cut for dramatic and long-lasting bouquets.

I captured a tiny landscape found in the garden: wandering jew, a yellow mulberry leaf…framed by a hose.

Lizards like the garden. I saw one in a sunny patch of grass…then on the trunk of the sweet gum. His coloring helps him blend into the tree bark better than the grass!

More tomorrow on other plants of the September Garden….

Zooming – September 2022

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There are 18 images in the zoom slideshow for September. Some are from around my house in Missouri. Others are from the Lake Springfield Meadow and the Springfield Botanical Gardens. One is from Carrollton, Texas. I have skewed somewhat toward macro images taken with my Smartphone but I still like to get ‘close’ from a distance with the optics of my bridge camera (Canon Powershot SX70 HS). There will be plenty of opportunity for photography with my upcoming travel (2 out of the next 4 weeks) and the beginning of the seasonal change. For now – enjoy the scenes I captured in September…

Artsy Photograph

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A soft focus rose…a flower that was in a small vase on my windowsill.

I like having a rose bush near my office – close to my office. I go out to snip the spent flowers and cut 1 or 3 blossoms to bring inside every week. These are not long-stemmed roses – like found in a florist shop. But the bush has bloomed since June and the colors vary from pink to red (changing with age)…some streaks of white. The bush has become another aspect of my Missouri home that I hadn’t realized how much I would enjoy until I was here for a few weeks. Having the roses to photograph is just icing on an already rich cake!

Gleanings of the Week Ending September 24, 2022

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The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

Photographer Captures the Vast Beauty of Alaska Through Breathtaking Mountainscapes – Eventually I’d like to visit Alaska…but pictures are the next best way to experience the state.

Characteristics of older forests can buffer effects of climate change for some bird species – Results from an 8-year study (2011-18). Forests can provide refugia for some species….our stewardship is important.

Ruby was the first Black child to desegregate her school. This is what she learned – I’m glad she survived and thrived….don’t want any child going through this type of experience in the future. Education is challenging for child without accompanying trauma from the community or institution or bullies.

Should you feed garden birds? – Right now we have 2 bird feeders and baths…with a few plants in the yard that attract birds as well. Over the next few years, I will be planting for the birds – native plants that will support insects the birds need particularly during their breeding season…produce pollen and nectar and seeds to round out their diet.

Earth’s Iconic Waves, observed by Landsat – A 3.5 minute video about places on earth where the waves are significant enough to be visible from satellites…and a little about why those spots produce the types of waves observed.

The sands of Mars are green as well as red, rover Perseverance discovers – The discovery of volcanic rocks on Mars rich with large grains of olivine! I remember going to a green sand beach on the big island of Hawaii – olivine on earth.

Enhanced Geothermal Technology Cracks The 24/7 Energy Code – Maybe a technology that will be as important as wind and solar in our renewable energy portfolio.

What older adults do while they sit affects dementia risk – Passive behaviors like watching TV increased dementia risk-- on the plus side active behaviors while sitting like reading and using computers reduced dementia risk. The study had more than 145,000 participants aged 60 or over with nearly 12 years of follow-up.

Cataracts: we’re working on eye drops to treat them so people don’t need surgery – Glad the research is happening…probably not fast enough to be available when my cataracts will require treatment.

When Told About Flood Risk, Homebuyers Shun Vulnerable Homes, Study Finds – I shouldn’t be a surprise that people don’t want to buy properties that flood….and there are a lot of expensive coastal properties that have an increasing flood risk.

Through my office window – September 2022

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I am finally situated to do ‘through the window’ photography from my home office in Missouri. The last tweaks were to put the screen in storage and clean the window. I also moved one of the bird baths for easier viewing. My husband and I moved a bird feeder to be surrounded on three sides by hollies….the open side being visible from my window; the other feeder, in a more open space, has become secondary based on bird traffic. Here are the best images from this month:

House finches at the bird bath

Rain drops pelting the bird bath

A chickadee that seemed to be looking at me!

Goldfinches at the feeder

A downy woodpecker at the feeder

Doves taking over one of the patio chairs

Dried Roses

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Sometimes the roses I bring indoors for my windowsill or a center piece on the table turn into subjects for macro photography as they fade…before they go into the compost pile. While they all start out as a pinkish red, there are variations in color that develop as the petals dry. Often the color darkens to a burgundy…other times there are tinges of orange and yellow. I used several variations in magnification with my phone (Samsung Galaxy S10e) for these images….was pleased with the results.

My phone is almost always with me and I’m still in awe at the quality of images it can produce. The cameras in phones have come a long way in the past 10 years…and mine is not even ‘top of the line’ at this point! The technology is no longer a limiting factor for much of the photography I want to do. It’s up to me to be creative…and consciously utilize the technology in my hand!

Springfield Botanical Gardens (insects/spider) – September 2022

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The temperature was in the low 70s and sunny during our visit to Springfield Botanical Gardens last week. There were plenty of insects to observe. I used my bridge camera (Canon Powershot SX70 HS) with its optical zoom for insect groupings and photographing a buckeye butterfly that flew out of the meadow onto a dusty patch. There was also a dragonfly a few feet into the meadow that appeared to be enjoying a snack.

Otherwise, I used my phone (Samsung Galaxy S10e) for more extreme macro shots where I could get closer to the subjects. I saw the solder beetles on several different flowers in the natural garden near the Botanical Center building – the very first place I looked to find insects; there were quite a few mating (maybe they overwinter as eggs?). The Monarch butterfly surprised me – landing on a butterfly bush very close to where I was standing. I didn’t have enough room to swing my bridge camera around to photograph it….but I am pleased enough with the results from my phone.

I photographed an adult stink bug then something a had not seen before: a small jewel like insect on a flower that might be a nymph of the green stink bug!

Springfield Botanical Gardens (plants) – September 2022

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Last week my husband and I headed over to the Springfield Botanical Gardens for some early fall photography. I quickly opted toward macro shots with my phone (Samsung Galaxy S10e) even though my external shutter clicker had a dead battery. I was pleased with the results.

Early fall is a great time for seed pods and drying flowers. There are the cheery yellow flowers and green foliage (sunflowers of various kinds, goldenrod)…it seems like some plants are throwing a last burst of energy into their flowers.

Tomorrow’s post will be about insects and spiders. We skewed toward the meadow and pollinator gardens – and found the ‘wildlife’ just about everywhere we looked!