I suppose my back yard is the Mecca for house finches. They are at my feeders throughout the day, every day, spring, summer, fall and winter. They never fly off for vacations. They stay planted in my yard. Late this summer, I assume right after several families hatched, we had 30 or more finches at a time fighting for a spot on my sunflower heart feeder. The little rascals also love to take baths … [Read more...]

Ever wonder where frogs go and what they do when it gets cold? Me either, until several of the friendly little amphibians took up residence in our new goldfish pond. Now, I stay up nights worrying about what frogs do in the winter, that and wondering if I remembered to put the roast back in the refrigerator. Here’ what I discovered about frogs in cold weather. Frogs are cold blooded. That … [Read more...]

This happens to be National Bat Week – Oct. 25-31, so I suppose an article on the creepy little devils is in order. Everybody I know is either afraid of or is repulsed by bats. Count Dracula was a bat, you know, and who wants to deal with the likes of him? Bats however are among the most interesting creatures on this planet. Our Virginia Wildlife Division notes that few people realize that … [Read more...]

We have one of those light sensors rigged to the spotlight in our backyard. The other night, it flashed on and Nancy – ever the worry wart – got up to check it out. “Come see this,” she said, rousting me out of bed. There he was, Ricky Raccoon, clinging to our birdfeeder with sunflower hearts. Somehow, he had managed to climb over the baffle which keeps squirrels at bay, and he had … [Read more...]

Every morning, he sits on the fence beside his old bird house. Occasionally, he flits over to the house, peeks inside, then flies back to the fence. He is my lonely bluebird. Last summer, he lost his partner. The male bird and his mate had selected the house several months before they started nesting in late March. I believe they had nested in the house the previous year. They raised their … [Read more...]

We have recently found a few snakeskins in our yard, so that meant there were snakes around. But until this week, we had not seen any. Yesterday, I heard Nancy shrieking outside, and that meant she had found the snakes. She wasn’t afraid of the snakes per se, they were harmless garter snakes, but she feared they might get our frogs and there were now two of the slimy critters in our small … [Read more...]

    What a difference between now and last June. Earlier in the summer, birds were going nuts, chasing away real and imagined enemies, feeding and guarding the chicks and fighting for position at the feeders. Now, it’s quiet and peaceful and many birds have moved on. I heard a robin yesterday, but didn’t see him. They have largely migrated, but they’ll be back with the first extended fall … [Read more...]

  Arizona has more species of hummingbirds than any other state in the United States – probably because of its proximity to Mexico, where most hummingbirds winter. Strangely, a hummingbird called a Violet Crowned Hummingbird, normally found in Arizona, may have found its way to Virginia. I was discussing hummingbirds with my friend, Wayne Ferguson, and admitted that a few weeks back I … [Read more...]

I have a pet skink. He shares my office here at Lights Out in Ruckersville. He, or a member of his clan, has been with me with four years. I see him every summer. He sneaks under a small crack below my front door. He stopped by for a visit last week and scooted across the carpet. He was casing the joint, looking for a mid-afternoon snack, maybe an ant or spider. A cricket would qualify as a … [Read more...]