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Squirrel Tales

Evergreen Cone Scales, Courtesy & Copyright Shannon Rhodes
Evergreen Cone Scales
Courtesy & Copyright Shannon Rhodes

Nature Rings, Courtesy & Copyright Shannon Rhodes Nature Rings
Courtesy & Copyright Shannon Rhodes

The recent snows have made the sledding hill at Edith Bowen Laboratory School on the campus of Utah State University a popular place, but without snow, children flock at recess to the wild area under the oak trees to harvest acorns. I’ve invited one of these students, a seven-year-old first grader named Lila, to explain this phenomenon:

“You get an acorn and you rub the pointy bottom part and keep doing it for a bit and then you can put it on whatever finger it fits on and it turns into a nature ring.”

They trade them and then squirrel the rings away in their lockers. Sometimes they stop to notice the squirrels scolding above them in the trees, and one day I sat with them to appreciate a noisy one. Nibbling away, its eight black claws rotated the little nugget it was holding. Standing erect so I could see the whitish belly fur and bushy tail, it kept me in its sights as I sketched its silhouette and details in my nature journal.

The Natural History Museum of Utah sponsored another Squirrel Fest during the first week of December, and I should have been better prepared to identify it so I could participate in that project during the same month as the Christmas Bird Count. The NHMU website reports that more than 900 Utah citizen scientists watched for and collected data on fox squirrels and other squirrels in 2023. I know now that my squirrel wasn’t a fox squirrel native to the eastern U.S. Those critters are moving in. Actually, they have been spreading throughout northern Utah since 2011. I know mine was probably not that target species because the fox squirrel is larger and has a bright yellow or orange belly and a long, very bushy tail.

Here’s another story. One June afternoon last summer in the Cache National Forest, I stumbled upon a massive pile of evidence that squirrels had been busy, having stashed their food finds and then unpacking them. The pile of evergreen cone scale leftovers was over three feet tall. I had seen middens at the base of trees before, but never had I seen a pile this incredible. Even though it was a snow pile that the cone scales covered, the insulation slowing the melt, it was still monstrous.

As most of the students on the first day launching my first ever university writing class described themselves as writers with words like decent, ok, alright, unpolished, and mediocre, I thought about that pile of potential. They have stories, piles of stories to tell and teach, squirreled away maybe, but ready to thaw.

Just like Kate DiCamillo’s superpowered squirrel Ulysses in her children’s novel Flora and Ulysses, we all have stories to write. DiCamillo wrote, “He would write and write. He would make wonderful things happen. Some of it would be true. All of it would be true. Well….Most of it would be true.”

This year on January 21 we celebrate Squirrel Appreciation Day. But whether you watch and write about squirrels or anything else, we think it is time for you to get writing stories just as magical as nature rings made of acorns at recess.

For Wild About Utah, I’m Shannon Rhodes, and I am Lila Hoggan.

Credits:

Images: Courtesy & Copyright Shannon Rhodes, Photographer
Audio: Courtesy & © Friend Weller, https://upr.org/
Text:     Shannon Rhodes and Lila Hoggan, Edith Bowen Laboratory School, Utah State University https://edithbowen.usu.edu/
Additional Reading Links: Shannon Rhodes

Additional Reading:

Wild About Utah Pieces by Shannon Rhodes, https://wildaboututah.org/author/shannon-rhodes/

DiCamillo, Kate. Flora and Ulysses. 2013. Candlewick Press. https://www.candlewick.com/cat.asp?mode=book&isbn=0763687642

Greene, Jack. Intelligent Tree Squirrels. Wild About Utah, Oct. 17, 2022. https://wildaboututah.org/intelligent-tree-squirrels/

Larese-Casanova, Mark. Nutcrackers and Squirrels: Farmers of the Forest. Wild About Utah, Aug. 26, 2013. https://wildaboututah.org/nutcrackers-squirrels-farmers-forests/

Natural History Museum of Utah. Utah Fox Squirrels. https://nhmu.utah.edu/citizen-science/utah-fox-squirrels

Strand, Holly. Rocky the Flying Squirrel. Wild About Utah, Nov. 26, 2009. https://wildaboututah.org/rocky-the-flying-squirrel/

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The Audubon Society for the Protection of Birds is Counting Birds for Conservation

The Audubon Society for the Protection of Birds is Counting Birds for Conservation: Cassiar Junco, Courtesy & Copyright Hilary Shughart
Cassiar Junco
Courtesy & Copyright Hilary Shughart

The Audubon Society for the Protection of Birds is Counting Birds for Conservation: Cedar Waxwing eating Juniper Berry, Courtesy & Copyright Jimmie Grutzmacher, Photographer Cedar Waxwing eating Juniper Berry
Courtesy & Copyright Jimmie Grutzmacher, Photographer

Red-breasted Nuthatch, The Birds of America paintings by John James Audubon, Courtesy the John James Audubon Center at Mill Grove, Montgomery County Audubon Collection, and Zebra Publishing Red-breasted Nuthatch
The Birds of America paintings by John James Audubon
Courtesy the John James Audubon Center at Mill Grove, Montgomery County Audubon Collection, and Zebra Publishing

The Bridgerland Audubon Society has enjoyed another productive Cache Valley Christmas Bird Count, and the participation of volunteers watching from home has proven as valuable as ever because despite the roving teams of volunteers covering the farms, wetlands, canyons, and mountains in the established 177 square mile count circle, the home sector sometimes contributes species missed by the driving and hiking teams. Either way, birds connect us because everyone who spent at least a few minutes counting birds was an important part of assisting the Audubon Society in generating community science data for the conservation of birds and the habitat they need.

The Audubon Society for the Protection of Birds was established in 1886 by George Bird Grinnell, who was inspired by the conservation ethic of his tutor and mentor, Lucy Bakewell Audubon, the widow of naturalist and artist John James Audubon. Grinnell published The Audubon Magazine, which “constituted one of the first efforts to preserve bird species decimated by the women’s hat trade, hunting, and loss of habitat.” (1) Many of the early members were women who, ironically, would attend society meetings wearing plumed hats.” (2) Grinnell is credited as the architect of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, an effort which took over a decade of advocacy and the many voices of Audubon chapter members.

“The legacy of the Migratory Bird Treaty is the recognition that these magnificent birds are held in public trust and shared by all citizens. Our responsibility is to make sure that this legacy endures by conserving and managing migratory birds and their habitats for future generations to enjoy.” (3), and while the Migratory Bird Treaty Act is the cornerstone of migratory bird management across North America, anyone can help by participating in community science bird counts.

Highlights from this year’s Christmas Bird Count Home Sector reports include a few species not seen last year, such as Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum), which can be attracted to gardens with a songbird border of Juniper berries, Hawthorn, Serviceberry, and Red Osier Dogwood.

Also seen, the Ruby-crowned Kinglet (Corthylio calendula), one of North America’s smallest birds, which “can linger because in addition to insects, it will also eat berries and suet at feeders.”(4) The Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis) “feeds mainly on insects and spiders in summer; in winter, eats many seeds, especially those of conifers. Young are fed mostly or entirely on insects and spiders.” (5)

“Seed-eating boreal visitors, including several sparrow species and the Darkeyed Junco, will benefit from your letting things go literally to seed.” (6) The American and Lesser Goldfinch (Spinus tristis & Spinus psaltria) and the Pine Siskin (Spinus pinus) can be seen feasting on the tiny seeds in dried wild Sunflowers, Coneflowers, and Black-eyed Susans.

This year we added the elusive Cassiar (Junco hyemalis cismontanus), a Darkeyed Junco race also known as the Rocky Mountain Junco, which is rare to spot anywhere.(7) The Cassiar resembles a Slate Junco, but with a hood darker than it’s back. It is set apart from the more common Oregon, Slate, Pink-sided, and Gray-headed Juncos. This is an exciting addition to our local Christmas Bird Count checklist, and was made possible by someone watching the birds outside their window. To paraphrase Louis Pasteur who observed that in science chance favors the prepared mind, the more you know, the more you notice.

I’m Hilary Shughart with the Bridgerland Audubon Society, and I am wild about Utah!

Credits:

Images: Cassiar Junco, Courtesy & Copyright Hilary Shughart
      Cedar Waxwing eating Juniper Berry Courtesy and Copyright Jimmie Grutzmacher, Photographer
      Red-breasted Nuthatch: Courtesy of the John James Audubon Center at Mill Grove, Montgomery County Audubon Collection, and Zebra Publishing https://www.audubon.org/birds-of-america/red-breasted-nuthatch
Featured Audio: Courtesy & Copyright © Kevin Colver, https://wildstore.wildsanctuary.com/collections/special-collections/kevin-colver
Text & Voice: Hilary Shughart, President, https://bridgerlandaudubon.org/
Additional Reading: Hilary Shughart and Lyle Bingham, https://bridgerlandaudubon.org/

Additional Reading

  1.  Spare the Birds! George Bird Grinnell and the First Audubon Society, by Carolyn Merchant, Yale University Press, 2016. https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300215458/spare-the-birds/
  2.  B&C Member Spotlight – George Bird Grinnell, Boone and Crockett Club, https://www.boone-crockett.org/bc-member-spotlight-george-bird-grinnell
  3.  The Migratory Bird Treaty Centennial, For 100 years, this landmark agreement has been the cornerstone of migratory bird management across North America. by Paul Schmidt. Ducks Unlimited, June 23, 2016, https://www.ducks.org/newsroom/the-migratory-bird-treaty-centennial
  4.  Ruby-crowned Kinglet, American Bird Conservancy, https://abcbirds.org/bird/ruby-crowned-kinglet/
  5.  Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis), National Audubon, https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/red-breasted-nuthatch
  6.  “ Even though records are widespread across much of the lower 48, only two of the grids show higher than the 0-2% frequency, the rarest category. They appear to not be common anywhere.”
    Dark-eyed Junco races: Oregon, Slate-colored and Cassiar By eBird Northwest Team December 12, 2014 https://ebird.org/pnw/news/dark-eyed-junco-races-oregon-slate-colored-and-cassiar/
  7.  How to Welcome Winter Birds: Fall may mean migration, but one bird’s north is just another bird’s south. By Ashley P. Taylor, National Audubon, October 06, 2015, https://www.audubon.org/news/how-welcome-winter-birds
    Disponible en español
  8.  Dark-eyed Junco races: Oregon, Slate-colored and Cassiar By eBird Northwest Team December 12, 2014 https://ebird.org/pnw/news/dark-eyed-junco-races-oregon-slate-colored-and-cassiar/

Ordinary Extraordinary Junco, by Jonathan Atwell, Steve Burns, and Ellen Ketterson, 2013 Documentary Video https://juncoproject.org/view-download/chapter3/index.html

Wright, Rick, “The Junco Called Cassiar” (2013). Nebraska Bird Review. 1324. https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/nebbirdrev/1324
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2323&context=nebbirdrev

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Christmas Reindeer

Reindeer: Yuki the Reindeer from the Mountain West Animal Hospital. Courtesy & Copyright Mary Heers, Photographer
Yuki the Reindeer from the Mountain West Animal Hospital
Courtesy & Copyright Mary Heers, Photographer

Mary with Bluebell the Reindeer from the Rockin Reindeer Ranch at the Ogden City Christmas Square. Copyright Mary Heers Mary with Bluebell the Reindeer
from the
Rockin Reindeer Ranch
Ogden City Christmas Square
Copyright Mary Heers

I first time I came face to face with a living, breathing reindeer was a few weeks ago at the Reindeer Express hosted by Utah State University vet students. Two vets from the Mt. West Animal Hospital near Provo had brought two of their reindeer with them to Cache Valley and were standing by to answer our questions.

The first thing I learned was that both male and female reindeer grow a new set of antlers every year. The antlers are solid bone and can weigh up to 15 pounds. The males usually drop their antlers in Nov after the mating season, while the females keep theirs a few months longer – until after they drop their calves in the Spring. A vet student chimed in. He said reindeer losing their antlers looks a lot like us losing a baby tooth. The antlers get a little wobbly and simply fall off. The reindeer just keeps grazing.

Now I was hot on the trail of reindeer in Utah. I went to the Ogden City Christmas Square to meet Bluebell from the Rockin Reindeer farm near Ogden. As admirers were taking pictures, Bluebell’s owner told me that watching the antlers regrow could be pretty exciting. Every morning you could get up and easily see how the antlers had grown another inch overnight.

I also learned if you listened closely, you could hear a clicking when the reindeer walked. The first time they heard it, they thought something was terribly wrong. But all reindeer click when the tendon in their leg slides over a bone. Clicking seems to be a way for the herd to find each other in white-out winter weather.

Another adaptation to intense cold is the hair that covers every reindeer’s nose This helps keep it warm in the reindeers natural habitat in the far north.

I can trace my own fascination with reindeer to my childhood days when my father arranged for a friend of his to dress up as Santa and personally deliver a big white sack full of presents to our house. The fact that Santa rang our doorbell didn’t strike me as odd since we didn’t have a chimney. One Christmas Eve I was talking all day about how I would soon get to meet Santa’s reindeer. When the doorbell rang, I rushed to open the door. There was Santa with his big white sack. No reindeer.

“Where are the reindeer?” I asked.

“I left them down the street,” Santa said. “Let’s go see them after we open the presents. “

That did the trick. I forgot all about the reindeer.

But now that I’m older and wiser, I know that most male reindeer drop their antlers in Nov, while the females keep theirs a few more months. So the odds are very, very good that the Santa that rang my doorbell was driving an all-female dream team.

This is Mary Heers and I’m Wild About Utah

Credits:
Photos: Courtesy Mary Heers,
Featured Audio: Courtesy & Copyright © Friend Weller, Utah Public Radio upr.org
Text: Mary Heers, https://cca.usu.edu/files/awards/art-and-mary-heers-citation.pdf
Additional Reading: Lyle Bingham, https://bridgerlandaudubon.org/

Additional Reading

Wild About Utah, Mary Heers’ Wild About Utah Postings

Heaps, Spenser, (The Daily Herald), Springville veterinarian and his reindeer find success, Salt Lake Tribune, June 6, 2015 https://archive.sltrib.com/article.php?id=2596124&itype=CMSID

Bott, Isaac, DocBott – Musings of a mixed animal veterinarian, https://docbott.org/

Rockin Reindeer Ranch, https://www.rockinreindeerranch.com/

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Lake Love

Lake Love: The Great Salt Lake, Courtesy Pixabay, Filio (Tom) contributor
The Great Salt Lake
Courtesy Pixabay, Filio (Tom) contributor

Great Salt Lake Countdown Clock, Courtesy and Copyright Jack Greene, photographer Great Salt Lake Countdown Clock
Courtesy & © Jack Greene, photographer

Utah Youth Environmental Solutions (UYES), Great Salt Lake Countdown Clock, Courtesy and Copyright Jack Greene, photographer Utah Youth Environmental Solutions (UYES)
Great Salt Lake Countdown Clock
Courtesy & © Jack Greene, photographer

Great Salt Lake Countdown Clock, Courtesy and Copyright Jack Greene, photographer Great Salt Lake Countdown Clock
Courtesy & © Jack Greene, photographer

Native and Youth Voices Honoring the Great Salt Lake Event November 11, 2023 Courtesy and Copyright Jack Greene, photographer Native and Youth Voices Honoring the Great Salt Lake Event November 11, 2023
Courtesy & © Jack Greene, photographer

Brine Shrimp Art at the Native and Youth Voices Honoring the Great Salt Lake Event November 11, 2023 Courtesy and Copyright Jack Greene, photographer Brine Shrimp Art at the Native and Youth Voices Honoring the Great Salt Lake Event November 11, 2023
Courtesy & © Jack Greene, photographer

On October 28th, we gathered near the Salt Aire on the north shore of the Great Salt Lake. A sharp, cold wind kept us huddled. We walked nearly a half mile of mud flats on a path strewn with eared grebe carcasses to reach our destination, a giant, 7-foot clock. The clock displayed four different scenarios of our future based on various lake levels. At the 12 O’clock hour was 4200’, the ideal lake level for healthy waters to support brine shrimp, brine flies, and microbialites, all essential for the millions of birds that feast on them; and to cover the toxic dusts generated by a dry lake bed.

A youth driven event, they poured out their hearts and deep concerns with eloquent testimony for the lake’s diminished health, which translated to their health. The dead grebes were a grim reminder of what the lake has become from the Jordan, Weber, and especially the Bear River being diverted to serve human demands.

Two weeks later, a mixed assemblage of Native and youth gathered on our state capitol steps accompanied by Making Waves for the Great Salt Lake human sized brine shrimp puppets, musicians, and a phalarope dancing to exquisite poetry, to deliver their offerings honoring the Lake. Several tribal members, including Shoshone and Goshute, shared stories of their deep history and cultural connections. Youth representing the Utah Youth for Environmental Solutions and the Great Salt Lake Youth Coalition offered soul piercing words.

Two Saturday’s ago, I entered Westminster University Gore Hall greeted by youth, artists, organizations, and many seniors. Brine shrimp, brine fly, eared grebes, avocets and California gull puppets decorated walls and tables, representing a few of the hundreds of species that call the Great Salt Lake home, or a nice stopover as they wing their way around the globe.

The 4-hour youth led event was hosted by the Westminster Great Salt Lake Institute and lead by several youth organizations and various supporting groups. Many had attended our rally on the capitol steps. This amalgam of intergenerational individuals working on behalf of saving the Great Salt Lake ecosystem was heartening, and essential for the lake to continue on.

We were trained on how best to effect good policy with our Utah legislators through building positive relationships and preparing well researched and documented information to educate them on our interests. Another Rally is planned for Saturday, January 20th at 3 pm on the south steps of the Capitol. Many voices will be heard, including Ute tribal member Forest Cuche, many youth, and Utah author, Terry Tempest Williams.

Looking ahead, Salt Lake City may once again host the winter Olympics in 2034. May our internationally renowned Great Salt Lake be present to welcome them, and may our snow be white and bright, not brown and gone, from a covering of dust blown from an empty lake bed.

A few Secret Santa Ideas for the Great Salt Lake: write, text, or call your elected officials; make art about the lake and post it on social media; Perhaps most important, enjoy the many gifts our Great Lake offers, especially the millions of wings that grace our heavens!

Jack Greene for Bridgerland Audubon Society, and I’m wild about our wild and wonderful Great Lake!

Credits:

Images: Jack Greene, Bridgerland Audubon, https://bridgerlandaudubon.org/
Audio: Courtesy & © Kevin Colver, https://wildstore.wildsanctuary.com/collections/special-collections
Text: Jack Greene, Bridgerland Audubon, https://bridgerlandaudubon.org/
Additional Reading: Lyle Bingham and Jack Greene, Author, Bridgerland Audubon, https://bridgerlandaudubon.org/

Additional Reading:

Jack Greene’s Postings on Wild About Utah, https://wildaboututah.org/author/jack/

McCormick, John S., Saltair, Utah History Encyclopedia, 1994, Utah Division of State History, Utah Department of Cultural and Community Engagement, https://historytogo.utah.gov/saltair/

Utah youth march with giant clock in support of Great Salt Lake bill, ABC4-TV, Oct 28, 2023

Join the Vigil for Great Salt Lake, happening EVERY DAY of the 2024 Legislative Session at the Utah State Capitol from 8-9 am and 5-6 pm:
Great Salt Lake 2024 Daily Vigil, Walk with the Waves 8-9 am, Tue Jan 16, 2024 – Fri Mar 1, 2024, Making Waves for Great Salt Lake Artist Collaborative, https://signup.com/client/invitation2/secure/113888296054/false#/invitation
Celebrate the Lake Species! 5-6 pm, Tue Jan 16, 2024 – Fri Mar 1, 2024, Making Waves for Great Salt Lake Artist Collaborative, https://signup.com/client/invitation2/secure/82319992083/false#/invitation

Making Waves for Great Salt Lake Artist Collaborative, https://sarahlizmay.com/making-waves-for-great-salt-lake-artist-collaborative

Lake Art from the Making Waves for Great Salt Lake Artist Collaborative, Supported in part by Great Salt Lake Audubon and Bridgerland Audubon, https://bridgerlandaudubon.org/lake-art-puppets/

Utah Youth Environmental Solutions (UYES), https://utahyes.org/

Write to your legislators: https://le.utah.gov/GIS/findDistrict.jsp

Grow the Flow, Conserve Utah Valley, https://growtheflowutah.org/

  • Secret Santa for Great Salt Lake (Courtesy Nathan Thompson, GrowTheFlowUtah.org, Dec 12, 2023)
  • Invite someone new to get involved with helping Great Salt Lake
  • Donate to an organization working to save Great Salt Lake
  • Write to your elected officials about Great Salt Lake
  • Express gratitude for the lake in prayer and/or conversation
  • Make art about the lake and post it on social media
  • Turn off sprinklers
  • Contact local churches or other organizations about decreasing turf in public/shared spaces