Relatively Rare Sightings 1, 2 & 3
1 - The other morning I'd been wakened by a very distinct, musical birdsong but for the life of me I couldn't recall what sort of bird might be responsible. On rising, I could still hear it in the area and was unable to spot it. Later on through the day I did happen to spot it flying by and realized what I'd heard. There was no mistaking that vivid flash of orange and black; it was a Baltimore Oriole. We don't get many around here but I wish we did. I could listen to them all day long.
2 - Another one that must be settling into it's summer range and covering a large territory is the Flicker. They're few and far between as well; a fairly large member of the woodpecker family. It's a beautifully marked bird and a sight to see flying - a speckled breast and brilliant gold beneath it's wings and tail.
3 - Fireflies - It's only in the last few years that I've noticed any in this area and they're still rare. I was gazing up into the night sky last week and thought I was seeing a flashing satellite that was wobbling out of orbit. There was no rhyme or reason to it's path. Then my distance vision kicked in and I realized it was a firefly at treetop height - 'a duh! moment'.
The one time I've seen great numbers of them was a race weekend in Michigan when we visited a friend whose home was next to a large meadow. After it had gotten full dark this mass of wee lights rose from the field; I'd never seen anything like it and had to go wander about in the midst of them. By this point in the evening we were incredibly drunk and I remember nothing else of that visit except that 15 or 20 minute span checking out the fireflies. A 'Disney' moment of clarity in the midst of an ocean of beer and bourbon.
2 - Another one that must be settling into it's summer range and covering a large territory is the Flicker. They're few and far between as well; a fairly large member of the woodpecker family. It's a beautifully marked bird and a sight to see flying - a speckled breast and brilliant gold beneath it's wings and tail.
3 - Fireflies - It's only in the last few years that I've noticed any in this area and they're still rare. I was gazing up into the night sky last week and thought I was seeing a flashing satellite that was wobbling out of orbit. There was no rhyme or reason to it's path. Then my distance vision kicked in and I realized it was a firefly at treetop height - 'a duh! moment'.
The one time I've seen great numbers of them was a race weekend in Michigan when we visited a friend whose home was next to a large meadow. After it had gotten full dark this mass of wee lights rose from the field; I'd never seen anything like it and had to go wander about in the midst of them. By this point in the evening we were incredibly drunk and I remember nothing else of that visit except that 15 or 20 minute span checking out the fireflies. A 'Disney' moment of clarity in the midst of an ocean of beer and bourbon.
posted by Norm at 6/26/2007 02:39:00 AM
3 Comments:
Lovely sightings, 1, 2 & 3. :)
When we lived in southern Ohio, the fireflies would peak about now. There would be hundreds of thousands of them on our riverbank, looking like a parade of fairy lights.
We have them in the NE corner of Ohio, too, but not as proliferate. Or maybe the wide open space just makes it seem as if there are fewer.
Although there may be areas of this province where they're common I had never seen them until that Michigan incident. For them to now be appearing locally is one of those WOW moments for me.
And I know nothing about them... are they considered a pest in any way? Sting, eat crops, etc or are they simply a bug with a neat natural feature?
They're not pests at all. Just very pretty and exciting. :)
Ok, I have no scientific evidence for that, but I've never heard of them doing any kind of damage.
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