Nature has character

Sammy is our six-year-old Cavapoo; she is our best friend. She doesn't shed and doesn't chew shoes, socks, or furniture. Samantha barks a bit too much at times, and hides under the bed during fireworks, claps of thunder, or a running vacuum cleaner. Any time I run an errand she waits for my return home and always greets me at the back door. Sammy is in my lap whenever I'm in my chair watching TV. Twenty-six pounds of dog can be a bit uncomfortable at times. She is up with me every morning at 6 and is waiting on my bed every night at 9 to go sleeeeepy. We take a walk early every morning and late every afternoon so Sammy can do her duty. Zero temperature days can be a bit challenging because the pads on her feet can freeze up in minutes. Dave refuses to buy cute little booties to put on her feet. We go outside and do number one, go back into the garage to warm her feet, and back outside to complete number two. It’s been wonderful taking Sammy outside over the past week: temperatures  have been in the 30s and the sun has been shining. It's a joy watching her do her thing, and turning her nose to the south to sniff the warm, southerly breeze. Could we be experiencing the first signs of spring??

It was a beautiful day and I took a fifty-mile round trip to fish with my grandson on Lake Washington. It was a great nature sighting trip. Four eagles were perched on a road-kill deer carcass on the roadside. Two white-headed adults and two juveniles were picking and feeding away for a tasty meal. Further down the road I observed a flock of snowbirds picking gravel and seeds on the snowplowed shoulder. Coming around a bend were at least fifty robins in the front yard of a farmsite. It was a welcome sight to see such a beautiful bird with a black head and reddish breast. Robins to me are always a first sign of spring: What are they doing here in the middle of February?

Everyone knows that some birds migrate and some stay here over the winter. Birds can survive temperatures well below zero. Birds have an incredible ability to find the warm spots in which to sleep during the coldest nights. Some sleep in gaps between bark, tree trunks with cavities, old buildings, or evergreens. Their feathers are well insulated, their feet are scaled to prevent frostbite. Birds fluff their feathers at night and will shiver to keep warm. The problem for birds becomes finding enough food to maintain body energy. Snow and ice make that difficult, so as good citizens, keep your bird feeders full all winter long.

I'm an insect guy: had collections of them when I was younger. In the lake parking lot, I returned to my vehicle to find a small white moth on my door handle. A few insects amazingly make an appearance on the warmer days of winter.

Insects go through a stage of metamorphosis to reproduce. The stages may consist of egg, larva, pupa, nymph, and adult depending on the insect. During the winter, insects are tucked away in mud under water, brush piles, underground soil or a crevice in your house or building in some stage of development.

Our good friend the mosquito has eggs or larva in the water or pond under the ice. Insects also have a chemical, antifreeze, in their bodies during the winter and can survive extreme temperatures. Unfortunately for us, we will be swatting mosquitoes again this summer. Oh yes, I'm sure you all know that the females suck your blood for protein to reproduce. The males are friendly little guys, pollinators.

On the roadside I also observed a raccoon that didn't make it across. Most furbearers don't hibernate; they become dormant and make brief appearances on warmer days. Squirrels are active almost daily, as are cottontail rabbits. Raccoons, skunks, opossums, and others spend the majority of winter in tree holes or underground burrows.

I returned from my great outing to Washington and precious bonding time with my grandson. Sammy was waiting at the back door and gave me a warm welcome. I also was feeling a bit warm, so I took my temperature. The diagnosis was an easy one. Spring fever in the middle of February.