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| Photo by Shara LeValley |
Tuesday, November 11, 2014
Veterans Day
Happy Veterans Day 2014! Please remember to thank a veteran for his or her service to the country.
Monday, November 10, 2014
The Gales of November
Today marks the 39th Anniversary of the wreck of the S.S. Edmund Fitzgerald, the most famous shipwreck in the Great Lakes.
On the evening of 10 November 1975, the freighter S.S. Edmund Fitzgerald was approaching Whitefish Point, MI with a full load of taconite (iron ore) in a Lake Superior storm. Despite the hurricane force winds, the ship did not appear to be under distress before it sank suddenly at 7:10 PM. All twenty-nine men aboard the Edmund Fitzgerald perished aboard the ship. To this day, the exact cause of the ship's sinking is unknown.
The ship was commemorated by Canadian singer/songwriter Gordon Lightfoot in his 1976 song "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald".
The wreck site was visited by dive teams in 1989, 1995, and 1995 to survey the site and collect artifacts. The ship's bell was recovered during the 1995 dive. The bell was restored and now rests at the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum at Whitefish Point, MI.
For more information on the Edmund Fitzgerald visit the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum website.
On the evening of 10 November 1975, the freighter S.S. Edmund Fitzgerald was approaching Whitefish Point, MI with a full load of taconite (iron ore) in a Lake Superior storm. Despite the hurricane force winds, the ship did not appear to be under distress before it sank suddenly at 7:10 PM. All twenty-nine men aboard the Edmund Fitzgerald perished aboard the ship. To this day, the exact cause of the ship's sinking is unknown.
The ship was commemorated by Canadian singer/songwriter Gordon Lightfoot in his 1976 song "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald".
The wreck site was visited by dive teams in 1989, 1995, and 1995 to survey the site and collect artifacts. The ship's bell was recovered during the 1995 dive. The bell was restored and now rests at the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum at Whitefish Point, MI.
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| Whitefish Point Lighthouse and Shipwreck Museum - photo taken many years ago with a very cheap digital camera |
For more information on the Edmund Fitzgerald visit the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum website.
Friday, November 7, 2014
Opposite Sides of the Sky (07 NOV 2014)
Last night's full moon allowed me to take this pair of photographs on the way to work this morning.
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| The view to the West of the setting moon... |
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| And the view to the East of the rising sun... |
Thursday, November 6, 2014
100 Species to Know by Sight - #6 Monarch Butterfly and #7 Viceroy Butterfly
There are some species of plants and animals that every student (and adult) should be able to identify by sight. Some species are specific to a certain region, other species are found over a very broad territory. The sixth species on my list of 100 Species to Know by Sight is the Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus). The Monarch can be found across most of the United States and Southern Canada and is one of the most recognized (and loved species) found across its range.
The Monarch is a very distinctive, large (3.5 to 4 inch wingspan), orange-and-black butterfly.
Male and female butterflies are easy easy to distinguish. Males can be identified by the presence of a scent gland on each of their hind wings.
In Mid-Michigan (really across most of its range) there is only one butterfly species you could possibly confuse with the Monarch - the Viceroy (Limenitis archippus). The color pattern of the Viceroy is almost exactly the same as that of the Monarch. The two species share a type of mimicry known as Mullerian mimicry in which two (or more) distasteful, poisonous, or otherwise harmful species have evolved to look like each other. Because the Viceroy and Monarch share this relationship, the Viceroy is my seventh species on my 100 Species to Know by Sight.
The Viceroy is typically smaller than the Monarch with a 3 to 3 inch wingspan, but there can be a size overlap in the two species. To identify a Viceroy look for a semi-circular line that extends across its back pair of wings. To me, this line looks like a smile. The Monarch lacks this line.
The Monarch is a very distinctive, large (3.5 to 4 inch wingspan), orange-and-black butterfly.
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| Monarch Butterfly on New England Aster |
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| Monarch Butterfly - this butterfly was probing the surface of a county road with its proboscis to obtain salts and other minerals |
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| Monarch Butterfly on a Common Milkweed flower. This species is its larval host plant. |
Male and female butterflies are easy easy to distinguish. Males can be identified by the presence of a scent gland on each of their hind wings.
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| Monarch Butterfly - the arrows point to the pair of scent glands on its hindwings |
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| Monarch Butterfly - the scent glands are also visible from the underside of the wing |
In Mid-Michigan (really across most of its range) there is only one butterfly species you could possibly confuse with the Monarch - the Viceroy (Limenitis archippus). The color pattern of the Viceroy is almost exactly the same as that of the Monarch. The two species share a type of mimicry known as Mullerian mimicry in which two (or more) distasteful, poisonous, or otherwise harmful species have evolved to look like each other. Because the Viceroy and Monarch share this relationship, the Viceroy is my seventh species on my 100 Species to Know by Sight.
The Viceroy is typically smaller than the Monarch with a 3 to 3 inch wingspan, but there can be a size overlap in the two species. To identify a Viceroy look for a semi-circular line that extends across its back pair of wings. To me, this line looks like a smile. The Monarch lacks this line.
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| Viceroy Butterfly- the arrow points to the line that distinguishes this species from the Monarch |
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| Viceroy - this identifying mark is visible on both the upper and lower surfaces of the wing |
Wednesday, November 5, 2014
Questions?
Officially my title is Education Coordinator, but I am more often referred to as the "_____" Guy. The Bug Guy. The Tree Guy. The Flower Guy. And most often simply as The Science Guy.
In my job, I get asked lots of questions. Questions from adults. Questions from kids (more questions from kids than from adults). This is the nature of my job - answering questions.
If I am not doing a presentation at a school, I am the first person that visitors to our office see. If I see someone walking in with a leaf, or a jar, or a bucket, there is very good chance that they have a question. Usually its along the lines of "What is this bug/tree/plant/etc.?" or 'What can I do about this bug/tree/plant/etc?". Sometime I come back to the office to find a jar/leaf/branch/whole plant/etc. sitting on my desk with a note to "Please call so-and-so, they have a question."
More often, the questions I get are from kids. I should get lost of questions from kids. During the past 5 school years I have presented more than nine hundred fifty classroom presentation. This year, I have nearly 400 presentations scheduled. If I answer an average of 7 to 10 questions per program, this means that by June 2015 I will have answered somewhere between 10,000 and 13,000 questions from students over six school years. This doesn't count presentations at libraries, public programs, etc..
Some of the are unique, but I get lots of repeat questions. My favorite question of all is one of the repeats - "How do you know all this stuff/so much stuff/all of this?!" I love this question because when I hear it I know that the student is really asking "How can I learn all of this stuff?!"
My answer to a kid student that wants to know "all of this stuff" is to read LOTS of books. Read every book you can get your hands on. (I also read a lot about science on the internet, but you have to be careful about the accuracy of your sources. Go outside - much of what I know I learned from direct observation. Listen to other people who know more about a subject than you do - if someone is giving a presentation about something that interests you, go to it. Most importantly ask questions - there really is no such thing as a stupid question if you don't know the answer.
So, are there any questions?
In my job, I get asked lots of questions. Questions from adults. Questions from kids (more questions from kids than from adults). This is the nature of my job - answering questions.
If I am not doing a presentation at a school, I am the first person that visitors to our office see. If I see someone walking in with a leaf, or a jar, or a bucket, there is very good chance that they have a question. Usually its along the lines of "What is this bug/tree/plant/etc.?" or 'What can I do about this bug/tree/plant/etc?". Sometime I come back to the office to find a jar/leaf/branch/whole plant/etc. sitting on my desk with a note to "Please call so-and-so, they have a question."
More often, the questions I get are from kids. I should get lost of questions from kids. During the past 5 school years I have presented more than nine hundred fifty classroom presentation. This year, I have nearly 400 presentations scheduled. If I answer an average of 7 to 10 questions per program, this means that by June 2015 I will have answered somewhere between 10,000 and 13,000 questions from students over six school years. This doesn't count presentations at libraries, public programs, etc..
Some of the are unique, but I get lots of repeat questions. My favorite question of all is one of the repeats - "How do you know all this stuff/so much stuff/all of this?!" I love this question because when I hear it I know that the student is really asking "How can I learn all of this stuff?!"
My answer to a kid student that wants to know "all of this stuff" is to read LOTS of books. Read every book you can get your hands on. (I also read a lot about science on the internet, but you have to be careful about the accuracy of your sources. Go outside - much of what I know I learned from direct observation. Listen to other people who know more about a subject than you do - if someone is giving a presentation about something that interests you, go to it. Most importantly ask questions - there really is no such thing as a stupid question if you don't know the answer.
So, are there any questions?
Tuesday, November 4, 2014
Favorite Photos from Years Gone By (MAY 2009)
I don't feel like writing a long post today so I though I would share a photo from a few years ago. This picture was taken on a hiking trip to North Manitou Island. North Manitou Island is part of the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore and is accessible only by a ferry from Leland, MI or by private boat. This car dates to a time when the island was privately owned - today there are no vehicles (or roads) on the island with the exception of a couple of tractors used by the national park Service for maintenance.
The policy of the National park Service used to be to remove human artifacts from many National Parks - in the past few years the Park Service has been to work at preserving (and even restoring) the human elements of the landscape.
The policy of the National park Service used to be to remove human artifacts from many National Parks - in the past few years the Park Service has been to work at preserving (and even restoring) the human elements of the landscape.
Monday, November 3, 2014
Upcoming Events - November through January
I have three public programs coming up over the next three months. All listed events are free to the public.
Wildflower Big Year (Wednesday 12 November 2014)
On Wednesday November 12th, I will presenting a program on my Wildflower Big Year to the Chippewa Valley Audubon Club at their regular monthly meeting. The meeting takes place at 7:00PM at the Veterans Memorial Library at 301 S. University in Mt. Pleasant.
Sylvan Solace Late Fall Prowl (Saturday 06 December 2014)
Join me on Saturday December 6th at 7:00PM at the Chippewa Watershed Conservancy's Sylvan Solace Preserve for a moonlight walk. This event is free but participants are required to register. Please see the Chippewa Watershed Conservancy website for more information on this event.
Sylvan Solace Snowshoe Walk (Saturday 24 January 2015)
On Saturday January 24th, join me for another walk at the Sylvan Solace Preserve. This event will begin at 9:00AM. This is being billed as a snowshoe walk, but if there isn't enough snow we will still walk the preserve's trails. Again, registration is required for this event. Please look here for more information.
Wildflower Big Year (Wednesday 12 November 2014)
On Wednesday November 12th, I will presenting a program on my Wildflower Big Year to the Chippewa Valley Audubon Club at their regular monthly meeting. The meeting takes place at 7:00PM at the Veterans Memorial Library at 301 S. University in Mt. Pleasant.
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| Mayapples - May 2014 |
Sylvan Solace Late Fall Prowl (Saturday 06 December 2014)
Join me on Saturday December 6th at 7:00PM at the Chippewa Watershed Conservancy's Sylvan Solace Preserve for a moonlight walk. This event is free but participants are required to register. Please see the Chippewa Watershed Conservancy website for more information on this event.
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| Full Moon - December 2013 |
Sylvan Solace Snowshoe Walk (Saturday 24 January 2015)
On Saturday January 24th, join me for another walk at the Sylvan Solace Preserve. This event will begin at 9:00AM. This is being billed as a snowshoe walk, but if there isn't enough snow we will still walk the preserve's trails. Again, registration is required for this event. Please look here for more information.
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| River Ice - January 2014 |
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