Caroline Wren was Using the Flower Petal to Scoop Poop - Critter 99

We saw wrens, either House Wren or Caroline Wren come and nesting at our yards almost every year. 

Image - Caroline Wren to Scoop Poop.

Some posting about Wrens are following:

- The Wren's Eggs and Two Babies - Critter 84 | Tanza Erlambang

- Caroline Wren Babies in the Mailbox - Critter 75 | Tanza

We had a nest next to our front window, and one day we observed interesting of baby birds' behaviors:

- turn their backside to the nest opening.

- then pooped there (smart bird!).

Mama bird doing the parent work that is "changing diapers." She is removing poop or the fecal sac to keep the nest clean.

As we understand the bird was using the flower petal to scoop poop. Amazing.

Have you ever observed this kind of behavior?

# Previous postings:

- Have You Tasted Pistachio Muffins? - Part 1 – Food Variety 22 |

- Snails as One of Popular Seafood – Sign 21 | Tanza Erlambang

- May Yogurt Reduce Risk of Heart Diseases? - Part 1 – Heart 11 |

- From Caterpillar to Monarch Butterfly – Critter 18 | Tanza

The Mosquito Control Plane Flying over Our City

We saw Low flying plane over our city a couple day ago. We believe it was a 1976 Britten-Norman BN-2A-21.

Image - The low flying plane

The plane is mosquito control plane, now flying over to bomb insects. Actually, it is rare to see plane at daytime.

The local administrations use the plane when they have a budget for it during heavy mosquito seasons.  

I thought they just used aerial spraying from a truck. However, spraying from a plane is concerning for many people, it can access places that trucks can't go, and then can cause:

- dead to on many bugs such as lightning bugs in our back yard.

- impact on caterpillar and monarch eggs

- harmful to pets and etc.

What do you think?

# Previous postings:

- A Blonde Squirrel at Our Backyard – Critter 16 | Tanza

- Blooming of Freesia Flowers – Part 2 - Gardening and Hobby 25 | Tanza Erlambang Update

- Two States of USA are Legal for Texting and Driving – Sign 20 |

- Waking up after Sleeping for 24,000 years – Part 2 | Tanza 

- Eastern Cicada Killer Wasp in Our Neighborhood – Critter 17 |

Colorful of Snapdragons - Gardening and Hobby 69

 The photo was from Spring, then we enter very hot Summer with temperature reaches around 97* F (36* C). 

Image of Snapdragon flowers

Some said the Snapdragons with scientific name Antirrhinum majus could bloom until Fall, I don't know.

The flowers have many colors, our favorite includes:

- yellow

- pink

- orange

- red 

- and white

Few people grow the Snapdragons from seeds. It could take months until flowers blooming. We never did it.

Do you know about Snapdragons?

# Previous postings:

- Waking up after Sleeping for 24,000 years – Part 1 | Tanza

- May Drink Coffee Regularly Improve Healthy Heart? - Part 1 - Heart 8 | Tanza Erlambang Update

- Herbs Show at Our City Park – Sign 19 | Tanza Erlambang

- Demanding of Tofu was Increasing During Covid 19 Pandemic – Part 2 – Food Variety 21 | Tanza

- A Blonde Squirrel at Our Backyard – Critter 16 | Tanza

The Red Bellied Woodpecker - Critter 98

We believe; we have not seen any Red Bellied Woodpeckers at our yards for long time. Purely by chance, we saw one recently. 

Image - Red Bellied Woodpecker

Luckily, we could take one "good" photo, before the bird flying away. Actually, this bird should be "common" in our areas.

They may appear on the feeders. We don't know why they disappeared a while from our backyard.

The Red Bellied Woodpecker used to stop on our very old fig tree and then make a hole for a full life.

Actually, a half dead fig tree, and the other half has leaves. We are waiting to see if it produces figs.

Finally, do you have experience with the Red Bellied Woodpecker?

# Previous postings:

- Drinking Problem in the USA – Sign 18 | Tanza Erlambang

- Blooming of Freesia Flowers – Part 1 - Gardening and Hoby 25

- Peanuts in the Farmer Market – Part 2 - Food Variety 20

- A Fox on the Box of Neighborhood – Critter 15 | Tanza

- Waking up after Sleeping for 24,000 years – Part 1 | Tanza

The Orchid Blooming in the Room - Gardening and Hobby 68

Many beautiful orchids come from tropical regions; however, they live in the forest with "calm" temperatures. 

Fig 01 - Blooming of the tropical orchid

Our area is hot and humid during summer; hence, it seems fit for tropical flowers include orchids to grow well. 

Phalaenopsis is one of popular orchids in our neighborhoods, it is because the orchid has some distinct characters such as:

- long lasting blooming 

- easy to care.

- colorful

- good as an indoor plant.

Fig 02 - Second blooming

Do you know about tropical orchids?

# Previous postings:

- Peanuts in the Farmer Market – Part 1 – Food Variety 20 |

- Cutting the Tree Before Hurricane Coming – Part 2 | Tanza

- The Orb Weaver Spider in the Yard – Critter 14 | Tanza 

- Demanding of Tofu was Increasing During Covid 19 Pandemic – Part 1 – Food Variety 21 | Tanza Erlambang Update

- Drinking Problem in the USA – Sign 18 | Tanza Erlambang

The Three Babies of the Bird - Critter 97

We posted about eggs of a bird: A Bird Has Made a Nest and been Laying Eggs - Critter 96 | Tanza Erlambang Update

Fig 01 - The 3 babies of bird

Now, 3 of 5 eggs are hatching. Unfortunately, one egg was moved out nest by mama birds, another was rotten. We don't know why.

Some of you guess the bird species Here are the guessed:

- A House Finch

- A House Sparrow

- A Wren 

- A mourning Dove 

- and a Robin   

Fig 02 - Five eggs

Based on a below picture (Fig 03), even though the photo is not clear enough, we believe the species is "a Robin."

Fig 03 - Mama Birds nearby eggs

What do you think about bird species?

# Previous postings:

- Small Business at Nearby Neighborhood – Part 2 | Tanza

- The Attractive Flower to Butterflies and Bees | Tanza

- Less Books in the Box – Sign 17 | Tanza Erlambang

- Pug was a Breeding Dog for Royal Families – Critter 13 | Tanza

- Peanuts in the Farmer Market – Part 1 – Food Variety 20

Are Bamboo Plants Illegal to Grow in the Yards?

We have two types of bamboo here in the USA, the native one and non-native bamboo, the invasive ones. 

Fig 01 - Bamboo plants, illustration.

The invasive bamboo, called running bamboo with most invasive is Phyllostachys sp. The genus could: 

- grow 15 feet (about 3 m) tall

- covering the yards quickly

- blocking the sun, makes no grass growing

These the reasons why many states in the USA "banned" the invasive bamboo. The states that prohibit this bamboo includes Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Maryland, Washington and many others.

 

Fig 02 - The bamboo plant, Home Depot.

Do you about bamboo?

Previous postings:

- Cutting the Tree Before Hurricane Coming – Part 1 | Tanza

- What is Tang Soo Do? - Sign 16 | Tanza Erlambang Update

- Our Yards are Visited by Bees Regularly – Critter 12 | Tanza

- Declining Population of Mammals with Cube Feces | Tanza

- Small Business at Nearby Neighborhood – Part 2 | Tanza