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Come back to this page each day to read another entry from Frederick R. Gehlbach's almanac of suburban natural and unnatural history, "Messages from the Wild," which chronicles the world of a forested ravine in central Texas.
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Tree leaves are adrift and strawberry bushes are garbed in scarlet, their red fruits eaten by sucking bugs that mimic ants. I sit on a rock by the creek, waiting and watching. Northern cardinals stop by for their nightcap. Four males and three females take turns at a pool, males first. The impending winter calls them together, when only a few months ago they spent so much time and energy staying apart. Winter means less food, fewer hiding places, and occasional frozen water -- imperatives for cooperative eyes that are more likely to find scarce resources, see danger, and survive. |
Frederick R. Gehlbach is Professor Emeritus of Biology and Environmental Studies at Baylor University. His ecological studies have taken him from New Zealand to Slovakia and, in the Americas, from Alaska and Newfoundland to Guatemala, Belize and Honduras. His research interests include the life-history strategies of small owls, small burrowing snakes and urban wildlife ecology.
From MESSAGES FROM THE WILD: AN ALMANAC OF SUBURBAN NATURAL AND UNNATURAL HISTORY by Frederick R. Gehlbach, Copyright © 2002. Courtesy of the University of Texas Press.
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