Today's entry: February 9

Come back to this page each day to read another entry from Cathie Katz's beautifully illustrated journal, "Nature a Day at a Time."

Prairie dogs (Cynomys) were named from their dog-like bark. They are members of the squirrel family and live in lonely, dry, brushy areas. In their isolated prairies, these rodents are extremely sociable, with complex traditions and behaviors. They show signs of affection by grooming, kissing, tumbling, and fondling, family members and neighbors. The chemicals exchanged from "kissing" are a way to transfer information between prairie dogs. Does he love me, I wanna know. How can I tell if he loves me so? Is it in his eyes? Oh no, you'll be deceived. Is it in his arms? Oh no, he'll make believe. If you wanna know, if he loves you so, It's in his kiss, That's where it is, oh yeah. Betty Everett in "The Shoop Shoop Song"

Cathie Katz, the author of several books on natural history, also co-founded The Drifting Seed, an international newsletter about rain forest drift seeds. In her engaging Nature a Day at a Time, published by Sierra Club Books and Random House, Katz interweaves fascinating facts about familiar creatures, pen-and-ink drawings and quotations.