April NoMORE Trash Month

Very few things will get an outdoor enthusiast as angry as being faced with someone’s litter, or trash if you will. We have all experienced it, walking on our favorite trails, visiting our favorite parks or other natural areas, and coming face-to-face with garbage. This can be anything from soda cans and beer bottles to dirty diapers and old tires. It makes no difference what the trash is, the results are the same, unsightly litter that harms the environment and the animals that live there. It has now become the responsibility of conscientious, civic-minded individuals to clean up after those who won’t clean up after themselves. Countless tons of trash are picked up each year in Missouri alone, by organizations that recognize the importance of removing this potentially harmful litter before it causes untold amounts of damage to our soil, water, and wildlife.

This is frustrating to say the least, after all why should we have to be the ones to pick up after those irresponsible individuals who made the mess? We do it because we know it is the right thing to do.

Working as a naturalist gives me the opportunity to educate the youth of our state about the importance of cleaning up after ourselves. The Missouri Conservation Department designates April as NoMO Trash Month and launches a campaign each year to educate Missourians about the cause-and-effect issues of litter. We encourage the philosophy, “If you pack it in, pack it out!” Don’t rely on other people to pick up after you.

I came face-to-face with one such cause and effect of littering, one evening many years ago. I was out walking around the backyard when I heard my daughter yelling. I could only make out “Mom, hurry, SNAKE!” I ran to see what the commotion was about and discovered a Western (black) rat snake near the backdoor. It was about two feet long and had most likely just come out of hibernation. This in and of itself is not unusual, we see a lot of black snakes in our yard. However, this was the first time I’ve encountered one with a plastic band around its midsection. I soon realized this snake was in trouble and would not survive another season with this bracelet of trash around its middle. It would not be able to eat properly and who knows what other internal damage the snake would end up suffering. I quickly grabbed the snake before it could disappear and earned a bite for my trouble. How could I blame the snake? It had just woken up from 5 months of winter and was most likely hungry and thirsty, it had a restrictive band around it that probably made mobility uncomfortable and was now being snatched up off the ground by a giant predator. I’d bite me too!

I found my husband and showed him the snake and asked him to help me help the snake. We debated for a few minutes on the best way to proceed and ultimately decided that sawing the plastic ring off was the safest and best way to remove it. I held the snake under strict instructions from my husband to not let the snake bite him! This was no easy feat, I had to maintain a firm grip on the snake without squeezing too hard, I had to hold onto the piece of plastic to keep it from moving so that my husband could saw it, and I had to make sure the snake was not encountering the saw blade…. I only have two hands! After 20 or 30 minutes, we finally had the band sawed completely through, but we could not get it off the snake! The snake was too big around to slide it off, and I was about ready to cry. All that work in vain? Then my husband got an idea, he retrieved a handy-dandy tool that spread the plastic apart. He held the plastic open, so I could “feed” the snake through it and finally free it. I looked at the snake's wounds, and fortunately they did not look severe. There was no blood, and nothing was festering. This snake was lucky and will recover from his experience. I released him to a safe place in the yard to regain his strength and to hide and lick his wounds, so to speak.

Many would say….” so what, that is just one snake, and I don’t like them anyway!” No animal deserves to suffer a slow, agonizing death that was preventable in the first place. This piece of plastic originated in the crawl space under our master bathroom. We hired a plumber several years prior to finding this snake, to do some work in the bathroom; he had to cut various pieces of PVC pipe and left behind his litter. If this person had taken a few minutes and picked up after himself this snake would never have ended up in such a predicament.

UPDATE: I saw this snake several years later in my front yard, and he was doing well, although he was still showing the scars from his experience.

I, for one, appreciate the snakes that live in my yard and on the eighty-six acres we own. They provide rodent control, and I can honestly say they do a superb job of it too. I have not found a sign of a mouse in our house in many years!

Many animals are not so lucky and never get rescued from the litter they find themselves entrapped in. They suffocate, strangle, and die slow agonizing deaths. The Conservation Department has a turtle named Peanut. Peanut is a red ear slider that found itself stuck in the plastic rings that soda is carried in. He could not remove the plastic himself, and the plastic did not dissolve. Year after year, Peanut carried his plastic ring everywhere he went. He grew, but the plastic ring did not expand with his growth, consequently he became malformed. He was eventually found by some fishermen, who took him to a veterinarian. They were able to remove the plastic ring and after x-rays determined he was one lucky turtle and had suffered no internal injuries. He will forever be misshapen and resemble the peanut after which he is named. Peanut is an ambassador for the “no more littering campaign” and travels the state sharing his story with the public. If you want a chance to see Peanut in person, he makes a guest appearance each year at the Missouri State Fair in Sedalia. A quick search on the internet will reveal many such stories about animals suffering unnecessarily due to the litter left behind by irresponsible humans. 

For some time, across our country wildfires have been breaking out. With high winds and dry conditions it doesn’t take much for a disaster to start. One sure way to start a forest fire is to throw out a lit cigarette. I see it all the time, reckless, irresponsible smokers chucking a cigarette stub out of their vehicle window. Just the other day I witnessed a man throwing his cigarette stub to the ground in a parking lot right in front of me. This is an all too often occurrence, and smokers should know better. This litter is unsightly, birds often mistake stubs for food and get ill from eating them. A smoldering cigarette thrown from a car can very easily ignite a fire that can and often does destroy forests, homes and takes lives. A friend of mine recently lost his home, and everything in it to the Stillwater fires, they were lucky that no one in their household was killed. If you are a smoker, please do the right thing, put your cigarette in a receptacle.

With the return of spring and outdoor activities we will all be spending more time outside, remember to pack it out, if you pack it in. Or even better, organize a team and purposely pick up someone else’s litter. It only takes a few minutes to do the right thing……. all the wild animals will thank you.

False Morel

Spring will be soon, and many individuals are already looking forward to warmer weather and time spent outside in the sunshine.  Spring also means mushroom season. Avid mushroom hunters and aficionados begin anticipating the next season before the dust has even settled on the current season. What are these fans of mushrooms so anxious to find? The morel of course! There are several species of morel mushrooms, and all are considered edible, with variable palatable differences. Soon individuals in Southern Missouri will be finding their first morel mushrooms and this part of our state will soon follow. Over the years, I've had several people ask me about another type of mushroom, one that superficially resembles the morel. The blobby, brain-like fungus in question is a False Morel. There are several mushrooms within this genus, and all are referred to as false morels. They also go by many other common names, such as Red morel, beefsteak, brain mushroom, glob mushroom, and redheads. 

 They have well-developed stems, and their oddly shaped caps are generally reddish brown to yellowish brown. When sliced open, they are not completely hollow--and this is the best way to distinguish them from the morels, which are hollow. Size is another indicator. While there are some very large morels out there, none will be as large as a fully mature false morel.

 

Many people eat these mushrooms with no ill effects, but studies are showing that others have severe reactions to eating these mushrooms, and in some cases death can result. Other reactions to consuming these mushrooms could be dizziness, nausea, and coordination problems. In southern Missouri these are eaten regularly with Yellow Morels and are considered quite tasty. Perhaps certain people have built up immunities to the toxins within these mushrooms. Perhaps they are just lucky. Perhaps their bodies are just able to consume them and not suffer for it. I for one would not want to take a chance!

Remember-----“There are old mushroom eaters and there are bold mushroom eaters, but there are no old bold mushroom eaters”

 The one pictured here was very large, it measured nearly 9 inches tall, and 6 or 7 inches in diameter. The base was 4 or 5 inches in diameter. It is referred to as beef steak morel and generally fruits near conifer trees. After timely, careful preparation, these are often eaten with no side effects or perhaps very mild ones. However, there have also been confirmed fatalities. Some of the toxin is removed by boiling multiple times in water and discarding the water, which seems like a lot of effort for a mushroom that is moderately edible to begin with. Reportedly cooks have been poisoned simply from breathing in steam from the boiling water containing these mushrooms! One of its toxins is monomethylhydrazine (MMH) which has been used in rocket fuel!

So, what's the problem? One danger is the varying levels of MMH in different poisonous mushrooms. Some species contain very little, others contain enough to kill. MMH levels also vary among geographic regions within a single species. The point is nobody knows how toxic any false morel mushroom will be in any location. MMH is a cumulative toxin. This means that its levels will build up in your body after repeated consumption. This could lead to illness or even death. Keep that in mind the next time someone insists to you that they've safely eaten these mushrooms.

 Most appear in the spring and summer and grow directly on the ground. Although some are found on wood or later in the year, when they are unlikely to be mistaken for true morels. Caps are usually brown or reddish brown and occasionally yellow. Most stems are a light color, ranging from white to tan. These mushrooms feed on dead and decaying organic matter. Some have suggested that they may be mycorrhizal, like true morels (forming a symbiotic relationship with trees). Like true morels, false ones are often found in areas where the forest floor has been disrupted. You're more likely to see them near washes, rivulets, man-made disturbances in the ground, and along roadsides.

 Take note of the cap shape. False morels have caps that are "wavy" or "lobed". They appear to be bulging outwards. True morels have a more uniformly shaped cap with pits or ridges. They appear to be pitted inwards rather than bulging. The cap of the false mushroom hangs freely from the stem. A true morel has a cap that will be attached to the stem. This is not always the case but more often than not it is.

Don’t eat any mushroom unless you are ABSOLUTELY sure that it is safe!

You should never eat any mushroom unless it is positively identified as edible. If you are in any way uncertain about the edibility of a mushroom, don’t try it. If in doubt, throw it out!

While morels are easily identified, other species of safe mushrooms have deadly look-a-likes. If you are just starting to collect and eat wild mushrooms, don’t rely on books or websites alone for your information. Go hiking with experienced experts, who can show you how to identify the important characteristics of edible and poisonous mushrooms.

 

As you head into the woods in the upcoming months foraging for the elusive morel, be mindful of what you are harvesting, be safe and enjoy those savory fungi.

 

American Kestrel

 

Photo by: K. Leeker

Recently from the vantage point of the deck at Remington Nature Center my coworkers and me spotted a pair of American Kestrels as they dipped, dived and chased each other. We finally decided they were a pair beginning to show interest in mating. This prompted a discussion about putting up a nesting box to encourage them to stay in the area so we could continue to observe them. Kestrels typically use hollow trees, old nest cavities abandoned by other birds, on ledges of buildings and cliffs, but will also use manmade nesting boxes. 

Kestrels are North Americas smallest falcon and are closely related to Peregrine Falcons. They typically hunt from a high vantage point, where they perch and watch the ground below for prey. They often bob their tail feathers up and down when they have spotted potential prey, before swooping down to capture their meal. They also utilize another way of capturing prey, as Ted Hughes wrote about in the following prose.

 “Effortlessly at height hangs his still eye. / His wings hold all creation in a weightless quiet/ Steady as a hallucination in the streaming air.”

This quote captures perfectly the American Kestrel ability to hover high in the air over open fields in search of prey. This ability to hover and glide earned them another common name of Windover. Their diet includes grasshoppers and other large insects, small rodents, lizards, and songbirds, which earned them another common name of sparrow hawk. Their population is estimated to be more than nine million individual birds, and 1.2 million breeding pairs. Their success can at least in part be attributed to their generalist diet. When you are willing to eat a wide variety of prey, their chance of growing their population and surviving habitat changes increases exponentially. Whereas birds that are specialists tend to struggle for survival when habitats are changed and their preferred food becomes scarce.

Photo by: K. Leeker

Many individuals have contacted me over the years upset about the “sparrow hawk” showing up at their bird feeders and capturing the songbirds they are so lovingly feeding. Humans tend to take ownership of something they are caring for, whether the animal is wild or domesticated seems to make no difference.

I view this situation as an opportunity to watch another amazing bird as it hunts and feeds. Yes, it can be upsetting to see songbirds killed before our eyes, but if we can take a minute to stop applying human emotion to something that is natural to these birds, we might be able to look at the kestrel as an interesting, instinct driven, bird of prey worthy of observing. When I am asked “what can I do to discourage the hawk” I recommend taking all bird feeders down for a week, to give the kestrel time to leave the area, and then try again. By leaving the feeders in place, and inviting songbirds to feast, you are also inviting birds of prey to feast on the very thing you are trying to attract. It is not just kestrels that will take advantage of this all-you-can-eat buffet, so will the Cooper’s Hawk.

Many years ago, while working for the Missouri Department of Conservation I noticed all the birds at the feeders outside my window take flight and disappear. I peered through the window and there was a Coopers Hawk perched with anticipation of capturing a meal at our feeders. I couldn’t help but chuckle at what must have been a frustrating situation for the hawk, to see so many options for a meal vanish in front of his eyes at his approach. After 30 minutes or so, he left, and the songbirds returned within 15 minutes. About 30 minutes later the same scenario played out and again there sat the Coopers Hawk. This action-packed situation went on for several hours before the hawk finally gave up. It was an amazing thing to observe.

Kestrels are approximately the size of a mourning dove, making them one of the smallest birds of prey in our region. They weigh between three to six ounces. This is equivalent to thirty-four pennies! Their lifespan is considered short for a hawk at fewer than five years in the wild. In captivity they may live more than ten years. Males are smaller than females and unlike most hawks and other birds of prey, they are dimorphic, meaning they look different from one another. Males have a blue gray head and back, both genders have hues of rust and white. Tails are barred and their faces have distinct, sharp lines.

Males arrive to breeding grounds ahead of females, and it is the female who will select her mate. They form strong bonds that often become permanent. They often reuse nesting sites from previous years. Usually, four to six eggs are laid, but occasionally they will lay as many as seven or as few as one. There is an indication that populations in some areas are declining. This is due to many factors, one of which is the removal of hollow trees and snags and using the cleared ground for grain farms and other human endeavors, which means nesting sites are not always readily available. We should strive to keep some of these small wild areas free from agricultural and other human activity. Encouraging these birds to live alongside us means free pest control. Rodents cause millions of dollars in damage, each year, to stored grain. They are also responsible for nearly 30% of structure fires, caused by their tendency to chew on wires. Kestrels work together to incubate the eggs and care for the young. Parents deliver two to three mice, or voles as well as other prey to the nestlings. If each chick is fed two to three mice every day, times four nestlings, times more than one million mated pairs in North America alone, you can begin to see the massive number of rodents that are being removed from the environment by kestrels alone, that isn’t factoring in all the other birds of prey also contributing to the reduction of rodent populations. That is a lot of small rodents!

If you are interested in learning more about kestrels or helping in the research of these amazing birds of prey: visit Peregrine Fund and check out the American Kestrel Partnership that was launched by them in 2012. This web-based network is for professional researchers as well as citizen scientists. They are asking individuals to monitor nest boxes and report their findings. This helps researchers to better understand the kestrel and its environmental needs.

These small predators are not only beautiful, and provide free pest control, they are also devoted partners and parents. The rodent control they provide is invaluable, and the enjoyment they provide just by watching their life play out before our eyes is enriching our own lives. Next time you are driving down a roadway, look at the wires and see if you can spot this tiny predator as he scans his habitat for a meal.