Adventure Joe Wildlife

Whether poised at a river bend or cruising the coastline with slow, deep wingbeats, the Great Blue Heron is a majestic sight. This stately heron with its subtle blue-gray plumage often stands motionless as it scans for prey or wades belly deep with long, deliberate steps. They may move slowly, but Great Blue Herons can strike like lightning to grab a fish or snap up a gopher. In flight, look for this widespread heron’s tucked-in neck and long legs trailing out behind. Despite their impressive size, Great Blue Herons weigh only 5 to 6 pounds thanks in part to their hollow bones—a feature all birds share. Great Blue Herons in the northeastern U.S. and southern Canada have benefited from the recovery of beaver populations, which have created a patchwork of swamps and meadows well-suited to foraging and nesting. Along the Pacific coast, it’s not unusual to see a Great Blue Heron poised atop a floating bed of kelp waiting for a meal to swim by. The white form of the Great Blue Heron, known as the "great white heron," is found nearly exclusively in shallow marine waters along the coast of very southern Florida, the Yucatan Peninsula, and in the Caribbean. Where the dark and white forms overlap in Florida, intermediate birds known as "Wurdemann's herons" can be found. They have the body of a Great Blue Heron, but the white head and neck of the great white heron. Great Blue Herons have specialized feathers on their chest that continually grow and fray. The herons comb this “powder down” with a fringed claw on their middle toes, using the down like a washcloth to remove fish slime and other oils from their feathers as they preen. Applying the powder to their underparts protects their feathers against the slime and oils of swamps. Great Blue Herons can hunt day and night thanks to a high percentage of rod-type photoreceptors in their eyes that improve their night vision. Great Blue Herons congregate at fish hatcheries, creating potential problems for the fish farmers. A study found that herons ate mostly diseased fish that would have died shortly anyway. Sick fish spent more time near the surface of the water where they were more vulnerable to the herons. The oldest recorded Great Blue Heron was found in Texas when it was at least 24 years, 6 months old. Thanks to specially shaped neck vertebrae, Great Blue Herons can quickly strike prey at a distance. https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Great_Blue_Heron/overview

I was walking along the shore of a marsh when I heard the bleet of a fawn deer. I look out across the water and I see something struggling off in the distance. I grab my camera and this is what I captured.

Although the name ​millipede​ means "one thousand feet" and the small invertebrates may appear to have hundreds, most millipedes actually have fewer than 100 feet. There are about 1,400 types of millipedes in the United States and Canada, and about 7,000 across the world. Millipedes are mostly harmless, and they break down dead plants and improve the soil. They don't bite, but you shouldn't pick up a millipede with your bare hands because they can release a chemical that irritates skin. https://sciencing.com/millipede-kids-8653967.html

The Fowler’s Toad is fairly small, with adult lengths of 5.1 to 9.4 cm. Like all toads, they have dry, warty skin with short legs. They are usually brown, gray, or olive green in color (occasionally with some red or yellow) and have black-edged dark spots on their backs, with a light stripe down the middle of the back. This toad can be distinguished from the American Toad (Anaxyrus americanus) by the presence of at least 3 warts within each dark spot on its back although this can vary (American toads generally have 3 or less). The underside of the Fowler’s Toad is white or cream colored and is almost completely unspotted or with a single dark spot between the forelimbs and the lower leg (tibia) has no enlarged warts. In contrast, the American Toad has dark spots or blotches on its underside and enlarged warts on its lower leg. The breeding call of the Fowler's Toad sounds like a bleating sheep or “shrill scream” lasting from one to four seconds, whereas the American Toad’s breeding call is a prolonged musical trill. https://mnfi.anr.msu.edu/species/description/10846/Anaxyrus-fowleri

Look for Red-spotted Purple Admiral butterflies from spring through autumn. Adult butterflies drink nectar from flowers, water from puddles, tree sap, and juices from rotting fruits. They are likely to be found on or near host plants for their caterpillars. Caterpillars eat the leaves of willow trees as well as poplar, cottonwood, deerberry, and black cherry. White eggs resembling tiny spiky golf balls are laid at the edges of leaves and the caterpillars eat away at the soft parts of the leaf once they hatch. The caterpillar resembles bird droppings. It is white and green with two yellow bumps near the head and two smaller yellow humps near its rear. When ready to pupate, it uses its own feces to attach its cocoon to rib of a chewed leaf. Depending on the latitude, Red-spotted Purple Admirals can produce two to three broods a year. https://www.insectidentification.org/insect-description.php?identification=Red-Spotted-Purple-Admiral Twitter - @adventurejoe3 Youtube - @ The Amazing Adventures of Adventure Joe Music Privided by - Epidemic Sound Twitch @ brews_with_brandon

The majority of species are found in the southern United States, but they range across the entire North American continent. Some prefer arid deserts, while others prefer humid, more tropical climes or temperate forests. All adults feed on plant juices and can be found on a variety of vegetation including prairie plants like Joe-Pye Weed, goldenrods, and hawthorns as well as on trees and shrubs. https://www.insectidentification.org/insect-description.php?identification=Leaf-Footed-Bug Twitter - @adventurejoe3 Youtube - @ The Amazing Adventures of Adventure Joe Music Privided by - Epidemic Sound Twitch @ brews_with_brandon

Walkingsticks live in deciduous forests where the eat the foliage of trees and shrubs. They are especially fond of the leaves of hazelnut and oak trees. They are nocturnal so they do most of their eating at night. Large populations can be troublesome, defoliating trees, shrubs and even crops. But fortunately since they are flightless (no wings) and move slowly, the defoliated areas are extremely localized. https://trekohio.com/2012/10/23/the-walkingstick-insect/ Twitter - @adventurejoe3 Youtube - @ The Amazing Adventures of Adventure Joe Music Privided by - Epidemic Sound Twitch @ brews_with_brandon

Common in forested areas and gardens, this colorful spider almost appears painted. The abdomen can be a variety of color combinations, each depending on the individual spider. A silver or white base allows bright red, orange, green and yellow markings on it to really stand out. Straight and angles lines are common in the center of the abdomen. Black blotches of color at the end of the abdomen may or may not be present. This capsule-shaped abdomen is tubular, clearly unlike the more common spherical abdomen of most Orb Weaver spiders. https://www.insectidentification.org/insect-description.php?identification=Venusta-Orchard-Spider Twitter - @adventurejoe3 Youtube - @ The Amazing Adventures of Adventure Joe Music Privided by - Epidemic Sound Twitch @ brews_with_brandon

You're more likely to find an introduced mantid species than you are to find a native praying mantis. The Chinese mantis (Tenodera aridifolia) was introduced near Philadelphia, PA about 80 years ago. This large mantid can measure up to 100 mm in length. The European mantid, Mantis religiosa, is pale green and about half the size of the Chinese mantid. European mantids were introduced near Rochester, NY nearly a century ago. Both the Chinese and European mantids are common in the northeastern U.S. today.

Painted Turtles: Painted turtles are one of the most common turtles in North America and are found from southern Canada to northern Mexico. Painted turtles are brightly marked. They have a smooth shell about 90 to 250 mm long. Their shell acts as protection, but since the ribs are fused to the shell, the turtle cannot expand its chest to breathe but must force air in and out of the lungs by alternately contracting the flank and shoulder muscles. The painted turtle has a relatively flat upper shell with red and yellow markings on a black or greenish brown background. Males mature at about 70 to 95 mm plastron (lower shell) length, usually at 3 to 5 years of age. Females at take longer (6 to 10 years) and are larger at maturity (c. 100 to 130 mm plastron length). The growth rate, for both sexes is rapid during the first several years of the of their lives. Turtles continue to grow slowly after maturity, and this species may reach 250 mm carapace (upper shell) length and live for many decades. (Harding, 1997) https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Chrysemys_picta/

There are a number of dung beetles or “tumblebugs” in the subfamily Scarabaeinae (Canthon, Copris, Deltochilum and Dichotomus and other genera) that are important in recycling animal feces. Some are small, dark dung-feeding scarab species (e.g., Ataenius and Aphodius species). One species, Onthophagus gazella Fabricius, was introduced by USDA scientists in the 1970’s and is now common throughout the state. In parts of Texas, they remove 80 percent of the cattle droppings. Most species are dull to shiny black and 1-3/8 inch or less in length with wing covers (elytra) that may have ridges (striae). They are often attracted to lights at night. These beetles are related to the sacred scarab of ancient Egypt, Scarabaeus sacer Linnaeus. https://extensionentomology.tamu.edu/insects/dung-beetle/ https://texasinsects.tamu.edu/dung-beetle/

New Mexico Whiptail The New Mexico whiptail is a female-only species that reproduces by producing an egg through parthenogenesis. Individuals of the species can be created either through the hybridization of the Little striped whiptail and the Western whiptail or through the parthenogenic reproduction of an adult New Mexico whiptail. Despite reproducing asexually, and being an all-female species, these lizards still mate with other females of its own species as according to common theory, those that do not "mate" do not lay eggs. New Mexico whiptails lay up to 4 eggs, usually in mid-summer, and hatching occurs approximately 8 weeks later. https://animalia.bio/new-mexico-whiptail

The Wolf Spider is a hunting spider and will wander in search of its prey. They usually do not spin webs like most spiders do. Though they have the ability to, they often only do so to attach their eggs to their abdomen and carry them around. Once the babies hatch, they will continue to ride around on the mother’s back until they are large enough to fend for themselves. The bite from a Wolf Spider can cause some pain, redness and swelling. In some cases, swollen Lymph glands may occur and the skin area at the bite can turn black. Swelling and Pain can last up to 10 days. On a very rare occasion, a bite can cause necrotic lesions similar to the Recluse or Hobo Spider (Neither of which is in Michigan) but nowhere as severe. https://usaspiders.com/lycosidae-wolf-spider/ Music: Epidemic Sound Referral - https://www.epidemicsound.com/referral/xzmlrm/

SIZE, WEIGHT, HEIGHT Baby cottontail rabbits weigh a mere 30 grams when they are born, but by the time they reach adulthood, they will be between 1.8 and 3.3 pounds. For size, cottontail rabbits can reach between 13 to 16 inches long. Their tail can grow to be up to 3 inches long. As a general rule, female rabbits are larger than male rabbits. LIFESPAN The average lifespan of a cottontail rabbit is two years if it can reach the age of adulthood. Due to their size and inability to defend themselves, many young rabbits are taken by prey when they are mere months old. TEMPERAMENT/BEHAVIOR Cottontail rabbits spend the majority of their life trying to hide from swooping predators. As a result, their behavior has adapted to provide the best possible defenses. While they normally move about by hopping, cottontail rabbits will quickly run away if they sense the slightest hint of danger. And, they won’t just run straight as they have adapted to utilize zig-zag maneuvering for the best possible defense. COLOR/VARIETY Cottontail rabbits will have darker fur on their back and whiter fur on their abdomens. You can see hues of light brown and reddish-brown on their backs with tufts of white or grey fur on their stomachs. As for their faces, cottontail rabbits often have white-colored fur that rims their eyes, which can appear to be quite large. FUR/COAT Cottontail rabbits are prey, so they need as much help with camouflaging colors as possible to avoid becoming someone else’s dinner. Camouflage colors include grey, brown, and reddish-brown. While the fur of cottontail rabbits will be shorter and sparser in the summer, come early fall, their skin will start to become bushier and longer. For winter, their fur will even transition to a grayer color to better blend in with the changing landscape. Spring, then, brings a natural molting as their fur becomes thinner to compensate for warming temperatures. HABITS While rabbit litters depend on their mothers for food and nurturing, by the time they are 8 weeks old, they are considered independent. They might live near each other but can often maintain their home range of a few acres in size. However, female rabbits will often live a bit closer to each other. Twitter - @adventurejoe3 Youtube - @ The Amazing Adventures of Adventure Joe Music Privided by - Epidemic Sound Twitch @ brews_with_brandon https://northernnester.com/cottontail-rabbits/

Gypsy moth caterpillars partially or entirely strip trees of their leaves. They prefer oaks, especially white and chestnut. But they’ll also eat alder, aspen, basswood, birch, hawthorn and willow trees. Where did they come from? The gypsy moth was introduced to the United States on accident in 1869, by French entomologist Leopold Trouvelet. He was experimenting with silk production, but some of his specimens escaped and over a 20-year period established a successful population. By 1889 it had become a serious pest of deciduous forests and fruit trees. By the end of the 20th century the moth had spread to the western Great Lakes region. Damage is less severe in its original European range, where the moth has several natural enemies. Twitter - @adventurejoe3 Youtube - @ The Amazing Adventures of Adventure Joe Music Privided by - Epidemic Sound Twitch @ brews_with_brandon Insect Britanica https://www.britannica.com/animal/gypsy-moth Facts for Kids https://www.factsjustforkids.com/insect-facts/moth-facts-for-kids/gypsy-moth-facts/ Michigan Government Page - Invasive Species https://www.michigan.gov/invasives/0,5664,7-324-68002_71241-379403--,00.html