arthur-windsor's Journal

I Found Something That Serves My Purposes

As a resident of Florida, and wanting to find rare animals, I went into “Places” on iNat and plugged in Florida, from there I clicked “View Check List Page”, to the right under “Stats” is “Observed”. By clicking on “No”, for “Observed”, then the blue “Filter” button, one would think the search would present Taxa that could been seen in Florida, but at present time there are zero observations, but instead it presents Taxa with only one research grade observation. For my purposes, I will consider these rare and try to hone in on some.

One other area I found that serves my purposes well, is back on the “Stats” page, is “Threatened”, if one were to check off “Threatened” along with “Any” for “Observed”, you of course are presented with everything with a threatened status, which if I do not have by now, these too would qualify for my list of rare Taxa for me to target.

It was remarkable to witness a few Crane Flies perform, what I am going to call, their "preparation for landing" maneuver. I was in a deep, dark, moist, cool, woodsy area (a great way to spend the day off from work and celebrate Earth Day). This insect caught my attention, and this happened a few times during this outing. It was violently shaking in place. It was not on a branch, or a leaf, instead it gave me the impression it was suspended in an area just below my knees and between some green plants. It seems like it was in a desperate struggle, trying to shake free, to escape from a spider's web maybe. It was shaking about, but also seemed anchored. Past experience has taught me to watch for a spider to come climbing into view at such moments, to get its prey under control. Then the Crane Fly stopped, suddenly, it was still, and its long legs were reached out in multiple directions, and I was left wondering what I just saw. I snapped some photos of the few times I saw this. I theorized, this insect with incredibly long legs, in a confined space, with its technique for hanging in a certain way, that its hoovering, in a wild, midair dance, might really be its way of analyzing the surroundings to find six points of contact that will allow it to be a perfect hanging forest ornament.

This experience has evoked a desire to get a better understanding of this creature. I may try to video one doing this "preparation for landing" on a camcorder I have that allows for fast action to be recorded at a high level of frames per second, so that when it is played back, it delivers smooth slow motion. It is nice to make new friends in the forest.

02 Feb...………..…..World Wetlands Day
03 Mar...….....…….World Wildlife Day
21 Mar...…………....International Day of Forests
22 Apr...…………....Earth Day
Last Sat of Apr.....Save the Frogs Day
2nd Sat of May.....WMBD-World Migratory Bird Day
20 May.............…...World Bee Day
21 May.....................World Fish Migration Day
22 May....................International Day for Biological Diversity
23 May....................World Turtle Day
1st Sat of Jun..........National Trails Day
21-29 Jul...…………..National Moth Week
2nd Sat of Oct........WMBD-World Migratory Bird Day

WMBD is officially celebrated on the 2nd Saturday of May and 2nd Saturday of October, in Canada and the US. As of 24 Apr 2020, I do not see any Projects set up associated with this event. I will "celebrate" it anyway.

This year:
2020.....09 May
…………...10 Oct

Past year dates below, from what I was able to gather, doing searches on the internet. Looks like in the past it was a Saturday and Sunday combined event, but how would you know 100% with this event? This organization has a terrific mission, but a piss poor way of providing their event history and growth. Is that not how momentum is built? In my attempt to celebrate these days, and I suppose in my own way help promote their effort, I will tag and collect my bird photos from the below dates, and then add hyperlinks.

2019.....11 May
…………..12 Oct
2018.....12 May
…………..13 Oct (1st time in October)
2017.....13-14 May
2016.....14 May
2015.....09-10 May
2014.....10-11 May
2013.....11-12 May
2012.....12-13 May
2011.....14-15 May
2010.....08-09 May
2009.....09-10 May
2008.....10-11 May

Today is Earth Day, the 50th anniversary. My first plan is underway at 2:45 am. I took a backyard Adirondack chair and faced it towards the window, which I am behind now, sitting at my desk. I have a big backyard. The chair is under a big, leafy tree. There are some bushes under the window, between me and the chair. I have a white towel and a white sheet draped over the chair. Sitting in the chair is a Coleman florescent bulb lantern. I recently did some research on the hobby of Moth trapping and learn that Moths are attracted to florescent light. Rather than going elaborate like I saw online of creating, or buying a trap, this quick little set up is starting to draw a few Moths in already. It seems they excitedly fly around and then settle down on the fabric. I just want to take some photos, I do not need to trap them. This three item set up will be put away sometime before sunrise, so again trapping is not necessary for my backyard. I turn off my desk light occasionally to peer out ten yards away with my binoculars to glimpse at what is buzzing around. I have a camera on a tripod, inside near the front door, that I will bring out a little later, or sooner if I see something big land. I did have the foresight to turn off the sprinklers last night. The temperature is comfortable and no humidity to speak of on this South Florida morning, and it is very still, no wind at all. Currently I have 62 species of research grade observations of Butterflies and Moths, so if I can add more to that count, then part one of this Earth Day is off to a good start. I took the day off from work, yes I am fortunate to be working during this pandemic, so the day off in of itself adds to the good start. I will add observation links of what I got, in the meantime cheers with a cup of coffee.

This link will be all the observations I have using florescent lantern as a tag: http://www.inaturalist.org/observations?place_id=any&q=Florescent%20Lantern&subview=grid&user_id=arthur-windsor

Conclusion: After more than an hour, I took my tripod and camera out to the lantern. What I did not realize, was Moths and flying Insects do not stay with the light for a long period of time. It seems they become attracted to the light, visit it, maybe stay for a short moment, but then leave to continue their nocturnal travels. I photographed what visited for about an hour. The wind picked up a little and it seemed the temperature dropped some. Since my house is white and there is a hook between the back windows, I tried there for a little while as well.

The following are a list of animals I do not always see when I go out, but I certainly love to see them when I do. They are not rare, but because I see them only on occasion, I want to review my harddrive inventory of these animals and make sure I get every single one I have photographed or have trail camera footage, posted on to iNaturalist. When I am in nature and see one of these animals, I can say I am in a good location; it is a good sign. For those other animals I might only ever see but once, of course those I should not sit on and for sure get posted on iNaturalist right away. But, again these on this list, I know some have sat, I don't want any I have not be posted. Once I get caught up on these, I can move on to others I have.

……………………………………………# so far posted.....Date
Bird...…….....American Kestrel...……………….00.....00
Bird...…….....Loggerhead Shrike...……………..00.....00
Bird...………..Northern Harrier...………………..00.....00
Bird...…….....Owls...…………………………………..00.....00
Bird...…….....Sandhill Crane...…………………...00.....00
Bird...…….....Swallow Tailed Kite...…………...00.....00
Bird...…….....Wild Turkeys...……………………..00.....00
Bird...…….....Woodpeckers...…………………….00.....00
Mammal.....Coyote...……………………………….00.....00
Mammal.....Eastern Bobcat...………………….00.....00
Mammal.....North American River Otter...00.....00
Mammal.....White Tailed Deer...……………...00.....00
Reptile...…...Gopher Tortoise...………………...00.....00
Reptile...…...Snakes...……………………………….00.....00

For me there will always be a disconnect from the amount of observations I have on my harddrive (which is in the many 1000s) and how many I have actually done the desk work of narrowing down from the many to the best shot(s), and having those become an actual iNaturalist observation. I wish it were my paying job. I try to get out in nature often and when I see something out there that catches my eye, I most times am manually focusing, I like to take many shots if the opportunity is there; knowing most will be moved to a garbage folder.

I believe it is my responsibility to ensure I tap evenly from the years and months I have accumulated on my harddrive. I keep a simple spreadsheet of the number of observations I have posted by year and by month. If you are like me and use the Flickr website to upload your photos prior to uploading on iNaturalist, then assigning your Flickr photo to a Flick album like July, is an easy way to keep the tally. Currently my lowest observations are in May and my highest number of observations are in December (maybe because May is hotter than December here in South Florida?). Therefore, if I can purposely tap more from May, then a different month could become the new lowest and new attention would be directed to that one. This way I can evenly broaden my offerings and be a more conscientious contributor. So many things I love about this iNaturalist site, and one is, at every level of the taxonomic rank, there is a web page showing details and information about that living thing, and one of those details is a 12 month linear graph displaying the accumulative dates, reflected by months to easily see when this animal or plant is at its height of visibility. I like to think I am very good at seeing things when I go out; more so than the average person. Therefore, I might see things when they are not at their "peak" and from a contribution standpoint, this is good information to add.

In the natural world, there are regular animal behaviors that occur, for example a small bird harassing a larger bird. In this journal entry I will attempt to outline those behaviors that likely occur in Florida, that I am aware of, that interest me, and also encourage myself to seek out those I am not familiar with. This journal entry will allow me to take an inventory of what I have photographed and have already uploaded as an observation, along with those I aspire to capture. Parentheses around the Class of animal indicates I have at least one posted observation of this behavior.

Amphibian.....Frog catching prey with its tongue

(Bird)…………...Anting
(Bird)…...……...Bird chasing down another to steal its prey
Bird.........……...Loggerhead Shrike impaling Prey on a spike
Bird...................Northern Mockingbird hunting on the ground and lifting wings
Bird...…………...Nighthawk doing a steep dive
Bird...….........….Osprey catching a Fish from the water
Bird...……………Peregrine Falcons migration stop in the Keys
(Bird)...…...…...Short Tailed Hawk diving for Prey
Bird...…....……..small Bird harassing a larger one

Fish...……………."Mullet Run" - mass migration of Mullet
(Fish)...……..….Shark temporarily beaching itself while pursuing prey

(Insect)....…….Butterfly Puddling
(Insect)………..Floating Fire Ant Mound
(Insect)………..Lubber Grasshopper swarm
Insect...….…….Monarchs migrating

(Mammal)…..Dolphin jumping from the water

Reptile...………Alligator bellowing and vibrating
Reptile...……...Alligator thrusting itself from the water to capture a Bird on a branch
Reptile......……Lizard catching Prey with its tongue
(Reptile)...…...Lizard changing from one color to another
(Reptile)...…...Rattlesnake shaking its rattle
Reptile...……...Sea Turtle juveniles hatching and moving to the ocean
Reptile...……...Sea Turtle laying eggs on the beach

My house is in a small, private, Greenacres, Florida community of 60 houses, right in the middle of Palm Beach County. I have been a home owner here since June of 2018. What really attracted me to this place was the 1.3 acre area directly behind my property that is surrounded by my house and 11 of my neighbors on this circular drive. It is a common area for our community, but rarely walked in. There is nothing in the 1.3 acres to attract most people. There isn't a sidewalk, no picnic tables, no benches, just grass and trees. Landscapers mow the lawn, which there is plenty of, but what is really nice is all the different trees. It is obvious that the planner was looking for variety. Since no one has any fences, when I look out at my backyard, I see an extra 160 feet and looking left another 330 feet of "my backyard". I set up my desk and computer to look out back. It is what I like most about living here. Many birds frequent this little area. If I look to the right from my desk I can see part of a lake we have here. A short walk to the opposite corner of the community we have an undeveloped, dense, overgrown area, people here call a preserve, measuring a quarter acre, which I have yet to attempt. It is easy to see something in my backyard and take a picture through the window, or better yet go outside and walk around.

(46) Species,
My Research Grade Observations (55), as of 03.21.20:

http://www.inaturalist.org/observations?lat=26.606999&lng=-80.14021&nelat=26.607442348801314&nelng=-80.13881887314734&place_id=any&quality_grade=research&subview=grid&swlat=26.606782854953067&swlng=-80.14154828897541&user_id=arthur-windsor&verifiable=any

...............……Observations / Species / as of
Amphibians...………..….01...…..01...…..as of 03.21.20
Birds...………………..……..26...…..22...…..03.21.20
Butterflies...………...…….01...…..01...…..03.21.20
Damselflies...…...…...…..00...…..00...…..03.21.20
Dragonflies...…………......04...…..03...…..03.21.20
Fish...………………..……….00...…..00...…..03.21.20
Flowers...………...………...00...…..00...…..03.21.20
Insects...………………...….13...…..12...…..03.21.20
Mammals...………..……..03...…..02...…..03.21.20
Moths...…………..………...05...…..05...…..03.21.20
Reptiles...…………….…….09...…..06...…..03.21.20
Spiders...………….………..01...…..01...…..03.21.20
Trees...……………..………...01...…..01...…..03.21.20

There is sport to finding nature, to finding wildlife. There certainly is adventure and escape combing vast areas of wilderness. Can there be wildlife sought and adventure had during an one hour lunch break from work? Maybe one could even throw in a diversionary block of time on the way, or returning from work. Now I should point out, I do not work at a marvelous nature center that is next door to a State Park. No, Boynton Beach, Florida is not that. So, with the one hour, and maybe that same amount tacked on to my commute, what if I challenged myself to find all the research grade observations within a 3 mile radius from my job. I spend a great deal of time at work and driving back and forth hundreds of times a year. Is there more I could bring to my daily routine that could remind me that nature is trying to revive in a crippled place? To also shine a light on the beauty of that nature hiding in the shadows of a seemingly dismal urban alley. I would normally want to get the hell out of Dodge, and on the weekends get all my outdoor nature fix far from urban development, the crowds, the homeless, the noise, the litter, and the ugliness of human's squeeze on nature. Well, animals don't fit with human activities, animals get run over, some get boxed by development, some get toxic spraying along water banks, some still fly in and fly out, some small ones are able to exist in pockets of vegetation. A little oasis could be a park where a spider can spin its web. A park where shady tall trees create lower temperatures and insects are plentiful. A park that invites birds to visit and as well me to visit. Okay then, 3 miles from a warehouse building, where are the parks I can visit while my coworkers hit up some sandwich shop? I will share this with a few soles I spend my days with and maybe they might like the collection of things I went out of my way to find. Plenty of times I come back to work sweaty and put my tie back on, with burrs stuck to my slacks.

(55) Species,
My Research Grade Observations (59), as of 03.21.20: http://www.inaturalist.org/observations?place_id=146614&quality_grade=research&subview=grid&user_id=arthur-windsor&verifiable=any

Parks I Have Observations:
__1. Barrier Free Park
_2. Barwick Park
_3. Bethesda Service Center
_4. Caloosa Park
_5. Lake Ida Park
__6. Seacrest Scrub Natural Area

Parks I Have Not Yet Visited:
__1. Anchor Park
_2. Bexley Trail Community Park
_3. Cornell Park
_4. Eagle Park
_5. Forest Hills Park
_6. Gulfstream Park
_7. Jaycee Park
_8. Lakeview Park
____9. Veteran's Park

...............……Observations / Species / as of
Amphibians...………..….00...…..00...…..as of 03.21.20
Birds...………………..……..15...…...15...…..03.21.20
Butterflies...………...…….03...…..03...…..03.21.20
Damselflies...…...…...…..01...…..01...…..03.21.20
Dragonflies...…………......03...…..03...…..03.21.20
Fish...………………..……….01...…..01...…..03.21.20
Flowers...………...………...01...…..01...…..03.21.20
Insects...………………...….15...…..15...…..03.21.20
Mammals...………..……..00...…..00...…..03.21.20
Moths...…………..………...03...…..03...…..03.21.20
Reptiles...…………….…….07...…..05...…..03.21.20
Spiders...………….………..02...…..02...…..03.21.20
Trees...……………..………..00...…..00...…..03.21.20