Katydids on Crumbly Acres

The ankle is coming along. I did some gardening yesterday. Well, cleaning out of dead plants, and it went well. This morning my tenosynovitis has kicked it, however. Back on goes the brace. Ah, isn't old age grand?! 

Insects in the family Tettigoniidae are commonly called katydids. They eat leaves and grass, and are nocturnal. They are outside in the daytime, however! I guess they don't really sleep. We must have hundreds, nay, thousands of them! This is a nymph, and it'll shed its exoskeleton and grow larger. They only live a year,so I hope they make hay while the sun shines!

They are a bright, cheery insect.

The mating adults sing outside in the dark. It is a lovely noise, similar to crickets:

Katydid from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

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To answer your question RedPat , I have to bring Percy goldfish in for winter. The pond is too shallow and freezes solid. In addition, with Climate Change, it freezes, then thaws, and this isn't good for any frogs. I remember when I had tropical fish, there was a little nanny suite. I looked it up, and it is a fish breeding box. 

I was thinking of trying to rehome the littlest goldfish. Percy ate three of the four, shown here when we bought them in April, 2023!  It hasn't grown too much. 

Then, I remembered there is a small, independent pet store up the road. JB went by, and they said they'd be happy to take the little one. That is a relief. Off it'll go today. The others are too fast for Percy. 

🔨 🔨 🔨 🔨 🔨 🔨 🔨 🔨 🔨 🔨 🔨 🔨 

Our Ottawa family nearly has a new kitchen. A lot of the work is done. They are at the painting stage. They managed to use the dishwasher, which is great. The first thing they did was to pack everything up before the demolition, then a rebuild. 

Now they have a half wall to the dining room, and the appliances are back in place. I am so happy for them. The end is nigh.

24 June, 2010 

With better nutrition, better education and better genes, our children are all taller than we are. While house hunting, they kindly let us stay with them. (Mind you, I did help in the night with newborn Isabelle!) This is the story of life in a tall person's house. Trying to make toast; reaching the tall person's kettle, reaching the fake sugar (in the cupboard above the refrigerator) and then there is the 'emergency' light.

 

Black flies, Butch, Fred, Maggie, and other tails

I've been pacing myself with my tenosynovitis in my foot. It is a repetitive strain injury on my upper foot, first done in 2011. Ice, rest, and a foot brace help manage it. Plus, TLC from hubby! Sitting on the back deck has been lovely. Finally, the mosquitos aren't active there on the deck. The blackflies are another story. I've oozing welts on my arms. You don't feel them land, and they are horribly itchy. You don't even realize they are there. 

🐻 Hunting Seasons  🦃 

I did go to the back 40, to the duck nesting box Saturday morning, wrapped up with bug spray on. While there, I heard the neighbour hunting. Apparently, it is bear (May 1 - June 15) and turkey (Apr. 25 - May 31) season. I like to know, as it prepares me. There are turkey hunting requirements in Ontario: you can't bait them, or call them. They are required to have a licence, and report their kills. Our new neighbour was out hunting Saturday morning and I heard 3 shots. He proudly posted the photo, offering his outfitting services. I worry about Black bear hunting season, as I enjoyed seeing our black bear on the camera. 

The lilac bush is amazing for action. As I sat on the deck, the robins landed in the bush, as well as the phoebes and the hummingbirds.  Lately, I've noticed two female cardinals in the tree. One chased the robin awa. The robins are busy shoving food into hungry mouths. A female cardinal came by and chased them away.

I've done some work on the front garden. Funny story, I spray painted my garden fencing. It is a barrier to keep my lilies in the garden, as they fall over. I spray paint them just for fun. I leaned them up on the fence. Thing is, I had a brain fade and reached to move them, and sort of forgot that they were wet. I scrubbed with the brush, and had trouble getting it out. I had to throw the brush out! Baby oil worked to get it off me, and time! 

There is Fred, watching me. You can see the remaining bed frames leaning up on the fence, this is my repurposed fence strategy. Placing the two rails I'll put up some string later. 

May 18th, I realized the wood ducks have taken up a nest into the box we'd moved. I accidentally flushed her, thinking it still empty, and she took off into the wetland, landing and taking off to safety.

  

Wood ducking from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

Having set up the trailcam, I realized she is too fast for this camera. I may just monitor the action. 

 

That said, I wonder if Bear will find it. Butch raccoon certainly did. May 25-26, The wood duck is sitting on eggs in here. Butch raccoon knows it, I'll bet. I realized I'd have to tip the camera up a tad. Hit and miss! The baffles baffled Butch. 

Butch is busy from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

Finally, Maggie magnolia has bloomed. The chicken wire protects the blossoms, sometimes. This one I'll leave alone, as it will break if I touch it. (I learned that last week!)

We think we've bumble bees who have moved into Fred's burrow under the deck. More on THAT action later! Have a wonderful day.

Sprouts, rain, Lenton Rose

 🌱After such a stressful week, I thought some outdoor work was called for! I trimmed all of these tall grasses. I neglected an 'after' photo! It's been raining for two days, so I haven't ventured out. The new shoots are coming up. Indoors, my sprouts are sprouting!

 

After getting out and about, and trying to garden, I paid for it! My tenosynovitis kicked it. 😏 Foot brace is on, foot is up.

I finally remembered to check on my magnolia. Thank you, Ontario Wanderer, for reminding me! I have a memory, it is just selective! Maggie Magnolia only has buds right now (below, left). But soon!  She is growing, as you can see from my May 12, 2012 post on planting her (below right). She is almost as tall as the stick supporting the chicken wire.

 

This is what I await!

I have 180 videos of the spider web across the Crumbly Acres camera. 😏 It's the perfect place, with the light attracting bugs! You just gotta laugh.

 

☔While there was sun and clouds, as predicted, there were dumps of rain during out Kingston trip last Monday! We were headed to the pet store to supplement our goldfish stocks, as long as we were in the city. The weather was interesting!

We've a week of rain on the way. Percy is still managing all alone in his room (the outdoor goldfish pond), where he is supposed to be thinking about his behaviour, having eaten his siblings!

I noticed a robin's nest, about chest level. What could go wrong?!

The Lenten Rose has 7 or 8 blossoms! I am so happy to see it. The deer have been scarce, thankfully.

 

I had another go at it, with my iPhone...  It is tricky! I'm sure AC would fix it up, but I haven't the patience! 

Grecian Windflowers, along with the pale blue star flowers.

🐾 Nutmeg had the first tick of the season. Then, Cinnamon! We'll get some tick prevention meds Monday.

A little later than last year. JB and I had the most in 2022! 

It's the rainy season!

I read this on Elephant's Child's page: "the weather boffins predicted buckets of rain." It is rather fitting for us this week. Our arborists had to cancel. It's a mucky mess. 

🐸Moving the froggies

 🐸UPDATE: Saturday, Nov. 13, I found #46 and the girls took it down for me.

UPDATE: Frog #39, Thursday, Nov. 10, while I was stacking wood. Also, 6 more, after Nutmeg found one = 45 total moved to better winter hibernation spots. 

UPDATE: I moved another frog Nov. 9th, that makes 38!  

I made four trips down to the wetland last week to deliver a total of 18 frogs. I had recovered enough by Oct. 19th to go frogging again. I captured 3 in the morning, 5 in the afternoon. 

The water is getting colder (4˚ C., which is air temperature this morning), and the freeze/thaws of Climate Change doesn't bode well for my froggies. They get trapped under a layer of ice, and then it thaws. They rise to the top and freeze overnight. It's a horrid thing to see.

That makes 26 froggies I've trucked down to the wetland, which is wetter than it has been. We had another dump of rain overnight. (15 mm or 3/4 ")

 

I counted them, there were 7 still visible. I gave up for the day, though. They are getting a bit wary and hide when I just approach. It's a good challenge for an old girl!

Oct. 20th – I moved 5 more in the morning = 31 froggies moved from the goldfish pond to the wetland.

Then there was the toe biter incident. I couldn't believe it. Toe biters prey on frogs, you see. Here is one from 2014 in the process of sucking on its prey. [I did not scream like a girl!] I released this froggie, back in the day. 

"It has a penetrating semi-retractable proboscis. Think of it as sort of a mosquito way of feeding. It has digestive enzymes... seizes prey in its arms like a praying mantis would.... then jabs its pointy bit into the prey.. and slurps out the goop like a spider."

The little twerp was accidentally captured in the net with the frog. It is amazing it didn't get the goldfish. I didn't want it to stay in the bucket with the frogs. I put my hand under it and whooshed it out onto the ground. Picking it up in the net, I took it down to the wetland with the frogs.

After lunch, 5 more froggies. This time Cinnamon helped me. That makes 36 froggies. My buddy came with me. What a wonderful days it has been. It's about to get cold, though. Here he is running to keep up with me. (He gets distracted!)

I wandered outside, again, and found one more frog. To save my foot, JB took it down to the wetland for me, I was done for the day. That means 37 frogs we've moved.

Oct. 21st I noticed two small frogs, but that is it for a few days. 

Fortunately, my foot brace arrived, and I could put my foot up! It's not cheap, but it really helps my tenosynovitis, which I developed in 2011. Ah, ain't old age grand?!

Autumn continues to unfold. The magnolia has gone to seed. It's amazing from flower to fruit to seed pods.

The milkweed have gone to seed. I shall anticipate them for next year, as well as the monarchs!

We still have some colour, although they are falling fast. Soon I'll have to go up the ladder and clear out the eavestrough.