Friends of the Limberlost
  • Home
  • Resources
    • Maps
    • Teachers
    • Mobile app and iBook
    • Programs >
      • Birds >
        • Beneficial Birds
        • Chimney Swifts
        • Eagles
        • Extreme Birds
        • Indiana's Raptors
        • Owls of Limberlost
        • Peregrine Falcons
        • Vultures
      • Insects >
        • Dragonflies
        • Moths
      • Rent-a-Naturalist
    • News
  • Blog
  • Videos
  • Bird's Eye View
  • Board

Winter Hike at Limberlost

2/26/2018

 
Friends member Kimberley Roll is a popular blogger with her nature hikes at the Limberlost Territories in southern Adams County (Geneva) and northern Jay County (Bryant).  Join her as she takes you on a special February hike. 
Picture
Mallards in the Loblolly Creek in southern Adams County.
Picture
Juvenile bald eagle checking out the Geneva nest. This is before the adult pair were nesting.
Picture
Wild turkey which would have been our national bird if Benjamin Franklin had his way.
Picture
Bald eagle bathing at the Loblolly Marsh.
Picture
Rough-legged hawk. Two to three of these hawks have been seen at the Loblolly Marsh.
Picture
Fog over the Limberlost Swamp Wetland Preserve.
Picture
Three of the resident deer that like walking the Deacon's Trail at the Limberlost Swamp Wetland Preserve.
Picture
Short-eared owl at dusk at the Limberlost Swamp Wetland Preserve.
Picture
Great Blue Heron. There are a few that stay around here in the winter.
Picture
Muskrats are a common site at the wetlands and in the creeks.
Picture
Red-tailed hawk
Picture
Kestrel. They are commonly seen at the Loblolly Marsh and the Limberlost Swamp Wetland Preserve.
Picture
We hope that Kimberley Roll's hike has inspired you to explore Limberlost. This is a basic map of the 1800 acres that are preserved. 

Christmas Bird Count

2/16/2018

 
SANJO Christmas Bird Count
By Terri Gorney

On January 1 Limberlost hosted the SANJO CBC. SANJO stands for Southern Adams, Northern Jay,  and Ouabache. Randy Lehman came up with this name to represent the area that the circle covers. This circle was created for the National Audubon Society. It came out of the old Adams County CBC that had a 40 year history. Limberlost hosted this event for the 5th year.

It had to be the coldest on record for this area with temperatures -4 to -9 degrees in the morning. That did not deter a record number of 27 field, feeder and property counters from helping. We had participants from Mississinewa Audubon Society, Robert Cooper Audubon Society and Stockbridge Audubon Society and local residents. A total of 48 species were record, 2171 individuals. 

This was the 118th Christmas Bird Count by the National Audubon Society. This count relies on volunteers. It is an early winter bird census. This count gives an idea of bird populations and how they have changed over the years. Some species have prospered and others have not. In our area, habitat restoration and creation of the Limberlost Territories and Ouabache State Park have helped the birds to thrive. We now have a year round population of bald eagles and northern harriers and short-eared owls as regular winter residents. 

Some of the best birds were the bald eagles, short-eared owls, rough-legged hawks, northern harriers, greater white-fronted geese, snow buntings, Lapland longspurs, Carolina wrens, brown creepers, yellow-bellied sapsucker, redheaded woodpeckers and pileated woodpeckers. We had a record numbers of horned larks, Lapland longspurs, snow buntings, and American tree sparrows this year.

We met at the Limberlost Visitor Center for a chili carry-in lunch. We had a feast along with great conversation. It is a great way to start the new year.

A big thank you to all that participated in this event. In my opinion, it is the volunteers that make this count special. A few of our volunteer had "lifers" - birds they had not seen before. There is always room for more counters for January 1 2019. You do not have to be an expert birder to help with this count. Larry Parker was the compiler before me. Larry has a long history of birding in Adams County and helping with bird counts. He still helps with the counts. 

The Indiana Audubon Society's May Count will be held May 12. This count will be for Adams County. Anyone interested in helping with this count are welcome. We can always use feeder counters, field counters or people who want to count birds on their farms or properties. 

Picture
Some of our counters enjoying lunch.
Picture
Carolina wren by J Swygart
Picture
Waterfowl on the old gravel pit in Geneva. It was one of the few places with open water.

A Most Elusive Moth

2/4/2018

 
Most Elusive Moth
by Gene Stratton-Porter

Once when I was a child I brought a Cecropia moth home and kept it for a short time, but not until twenty years afterward did I have one at close enough range to take a picture. I did not see it until one summer morning when a little boy brought me a fine specimen in a pasteboard box with a perforation in the top. I took it out, and found it so numb with cold that it could not cling to a twig. I knew that these moths lived only a short time, and, fearing that this one was near death, focused the camera on a branch and tried again to make it cling. The fourth effort was successful, though the moth crept so far away before it settled that I had to change the shutter. It took less than a minute, but when I looked around my fine Cecropia was sailing over the top of the elm trees near the orchard.

Some months later, after one of the most trying days I ever spent afield, I came home to find a Cecropia slowly working its wings up and down on the top step of the cabin. I reached for my net. The moth for which I had waited twenty years was mine. 

​
Note: People in Geneva would bring Gene moths, caterpillars and birds. She would pay them for their efforts.


Picture
Cecropia Moth found and photographed by Terri Gorney.

    Author

    The volunteers and staff of Limberlost

    Archives

    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    September 2014
    July 2014

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.