Friends of Rice Lake National Wildlife Refuge

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It's that time of year again!

Tonight, 169 million birds are expected to be on the move, according to BirdCast. This follows last night's 200+ million migrating birds.

You can help migrating birds by keeping feeders and bird baths clean, turning off your lights at night and keeping cats indoors. For more about how to help migrating birds, visit the American Bird Conservancy's website: https://abcbirds.org/thirteen-tips-spring-migration/

Check out more fascinating maps and forecasts from BirdCast, powered by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Colorado State University and UMass Amherst: https://birdcast.info/

Lots of twelve-spotted skimmers near the river on the South road - check them out!

Twelve-spotted skimmers can be found across much of the U.S. and southern Canada. They’re especially active near areas with ponds and slow streams. Have you seen any dragonflies lately?

📷 Jim Hudgins/USFWS

Did anyone else not know this? Wow!

The audacity of this orchid is off the charts.

The pink lady's slipper (Cypripedium acaule) is quite something. This showy orchid is found across much of the eastern half of the United States and typically blooms between May and July.

Here's the best part about pink lady's slipper - they kidnap bees! Ok, it's more of a bee-nap. Various bee species are the main pollinator of this orchid. The bee is lured in by the bright color of the flower. Ooooo, the bee must think. There must be some delicious nectar inside. WRONG! There is a small opening at the front of the flower petal. Once inside, the bee is trapped, and it can't go back out. And the worst is, there's no sweet nectar reward. It's the ultimate catfish!

There's only one way out for the trapped bee, and that's to go through a small opening at the top of the flower. This is a tight squeeze for the bee and as it exits, it rubs up against the pollen of the flower. After it makes its escape from the catfish orchid, it will fly off covered in its pollen and be lured in again by another pink lady's slipper to help pollinate the next generation.

Photo by Keith Ramos/USFWS

Local beaver LOGS off in anger. Says he'll find another branch manager position somewhere else!

Did you know beavers eat more than just logs and trees? Their gut is designed for a woody diet, but they also eat leafy plants, water lilies, roots, leaves, and all sorts of aquatic vegetation. These rodent vegetarians are also excellent ecosystem engineers.

Aside from humans, beavers do more to shape their environment than any other species. These animals are not particularly fast or strong. Instead, they rely on their construction ability for protection from predators.

Photo at Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge by Jennie Wike (sharethexperience).

Just a reminder that our local pow-wow is happening in just a couple of weeks! Hope to see you there!

Who’s ready?