I'll never be elected:

The government should do something about these gas prices!

(namely: add a two-dollar per gallon tax to them)

365 Urban Species. #105: Bananaquit

(photo by cottonmanifesto)

Urban species #105: Bananaquit Coereba flaveola

Two birdsongs greeted us each morning in Antigua. The low moaning coo of the local doves (close relatives of mourning doves) was musical, almost soothing. The scattered scrabbly chatter of the bananaquit was anything but. The bananaquits seemed to be in a constant state of shrill squabbling with the bullfinches, the hummingbirds, and one another. All the fuss was over resources, specifically the flowering trees in the yard.

Bananaquits feed mainly on nectar, but will take insects as well. Because they are built more like nuthatches than hummingbirds, they cling rather than hover, and they often take nectar from the sides of flowers--therefore not providing the service of pollination. They are very tolerant of the presence of humans, and have been known to fly to breakfast tables to steal bits of sugar and ripe fruit. They will visit hummingbird feeders, if the feeder is built with perching space. The Bananaquit is found throughout the West Indies, South and Central America, and southern Mexico. It is the national bird of Puerto Rico.

( two photos by me )

365 Urban Species. #114: Big Brown Bat

Urban Species #114 Big brown bat Eptesicus fuscus

The most urban of all North American bats, the big brown bat roosts almost exclusively in man-made structures. A few colonies have been found in hollow trees or caves, but for the most part, these animals prefer attics, barns, and belfries. As they are among the most cold-tolerant of bats, they will roost in more open places, such as under bridges and in chimneys. They are the first bats seen awake in late winter, and the most commonly seen bats in our area. They feed on insects over still water and open areas, and are also frequently observed taking advantage of the bug-attracting properties of streetlights.

Perhaps the most famous urban bats are those that make up the colony of Mexican free-tailed bats (Tadarida brasiensis) in Austin. Someday I dearly wish to see the spectacle of more than a million bats (the largest urban colony in the world) stream out from underneath the Congress Avenue bridge.

( photos of a sleeping bat, by cottonmanifesto )