One of nature’s greatest August highlights, conceivably for
most living people regardless of their age, is the brilliance of
planet Mars. It will be the closest to earth than it’s been in
many years. In fact its brightness toward the end of the month
will be magnitude –2.9 which is even brighter than Jupiter was
earlier this year when this gorgeous planet was so brilliant.
Even at the "close" distance Mars will be, about
34,580,00 miles from earth, there are some professional
stargazers who claim that its light near the end of this month
will be bright enough to cause a shadow around midnight on a
clear night. The suggestion is to face away from Mars (fairly
low in the southeast sky), sway very slowly from side to side
and, using peripheral vision, try to detect your shadow,
theoretically formed by the light of Mars, moving on the ground.
Two excellent astronomy magazines, "Astronomy" and
"Sky and Telescope," both have very interesting
articles about Mars in their August issues that will heighten
your enjoyment of this popular celestial object this month. The
Perseid Meteor Shower, reaching its peak on the night of the
12th--13th, will have competition from a
full moon. Don’t let that minor inconvenience keep you indoors,
though, because August nighttime skies will surprise you with
their diamon d-studded brilliance.
Invariably it’s the month of May, following the usual
five-month-long winter, that appears to make it the best of the
year. But now August arrives with the ripening garden veggies,
chanterelle mushrooms in the woods, the ditches and fallow fields
decorated in their flamboyant finest, alive with masses of
colorful weedy wildflowers, the sweet harvest of wild berries,
butterflies in all directions, and we begin to have second
thoughts. Nature is absolutely bursting from her seams.
There are few butterflies that I more easily and reliably
associate with August than the strong-flying, flashy
great-spangled fritillary. They are especially attracted to the
purple coneflowers growing in our weedy butterfly garden. These
flashy gold and rich brown creatures have one of the more
fascinating life cycles associated with wild violets. Little
wonder there are so many of these butterflies.
It is only upon the leaves of violets that the females lay
their eggs in late summer. Having hatched, the tiny caterpillars
work their way beneath the dead leaves and other debris lying
upon the forest floor. Here they will spend the entire winter.
Come spring, and the emergence of the very first violet plants,
these young larvae will immediately begin feasting upon the
foliage but only during nighttime hours. Finally they will
pupate, emerge in a few weeks as sleek adults and entertain
butterfly wat chers far and wide. Now they will feast upon
wildflower nectar, mate, lay eggs and start the fascinating cycle
all over.
Every August you can expect to see at least two or three
species of birds feeding their young. The timing of the hatching
of cedar waxwings is quite uncanny in that it is so perfectly
timed with the ripening of wild as well as commercially-grown
fruit. What an enormous supply of available food there is for
their nestlings.
There have been years when we hardly missed a day in August of
seeing these "Beau Brummels" of the bird world feasting
on the serviceberries in our front yard. Unfortunately the crop
of this bird-attracting fruit is practically nil on our property
this summer.
Now that nearly all of the rose-breasted grosbeaks have left
our woods and feeders, suddenly we’re having American goldfinches
as daily visitors, and soon their young will be on the wing. In
case you have been having goldfinches at your feeders recently,
expect to see them feeding seeds to their begging youngsters one
of these days.
The unusually fortunate or sharp-eyed birdwatchers will also
have the chance of observing the female ruby-throated hummingbird
feeding her bumble bee-sized nestlings this month. No, the adult
male does none of the feeding! I’ve been observing both male and
female hummingbirds probing for insects in the rich orange
blossoms of the trumpet vine growing against our west retaining
stone wall next to the house.
Deep-throated orange and red flowers rank high on the hummers’
list of favorites. By the way, it is thought that insects
comprise around 75% of their diet with the remainder being flower
nectar or sugar water from your feeders.
Don’t overlook the pleasures and challenges that the
magnificent goldenrods offer, bearing in mind that their pollen,
too heavy to become windborne, has absolutely nothing to do with
hayfever. Learn to identify the various species and their
habitats. Develop a blossoming calendar of their best "show
times." Photograph them and admire with a hand lens their
structure and also their numerous insect visitors.
Above all, slow down and enjoy life. August is that time when
nature abounds to the utmost perfection. What an ideal month for
bnjoying summer at her very best!
The spotted knapweed is one of the very weedy
wildflowers that add flamboyant color to many roadsides and fields in August.
This column appeared in the Door County Advocate
on 08/12/2003.
© Copyright 2003 Roy Lukes. All rights reserved.
