Eastern Phoebe Chicks

For a few years we had one pair of Eastern Phoebes try to nest along the ledge inside our porch roof. We tried to discourage them by continually knocking down their nest before it was built. One year, we put a piece of wood in the corner to give them a bigger area. That year, the mother laid four eggs, but abandoned it before they hatched.

This year, we were gone while they built the nest. The ledge is one to one and one-half inches in width. We thought there was no way they could build a usable nest there. But, sure enough, they did. The mother laid four eggs and sat on them until they hatched this time.

Now there are chicks in the nest. I can see only two from my lower vantage point, so there is no way to know if the other two hatched and survived.

We've been waiting for them to start their peeping, but have heard nothing. I was told they probably would not begin peeping until they were fully fledged (never knew that was a verb, but it means to develop the feathers necessary to fly).

It has been fun to watch the mom sitting on the nest every night. I learned that if we did not look directly at her, she would not fly off if we came out the front door. If she is frightened, she flys away, but not so far that we cannot see her. My guess is that she is trying to lead predators away from the nest to they don't grab her babies (I never did finish my zoology degree, so I don't know for sure ;-)

From what I've read on the internet, the Phoebe will raise two to three broods during the year. They are monogamous. They will likely return to the same nest every year and can live as long as nine years. I also read that the female is the one who picks the nesting spot.

Chiggers, Ticks, and Frozen Shoes

In the Ozarks, Spring is a wonderful time. Leaves on trees turn again to green. Myriad flowers bloom in glorious colors. Blooms on vines and bushes give way to fruit - wild blackberries, wild strawberries, wild blueberries, grapes. Grasses begin to grow.


As early Spring turns to late Spring and then to early summer, all kinds of critters come out to play.


Among those are chiggers and ticks. Chiggers and ticks. Ticks and chiggers.


Chiggers - microscopic bugs, too small for the human eye to see unaided. You are out in the woods enjoying nature, hiking in the woods, enraptured by the sights, the colors, the fresh smells of flowers in bloom.


You return home from your nature hike, having enjoyed it so very much.


The next day, you experience a horrible itching on your ankles, your legs, behind your knees, and around your waist. Red welts rise in those places. Time to get out the summer medicines.


Chiggers, nasty creatures that they are, don't really bite. After you picked up the unseen hitchhikers, they crawl around your body, looking for a place to settle down for a feast. They begin to feed if they reach a barrier, such as the top of your socks, the waistband of your clothes or your armpit.


They attach themselves to your skin, inject saliva with digestive enzymes that helps to break down your skin cells, which the chigger drinks. These enzymes cause the itchy rash.


That is why it is good to use a repellent, like DEET, although that does not work 100%. That is why is is good to shower or bathe, thoroughly, scrubbing twice, after you have been out in nature.



Ticks - not so microscopic arachnid, yes, related to the spider. Unlike chiggers, which run to you, ticks wait for you to come to them, often at the top of tall grass or weeds. You can actually see them if you look closely when walking in the woods, as they wave their arms, as if to say, "Come to me!"


Around here, we have the lone-star tick, a hard tick. The females are distinguishable by the white dot or "star" on its back. The males can also have dots or white streaks on the edge of their bodies.


Either before or after bathing to rid yourself of chiggers after a day in nature, you need to check for ticks - everywhere, even the nooks and crannies on your body. The only way to remove them is with tweezers. Any other method can leave their mouth still on your body and can lead to infection. In addition, ticks, from the beginning of their life cycle to the end, feed on various creatures and humans. They can carry diseases from the animals to you, injecting them into your bloodstream.


What do you do with the ticks after removing them? We keep a "tick jar" in the kitchen. It is filled with rubbing alcohol, and we simply drop them in the jar where they die a horrible death after a brief struggle!

In addtion, when we come in from outdoors, we place our shoes in plastic kitchen trash bags and stick them in the freezer overnight. This kill the chiggers that may still be on the shoes.


It is so easy to bring the ticks and chiggers into the house with you. Which is why we have another plastic kitchen trash bag to drop out clothing into. Later the clothing will be washed in very hot water.


Still, by the time late fall and early winter roll around, the rashes and bites have healed, the annoying itching is gone, and all we remember, until next summer, are the joys of experiencing the beauty of nature.