Ecology- MMG

[OutOfTheBlue]

The closest I can come to "nature" in my close vicinity currently is the city park and its large pond where I go for my daily runs, exercise and meditation.

Regular encounters include squirrels, water monitor lizards and water turtles. As for birds, you just can't miss Asian koels with this loud urgency in their voice. Literally the first natural sound that greeted me at the quarantine hotel the first time I came around.

@mountainFrugal, thanks for providing some insight into the group's status and outlook. I would be keen to join if a new cycle opens up. Started working with Plotkin's framework on my own, but it's definitely demanding and, although the process is quite personal, I could use some shared experience and support.

[AnalyticalEngine]

I've been a member of this group, and it's been really helpful for the Plotkin work. Since Plotkin stuff can be so personal, the smaller format of the group has been useful. The nature focus has been useful for me too because although I live in the suburbs, the group has encouraged me to find nature in the suburbs. For example, I was trying to chart all the prickly pear plants within a mile radius of me, tracking their growth cycle over the summer, etc.

[avalok]

@mountainFrugal, as OutOfTheBlue said, thank you for explaining the possible future plans for the group next year. Similar to AE, I think this could be very useful for me in seeing nature while living in the suburbs. I have not read any Plotkin yet, but his Soulcraft book is on my reading list; certainly something for me to do in advance of next year.

[AnalyticalEngine]

It might be useful to run a forum Plotkin reading group if anyone is interested. We had some discussions in the MMG about how to use subpersonalities. There's a specific sort of meditative trick you can do to make them more distinct/easier to converse with.

[mountainFrugal]

@shaz what do the elk do when they see you on a horse? Is that different than if you encounter them on foot?

@tdurtsch pseudoscorpians are metal! I did not know about them. How long does the compost take to turn over? Are there temp differences? Ever consider a compost journal?

@OutOfTheBlue what do the monitor lizards do? How large are they? I will update on the group when we know more!

@AE has made many seasonal nature observations from the suburbs. This should not hold back anyone. We are surrounded by nature!

@ffj - did not post in this thread yet, but props on the deer petting in their journal. Looked sweet. .

Any lurkers to this thread or the forum more generally? What is going on with nature where you are right now?

Today: Hiked up a wash and into the hills. The ecological elevation gradient is strong in this area. Cactus to shrubs to small forest trees within 450m (1500 feet). Many lizards out sunning on south facing rocks. Still too fast for quick ID. I saw a wilting cactus that looked sick. It was covered in dodder (parasitic plant). I wonder if dodder can survive the dry season by living off the cactus' water reserves?

[theanimal]

I don't know a lot about the behavior of buzzards, but I got really fascinated by condors one time (which are similar - they are both types of vultures)...

Funny timing. I'm at this spot now for the week. No condors spotted yet, just ravens and cottontail rabbits. There are fresh deer droppings around but we haven't seen any. Today was near 60 and there were a whole slew of insects flying around. Grasshoppers, flies, moths and some dragonfly like insect.

[mountainFrugal]

I'm mostly stoked about insects.

https://inhs.illinois.edu/research/by-taxon/insects/ could be a good resource for Illinois/midwest insects.

Looks like their entire insect collection dataset has been digitized: https://www.gbif.org/dataset/68513375-3 ... 7d56c21d61

[ffj]

Note that somebody clearly raised her but at the moment she's a wild deer living on her own. Female Whitetail deer, around a year old.

[shaz]

@ffj That's so sad she is alone. Deer are stressed when they are alone. It's nice you were able to hang out with her and give her company for a bit. I hope she finds a group to join soon.

@mountainFrugal Elk are generally less shy of me on horseback than they are when I am on foot, although in part it depends on my horse's intent. I keep my distance because I don't want to chase them. I have to keep hay locked up so that the deer and elk don't eat it.

Deer here typically travel in small groups of 3 - 15. The elk are typically in larger groups of as many as hundreds.

[Bicycle7]

Today, my roommate and I spread compost around the yard.

This was all new to me and very interesting, I have a few pages left of: Permaculture: Principles and Pathways Beyond Sustainability by David Holmgren. My roommate has created a permaculture landscape around our home over the past few decades, so we talked a lot about permaculture.

Digging through (properly maintained) compost for the first time made me appreciate applying practice to theory. I have been reading a lot about Permaculture lately.

There was a lot of bugs, a mildly unpleasant smell and cardboard, paper and pieces of bread in varying stages of decomposition.

[ffj]

@shaz

If I didn't have a hunting dog I would take her in and hand feed her. My biggest fear is that someone will shoot her during hunting season as she has no fear of humans. I was speaking with a neighbor about it and she is going to get a blaze orange collar for her. Now we just have to find her again and put it on but unfortunately she comes and goes so there is no way to predict her movements.

[OutOfTheBlue]

@OutOfTheBlue what do the monitor lizards do? How large are they? I will update on the group when we know more!

Thanks!

The ones I am seeing (Asian water monitors) are halfway between the lizard and the crocodile. Around 1-1.5 meters long, they are quite imposing reptiles and a surprise encounter can cause some distress. However, their slowness is kind of reassuring. I usually catch them either swimming leisurely in their own ziggzagging way, with only their head half emerging or languidly progressing on land. Two days ago, as I was running, my sudden appearance startled one, which hurried away, the speed amplifying the awkward movement of its body and legs. Another one was seen carrying the carcass of a water turtle in its mouth. They are carnivorous alright.

For some reason, they have a bad rap here. Calling someone a monitor lizard in Thai is akin to saying "fuck you".

It might be useful to run a forum Plotkin reading group if anyone is interested. We had some discussions in the MMG about how to use subpersonalities. There's a specific sort of meditative trick you can do to make them more distinct/easier to converse with.

Thanks for sharing your experience. I second the idea of a Plotkin reading group in the forum if others (especially those not yet acquainted with his work) are up for it. I have read all four books, but there is a lot to be gained from coming back to and further working with the materials.

Intrigued about that meditative trick!

[avalok]

If I didn't have a hunting dog I would take her in and hand feed her. My biggest fear is that someone will shoot her during hunting season as she has no fear of humans. I was speaking with a neighbor about it and she is going to get a blaze orange collar for her. Now we just have to find her again and put it on but unfortunately she comes and goes so there is no way to predict her movements.

Please keep us updated on this. It would be good to know if you manage to get the collar on her.

Today's observation: we've had strong winds this past week, mainly westerlies I believe, and I have noticed a fair few trees toppled while walking. Went for a walk in the local nature reserve and saw one that had not snapped, but completely blown over, pulling the ground around it up like a carpet. The surrounding ground to the tree is bare, but there must be an impressive root network in there if has come up so cohesively. Carpet-like is not an exaggeration. It made me reflect on the world we do not see below our feet; how much is going on down there. I often think about this whenever I have to do some digging in the garden, and notice the loss of structure in the soil afterwards.

[AnalyticalEngine]

Thanks for sharing your experience. I second the idea of a Plotkin reading group in the forum if others (especially those not yet acquainted with his work) are up for it. I have read all four books, but there is a lot to be gained from coming back to and further working with the materials.

Intrigued about that meditative trick!

I'll gather some notes then write a new thread about the meditative trick because it's something I originally got from writing but have seen crop up a bunch across independent sources as people rediscover the same trick of consciousness. It's pretty fascinating stuff!

[mountainFrugal]

Spent some time along the coast today looking at the ocean. 3 humpbacks (I think?) just off shore. They were in a tight group spouting, breaching, and generally having a good time. Various sea birds.

[theanimal]

We walked down a wash to the Colorado River today and found this guy about halfway down.



It's the first one I've ever seen. Notice the little dots to the left of him, those are his tracks. He had just moved out of the light and into this shaded spot. His activity slowed dramatically after that. I was kind of surprised to see him since the air temperature was probably in the 50s.

Lots of cool rocks along the way and crystal clear water in the river. So of course Mrs. Animal and I took the opportunity to go for a swim.

[mountainFrugal]

A scoop of Brown pelicans (collective noun!) were hissing at each other waiting at a dock for fisherman to come in. There was a Pelican pecking order for who got first shot at the fish guts from the cleaned fish. They loved the fish skin layer of the fillets the most and patiently waited for these over other parts of the fish. I also saw a pelican off-shore with a large fish in its stretchy "gular pouch" (I had to look it up). The pelican was backlit with low angle sun relative to my vantage point so I could see the water level and the fish outline in there.

[mountainFrugal]

Traveled from sunshine in the South to wintery mix in Northern California and beyond today. There was a great deal of smokey haze in the central valley due to controlled burns before this winter storm sets in over most of the West Coast. The Western US should be burning more frequently (controlled) to help us prevent these larger fires. In reality, we should have been doing controlled burns more intensely for the past 50 years.

Any winter transitions in your necks of the woods forumites?

[theanimal]

We hiked up to the top of the cliffs today and finally saw the California Condors that @c40 was talking about. They were gliding about 30 ft above the cliff edge and went until they were out of sight without flapping their wings. We learned there are a ton that nest in the bridge over the river so we will see if we can spot those when we head out in a couple days.

The ravens were also up high, enjoying gliding and playing in the thermals. We also saw a hawk and an owl within close proximity to each other in a thicket near the head of a spring.

In non bird news, i have seen a bunch of grasshopper on grasshopper action the past couple days..I don't think it's mating as it is not limited in time and the one on the bottom continues to move around and collect things for food(?). Not sure what's going on here. Any entomologists?

[shaz]

In the immediate vicinity of my house there is a mix of Ponderosa meadows (large areas of grasses and wildflowers with widely spaced Ponderosa pines) and densely wooded areas (also Ponderosa pines). The densely wooded areas tend to be steep and difficult to access by vehicle. After many decades of fire suppression, they also tend to be so dense that they are a serious wildfire hazard now. The county has hired foresters to do fire mitigation work on the nearby public lands. It has been interesting watching them work, particularly as they move into the steepest sections. They have a humongous wood chipper that they have driven down into a particularly steep area over the course of weeks.

It's good to see the fuel load being reduced but also a little sad to see so many trees being removed. I suppose the sad feeling is one of the reasons many people oppose fire mitigation work.