First, a fascinating and heartbreaking update about animal #42, Bison (which incidentally is my most liked post!): a new paper in The Review of Economic Studies looks at the terrible effects that the near-extinction of the bison as a deliberate policy of European settlers had on Native Americans. I would
Who’s the largest shorebird in North America? If you guessed the Long-Billed Curlew because that’s the subject of today’s newsletter, then you are a master sleuth worthy of Columbo. If you knew it already you probably don’t need to read today’s newsletter because you already
A timely entry for the guests in our homes
The Io moth, also known as the peacock moth, lives across a broad swath of North America, from southern Quebec and Ontario all the way to Utah. In Colorado they are found mainly along the Front Range and near Pueblo. They are in the family Saturniidae, who are some of
One of only two turtles native to the Great Plains, the Ornate Box Turtle lives from Louisiana to Colorado, and is the state reptile of both Kansas and Nebraska; it is protected in Colorado. Their name comes from their bright yellow coloration, which, when viewed from above, looks like a
Today’s newsletter is dedicated to Freya, the pet rabbit of friends of the newsletter, who has been having some health issues lately but is doing better! Colorado has eight species of lagomorph – pikas, rabbits, hares, and jackrabbits. We’ll talk about the first two another time, but today we
I’m sitting here on the fifth day of March watching chubby, adorable little birds flit around my birdfeeder, and most of them are black-capped chickadees. I’m not quite high enough elevation to see mountain chickadees, the other species of chickadee that lives in Colorado. These are passerine (perching)
We’re back! I was working on some other projects in January and February, but I’m excited to get back into Colorado wildlife with today’s animal, Wolf Spiders. These spiders are from the family Lycosidae, from the Greek word for wolf, known for their excellent eyesight, solitary lifestyles,
In Colorado, the Northern Watersnake lives on the eastern plains along the paths of the Arkansas and South Platte rivers. They are some of the most common watersnakes in the United States, and are native to North America east of the Rocky Mountains. They were introduced into California as an
*does not include marmots, chipmunks, or prairie dogs
Back in #126, we talked about the Greater Sage grouse, so get excited for the LESSER Sage Grouse, which of course, just means smaller. This is of course the Gunnison Sage Grouse, of whom 87% live in the Gunnison Valley of southwestern Colorado. They are very similar to their Greater
Since we just talked about wolves, a large mammal that was hunted out of Colorado in the 20th century, I thought we should talk about another large mammal that suffered the same fate but that no one is asking to return: the North American brown bear, also known as the