Gleanings of the Week Ending February 1, 2025

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The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

Warmer, Greener Arctic Becoming a Source of Heat-Trapping Gas - Roughly half of the region is growing greener, but only 12% of those greener areas are actually taking up more carbon.

More Than 100 Died When the S.S. Valencia Wrecked in the ‘Graveyard of the Pacific’ - Not long before midnight on a night with poor visibility in 1906, the Valencia struck a rocky reef off the west coast of Vancouver Island. The captain ordered the ship run aground, but it caught on rocks less than 400 feet from shore….and sank over the next 40 hours. The rough seas made it difficult of lifeboats and many capsized. 136 people died, 37 survived. Weather, waves, swift currents and a shifting sandbar made the area particularly hazardous, even for experienced captains. Lessons learned from the wreck of the Valencia are its most lasting legacy.

Menopause research is globally underfunded. It’s time to change that - The overwhelming majority of studies in the field of ageing do not consider menopause…and yet half the population will experience it. The disruptive nature of menopause and its health impacts have been known perhaps for millennia and should have been a topic for health funders for a long time. It is never too late to start.

How To: Go Snow Day Birding (with Merlin) – A good idea for a snowy day (maybe not if the temp is in the teens or single digits though).

Fighting Forest Pests With AI: A Hemlock Success Story – Fighting the hemlock woolly adelgid…increasing the odds of saving some trees. It’s too late for the ones behind where I used to live in Maryland. They succumbed to the pest years ago.

Incredible Winners of the 2024 Ocean Art Underwater Photography Contest – I like the ones that are good documentation of a species…and art at the same time.

In the Northeast, 50% of adult ticks carry Lyme disease carrying bacteria – Not good for public health

Inca Tunnel System Identified Under Cuzco – More than a mile of tunnels that reflect the streets and walkways in the Inca capital.

Archaeologists in Pompeii Discover Private Spa Where Dozens of Guests Bathed in Luxury 2,000 Years Ago – Found in a lavish home…big enough to host 30 people. Three rooms: calidarium (hot water), tepidarium (rub oil on skin and immerse in warm water), and apodyteriaum (changing room with mosaic floor). The spa was connected to a banquet room decorated with elaborate frescoes depicting characters from the Trojan war.

New study identifies how blood vessel dysfunction can worsen chronic disease - Specialized cells surrounding small blood vessels, known as perivascular cells, contribute to blood vessel dysfunction in aging, chronic diseases such as cancer, diabetes and fibrosis.

Zooming – January 2025

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January was a busy month but not one that included any big photography opportunities! My selections for zoomed images this month have some themes: sunrise/sunset, snow, birds, and lights. They are mostly from Missouri (although there are two that are left over from my trip to New Mexico in December that I didn’t post about until January). Enjoy the photographic mosaic.

Gleanings of the Week Ending January 25, 2025

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The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

How Will Climate Change Affect the Spread of Invasive Species? - The silver lining of knowing humans are still one of the main drivers of invasive species spread, is that humans can also curb invasive species spread. We can plant native plants in our yards and gardens instead of ornamentals from other states and countries. We can clean our boots, shoes, fishing waders and boats when we travel from one area to another, and we can stop releasing unwanted pets into local parks, ponds or creeks.

Kangaroo species went extinct in the Pleistocene - Nearly two dozen kangaroo species vanished in the Pleistocene. If things get warm enough, dry enough, kangaroos today are going to have a tough time making it, regardless of whether they're mixed feeders.

Medieval Crowns and Scepters Discovered Hidden Inside the Walls of a Crypt Beneath a Lithuanian Cathedral – It had been hidden for 85 years—since it was stowed for safekeeping beneath the Vilnius Cathedral in southeastern Lithuania - put there at the outbreak of World War II in 1939.

Your work habits may be threatening your sleep - Sedentary workers experience a 37% increase in insomnia-like symptoms. Employees working nontraditional schedules experience a 66% greater risk of needing 'catch-up sleep.' It’s more about how jobs are structured and staffed than individual ‘habits.’

Bold Parakeet Biting a Lizard’s Tail Wins SINWP Bird Photographer of the Year Contest – Lots of great photos!

Renewables Supplied Two-Thirds of Germany’s Power Last Year - In Germany the solar buildout continues to surpass government targets, with solar now amounting to 14 percent of power generation. Wind remains the biggest source of clean electricity, accounting for 33 percent of generation, though new wind farms are being developed more slowly than planned. Along with new renewable power plants, Germany is seeing a growth in battery storage as homeowners install batteries alongside rooftop solar panels.

Why just two hours of exercise a week can be life-changing - One retrospective study of over 37,000 people found those who did their week's worth of physical activity over just one or two days had the same reduction in cardiovascular disease risk as those who did activity spread throughout the week.

Lead pollution likely caused widespread IQ declines in ancient Rome, new study finds - Scientists used Arctic ice core records to reconstruct historic atmospheric lead pollution in Ancient Rome and link exposure to cognitive declines. Ancient lead pollution stemmed largely from silver mining, whereby the lead-rich mineral galena was melted down to extract silver. For every ounce of silver obtained, this process produced thousands of ounces of lead -- much of which was released to the atmosphere. In the 20th century, lead pollution predominantly came from the emissions of vehicles burning leaded gasoline.

A Half Mile Underwater on Connecticut’s Eight Mile River - Designated a Wild and Scenic River. Black rock geology and tannin in the water take most of the light making visibility to a snorkeler limited.  Caddisfly larvae, mussels, Chinese snails (invasive, aquarium escapees), musk turtle, white sucker, common and spottail shiners, sea lamprey (a native here, unlike in the Great Lakes), redbreast sunfish.

Pirates, princes and hostages: inside the mysterious life of the unnamed medieval princess of Cyprus – An example of how medieval women found ways to overcome the limitations placed on them…but not one with a ‘happy’ ending.

Branson’s Aquarium on the Boardwalk

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The temperature was in the teens when we made our drive down to Branson to see the Aquarium on the Boardwalk. We were early enough in the day that there were not a lot of people already there. The entrance was a little daunting…too much plastic…but the displays of fish made up for that first impression. So many shapes and colors of fish! The signage could have been better; often there were fish on display without any signs to help identify them. One of my favorite tanks was the one with seahorses – some of which looked pregnant!

They had eels that looked menacing! There were also white margin unicorn fish which I had never seen before…and which I had to look up once I got home since there were no signs that I saw for it.

My favorite place in the aquarium was the display of jelly fish in cylinders and surrounded by mirrors on the walls…creating an infinity room with jellyfish everywhere! I made a short movie.

We spent about an hour at the aquarium and saw everything. It would take longer with a child…spaces to crawl into/see the fish from a different perspective, a touch tank, and a ‘kelp’ tower of platforms/netting to climb which we didn’t do. We did enjoy the Submarine Adventure (3-D glasses, cartoon, special seats) and it would be even more fun with children in the audience.

The building was purpose built for the aquarium – with a huge stainless steel clad octopus over one end of the building. I found myself wondering if they ever do behind the scenes tours. It must take a lot of work to keep the fish healthy over time and it would be interesting to understand more about how they do it.

This initial visit was an enjoyable ‘field trip’ on a cold morning.

Shoveling our Driveway and Sidewalk

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After a snow day….

I decided our driveway and sidewalk was not to going clear via melting…shoveling would be required and the sunny afternoon the day after the snow came down was the prime time to do it. Perhaps my physical therapy would help me do more at one time than I would have been able to 6 weeks ago. The temperature was in the low 40s when I bundled up and headed outside.

I could hear the melt water trickling in the downspouts and see it on the driveway closest to the house; having the driveway on the south side of the house means that it gets sun almost all day long which usually means the snow melts fast enough that we don’t need to shovel. The snow on the front yard this time still measured 4 inches even with the melting. The walkway to the front door was snow covered but looking slushy.

I spent about 30 minutes shoveling the path to the front door and most of my side of the driveway…deciding not to push past my comfort level (i.e. put the gains from physical therapy at risk). The pile at the street created by the snowplow was left for the next day!

Snow Day!

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The local school district and university went virtual (rather than closing); it is the ‘new’ response when there is too much snow or ice to travel safely. I opted to cancel my early morning physical therapy appointment since getting out of our neighborhood with 5-6 inches of snow everywhere was not feasible; the snow was still falling too. It was an unexpected day at home to savor.

At first there were things I’d put off doing the previous day…but then I enjoyed a cup of hot chocolate…and opted to make a walk outside to photograph our yard before the wind knocked more of the snow off the trees and horizontal surfaces.

The area we view for our FeederWatch sessions was transformed by the snow. The chiminea had snow inside as well as out! The table and nearby chair was piled with 4-6 inches of snow (I didn’t measure).

I walked toward our back gate and notices a small eastern redcedar that was holding a lot of snow; I plan to transplant it to a better place in our yard next spring.

I opened the gate to walk out onto our neighborhood path and realized that it was too hard to walk without getting snow in my boots (the snow was over the tops of my hiking boots in some places). As I came back to our yard – I took a picture of the fence line with piled snow and took a picture of the back of our house with the snow outlining the deck.

I sat down in one of the chairs that was far enough under the deck to not be snow covered and took a few pictures of the cedars and pines in the snow before the birds returned the feeders. The patio was too snow covered for the birds to move easily so they were coming to the feeders more readily and under plants or furniture/deck where there was not as much snow.

After I went back inside, I took pictures of the snow in our garden stakes: iris, butterfly, spider mum, and peacock.

And then I enjoyed the rest of the day indoor….delaying any shoveling of the driveway of sidewalk until another day.

Gleanings of the Week Ending January 18, 2025

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The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

A looming 'demographic cliff': Fewer college students and ultimately fewer graduates – Universities are already experiencing declining enrollment. In the first half of last year, more than one college a week announced that it would close….and the projection is that the pace of college closings could accelerate. This does not bode well for the US economy.

Charging Ahead: Key Geographical Clusters for Electric Trucks – The realistic sequence looks like: The west coast of the US up to British Columbia and New York to Virginia will be the first wave of green charging corridors for trucks. Virginia to Florida and then Texas to California with be the second wave.  I am bummed that Missouri (where I live) is not positioning itself to be in the second tier which would facilitate a complete cross county route.

Severe Cold Spells May Persist Because of Warming, Not in Spite of It – Evidently, we have a weaker, more meandering jet stream that allows frigid air to reach further south because the Arctic is heating up and there is not as much difference between the Arctic and warmer air to the south.

A Quarry Worker Felt Strange Bumps While Digging. They Turned Out to Be the Largest Dinosaur Trackway in the U.K. – I remember going to see the dinosaur tracks at Glen Rose, Texas. Somehow the huge tracks make it easier to internalize how big these animals were!

U.S. Surgeon General offers 'parting prescription' to heal America's division – Thought provoking.

Seven key climate and nature moments to look out for in 2025 - Big moments in 2025 that could shift the dial on climate and nature….while extreme weather continues.

Who built Europe’s first cities? Clues about the urban revolution emerge - Around 6,000 years ago, a group known as the Cucuteni–Trypillia culture developed egalitarian settlements north of the Black Sea and created the region’s earliest urban centers. Then, after two millennia, they vanished. Cucuteni–Trypillia has always stood out as something of an anomaly, because its settlements seemed to have been egalitarian societies that were devoid of social hierarchies. Their distinctive pottery was discovered almost simultaneously in two locations in the late nineteenth century: Romania (where the culture was named after a site in Cucuteni) and Ukraine (where the same culture was named Trypillia, also after a community where artefacts were found). The group made pots, hunted and gathered, farmed, raised cattle and lived in settlements where all the houses were the same size. People ate legumes and cereals grown on the rich soils of Ukraine, which were well manured by cattle. Livestock animals were also eaten, although isotope analysis of rare human remains shows that meat made up only roughly 10% of people’s diets. Despite the organized urban design of Cucuteni–Trypillia megasites, there were no palaces, no grand temples, no signs of centralized administration and no rich or poor houses.

Looking Back on Geological Activity in Yellowstone During 2024 - Hydrothermal explosion in Norris Geyser Basin in April, July explosion of Black Diamond Pool at Biscuit Basin, Economic Geyser(in Upper Geyser Basin) experienced a series of eruptions for the first time since 1999, Abyss Pool began to heat up and overflow/its color changed from dark and somewhat murky to a deep blue as the summer progressed, Steamboat Geyser continued to be active although with many fewer eruptions than in previous years…but the year was seismically calm!

Citizen science reveals that Jupiter's colorful clouds are not made of ammonia ice - The abundance of ammonia and cloud-top pressure in Jupiter's atmosphere can be mapped using commercially available telescopes and a few specially colored filters and the instrumentation/analysis showed that the clouds reside too deeply within Jupiter's warm atmosphere to be consistent with the clouds being ammonia ice.

Photographer Highlights the Importance of Monarch Butterfly Conservation Through Stunning Images – Photographs from Jaime Rojo. The monarch butterfly isn’t just a pretty sight—it’s an essential pollinator that keeps our planet healthy. But in the last 40 years, their population has dropped by a staggering 90%, leaving them on the brink of extinction.

Project FeederWatch – January 2025

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Our third month of weekly Project FeederWatch counting continued our regulars: white-crowned sparrows, white throated sparrows, house finches, gold finches, and dark eyed juncos. We have started seeing the Northern cardinals more frequently – but never the male and female at the same time. We haven’t seen the red-bellied woodpecker recently but the downy woodpecker (a female) comes frequently (even though sometimes not when we are making the count!). The chickadee, titmouse, and Carolina wren have not come to the feeder when it is very cold and snow is on the ground; I’m hoping they are hunkered down somewhere. We seem to have more starlings around – which is not a positive development. The doves seem to have returned; we are seeing 2-4 consistently; they like the area under the hollies and cedars. The squirrels don’t seem as aggressive toward each other…still come to the feeders and go away mostly frustrated.

2024 in Review: Travel and Classes

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2024 was a year we ramped up our travel and educational activities – almost to the pre-COVID levels. Both involve being out and about with groups of people….great opportunities to enjoy the place and engage social skills more frequently. Since we now live in the center of the country rather than the east coast, our travel has been via road trips rather than flying; we are not missing the hassle of airports and rental cars!

The travel included two birding festivals (Whooping Crane Festival and Festival of the Cranes) and a solar eclipse…and frequent trips (at least monthly) to Dallas for family visits.

There are accommodations my husband and I (4 years older than when we travelled pre-COVID) are developing for ourselves to ensure that we feel good when we travel:

  • stretch breaks every hour or so when we are driving

  • exercise regime that works in hotels to minimize aches and pains

  • eating almost the same as we do at home (big meal in the middle of the day, extra veggies for me)

  • keeping our sleep time on central time (if possible)

Both my husband and I have been doing online webinars for a long time. This last fall I re-started in-person classes with the Missouri Master Naturalist Training and a class at Missouri State University (Identifying Woody Plants). The master naturalist training was a path toward creating the level and type of volunteering I had enjoyed in Maryland; it lived up to my expectation of continuing the transition to ‘Missouri as home.’

The university class was the first time I had taken a university class since the 1980s and was something to savor because of that and the topic/professor/other students; I found that taking a university class without the pressure of needing a grade or hurrying off to my job was pleasantly different from any of my prior experience.

2024 was a year that saw us settled in our new home in Missouri and increasing both our travel and in-person classes activity. The travel will be sustained (or increased slightly in 2025). The in-person classes might be reduced since there is nothing equivalent to another master naturalist core training, but my volunteering in 2025 is likely to be significantly more than it was in 2024.

White Oak Seedling

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I planted a white oak acorn last fall and posted about it sprouting last November.  The seedling is doing well on the windowsill of my office – and still had its 4 green leaves. I’ve put some snowmen decorations on each side of it.  The seedling leans a bit toward the light, so I turn it occasionally…and keep it damp. I’m wondering if the leaves will turn and fall at some point. I can’t tell that they’ve grown very much recently; perhaps the roots are more active but it’s difficult to see with the soil.

In February, I have an outreach event about trees and the seedling will be a good prop!

And then in the late spring – when I’m confident there will not be another frost – it will get planted outside somewhere. It will grow up to be a very large tree so I am not sure I should plant it in my yard.

Gleanings of the Week Ending January 11, 2025

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The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

Dogs trained to sniff out spotted lanternflies could help reduce spread – Dogs sniff out egg masses that overwinter in vineyards and forests. This is some good news in the fight against this invasive insect.

Farmers are abandoning their land. Is that good for nature? - Small-scale farmers with rocky soil, steep hills, or scarce water "give up because they cannot compete." By one estimate, the area of farm land that's been abandoned around the world since 1950 could be as much as half of Australia. Without people, cattle or sheep around, meadows filled with wildflowers and butterflies give way to shrubs and trees, which ecologists say are often less biologically diverse. There is an effort in some regions where humans are moving out to help wildlife move in (i.e. rewilding).

Seven proven ways to help the planet in 2025 – Some of the ways are easier than others. I have done 3 of the 7 for at least the last 5 years…and maybe now I should think about what more I want to do. The beginning of the year is always a good time to take stock on things like this.

This Mysterious Pyramid Dominated a Prehistoric Mexican City—and Still Guards Its Secrets – The Pyramid of the Niches in El Tajin….built by indigenous groups that predate the Aztec and Toltec. The Wikipedia article about site says it became a World Heritage site in 1992.

Aerial Photos Highlight Surreal Beauty of Kazakhstan’s Mangystau Plateau - Colorful canyons and mountains, dramatic salt flats, and surreal rocky outcrops…photographed by Daniel Kordan.

The Year in Energy in Four Charts - Solar is driving the shift to renewable power, and it continues to outpace the projections of both analysts and industry experts owing largely to China. Global EV sales reached a new high. In China, the sticker price for EVs is now generally lower than for conventional cars. Along with EVs, the growth of electric heating and cooling and the proliferation of energy-hungry data centers globally are driving up demand for power. Wealthy nations have all but stopped building new coal plants, and coal burning is expected to continue its decline in the developed world as countries move to wind and solar. We’re now moving at speed into the Age of Electricity, which will define the global energy system going forward and increasingly be based on clean sources of electricity.

Photos of the Year – December 30, 2024 – From The Prairie Ecologist

A Year of Climate Extremes, In Photos - 2024 … the hottest year ever, with warming reaching new extremes worldwide. These photos from Greenpeace show the profound impact of severe weather, which scientists are increasingly connecting to climate change.

Squirrels Are Displaying ‘Widespread Carnivorous Behavior’ for the First Time in a California Park – In California’s Briones Regional Park (not far from Oakland and Berkeley), California ground squirrels there are now known to hunt, kill, decapitate and consume voles. Squirrels of all ages and sexes took part in the vole hunt, an indication that this dietary flexibility is widespread across the species and may serve as a crucial survival mechanism in response to fluctuating environmental conditions

Vampire hedgehogs, pirate spiders and fishy fungi - the strangest new species of 2024 – New species are discovered every year….so much we don’t know about our world!

La vie et les paysages en Egypte

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My choice for ‘book of the week’ is La vie et les paysages en Egypte – a group of 60 heliotype prints of Egypt published in the 1870s by Photoglob Co. in Zurich. The prints are from The New York Public Library Digital Collections and can be browsed in a thumbnail view or book view.  I picked 4 images of structures from Ancient Egypt to share in the post – but recommend browsing the whole collection.  

Photography was relatively new and labor intensive when these images were created…and yet we already see elements of excellent composition. They show what Egypt was like at the time in a way that drawings and paintings could not

2024 in Review - Photography

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Picking two pictures per month of 2024 was challenging….but a joy. The activity reminded me of times in Texas and at home…the solar eclipse…short trips to Arkansas and longer ones to the Texas gulf coast and New Mexico. They are all taken outdoors. I am celebrating 2024 through these images!

Top of the Rock’s Nature at Night

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My husband, daughter, and I took the seasonal Top of the Rock’s Nature at Night tour last week. It’s a 2.5-mile trail via plastic enclosed golf cart through light displays, waterfalls, bridge crossings, a cave, and classic holiday scenes.

On the drive south from our home in Nixa MO, the sun was going down. I tried a few sunset pictures. There were enough clouds to provide some added structure.

The first lights we saw were before the gate to the property…2 bison. The car was moving as I took the picture, which made their hides look furrier!

The first lights we saw were before the gate to the property…2 bison. The car was moving as I took the picture, which made their hides look furrier!

We had bought our tickets ahead of time, so I took a few minutes to take pictures of the lights below, the sunset, and the lake before we got in the line for the golf carts.

The temperature was in the low 40s, but we were bundled up and the plastic cover helped too. My daughter did the driving. There were some sharp turns, inclines, and shallow water in some areas along the route. We stayed in the cart the whole time as instructed so all the pictures I took were through the plastic cover.

My favorite display included a waterfall with a giant wolf and orb in lights.  I took the scene from several angles and magnifications.

The activity was the grand finale of our ‘holiday’ season!

Gleanings of the Week Ending January 4, 2025

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The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

Uplift Underway in Finland’s Kvarken Archipelago - Some 20,000 years ago, during the Last Glacial Maximum, the Baltic Sea sat under a sheet of ice as thick as 10,000 feet. Since the glaciers receded and the weight was lifted, the land has been bouncing back. The rates of uplift, known as glacial isostatic adjustment or isostatic rebound, in this region are among the highest on Earth. By one estimate, land about twice the size of Central Park in New York City rises from the sea each year along the coast of the Gulf of Bothnia, the Baltic Sea’s northern arm.

Silent Threat: America’s Abandoned Oil Wells and the Danger Beneath - Abandoned oil and gas wells across the U.S. pose significant environmental, health, and safety risks, with many leaking hazardous gases and chemicals, highlighting regulatory failures and the immense financial burden of remediation.

Lymphoedema: The 'hidden' cancer side-effect no one talks about - Lymphoedema is a chronic, incurable condition that causes excessive swelling due to a damaged lymphatic system, a network in the body responsible for maintaining fluid balance in tissues. It occurs when lymph fluid is unable to properly drain from the body, due to a dysfunction or injury to the lymphatic system. The condition is a common consequence of certain cancers and the treatments for them. It can also be a genetic condition, which people are born with, or it can be the result of injury, obesity, or infection. There are some clinicians who regard lymphoedema as an overlooked pandemic due to the significant chronic public health problem it poses globally.

Hazelnut DNA Study Challenges Misconceptions About Indigenous Land Use in British Columbia - Starting some 7,000 years ago, Indigenous people actively cultivated hazelnuts across the continent, disproving the settler-colonial notion that Indigenous peoples were simply hunter-gatherers. People were actively transplanting and cultivating hazelnuts hundreds of kilometers from their place of origin. People were moving hazelnut around and selectively managing it to the point that it increased genetic diversity.

Extreme Heat May Cause People to Age Faster - Researchers looked at such aging markers in 3,800 Americans over the age of 55, comparing the data with local weather records. They found that people living in places with more hot days tended to have more genetic markers of age.

An inexpensive fix for California's struggling wildflowers - California's native wildflowers are being smothered by layers of dead, invasive grasses. Simply raking these layers can boost biodiversity and reduce fire danger.

The Ten Most Significant Science Stories of 2024 – From Smithsonian Magazine.

Fluorinated “forever chemicals” and where to find them – Infographic and text. Studies have linked PFOA to some health conditions including cancers and hormone disruption. There’s also still plenty we don’t know about their potential effects. PFOAs are human-made compounds which do not occur naturally, so we’re only seeing the effects of their accumulation in the past decades.

Brighten Your Day with These 15 Photos of Beautiful Balloons from Around the World – Mexico, India, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Turkey, Spain, and the US (Nevada, New Mexico, New Jersey, and Wyoming).

How an Extreme Combination of Fog and Air Pollution Brought London to a Standstill and Resulted in Thousands of Fatalities - On December 5, 1952 (a little more than a year before I was born) as cold weather in London prompted residents to burn more cheap coal, a high-pressure wind system known as an anticyclone settled over the city, trapping cold air beneath warm air. Pollution from coal fires, diesel buses and factories could not travel up in the atmosphere, instead hovering in a deadly, stagnant smog. When the Great Smog of 1952 finally lifted on December 9, 4,000 people were dead from the effects of the extreme pollution. Retrospective assessments estimate that the number of fatalities could be almost triple that. While the government’s response was sluggish at first, the Clean Air Act of 1956, passed in response to the Great Smog, heavily regulated the burning of coal and established smoke-free urban areas throughout England. In the years that followed, a host of other industrial nations were inspired to follow suit.

Joplin History and Mineral Museum

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My daughter and I picked a sunny day before Christmas for a ‘field trip’ to the Joplin History and Mineral Museum. It was the first of my planned geology field trips in the coming months; as soon as I realized that the Missouri Master Naturalist training did not include a geology segment, I started thinking about how I could educate myself and field trips are probably my favorite options.

Joplin has a lead-mining history so many of the minerals on display include galena (black cubes usually). There were big chunks of rock and crystals. The smaller items were in glass enclosed cases around the edge of the room…large pieces on stands in the center. The labeling was well-done with numbers by the specimen and then signage nearby with the information about the specimen.

On the landing of the stairs was a case of Missouri fossils and ancient Native American artifacts. I liked the poster of different types of arrowheads.

The history side of the museum included a cookie cutter museum. I was intrigued by a circular one from Mexico with multiple shapes inside….very little dough to roll out again. They used a set of state shaped cookie cutters as part of the transition to the Route 66 part of the museum.

There was a room with models of circuses and a Victorian doll house. The doll house has plastic over the open side…but it looked like the model dog had run around and knocked over things (the Christmas tree on its side…a book and lamp pushed off a table); I told the person at the desk and we both chuckled. The doll house has had the plastic barrier on it for a long time, but the house has been moved recently and the jostling might have been enough to knock over the items.

There was also a display of the very destructive 2011 tornado in Joplin which tried to show how destructive tornados can be. The twisted muffin tin was the first item that caught and held my attention. Not far away there was a tree that had been splintered. I read more about the event when I got home and discovered that the tornado’s upheaval of the soils along its route caused re-contamination from lead mining remnants in southern Joplin…so the natural disaster recovery had a linkage to the city’s lead mining history too.

Outside there was a bench painted with wildflowers and towers of Missouri rocks. There was a metal sculpture that was interesting too.

My daughter and I had a pleasant lunch at Los Primos Mexican Grill in Joplin….sharing guacamole at the beginning and flan at the end of the meal.

Our next stop was Grand Falls – not far off I-44 west of Joplin. The lower falls is Grand Falls Chert, at 20 to 30 foot think bed of pure chert in an area otherwise dominated by limestone. The chert is extremely resistant to erosion because it is made of silica. The falls is the state’s broadest continuous flowing waterfall.

On the way home toward Springfield, my daughter looked closely at the road cut at mile marker 27.0 as I drove by and saw that the Chesapeake Fault Zone displaces the beds by a few feet toward the western end of road cut on the north side of I-44.

Both the Grand Falls and Chesapeake Fault Zone geology minutes were prompted by a few paragraphs from Roadside Geology of Missouri by Charles G. Spencer.

Overall – a good first ‘geology’ field trip.

Ten Little Celebrations – December 2024

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December has so many big celebrations. My little ones ended up not being as associated as usual with the big ones. Half the celebrations were at Festival of the Cranes…perhaps because my husband and I were so glad to be there again after a long hiatus beginning with the COVID years.

First frost. I celebrated noticing frost crystals on a car next to mine in the parking lot of the clinic where I go for physical therapy….and photographing them!

Warm drinks on cold days. Hot chocolate is my favorite, and I celebrated figuring out that the cocoa will dissolve better in a small amount of hot water before adding the other ingredients. I enjoy a cup every morning. Hot cider is my other hot drink on cold days.

PT exercises for the Road. I anticipated asking my therapist for some exercises I could do during our road trip to New Mexico…and celebrated that they worked!

Easier drive than expected to New Mexico. My husband I celebrated that there was no heavy traffic or construction along our route during the long day of driving from Missouri to New Mexico. It was a great beginning for our Festival of the Cranes experience.

Cranes at Sunset. We celebrated two great sunsets photographing cranes. The first one was my favorite because we thought the clouds were going to block too much of the sun at first…and then a hole appeared at the perfect time.

Bluebirds and green heron. Campuses are quiet places in the early morning…great places to see some birds – at least in the case of New Mexico Tech in Socorro. We also saw a great horned owl!

Harris’s hawk. These are probably my favorite raptors because they hunt in groups…are beautiful birds. I celebrated seeing two of them at close range with their falconer.

Sunrise in Tucumcari. As we headed back toward Missouri in the early morning, the sun was rising as we neared Tucumcari, NM. The clouds were in perfect position to keep the sun from shining directly in our eyes and the color (and reflection of color) spectacular.

Red velvet cake. Celebrating just the cake – no icing!

Joplin Mineral and History Museum. A day trip with my daughter…celebrated the time to talk, the museum (interesting display of minerals along with galena which was mined in Joplin), and the Mexican food for lunch.

Zooming – December 2024

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20 images – using the camera’s zoom to fill the frame. The moon in a dark sky, sandhill cranes at sunset, a Japanese lantern with yellow ginkgo leaves around its base. There are lots of favorites in this set for me.

Themes for the zoomed images of December: fall/winter and birds.

Locations: Springfield, Missouri and Socorro, New Mexico.

Gleanings of the Week Ending December 28, 2024

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The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

5 New Year’s Resolutions for Your Garden – All 5 are good ideas! I am on my second year of ‘turn an area of turf grass into a native garden.’ If the native trees/shrugs I planted last fall survive…it won’t be hard at all to reduce some turf in 2025. I haven’t used pesticides since we moved to Missouri and we already use electric or hand-powered tools. We have a bird bath. I am not at 70% native plants – yet. That one could be hard although I am going making some progress; I will eliminate a Japanese barberry and forsythia in the spring to make way for more native plantings.

Best of 2024 – Square Meter Prairie Photos – Macro photographs from The Prairie Ecologist.

Scientists Unlock the Secrets of Crocodile Skin and Its Irregular, Mystifying Patterns – Research that discovered that the uniqueness of crocodiles’ head scales is driven from mechanical processes, such as growth rate and skin stiffness, rather than gene expression.

The Case of The Missing Cinders from Yellowstone's Cinder Pool - What happened to the cinders that used to float atop Cinder Pool in the One Hundred Spring Plain area of Norris Geyser Basin? Cinder Pool was one of the few known cinder-producing pools in the world. Using historical water chemistry data, the pH (4.1 ± 0.2) of Cinder Pool was fairly constant from 1947 to 2015, and the sulfate concentration was relatively low (80 ± 20 mg/L). Cinders were last observed in 2018. By April 2019, the pool was lacking cinders and had become significantly more acidic, with the pH dropping to 2.6 and the sulfate concentration increasing to 350 mg/L. Cinders were no longer being generated, and the appearance of the pool changed drastically. Dynamic Yellowstone!

Animals That Turn White in Winter Face a Climate Challenge – There are some snowshoe hares that stay brown during winter…and they may be surviving better in areas that are now getting less snow in the winter. Animals that are adapted to winter by turning white…might find the adaptation a hazard if there is no snow!

Natural disasters killed thousands around the world, caused billions in damage in 2024 - In the United States alone, there have been at least 24 weather-related disasters that caused more than $1 billion in damages each according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Since 1980, the annual average number of events is 8.5. When counting the most recent five years alone -- 2019 through 2023 -- that average increases to 20.4 events per year. The cost of climate change is increasing around the world…impacting everyone.

The global divide between longer life and good health - Life expectancy, or lifespan, increased from 79.2 to 80.7 years in women and from 74.1 to 76.3 years in men between 2000 and 2019, according to WHO estimates. However, the number of years those people were living in good health did not correspondingly increase. The average global gap in lifespan versus healthspan was 9.6 years in 2019, the last year of available statistics. That represents a 13% increase since 2000.

Scientists Just Dissected the World’s Rarest Whale in New Zealand - Only seven spade-toothed whales have ever been identified, and the species has never been seen alive. When a 16-foot, 3,000-pound carcass washed ashore on the South Island of New Zealand in July; it was in remarkably good condition and appeared in a region of New Zealand that allowed researchers to perform the first-ever dissection of the species. The research and dissection process was under the guidance of both scientists and members of local Māori tribes on the South Island. Some discoveries: vestigial teeth, 9 stomach chambers, and head trauma was cause of death.

Interior Department Signed 69 Tribal Co-Stewardship Agreements In 2024 - The agreements cover a range of ways designed to bring tribes into management of public lands. That includes efforts by Interior to expand bison habitat and entering into bison co-management agreements with tribal leaders, shifting historic preservation responsibilities from federal agencies to tribal agencies, carefully weighing the impact of federal agency action on sacred sites, and expanding and reforming self-governance as part of the Practical Reforms and Other Goals to Reinforce the Effectiveness of Self-Governance and Self Determination for Indian Tribes (PROGRESS) Act.

Study likely to change standard of care for deadly strokes - Endovascular therapy, or EVT, -- a minimally invasive surgery performed inside the blood vessels -- is 2 ½ times more likely than standard medical management to achieve a positive outcome after vertebrobasilar stroke that affects the back of the brain, including the brain stem.

Raptors and Photography

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Our last session at the Festival of the Cranes was titled “Deadly Beauty Photography” with falconer and wildlife rehabilitator Matt Mitchell. We saw three different trained raptors. The falconer had raised all the birds from their birth.

The first was a hybrid gyrfalcon and several different peregrine subspecies. It was a challenge to follow in flight, so I was thrilled to get even one good picture. The others are portraits which are still better photos of raptor sightings in the wild. My favorite image is the one with the falconer and the bird…obviously a bond there.

The native peregrine was the second bird and I didn’t manage an image of it in flight. The one of the peregrine on the ground shows how it hides its meal from prying eyes!

My favorite raptors were the pair of Harris’s hawks (sisters). The species hunts in groups. We moved to a location with more shrubs to give the birds places to perch. The two responded to prompts (and treats) flying around the area…plenty of opportunity to get them in flight.

One of the birds discovered at a young age that she got a treat very quickly if she perched on a person’s head…so she has done it since. I took a picture of my shadow when she was on my head. We had been instructed to wear a hat to the session…for just this situation!

It was a great finale to our Festival of the Cranes 2024 experience.

Previous Festival of the Cranes posts