Discovering the Outdoors: 2015

Thursday, December 31, 2015

Discovering the Outdoors #103

I’m Richard Bothel, The Outdoor Professor, your host for the show. Each week I work to be your personal guide to interacting with our natural world—sharing with you some of the most interesting and relevant news from our daily blog: DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/blog.

And in a few minutes today, it’s exciting to have my co-host be, Will Young. He is President of the Astronomical Society of South East Texas (ASSET) and a devoted amateur astronomer. Today, Will will be discussing with you some of the basics in getting started in the hobby of astronomy.

But first, let me highlight a few headlines from our blog that you may wish to take time to reviewing:…………………………………………

5 Snowiest Places in the U.S.

Python Removal Competition: Visit Florida

Horseshoe crab

Geminid meteor shower

How to spot the International Space Station

New most distant object in solar system

The New Frontier for Female Farmers

New Research Shows Fish Have Feelings, Too

I hope some of these topics sound interesting and you will read or listen to some of these articles if you have not already had a chance to have done so. Leave your comments on blog postings and feel free to email me your ideas for additional topics that you would like to see us cover.

And now let’s go to Will Young, President of the Astronomical Society of South East Texas (ASSET). So, Will, where do we get started in the hobby of astronomy.

Basics of astronomy.

Review assignment: Finding Orion
Night vision – dark adaptation.
Light pollution – shielded lights. Country skies.
Join an astronomy group – NASA’s night sky network. Astronomical League.Repeat

Assignment: Look astronomy group in your area

Please be sure to check our blog for the new Kayaker of the Week picture.

Kayaker of the Week

Each week we feature the picture of a kayaker and we would appreciate your comments. If you happen to know the kayaker in the picture, please post a hello. And if you or someone you know would like to be considered to be our weekly kayaker, please send a photo to kayaker@discoveringtheoutdoors.com.

Keep track of daily outdoor news by visiting our blog at DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/blog /

And please like our Facebook Page--Discovering the Outdoors.

Additional outdoor tips can be received by subscribing to the Outdoor Professor Tips on iTunes or Stitcher. If you enjoy outdoor tips, you’ll also find an e-book at Amazon.com with a collection of outdoor tips.

Check out this episode!

Monday, December 14, 2015

Discovering the Outdoors #102

Welcome to Discovering the Outdoors—exploring the wonders of nature from the depths of the seas to the far reaches of the universe. Whether you are a nature watcher on here earth or looking to the skies, we hope you will find some topics of interest in our discussions--Devoted to all things outdoors trying to unlock the wonders of nature for your enjoyment, health and mental well-being.
I’m Richard Bothel, The Outdoor Professor, your host for the show. Each week I work to be your personal guide to interacting with our natural world—sharing with you some of the most interesting and relevant news from our daily blog: DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/blog.
And in a few minutes today, it’s exciting to have my co-host be, Will Young. He is President of the Astronomical Society of South East Texas (ASSET) and a devoted amateur astronomer. Today, Will will be discussing with you some of the basics in getting started in the hobby of astronomy.
But first, let me highlight a few headlines from our blog that you may wish to take time to reviewing:…………………………………………
Army ants’ ‘living’ bridges suggest collective intelligence
Is it true that Jupiter protects Earth?
Satellite sensors for global fire coverage
Paris climate summit
Biologists induce flatworms to grow heads and brains of other species
Comet Catalina has two tails
Bumping up against a parallel universe
I hope some of these topics sound interesting and you will read or listen to some of these articles if you have not already had a chance to have done so. Leave your comments on blog postings and feel free to email me your ideas for additional topics that you would like to see us cover.
And now let’s go to Will Young, President of the Astronomical Society of South East Texas (ASSET). So, Will, where do we get started in the hobby of astronomy.

Basics of astronomy.
Review assignment: Finding Orion
Constellations – road maps in the skies
Star Maps – Apps. Charts.
Repeat Assignment: Look for the constellation Orion

Please be sure to check our blog for the new Kayaker of the Week picture.
Kayaker of the Week
Each week we feature the picture of a kayaker and we would appreciate your comments. If you happen to know the kayaker in the picture, please post a hello. And if you or someone you know would like to be considered to be our weekly kayaker, please send a photo to kayaker@discoveringtheoutdoors.com.
Keep track of daily outdoor news by visiting our blog at DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/blog /
And please like our Facebook Page--Discovering the Outdoors.
Additional outdoor tips can be received by subscribing to the Outdoor Professor Tips on iTunes or Stitcher. If you enjoy outdoor tips, you’ll also find an e-book at Amazon.com with a collection of outdoor tips.

Check out this episode!

Sunday, December 6, 2015

Zebra Mussels

Hello, I'm the OUTDOOR PROFESSOR from DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/

Here's your outdoor tip on zebra mussels.

Non-native zebra mussels were found for the first time about 20 years ago in North America. It is thought they were carried in the ballast tanks of ships from western European ports to Lake St. Clair and the lakes Huron and Erie. Now, a great deal of attention has been on the ballast water of cargo ships to prevent more introductions of this invasive animal into the Great Lakes region.

The name “zebra mussel” comes from the striped pattern of their shells. The pattern does vary from very dark to the point of only light stripes on some shells. The mussels can grow to a size of about 50mm but are only 5-10 mm during their first year of age.

Zebra mussels have upset the aquatic food chains of many inland lakes in the United States Their voracious filter systems deplete the microscopic organisms that are critical parts in each lake’s ecological food system. This affects the food for larval and juvenile fish that support the sport and commercial fishing industries.

As other mussels, zebra mussels attach themselves to hard surfaces in the water. Unlike others, though, zebras will attach to native mussels—a behavior known as bio-fouling that reduces the populations of native mussels. Of great concern is this may eliminate some of the rarer species of mussels. The affinity of zebra mussels to attach to hard surfaces also has made water intake structures for power and municipal water treatment plants susceptible to colonization and causes significant reductions in pumping capabilities and can cause periodic plant shutdowns.

Research shows that zebra mussels rapidly accumulate organic pollutants such as PCBs and PAHs with levels 300,000 times greater than concentrations in the natural environment. These items are deposited in their pseudofeces and can be passed up the food chain to fish and waterfowl. Humans are in turn exposed to these pollutants by eating the fish and birds.

Invasion biology has been expanded by the intrusion of zebra mussels. US Legislation has been introduced to treat the ballast water of ships. Salt water acts as a natural preventative against the zebras so it is now required that all ocean vessels flush ballast tanks with seawater before they enter the Great Lakes area.

By the early 1990s, the mussels traveled to many major river systems connected to the Great Lakes watershed moving down the Ohio, the Mississippi, and the Missouri Rivers. The quagga mussel, another invasive mussel species similar to the zebra mussel, was found in Lake Erie in 1989. It now has spread to all the Great Lakes areas replacing the zebra mussel as the predominant invasive mussel species. Quagga and zebra mussels have been found west of the Continental Divide.

Millions of these mollusks are now living in the Great Lakes system. They have no natural predators in North America. Attaching to each other when they settle, large clusters occur in small areas with as many as 700,000 zebra mussels have being found in only one square yard on boats, pilings, and pipes.

Although zebra mussels are efficient at filtering large volumes of water greatly improving water clarity, they contribute to the explosive growth of harmful algal blooms in Saginaw Bay and other fresh bodies of water. The mussel is low in fat and its shell has no nutritional value forcing fish to expend a great deal of energy capturing and digesting the mussel. Also, there are fewer food options as these mussels displace better food sources.

Quagga and zebra mussels are now investing most fresh water bodies throughout the United States.

Zebra mussels are moved throughout rivers and lakes by hitching-hiking on boats, trailers, barges, sea planes and other aquatic equipment. In their microscopic juvenile stage, they can be carried in boat bilge water, live wells, bait buckets and diving gear. Precautionary steps after boating and fishing will help prevent the spread of these invasive mussels. It’s important to:

Check boat and trailers for mussels before leaving a body of water
Discard aquatic vegetation in the trash after boating
Drain all the water from the boat including the bilge, live-well and engine system.
Dry the boat and trailer in the sun for at least five days or clean the boat and trailer in a car wash
Leave all aquatic bait behind
Everyone drawing water directly from a mussel infected body of water must protect their water systems from infestation
Inform others of the dangers of zebra mussel infestations

There are no known environmentally friendly methods for eliminating zebra mussels. Public assistance to prevent the spread of these invasive species and reporting infestations is the only solution to reduce the negative effects of zebra mussels on the environment.

Keep track of daily outdoor news by visiting our blog at DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/blog / and please like our Facebook Page at Discovering the Outdoors.

Additional outdoor tips can be received by subscribing to the Outdoor Professor Tips on iTunes or Stitcher. If you enjoy outdoor tips, you’ll also find an e-book at Amazon.com with a collection of the Outdoor Professor Tips.

References-Additional Reading

Harmful Aquatic Hitchhikers: Mollusks: Zebra Mussel
http://www.protectyourwaters.net/hitchhikers/mollusks_zebra_mussel.php

Zebra Mussel Frequently Asked Questions
by Jeffrey L. Ram, Ph.D., Wayne State University, Detroit, MI 48201
http://sun.science.wayne.edu/~jram/zminter2.htm

The Zebra Mussel Invasion
http://www.noaa.gov/features/earthobs_0508/zebra.html

Nature Quotient.
eBook @Amazon.com

Outdoor Professor’s Tips: Exploring the Wonders of Nature
eBook @Amazon.com

Check out this episode!

Earthworms

Hello, I'm the OUTDOOR PROFESSOR from DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/

Here's your outdoor tip on earthworms.

As a kid, I can remember the favorite bait my family used for fishing was night crawlers. They were easy to keep alive in a “bait box” as long as it was in the shade and were easy to put on the hook—much easier than keeping minnows alive and on the hook—and worms always seem to catch as many fish.

You may have had the experience of taking a shovel out in the backyard and digging some fresh worms for a fishing trip. Or maybe, you went out after a rain in the evening and gathered what you called “night crawlers” for fishing.

While you may think an earthworm is an earthworm, there are about 6000 know species of earthworms. In most cases in the United States you have a species of what’s called a common earthworm and red worms largely used in composting—although these two general categories represent a number of different species. The two general types have a number of characteristics in common, but there are significant differences in the worms.

Earthworms are commonly found in your yard and garden so I will spend most of my time talking generally about them. They consume the soil getting their nutritional needs from things living in it such as fungi and bacteria. They leave castings or waste behind that is good for growing plants. They also are active burrowers that are good for aerating the soil. Earthworms are frequently called nightcrawlers, although many nightwrawlers are specialized European species.

Rainstorms at night bring nightcrawlers to the surface and you will often find them in the driveway or street. It not known for sure why they surface with the rain, but some ideas include:

They might surface for oxygen if their tunnels fill with water,
Their skin must stay moist and the rain gives them the chance to slide quickly over the land.
They mate on the surface and want to stay out of the sun.
Earthworms are sensitive to poisons that rain might wash into their tunnels forcing them to escape.

Earthworm bodies are composed of ring-like segments called annuli covered in small bristles that help the worm move and burrow as deep as about 6.5 feet. Some can grow to more than 12 inches and live for about 6 years. Their mouth is on their first segment and they can consume about one third of their weight each day in organic matter. Earthworms do not have eyes, but they do have specialized photosensitive cells called "light cells of Hess"—keeping them out of the light.

Earthworms are hermaphroditic, but do not self-fertilize. The sperm and egg cells are deposited in a tiny, lemon-shaped cocoon and it is buried for 2-4 weeks when the baby worms emerge.

Some say that you can cut a worm in two and it will become two worms. This is not true, but earthworms have the ability to regenerate lost segments.

The major benefit of earthworm activities is to create soil fertility. They play a major role in the conversion of organic matter into rich humus. In addition to organic matter, the earthworm ingests other soil particles and excretes it in the form of casts deposited on the surface of the soil changing mineral and plant nutrients into an accessible form for plants to use. Also, the earthworms burrowing creates channels though the soil that maintains the soil structure enabling aeration and drainage.

Earthworms facilitate nutrient cycling in the soil-plant system. The earthworm's work cannot be taken for granted. Worms will only continue to thrive by the care of a variety of environmental factors controlled by good management by gardeners and farmers. The weight of earthworms under a farmer’s soil could be greater than that of the livestock on the surface of the farm.

The best way to have worm populations flourish is to avoid the application of chemicals. Application of organic matter as a surface mulch provides them with their food and nutrient requirements. They then just need a moist soil and no extreme temperatures for optimum living conditions .

The health of earthworms relies on both physical and chemical properties of the soil, such as temperature, moisture, food, pH, salts, aeration, and texture. Earthworms are very important to the environment as they are the base of many food chains. They are preyed upon by many species of animals. They are also hosts for many internal parasites.

So even though earthworm may often be out of mind and sight under your feet, their importance to us goes far beyond being on the end of a fish hook.

This is the OUTDOOR PROFESSOR from DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/

References-Additional Reading

Colorado Annelidof Interest
https://bspm.agsci.colostate.edu/files/2013/03/Nightcrawlers.pdf

Common Earthworm
http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/invertebrates/earthworm/

Red Wigglers vs Earthworms in Compost
http://www.pintsizefarm.com/red-wigglers-vs-earthworms-in-composting/?utm_content=bufferc9f7a&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer

Nature Quotient.
eBook @Amazon.com

Outdoor Professor’s Tips: Exploring the Wonders of Nature
eBook @Amazon.com

Check out this episode!

Friday, October 23, 2015

Tarantulas

Hello, I'm the OUTDOOR PROFESSOR from DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/

Here's your outdoor tip on tarantulas.

They are fearsome looking, but they are a novel and adored pet for some people. They also serve as delicacies at the dinner table for people of the Amazon. Tarantulas are the largest spiders and hold a position in folklore across the world.

There are about 850 species of tarantulas in the world and more than four dozen species in the United States. In the southwestern US, they live alone in desert basins, mountain foothills and forest slopes. Their nests can be in burrows or crevices sequestered in the ground, in cliff faces and between tree roots. Some produce a buzzing sound by rubbing their jaws or front legs against each other.

Tarantulas will attack anything that they can subdue including beetles, grasshoppers, other spiders, lizards or even mice. They kill by using their fangs to inject venom into their victims. They inject a chemical into the prey that dissolves the flesh. During mating season, the male may be accepted or rejected by the female—in either case becoming the female’s next source of protein to support her young. After mating the female produces an egg sac and six or seven weeks later hundreds of tiny spiderlings hatch. After a few weeks, the young will leave the nest to be out on their own. As tarantulas mature, they molt several times shedding their old exoskeleton for a new one. Male are expected to live for only a few years, but females will live for decades.

Here are some of the characteristics of tarantulas in the United States:

Red to tan to black in color
Body up to three inches
Three to five inch legs
Body and legs are hairy
Males are slimmer and longer than females
Exoskeleton has fused head and thorax connected with a narrow waist to an oval abdomen
Eight eyes in two groups on the forehead
Backward pointing fangs and mouth below the eyes
Four pairs of legs connected to the fused head and thorax

Spins no typical spider web but instead catches its prey by pursuit.

When threatened, the American tarantula can used its fangs to bite you or its barbed/venomous abdominal hairs to damage soft tissue or cause eye irritation. If a tarantula bites you—it will usually be after warning you to back off by raising its front legs and displaying its fangs in a threat posture. It will inflict a pain comparable to bee or wasp sting. A tarantula may use its legs to cast its hairs into the victim's face causing the eyes to water, the nose to itch, the breathing passages to swell shut, and the lips and tongue to become irritated. Although their attack can be painful, it is seldom known to cause serious harm. A severe allergic reaction may occur for some people. The American Tarantula Society says no one has ever died from a tarantula bite.

Treating a bite which often has redness, localized pain, and swelling includes:

Washing the site with soap and water
Apply a cool compress or even an ice cube to reduce swelling
You may--Apply meat tenderizer mixed with water to reduce irritation
Applying a topical cortisone or Benadryl cream to reduce irritation
Watch for symptoms of an infection or allergic reaction

If you come into contact with their hairs, which can produce intense irritation you should:

Be careful not to inhale loose hairs
Apply duct tape or wax to pick up loose hairs from your skin
Use tweezers to pluck out hairs from your skin
Apply steroid creams
Seek medical care if you think you may have inhaled the hairs into your lungs or gotten them into your eyes
Watch for symptoms of an infection or allergic reaction

Remember that tarantulas may have a fearsome look, but in some cases, they may just be a family pet.

This is the OUTDOOR PROFESSOR from DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/

References-Additional Reading

Tarantulas
http://www.desertusa.com/insects/tarantulas.html

Tarantula
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/arachnids/spider/Tarantulaprintout.shtml

Tarantula Facts
http://www.livescience.com/39963-tarantula.html

Nature Quotient.
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Outdoor Professor’s Tips: Exploring the Wonders of Nature
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Check out this episode!

Sunday, October 18, 2015

Glowing Animal Eyes

Hello, I'm the OUTDOOR PROFESSOR from DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/

Here's your outdoor tip on why animal eyes glow in the dark.

Have you ever caught a deer in the headlights of your car at night and seen a luminescent glow in its eyes? Have you gone along a river or lake at night shining the shoreline with a spotlight and seen a spooky glow of eyes seeming to stare at you through the dense darkness?

This phenomenon is caused by a series of special adaptions designed to help animals see in low light. The shine from the eyes is caused by a layer of tissue, Tapetum Lucidum, located behind the retina that reflects light back through the retina giving the receptors a second chance at the rays of light. This increases the available light providing a kind of night vision for the animal. Also, when a light shines, it reflects a bright glow that can be seen from a distance.

When light enters the human eye, it passes through the pupil that regulates how much light strikes the retina at the back of the eye. Receptors there called rods and cones receive the light. Working best in low light, rods help you to see movement and broad details. Cones work in bright light to help you see fine details and colors. Humans have more cones while night animals typically have more rods. Nocturnal predators have almost no cones relying on sudden movement to spot prey and guide their attacks.

Animals such as deer are largely active during dawn and dusk so their eyes have larger pupils than animals that are mostly active during the day. This increases the glowing eye effect since in the dark, the pupil can expand to cover most of the front of the eye. This opens much of the shiny layer beneath the retina increasing the glowing effect. The eye shine of animals will vary within the same species. Genetics, diet, injury, and other factors make the glowing eyes of one animal different than that of another.

Animals that have the tapetum lucidum include deer, dogs, cats, cattle, horses and ferrets. Humans and other primates do not along with squirrels, kangaroos, and pigs. And all glowing animal eyes do not glow the same color due to different substances such as bioflavin or zinc in the tapetrum. Varying amounts of pigment in the retina and age can also change the glow’s color. Cats’ eyes often glow bright green with Siamese cats' eyes often glowing bright yellow. Some dogs have eyes that glow turquoise.

In photographs animals’ eyes shine back at us. Human eyes only glow bright red in photos. This is because human’s lack the reflective layer that many animals have in their eyes. The retina by itself does not have the reflective power of the tapetum lucidum that adds color to the reflection. The flash coming through the human eye is simply showing the color of the red blood vessels crisscrossing in the eye reflecting back from the retina.

So when you see those glowing eyes on your next nighttime adventure, you’ll hopefully understand a bit more about where the shining comes from.

This is the OUTDOOR PROFESSOR from DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/

References-Additional Reading

The Science of How Eyes Glow in the Dark
http://io9.com/the-science-of-how-eyes-glow-in-the-dark-1600183971

Why do animal eyes glow in the dark?
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=96414364

Why do deer’s’ eyes glow?
http://animals.mom.me/deers-eyes-glow-7877.html

Nature Quotient.
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Outdoor Professor’s Tips: Exploring the Wonders of Nature
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Check out this episode!

Friday, August 28, 2015

Cat History

Hello, I'm the OUTDOOR PROFESSOR from DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/

Here's your outdoor tip on the history of the domestic cat—and many of the cats that continue to live in our outdoors. One hundred years ago there were very few cats that lived inside. There is no universal agreement as to when cats became indoor species living in the homes of people. We do know that for more than 10,000 years cats have lived outdoors sharing their habitat with wild creatures, and millions of feral cats continue to live outdoors today. It is an accurate statement to say that cats continue to be prolific inhabitants of the outdoors in many parts of the world.

Human civilization and domestic cats co-evolved, but the feral cat population was not created by humans. Cats are not new to the outdoors and did not originate from lost pets or negligent pet owners. The have had a place in the natural landscape beginning in early times.

Evidence of domesticated cats was found on the Greek island of Cyprus where several animal species were introduced by 7500 BC. At one of the early sites a sculpted head of what looks like a combined human-cat being was found. Some argue that there might have been some domestication of the cat in Egypt. One of the developments in the ancient Fertile Crescent region where human civilization developed was agriculture. Where people stored their grain rodents were attracted. It is thought the Middle Eastern wildcats preyed on rodents around these early towns scavenging the garbage around developing human societies—the predecessors of feral cats today.

A new species of cats evolved over thousands of years ago as it naturally made its home around people. Today, pet, stray and feral cats belong to this species of domestic cat. Cats formed mutually beneficial relationships with people and many say domesticated themselves. Valuable on ships as mousers , cats traveled around the globe. Cats continued their service as mousers throughout history even serving as employees of the US Postal Service in early America. Toward the end of the 19^th century, Americans began to keep cats for company and utility. The first cat show was in 1895 in Madison Square Garden. Cats were accepted as household pets by the end of World War I. Back in Calvin Coolidge’s day no one considered confining a cat indoors—even the President of the United States.

The development of middle class families greatly changed the role of felines in society. Cats were no longer seen just a rodent wranglers and started to fill a companion role. Very recently they have replaced dogs as the most common companion animal in the United States. Unfortunately, even with their appreciation as pets, research shows that cats are less likely to be taken to the veterinarian, provided with proper identification, kept indoors where they will be safe, and not running wild creating damage in neighborhoods.

Unlike the dog, the cat’s evolution did not have close oversight by human partners. Cats did not have the extended genetic selection that produced specialized breeds of dogs for hunting, herding, or protection work. Because of this cats have retained much of their original feline behaviors. Also, exosts the mistaken impression that cats can exist on their own without human support.

Cats have adapted to our lives independent of the dominating need to work for us. People remain divided into dog people and cat people, but both groups appreciate having a pet in the home. Pets are thought to have psychological benefits to humans today as we face the stress of society. And fortunately or not, depending on your perspective, cats are still abundant in our outdoor environment.

This is the OUTDOOR PROFESSOR from DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/

References-Additional Reading

The Natural History of the Cat
http://www.alleycat.org/CatHistory

Cat History
https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/cat-care/cat-history

Cat History and Domestication
http://archaeology.about.com/od/domestications/qt/cat.htm

Nature Quotient.
eBook @Amazon.com

Outdoor Professor’s Tips: Exploring the Wonders of Nature
eBook @Amazon.com

Check out this episode!