Stay ConnectedNature isn’t just “out there” in some pristine, far-off location. It’s all around us, including right outside our doors.
Hi, my name is Shannon Trimboli and I’m here to help people in the eastern U.S. create thriving ecosystems where they live, work, and play.
Join us as we ignite our curiosity and natural wonder, explore our yards and communities, and improve our local pollinator and wildlife habitat.
Learn more at: https://www.backyardecology.net/podcast
Copyright: © 2023 Shannon Trimboli, all rights reserved
Lichens are AMAZING organisms. You can find them practically everywhere from very urban areas to very rural areas. You can find them growing on trees, rocks, buildings, benches, and all kinds of different things. But many of us really don't know a whole lot about lichens.
In today's episode of the Backyard Ecology podcast, I talk with Dr. James Lendemer. James is the lichenologist at the New York Botantical Gardens and a professor at the City University of New York. He also co-authored the book, Urban Lichens: A Field Guide for Northeastern North America.
Our conversation dives into many different realms of the fascinating world of lichens. James and his colleagues say that "Lichens are a lifestyle," because lichens don't have a single common ancestor like you would find for all sunflowers or all oak trees. Instead, lichens have evolved multiple times in multiple different types of fungus. In some ways saying a fungus is a lichen is like saying an animal is an herbivore, carnivore, or parasite. It is simply describing a feeding style.
We also talked about how lichens are made up primarily of a fungus and either an algal or cyanobacteria, but also include all kinds of other organisms. Each lichen is kind of like its own little ecosystem. It's also the fungus that determines the species of lichen. Depending on the species of lichen, the individual lichens could all share the same species of algal or cyanobacteria or the individuals could contain different species of algae and cyanobacteria. It can get complicated, but very intriguing at the same time.
James and my conversation covered many other topics including how most species of lichens in eastern North America can be identified in the field with a hand lens and a good field guide. The new book, Urban Lichens: A Field Guide for Northeastern North America, that he co-authored with Jessica Allen and Jordan Hoffman provides one such field guide.
Urban Lichens was primarily written as a field guide to the lichens in New York City and other large urban areas in the northeast, but it isn't good only in urban areas. Many of the species found in those areas are also the most common species found in yards throughout the temperate regions of eastern North America. That makes it a great option for those of us wanting to learn more about the lichens in our own yards and communities, regardless of whether we live in a large metropolitan area, a suburban area, or a more rural area.
Links:Wild turkeys are fascinating birds that are only found in North America. They are also a conservation success story – one which most people aren't aware of because the turn-around was so successful. In this episode of the Backyard Ecology podcast, we talk with Dr. Bret Collier. Bret is a Professor of Wildlife Ecology at Louisiana State University who specializes in studying wild turkeys.
If you ask a room of wildlife biologists to name our nation's greatest conservation success stories, you are most likely to hear wild turkeys, white-tailed deer, and wood ducks come up frequently. It's hard to believe now, but there was a time, not too long ago really, when wild turkeys, white-tailed deer, and wood ducks had been extirpated from many areas and were steadily declining in population numbers. Losing them would have been a distinct possibility. But massive conservation efforts turned those declines around. Now all three of those species are so common throughout much of their range that the conservation success stories they represent have been mostly forgotten.
Bret and I discuss the wild turkey's conservation success story because we both believe that it is a story worth telling and one that doesn't need to be forgotten. We also talk about current turkey populations, because in the southeast we are seeing a decrease in turkey populations. There are hints that this might be starting to occur in other parts of the country too.
As Bret said during our conversation, "Wild turkey conservation at a national level rests on the private landowners." This is because so much of our land is privately owned, especially in the eastern U.S. So, in addition to talking about wild turkey populations, Bret shares with us the types of habitat that turkeys need and helps us understand some of the things we can do to make our properties a little better for turkeys.
Links:When it comes to gardening for monarchs, the most common thing you hear is "plant milkweeds." Milkweeds are important, because they are the only thing that monarch caterpillars can eat. But they aren't the whole story. In fact, having other types of flowering plants available can actually make your gardens more attractive to monarchs according to recent research from the University of Florida.
In this episode of the Backyard Ecology podcast, we talk with Rebecca Nestle. Rebecca recently completed her Master's degree at the University of Florida where she explored several different topics related to gardening for monarchs.
Part of Rebecca's research looked at how many eggs monarchs laid on focal milkweed plants in gardens composed only of milkweeds compared to gardens with several species that bloomed throughout the growing season. She also dove into another topic that relates to concerns we both often hear about monarch predators. In this part of her study, she compared the number of "natural enemies" (parasitoids and predators of monarchs) in mixed-species gardens compared to milkweed-only gardens. She then compared how well monarch caterpillars survived in each of those situations. Her results for all three of these studies were both surprising and exciting.
Another part of Rebecca's research that we discussed related to the effects of high nitrogen levels on swamp milkweeds (Asclepias incarnata). She again, conducted a study that compared monoculture stands of swamp milkweed and swamp milkweeds intermixed with other species. She then looked at the impacts of these treatments on monarch caterpillars. Once again, the results were a little surprising, and potentially a little comforting for people gardening for monarchs in urban environments, near golf courses, or in other heavily fertilized locations.
LinksBats are often associated with Halloween and relegated to roles in scary movies, but they are so much more. Bats are very diverse and fascinating creatures that play an invaluable role in our ecosystem. I love the fact that more people seem to be recognizing this and wanting to do things like put up bat houses and make their yards more bat friendly.
In this episode, I talk with Reed Crawford. Reed is a PhD student in Ecology, Evolution, and Conservation Biology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He is studying bats and how they thermoregulate. His research has lots of implications for how we can make our bat houses safer for and more attractive to bats.
Reed and I start out talking about some of the common myths we hear about bats and the many threats that bats face. We then move on to discuss how bats need roosting spots with different conditions depending on factors like the time of year and the reproductive stage of the bat. The temperature of the site throughout the day and night is one of those important conditions, especially for moms and their young (pups).
Unfortunately, sometimes our bat houses can provide nice, warm, attractive conditions for mother bats to raise their young, but on our really warm summer days can get too hot and potentially kill the bats. Part of Reed's research is looking at different modifications we can make to bat houses to make them safer for the bats. We talk about many of those modifications including a different style of bat house called a rocket box, that doesn't look like the flat boxes that are commonly sold as bat houses.
In addition to Reed's research, we talked about suggestions for putting up a bat house and improving the bat habitat around our homes. One of the questions Reed and I both commonly get in regards to bat houses, is "Why aren't bats using the bat house that I put up?" Unfortunately, there isn't a simple answer to that question. It often depends on a number of different factors. But, hopefully Reed's research and those of others pursuing similar questions, will help us give more solid answers to that question in the future.
LinksWe always think of hummingbirds as being summer birds. But, did you know that we also have winter hummingbirds? They aren't common, and they become less common the further you are from the southern coastal plains; however, they aren't unique either. In the winter of 2011-2012, I was lucky enough to host one of these winter hummingbirds at my home in Kentucky.
In this Backyard Ecology episode, I talk with Brainard Palmer-Ball about these winter hummingbirds. Brainard is a retired zoologist from the Office of Kentucky Nature Preserves. He's also the person who captured and banded my winter hummingbird in 2011.
In the eastern U.S., our winter hummingbirds aren't the familiar ruby-throated hummingbirds that we see all summer. Instead, most of the hummingbirds that overwinter in the eastern U.S. are western species. There are a handful of western species that sometimes spend the winter in the eastern U.S., but the most common one is the rufous hummingbird.
It is thought that we probably always had a few winter hummingbirds, but we just didn't notice them. Then as hummingbird feeding increased in popularity in the 80s and 90s, more available food sources and more eyes watching those food sources meant that we became more aware of this phenomenon. These food sources aren't drawing the winter hummingbirds or encouraging them to overwinter where they shouldn't, but they are potentially improving survival chances during the worst parts of our winters.
In our conversation, Brainard and I talk in more detail about our winter hummingbirds, how they aren't "lost," as was once thought, and how they survive through the winter. We also discuss the importance of feeders and tackle the question of whether leaving our feeders up, or putting them back out for late hummingbirds, is a good thing. In addition, we talk about banding hummingbirds and what can be learned from that process. Of course, Brainard also shares with us what we need to think about and do if we are lucky enough to have one of these winter hummingbirds show up at our homes.
Links:What happens when you do a shelterwood cut, conduct a prescribed burn, or have some other natural or human-made disturbance event in oak hickory forests? What happens to the acorn crop? How do different types of wildlife respond? What about the other vegetation in the woods?
In this Backyard Ecology episode I talk with Dr. Cathryn Greenberg. Katie is a Research Ecologist with the US Forest Service, Southern Research Station. She has been involved in multiple long-term studies looking at how different species, or groups of animals, respond to forest disturbances, both natural disturbances (wind, wildfires, etc.) and human-created disturbances (logging, prescribed burns, etc.). These forest disturbances can cause openings in the closed canopy of mature forests or may be more low-grade and not have much of an impact on the canopy.
Two aspects that make Katie's research unique are:
We talked about a wide variety of topics including how forest disturbances such as shelterwood cuts can affect acorn production. We also discussed the impacts of different types of forest disturbances on breeding songbirds populations and diversity, as well as, on reptile and amphibian populations. We even took a side tangent to discuss a long-term study she and her colleagues have conducted looking at amphibian use of ephemeral pools in Florida.
One important concept to recognize from her research is that forest disturbances don't affect all species the same, even within the same general "group," such as songbirds. Some may benefit from the disturbances; some not-so-much, at least temporarily. Like with anything else, there isn't a one-size-fits- all answer. We wrap up with Katie reminding us how important it is to know our goals and what we are trying to accomplish with our land management.
Links:Sometimes it's just fun to sit down and have a fun conversation with other people in the industry, and that's exactly what we did in this episode of the Backyard Ecology podcast. In this episode, I talk with Fran Chismar and Tom Knezick. Fran is the Sultan of Sales for Pinelands Nursery and the co-host of the Native Plants, Healthy Planet Podcast. Tom is the General Manager at Pinelands Nursery, the owner of Pinelands Direct Native Plants, and the other co-host of the Native Plants, Healthy Planet Podcast.
This was a very fun, relaxed, free-form conversation that covered a wide variety of topics related to native plants, the native plant industry, and gardening with native plants among other things. We all enjoyed hearing the perspectives and stories of someone from a different part of the country because Tom and Fran are in New Jersey, while I'm located in Kentucky.
Many parts of our conversation came back to the shared belief that we need to make space for everyone in the native plant community. We don't all need to have the same knowledge levels or goals. One person may be completely new to the world of native plants, while someone else may have decades of experience. Another person may be interested in growing native plants for pollinators, while someone else may be planting fields of native plants to improve quail habitat. There are a million different entry points and levels of involvement, and that's ok. We're all working towards the same overall goals, and we can accomplish so much more together, than any of us can on our own.
We also discussed some of the challenges associated with obtaining native plants as a consumer and growing native plants for a nursery. Later, our conversation turned towards common questions that we get asked, such as "What is a native plant?" and the flipside of that question, "What is an invasive plant?" While on the surface, both those answers may seem simple, the more we dig into them, the more complicated the answers become. We agreed that we don't have the answers, and nobody really does, but that it's important to be having these conversations and asking these questions.
Our conversation continued to twist and turn as we talked about how important it is to give kids the opportunity to connect with nature and shared our own childhood memories of spending time outside. We covered a lot of ground and a lot of different topics in this conversation, and I encourage everyone to check out the Native Plants, Healthy Planet podcast to hear more from Tom and Fran.
Links:Pollinator gardens have rapidly increased in popularity, but unfortunately, there hasn't been a lot of research on the best ways to create those gardens or on how effective those gardens really are. Happily, that's beginning to change. More and more scientists are beginning to tackle those types of questions in order to help us better manage and protect the pollinators in our built environments.
In this episode of the Backyard Ecology Podcast, we talk with Travis Watson. Travis is the Horticulture Manager at East Tennessee State University. He also recently completed his thesis research on the types of factors make pollinator gardens more attractive to pollinators.
Travis and I talk about his research and some of his findings that stood out. One of potentially the most comforting findings to many people is that size didn't really matter. His largest study sites had proportionately the same number of insect pollinators as his smallest study sites. The types of pollinators present may have changed, but overall insect abundance was proportionally similar between all sites. This means that no matter how small your property is, you can still do something to support pollinators.
Another key finding in his research was the importance of floral diversity. Having diverse flower families, species, colors, shapes, sizes, and bloom times all contributed to greater pollinator diversity and attractiveness. Travis attributes this to the fact that with greater floral diversity, the odds increase that you'll be "inviting a pollinator specialist to the table" without excluding any of the generalist species that would be there anyways. However, we also discuss that this shouldn't be taken to the extreme of trying to plant a single individual of a bunch of different species. You still need multiples of each species. As with most things in life, it is important to find that happy medium.
Our conversation covers a wide range of other topics related to his research and ways that we can apply his findings in our own gardens and yards. We end with him offering suggestions for other ways that you can get involved and make a difference, even if you don't have land of your own.
Links:If you listen to the Backyard Ecology podcast, then you are likely interested in creating pollinator and/or wildlife habitat on at least part of your property. The Natural Resources Conservation Service or NRCS is a federal agency that has a number of programs which can help us do just that. Previously, NRCS programs and services were restricted to people with 10 acres or more, but that is no longer the case.
In this episode of the Backyard Ecology Podcast, we talk with Randall Alcorn. Randall is a Private Lands Biologist with the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources and an NRCS Area Liaison. (The NRCS is a federal agency, but in some states like Kentucky, they partner closely with the state fish and wildlife agency.)
During our conversation, Randall tells us about several NRCS programs including cost-share programs for pollinator habitat, timber stand improvement, invasive species management, early successional growth habitat, edge feathering, wetland conservation easements, riparian corridors, stream bank mitigation, ephemeral pools, and shallow wetlands. Some of these NRCS programs have a more regional scope, while others have a national scope.
Randall and I also talked about who to contact if you are interested in finding out more about the NRCS programs available in your area. Additionally, Randall walked us through a general timeline of what to expect if you apply for an NRCS program and how that works from a practical standpoint, including options for those who may have difficulty financing everything upfront before receiving the cost-share reimbursement.
Links:Part of an NRCS planting in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Photo credit: Bob Nichols, NRCS, public domain
In the spring of 2021, reports started coming in of birds dying with weird eye and/or neurological symptoms. At first, it seemed like the bird mortality event was only in Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia, but before long reports began to also come in from West Virginia, Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Florida. Researches and others from multiple state, federal, and private organizations and agencies have been working together to try and determine what is causing this mysterious bird mortality event.
In this episode of the Backyard Ecology Podcast, we talk with Dr. Brian Evans. Brian is an ornithologist at the Smithsonian National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute. He has been involved with studying the bird mortality event at a regional level since soon after it started to be recognized as an issue. This is a very open and candid discussion about a subject that has garnered a lot of confusion and frustration in only a couple of short months.
Our conversation covers a wide range of topics related to what we know and don't know, because at this point, what we don't know about this mortality event far outweighs what we do know. That can be frustrating, but at the time of this recording, two months ago we knew absolutely nothing about this bird mortality event. Given that we've been building our knowledge from practically zero, we've actually learned quite a bit in a short time. It just doesn't always feel that way, because there is so much more that we want and need to know.
In addition to talking about the bird mortality event itself, Brian and I also discuss what goes on behind the scenes when something like this happens. We would all love to be able to snap our fingers and have all the answers for what is causing this mortality event and how to stop it, but that's not the way things work. We also know that this is not the first bird disease or mortality event to suddenly pop up, and it probably isn't going to be the last. Similar things have happened with just about every other group of animals. So, having a basic understanding of what goes into studying and learning about something like this, can be very helpful for those of us who love wildlife and nature.
We also talk about some of the concrete action steps that we can take to help protect our birds and to help with the research. One of the points that Brian really wanted to highlight is how vital community involvement is to learning about this bird mortality event. Researchers need our help to determine the answers to even the most basic questions about this event. There is just so much that we don't know and the more data the researchers have, the better chance they have of finding the answers that we all want to know. Reporting what we are seeing to the Smithsonian's national database, and where appropriate, our individual states' databases can go a long way towards helping them gather that data.
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