Author: Jennifer
•7:18 PM
We took our first group hike of the month at Comanche Lookout on Monday morning. The weather has been so nice for walking. Among our finds, was an antlion "colony". Taylor spotted a large area of soft dirt covered with many cone-like holes. We took the opportunity to investigate.
We gently knocked some dirt into the pit of one of these cones and watched. Taylor was thrilled to see something kick the dirt back out. How neat to find a little guy in there.
This was not our first antlion encounter. We checked them out at Friedrich Nature park last month. I dropped a poor unsuspecting ant into an antlion trap to show the kids what would happen. The little guy was already on his way through the mine of antline traps... we just sped up his demise. Now I'm starting to feel bad. Well, it was interesting anyway.
As a child, I remember my curiousity over what these antlions looked like. So, we used a leaf and pulled scooped one up. Here's a picture of our little antlion. Did you know that they walk backwards?
Antlions are also commonly called doodlebugs since they doodle around in the sand looking for a good place to settle. They are also called sand dragons.
We learned that antlions are actually the larval form of the adult that may be called antlion lacewings. The adults resemble dragonflies and damselflies. They aren't commonly observed because they are active at night. If they land on someone, they may give a bite. For more detailed information, check this site:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AntlionHere's a cool video we found about the antlion death trap. Check this link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CWkfAyfBDHE
Author: Jennifer
•6:44 AM
Last month our nature walk group hiked at Freidrich Nature Park. We weren't able to attend with the group in the morning, so I think we probably missed most of our birding opportunities. But, we are focusing on trees in our nature study and made some interesting discoveries.
The trails here are have marker posts along the way that identify trees and native plants. Be sure to pick up a marker guide at the visitor area on the trail.
We weren't able to identify this tree but another family in our group has seen this before. She posted a pic last month identifying what looks like growths on the bark as "barklings". :-) I like that description. We saw this all on the same trees. We wondered if this is a natural growth of this type of tree. I wonder if the bark looks like this year-round or only in a certain season. We'll have to come back and see. In the meantime, maybe we can work on identifying this tree.
We found this praying mantis along the trail. He was quite chunky... maybe a momma ready to lay eggs?
Here's some nice handiwork we found off of the trail.
We liked the bark on this tree. Again, we didn't get a chance to identify it. The bark looks like shingles on a house.
This old windmill is part of the previous owners land. Windmills make an interesting study of simple machines.
We had to hit the bathroom on the way back to the car. We found this Texas Blind Snake on the wall. We usually see those in our home in the spring. They're harmless, but no one likes to find a snake in their home. They come up for a couple of weeks and we don't see them again until the next spring. They actually eat termites... how nice.
Next month... Comanche Lookout Nature Trails. See you there!
Author: Jennifer
•6:22 AM
Once a month, we like to go to Seguin for one of the free pioneer-themed handicrafts. This time we went with my friend Deanna and her kids.
The month of October was all about bread and butter. Ranger Liz mixed up some biscuits and baked them in a dutch oven.
While the biscuits were baking, we made butter. Butter is so easy to make. First you pour heavy whipping cream into a jar... or if you're like us, get some wonderful fresh cream from the dairy for this project. Let the cream set out until it's about room temperature. Put the lid on tight and shake.
...and shake...
...and shake...
...and shake...
...and shake! That only lasted about 15 minutes, but for kids, that seems like a very long time.
Then, strain out the buttermilk and serve on some fresh baked biscuits!
Mmmmm... yummy!
This was not our first antlion encounter. We checked them out at Friedrich Nature park last month. I dropped a poor unsuspecting ant into an antlion trap to show the kids what would happen. The little guy was already on his way through the mine of antline traps... we just sped up his demise. Now I'm starting to feel bad. Well, it was interesting anyway.
