Summer Surprises in Front of My Nose!
While I was mowing the lawn, a “new” bush caught my attention. It is now ten feet tall (3 plus meters) - or even more, and has great white flat blossoms. The blossoms reminded me of a European bush which is known for its little black berries, which is not only used for making juice and jam, but also into cough syrup or drops, and even liquor. It is an elderberry.
The elderberry has a long history. Even Hippocrates called it the “Father of Medicine” in 400 A.D. People in Europe, Northern Africa and Asia have used it as medicine and therefore it is known as the medicine chest of country folk. There have not been any clinical studies to back up its reputation as a homeopathic treatment for a wide range of illnesses, but it is considered effective by people all over the globe.
The little black berries are rich in antioxidants and they have an anti-inflammatory effect on the respiratory system. Elderberries help relieve congestion and are a wonderful source of vitamin A, Vitamin C, iron, potassium and vitamin B6. Well, I could go on and on, but if you feel inclined to use the berries, be advised that they are toxic if uncooked. In fact most of the rest of the plant is toxic if ingested as well.
The little black berries are rich in antioxidants and they have an anti-inflammatory effect on the respiratory system. Elderberries help relieve congestion and are a wonderful source of vitamin A, Vitamin C, iron, potassium and vitamin B6. Well, I could go on and on, but if you feel inclined to use the berries, be advised that they are toxic if uncooked. In fact most of the rest of the plant is toxic if ingested as well.
In Europe, people depend on a cough drop called Ricola, which has been around for the last 90 years. Ricola consists of a classic blend of 13 herbs growing in the Alps. One of them is the elderberry. Europeans love those drops and now you can get them even sugar-free, taking into account dental hygiene.
When the berries are dark blue or black, I will write about how I harvested them and what I did with them. In fact, elderberry juice is a USDA approved coloring for a variety of foods and drinks. It is also frequently used as a dye for fabrics and baskets.
When the berries are dark blue or black, I will write about how I harvested them and what I did with them. In fact, elderberry juice is a USDA approved coloring for a variety of foods and drinks. It is also frequently used as a dye for fabrics and baskets.
You might wonder why I did not see such a big bush before. Well, when we had our property logged four years ago, the loggers took trees and left spaces which now could get light from the sun. The bushes that were struggling unnoticed in the low, shaded undergrowth there, took some time to blossom and bear fruit. I only had to see them and it was a big surprise.
On the homepage you find the big adventure of logging our woods!
On the homepage you find the big adventure of logging our woods!
The other surprise was landing on our hummingbird feeder and it was not a hummingbird! A downy woodpecker was hanging on the part of the hummingbird feeder, where the holes are for the hummingbirds to drink from. The woodpecker was hanging there and craning his beak into the hole and I could see him drinking by the beating of his throat. Of course I was wondering how he could do that. His beak could only rest at the opening of the tiny hole and I wondered how he could get the liquid, and how could his tongue get into the tiny hole and what it looked like. And here I was surprised, too. After some research I found a picture of how long its tongue really is. And that was a real surprise.
As a rule of thumb, the woodpecker’s tongue is three times the length of its beak. It reminds me of a spear with tiny hooks facing up and backwards. The tongue does not only operate like a harpoon, but it is also a listening device. It can detect insects inside the hole it excavates with its sharp beak. You will see the bird initially land on the tree trunk and hop about, with its head cocked slightly to the side, listening for the sounds of insects burrowing under the bark. It then pecks a hole to reach it. The tongue has a sticky coating. With the combination of the hooks and the sticky coating, there is no chance for an insect to get away.
And there is yet another surprise. Since the hummingbirds returned for the summer, I had the feeling that this summer they consumed a lot more of the liquid than I had prepared in previous years. There was another thing I noticed and for this, I was grateful. For the first time in years, there were no ants floating in the liquid after a couple of days. We like to hang the feeder from an iron hook planted in the ground directly in front of our dining room bay window, so we can watch the hummingbirds up close. But no matter where we hung it, the ants would eventually find it and drown en masse in the liquid. The woodpecker cleared all that up. It did not only participate in drinking my “nectar”, it also must have added ants as a bonus side dish.
You see in the photo above that there are no ants in the feeder!
You see in the photo above that there are no ants in the feeder!
After all these years of having hummingbird feeders, I was thrilled to see this unique self-taught behavior by the woodpecker for the first time. I thought this was rare and unique behavior, but I was very wrong. A quick check of YouTube revealed that it is a very common behavior indeed. There are dozens of videos posted of woodpeckers doing the same thing.
There is an article about hummingbirds on our home page and an update about hummingbirds in our posts in August 2015.
In general, nature is full of surprises. You only have to notice them.
There is an article about hummingbirds on our home page and an update about hummingbirds in our posts in August 2015.
In general, nature is full of surprises. You only have to notice them.
RSS Feed