Kid Stuff
Nurturing Nature
By: Carol Suits
Liberty Wildlife Volunteer
The Liberty Wildlife Superheroes helped nature this month by making birdfeeders to fill with seed and mealworms.
They learned what backyard birds eat and then used egg cartons to make a birdfeeder to hang in a tree or other safe place and the other to put on the ground.
Other birdfeeders to make.
Can you spot the birds that would eat from a ground feeder?
Vulture Culture!
Be part of a cool cleanup crew!
Each fall the Superheroes help nature by behaving like Vultures. We pick up litter!
WHY?
Vultures know how to keep the environment clean. They are nature’s janitors! Dead and left-over animal parts are yummy meals to them and when they eat them, they clean up the area.
We can act like vultures and learn to clean up spaces.
Watch to find out! https://tinyurl.com/u9xzexwy
Like vultures, you can clean up around your house, your school, and your neighborhood. You can reduce waste, reuse things rather than throw them out and recycle just about everything!
Can you find one thing at home that can be recycled? Maybe pieces of paper?
Do you know a cool way to reuse a favorite toy or empty milk carton?
Is there a park or spot that has lots of litter that you, your family, and friends can pick up to recyle?
Be a 3 R’s Superhero
Reduce! Reuse! Recycle!
Puzzles!
Creepy Crawlies…or Not?!
By Claudia Kirscher
Liberty Wildlife Contributor
A lot of Halloween decorations have “creepy” myths and legends. But look a little closer and you will find most of these critters are getting a “bad rap”.
Myth: Bats are blind and suck blood. Actually, bats have eyes that see extraordinarily well at 
night. They do navigate primarily by echolocation for prey and obstacles. They feed on insects and nectar and are essential plant pollinators. There are over 1300 species of bats but only 3 feed on blood by making a small cut and lapping not sucking up blood.
Myth: Owls can turn their head 360 degrees and are evil witches. They have been associated with evil spirits most likely because of their association with hunting in the darkness of night. They do make some interesting and unusual shrieks or howls. They are, however, an important link in the chain of pest/rodent control.
Myth: All spiders are dangerous to humans. The fact is that most are harmless to humans, only a
few have harmful venom. They will avoid you whenever possible. In the Middle Ages, it was believed they must have magical powers to be able to weave such elaborate webs. Spiders play an essential role in controlling insect populations.
Myth: Wolves howl at the moon and can turn into werewolves. Wolves howl to communicate with their pack members or to indicate territory. They are a keystone species within their ecosystems. Fact: If you believe in werewolves, you are watching too many Teenage Werewolf movies!
Myth: Black cats are bad luck and are associates of witches. In a word…Bah! In ancient Egypt they were believed to bring
good fortune to a household. In old Norse times, cats were given to brides as gifts to new homes as rodent control. Unfortunately, black cats are adopted less from shelters because of superstition. Let’s change that!!
Ravens have a bad reputation and are misunderstood (my personal opinion) especially after Edgar Allen Poe. Many cultures believe ravens have special supernatural powers, are messengers of the gods, are ghosts of lost souls, and are tricksters. In fact, ravens are highly intelligent, capable of problem solving, and limited “speaking” ability (think Clarence and Lenny at Liberty). These capabilities may have been frightening and unexplainable to older cultures. The fact that they are scavengers and carrion eaters doesn’t help their PR image.
Myth: Toads and frogs cause warts (not true). In the Middle Ages it was believed toads were used by witches for curses and in potent magical brews. Fact: Toads and frogs are an important part of ecosystems, eating all manners of insects and larvae as well as being an important food source for many predators (sorry Kermit!).
So this Halloween, let’s show a little respect for our Creepy Crawly Friends!
All About Wrens
By Gail Cochrane
Liberty Wildlife Volunteer
You know who is a real busy body, constantly poking their beaks into places they haven’t been invited?
Yep, it’s a wren. Arizona is home to several wren species and they are all super active, hunting for insects and spiders all the day long. Each wren species can be found in its own particular niche, a habitat where they are best adapted to find and capture their food.
A canyon wren has been hanging around in our neighborhood lately, which is a real treat. She is surely extracting tasty
morsels of insects from crevices in the block walls or other tight spots. The keys to canyon wren’s hunting success are a long thin beak, strong legs and feet that can grip bare rock, and of course, a sharp eye! This neighborhood wren has found a food source near our homes, but most canyon wrens live in rocky canyons, bouncing boulder to boulder in search of food.
The rock wren is also a resident of rocky habitats, and follows the pattern of probing in rock crevices for spiders and insects. These birds also rummage about in dense undergrowth in their search of food. Rock wrens have a habit of making a trail of tiny stones that lead to their nests which are placed on cunning platforms of twigs and stones located in rock crevices or under cliff ledges.
Cactus wren is not shy and secretive like other wren species, but perches boldly on the tops of saguaros singing for all to hear. We sometimes see these flashy wrens on our patio, hopping about on the ground, heads cocked to peer under chairs and tables searching for juicy insects. Cactus wrens have a more diverse diet than other desert wrens, adding cacti fruits and seeds to their menus. Their football shaped nests have an entrance at one end and are usually built in cholla or saguaro cactus.
Bewick’s wren is more likely found in riparian areas, or near farms and gardens, as the insects and spiders Bewick’s eat live around plants. The migratory house wren overlaps habitat with Bewick’s wren in the winter time. You can tell the two apart by Bewick’s bold eye stripe.
Wrens may appear at first to be unremarkable, just little brown birds, but they carry out fascinating life stories. This is a bird to find by listening, because they are often singing a pretty melody. (Cactus wrens sound more like that old car engine that won’t quite start, but that’s okay too. You’ll know it when you hear it.)
**Photos from All About Birds
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Canyon_Wren/id
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Rock_Wren/id