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Daily Bread for 7.1.24: A Study of Wolves’ Influence in Isle Royale National Park

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Good morning.

Monday in Whitewater will be partly sunny with a high of 74. Sunrise is 5:21 and sunset 8:36 for 15h 15m 55s of daytime. The moon is a waning crescent with 21.4 percent of its visible disk illuminated.

Whitewater’s Police and Fire Commission meets at 6 PM.

On this day in 1836, scientist Increase Allen Lapham arrives in Milwaukee. By 1844 he had published Wisconsin’s first book, A Geographical and Topographical, Description of Wisconsin. He was a founder of the Milwaukee Female College, which later became Milwaukee Downer College, a charter member of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin, and a founder of the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts and Letters. Toward the end of his life, he was Wisconsin State Geologist. He also was an influential advocate of the weather bureau in the 1870s.

On this day in 1863, the Battle of Gettysburg begins.

Danielle Kaeding reports Study tracks how wolf reintroduction at Isle Royale affected foxes, martens (‘UW-Madison researchers find wolves had temporary effects on the diet of foxes and marten numbers at remote National Park site’):

The reintroduction of wolves has only had temporary effects on other small carnivores at Isle Royale National Park on Lake Superior, according to new research from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

The park is the site of the longest predator-prey study on record between wolves and moose. Over the years, the wolf population has fluctuated there, but the species almost went extinct in the last decade after only two inbred wolves remained. Those wolves couldn’t reproduce to control the moose population.

In the fall of 2018, federal authorities began to introduce 19 wolves to Isle Royale. UW-Madison researchers led a study that took a before-and-after look at how wolves affected small carnivores there, such as red foxes and American martens.

….

Jonathan Pauli, a forest and wildlife ecology professor at UW-Madison, said the research highlights the competitive interactions between the species.

“In the absence of wolves, foxes have free range of the island and that’s to the detriment of martens,” Pauli said. “But when wolves return, at least at first, they then enforce these really important costs on foxes, which benefits martens. But, eventually, it all kind of settles down.”

What’s in the Night Sky: July 2024:

Birds, Daily Bread, Nature, Wisconsin

Daily Bread for 6.30.24: Tropical Falcon Reaches Northern Wisconsin

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Good morning.

Sunday in Whitewater will be sunny with a high of 71. Sunrise is 5:20 and sunset 8:37 for 15h 16m 39s of daytime. The moon is a waning crescent with 31.5 percent of its visible disk illuminated.

On this day in 1864,  Pres. Lincoln grants Yosemite Valley to California for “public use, resort and recreation.”

Not long ago, birders sighted A Varied Bunting, a First for Birders in Wisconsin. Now, for only the second time, a crested caracara near Ashland draws raves from birders in extremely rare sighting:

Birders from Milwaukee, Madison, Green Lake and Appleton were among the crowd that showed up over the first 24 hours of the sighting.

For nearly all, it was the first time they experienced the species in the Badger State.

The crested caracara looks like a hawk with a sharp beak and talons but behaves like a vulture and is officially in the falcon family. To add to is aura, its nickname is the “Mexican eagle.”

Its typical range is from southern South America, through the Caribbean and Mexico and just into the southern U.S., primarily in Texas.

The bird is “instantly recognizable standing tall on long, yellow-orange legs with a sharp black cap set against a white neck and yellow-orange face,” according to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

That’s easy for Cornell to say. When it’s 2,000 miles out of place and been seen in Wisconsin only once before, it can take most state residents, even avid birders, more than a minute to identify.

The crested caracara prefers open country, flies low on flat wings, routinely walks on the ground and is not shy or reclusive, according to its Cornell description.

The species frequently perches on the tallest tree or structure around and is distinguished from vultures because it flies with flat wings (vultures have vee-shaped wings in flight).

In its native range, it is often seen beside vultures feeding on animal carcasses.

Wisconsin presents surprises for those who’ll look.

Sinkhole, estimated 100 feet wide, appears in the middle of an Illinois playing field:

Security camera footage shows the sudden collapse engulfing bleachers and a light pole in the middle of the soccer field.

Bad Ideas, Daily Bread, Environment, Insects, Nature, Weird Tales, WI DNR, Wisconsin

Daily Bread for 6.24.24: The Latest Strange, Bad Idea is Harvesting Cicadas

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Good morning.

Monday in Whitewater will be sunny with a high of 83. Sunrise is 5:17 and sunset 8:37 for 15h 19m 42s of daytime. The moon is a waning gibbous with 92.2 percent of its visible disk illuminated.

Whitewater’s Urban Forestry Commission meets at 4:30 PM. The Whitewater School Board goes into closed session shortly after 5:15 PM, and returns to open session at 7 PM.

On this day in 1948, the Berlin Blockade begins as the Soviet Union makes overland travel between West Germany and West Berlin impossible.

It wouldn’t occur to a sensible person to remove large numbers of periodic cicadas from a Wisconsin state park, thereby interrupting their natural lifecycle. The report seems too odd to be accurate, and yet, these are odd times. On Sunday, the Wisconsin DNR issued a press release warning against cicada harvesting:

MADISON, Wis. – Following multiple reports of people harvesting cicadas at Big Foot Beach State Park in Walworth County, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) reminds the public that state law prohibits the capture and removal of animals, including insects, from state park properties.

There are exceptions for hunting and fishing activities that are otherwise authorized by law, but these exceptions do not provide for the collection and removal of cicadas.

DNR park staff and wardens have been instructed to make efforts to first educate the public on cicadas in state parks, and wardens may take enforcement action in response to violations.

If you are aware of cicada harvesting happening at any other state park locations in Wisconsin, please report it to the DNR’s Violation Hotline online or by calling or texting 1-800-847-9367.

Please note that no further information is available and we are not accepting interview requests on this topic at this time.

Honest to goodness, anyone so implicated is ignorantly destructive.

Bear snacks inside concession stand and scares worker:

Adventure, Daily Bread, Nature, Wisconsin

Daily Bread for 6.19.24: Thru-Hiking in Wisconsin

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Good morning.

Juneteenth in Whitewater will be mostly sunny with a possibility of afternoon showers and a high of 87. Sunrise is 5:16 and sunset 8:36 for 15h 20m 23s of daytime. The moon is a waxing gibbous with 93.2 percent of its visible disk illuminated.

Whitewater’s Lakes Advisory Committee meets at 3:30 PM, the Finance Committee meets at 5 PM, and the Parks & Recreation Board meets at 5:30 PM.

On this day in 1814, Fort Shelby is dedicated in Prairie du Chien:

During the War of 1812, Missouri governor William Clark recognized the location’s strategic importance and sent approximately 150 soldiers to build the fort. The fort did not remain in American hands for long; British troops with the assistance of 400 Indians took the fort on July 20th and renamed it Fort McKay. After the end of the war, the British burned the fort, but the Americans constructed another building at the site in 1816 and named it Fort Crawford.

On this day in 1865, over two years after the Emancipation Proclamation, slaves in Galveston, Texas are officially informed of their freedom. The anniversary was officially celebrated in Texas and other states as Juneteenth. In 2021, Juneteenth officially became a federal holiday in the United States.

While I’m a cyclist and not a hiker, there’s much to admire about dedicated hiking. That commitment is apparent from the hikers in Colleen Leahy’s story Thru-hiking the Ice Age Trail: Why some hikers become ‘thousand-milers’ in Wisconsin (‘Hiking the entire Ice Age Trail has exploded in popularity since the 2010s’):

Wisconsin’s own 1,200-mile Ice Age Trail was recently designated a National Scenic Trail. 

Since the 2010s, thru-hiking the Ice Age Trail has exploded in popularity. From 2012 to 2018, more than 100  people thru-hiked the trail — compared to 76 thru-hikers total in the first four decades of the trail’s existence.

The first-ever thru-hiker has been cited as Earl Shaffer, who hiked the entire Appalachian Trail in 1948, 11 years after trailblazers finished building the trail from Maine to Georgia. 

Thru-hiking started to become more mainstream in the 1990s and really exploded after the 2012 publication of Cheryl Strayed’s memoir, “Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail.”

Still, why would someone choose to put themselves through the physical pain, dirtiness and occasional dangers that come with living outside for months at a time? 

Melanie Radzicki McManus, who set a record in 2013 for the fastest-known time thru-hiking the Ice Age Trail, joined WPR’s “Wisconsin Today,” and explained how she felt throughout the hiking process. 

“When you get on a trail, all you have to do day after day is walk, eat, go to sleep,” she said. “It’s amazing how relaxing it is. I don’t think people spend enough time with themselves or their thoughts.”

Thru-hiking likely has similarities to multi-day riding, and if so, then one can see that thru-hiking would be relaxing.

Sound of Space Data: Crab Nebula Sonification:

Daily Bread, Nature, Wisconsin

Daily Bread for 6.15.24: Most-Visited Wisconsin State Parks (and the Popular Park Close to Whitewater)

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Good morning.

Saturday in Whitewater will be partly cloudy with a high of 82. Sunrise is 5:15 and sunset 8:35 for 15h 19m 44s of daytime. The moon is a waxing gibbous with 62.2 percent of its visible disk illuminated.

 On this day in 1832, General Winfield Scott was ordered by President Andrew Jackson to take command at the frontier of the Black Hawk War:

Scott was to succeed General Henry Atkinson, who was thought to be unable to end the war quickly. General Scott moved rapidly to recruit troops and obtain equipment for his army. However, while in New York, the troops were exposed to an Asiatic cholera. Just outside of Buffalo, the first cases on the ships were reported and death often followed infection. By the time the ships reached Chicago, the number of soldiers had dropped dramatically from 800 to 150, due to disease and desertion. Rather than going on to the front, Scott remained with his troops in Chicago, giving Atkinson a brief reprieve.

On this day in 1844,   Charles Goodyear receives a patent for vulcanization, a process to strengthen rubber.

Among the most-visited Wisconsin State Parks, Devil’s Lake ranks first. Devil’s Lake is not far away, and it’s exceptional in beauty and diversity of offerings.

The second-place destination, however, may surprise. It’s even closer to Whitewater:

Number 2: Kettle Moraine State Forest-Southern Unit attracts about 1.5 million visitors annually. The busiest month is July, when more than 168,000 people arrive.

Clouded leopards from Indonesia:

Daily Bread, Insects, Nature

Daily Bread for 5.26.24: Winged Tiger

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Good morning.

Sunday in Whitewater will be rainy with a high of 68. Sunrise is 5:21 and sunset 8:22 for 15h 01m 06s of daytime. The moon is a waning gibbous with 90.4 percent of its visible disk illuminated.

On this day in 1998,  the Supreme Court rules in New Jersey v. New York that Ellis Island, the historic gateway for millions of immigrants, is mainly in the state of New Jersey, not New York.

Winged Tiger:

Winged Tiger from Tim Kellner on Vimeo.

Learning how to ‘cat’:

Post by @psycohousecat
View on Threads

Adventure, Daily Bread, Nature, Wisconsin

Daily Bread for 5.25.24: Wisconsin’s Top Nature Destinations

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Good morning.

Saturday in Whitewater will be sunny with a high of 73. Sunrise is 5:22 and sunset 8:21 for 14h 59m 34s of daytime. The moon is a waning gibbous with 95.8 percent of its visible disk illuminated.

On this day in 1787, after a delay of 11 days, the Constitutional Convention formally convenes in Philadelphia after a quorum of seven states is secured.

Nature Nomads lists the top ten nature destinations in Wisconsin:

1. Devil’s Lake State Park – A hiker’s paradise with stunning bluffs.
2. Apostle Islands National Lakeshore – Kayak through mesmerizing sea caves.
3. Door County – Scenic lighthouses and charming coastal towns.
4. Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest – Endless trails amidst lush landscapes.
5. Horicon Marsh – A birdwatcher’s dream and a marshland of wonder.
6. Pattison State Park – Witness the power of Wisconsin’s highest waterfall.
7. Ice Age National Scenic Trail – Trace the path of glaciers over rolling hills.
8. Wisconsin Dells – Natural sandstone formations meet thrilling waterparks.
9. Rib Mountain State Park – Year-round fun with awe-inspiring views.
10. Perrot State Park – Canoe and hike where rivers and bluffs converge.

The Wisconsin Department of Tourism draws a list of seven: Apostle Islands National Lakeshore,  Big Manitou Falls, Cave of the Mounds, Devil’s Lake State Park, Eagle River Chain of Lakes,  High Cliff State Park, and Horicon Marsh.

Meanwhile, among human designs, an SUV spontaneously combusts in a driveway:

City, Daily Bread, Insects, Nature, Science/Nature, Wisconsin

Daily Bread for 5.23.24: Cicadas Begin to Emerge Nearby

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Good morning.

Thursday in Whitewater will be mostly sunny with a high of 76. Sunrise is 5:23 and sunset 8:19 for 14h 56m 20s of daytime. The moon is full with 100 percent of its visible disk illuminated.

Whitewater’s Board of Zoning Appeals meets at 6 PM.

On this day in 1854, the Milwaukee and Mississippi railroad reached Madison, connecting the city with Milwaukee. When the cars pulled into the depot, thousands of people gathered to witness the ceremonial arrival of the first train, and an enormous picnic was held on the Capitol grounds for all the passengers who’d made the seven-hour trip from Milwaukee to inaugurate the line.

On this day in 1949,  after approval from the Western occupying powers, the Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany takes effect.

This long weekend may give Wisconsinites their first cicada-viewing opportunities. Claire Reid reports 17-year cicadas are emerging now in Wisconsin. Here’s where you can find them:

“With the temperatures this week and rain showers today and tomorrow, that’s really going to help things,” [Director of the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Insect Diagnostics Lab PJ] Liesch said. “Once the emergence gets going in full swing, we’re probably going to be seeing tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands or even millions of these emerging in relatively small areas in Lake Geneva and other spots in the state.”

Here’s where else the cicadas are expected to emerge in the coming weeks.

This map, created by director of UW-Madison's Insect Diagnostics Lab PJ Liesch, shows where 17-year Brood XIII cicadas have emerged in Wisconsin in the past.
Where will 17-year cicadas emerge in Wisconsin?

The Lake Geneva area will be the best place in Wisconsin to see the 17-year cicadas due to their well-established record there, especially along the northern side of the lake, Liesch wrote in his blog.

Other cicada hotspots include areas of Green County and Rock County, including Janesville and Beloit. Additionally, the insects are expected to be prevalent in southwestern Wisconsin’s Driftless Area counties: Iowa, Sauk, Richland, Crawford and Grant.

See also Return of the Cicadas.

I hope we’ll see cicadas in Whitewater; if not, we’ve other viewing spots nearby.

How the cicada phenomenon is capturing our collective attention:

Beauty, Daily Bread, Nature, Wisconsin

Daily Bread for 5.19.24: Northern Lights Both Natural and Vocational

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Good morning.

Sunday in Whitewater will be mostly sunny with a high of 81. Sunrise is 5:26 and sunset 8:16 for 14h 49m 16s of daytime. The moon is a waxing gibbous with 84.6 percent of its visible disk illuminated.

On this day in 1675,  Fr. Jacques Marquette (1636-1675) dies near Ludington, Michigan, at the age of 39. After the famous voyage down the Mississippi that he made in 1673 with Louis Joliet, Marquette vowed to return to the Indians he’d met in Illinois. He became ill during that visit in the spring of 1675 and was en route to Canada when he passed away. His diary of the trip is online in the Wisconsin Historical Society’s American Journeys collection.

On this day in 1963,  the New York Post Sunday Magazine publishes Martin Luther King Jr.’s Letter from Birmingham Jail.

The Mesmerizing Northern Lights Over Wisconsin:

This Man Chases the Northern Lights for a Living:

Birds, Daily Bread, Nature, Wisconsin

Daily Bread for 5.6.24: A Varied Bunting, a First for Birders in Wisconsin

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Good morning.

Monday in Whitewater will be sunny with a high of 71. Sunrise is 5:40 and sunset 8:02 for 14h 21m 51s of daytime. The moon is a waning crescent with 4 percent of its visible disk illuminated.

Whitewater’s Equal Opportunities Commission meets at 5 PM.

On this day in 1915,  Babe Ruth, then a pitcher for the Boston Red Sox, hits his first major league home run.

Paul Smith reports Varied bunting spotted in Grafton, first documented sighting in Wisconsin history:

GRAFTON – Birds were active about 6:35 a.m. Saturday as Bob Dohr of Pewaukee walked on a gravelly path atop the bluff at Lion’s Den Gorge Nature Preserve in Grafton.

A pair of northern cardinals, the brilliant red male and the tawny female, foraged near the trail. And nearby a smaller, darker bird but with a cardinal-like shape also showed.

….

What they at first thought could be an indigo bunting, a bright blue songbird that nests in Wisconsin, turned out to be a close (genetically) but distant (geographically) relative.

The men scrutinized images of the bird on their cameras, shook their heads at the improbability of the evidence but had no doubt what they were seeing.

It was a varied bunting, a species mostly found in Mexico.

….

The sighting was confirmed as the state’s first record of the species, said Mark Korducki of the Wisconsin Society for Ornithology. The organization is the official keeper of state bird records.

Moreover, it is the farthest north the species has ever been documented, according to eBird, an online bird reporting system run by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Only two other varied bunting sightings, one along Lake Erie in southern Ontario and one in Pennsylvania, have been recorded in eastern North America.

There are yet new discoveries to be made in Wisconsin, and far beyond.

The Sun’s corona in exquisite detail:

Daily Bread, Insects, Nature, Science/Nature, Wisconsin

Daily Bread for 4.18.24: Return of the Cicadas

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Good morning.

Thursday in Whitewater will see scattered showers with a high of 53. Sunrise is 6:05 and sunset 7:41 for 13h 35m 58s of daytime. The moon is a waxing gibbous with 75.4 percent of its visible disk illuminated.

Whitewater’s Community Development Authority meets at 5:30 PM.

On this day in 1775, the British advancement by sea begins; Paul Revere and other riders warn the countryside of the troop movements.

Chicagoland in May, parts of Wisconsin in June.

See also UW Insect Diagnostic Lab, Learn more about cicadas, and Help map periodical cicadas in Wisconsin.

Cicadas explained: Three facts about the buzzing insects:

Adventure, Daily Bread, Nature, Wisconsin

Daily Bread for 4.14.24: Devil’s Lake State Park | West Bluff and Tumbled Rocks Trail

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Good morning.

Sunday in Whitewater will be sunny with a high of 77. Sunrise is 6:12 and sunset 7:37 for 13h 24m 58s of daytime. The moon is a waxing crescent with 37 percent of its visible disk illuminated.

On this day in 2003, the Human Genome Project is completed with 99% of the human genome sequenced to an accuracy of 99.99%.

Devil’s Lake State Park | West Bluff and Tumbled Rocks Trail:

The Marks of Curiosity channel presents a trip to Devil’s Lake:

The West Bluff Trail is one of the best at Devil’s Lake State Park located near Baraboo, Wisconsin. This beautiful landscape has been carved by ice sheets from the last ice age and an awesome blue lake remains. Part of the Wisconsin State Park system, Devil’s Lake is one of the most popular in the state and for good reason. Swimming, hiking, rock climbing, and photography are just a few of the activities one can enjoy. Devil’s Lake include two sandy beaches named the North Beach and South Beach. Swimming, kayaking, canoeing, scuba diving is popular at these locations. A 2.4 mile hiking loop can be combined from the West Bluff Trail and the Tumbled Rocks Trails.

Happy stories, including of 100 students who orchestrate a moving surprise for 99-year-old WWII veteran:

Daily Bread, Nature

Daily Bread for 12.21.23: Winter

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 Good morning.

Thursday in Whitewater will be cloudy with a high of 40. Sunrise is 7:22 and sunset 4:24 for 9h 01m 40s of daytime. The moon is a waxing gibbous with 70% of its visible disk illuminated.

Whitewater’s Ethics Committee meets at 5:00 PM and the Community Development Authority at 5:30 PM. 

On this day in 1968, Apollo 8 is launched from the Kennedy Space Center, placing its crew on a lunar trajectory for the first visit to another celestial body by humans.

By NASA/Bill Anders – http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/alsj/a410/AS8-14-2383HR.jpg, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=306267

Winter begins today at 9:27 PM and lasts until Tuesday, March 19th at 10:06 PM. 

It’s this libertarian blogger’s second-favorite season (after autumn). Winter is austere, and in that seasonal austerity one has fewer distractions. Spring and summer tempt, fall rewards and then cautions, but winter alone denies. Winter is the economic principle of scarcity plainly manifest. She limits and by limiting imposes choices: What will you do, from what will you refrain, and why? What matters to you, and what doesn’t? She will expect — and within her power compel — an answer.

Winter in our part of the world is cold, but she is beautifully cold. 

Vivaldi – Winter from The Four Seasons | Netherlands Bach Society:

Daily Bread, Nature

Daily Bread for 12.12.23: The Geminids Meteor Shower

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 Good morning.

Tuesday in Whitewater will be sunny with a high of 33. Sunrise is 7:16 and sunset 4:21 for 9h 04m 24s of daytime. The moon is new with 0.1% of its visible disk illuminated.

 Whitewater’s Public Works Committee meets at 6 PM. 

 On this day in 1941, Hitler declares the imminent extermination of the Jews at a meeting in the Reich Chancellery.

Amudalat Ajasa reports What to know about the Geminids, the best meteor show of the year:

The presentation started in late November and will wrap up on Christmas Eve, according to the American Meteor Society. Interestingly, the show will peak and end on the same dates as last year.

The moon won’t act as a spoiler during the peak of the shower because it will illuminate at 1 percent the evening of Dec. 13, according to the American Meteor Society. That means darker skies for viewing.

….

Since the Geminids originate from the constellation Gemini, which rises near sunset during this time of the year, skywatchers could start to see “shooting stars” clearly around 10 p.m., Rice said. But the best time to view is between midnight and 2 a.m.

“We’ll have a nice dark sky that will show meteors. The fact that it’s so close to the new moon means less light pollution,” Rice said.

If you can’t wish upon the shooting stars on Dec. 13, don’t fret! The show will go on for over a week after the peak — there will just be fewer meteors to see.

….

Look for darkness — this may be in a rural location, or if you can’t get to a rural location, look to the darkest part of the sky wherever you are.

Patience — just because there is an average count doesn’t mean that you’ll see that many meteors per hour.

Leave your phone inside — looking at a device before turning to the sky may ruin your innate night vision.

Get comfortable — bundle up and drink something warm if necessary while you wait for the show.

Acrobatic Woolly Opossum Puts Prehensile Tail Into Action At Panama Feeders: