Valerie Blaine
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Praying mantis a wonder in the insect worldNov 05, 2021 4:54 pm - Maybe it's those big eyes. The spooky gaze. Or perhaps it's the reverent posture. One thing is certain: There's no other animal like the praying mantis. An encounter wit...
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The gall of it allNov 05, 2021 12:44 pm - If plants were to get busted, they'd all have GUI's. Every plant can be charged with growing under the influence of bugs, mites, fungus, nematodes, and a host of other ...
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Who is Queen Anne and why does she get a flower?Nov 04, 2021 8:17 pm - Who is Queen Anne and what's she doing on the shoulder of the road? Why does that flower in the ditch have the blues? Is ragweed really food of the gods? And why did God...
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From spitters to high jumpersNov 04, 2021 1:23 pm - Emily Post would not approve. Someone's been spitting in the fields for the past two months. Who's responsible for this uncouth behavior? Spittlebugs, that's who. A spit...
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Mud's magnificenceNov 03, 2021 7:26 pm - You may hate it, you may curse it, you may grouse and you may grumble, but you can't deny it. We're in the thick of mud season, and it's a doozy this year! There's mud...
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Signs of skunk cabbage mean spring is in the airNov 03, 2021 8:42 am - The world outside is cold and you've got the winter blues. Think spring. Think skunk cabbage! Skunk cabbage is the earliest of the early spring wildflowers in Kane Count...
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Northern Illinois reveals itself as 'land of lichen'Nov 02, 2021 4:18 pm - When the wintry world outside is gray and you crave a little color, put a little lichen in your life. Lichens are colorful organisms, like the splotch of orange on the ...
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One contented turkeyNov 02, 2021 3:27 pm - There's a new neighbor strutting about in Batavia. This wild turkey made it past Thanksgiving and seems to enjoy her new digs across from Les Arends Forest Preserve. Not...
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Thump on window turns out to be a ChukarNov 01, 2021 8:43 pm - Q. In March 2006 I heard a loud thump, and I suspected that a bird had collided with the large windows in my sunroom. When I got there I saw this bird standing, as i...
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This holiday season, avoid the mall and commune with natureNov 01, 2021 8:01 pm - I lived at Tekakwitha Woods when I heard my first mall report. It was Thanksgiving weekend, and I was parceling leftovers into Tupperware when the radio announcer launch...