natureswondersbyclyde

      I've never visited Alaska until the summer and autumn of 2020, by live camera at a couple of small sites on Brook's River in Katmai National Park, at the base of the Aluetian Islands, and on our computer screen.  The cameras are focused mostly on brown bears fattening on live sockeye salmon going upstream to spawn in summer and dead salmon in fall until at least the end of October, before winter sets in.  But the cameras reveal that other kinds of wildlife also benefit from dead salmon in the river in fall.  The economy of all that wildlife is based on fish.      By late October, this part of Alaska looks like winter.  Daylight each succeeding day is noticeably shorter.  Tall grasses along river shores are yellow and spruces back from the shore a little stand out against bare deciduous forests in the background.          In autumn, many brown bears and brown bear families converge on Brook's River to feed on dead salmon, the most abundant food for them in that area. 

      On the afternoon of October 14, 2020, Sue and I went to French Creek State Park in southeastern Pennsylvania for a couple of hours to enjoy the sunny, lovely day, colored leaves and whatever wildlife we would spot.  The fall foliage hadn't reached its peak, but there was still plenty of yellow, red and orange among the deciduous trees.        We saw little wildlife while driving along blacktop roads in the woods.  But the beauties of colored leaves, the many tiny, yellow flowers on tall goldenrod stems and pale-lavender aster blooms made up for that.  The wildlife was in the woods, but we drove from place to place without really looking for them.      But we did stop for about 45 minutes at scenic Hopewell Lake in the park.  At first we saw only a few kayakers.  But with scanning that impoundment with 16 power binoculars and a little patience, we began to notice a few kinds of wildlife.        We saw at least a dozen attractive wood ducks peacefully pushing through lily pads

      October is a beautiful, unique month in southeastern Pennsylvania farmland, as it is across much of the northern hemisphere.  Here it is full of the beauties of orange pumpkins lying in fields, brightly-colored, deciduous leaves, lovely wild flowers, nuts, berries and seeds, migrating birds and wooly caterpillars crossing rural roads in search of sheltering places to spend the winter.      In October, certain trees and vines, including staghorn sumac trees, sassafras trees, poison ivy vines and Virginia creeper vines, have strikingly red, yellow and orange leaves that help beautify roadsides and certain, abandoned fields in local farmland.  The vines climb trees and fences to reach sunlight, causing their beautifully colored leaves to be more visible in fall.      Goldenrod with their many clusters of tiny, yellow flowers on tall stems and a kind of aster with many lovely, pale-purple blooms help make country roadsides and fields prettier through October.  And those abundant, omn

          Duck-like loons and grebes, though distinct families of birds, have several characteristics in common because they are adapted to the same habitats- ponds, lakes and larger waterways.  Those watery environments forced loons and grebes to have similar physical features so individuals of both families can make efficient use of their shared habitats to catch fish, crayfish, tadpoles, insect larvae and other aquatic creatures, though I think there is some competition between these families of birds for that food.        Loons' and grebes' duck-like bodies allow them to float and swim easily.  Loons and grebes both have legs far back on their bodies for more powerful paddling and diving in the water.  But individuals of both families can barely walk on land because of the placement of their legs.  In fact, they hardly ever walk at all.  They have put so much emphasis on swimming and diving that they are practically helpless on land.  Loons have webbed feet for more powerfu