SUMMER SOLSTICE

     I celebrate winter solstices because after those "shortest days of the year" periods of daylight per day start getting longer as we go into spring and summer.  But I also enjoy days around summer solstices for their long periods of sunlight each day, when people can be outside longer to enjoy nature's beauties. 

     Around the summer solstice, the sun rises early every morning in the northeast, passes high overhead through each day and sets late in the evening in the northwest.  Trees and shrubbery, therefore, get sunlight from every direction through each long  summer day, which allows those plants to make and store ample sugar for next year's growth of leaves, flowers and other parts.

     The summer and winter solstices are caused by the Earth's listing 23 degrees from upright.  And as the Earth revolves around the sun, the northern and southern hemispheres take turns pointing toward our own star.  When the northern hemisphere points away from the sun, that star's rays are oblique and "weak", causing winter.  But when the northern hemisphere leans toward the sun, the sun's rays are direct, strong and hot, creating summer.

     Many kinds of birds raise young around the summer solstices because that is when there is much food around, and the birds have long periods of sunshine each day in which to find that food to feed their babies.  At this time, we hear many birds singing to establish and maintain nesting territories in which to rear offspring.    

     At dusk, around summer solstices, we see bats flickering across the sky in hot pursuit of flying insects to eat and male fireflies rising from grass and other plants to fly upright and flash their cold, abdominal lights at intervals to attract females to mate.  Meanwhile, stars and certain planets become visible.  

     At the same time, the sky gradually gets darker.  But on clear evenings, the northwest and north sky are still pink or orange, indicating we are looking toward the land of the "Midnight Sun", which is always enjoyable and fascinating to me.  At the 40th latitude where we live there is light in those directions until after 9:30 pm.   

     But, alas, all things come to an end.  And as the days in July and August slip by, each succeeding day has a couple minutes less sunshine than the day before.  We are easing toward the winter solstice of short periods of daylight per day.  Birds see that and prepare for winter, or to fly south to avoid the northern winter.  Squirrels and chipmunks store food while wood chucks put on layers of fat to survive through the coming winter.   

     I enjoy the light and warmth of the summer solstice, but I don't celebrate it because after that solstice, periods of daylight each succeeding day get shorter as we proceed to autumn and winter.  But I do celebrate the winter solstice because each succeeding day has more sunshine, indicating going towards the warmth of spring and summer and all the abundant life those seasons host.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

DADDY-LONG-LEGS

     During summer, over the years in southeastern Pennsylvania, I've seen many daddy-long-legs on the bark of tree trunks on lawns, and in parks and woods.  They blend into the color of tree bark well and are difficult to see.  Many people never see them at all until those camouflaged little critters are pointed out by people in the know about them.        Daddy-long-legs have eight, really long, thin legs, but they are not spiders.  But they are arachnids, and related to spiders.  These attractive, little creatures, called daddy-long-legs because of their long legs, have quarter-inch, compact bodies raised on stilt-like legs.  They have two dark eyes and feel the vibrations of birds and other predators with their legs.  But these arachnids have no venom, or silk to make webs.        Daddy-long-legs, like all other living beings, are part of several food chains.  They consume tiny invert...
Read more

SPRING ON THE UPPER CHESAPEAKE

      I visited the Upper Chesapeake Bay at the Community Park of Northeast, Maryland one afternoon about the middle of March a few years ago, as I had several times in different seasons before that day.  This time, I went there to spot migrating water birds of various kinds.        Because of their high numbers, gulls and ducks were the dominant birds on the ice, and strips of open water among the slabs of ice because of the warming weather in March.  Most of the handsome ring-billed, herring and great black-backed gulls stood picturesquely on slabs of ice.        The attractive, adult ring-billed and herring gulls are mostly gray on top, white below, and look much alike, except the herrings are larger and have a red mark on their beaks, whereas each ring-bill has a black "ring" around its bill.  Largest of these gulls, the stately, mature black-backs have black backs and upper wings and are white below, ma...
Read more

MY FAVORITE DRAGONFLIES

     Visibly active during summer months, white-tailed and twelve-spotted skimmers are common, related species of dragonflies living in southeastern Pennsylvania, and much of the United States.  These kinds of dragonflies have characteristics in common, which demonstrates their shared ancestry.  And they are my favorite dragonflies.   They are large enough to be easily seen in rapid flight, have attractive color patterns and are excitedly fast when sweeping low over cattail-bordered ponds, grass-lined, slow-moving creeks and bordering farmland after flying insects, including lots of mosquitoes, which they catch and eat.  And, interestingly, they hover like helicopters.  Dragonflies are thrilling, entertaining and inspiring to watch, without fear of being stung or bitten by them.  Their beauties and dashing flamboyance help make summer waters come to life.      Both these kinds of skimmers are two inches long and have three...
Read more