April 22 - EARTH DAY

Earth Day - promotes environmental citizenship and year round progressive action as a driving force to promote environmental awareness around the world. It takes all of us across the globe to be mini-activists to help change local, national, and global policies.

Remember the 5 R's - Recycle, Reuse, Reduce, Replenish & Restore

On the first Earth Day - (April 22, 1970) Dennis Hayes organized and coordinated 20 million Americans who took to the streets, parks, and auditoriums to demonstrate for a healthy, sustainable environment. Thousands of colleges and universities organized protests against the deterioration of the environment in massive coast to coast rallies. Still today there are many celebrations and festivals all over the world supporting Earth Day. Check you local chamber of commerce and News organizations for events in your area.

Earth Day Network - is a driving force steering environmental awareness around the world. Earth Day Network’s international network reaches over 17,000 organizations in 174 countries, while the domestic program engages 5,000 groups and over 25,000 educators coordinating millions of community development and environmental protection activities throughout the year. Earth Day is the only event celebrated simultaneously around the globe by people of all backgrounds, faiths and nationalities. More than a half billion people participate in Earth Day Network campaigns every year.

Check out their website at: http://ww2.earthday.net/

Let's all do our part for a healthier, cleaner planet!

April 17 - Painted Stork

Painted Stork - (Mycteria leucocephala) A large wading bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. The Painted Stork is a broad winged soaring bird. Like all storks, it flies with its neck outstretched.

It is a tropical species which breeds in India and Sri Lanka, to southeast Asia. It is a resident breeder in lowland wetlands with trees. The painted stork nests in large colonies that can number in the thousands. They build a large stick nest in a forest tree, and 2-5 eggs in a typical clutch. For feeding the chicks they bring fish from sea and rivers located near their nesting sites.

April 15 - Ruby Throated Hummingbird

Ruby-Throated Hummingbird - (Archilochus colubris), is the most common species of hummingbird that breeds in the eastern half of North America. They are easily attracted to feeders, where they display territoriality toward rival hummers and other birds.

Two white, pea-sized eggs are laid two or three days apart. Ruby-throats may live as long as 12 years, but the average is probably around 3-5 years. Habitat preservation is crucial to conserving this species.

The vocalizations of Ruby-throated Hummingbirds are rapid, squeaky chirps, and are used primarily for threats. For example, males may vocalize to warn another male that has entered his territory.

April 10 - Metamorphosis

Metamorphosis - During the Spring and Summer months, the mature monarch butterfly emerges after about two pupal weeks and hangs from the split chrysalis for several hours until its wings are dry (often in the morning). Meanwhile fluids are pumped into the crinkled wings until they become full and stiff. Finally (usually in the afternoon) the monarch spreads its wings, quivers them to be sure they are stiff, and then flies in a circle and away.

Monarchs can live a life of twenty to eighty weeks in a garden having their host Asclepias plants and sufficient flowers for nectar.

April 8 - Lifelong Winger

Sandhill Crane - (Grus canadensis) is a large crane of North America and extreme northeastern Siberia. The common name of this bird references habitat like that at the Platte River, on the edge of Nebraska's Sandhills in the American midwest. This is the most important stopover area for the Lesser Sandhill Crane, with up to 450,000 of these birds migrating through annually.

Sandhill Cranes are monogomous and they mate only once in a lifetime. Their breeding habitat is marshes and bogs in central and northern Canada, Alaska, part of the midwestern and southeastern United States, Sibera and Cuba. They nest in marsh vegetation or on the ground close to water. The female lays two eggs on a mound of vegetation, but it is rare that both chicks (called colts) hatch and grow to independence.

April 5 - Star Twinkle

Star Twinkle - (Stellar Scintillation) - Stars twinkle because of turbulence in the atmosphere of the Earth. As the atmosphere churns with fluctuations of cold and warm air, the light from the star is refracted in different directions. This causes the star's image to change slightly in brightness and position, hence "twinkle." This is one of the reasons the Hubble telescope is so successful: in space, there is no atmosphere to make the stars twinkle, allowing a much better image to be obtained.  You will notice that stars closer to the horizon will appear to twinkle more than stars overhead.  This is because there is more atmosphere between you and the star near the horizon.

April 2 - Spotless

Spotless - Once a ladybug emerges from the pupal stage, it's new shell remains spotless for the first 24hrs of it's adult life. As the shell dries, the spots begin to appear on the insect's elytra (hard wing covers) to provide camouflage from predators.

There are as many as 5,000 different species of ladybugs (aka ladybirds or lady beetles) worldwide, with more than 450 species native to North America alone. These useful insects feed on aphids or scale insects, which are pests in gardens, agricultural fields, orchards, and similar places.

Some people consider seeing them or having them land on one's body to be a sign of good luck to come, and that killing them presages bad luck.