Kerry Wixted

Connecting Nature & Community

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Fireflies of Arden

There is something magical about a warm summer night punctuated by the soft glow of fireflies. I have many fond memories of running barefoot in my Baltimore neighborhood, gleefully catching fireflies and wishing I could harness their light for myself. Unfortunately, in some areas, that childhood pastime is being lost due to the decline of
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Giant, Flying Spiders

This week, I have been combatting the clickbait news which has made it seem like giant, venomous spiders are going to drop from the sky. Here are a few things to note: Here is what is true: To provide some more context, ballooning, also known as kiting, is a method by which spiders and some
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Embracing Free Bird Food

As I was driving along the highway this past weekend, I was struck by the number of eastern tent caterpillar tents along the road. It seems like this year is going to be a BIG year for them in Maryland. Worry, not! You might be called upon by friends, neighbors, and contacts in regards to
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Give it Up for the Ground Nesters

Here in Maryland, we are in the beginning throes of ground-nesting bee season. You might be surprised to learn that there are over 440 species of bees that have been documented in Maryland and that most of them nest in the ground. When most people think of a bee, they envision the honeybee which has
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Slimy Season: Spotted Salamander Edition

This week, I finally got to check off a life list item: see spotted salamanders in their annual breeding frenzy. For years, I have gone out either too early or too late and/or had this pesky thing called ‘work’ derail my plans. When I saw the predicted forecast of a warm, rainy night, I jumped
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Guinea Pig First Aid Essentials

While most of my writings so far have centered around wildlife, I wanted to post about one of my other passions: guinea pigs. I was first introduced to the world of pigs as a young girl, and we did almost everything wrong from keeping them in tiny cages, feeding them the wrong diet, etc. In
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Screams in the Night

On winter nights, you might hear harrowing sounds reminiscent of a woman screaming in the woods. Those chilling calls are actually from our local red foxes. Red fox mating season begins in January and continues through March. During this time, competing males will scream at each other while females, aka vixens, will scream to attract
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Wild Teenagers on the Town

As kids head back to school, our local mammal neighbors are also experiencing a new education. In the fall, many local fox, raccoon, and skunk families tend to break up as this year’s young head off on their own. Because of this, we will have increased sightings of “teenagers on the town”, particularly during the
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How to Host a #MothParty

Today is the end of the 12th annual #NationalMothWeek which is designed to “celebrate the beauty, life cycles, and habitats of moths.” Like many, I believe the first moth that captivated me was the Luna moth, but my quest to learn about all things nature led me to realize how vast the world of moths
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