June 2019 - July 2019 The Internet Site for Environmental Information in Oklahoma Vol. 7, No. 6.

Pic

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Water Ways Water has also played a vital role in our society. Water routes made significant impacts on our

settlement and migration patterns. We use it for man-ufacturing and agriculture and economic planning. Water/Ways examines the many ways in which we use water and how we can sus-tain it for the future. Com-plementary programs in each community will highlight lo-cal connections to water.

“Allowing all of our state’s residents to have access to the cultural resources of our

nation’s premiere museum is a priority of Oklaho-ma Humanities,” said Ann Thompson, Executive Director. “With this special tour, we are pleased to be working with these communities to help devel-op local exhibitions and public programs to com-plement the Smithsonian exhibition.”

Oklahoma Humanities has contracted with Dr. Mark Davies, Wimberly Professor of Social and Ecological Ethics at Oklahoma City University, to serve as an advisor to each of the host sites as they develop and implement public programming that shares the local narrative of water. (Continued on Page 3)

and brings to you the exciting

“Five Oklahoma communities, in cooperation with Oklahoma Humanities, will explore aspects of our state’s water as they host the local showing of Water/Ways, a Smithsonian Institu-tion traveling exhibition be-ginning in [June] 2019.

Norman Public Library East, Ada Public Library, Locust Grove Arts Alliance, Heav-ener Runestone Park, and Museum of the Western Prairie in Altus (see Page 3 for contact information) have been expressly chosen by Oklahoma Humanities to host the exhibit as part of the Museum on Main Street project—a national, state, and local partner-ship to bring exhibitions and programs to rural cul-tural organizations. The exhibition will tour these five communities in Oklahoma from [June] 2019 through April 2020.

Water is an important element in American culture. We are drawn to water for peace and contempla-tion. The sights and sounds of water make us feel connected to nature. Many faiths revere water as a sacred symbol. Authors and artists are inspired by the graceful ways in which water flows, but also by its unstoppable force.

2

An environmental education newsletter for the citizens of Oklahoma sponsored by the Department of Biology at Oklahoma City University. Items appearing in this newslet-ter do not necessarily reflect the opinions or endorsement of the sponsoring organization. Editor: Beth Landon blandon@okcu.edu

Please send any submissions to The EnvironMentor Newsletter or The Calendar to: Environmentor@okcu.edu Published bimonthly each year. The next deadline is July 20, 2019. If you wish to receive an email announcing when a new issue has been uploaded, please send an email to Environmentor@okcu.edu.

Download your EnvironMentor Newsletter in pdf form from: http://www.okcu.edu/environmentor

Visit The EnvironMentor Calendar at http://www.okcu.edu/environmentor/ Scroll down from The Newsletters. Regularly updated as information becomes available.

In this issue ...

Smithsonian’s WaterWays Exhibit Cover & 3

Editorial Page 2

Not an Endorsement, but ... 2

Quiz!! Quiz!! Quiz!! 2

Activities in Conjunction with the WaterWays Exhibit 3

A Closer Look at Two Oklahoma Pollinators 4

Pollinators of Oklahoma Poster 5

Plants and Pollinators Poster (Part 1) 6

Plants and Pollinators Poster (Part 2) 7

H2Outstanding Landscape Award 2019 8

Cricket, Earthworm and Snake,

A Folktale and A Facttale 9-10

Sustainable Bioenergy Workshop 11

Project WILD Workshops 12

Keeping It Wild in Oklahoma 13

Wildcare Foundation 13

Selenite at the Salt Plains 13

Blue Thumb Volunteer Training Workshop in Ada 14

Blue Thumb Volunteer Training Workshop in Tulsa 15

Migration Forecast Website 16

IIDA ZeroLandfill 16

Monarchs in the Park -- Save the Date 17

Blue Thumb Volunteer Training Workshop in Alva 18

Virtual Spring BioBlitz Oklahoma 2019 Wrap-Up 19

Prevent Warbler Neck 19

Oklahoma 2019 Travel Guide 19

Wetlands Mapper 19

Upcoming Events at the Hackberry Flat Center 20

The EnvironMentor on Facebook 21

QuikLIST 21

Calendar Form 22

Not an Endorsement , but ...

Quiz!! Quiz!! Quiz!!

For the answer to this Quiz!!, turn to Page

4.. You will also find out important local in-

formation.

You may say, “Well, that’s just a fly.” But

this is a very specific fly. Do you know

which one and why we need to know about

it?

Due to an unusually long Table of Contents and an

unusually large article, “Not an Endorsement, but ,,,”

has moved to Page 12. If the Table continues to

grow, we might have to find another permanent home

for “Endorsement.”

This is a good problem to have.

3

Norman -- June 29, 2019 - August 18, 2019 Norman Public Library East

3051 Alameda Street (405) 217-0070

Ada -- August 26, 2019 - October

13, 2019 Ada Public Library 124 South Rennie

(580) 436-8125

Locust Grove -- October 21, 2019 - December 8, 2019

Ingram’s Custom Rods 201 East Main Street

(918) 530-1902

Heavener -- December 16, 2019 - February 9. 2020 Heavener Runestone Park

18365 Runestone Road (918) 653-2241

Altus -- February 17, 2020 - April 12, 2020

Museum of the Western Prai-rie

1100 Memorial Drive

(Continued from Page 1)

Water/Ways is part of Museum on Main Street, a unique collaboration between the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibi-tion Service (SITES), state humanities councils across the nation, and local host institutions and was adapted from an exhibition organized by the American Museum of Natural History, New York. To learn more about Water/Ways and other Museum on Main Street exhibitions, visit:

https://museumonmainstreet.org/content/waterways

Support for Museum on Main Street has been

provided by the United States Congress. Local

support provided by Beaver Express, the Chicka-

saw Nation, and Ozarka Water.

July 2, 2-4 PM Water Bath Canning

July 11, 6:30-8 PM Worst Hard Times/ Oklahoma in the Dust Bowl Era

July 12, 6-7:PM Norman's Water Universe: Water Treatment

July 15, 11-12 PM Water Science (children specific program)

July 25, 6:30-8:PM Water Barrels

July 26, 6-7 PM Norman's Water Universe: Water Reclamation

Here is a list of

activities at the

first WaterWays

exhibit in

Norman

July 29, 6:30-7:30 PM Not a Drop to Drink Teen Book Discussion

August 2, 6-7 PM Norman's Water Universe: Indirect Potable Reuse

August 5, 4:30-6 PM A Long Walk to Water all ages book discussion

August 9, 6-7:30 PM Ethics of Water

August 10, 2-3:30 PM Water & Wildlife Conservation with Lake Thunderbird

Norman Public Library East 3051 Alameda Street

(405) 217-0070 On the north side

of the street in a services complex.

4

From Sandra Schwinn: Chrysalis showing damage from Tachinid flies and the escape strands. Monarch pupa inside chrysalis is dead. Tachinid flies feed on the insides of the caterpillar or on the forming pupa inside the chrysalis. You won't always have the dark spots on the chrysalis, just the hanging strings/strands.

Answer to “Quiz!! Quiz!! Quiz!!” and More ...

“Although most tachinids are capable of parasitizing only one or a

few closely related host species of insects, a species of tachinid in-

troduced to the United States from Europe (Compsilura concinnata)

to control the gypsy moth and brown-tail moth attacks more than

200 species of caterpillars. The means of entering the host has be-

come highly evolved among tachinids. Certain tachinid flies attach

eggs to their victim’s exoskeleton. When they hatch, the larvae bur-

row through the exoskeleton. Others deposit living larvae either di-

rectly upon the host or in situations that allow the larvae to attach to

passing insects. Some species lay their eggs on vegetation that is

then eaten by caterpillars. Tachinid maggots (larvae) usually breathe

by an opening through the host’s body wall or by contact with

its respiratory system. The larvae may enter the transformation

stage (pupa) within the host or may leave the host to pupate. Most

tachinid larvae destroy their hosts, but others do not. Many adult

tachinids (e.g., Paradejeania) obtain nectar from flowers, thus serv-

ing as pollinators.”

from Encyclopedia Britannica

For more information: https://wimastergardener.org/article/tachinid-flies/

5

http://biosurvey.ou.edu/posters/pollinator-biodiversity-poster/?

fbclid=IwAR3POK0t2iU7LTnKwBQGYS_tBRJM0CamdwdzxKFjhI8N

7n2uLSThO11RDl0

Click on this URL to

request your free poster!

6

Note from the Editor: Whenever we see a poster you might want to have, we try to track down

where you can obtain it. Sometimes we can’t find the original host. In that case we usually repro-

duce it in our pages. This poster was very wide so we decided to split it between this and the next

page so that you can see all of it in a readable format. We are sorry that the split is not exact.

7

Note from the Editor: Please find the right side of this poster and an explanation on the page

right before this one..

8

1. Planning and Design

2. Soil Improvement

3. Turf Planning

4. Plant Selection and

Placement

5. Mulch Cover

6. Efficient Irrigation

Practices

7. Landscape Maintenance

https://www.okc.gov/departments/utilities/squeeze-every-drop

9

Long ago, when animals first appeared, the snakes

had no eyes. Instead, they had beautiful voices. They

could sing better than the birds!

Unfortunately, being blind, those snakes had trou-

ble moving through the world. If they weren't very

careful they would bump into things. They had trouble

finding their food. And they heard from other animals

about the beautiful flowers, green grass, sunlight – but

could never see any of it. “I wish I had eyes,” sighed

one Snake.

Meanwhile, in those days

the earthworms had big eyes, but there was nothing to see in their underground homes.

Instead they burrowed silently and alone in the dark, wishing that they could at least sing

to themselves for company. “My eyes are no use to me,” whispered Earthworm. “I wish I

had a beautiful voice, like Snake.

Mole Cricket, burrowing underground, overheard Earthworm's whisper. Mole Cricket had hardly any voice

himself. “I know how you feel,” he creaked to Earthworm. “How would you like it if I arrange a trade? I think

Snake would gladly swap his beautiful voice for your useless eyes.”

Earthworm agreed. And soon Mole Cricket got Snake to agree too.

Mole Cricket snipped off Earth-

worm's useless eyes and gave them to

Snake. Snake was delighted!

She sang, “Look at the sunshine! The flowers! The grass! This is wonderful. And I can see where I'm go-

ing!”

“Congratulations,” said Mole Cricket. “Now give me your singing voice. That's the other half of the bar-

gain.”

Snake gave Mole Cricket her voice. But Mole Cricket was tricky. Instead of giving that voice to Earth-

worm, he kept it for himself.

Even today, earthworms are still blind and silent. Snakes can see, but if they try to sing, all that comes out

is a hiss. And male mole crickets sing beautiful love songs in the spring, when they're looking for a wife.

Fact-tale Prairie mole crickets Gryllotalpa major can make noise indeed. And in

spring, the flightless males band together to amplify their chirps by digging a

horn-shaped tunnel at a “lek” (shared courtship site), the better to attract the

winged females.

The amazing thing is that those females can tune out all but the chirp of

one male in that din! Scientists at Nature Conservancy's Joseph H. Williams

Tallgrass Prairie Preserve in Osage County are studying this ability, hoping to

copy it in hearing aids for human ears so that a wearer can hear one person's

conversation over background noise. (Continued on Page 10)

From The Earthteller,

Fran Stallings

Cricket,

Earthworm,

and

Snake

from Venngage

10

(Continued on Page 9)

But we almost lost this chance for an important acoustic breakthrough. In 1984 the prairie mole cricket

was thought to be extinct due to habitat loss. Their only habitat, tallgrass and mixed-grass prairie, once cov-

ered most of the eastern Great Plains; but people had converted 99% of that to farm land and developments.

Fortunately in the late 1980's, surveys in Oklahoma found prairie mole cricket populations after all. By

1990, careful surveys had discovered small populations in OK, KS, MO and AR prairie preserves, and the

crickets were re-listed as Endangered rather than Extinct. Citizen scientists are still searching for more popula-

tions.

Gryllotalpa major lives up to its species name. They are the biggest crickets in North America, some-

times as much as 2” long! Their mole-like clawed front feet are useful for their underground life, and for the

males to dig horn-shaped tunnels of love in the spring.

If you visit the Tallgrass Prairie Preserve, you won't hear the earthworms and may not hear any crickets

but the snakes have eyes to see you. The snakes don't like to be disturbed, however, and they have no voices to

warn you away (not counting the rattle snakes). Stay on the marked trails!

Sources

Folktale sources: My Japanese friend Hiroko Fujita learned a version of this story from Takeda

Kuni, the farmer who worked the field next to her childhood home in the moun-

tains of Fukushima Prefecture. (Mimizu to Hebi “Earthworm and Snake” pg 12

in Folktales from the Japanese Countryside by Hiroko Fujita and Fran Stallings,

Libraries Unlimited 2008).

But in Kuni-san's story, Earthworm and Snake arranged the swap between the

two of them. And Fujita-san says that if you listen carefully, you can sometimes

hear Earthworm singing underground to pass the dark hours.

But folklorist Hiroko Ikeda (motifs A2332.6.4, A2421) thinks that the tradi-

tional “song” of the earthworm was really made by a mole cricket. And Miroslav

Noval's Fairy Tales from Japan (Hamlyn, 1970) has a version of the story where

Mole Cricket arranged the trade and kept Snake's voice for himself. So I have

included the cricket in my retelling, as a link to our science fact-tale.

Fact-tale sources: “Can You Hear Me? Prairie Mole Crickets: Nature's Master Noise Cancelers” pp 4-5 The Nature Consercancy

Oklahoma Update, Spring 2019. For article and videos, see https://www.nature.org/en-us/about-us/where-we-

work/united-states/oklahoma/stories-in-oklahoma/praire-mole-crickets-ok/

Lost Cricket Project, https://www.wildlifedepartment.com/

wildlife/wildlife-diversity/lost-cricket-project , a citizen science

program, is currently recruiting participants to help find new

populations of prairie mole crickets! The International Union

for Conservation of Nature lists the prairie mole cricket as data

deficient. By participating in “The Lost Cricket Project”, you

can help collect valuable scientific data that will be used to cre-

ate an updated species distribution map for Oklahoma and to

help develop protocols for conducting acoustic surveys of prai-

rie mole crickets. This information will be used to help manage

this rare native Oklahoma species. from The Lost Cricket Project at ODWC

11

12

Not an Endorsement , but ...

You must pre-register for all workshops. Contact

the person listed to register for a workshop.

The workshop fee is $20 per person.

Workshops are designed to be interactive and hands-on.

Please be prepared to participate in the activities.

An* after the time indicates a working lunch, where partic-

ipants bring lunch and work on assignments as they eat. You

will need to bring a sack lunch as you will not have time to go

out and get lunch.

Dress casually, comfortably and appropriately for the out-

doors. Some activities may be conducted outdoors, even if it is

hot, cold or wet.

Workshops involve moderate physical activity. Special ar-

rangements can be made for persons with disabilities. Please

call (405) 990-1292 two weeks in advance if special arrange-

ments need to be made.

Participants in college credit workshops must also pay for

the college credit in addition to the workshop fee. Contact the

university or college listed for costs on credit classes.

If there isn't a workshop scheduled near you, check back at a

later date or schedule a workshop for your area.

June 30, 2019 Project WILD

at UCO in Edmond from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

To register contact Lisa Anderson at

okprojectwild@fullnet.net

June 29, 2019:

Growing Up WILD

at UCO in Edmond from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

To register contact Lisa Anderson at

okprojectwild@fullnet.net

General Workshop Information

http://www.johngrade.com/#/

To read the article “Rainwater ‘Chandelier’ Installation Can Collect Up To 800 Pounds of Water” from the

Bored Panda website, click on the URL below. There are also more photos like the one above..

https://www.boredpanda.com/rainwater-collecting-installation-reservoir-john-grade/?

utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=BPFacebook&fbclid=IwAR2meXKC2VpHD_jn_

TRmj-ZgHniaRT-sMFZKzViSFDP8N7dPohnB8mSJEw8

“Inspired by changing geological and biological

forms and systems in the natural world, John

[Grade] works with his studio team to sculpt im-

mersive large-scale, site-specific installations.

Kinetics, impermanence and chance are often

central to the work.”

Along with a list of articles and interviews,

there are several amazing photographs of art

works in their natural habitat.

13

Saving the intricate fabric of life

… one thread at a time.

The WildCare Foundation is a supporting organiza-

tion with the following mission:

“Our mission is to provide people a place to bring

native wildlife struggling to survive with the goal of

releasing healthy individuals back to nature.”

The homepage for the Foundation is:

http://www.wildcareoklahoma.org/

Part of what they do is to publish a quarterly newslet-

ter. The issue is available at the following URL:

The archive is available at this URL:

http://www.wildcareoklahoma.org/index.php?news

Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge

Selenite Digging

at the

“Pink sunrise, white surface, white almost as far as the horizon on the first official day of crystal digging at the Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge. It was a cold Monday morning on the first day of April

and our idea was to catch the very first digger

through the gate and onto this surreal 10,000 acre

site, a huge salt flat near Cherokee, Oklahoma. It’s

home to wild birds and a unique crystal that grows

just beneath the surface.”

Read the rest of the article at:

https://kfor.com/2019/04/01/the-first-crystal-

digger-of-2019-at-the-salt-plains-is-none-

other-than-selenite-sam/

It’s open again: April 1 -- October 15

This is a big year for WildCare as we cele-

brate our 35th year helping Oklahoma wild-

life, as well as treating our 100,000th pa-

tient. We’ve decided these milestones can-

not go un-celebrated so we’re hosting our

first-ever dinner fundraiser and auction on

Saturday, July 20th at Sooner Legends Inn

and Suites in Norman. You won’t want to

miss this fun event as we’ll share stories

from the past 35 years, play WildCare trivia, raffle off some great prizes, and host a silent auction

full of wonderful items.

Held at and catered by Sooner Legends in Norman,

there will be a BBQ buffet (vegan options available

on request), silent auction, raffle prizes, wine and

beer pull, and a spin-to-win prize wheel.

Doors open at 5:30 PM with appetizers and bar avail-

able starting at 6:00 PM. The dinner buffet begins at

7:00 PM. A ticket for one drink from the bar is includ-

ed in your ticket price, additional drinks will be cash

bar. For groups that would like to sit together, we

recommend getting there earlier. Sponsorships are

available for larger groups and include group seating. Email dinnerinfo@wildcareoklahom.org

for sponsorship opportunities or general questions.

Wildcare Dinner Fundraiser

Saturday, July 20, 2019 5:30 to 9:00 PM

Sooner Legends Inn & Suites

14

15

16

This group wants you to find

them on Facebook and send

them a picture of what you

created with the materials.

17

18

19

https://www.fws.gov/wetlands/Data/Mapper.html?

utm_content=&utm_medium=email&utm_name=&

utm_source=govdelivery&utm_term=

This Wetlands Mapper, from the US Fish and

Wildlife Service, was found in the latest Okla-

homa Wetlands Program Bulletin. This Map-

per “integrates digital map data along with

other resource information to produce current

information on the status, extent, characteris-

tics and functions of wetlands, riparian, and

deepwater habi-

tats.” There is a

bit of training

needed to oper-

ate it properly,

but there is a

step=by-step

process with a

manual and a

video to help

you.

Wetlands Mapper

Click

below:

2019 Oklahoma

Travel Guide

Start planning

your Oklahoma

vacation with the 2019 Oklahoma

Travel Guide. This year’s guide con-

tains nearly 200 pages of fascinating

museums, only-in-Oklahoma restaurants, stun-

ning state parks, Route 66 roadside attractions

and more, along with directories of attractions

and lodging. Packaged with the official state

map, it’s the perfect companion for all your Ok-

lahoma adventures.

https://www.travelok.com/brochures

https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/

spring-virtual-bioblitz-ok-2019

Wrap - Up

Most Observed Species:

Eastern Redbud Common Slider

Common Dandelion Virginia Spring Beauty

Mallard Texas Paintbrush

What an amazing month!

Observations -- 12,493 Species -- 2004 Identifiers -- 766 Observers -- 678

Prothonotary Warbler

To read the article “A Birder’s Workout Guide for

Preventing Warbler Neck” from which these

quotes came, click on the URL below:

https://www.audubon.org/news/a-birders-workout-guide-

preventing-warbler-neck?ms=digital-eng-social-facebook-x-

20190500_fb_link_-

_warbler_neck&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social

&utm_campaign=20190500_fb_link_-

_warbler_neck&fbclid=IwAR34BH3b5K-K4bWalcVzl-

SIfM5Ly3kH_XEaEZG6wwxjcjeaXWblCcLbc0E

“Neck pain, known collo-

quially as “warbler neck,” is

the Achilles heel of the

sport” ...that is birding.

“Yup, believe it or not, core

strength, along with proper

posture, could help you

stave off warbler neck this

birding season.”

To read the article “How to: Avoiding Warbler Neck”

about the causes and prevention of this annoyance for

very dedicated people, click on the URL below:

https://www.birdwatchersdigest.com/bwdsite/solve/avoid-

warbler-neck.php

20

21

10301 South Sunnylane Road

405-814-0006

http://

www.museumofosteology.org/

Monday - Friday 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Saturday 11 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Sunday 1 p.m. - 5 p.m.

On February 23, 2013 The EnvironMentor

dipped a toe into social media. We made

this decision because, at this time, there

are two to three months between issues of

the Newsletter. During this past gap an im-

portant event had an application deadline of

April 1st so an announcement went out

from Facebook. We won’t bother you with

anything trivial, so …

“Like” The Environmentor on

Facebook!!

QUIKList Oklahoma

Leopold Education Project

http://www.aldoleopold.org/Programs/lep.shtml

Type in Oklahoma

Oklahoma Blue Thumb

http://bluethumbok.com/

Oklahoma Blue Thumb Association

ok.bluethumb.association@gmail.com

Oklahoma Envirothon

http://www.oklaenvirothon.org/

Oklahoma Green Schools

http://www.okgreenschools.org/

Oklahoma Master Naturalists

https://okmasternaturalist.wixsite.com/website

Oklahoma Native Plant Society

http://oknativeplants.org/

Oklahoma Recycling Association (OKRA)

http://www.recycleok.org/okra/

As with all hyperlinks in The EnvironMentor

Newsletter, these are clickable.

Do you know an environmental group in Okla-

homa that should be listed. Send that infor-

mation to:

environmentor@okcu.edu

Project Learning Tree (PLT)

http://www.plt.org/

http://www.forestry.ok.gov/project-learning-tree

Project WET

(Water Education for Teachers)

http://www.bluethumbok.com/project-wet.html

Project WILD

http://www.projectwild.org/

22

To go directly to The Calendar click on:

http://www.okcu.edu/environmentor

Most people who remember The EnvironMentor Newsletter know that the pages at the end of the issue

were reserved for The Calendar. Being online has some great advantages. When you downloaded your

copy of the newsletter you may have noticed the box on the right side of the webpage. This is a conven-

ient listing of the next events from The Calendar. This will always be up-to-date because it happens au-

tomatically. For more information on the event just click on it and a window will open up with all the de-

tails. If you wish, you can access the rest of the calendar from the there.

To have your event posted to The Calendar, copy and paste the following list into an email, fill

in as much information as you wish, and send it to: Environmentor@okcu.edu

Title of your event:

Start Date and Time

End Date and Time

Location

Location Address

Contact Name

Contact Phone

Contact Email

Details in Narrative Form

Location Link

Event Link

Map Link

Please note: We are not able to publish for-profit information.