Well-camouflaged ruffed grouse may flush suddenly, startling hikers in northeast Iowa woodlands.The Iowa Nature Calendar, by Jean Prior and James Sandrock
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
This Week in Iowa Nature
Well-camouflaged ruffed grouse may flush suddenly, startling hikers in northeast Iowa woodlands.The Iowa Nature Calendar, by Jean Prior and James Sandrock
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!
Monday, November 22, 2010
Plant of the Week
Flowering spurge
Euphorbia corollata L.
other common names: flat-topped spurge, milk purslane, milkweed, snake milk, tramp’s spurge, white-flowered milkweed, wild hippo
Euphorbia: probably named for Euphorbus, a physician to King Juba of Numidia, an ancient country in an area of northern Africa that more or less corresponds to the present Algeria
Corollata: from Latin, meaning “with corollas”
Spurge family: Euphorbiaceae
Photograph by Thomas Rosburg, Wildflowers of the Tallgrass Prairie: The Upper Midwest, Second Edition
Euphorbia corollata L.
other common names: flat-topped spurge, milk purslane, milkweed, snake milk, tramp’s spurge, white-flowered milkweed, wild hippo
Euphorbia: probably named for Euphorbus, a physician to King Juba of Numidia, an ancient country in an area of northern Africa that more or less corresponds to the present Algeria
Corollata: from Latin, meaning “with corollas”
Spurge family: Euphorbiaceae
Photograph by Thomas Rosburg, Wildflowers of the Tallgrass Prairie: The Upper Midwest, Second EditionFriday, November 19, 2010
An Interview with Claudia McGehee: Part 3
Tell us about your new book!
Where Birds Live? departs from the earlier two picture books in format and amount of text, but not in spirit. This book really let me go all out and illustrate some of my favorite creatures on the planet: birds. My goal for the book is that it will serve as an early field guide for young readers, giving them an introductory glimpse of fourteen different birds and the specific habitats they live in. When the University of Iowa Press came to me with the idea of a picture book on birds, one that would include other habitats beyond the midwestern region, I was enthusiastic but a bit intimidated. There is so much environmental diversity within our country. And hundreds of different birds live in all kinds of habitats. It stretched me to learn about other bird habitats within North America. I hope that what we created will encourage kids, wherever they live, to look up in the sky and connect with what they see.
What advice do you give younger nature artists?
Find time to observe quietly, and you’ll be rewarded. Be ready with a pencil and notebook at any time (or a camera, for sketching later). Enjoy the shape and form of birds first and don’t worry too much about whether you know their names; that knowledge can come later. Read and seek out other nature writers and artists who have come before you.
What are your favorite natural areas in Iowa or the Midwest?
In Iowa City, I love Hickory Hill Park and walk there regularly. Knowing that I will see, smell, and hear subtle changes in every season makes me feel part of the rhythm of things. I also love that other people use the park and enjoy and appreciate nature, too. Lake Macbride and the raptor center are much loved by my family—for a winter walk to see eagles, a summer paddle boat ride just enjoying the sun and water, or a spring or summer picnic destination, it is a great place to be and so accessible. All the local parks—Kent and Palisades Kepler, for example—provide opportunities to enjoy wildlife and native flora. Further beyond, I love the Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge outside of Des Moines. There is a wonderful interpretive prairie learning center on the grounds.
Recently, just here in Iowa City, a newly formed nonprofit foundation called the Harvest Preserve has begun to open its doors to the public with events and programs. It’s a hundred-acre piece of land in the northeast corner of town that has a mixed past of agricultural use with some native woodland. The organizers plan to enhance, restore, and preserve native prairie and woodland here. Some trails have already been established. I’ve had the opportunity to spend time there, even to sketch, and it is an enchanting place. We are fortunate that this parcel of land has landed in the hands of some generous, nature-loving Iowans.
Remember that even watching a chickadee hammer open a seed on a tree in your own backyard can be a treat. When you love nature, you are never bored!
Claudia McGehee, author and illustrator of Where Do Birds Live?, A Woodland Counting Book and A Tallgrass Prairie Alphabet and illustrator of The Iowa Nature Calendar
Where Birds Live? departs from the earlier two picture books in format and amount of text, but not in spirit. This book really let me go all out and illustrate some of my favorite creatures on the planet: birds. My goal for the book is that it will serve as an early field guide for young readers, giving them an introductory glimpse of fourteen different birds and the specific habitats they live in. When the University of Iowa Press came to me with the idea of a picture book on birds, one that would include other habitats beyond the midwestern region, I was enthusiastic but a bit intimidated. There is so much environmental diversity within our country. And hundreds of different birds live in all kinds of habitats. It stretched me to learn about other bird habitats within North America. I hope that what we created will encourage kids, wherever they live, to look up in the sky and connect with what they see.
What advice do you give younger nature artists?
Find time to observe quietly, and you’ll be rewarded. Be ready with a pencil and notebook at any time (or a camera, for sketching later). Enjoy the shape and form of birds first and don’t worry too much about whether you know their names; that knowledge can come later. Read and seek out other nature writers and artists who have come before you.
What are your favorite natural areas in Iowa or the Midwest?
In Iowa City, I love Hickory Hill Park and walk there regularly. Knowing that I will see, smell, and hear subtle changes in every season makes me feel part of the rhythm of things. I also love that other people use the park and enjoy and appreciate nature, too. Lake Macbride and the raptor center are much loved by my family—for a winter walk to see eagles, a summer paddle boat ride just enjoying the sun and water, or a spring or summer picnic destination, it is a great place to be and so accessible. All the local parks—Kent and Palisades Kepler, for example—provide opportunities to enjoy wildlife and native flora. Further beyond, I love the Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge outside of Des Moines. There is a wonderful interpretive prairie learning center on the grounds.
Recently, just here in Iowa City, a newly formed nonprofit foundation called the Harvest Preserve has begun to open its doors to the public with events and programs. It’s a hundred-acre piece of land in the northeast corner of town that has a mixed past of agricultural use with some native woodland. The organizers plan to enhance, restore, and preserve native prairie and woodland here. Some trails have already been established. I’ve had the opportunity to spend time there, even to sketch, and it is an enchanting place. We are fortunate that this parcel of land has landed in the hands of some generous, nature-loving Iowans.
Remember that even watching a chickadee hammer open a seed on a tree in your own backyard can be a treat. When you love nature, you are never bored!
Claudia McGehee, author and illustrator of Where Do Birds Live?, A Woodland Counting Book and A Tallgrass Prairie Alphabet and illustrator of The Iowa Nature Calendar
Monday, November 15, 2010
Plant of the Week
Reed canary grass
Phalaris arundinacea L.
other common names: sword grass, lady grass, ladies’ lace, bride’s lace doggers, spires
Phalaris: from Greek, meaning “shining,” alluding to the shining seeds or possibly to the crestlike seed head
Arundinacea: meaning “reedlike”
Grass family: Poaceae (Gramineae)
Phalaris arundinacea L.
other common names: sword grass, lady grass, ladies’ lace, bride’s lace doggers, spires
Phalaris: from Greek, meaning “shining,” alluding to the shining seeds or possibly to the crestlike seed head
Arundinacea: meaning “reedlike”
Grass family: Poaceae (Gramineae)
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
An Interview with Claudia McGehee: Part 2
What was challenging about creating an alphabet book?
Primer books—counting books, alphabet books, color books, etc.—allow a strong and simple structure, and for my first illustrated picture book this was perfect. I loved the puzzle of finding just the right animal for each letter. We also wanted to move the book through the seasons chronologically, which added another layer for the reader and another piece to the puzzle. Was the animal that we wanted to illustrate active in the season it would be shown? When did this certain plant flower? Would it be blooming at the same time that this one would be blooming? There were many questions to answer before I knew exactly what the illustrations would look like.
What did you enjoy most about the creation of the tallgrass book?
Seeing and holding the book for the first time. Karen Copp (Production Manager at the University of Iowa Press) had laid out all the artwork with incredible color sense and design. It is a good moment when you see that your art “children” (for an art piece really does feel like part of me!) have been so thoughtfully taken care of in the final product.
What was challenging about A Woodland Counting Book?
I went into the woodland book more confident about the content than I was with the prairie book. Even though our oak-hickory forests are not what I grew up with, there is something very comforting about the leafy stillness of the woodland. I was thrilled to explore it illustratively. The challenges were getting some of the larger numbers to work well compositionally and not look too forced or out of synch with real nature. For example, I didn’t want to show fourteen bobcats all in one illustration; that’s just not how they live. They are secretive and relatively solo. But fourteen wild turkeys? Of course! That’s how I observe them in the woods, all together in a big family group.
What is one of your favorite memories about working on the woodland book?
For my favorite page in the book—the cedar waxwings eating thirteen serviceberries—I worked outdoors on the final scratchboard to get a break from my studio. A ladybug—let’s say it was the native kind!—landed on my board, and I just decided to draw a ladybug into the picture. Whenever I see that piece and the one small ladybug in the corner, I am reminded of that sunny day out in my yard and what life brings unexpectedly to art, even in the smallest of details.
Blue spotted salamander, Ambystoma laternale
Blue spotted salamanders like to hang out in moist woodland areas near ponds. When these little amphibians sense danger, they freeze, raise their tails straight up, and get ready to squirt an unpleasant-tasting liquid at any predator that comes too close. If an enemy grabs it, the salamander releases this defense liquid, detaches its tail--it can grow a new one--and slips away.
Claudia McGehee, A Woodland Counting Book
Claudia McGehee, author and illustrator of Where Do Birds Live?, A Woodland Counting Book and A Tallgrass Prairie Alphabet and illustrator of The Iowa Nature Calendar
Primer books—counting books, alphabet books, color books, etc.—allow a strong and simple structure, and for my first illustrated picture book this was perfect. I loved the puzzle of finding just the right animal for each letter. We also wanted to move the book through the seasons chronologically, which added another layer for the reader and another piece to the puzzle. Was the animal that we wanted to illustrate active in the season it would be shown? When did this certain plant flower? Would it be blooming at the same time that this one would be blooming? There were many questions to answer before I knew exactly what the illustrations would look like.
What did you enjoy most about the creation of the tallgrass book?
Seeing and holding the book for the first time. Karen Copp (Production Manager at the University of Iowa Press) had laid out all the artwork with incredible color sense and design. It is a good moment when you see that your art “children” (for an art piece really does feel like part of me!) have been so thoughtfully taken care of in the final product.
What was challenging about A Woodland Counting Book?
I went into the woodland book more confident about the content than I was with the prairie book. Even though our oak-hickory forests are not what I grew up with, there is something very comforting about the leafy stillness of the woodland. I was thrilled to explore it illustratively. The challenges were getting some of the larger numbers to work well compositionally and not look too forced or out of synch with real nature. For example, I didn’t want to show fourteen bobcats all in one illustration; that’s just not how they live. They are secretive and relatively solo. But fourteen wild turkeys? Of course! That’s how I observe them in the woods, all together in a big family group.
What is one of your favorite memories about working on the woodland book?
For my favorite page in the book—the cedar waxwings eating thirteen serviceberries—I worked outdoors on the final scratchboard to get a break from my studio. A ladybug—let’s say it was the native kind!—landed on my board, and I just decided to draw a ladybug into the picture. Whenever I see that piece and the one small ladybug in the corner, I am reminded of that sunny day out in my yard and what life brings unexpectedly to art, even in the smallest of details.
Blue spotted salamander, Ambystoma laternale
Blue spotted salamanders like to hang out in moist woodland areas near ponds. When these little amphibians sense danger, they freeze, raise their tails straight up, and get ready to squirt an unpleasant-tasting liquid at any predator that comes too close. If an enemy grabs it, the salamander releases this defense liquid, detaches its tail--it can grow a new one--and slips away.
Claudia McGehee, A Woodland Counting Book
Claudia McGehee, author and illustrator of Where Do Birds Live?, A Woodland Counting Book and A Tallgrass Prairie Alphabet and illustrator of The Iowa Nature Calendar
This week in Iowa Nature + Children's Event!
Harvested fields highlight the crests of rolling hills across southern Iowa; nearly always even in elevation, they indicate the position of an old glacial plain.The Iowa Nature Calendar, by Jean Prior and James Sandrock
illustrations by Claudia McGehee
Come out and see Claudia at the Iowa City Public Library!
Date: Friday, November 12
Time: 10:30 AM
Location: Iowa City Public Library in the Storytime Room
Monday, November 8, 2010
Plant of the Week
Lobelia spicata Lam.
other common names: palespike lobelia, highbelia
Lobelia: named for a 16th-century Flemish herbalist, Matthias von Lobel
Spicata: from Latin, meaning “with a spike”
Bluebell or bellflower family: Campanulaceae
Photograph by Thomas Rosburg, Wildflowers of the Tallgrass Prairie: The Upper Midwest, Second Edition
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