By Bonnie Brown
Columnist

As cooler weather presents itself to us in the form of cooler temperatures and colorful foliage, it’s also interesting to think about the wildlife. For most of our furry and feathered friends, they have a plan and a pattern to seek warmer climates. Bears hibernate through the cold winter months and keep in mind that we have some bears in Mississippi. I have recently learned that snakes don’t hibernate in the winter.

Instead, snakes go into a state known as “brumation” where snakes become less active, and their metabolism slows down tremendously. Brumation is like hibernation in that snakes will sleep for long periods of time. They will, however, wake up to forage for food and water and if a sudden warm snap occurs. When temperatures cool back down, they will go back into their brumation state once again.

During the summer months when I would go out with our dog Carly for her to relieve herself for the night, we would “talk” about all the numerous noises of the night. We would hear frogs, crickets, and katydids. There were many sounds, many of which I could not determine with certainty what critters were making the noise. But it was a real symphony of varied sounds! Carly would look at me as I spoke about the cacophony made by these night-time critters. I think she agreed that it was quite a production, and we
were in awe of the sounds of the darkness.

Our dear friend, John Herren (son of the late Lila Herren) lives in Florida with his wife Liz, and their daughter Callie. He recently shared that he walked through his yard and neighborhood shortly after Helene blew through. While he was relieved there was no structural damage, there were quite a few limbs and leaves down around his place.

Fortunately, he has a yard man who cleaned up most of it. But John and Liz were concerned about the squirrels, most especially the young baby squirrels, that might have been launched from their cozy nests into the whirling winds and landed away from their family.

He told me that Liz has become involved with a wildlife rehabilitation group who knows how to best help these poor little creatures. He talked about a little baby squirrel that they found that was “about the size of your thumb.” They named it “Squeakers.” They got on the internet to see what they could do for this baby. After searching, they placed the baby squirrel in a container and added his smart phone that played sounds that distressed squirrels make. The family quietly observed the baby squirrel from the porch.

After some time, the mother appeared and picked up her baby. At first they were afraid the mother was going to harm the baby, but she must have been checking to make sure it was her offspring.

She carried the baby off to re-establish her home and nurture her offspring. A successful rescue! So, I will share this story with Carly the next time she sees a squirrel she’d like to chase as I firmly hold her leash. She’s a very good listener—most of the time.

We will go from the noise of the night-time critters with the humming of air conditioners in the background to a more silent night as the weather cools. And the hum of the air conditioners will be replaced by the smells of the smoke from fireplaces. Quite a contrast to be sure.

Enjoy the night sounds while they last. Nature is magical.