Cathy Flanagan TJ Bio

Teacher-Nature Lover-Always Observing-Always Wondering. Go Play Outside!

[Cathy Flanagan TJ Bio @FlanaganBio]

First frost! Early morning clover. Things I wonder 🤔: Why don’t the veins have frost as well? What does frost do to a plant? Is it heavy? cold? Does it block the light?
I’ve moved! Find new posts at @flanaganbio.bsky.social

[Cathy Flanagan TJ Bio @FlanaganBio]

@GreshEnglish210 Spotted lantern fly— kill it!

[Cathy Flanagan TJ Bio @FlanaganBio]

@GreshEnglish210 Maybe chiton? I’ve seen pictures; but wrongly assumed they were from the ancient past. Who knew? Super cool! https://t.co/fi28YArojM

[Cathy Flanagan TJ Bio @FlanaganBio]

@GreshEnglish210 So cool! Not sure, maybe limpets? Where are they?

[Cathy Flanagan TJ Bio @FlanaganBio]

@GreshEnglish210 Yes! That is a gall—an insect builds it on an oak tree, perhaps for eggs/larvae. That is the empty casing. Good find!

[Cathy Flanagan TJ Bio @FlanaganBio]

Pond no-more, at least for now. What do you notice?🤔 Algae shows evidence of recent rain; and hexagonal pattern due to mud shrinking as it dries—same pattern as drying basaltic lava (sometimes seen as basaltic columns!) Where did the animals go?? #NatureBreak

[Cathy Flanagan TJ Bio @FlanaganBio]

How many layers of bark do you see? 🤔 Clear damage, but the deepest layer is still bark, and still protecting the tree (which is very much alive!) Amazing resilience #NatureBreak

[Cathy Flanagan TJ Bio @FlanaganBio]

Che libro meraviglioso! I relearned Italian (lived there 2 yrs) to read Il Bar Sotto il Mare—all short stories; each told by a different person who found themselves in “The Bar Under the Sea” July Modern Language focus of #TJReads2023 was the impetus for the challenge!

[Cathy Flanagan TJ Bio @FlanaganBio]

Weird tree cross-section! The 5 evenly spaced ovals are from branches all at more or less the same height; with their own rings! One image allows determining the age of the tree, the age of the branches, and the position of the branches! #NatureBreak

[Cathy Flanagan TJ Bio @FlanaganBio]

Keep Frederick cycling safe! Worth 5 min of your time, for both cyclists and drivers, to learn the rules of the road🚴‍♀️

[TjBizz @Tj_Bizz]

A United Front on Frederick County Cycling Safety and Sharing the Road https://t.co/448QN54h3y via @YouTube

[Cathy Flanagan TJ Bio @FlanaganBio]

Water’s two sides: its erosive power has been cutting this gorge for thousands of years; and its spray is enabling plant life to grow on the rocks above. It’s strong enough to take away, and gentle enough to provide. #NatureBreak

[Cathy Flanagan TJ Bio @FlanaganBio]

Pool full of amazing swimmers here in Pgh for the National Senior Games—rooting on Mom, who finished with a bronze and a 4th in her age group! Inspiring to see older athletes (oldest is 97) competing and loving it—lots of energy and enthusiasm! Keep moving/rest is rust😊

[Cathy Flanagan TJ Bio @FlanaganBio]

@AFACoordinator Cool find! The grass suggests it was picked up off the ground—so yeah, you are feeding the critters! I hope you get some too😂

[Cathy Flanagan TJ Bio @FlanaganBio]

@KathrynTobery Thanks! I like it too🙃

[Cathy Flanagan TJ Bio @FlanaganBio]

Behold the beauty of a daylily! Imagine you are a bee—see the yellow guiding you down to where the yummy nectar is? And, notice the pollen that will soon be all over you? Yeah—the flower knows what it’s doing🤣 #NatureBreak

[Cathy Flanagan TJ Bio @FlanaganBio]

Whoa—If my ID is correct, this is a dawn redwood! Native to China, related to redwoods out west, it’s a very old species— from Paleocene. Thought extinct, rediscovered in the 40s, now planted as ornamentals. This one is next to the lake—who planted it, and when? 🤔#NatureBreak

[Cathy Flanagan TJ Bio @FlanaganBio]

TJ Rain garden showing its beauty! Lots of variety, and changes over time, as the season progresses. Fascinating to watch plants transform themselves—how do they do that?🤔#NatureBreak

[Cathy Flanagan TJ Bio @FlanaganBio]

A sycamore tree trunk with weird bulges! What caused them? And what affect do they have now?🤔 Usually sycamore trunks are quite smoothly shaped; the peeling bark is very typical (with whitish bark underneath). Were the bulges due to former limbs? Damage? Insects?🤷🏻‍♀️ #NatureBreak

[Cathy Flanagan TJ Bio @FlanaganBio]

Inspiring read—from family planning, maternal and newborn health, child brides, sex workers, inequality in marriage and work—Gates deftly weaves women’s stories to build the case that empowering women lifts everyone; and that empathy is key #TJReads2023

[Cathy Flanagan TJ Bio @FlanaganBio]

Something has been eating in the TJ rain garden! Plant is probably a weed, but I let it grow as ground cover. And, evidently, as lunch!🤣 I wonder who??🤔Rabbit? deer? 🤷🏻‍♀️ #NatureBreak