Ranger Rick articles from June 1997

Ranger Rick archives from June 1997

Wolves of the sky.(Harris' hawks are unusual birds in that they live together, often hunt together in a pack, and share the food)
June 1, 1997... A sharp-eyed Harris'(HAIR-us-sez) hawk is hungry. She scans the Arizona desert from her perch on a cactus, searching for dinner. There! Far away, a jack rab- bit is munching on some grass. The hawk swoops down toward the rabbit as it dashes away....

The guys behind ... 'Kratts' Creatures': TV stars Martin and Chris Kratt are on a creature mission!(television hosts who will go almost anywhere and do almost anything in order to film animals)
June 1, 1997... Do you watch the TV show "Kratts' Creatures"? Then you know that Martin and Chris Kratt will go anywhere and do anything to meet creatures. They've already dived with spotted dolphins. They've dressed up like cave men to show how people and...

Let wild animals be wild.(there are at least five good reasons why people should not feed wild animals)
June 1, 1997... You're sitting on a park bench, eating lunch. Nearby, a family is feeding chips to some geese. Oh, good--now a few are waddling your way. You could toss them some food. But a sign says, PLEASE DON'T FEED THE ANIMALS. What should you do? Here are...

What can you do to help and enjoy wild animals?(helping and observing wildlife)
June 1, 1997... Become a member of EarthSavers or join the Junior Ranger Program at a national or state park. You'll learn many ways to help wild animals, and you may do projects that help you see wildlife up close. Also, check with your local nature center or...

Yay, butterflies!(Schaus swallowtail butterflies, once on the verge of extinction, are making a strong comeback thanks to scientist Thomas Emmel)
June 1, 1997... The Schaus swallowtail butterfly has finally had some good luck--after years of hard times. About 100 years ago, there were lots of these beautiful butterflies in southern Florida. But by 1972, the species was in trouble. Much of the...

Enviro kids in Central America.(children take part in the environmental movement in El Salvador)
June 1, 1997... El Salvador may be a small country, but it's full of kids' environmental groups. For example, the kids are part of a club that helps birds. They're showing off a nesting box they made. One American scientist who spent some time with the kids...

New recycling news.(new ideas include the recycling of skis and snowboards, leftover straw in rice fields, garden tools, and plastic containers)
June 1, 1997... People keep getting neat new ideas for recycling and reusing things. Here are just a few: A company in Colorado takes old skis and snowboards and turns them into out- door furniture such as picnic tables and lawn chairs. Skis and snowboards...

Whale watching.(the month of June is an excellent time to watch for Atlantic Ocean whales)
June 1, 1997... June is a great time to look for whales off the Atlantic coast as they migrate to northern feeding areas. The humpback is a favorite because it's big and acrobatic!

June bloom.(June is a good month to watch flowers and bees)
June 1, 1997... June is full of flowers. Look for them growing out of the ground, on trees, and on bushes. How many can you name? June is a busy, buzzy month for bees as they gather sweet nectar from the blossoms. Sit down near some flowers and watch the bees...

Busy with babies.(spring and early summers provide a good time to watch birds feeding their babies)
June 1, 1997... Many baby birds hatch in late spring and early summer. The parents get busy bringing tidbits to the nest for their babies to eat. If you put up birdhouses in your backyard, you'll have a front-row seat at the show!

Adventures of Ranger Rick: Ranger Rick and his pals try to celebrate the International Year of the Reef. But they keep running into problems - and Boomer's bad jokes.(short story)
June 1, 1997... Scarlett Fox rolled her eyes at Boomer Badger. The badger was reading a book called World's Worst Underwater Jokes, and he kept interrupting her with dumb riddles. "Why do fish hate computers?" he asked her. Without waiting for her to guess the...

More info.(1997 is the International Year of the Reef; reef coral comes from small animals called coral polyps; the reefs near Florida are the largest in North America, but they face problems of pollution and overfishing)
June 1, 1997... Reef coral is made by tiny animals called coral polyps (POL-ips). Each polyp builds a little stony "house" around itself that it lives in. Every day, the polyp adds a new floor above the old and makes the walls higher. When polyps die, their...

Check out these chompers.(sorting out animal dentures)(quiz)
June 1, 1997... by Sue TilberryThe animals' dentist made dentures (false teeth) for her patients, and now she needs help sorting them out. Each set of teeth has a letter next to it. Write the correct letter next to each animal's mouth. If you need help with some...

Treetop weavers: using living sewing machines, these ants weave their homes. And that's not all!(the making of leaves into homes, and other activities of weaver ants)
June 1, 1997... Look, high up in that tree--hundreds, no, thousands, gosh, half a million ants are scurrying over the leaves. There's something odd about those leaves too. They're curled into little clumps, almost as if they'd been sewn together. Wait--they...

Nature did it first: people have invented many wonderful things. But nature's been inventing for millions of years.(squirting action of the archer fish; drilling action of the acorn weevil; and gliding action of the flying squirrel)
June 1, 1997... Have you ever used a squirt gun? You and your friends can have a soaking-good time with these toys. But the archer fish is the original super squirter. It waits for a juicy fly or other insect to land on a plant or rock near the water's...

Dinosaur dream.(short story)
June 1, 1997... Wilbur climbed into bed and opened his favorite book, Through the Ages. He turned the pages back through time, past ancient cities, past the great Ice Age, past the Tertiary period when giant mammals roamed the plains, and past the Cretaceous...