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Animal Tracks •
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Humming
birds are the only bird that can fly backwards. Really
impressive when you think of all the other birds but then
again think of all the insects that can hover and fly
backwards. The diversity of insect life never ceases to
amaze me. It seems that there are always new kinds of
insects everywhere you look, that is when you are looking.
Here on the farm there are bugs all over. I don't recall
the same diversity or population in the city.
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Unknown
Fly 
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I am always explaining to my workers the value of worms beyond
being bait for fishing. Worm castings are the most fertile
thing going. When we mulch plants we are not only conserving
moisture at the soil surface level, and protecting the soil
from erosion, we are creating an insect shelter zone. These
insects that live in that zone are some of our most tireless
alies. Beetles that hunt, ants and the myriad insects that
are perpetually cleaning up dead and dying plants and animals,
and those that burrow and create holes in the soil which helps
entrain air and water.
Just as they are vital to the root zone and soil surface
insects are the great polinators. They make all the flowers
turn to fruit. Which brings us back to the humming birds.
We also have hummingbird moths and they are really neat. They
are diurnal as opposed to what seems to be a majority of moths
that are nocturnal.
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