Library Blog
Posted on Fri, August 11, 2023 - 07:00pm
The library welcomes everyone; well, almost everyone. Last week, I escorted a young visitor to the door . . . and a little beyond. This individual was certainly charming and, for all I know, well-mannered, but the relationship just wasn’t “a good fit.” I hope it will settle down in the nearby…
Category: Staff Picks
Posted on Sat, August 05, 2023 - 07:00pm
Congratulations to Joyce F. for correctly identifying last week’s “What Is It!” on the Ames Free Library’s Facebook page. This surrealistic creature is, indeed, a spicebush swallowtail caterpillar.
From this angle, the caterpillar has a giant head with intimidating eyes. We are looking at…
Category: Staff Picks
Posted on Fri, July 28, 2023 - 07:00pm
This week’s mystery creature seems to ask, “Who are you looking at?” If you think you know, email your identification to lrubinacci@amesfreelibrary.org. Next Friday, we’ll reveal its name and behavior.
Category: Staff Picks
Posted on Wed, July 19, 2023 - 07:00pm
Babytime is moving inside for the rest of the summer!
Between the UV rays, heat, humidity, and air quality, storytime attendees and Miss Hannah have decided to make the switch and hold Babytime in the Children’s Room. We’ll still meet on Wednesdays at 10:30am for songs, rhymes, scarves, and…
Category: Kids, Youth Services
Posted on Wed, July 19, 2023 - 07:00pm
So, who saw a monocot this week? I guarantee you all did, whether or not you were paying attention or taking my assignment seriously. I chose the orange daylily, Hemerocallis fulva, to introduce the subject because it has large flowers, is familiar to most readers, and is conspicuous at the Ames…
Category: Staff Picks
Posted on Mon, July 17, 2023 - 07:00pm
Have you wanted to join a book club but can’t find the time to make it to a meeting? Check out the Big Library Read hosted by OverDrive!
From now through July 27, 2023, you can borrow an eBook or audiobook of A Very Typical Family by Sierra Godfrey through the OverDrive website or your Libby app.…
Category: Staff Picks
Posted on Fri, July 14, 2023 - 07:00pm
The Missouri Botanical Garden describes the daylily as “A tough plant that is tolerant of poor soil, summer heat and humidity.” Our recent high temperatures and frequent showers may be challenging to humans, but the daylilies at the Ames Free Library have bloomed with exuberance. Each July, they…
Category: Staff Picks
Posted on Fri, July 07, 2023 - 07:00pm
Daylilies are splashy, easy-to-recognize flowers. We might take them for granted simply because they are so familiar. This week, I encourage you to look closely at the entire plant and find a different species with similar features. Here are a few characteristics to notice:
–leaves with…
Category: Staff Picks
Posted on Sat, July 01, 2023 - 07:00pm
Last week’s “What Is It!” apparently stumped A Glimpse of Nature’s readers. Such peculiar objects – bright-orange, gelatinous balls hanging from a conifer! Those in the photo were about 2 inches in diameter.
Pembroke, May 21, 2023 Even…
Category: Staff Picks
Posted on Fri, June 23, 2023 - 07:00pm
Halloween decorations? Wrong season. Sea anemones? Wrong habitat. What are these orange blobs? Email your identification to lrubinacci@amesfreelibrary.org and check in next week for their story. Your nature photos are always welcome.
Category: Staff Picks
Posted on Thu, June 22, 2023 - 07:00pm
Easton students, find your school-assigned summer reading at the Ames Free Library! Oliver Ames High School students can find their books on the cart in the Teen Den, Southeastern Regional students can find their books on the display shelves outside the Teen Den, and Easton Middle School students…
Category: Teen, Youth Services
Posted on Fri, June 16, 2023 - 07:00pm
Attention readers: Bonnie Tate created this week’s post. Our guest author describes herself as a scientist, birder, and nature photographer. You may recall her amazing image of an Eastern Screech Owl which won the grand prize of our “Picturing Winter” contest.
Massachusetts boasts seven…
Category: Staff Picks
Posted on Fri, June 09, 2023 - 07:00pm
When my coworker, Christie, stepped outside her front door on May 8, she saw a nest. “When did that happen?”
May 8, 2023
Fortunately, for us, she documented the birds’ development from eggs to fledglings. Let’s examine…
Category: Staff Picks
Posted on Fri, June 02, 2023 - 07:00pm
June is “Turtles-Crossing-the-Road” month. Let’s celebrate by driving cautiously on roads near wetlands while being alert to female turtles heading to their upland nesting sites. Notice which roads seem suitable before you encounter an “object” on the road. Slow down. If you see a turtle in the…
Category: Staff Picks
Posted on Fri, May 26, 2023 - 07:00pm
Sunday’s walk was splendid, a fresh green feast of loveliness savored in perfect weather. My eyes hopped from wild geraniums to jack-in-the-pulpits, from tender ferns to mature skunk cabbages, landing eventually on show-stopping lady’s slippers.
Yet my chief delight was the soundscape. …
Category: Staff Picks
Posted on Fri, May 19, 2023 - 07:00pm
There is so much activity in spring! Here are two sounds you may hear if you venture beyond your neighborhood. You know the ropes: email lrubinacci@amesfreelibrary.org with your answers and check back next week.
Category: Staff Picks
Posted on Fri, May 12, 2023 - 07:00pm
Congratulations to Tom Cee who correctly identified last week’s “What Is It!” on Facebook. This delicate spring flower is the lovely wood anemone, Anemone quinquefolia. Hanover, MA, April 29, 2023 Just three inches tall, this plant has a…
Category: Staff Picks
Posted on Fri, May 05, 2023 - 07:00pm
Now blooming in selected woodlands near you!
Submit your identification to lrubinacci@amesfreelibrary and check back next week for info on this topic.
Your photos of spring wildflowers are welcome, too.
Category: Staff Picks
Posted on Fri, April 28, 2023 - 07:00pm
Remember the swimming garter snake that headlined our March 30th post? Since that time, readers have shared sightings of two more snake species.
April 5, Hanson
Courtesy: Louis Vanrenen
First, we have an image of a young snake basking on a beam above a pond. According to the observer…
Category: Staff Picks
Posted on Thu, April 13, 2023 - 07:00pm
I regret to say that no one correctly identified last week’s “What Is It!”. Guesses included a slug and a fossilized caterpillar. Nice try, but . . . . Let’s take a second look.
The subject of this closeup photo is a one-inch object. Here it is in the context of our reader’s backyard.…
Category: Staff Picks
Posted on Thu, April 13, 2023 - 07:00pm
The library catalog is getting an update! From April 17 - April 21, some behind the scenes magic will take place to improve the functionality and display of the library’s catalog.
During the update, some catalog functions you’re used to will not be available. Check out the lists below and be sure…
Category: Staff Picks
Posted on Wed, April 12, 2023 - 07:00pm
Did you guess correctly? Frogs were the focus of last week’s “What Is It!” game.
These gelatinous eggs contain wood frog embryos. While wood frogs may not be as well known as bullfrogs or green frogs, they are a delight to observe in the late-winter/early-spring woods. Listen for their duck-…
Category: Staff Picks
Posted on Fri, April 07, 2023 - 07:00pm
Somehow, I forgot to offer a “What Is It!” post for March. To make up for that oversight, April will be “What Is It!” month. Here’s one to get us started. A reader submitted this image from her yard in late March. Email your identification and any comments to Irubinacci@amesfreelibrary.org and…
Category: Staff Picks
Posted on Mon, April 03, 2023 - 07:00pm
The results of our recent Storytime Survey, meant to determine where storytime attendees would like Wiggleworms, Babytime, and Family Storytime to be held in the spring and summer, are in! Your voices came through loud and clear! Over 90% of attendees selected our outside garden space as the…
Category: Kids, Youth Services
Posted on Sat, April 01, 2023 - 07:00pm
As children, we learn the archetypal signs of spring: robins and tulips; nests and eggs; April showers, May flowers, and even Easter bunnies. It’s a good starting point, but there is so much more. The seasonal transition happens in a thousand steps. This week I challenge you to notice some of…
Category: Staff Picks