That's what my 9-year-old asked me while we were hiking at the Josephine Newman Sanctuary on Georgetown Island.
Although the ant question was out-of-the-blue, that's part of why I enjoy hiking with my family -- the random conversations. At the Sanctuary we talked about recent movies, the nuances of the Webkinz website, what kind of ice cream treats we liked at Dairy Queen (which we passed on the way to the trailhead) and ant anatomy. Getting away from our busy life for a few hours gave us some time to simply chat about what was on our minds (although my 9-year-old has her interesting questions no matter the setting).
We also talked about birds since we had brought along a new toy that the kids have been enamored with -- the "Birdsong Identiflyer." It's a handheld device that has special encoded cards with the songs of 10 birds on each one. The girls have four different cards and both were eager to see if they could identify a bird at the Sanctuary based on it's song.
The girls heard a birdsong while we were on the Red Trail and immediately tried to find it on the Identiflyer. They found a match -- the White-breasted Nuthatch - fairly quickly because they have been playing the songs on the device since Christmas. Actually, I bet our cat Toddy could identify several birdsongs as well since they have spent a lot of time "teaching" him the birdsongs too (useful information for our blind, indoor cat of course).
The kids were thrilled with their discovery and kept an ear out for other birds. We thought we saw some chickadees but the songs didn't match up with the device so we weren't certain. And then we spotted a hawk flying high above the marsh, although he wasn't "singing." We haven't invested the time to become more fluent in bird identification but we all had a lot of fun with the kids' new toy.
We also made a couple of other discoveries that the kids were excited about - deer fur and some feathers.
I always pack an extra plastic baggie in my backpack because when hiking with kids I know it will come in handy - and keep my backpack from getting really dirty. My 9-year-old is always finding things and deciding she needs to take it home for her "collection." I don't let her take a lot of souvenirs from the trail but an occasional item keeps her pleasant company.
So yes, some deer fur and one "pretty little feather" came home with us.
We hiked the entire Red Trail, the largest looping trail at the Sanctuary, and found it an easy and well-marked trail. But there were a lot of roots so even without the mud and ice of early spring, hikers should pay attention to their footing.
When we arrived at the section of the Red Trail that overlaps the Blue Trail we made another interesting discovery -- a pair of work gloves on a tree.
At first glance it appeared that someone had been clearing some branches and left their gloves to dry (one of which was in posed in a one-finger salute).
My husband and I laughed at the sight but the girls assumed that the finger was suggesting they look to the sky (I really am grateful for the innocence of my children) and spotted a potentially dangerous situation. Several loose - and very large - tree branches were laying precariously across the tops of two small trees. We held the girls back until the wind died down a little before running across the trail and away from that area. It was a good reminder to look towards the sky periodically when hiking in the woods in early spring. Many trail crews at this time of year haven't likely had a chance to clear out the winter storm damage yet.
By the end of the afternoon we had hiked nearly two-thirds of the Sanctuary and found the trails a snap to navigate and the terrain easy for children.
And in case you were wondering about ant hearts, my 9-year-old and I did a quick web search when we got home. It turns out that ants actually have a long tube that pumps their blood from its abdomen to its head and back again.
So the simple answer is yes, an ant's heart is in its butt.
NEED TO KNOW
Trail name: Josephine Newman SanctuaryNearest Town: Georgetown Island
Region: Mid-coast
Difficulty: Beginner Directions: From the junction of U.S. Route 1 and Route 127 in Woolwich, just east of the Woolwich-Bath bridge, head south on 127 for 9.1 miles to Georgetown. Turn right at the small blue sanctuary sign and follow the narrow entrance road to the parking area.
Other: The sanctuary is open year-round from dawn to dusk. Pets, hunting and off road vehicles are not permitted. At the top of the access road is space enough to park about six cars. The day we visited the access road was too icy to drive on so we parked on a wide shoulder down the street.
Originally published in the Maine Sunday Telegram, April 2007
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