Summer begins this month. In northeastern Ohio, hot muggy days are replaced by cool fronts moving through almost weekly. Bright skies follow, and the weather is perfect for long walks to discover the fullness of summer.

June was called the month of the "strawberry moon" by Native Americans. Near my home the woodchucks and I celebrate the month of strawberries together as I grow the berries and they eat them. My neighbors say that I should fence the garden and increase my yields, but for me the land yields many kinds of harvests, and the chance to watch young woodchucks frolic in the lawn is worth the price of berries lost.

Birds-

Adult chickadees and titmice grow scarce at bird feeders as they busily hatch and fledge their young.

June evenings bring the flute-like calls of wood thrushes and veeries as twilight settles on the land.

Wildflowers-

Summer flowers begin to dot the open meadows of Cleveland Metroparks with oranges and yellows of hawkweed and yellows of cinquefoil.

Birds-

Nighthawks (not true hawks but relatives of whippoorwills) grace the evening skies throughout the region as they hunt for their insect prey. Listen for the "b-z-z-z-t" made by their wings as they power-dive for food.

Mammals-

Young woodchucks emerge to learn the ways of the woodchuck world with their mothers.

Wildflowers-

Yellow iris adds a touch of bright color to the green of marsh edges.

Cow parsnip as tall as a person appears with umbrella-shaped white blossoms along stream banks and marsh edges.

Trees-

Snow in June? No, just uncountable millions of seeds of the cottonwood tree, drifting about in the summer breeze.

Birds-

Fledgling chickadees begin to appear at bird feeders with their tired parents.

Wildflowers-

By tradition, St. John's wort blooms on June 21 to ward away evil spirits on a mid-summer's night eve.

Wild strawberries ripen in this third week of the "strawberry moon."

Watch open fields and roadsides for the first of the pale blue flowers of chickory, sometimes called blue sailors.

Fishes-

Carp begin to thrash along shorelines of Lake Isaac and the lower reaches of the Rocky River as they spawn and lay eggs in warm shallow water.

Wildflowers-

Common milkweed unfolds fragrant purple flowers beginning this week and continuing through July. The flowers turn into green dill-pickle-sized pods and are a prized "wild edible" in some parts of the country.

Queen Anne's lace begins to bloom.

Yellow and orange spotted jewelweed is blooming on moist sites throughout Cleveland Metroparks. Later in summer, their "exploding" seed pods delight hikers brave enough to touch!

Reptiles-

Snapping turtles may travel great distances from their native waters to lay eggs in warm sandy hillsides.