Motivation April 12, 2010
Posted by Jennifer Schlick in spring, wildflowers.14 comments
It took me a while to motivate myself to get off the couch and into the woods to see what might be blooming yesterday. My sore throat had gotten worse, and the nose was running, eyes tearing, etc… Thankfully, the sunny skies, lack of wind, and eager dog got the better of me and off I went.
Trout Lily (Erythronium americanum)
Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis)
White Trillium (Trillium grandiflora)
Cut-leaved Toothwort (Dentaria laciniata)
Dutchman’s Breeches (Dicentra cucullaria)
Red Trillium (Trillium erectum)
Blue Cohosh (Caulophyllum thalictroides)
Sharp-lobed Hepatica (Hepatica acutiloba)
I love spring wildflowers… They make me forget I have a cold…
Still Waiting April 9, 2010
Posted by Jennifer Schlick in amphibians, insects, spring.14 comments
It had been so warm for so many days. Finally, rain. But when the rain came, the temperatures dropped… into the 40s… too cold, according to the experts, for the Spotted Salamanders to migrate to the pools. I knew there was little hope of finding them, but I ventured out anyway with camera, flashlights, cell phone, and the list of people who are as anxious as me to see them.
The sound of the peepers ws deafening as I passed the ponds along the old farm road.
When I got to the pond, I heard plenty of Wood Frogs… but they stopped singing when I shone my flashlight into the water. I searched and searched for salamanders, but saw nothing. Just the eggs that the Jefferson’s had left a week or more ago… and a few Wood Frog eggs. The frogs stopped singing when I turned on my flashlight.
After searching, I decided to turn off the flashlight and get quiet so the Wood Frogs would sing some more. I planned to get out my camera and capture their songs, as I had the Spring Peepers. But they wouldn’t sing.
Then I heard a rustling in the leaves near the path. I thought there was an animal visitor… perhaps a deer, or a raccoon. A strange noise came from that direction – like the noise people make when they are “talking to” red squirrels… I decided to get my cameral out so I could try to capture this strange sound…
Then it turned into giggling and a flashlight went on. Pat and Denny! Together we searched the pond and finally saw a few Spotted Salamanders… probably males that made it to the pond a while back… Denny captured one so I could photograph it.
Not much activity in the pond on this cold night. On the way back, though, we saw plenty of Glowworms:
Hard to believe this critter will turn into a Firefly, isn’t it?
Eastern Leatherwood April 4, 2010
Posted by Jennifer Schlick in spring, wildflowers.4 comments
You would think that eventually your walk over familiar paths would offer up nothing but the familiar… but such is not the case… there is always something new for observant eyes. For me, yesterday, it was a shrub.
I followed the trail I have walked hundreds and hundreds of times looking for spring wildflowers in the places I know they will eventually appear. I wasn’t finding much… Leaves… but nothing blooming… I decided to walk as far as the little dribble of a creek that has a sunny, protected bank where flowers often bloom earlier than in the rest of the woods… There might be Spring Beauties, or maybe even some violets?…
No such luck (at first)… But there was a wonderful moss-covered log creating a bridge of sorts over the creek!
While I was taking several dozen pictures of the moss, something caught my eye a little further upstream… A shrub covered with yellow-green blossoms… rather fragrant yellow-green blossoms!
I surfed around, read what few books I have laying around at home and learned these things:
- The bark is very tough and was reportedly used by Native Americans for a variety of things, including the weaving of baskets.
- The berries are narcotic. (another source says “toxic”)
- Deer won’t eat it – according to one source… and another source says both deer and moose eat it…
I think I want some of these at Audubon in our Native Woodland Wildflower garden… Wouldn’t that be cool?
After photographing the Leatherwood for quite some time, I turned to head back up the path and noticed the bank of the creek was covered with Spring Beauties. I swear they weren’t there when I first arrived. They must have bloomed while I was otherwise occupied, right?
Learn More:
- Dave’s Garden
- USDA Plant Database (has a picture of the fruit, too)
- University of Connecticut Horticulture Page
- Kurt Schulz – Southern University of Illinois Edwardsville
We Haven’t Missed It!… March 29, 2010
Posted by Jennifer Schlick in amphibians, reptiles, spring.2 comments
Sarah and I walked out to the Vernal Pool today to see if anything has happened yet. The short story is: we have not missed the migration of the Spotted Salamanders!
We heard our first Spring Peepers as we walked out. And when we got to the pool, we did see a couple of of Wood Frogs who jumped in as we approached,the snapping turtle who overwinters in this pool, and quite a few eggs from the Jefferson-Blue-Spotted Salamanders.
Spring Peeper by Sarah Hatfield
Wood Frog by Tom LeBlanc
Snapping Turtle in the Vernal Pool
Jefferson-Blue-Spotted Salamander
We have had warm weather. And we have had wet weather. But we have not yet had warm wet weather. The Spotted Salamander females are said to run when the temperature is 55 and it’s raining… Maybe this week?
Spotted Salamanders
Trying to time the migration of spotted salamanders each spring has become an obsession for me. It just isn’t spring, unless I can (at least try to) go see the salamanders in the vernal pool. Spontaneous Naturalists: be on the ready… It could be this week.
Springtime Delights March 23, 2010
Posted by Jennifer Schlick in spring.7 comments
I am known by those who read my blog as WinterWoman. I do love the winter… but I must admit a special affection for spring, too… even when it means the dog must be bathed after every muddy walk. Each day brings a new delight.
It seems to start with sounds. A Cardinal sings outside my window in the mornings announcing to other males that this is his territory and to females that he is available. I’ve seen him at my feeders all winter but heard only his little high-pitched chips… Now he is rolling out the whole repertoire. I’m no female cardinal, but let me tell you: I AM impressed!
Skunk Cabbage with its high springtime metabolism melts its way through the remaining piles of snow. It is said that a thermometer placed inside the spathe that protects the spadex will read several degrees higher than the air. An unusual fragrance like that of rotting meat attracts early-emerging insects like flies who think they will find food. While investigating the inside of the strange meat-colored hood, the fly unwittingly pollinates this first flower of spring. Eventually, the flowers will be hidden beneath the some of the largest leaves the forest produces. Now, the marshy wet areas of the woods are covered with pointy little shelters that look nothing like flowers, really.
Also hard to think of as a proper flower are the Pussy Willows. While all the other branches sport only buds, these shrubs have dioecious fuzzy flowers – that is some flowers are “boys” and others are “girls”.
Skunk Cabbage and Pussy Willows come early, but this is only the beginning. With each week we will see new flowers blooming on the forest floor… Violets, Spring Beauties, Trillium, Hepatica… more species with each passing day.
On a warm, windless, sunny day under leafless trees, something catches my eye… a flutter of dark wings edged with cream and a row of blue spots… A Mourning Cloak butterfly who spent the winter, perhaps, behind a flap on the Shagbark Hickory is stretching its wings. It seems to be dancing in the sunlight, as delighted as I to see the changes in the forest day by day.
I like to walk the edges of the ponds in the late afternoons to see if I can find a snake or turtle basking. One afternoon, I sat basking and relaxing on the bench of the boardwalk over Spatterdock Pond when suddenly I was treated to an amusing performance. Two male 
muskrats swam back and forth defending invisible boundaries. A flirty little female teased them both by swimming into and out of their territories. Each male would pursue her until she crossed out of his protected space, and then he would turn back. I don’t know which male she chose, whose territory she preferred. It wasn’t long… just a few more weeks, and a walk across Spatterdock Boardwalk provided a chance to see muskrat babies swimming in the cattails.
Male Red-winged Blackbirds are dripping from the trees, exercising their voices at top volume: “Conk-la-ree! Conk-la-ree!” I’m handsomer than you; this is my territory. The females will return soon. For now, all their squawking is just practice and posturing.
If you haven’t been out for a springtime walk, do it now! It’ll wake up your senses.
Happy Midwinter! February 2, 2010
Posted by Jennifer Schlick in mammals, spring, winter.3 comments
(I hope you’ll click on all my links below to see some other interesting sites, pictures, information…)
February 2nd falls midway between the winter solstice and the vernal equinox. While pop culture celebrates the day as Groundhog Day, for centuries it was celebrated by the Celts as Imbolc.
The name of the midwinter festival, Imbolc, comes from a Gaelic word for ewe’s milk, for at this time of year the ewes may be lactating in certain parts of the Northern Hemisphere. The festival celebrates this and other hints that Spring is starting to overtake Winter.
I plan to celebrate at work with more Snowflake Festival preparations. (Are you going to be there on Saturday?)
Here’s hoping “Phil” sees his shadow. I haven’t seen nearly enough snow yet!
Learn about groundhogs by clicking –> here.
North Side of the Creek May 4, 2009
Posted by Jennifer Schlick in spring, wildflowers.3 comments
I visited College Park on May 1st and saw nearly 30 species of wildflowers on the south side of the creek. (Click here for that post.) I returned Sunday, May 3rd to visit the north side. I knew I would add at least one species to the list because I remembered a rather sizable patch of Yellow Clintonia. I found it, but only buds so far:
I’ll have to get over there this week to catch the blooming (of this AND others that are still in bud)!
I have been seeing leaves all over the place, but I also saw my first of the year Wild Geraniums:
Toothwort in bloom, and tight round buds on May Apples…
Happy May Day May 1, 2009
Posted by Jennifer Schlick in amphibians, spring, wildflowers.7 comments
Enjoy a Flowery Friday… some images from a damp evening walk:
Skunk Cabbage
Jack-in-the-Pulpit
Dwarf Ginseng, Goldthread
Painted Trillium
Violets (I’m guessing: Common Blue and Northern White?? Violets are too plentiful and hard to identify…)
Oops! That’s not a Flower! Red Eft
Wild Oats, Swamp Buttercup
(Happy Birthday, Durenka!)
In addition to those pictured, I also saw the following:
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Jewelweed – new little round leaves only
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False Hellabore – leaves
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Canada Mayflower – leaves and buds
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Horsetail – lots of leaves and some flower buds
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Marsh Marigold – full bloom and gorgeous
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a yellow Violet
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Foam Flowers – new leaves and tight little buds
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Dutchman Breeches or Squirrel Corn leaves
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Colt’s Foot – going to seed, some small leaves up
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Running Strawberry Bush – buds
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Yellow Mandarin (a.k.a. Fairy Bells) – leaves and buds
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Spring Cress (tall plants with tight buds)
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Trout Lily (most gone to seed)
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Spring Beauties (Caroliniana)
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Soloman Seal – buds
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Red Trillium
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Blue Cohosh
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Toothwort – just the leaves
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Cut-leaved Toothwort – blooming
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Myrtle
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Partridge Berry – fruit
Where? Jamestown Community College – College Park – south side of the creek. Hope to visit the north side today!
Nature at 55 (revisited) April 29, 2009
Posted by Jennifer Schlick in spring, wildflowers.4 comments
Last spring, I wrote about observing nature at 55 miles per hour. That’s how I found the big patch of White Trout Lily (that I had been driving past for 9 years and never noticing). I stopped again this year for more photos.
I also stopped at a couple of other spots that catch my eye as I drive and got these:
I’ve never seen these any place else. And they’re so perfect and colorful, I was sure they must be some sort of domesticated thing… But I think they are actually a wildflower! Native to our area, even! Moss (or Creeping) Phlox (Phlox subulata). They are on a rocky, dry roadside bank on Route 60 (Foote Avenue) near “The Glen.”
Certainly I see these all over the place. But there is one spot on the east side of Route 62 between the traffic light and Riverside Road where you can see a rather large patch of them. White Trillium (Trillium grandiflora).
These, too, are everywhere. But on the west side of Route 62 they spill into the ditches from a woodland creek and are just lovely… Marsh Marigold (Caltha palustris).
What caught your eye at 55 miles per hour?
