More Fall Sights

Top Photo: Hearts-a-bursting on the Dinosaur Trail. The second week of fall brought even more new sights than the first. Read on to find out what. Euonymus may be known to gardeners by various names, burning bush, golden euonymus, winter creeper, and others, all non-native plants in the genus Euonymus. However, hearts-a-busting, or bursting hearts (Euonymus americanus) is a native understory shrub which can be seen at various places along our outdoor trail loop. It’s also know as strawberry bushRead more

Unknown Miner

Ranger Kristin noticed a white silky substance covering part of the clover leaves at our feet. Bending down to get a closer look we realized that there was something moving under that white substance. It looked to be some sort of larvae, very small larvae. The plant was White Clover (Trifolium repens). The leaves of the plant themselves are small, each leaflet about 15 mm, and in comparison the larvae were elfin. They looked to be about 1 – 2Read more

A Cosmopolitan Dragonfly

I stopped by the Sail Boat Pond, as I often do on my routine hikes around the Outdoor Exhibits, and noticed a golden-hued dragonfly clinging to one of the bungee cords which holds in place the ABS tubing meant to keep the boats from ramming into the block wall of the pond. The dragonfly was a Wandering Glider (Pantala flavescens). As I walked around the pond I noticed dragonfly exuviae hanging from the inner wall of the pond. Circumnavigating theRead more

What is that!

I look forward to my weekly walks with the Outdoor Summer Campers. We always find something interestng. Certainly, as the season progresses new plants come into flower, seed, or fruit, birds move forward in their nesting or migrations, and insects continue their emergence and growth. This past Wednesday we found evidence of the latter part of that statement in Explore the Wild. The first question I put to the campers upon seeing the object on the right is, “What do youRead more

Odonata

Since March 19 when I saw the first damselflies of the season emerging from the Wetlands, there have been five additional species of odonata seen. The first Common Baskettail was seen the 30th of March. Blue Corporal and Common Whitetail were both observed on the 3rd of April and a male Common Green Darner on the 7th of the month. A Lancet Clubtail was seen on the Dinosaur Trail on the 10th of April. If all of the new arrivalsRead more