Top Photo: Saucer magnolia bursting open. A week ago and the saucer magnolia flower buds were obvious but not yet open. Then, they all seemed to burst open at once. Squirrels are eagerly gathering up food and consuming it on the spot. The black walnut pictured here is just one of the many choices available, having been cached in the fall and relocated when other food is scarce. While standing on the Main Wetlands Overlook I spied a small pieceRead more
Posts filed in: Herps
Geese, Opossum, Pollen and Turtle
Top Photo: Canada geese return to wetland. As they do every February, a pair of Canada geese have arrived to stake a claim on a piece of our wetland. More will likely show up as we roll into spring (last year we had six pair vying for space in our three acre wetland). An opossum spent the entire day some twelve feet up a vine that wrapped itself around a tree next to the Dinosaur Trail. It’s not unusual toRead more
Great Blue Heron
Top Photo: Great blue heron relaxes alongside Floating Walkway in wetlands. Over time, I’ve seen six different species of heron in our 3 acre wetland at the Museum of Life and Science. They include great blue heron, great egret, little blue heron, green heron, black-crowned night heron, and yellow-crowned night heron. By far, the most often observed species is the great blue heron (GBH). GBHs are year round residents, they nest locally and they’re used to sharing their habitat withRead more
Water Snake
Top Photo: Northern water snake. Where there’s water there’s likely to be water snakes. If there are fish, frogs and tadpoles present the likelihood of snakes on the scene goes way up. If you live here on the Carolina Piedmont the snake you see is almost sure to be a northern water snake (Nerodia sipedon). In our little wetland at the Museum of Life and Science, I’ve never seen anything but northern water snakes. There are at least eight otherRead more
Chicken Mushroom, Rare Wren, Odd Sweetgum, Active Tadpoles and Basking Turtles
Top Photo: Chicken of the woods. Chicken of the woods is a shelf mushroom which grows directly from dead wood. It does not have stems or stalks, and it’s a polypore, meaning it has numerous pores on the underside of its caps or shelves rather than gills to spread its spores. This mushroom may be bright yellow or orange when fresh but may fade to white or tan as it ages. It’s edible. However, while doing research, I found it’sRead more
From Muscadines to Silk Moths
Top Photo: Muscadine grapes ripening on the vine. Muscadine grapes are native to the southeast and are a common and welcomed plant here at the museum. Many birds and mammals including cardinals, robins, and turkeys, groundhogs, gray fox, and humans eat the fruit. There are many vines throughout the museum grounds. If you can reach the grapes as they grow on the vine, it’s worth it to grab a few for yourself before they’re all gone. Cardinal flower is bloomingRead more
The End is Near, Summer That is
Top Photo: Ripening persimmon. There are many persimmon trees in and around our wetlands. The fruit is fast ripening. Much of the fruit will drop into the water. Fret not, fruit that plops into the water is not wasted. Our population of sliders in the wetlands will take care of whatever falls from the trees and into the water. An interesting fact about persimmons, they make excellent catfish bait. There are no catfish in our pond but if you liveRead more
Basking Turtles, Mating Anoles, and Pupating Moths
Top Photo: It’s carapace to carapace as sliders enjoy the warm sunshine. After days of either brutally hot temps or pouring rain the wetland’s sliders were out with the sun on a rather cool (relatively speaking) dry day. it was double digit turtles on the floating platforms placed in the pond specifically for that purpose. Both platforms were utilized. Green anoles were taking advantage of the change in the weather to mate. This pair was on a wooden bench inRead more