Ramble On

Tight Tendrils gripping Wingstem

I have a group of friends, the Nature Ramblers, who get together each week at the State Botanical Gardens in Athens to learn about nature. We are led by excellent guides, who often focus on botany, but the members of the group are interested in just about everything and we do not miss an opportunity to appreciate a mushroom or butterfly or toad that we might find along the walk. The motto for the group is "seeking what we find" and usually the group does find something interesting about every 5 feet or so. We don't walk very far, but we make up for lack of distance with excellent content.

Redbud Leaf

Today was a Ramble day, but I had a prior commitment in the morning and arrived about an hour late. I texted a friend to see where the group had gone. You'd think that a big, slow moving group would be easy to find, but there are a lot of trails at the gardens and they could be just about anywhere. While I waited for an answer to my text, I headed in what I thought was the likely direction and tried to find some more birds to add to my June Challenge list as I walked.

Young, Eastern 5-Lined Skink

(For those of you who are not familiar with it, the June Challenge is a friendly birding competition set up by my old birding community in Alachua County, Florida. The goal of the challenge is to actually lay your eyes on as many birds within the county boundaries as you can. The birding is fun and group oriented and people share sightings and locations with everyone who wants to try to add a tough to find bird. The winner gets to keep a huge trophy for the year and is celebrated at the end of June potluck. Not wanting to miss out on all the fun, I'm doing my own version here in Athens, with a couple of rule changes. First, I am allowing myself to bird outside of my county. Athens-Clarke county is small--121 square miles, vs. 969 in Alachua County, so I made my birdable region a 30 mile radius from home. 2nd, because I am the only one participating here and I don't have any teams to help me, I'm allowing myself to count some tough birds I only heard but didn't see, like the Bob White Quail or Barred Owl. It will be fun to see how many I can find.)

Katydid munching on Jewelweed

Anyway, as I was walking to find my fellow Ramblers, I heard a Barred Owl call and stopped to try to see it and maybe even get a photo. It sounded pretty close and I hooted back to try to get it to respond, but it never did. Then I looked down and saw a familiar plant at my feet--Virginia Snakeroot (Aristolochia serpentaria), which is a host plant for Pipevine Swallowtail butterflies. I probed the soil around the little plant looking for the tiny flowers that sometimes grow just under the soil, but didn't see any. It was a good find, anyway. I never did see the owl, but a pair of Pileated Woodpeckers flew out of a tree just ahead and I followed them for a while. Acadian Flycatchers were hopping back and forth in the branches overhead. A Buckeye Butterfly landed in front of me, flashing its big eyespots. It was getting later and later and at this point I had missed most of the walk but I decided that I was enjoying myself. So when I got the text from my friend telling me they were nearby, I walked over to say hi, then turned back and continued my solo ramble.

Virginia Snakeroot

First I walked along the powerline cut to see the prairie plants and look for butterflies and other insects that like heat, sun and flowers. It seems I had chosen to come to the hottest and sunniest part of the garden just when the sun was getting strongest, and I was starting to melt. But my hunch was right and I saw some good bugs--Delta Flower Beetles on Queen Anne's Lace and Daisies, a couple more butterflies and a tiny spider hiding in a Wild Onion flower.

Delta Flower Beetle on a Daisy

Skipper on Bee Balm

Tiny Spider in the middle of the Wild Onion flowers

Next I headed down to the river for some shade and to see if I could find anything interesting in the woods. We've had a lot of rain and the river was rushing and the water sounded cool and calm. It was much cooler there, but the mosquitoes found me and were eating me alive so I turned back out of the deep shade. Luckily, the rest of the trail I followed was still shady, though not as buggy. Walking the path back towards the garden, I saw Indigo Buntings and a Hooded Warbler. Then I watched as a pair of Black and White Warblers hopped up and down the branches of a tree, then one sat still and preened. They looked ruffled like they'd been bathing in the river.

Black and White Warbler

Green Caterpillar (Skipper?) blends in with the green stems 

I think it's nice sometimes to not have an agenda and to just go where the opportunities take you. I wafted down the trail, turning over leaves here and probing rotting logs there. The recent rains that brought out the mosquitoes also brought out the mushrooms and other fungi and right ahead of the Black and White Warblers was a beautiful Eastern Box Turtle, standing on the trail and eating mushrooms. After I took its picture, I moved it out of the way so it wouldn't get stepped on by runners.

Chanterelle

Fungus that looks like fingers
(Which is where it gets its name, I guess! I'm told it is called Dead Man's Fingers, Xylaria polymorpha) 

Big floppy tree fungus with a slug

Eastern Box Turtle with mushroom on its face

Everywhere I went I found something interesting--a red beetle, an Ebony Jewelwing damselfly, a katydid, bullfrogs, a grasshopper. I found a spider hiding behind a Wingstem plant, and chased a small toad around a tree. Though I missed the expert information and camaraderie of the real Ramble, I had a very satisfying morning just going wherever the trail took me. And I'll be back again to join the group next week.

(Read the Nature Rambling blog by clicking this link)

Red Beetle

Ebony Jewelwing Damselfly

Big, Camouflaged Katydid

Grasshopper that looks like granite

Big spider hiding behind a Wingstem stalk

Toad trying to hide from me

30 Days in June: Day 30, Wrapping Up

Rosegentian (Sabatia sp.)

Well, here it is. The 30th of June and the last day of the June Challenge, and the last day of my personal challenge to trek all over the county and beyond to say goodbye to some of my favorite natural areas. I have had a blast! It's been satisfying and exciting. And exhausting! I can't even say how many times this month I've looked out and said "I can't believe how beautiful this is". I've seen so many wonderful places and things and have spent time with my favorite people. This month of journeys has given me memories to last a lifetime.

Delta Flower Beetle on Carolina Redroot (Lachnanthes caroliniana)

On this final day I decided to visit several locations where I thought I could catch some of the birds I was still missing on my list. There are some places that I can go to again and again and they never get old. I made an early morning trip to La Chua Trail, which was still dewy and fresh after a morning morning rain.  The butterflies were active and the spider webs sparkled in the sun.

Palamedes Swallowtail

Variegated Fritillary

Golden Silk Orbweaver

Black and Yellow Argiope Orbweaver

I was hoping to see a Yellow Breasted Chat and thought I'd actually done it until I got home and looked at my photos on the big screen. My Chat turned out to be an Orchard Oriole. It was very far away, but I should have caught on when I saw a pair in a bush closer to the road. Oh well. No Chat.

Adult and Juvenile Orchard Orioles

The Lotus is still blooming and they are so gorgeous that I can't help but take more photos every time I see them.

Beautiful!

American Lotus (Nelumbo lutea)

Down at the observation platform, I met up with fellow birders and we chatted about birds that we wish we had for our June Challenge list. They helped me find a Blue-winged Teal, and then a Wood Duck flew past us, giving me 2 new birds for my list. We looked in vain for the Scaup, but the Roseate Spoonbills were putting on a show and I spent a long time watching them and visiting with friends at the platform. The temperature was really cool and pleasant, almost the best weather I've experienced all month!

Roseate Spoonbill Flyover

Snowy Egret, Roseate Spoonbills and Black-necked Stilts

Later in the afternoon, I met Maralee and we drove to the other end of the county to visit Watermelon Pond and the Newberry Cemetery. We hoped to see Chuck-will's-widows and Fox Squirrels at Watermelon Pond but didn't see any. The trip to the Cemetery was more successful. We found 2 Great Horned Owls and a brilliantly colored pair of Red Headed Woodpeckers.

Great Horned Owl

Red-headed Woodpeckers

Driving down the road to Watermelon Pond, we saw what we were both hoping was a Northern Harrier, but were pretty sure was not, since that sighting would be very unusual. But it would have been very exciting. (During June, everyone wants to be the one to report something unusual or rare.) Later, on the same road, we actually did see a Northern Bobwhite out in the open, dozens of Eastern Kingbirds on the utility wires, and a Bachman's Sparrow that was just singing and singing. We also found a Glass Lizard squiggling across the dirt road.

Kingbird on the Wire

Glass Lizard

We headed home under the light of a beautiful full moon. We forgot to look for planets, though! The storm clouds that had threatened passed right by us and the Nighthawks buzzed overhead. It was a perfect end to a perfect month. Now it is time to clean my camera, put away the rubber boots, wash the car, spend some more time with my husband and dogs, and get packing for the move. I feel like I have said a proper goodbye to Florida and I think I'm ready to leave now. And I have a photo journal and blog to help me remember when I start to feel homesick.

Nighthawks on the First and Last Day

Full Moon

June Challenge Bird Count Grand Total: 100 Birds (96 ABA Countable/4 not countable)
Places Visited: 30, some more than once (See previous blogs!)


My June Challenge 2015 Bird List:
Black Bellied Whistling Duck
Muscovy Duck
Wood Duck
Mottled Duck
Blue Wing Teal
Northern Bobwhite
Pied-billed Grebe
Wood Stork
Double-crested Cormorant
Anhinga
Least Bittern
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Little Blue Heron
Tricolored Heron
Cattle Egret
Green Heron
Black-crowned Night-heron
Yellow-crowned Night-heron
White Ibis
Glossy Ibis
Roseate Spoonbill
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Osprey
Swallow-tailed Kite
Mississippi Kite
Bald Eagle
Cooper's Hawk
Red-shouldered Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
American Kestrel
Purple Gallinule
Common Gallinule
American Coot
Limpkin
Sandhill Crane
Whooping Crane
Killdeer
Black-necked Stilt
Laughing Gull
Rock Pigeon
White-winged Dove
Mourning Dove
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Great Horned Owl
Barred Owl
Common Nighthawk
Chimney Swift
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Red-headed Woodpecker
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Acadian Flycatcher
Great Crested Flycatcher
Eastern Kingbird
Loggerhead Shrike
White-eyed Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Fish Crow
Purple Martin
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Barn Swallow
Carolina Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Brown-headed Nuthatch
Carolina Wren
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Eastern Bluebird
Northern Mockingbird
Brown Thrasher
European Starling
Common Yellowthroat
Hooded Warbler
Northern Parula
Pine Warbler
Yellow-throated Warbler
Eastern Towhee
Bachman's Sparrow
Summer Tanager
Northern Cardinal
Blue Grosbeak
Indigo Bunting
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Common Grackle
Boat-tailed Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Orchard Oriole
House Finch
House Sparrow
Black Swan
Mallard
Greylag Goose
Swan Goose

30 Days in June: Day 21, Gum Root Park

Gum Root Park

On Father's Day evening I convinced my good sport of a husband to accompany me to Gum Root Park. It had been another very hot day and the fact that Gum Root is a wooded, mostly shady park made it more appealing to him than something out in the blazing sun. Thunderstorms were rolling in and it seemed like a bit of a gamble, but I really wanted to visit another park on my list and see if I could find any more birds for the June Challenge.

Gnarled Tree

Gum Root is a quiet City of Gainesville Nature park in East Gainesville. It is near a busy county highway and just past the airport, so there can be a lot of traffic noise. I like to hike here with a friend because it is rather isolated. On past visits I have found Hog Plums in bloom covered with beautiful butterflies and interesting fungi. The information kiosk said that it was possible to see Turkeys in the park, and this made me happy because I haven't seen any yet this month.

Barred Owl

We headed past the huge, towering oaks and into the woods. Immediately, Art said, "there's an owl". A barred owl flew past, landed in a tree just ahead of us, and proceeded to hoot. "Who Cooks for You…".  I took a few blurry photos and it flew further back to watch us from a distance. It called again and I couldn't resist the urge to call back. We hooted a few times back and forth and I hope I did not say something rude in owl.

Tick Pond

The path took us to a clearing with a pond. We could hear lots of frogs and scared off an Egret, a Great Blue Heron and some Red Shouldered Hawks. Standing at the edge of the pond, we realized that we were covered in ticks and scampered back to the trail to pull them off and apply bug spray. The mosquitoes were not a problem but the ticks were terrible.

Open Area

Storm Clouds in the Distance

The thunder sounded closer and I thought I felt a couple of rain drops, but we kept walking. I felt terribly guilty dragging my poor husband out into the heat and rain and ticks, but was secretly overjoyed to have an adventure together. Soon we came to a big clearing. The path turned out across a big field or pasture. This is where I had seen Hog Plums before. It seemed like a good place for Turkeys, or even Bobwhite Quail, but we did not see any. We did see some Mourning Doves. We could hear a great deal of gunfire from a distance and were hoping that it was target practice coming from the police training area nearby. It made us both a little edgy, though.

Long Headed Toothpick Grasshopper

Elliott's Milkpea (Galactia elliottii)

We decided to turn back before the lightning started while we were in the open field. I found a funny little Longheaded Toothpick Grasshopper and some pretty Elliott's Milkpea. When we got back to the parking lot and looked at the map, it appeared that we were nearly to the end of the road when we turned around, so I don't think we missed much. Back in the forest again, we heard Turkeys gobbling from the field. Go figure. And then I found a turkey feather. I guess it won't count for the June Challenge--you have to actually see it. Oh well.

Turkey Feather

The flatwoods were very dry. The creek bed was all sand and rocks--no water at all. The moss on the forest floor was turning brown. And the fungi were few and far between. I did find some "Dog Vomit" slime mold, kind of brown around the edges. We also found trash, but Art carried it back to the garbage can in the parking lot. We passed a beautiful Fence Post Lizard with nice contrasting black, brown and white markings, and some puffs of Reindeer Moss.

Dog Vomit Slime Mold

Reindeer Moss (It's really lichen)

Fat Fencepost Lizard

Back at the car, all safe and sound, we had dodged the rain and lightning. In fact, the rain passed us by entirely. I added no new birds to my list, but did enjoy the owl and a walk in the park. And we could feel good because we had done our good deed for the day by cleaning up some trash. We drove home for a tick check and shower before dinner.

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