Heads Up!

 

It's not a good photograph in the technical sense, but I don't care. The face of this rough green snake (Opheodrys aestivus) is just too cute not to share. It was busy hunting for insects and spiders in a tangle of grape vine when I startled it. After checking me out, it slipped back in among the leaves and vines.

Behave Yourself...

 

'Cause you just never know who's got his eye on you ;)

This alligator was sneaking around the shoreline of the millpond, with only its eyes and nose showing.

Excuse Me

If you've never had the opportunity to observe these little aerial acrobats, I urge you to make the effort to seek them out. Barn swallows are guaranteed to delight and amaze. Hugh, over at Rock Paper Lizard, tells of the decline in numbers of these birds. Distressing news. It makes me doubly glad that we have some nesting on the bridge bascules at work. This one gave me the once over when I disturbed it during its morning ablutions.

I'm an equal opportunity annoyer -- this yellowbelly slider was on the road shoulder just across from the driveway at the new house. She was not delighted at having her picture taken. I finally took the hint and left her to her task of finding a place to lay her eggs.

Around the House

No pictures this morning -- but I did want to give you an idea of what's active around the house this spring. We have several species of birds nesting in the yard: bluebirds, prothonotary warblers, chipping sparrows, cardinals, downy woodpeckers, blue-gray gnatcatchers, mourning doves, Carolina wrens, summer tanagers, blue grosbeaks, indigo buntings, brown thrashers, catbirds, and red-bellied woodpeckers. There are hummingbird nests nearby, I'm sure. In addition to the birds, we have quite a crop of cotton rats and cottontails this year. I also expect to see momma deer introducing her fawns to our platform bird feeder before too terribly long.

This will be our last spring in this house. We've been here 18 years. I imagine whoever moves in after we leave will "clean up" the "yard." What a shame.

Prothonotary Warbler

Bright yellow and busy, Prothonotaries are always fun to watch. We have a pair nesting in the yard this year. They have built in a blue bird box right next to the driveway. This is the second time we have had them to nest in a box in the yard. Last time we were fortunate enough to be watching when the little ones fledged.

Want to learn a little trivia about the Prothonotary? Check out this article at Cornell's Birds of North America site.

Hanging Out With Turtles

Yellowbelly slider, Trachemys scripta (Thanks, Tom)

Hey, baby!

Spangled Skimmer

 

Female spangled skimmer, Libellula cyanea.

As Promised

Here you go, woverman, a picture of the house in progress.

 

Millpond Cabana

As I paddled along yesterday, savoring the fact that I was actually out and about with the whole pond to myself, I spied one of my favorite critters savoring the day as well. Green treefrogs never fail to make me smile.

This brown water snake also made me smile. Gotta love a snake wearing a duckweed wig...

The Merry Month of May...Please

Okay, remember me? I've been away a while. Seems the fates weren't done with us afterall...April turned out to be just as bad as March - more loss and sadness. But things have to get better, right?

On a positive note, the house is coming along nicely. The framers finished last week and the masons should have the chimney completed today. We are supposed to get the windows this week, too. Also, I found a vinyl floor design that I actually like - one more decision made!

Our older son came to see us over the weekend. He took his kayak back home with him when he left -- good thing, too. We don't have any out buildings at the new house. Storage is going to be an issue don't you know...

The flower above is a pink lady's-slipper, Cypripedium acaule. We have quite a few blooming this year.

Bright Spots in a Gray Day

Moth Moments

Upper photo: Hubner's Pero, Pero hubneraria
(please mentally insert two dots over the "u" in "Hubner")
Lower photo: Light Marathyssa, Marathyssa basalis

I try to take a few minutes each day at work to walk around the decks of the visitor center and see what the security lights attracted the night before. Lights left burning all night are not among my favorite things, but I guess this is one of those "lemonade from lemons" things. Since I am not high enough on the food chain to change policy, I will make the best of the situation and use it as an opportunity to add species to the database :)

The moths above represent two of the seven species observed one morning last week. The pero uses willows and alders as host plants. The photo is included because I find the moth to be very pretty -- I'm such a girl ;)

The second moth is included because it is so darn peculiar-looking. When I first saw it, I thought I was seeing the remains of a moth that had been gobbled up by some nibble predator. Upon closer examination I discovered that the abdomen wasn't missing as I had presumed, it was just curled up and over. And the wings weren't ragged, just folded. Sneaky, eh?

The coolest thing about this Light Marathyssa? Its caterpillar feeds on poison ivy! Now, I know that will bring a smile to the faces of many.

Back to Normal...I Hope

You may have noticed (or perhaps not) that posts and replies to comments have been a little shy around here lately. Trust me, it hasn't been by choice. Life has a way of kicking you around now and again. Let's just say that March is a month Treebeard and I were glad to see the last of. It was a month of anxiety, necessary separation and painful loss. We are a little weary as a result. But, I am an optimist and I have to feel that things are on the up-swing. For one thing, our house is finally under construction! Yes, folks, we have a foundation and the framers are due to start on Monday. I spent one day this week picking out flooring (hardwood, carpet, and vinyl), cabinets, and countertops. Having lived in park housing my entire adult life I've never experienced having a choice in such things. Heady stuff, don't you know.

Anyway, I hope to start posting things of swampy interest here in the very near future. Everything is greening up, blooming and busting out. Butterflies are flying, dragonflies are emerging and pollen is coating everything in bright yellow. Spring is my favorite season and I plan on sharing -- even if I have to resort to pilfering more photos from Treebeard :>. (Do you know that that stinker saw a woodcock with five chicks the other day?!?! Such excess!)

Meanwhile, I'll leave you with a couple of my pictures of a dragonfly emerging. They're sort of representative of how I'm feeling.

 

Take A Guess

Good guesses! Yes, both are kaleidoscoped images of a butterfly's wing. To be precise, the wing of an American Lady, Vanessa virginiensis.

Tiny Treasures

Scattered among the browns of dead leaves littering the forest floor, we spotted some tiny treasures of late winter...

A perky little violet, either Viola affinis or V. sororia. I wasn't paying attention to the leaves, so I'm not certain which of the two species this flower represents. Treebeard has both species listed in the park's database.

The elusive least trillium, Trillium pusillum var. virginianum.

And the humble little common starwort, Stellaria media.

Sunday Salamanders

Treebeard and I carved out a little down time from our recently hectic schedules and took a walk Sunday afternoon. While we were out, we did a little peeking under logs to see what what stirring. Below are two of the critters we found. The first image is of a two-lined salamander, Eurycea bislineata. The second image is of a redback salamander, Plethodon cinereus. If I get the chance, I'll be back with some information about these two species. But right now I must leave for work...

 

Today, The Home Swamp

 

A Trick of the Lens

Julian Beever sees things differently from most of us, I think. CBS Sunday Morning did a story on him today and showed some of his pavement drawings. They are the coolest things...you have to go see for yourself. Click on the title of this post to take a look at his work.