Hob-Knobbing

 Most of this weekend I spent in Lancaster, Ohio with some mighty fine people in some mighty fine places- true hob-knobbing.  Lancaster is surrounded by  interesting land formations, not the least of which are found off  Becks- Knob Rd.

This is Ruble Knob, within Shallenberger State Nature Preserve.  These sandstone formations were shaped by water  about 300 million years ago.  You can follow the link above to read the geological history, or find a great guide to go along to tell you the story.

Jim Davidson, guide extraodinaire.

 Jim Davidson happens to be one of my favorite guides in the world.  He is a master on butterflies, dragonflies and botany!  He knows most of Ohio's State Nature Preserves like the back of his hand.  The good news, you can go in the field with him, too!  Just high-tail it over to Mothapaloosa or the Mid-West Native Plant Conference and sign up for his trip.  Just click on their logos in the side bar of this blog.

 The second stop this weekend was the annual Trillium Fest.  It is held a few miles down the road from Lancaster, and offers one of the most spectacular hikes in all of the Hocking Hills.  It is a part of the Appalachian Ohio Alliance  (A.O.A.) Land Trust.  They do some very good work, and I hope you will help support them.


Weedpicker in ski-gear in April?

Inside the main gate was a glorious stand of Marsh Marigolds, Caltha palustrus,  an early flower of the wetlands. They are in full bloom in spite of the 30 something degree weather.  Yes, I am wearing my snow suit.   The truth is, I am inordinately fond of being warm, and find no shame in wearing my ski-gear at any given time.  Tease all you like, this girl hates to be cold.



Large-Flowered Trilluim, Trillium grandiflorum

The star of this spring flower show is always the Trillium.  The Large-Flowered Trillium is our Ohio State flower and one of our most recognizable spring ephemerals.



Red Trillium, Trillium erectum

But much rarer, and even more stunning is the Red Trillium. The name Red Trillium may not always seem accurate, as it can also be pink, or creamy white.  Some call them Stinking Benjamin, as they have a rather unpleasant odor.  It may be unpleasant to the nose, but what a sight for the eyes!



Red Trillium abound within this protected site.

The walls of this naturally occurring box canyon are festooned in red.  The beauty of this portion of the Hocking Hills can hold its own against any location in Ohio, or well beyond.

The sandstone formations are dotted in a floral Elysian and deserving of permanent protection.  It is wonderful work for the ages, the people of A.O.A. are set about accomplishing. You'll find some of Ohio's best naturalists involved with this organization.  No one speaks to their mission more clearly than our friend, Paul Knoop. 

When we consider what it took to create this landscape, we must also consider what we can do to insure that future generations will also be able to marvel at its beauty.

                                                                                 Paul Knoop

It is no wonder good people like Jim Davidson and Paul Knoop continue to work towards the protection and preservation of Ohio's most beautiful and unique lands.  Join the A.O.A and see how you can visit this property too.

The Biggest Week got longer!

Spring is in the air, and it won't be long until America's Biggest Week in Birding takes place in Northwest Ohio.  And believe it or not, it just got BIGGER!

Yellow-throated Warbler, photo by John Howard

 In order to spread the bird lovin' around, The Biggest Week sends road trips out to place like Oak Openings near Toledo, Catawba Island and Marblehead.  Folks love to look at those neotropical migrants, the wood warblers!  But to see all of them in Ohio, you'll need to head south of Magee Marsh... about 230 miles, or 4.5 hours south to be exact!

Some of our warblers- those southern Ohio specialty birds- show up at Flora-Quest, an event I organize in Shawnee State Park and Adams County.

Biggest Week hits the road to Adams County, with Greg Miller

Last year my friend Greg Miller was already doing the Flora-Quest's Birding trip in Adams and Scioto Counties, and we decided to offer a "Greg Miller Road Trip" to The Biggest Week!

Roadside birding and bird photography "Shawnee style."
Don't try this in Oak Harbor!

He finds great birds everywhere!

Prairie Warble, photo by John Howard

 Prairie Warblers, Yellow-breasted Chats, and Scarlet Tanagers have the run of this place. If things go well, we may even turn up a Blue Grosbeak or Henslow's Sparrow.

Greg Miller blessing the birds.

 May the birds be with you, and may you join us next year in Adams and Scioto County. This year the trip is already full, but we have so much fun, I can't believe we won't offer it again in 2014.

Roadside birding and botanizing is the norm in Shawnee.

Shawnee State Park is as far south in Ohio as you can go without falling in the Ohio River. This massive forest is an island of quiet and beauty in an otherwise agricultural and industrial state.  The roads wind through hillsides dotted with rare flowers and divided by sparkling streams.

Blue-headed Vireo builds her nest.  

 Listen for the Blue-headed Vireo. 

Henry's Elfin

Yellow Lady's-Slipper, Cypripedium parviflorum var. pubescens

Watch for the impossibly small Henry'sElfin Butterfly.  They will be near the Redbud trees.


And if you are a really lucky-birder, you might stumble upon a Yellow Lady's-Slipper, one of our most beautiful orchids.  They grow throughout Shawnee.



So if you are itching for some fabulous birding, remember- The Biggest Week just got bigger.







We can't wait to see our Biggest Week / Flora-Quest friends in Shawnee!

Greg Miller and I will be waiting for you there.

The Butterfly season begins.

Warning! Viewing these photos could make you earnestly long for spring and strike out for early season butterflying.  Sane people do not look for butterflies in winter coat weather.  Now that we have established a definition of sane, we know that my friends and I fall through that crack.

Henry's Elfin, Callophrys henrici

 So who is Henry, and why does he rate a butterfly? That I do not know.

We do know it is one of our earliest butterflies, it is no bigger than a dime, and tends to be southern in Ohio.  It is common, locally.  Which means you can see numerous Henry's, if you find one.  You should look for them where you find naturally occurring stands of Eastern Redbud.

The bud on Eastern Redbud

 Henry's lay their eggs on the buds of Eastern Redbud, Cercis canadensis.  The adults emerge in time to mate and lay eggs on the flower buds. Butterflies emergence is not timed with the calendar as much as it is timed with phenology, or the blooming of plants.  The Redbuds are late to bloom this year, and you can bet the Henry's are perfectly timed with them.  That is how nature works.

Male Falcate Orange-tip, Anthocharis midea

 Falcate Orange-tip is of the butterfly Family Pieridae (the whites and yellows.)

This early spring emergent is a feast for the eyes, at least the boldly marked males are.

Female Falcate Organe-tip

 The females could be easily overlooked.  They are smaller versions of a Common Cabbage White, with an odd mottled coloring to their hindwings.

Mated Falcate Orange-tips, Male left, female right

Both male and female have the mottled underwing, but you will rarely see it.  In fact, this is the only time I have photographed the underwing.  It is difficult, if not down right impossible to get decent photographs of this hyper-active species.  The cold weather worked in our favor; these poor butterflies were moving in slow motion due to the chilly temps.

It is a rarity to find butterfly seekers in cold weather gear, but here we are: the Ohio Lepidopterists' sub-group called B.O.G. (Butterfly Observers Group.)  We watch, photograph, document and celebrate butterflies.

But we never, never pin.   Wishing you a great day in the field, even when you have to wear a jacket!

Spotting Salamanders!

Salamander season has been a bit "spotty" this year.  First it was too cold.  Then it was too dry.  Many of the salamander fans in Ohio were starting to think we would miss out.

Spotted Salamander

 Salamanders have unique life cycles. The adults emerge from the ground on rainy spring nights and head to vernal pools.  These water-holes of the woods are filled with mating frogs and salamanders of all kind.  And the eggs masses left behind- writhing with mini salamanders- are proof of the adult salamander's night time activities.

John Howard- a naturalist outstanding in his field, er, vernal pool.

 Following soon after the salamanders, are the salamander fans:  like John Howard.

 John knows how to impress the women, he shows them salamanders!

 John was kind enough to take six of us out to visit some of his favorite vernal pools yesterday.  The results were excellent.  The other five women in the group got their "life" Spotted Salamanders and  Marbled Salamander larva.

 Debi is admiring the Marbled Salamander larva.  Marbled Salamanders lay their eggs in the vernal pools in the fall, so their young are already developed.  They aggressively feed upon the other salamander's and frog's eggs.  Nature is a tough Mother: it is a salamander-eat-salamander world!

 John even created this hand held viewing cell, two sheets of Plexiglas with a narrow space between, which allows folks a closer look.  Patent pending.

The Marbled Salamander larva swimming between sheets of glass.  Sorry for the bad photo-too much movement-  but you get the idea.

 The salamander paparazzi were having a field day.  Congratulations, Mary Ann and Kathy - you are now in the Salamander Club.

Salamanders make people smile.  Jan gets her first close up view of a Spotted.

And why should we care if people see salamanders?  Because now these ladies want to help us protect salamanders and their natural habitats.  Once people have a close encounter with the inhabitants of vernal pools, they want to spread the good word. We can't protect these marvelous woodland wonders, unless people know about them.

These creatures have evolved little from their beginnings, their design so perfect- they need not evolve.  

Humans should admire their ability to continue as their God intended- perfectly, wondrous creatures.

We live in a better,  richer for their existence.  

Jeepers! Creepers!

Last evening, a side trip to Cleveland, Ohio placed me on the lake side walk in Lakewood Park.  The temperature was an incredible 70 degrees.  Folks were out walking their dogs, playing soccer, and doing the things city people do in parks.  

Well camouflaged, Brown Creepers hug the bark of trees in search for insects.

My daughter and I were watching birds.  
Not just any bird, but Brown Creepers.  J.J. is not a birder, but she noticed the movement on a nearby tree, and then she laughed uncontrollably. "That bird just fell down!"

Ah, that would be a Brown Creeper.

Bird that mimics a falling leaf.

Creepers have a feeding style that sets them apart from others.  They creep up a tree, searching every nook and cranny for yummy insect morsels- eggs, or legged- it is all good.

And when they've reached the top of the tree, they flutter like a falling leaf, back to the ground.  The mimicry is quite stunning.  This bird searches for insects, crawling then falling, from tree to tree.

Lakewood shoreline boasts a view of Cleveland. 

Brown Creepers, Certhia americana are a great bird, and we love to find even one on a Christmas bird count.  They usually inhabit wet woods.  Although Lakewood Park has some trees, it hardly boast a woods where I would expect to find creepers. 

 But find Creepers, I did!  Five in all! 

This creeper was creatively using the breakwall.

These birds are in migration, headed home to Canada.  It is not unusual for numbers of them to "stack up" along the Lakeshore in the springtime.  They are waiting for a favorable wind for crossing the lake to their breeding grounds.

It was quite a pleasure to watch these birds ply their trade. Far better than the other two-legged  "creepers" one occasionally finds in our city parks!

Pulling a spider's web out of a crevasse.

Home wrecker!  This guy has developed a feeding pattern for the break-wall,

 it systematically searched for spider eggs hidden in the flawed concrete.

Jeepers Creepers!  This moment in nature is brought to you by the city of Lakewood. It was the best part of my day.

• Kenn Kaufman and Greg Miller will keep you posted on the bird comings and goings in Ohio!

Two great sources for Ohio bird migration information are:
Birding Crane Creek
Greg Miller Birding