nonmigratory?
Thursday last, grandsons Sam and Rory and I visited Sapsucker Woods, enjoying a late summer morning we came upon many scarlet beauties.
Cardinal Flower (Lobelia cardinalis) is also known as Bog Sage, Cardinal Flower, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Finger Lake Region, Hog’s Physic, Indian Pink, Red Bay, Sapsucker Woods, Scarlet Lobelia, Slinkweed, Water Gladiole.
nonmigratory?
Thursday last, grandsons Sam and Rory and I visited Sapsucker Woods, enjoying a late summer morning. From the north side on Wilson Trail, these Canada geese landed on the pond.
In North America, nonmigratory Canada goose populations have been on the rise. The species is frequently found on golf courses, parking lots, and urban parks, which would have previously hosted only migratory geese on rare occasions.
Owing to its adaptability to human-altered areas, it has become one of the most common waterfowl species in North America. In many areas, nonmigratory Canada geese are now regarded as pests by humans.
They are suspected of being a cause of an increase in high fecal coliforms at beaches. An extended hunting season, deploying noise makers, and hazing by dogs have been used to disrupt suspect flocks.
A goal of conservationists has been to focus hunting on the nonmigratory populations (which tend to be larger and more of a nuisance) as opposed to migratory flocks showing natural behavior, which may be rarer.
Advice for releasing your monarch butterfly
We let our first monarch butterfly rest overnight, until noon of the following day.
I delay butterfly release when:
We learned so much from this new sign
This year, 2023, an informational sign was installed next to the Charles Atwood memorial at the foot of the stone stairs leading to the Gorge Trail.
Charles Atwood The Father of Fillmore Glen
“From Botanist to Physician and Pharmacist: born in Summerhill, Cayuga Coun ty, New York State, Charles Atwood graduated from Cornell University in 1878 with a degree in Botany. He then obtained a medical degree in 1881 from the University of Iowa. He moved to Moravia, Cayuga County, to set up practice. In addition to being a physician, he was one of the first pharmacists to be licensed in New York State. A Passion for Plants. Although Dr. Atwood worked full time as a pharmacist, he retained his passion for botany. Atwood was very interested in the parcel of land that became Fillmore Glen Park, due to the rich botanic life found there. Atwood worked long and hard to establish Fillmore Glen State Park to preserve not only its plant life, but also the cascading waterfalls and unique geological formations.”
“Atwood’s Quest to Promote Fillmore Glen. June 1919: Dr. Atwood jointed the Moravia Chamber of Commerce and in October became the first representative to the Finger Lakes Association. April 1921: the Moravia Chanbmer of Commerce and the Finger Lakes Association pledged to name the local park after Millard Fillmore, the 13th president of the United States, who was born in Summerhill. They planned a dedication ceremony for July. April, May, June 1921: Businessmen of Moravia organized a volunteer force to clear underbrush, remove dead trees and create walking paths for the July event. July 4, 1921: Ten thousand people came to Moravia to enjoy the dedication ceremony, band concerts, speeches, vaudeville acts, athletic events, dancing, fireworks and a parade. October 1923: With the Moravia Chamber of Commerce, Dr. Atwood submitted a proposal for the glen to become a state park. April 1924: The state legislature created the New York State Council of Parks. Dr. Atwood was appointed a commissioner for the Finger Lakes Region. June 1925: Fillmore Glen officially became a state park with 39 acres. Seven different parcels totaling 144 acres were added in 1926. The park has continued to grow to its current size of almost 1,000 acres. October 1928: After Dr. Atwood’s death in June, several hundred people attended the dedication of a memorial to honor the ‘Father of Fillmore Glen.'”
Monarch butterfly and chrysalis
Our grandchildren spent the day with us, the last week of their summer before school begins. This July I had improved on my Monarch collection from 2022, when 9 butterflies were released, by two (2) caterpillars for a total of eleven (11) raised over several weeks to the chrysalis stage. When leaving to pick up the children for an outing one chrysalis skin had turned clear, a sign the enclosed butterfly is close to emerging. We returned from an outing for lunch to find this chrysalis unopened, so we checked now and then for progress. Four hours later, just as their Mom arrived for them, the grandchildren and everyone witnessed this event. What luck!!
“Migrating monarchs soar at heights of up to 1,200 feet. As sunlight hits those wings, it heats them up, but unevenly. Black areas get hotter, while white areas stay cooler. The scientists believe that when these forces are alternated, as they are with a monarch’s white spots set against black bands on the wings’ edges, it seems to create micro-vortices of air that reduce drag—making flight more efficient.”
“Monarchs begin leaving the northern US and Canada in mid-August. They usually fly for 4-6 hours during the day, coming down from the skies to feed in the afternoon and then find roosting sites for the night. Monarchs cannot fly unless their flight muscles reach 55ºF. On a sunny day, these muscles in their thorax can warm to above air temperature when they bask (the black scales on their bodies help absorb heat), so they can actually fly if it is 50ºF and sunny. But on a cloudy day, they generally don’t fly if it is below 60ºF.“
“Migrating monarchs use a combination of powered flight and gliding flight, maximizing gliding flight to conserve energy and reduce wear and tear on flight muscles. Monarchs can glide forward 3-4 feet for every foot they drop in altitude. If they have favorable tail or quartering winds, monarchs can flap their wings once every 20-30 feet and maintain altitude. Monarchs are so light that they can easily be lifted by the rising air. But they are not weightless. In order to stay in the air, they must move forward while also staying within the thermal. They do this by moving in a circle. The rising air in the thermal carries them upward, and their overall movement ends up being an upward spiral. Monarchs spiral upwards in the thermal until they reach the limit/top of the thermal (where the rising air has cooled to the same temperature as the air around it). At that point, the monarch glides forward in a S/SW direction with the aid of the wind. It glides until it finds another thermal and rides that column of rising air upwards again.”
Grandfathering Around Tompkins County
Chicago Bog, part of Lime Hollow Nature Center
The grandchildren and I hiked the 0.6 mile trail through old growth forest to visit a bog. In the 1830’s there was a village named Chicago along Gracie Road, which gives it the name we have today. The Chicago Bog is home to many carnivorous plants, including sundew, the pitcher plant, and more. The deepest depth of the bog is about 7.2 ft. The bog is along the Phillips Memorial Trail, which can be found on Gracie Road. Lime Hollow Nature Center, Cortland, New York.
Listen to the Wood Thrush and other bird song in this short video.
A dragonfly landed on the log, in the above images, lying at my feet. This male Chalk-fronted Corporal (Ladona julia) is a skimmer dragonfly found in the northern United States and southern Canada.
Juveniles of both sexes are light reddish brown, with white shoulder stripes and a black stripe down the middle of the abdomen. As they mature, males develop a white pruinescence on the top of the thorax and at the base of the abdomen, while the rest of the abdomen turns black. Females become almost uniformly dark brown, with a dusting of gray pruinescence near the base of the abdomen; a few develop the same color pattern as the males.
Chalk-fronted corporals often perch horizontally on the ground or on floating objects in the water as you can see it doing here. They are gregarious for dragonflies and are commonly seen perching in groups. They readily approach humans to feed on the mosquitoes and biting flies that humans attract.
We noticed a large patch of buttercups growing in a sunny patch along the trail. Petals of these buttercups are highly lustrous owing to a special coloration mechanism: the petal’s upper surface is very smooth causing a mirror-like reflection. The flash aids in attracting pollinating insects and temperature regulation of the flower’s reproductive organs.
Click me for “Celestial Geese with two haiku by Issa”.
Happy June First!!
False Solomon’s Seal, scientific name Maianthemum racemosum, is common in the Finger Lakes Region. I found this specimen during a walk with the grandchildren in a local fen among the post-glacial terrain of the Finger Lakes Region.
False Solomon’s Seal is a common, widespread plant with numerous common names and synonyms, known from every US state except Hawaii, and from every Canadian province and territory (except Nunavut and the Yukon), as well as from Mexico. What name do YOU know it by?
Because it resembles plants of the highly toxic Veratrum genus, this species should not be consumed unless identification is positive. The plant becomes fibrous and bitter after it completes flowering and seed-setting, but the tender young shoots can be stripped of their leaves, simmered in water and eaten. Their delicate flavor is somewhat reminiscent of asparagus. The ripe fruits are edible raw or cooked but may be poor in taste. They can be laxative if consumed in large quantities.
Ojibwa harvested the roots of this plant and cooked them in lye water overnight to remove the bitterness and neutralize their strong laxative qualities. Native Americans boiled the roots to make tea for medicinal purposes, including to treat rheumatism, kidney issues, and wounds and back injuries.
Happy June First!!
Yellow Lady’s Slipper, scientific name Cypripedium parviflorum, is also known as “Moccasin Flower.” I found these on a walk with the grandchildren in a local fen among post-glacial terrain. “All this swamp cabbage, phew!!,” said the youngest.
This is a wild orchid that grows all over, though picky as to habitat.
–Newfoundland to British-Columbia, south to Georgia, Arizona, and Washington; Europe.
–Newfoundland to Alaska and south to Oregon in the West.
–In the East along the Atlantic Coast, it is in every state except Florida and extends across to Louisiana and eastern Texas.
–New Mexico state: Catron, Colfax, Grant, Los Alamos, Otero, San Miguel, San Juan and Santa Fe Counties.
–Arizona state: Apache, Graham, and Greenlee Counties.
Habitats and requirements: A more upland plant preferring subacidic to neutral soils. Primarily in mesic to dry-mesic upland forests, woodlands with deep humus or layers of leaf litter, shaded boggy habitats, but also in hill prairies and occasionally in wetlands with organic, well-drained, sandy soils. Moderate shade to nearly full sun in fir, pine, and aspen forest between 6000 and 9500 feet (1830 and 2900 meters). Mountain meadows and on timbered slopes. Dripping seeps on steep to moderately sloped canyon walls.
Rory’s Third Birthday
Cake design and production by Grandma for Rory’s Third 3 Birthday. On the lead up to the special day, Grandmother phones Rory to interview him for his birthday cake wishes. Rice Krispy treats drizzled with melted colored chocolate to resemble a coral reef. Chocolate cupcakes with homemade buttercream icing.
This was three years ago at the start of Covid-19 pandemic. We drove up his long, snowy drive way……
Rory, Mom and brother Sam welcomed us.
Pam had Swedish fish and other fixings for Rory to put on the finishing touches.
Michael Stephen Wills Photography 