I TOOK A WALK TODAY...

...and BUTTERFLIES were EVERYWHERE
around the deck and in the prairie!!!

Tiger Swallowtail on Butterfly Bush

Sharing a Meal

Tiger Swallowtail-Frontal View

Monarch on Butterfly Weed

Black Swallowtail

Great Spangled Frittilary

AND

Many of you know that after we "limed" the pond, it came to life (hence, the name, Lazurus Pond)...first with some aquatic transplants, then some amphibians, then a few more dragonfly species and now sedges....which have helped all of the above flourish.

Dragonfly Larvae Casing

THINGS I DISLIKE ABOUT NATURE!

Now, I know I am always writing about the things I love about nature, sometimes trying to convince you, the reader, to love them too. But as I walked the Refresher Course, musing on life, I got to thinking about some of the things that just really "bug" me. Oddly, bugs didn't make it into my top 7 list:

The Modesty of the Ground
Soil refuses to lay bare and be exposed for long. It must cover itself always...and often with things I don't want...like invasive species or tree saplings smack-dab in the middle of my perennial garden...making me feel like a bad eco-cad for ripping it out of the ground. This need for some kind of green garment makes the task of mulching and weeding a constant burden...and if you put it off for a few weeks...oi!!
The Mental Telepathy of Butterflies
I see a butterfly gorging on the nectar of a prairie flower...I have my camera on, pointed, set and ready to go. Then, just when I say to myself, "OK, one more step and I'll be close enough to take the shot," it flies away. This happens over and over...with every butterfly...becoming increasingly frustrating. After awhile a lepodopteria conspiracy theory begins to develop in my mind...
The Mutability of Mushrooms
I suppose I don't have the patience to begin ID-ing fungi at Prairie Pond Woods just yet...because one day it is one color and the next it is red or bumpy or takes on a completely different shape. They vex me.
The Magic of Spider Webbing
Even the most seasoned naturalist, if only mildly tortured, will confess to hating the surprise and sensation of walking face first into either a piece of silk strung across a path, or a full-blown orb. It is one of the most disconcerting experiences because in most cases the spider is never seen...and could easily be anywhere!
The Masochism of Thorns
I have scars on my legs from blackberry canes, rosa multiflora branches, and greenbrier vines that are never going away! They are deep, long lacerations, altering whatever feminine quality my "gams" have left. Sometimes when I come back from a walk, blood is dripping off of me and I don't even know it.
The Limitation of Humidity
How much doesn't get done that either should get done or we want to do, because of the quality of the air, when it is no longer a gas but borders on being a solid? Its just no fun when you can't breathe or thermo-regulate!
The Chutzpah of Racoons
I never kill a racoon because I think something that smart deserves to live and procreate. Even though they cost me hundreds of dollars in broken objects, demoralize me when I think I have outwitted them, and obviously hate my potted flower arrangements...I still gotta hand it to em! But I don't have to like it.
The Fecundity of Cats
I discovered a cat lounging in my vegetable garden about a month ago. Since our lives are a bit hectic these days to incorporate our first love, German Shepherds, into our lives, we thought maybe we would keep it. That is, if it fit into our lives...not too needy, not too schitzoid, not too clingy. It was smaller than our last cat, The Dude (may he RIP), so we thought we had time to get it spade, de-clawed, etc. About 2 weeks ago, I noticed projecting nipples and bulging sides. We should have added "not too pregnant" to our rental agreement. Anyone want a kitten?

MAGGEE MARSH BOARDWALK...

You can view the web album for our trip to Maggee Marsh
HERE

In mid-May, for the first time since 2003, I went north again to a wonderful place near Sandusky, Ohio called Maggee Marsh, for some of the best birdwatching in North America. Right on Lake Erie, this area (and the surrounding Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge) is a bottleneck for warblers and other migrants heading to their breeding grounds in Canada. While some will stay and breed, many make a pit stop in the resource-lush wetland habitat to gorge on emerging caterpillars, spiders and other creepy-crawleys, before crossing the large body of water.

The weather the night before was ominous...lots of rain and strong winds (later we found out there had been tornado warnings)...and I wasn't sure setting the clock for 6:30 am was really a good idea. But watching out the back window of the camper van in the morning, the storm gradually settled down to a windy, overcast day, and off we went.

We could not have asked for a better day! The storm left the air clear, and the gusty winds kept the birds low in the trees, rather than up in the crown. We saw or heard a total of 66 species in over a day and a half. It was amazing!

The boardwalk makes birdwatching an easy hobby for bird enthusiasts, as well as photographers and those with disabilities. Capturing a warbler with a camera is no small feat...they move fast and often only stay within viewing a brief moment. We did our best...enjoy!

You can view the web album for our trip to Maggee Marsh at:

http://picasaweb.google.com/artbynaturecindy/LakeErieBirdwatching?authkey=Gv1sRgCPXVmvSNsPS44gE&feat=directlink

A FEW WILDFLOWERS AT PPW

Jack-in-the-Pulpit

Trillium

Pink Lady's Slipper

Wild Comfrey

Hoary Puccoon

Wild Geranium

Columbine and Rock Cress growing on Dolomite Rock

Bluets in the Prairie

American Columbo
Can grow up to 25 years before blooming once and dying

I TOOK A WALK TODAY...

...THEN PRACTICED THE ART OF SITTING IN ONE PLACE!

On the way up to my favorite ridge for morning birding, I caught a glimpse of movement high in a tree and fairly far away. Usually I don't bother when something is that far off in the distance, but I had gotten a late start, so I wasn't going to be choosy. I'm glad I looked, because I faintly made out a male and female Rose-breasted Grosbeak. Two days before she had visited the feeder, and he, just yesterday, when I snapped a few photos of the handsome and colorful dude.

Also, on the way up, I heard a Yellow-billed Cuckoo (yes we have this exotically named bird), a Red-eyed Vireo, Hooded Warblers, Ovenbirds, Wood Thrushes and a Wild Turkey. By 9:30 most of the action had ceased, but I decided that maybe I should just sit for another half-hour. Maybe with all the chatter and fluttering over, something singularly interesting might happen...and it did. Sitting on the same spongy log I perched on last year...when two fawns sauntered by and we exchanged glances...two yearlings walked by again. Did I have my camera? No. But the scene replayed itself. They stopped, looked at me (or towards me), browsed some vegetation and moved on down the well-worn path. I could have stood up, walked three steps, and petted them.

What I love about nature is its rhythms and predictability...and also the occasional unpredictable anomaly. While I'm not overly sentimental about deer (i.e., hunting them), any face to face with a wild creature does stir the heart and soul. But this encounter, while rare, is not all that strange. Like most animals, deer have certain territories and ways of getting around those territories for resources and refuge. So if I went up to the ridge every week and sat on my cushy log, odds are I would encounter the same two deer on a regular basis.

I've already been fantasizing about putting a camouflaged swivel chair up there to take in all 360 degrees of bird songs and sightings...so those deer and I may become well acquainted by the end of summer.