northeast-flora-and-fauna

This Blue Dasher has quite a chunk taken out a wing with lesser damage to 2 others. I've talked about butterfly wing damage in the past; I'm assuming the same applies to dragonflies too, that it's more likely to be due to thorny/prickly plants than predators that took a bite out of them. On the flip side, I suspect that wing damage might be tougher for dragonflies (or their damselfly cousins) to live with: Butterflies generally have oversized wings, so some damage means they'll still have quite a bit of wing to work with. Dragonflies are predators that require precise flying to catch prey in the air. Many butterflies are fine with erratic flight since it might confuse predators, and their food sources tend to be non-moving plants. September 1, 2022 at Duke Island Park Photo 238906814, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

Most of the time I get pictures of turtles who are out basking in the sun, but with a few exceptions (I'm looking at you, Box Turtles ) most of our turtles are more comfortable in the water. This is presumably a safety issue, since they're both more mobile in water and can hide from terrestrial (like these guys ) and aerial (I'm looking at you, Bald Eagles ) threats better. I suppose River Otters are still a threat, though we don't have big populations of them around here. (Given their potential predators, having a shell/carapace is probably a good idea.) Anyway, I got a pretty good look at this Eastern Painted Turtle , mostly submerged but with its head out of the water. The water here wasn't crystal clear, but wasn't inundated with green muck either. September 1, 2022 at Duke Island Park Photo 238907517, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

Here's someone that almost everyone living in the lower 48 US states knows, the American Robin . Though common, there's a lot you might not know about them: They're named after but are not particularly close relatives of the European Robin . The term "robin" has been used in the names of quite a few unrelated birds. They are related to our thrushes, including the bluebirds. Though associated with migration - their scientific name is Turdus migratorius - they can be found year round in many areas, including NJ. (It's unclear whether we have the same robins here all year round, or if the ones we see in the winter spend the summer up north and the ones we see in the summer head south for the winter. I'm betting that both occur.) They're opportunistic omnivores. In the summer their favorite foods consist of invertebrates, but in the winter they'll switch to berries. The orange-red plumage reminded Native Americans of fire, and they're sometimes con

Late last summer I met this Woolly Bear caterpillar (the larval form of the Isabella Tiger Moth ).  At least I'm pretty sure it's a Woolly Bear; usually they have an obvious amount of black "wool". I think in the upper right there's a small spot of black, but this is far less than what's typical. My understanding is that these caterpillars are never all black but can (rarely) be all brown. There is the notion that the browner these caterpillars are, the warmer the winter will be. If that were true then we're going to have the mildest winter of my lifetime. (If you're from Buffalo and want to dispute this: 1) This caterpillar was in central NJ, and thus might not be a good predictor for other parts of the country, and 2) Do you really think you should be arguing with a caterpillar?) There are other ways of forecasting weather with these caterpillars: 1) A woollier coat suggests a colder winter, and 2) A caterpillar crawling in a southerly direction do

Here's another Great Blue Heron I saw at Duke Island Park last summer. (The park was teeming with them on this day.) This one was wading through the mud and muck foraging for food. Though these big birds are ecologically interesting, herons have also sparked mankind's imagination for millennia. While the Celtic and Greco-Roman worlds had their differences (more or less settled by Roman conquest), they agreed on one thing: Herons (possibly the Gray Heron , Eurasia's Great Blue Heron look-alike) were messengers of the gods. The next time you see a heron, feel free to give them a message for Brigid , Athena , or their colleagues. (I suspect that the stature and demeanor of (some) herons seemed a little otherworldly to ancient civilizations, inspiring at connection to higher powers.) September 1, 2022 at Duke Island Park Photo 238907248, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

Here are a couple more Wood Ducks . The one on the left appears to be a male with its eclipse plumage , which is far more subdued feathering than you're probably used to seeing in Wood Ducks. The one on the right is more likely a female, though immature Wood Ducks of both genders look similar to mature female Wood Ducks. Anthropomorphizing a bit, seeing them look in opposite directions might make it look like they're a couple who had an argument and are trying not to look at each other. It's possible that they're a romantic couple - Wood Ducks are considered monogamous - though there were other Wood Ducks around too, and they don't start to pair off until more like January. I usually feel at least a little bit lucky when I run across Wood Ducks (more so if I'm able to get a good picture), and seeing a Wood Duck has traditionally been associated with good luck. I suspect though that this was because seeing a Wood Duck meant you might be able to hunt it for both f

I'm going to try something different today with my Eastern Pondhawk pictures. I'm going to let ChatGPT do my blog today. (ChatGPT is an AI program that you can converse with in a pretty human way; an explanation of it is here .) Me:  Can you tell me something interesting about the Eastern Pondhawk? ChatGPT:  The Eastern Pondhawk (Erythemis simplicicollis) is a dragonfly species that is native to North America. It is a medium-sized dragonfly, with a wingspan of about 3 inches, and can be found in a variety of habitats, including wetlands, marshes, and ponds. One interesting characteristic of the Eastern Pondhawk is its mating behavior. Male Eastern Pondhawks are known for their territorial behavior and will defend their territory from other males. They will patrol their territory and will try to mate with any females that fly into their territory. Another interesting fact about the Eastern Pondhawk is that it is a fast flyer and is able to hover in midair. It is also an import

A couple days ago I showed a pair of Painted Turtles that I presumed to be Eastern Painted Turtles. Here's an example of a Painted Turtle where the sections of the carapace (scutes) don't align particularly well; their edges (going left to right) do more of a zig-zap thing. When I see this, I have to wonder whether this turtle has some Midland Painted Turtle heritage. (A video is here .) My guess is that unless a pet Midland is released locally, I'm unlikely to see a "pure" Midland Painted Turtle since any immigrant Midlands will interbreed with the far more numerous Eastern Painted Turtles. Here's the Painted Turtle that doesn't have its scutes lining up. Possible Midland Painted Turtle? September 1, 2022 at Duke Island Park Photo 238905615, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) For comparison, here's another Painted Turtle where the scutes align pretty solidly. Classic Eastern Painted Turtle September 1, 2022 at Duke Island Park Photo 238

Here are a couple pictures of dragonflies that would have been better had they been facing me. (Technically the long end part is considered their abdomen, not their tail.) Sometimes with a bird in a tree or a butterfly on a flower I can change my position to get a better shot, but dragonflies are often around a shoreline. In many cases the positioning opportunities are limited, and that's assuming they even stay in the same spot. Identification is still frequently possible though. These views give good views of the abdominal segments and the wings, 2 pretty good identifiers for odonates. The mostly nondescript, largish, and slaty-gray dragonflies are usually Slaty Skimmers , and the small, stubby, amber dragonflies are usually Eastern Amberwings . September 1, 2022 at Duke Island Park Photo 238904760, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) September 1, 2022 at Duke Island Park Photo 238904792, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

On a trip to Duke Island Park last September I had the good fortune to encounter 8-9 Great Blue Herons (plus various turtles, damselflies, dragonflies, and butterflies). This picture of a Great Blue Heron turned out pretty good so I'll start with it. While it may look like this heron was out for a stroll down a woodland trail, the picture doesn't capture the Raritan Water Power Canal that the trail runs parallel to. Most wild animals don't have a lot of leisure time, and are usually near a perceived food source, as was the case with this heron. Perhaps it has determined that the easiest way to get from one good fishing spot to another is to take advantage of the trail that us humans have blazed [1]. September 1, 2022 at Duke Island Park Photo 238905321, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) [1] Of course, walking along the shore from one spot to another also has benefits; sometimes you're going to encounter a fishy or froggy menu items just walking around. An

Most of the slider turtles I see in my area are the subspecies of Red-eared Slider . This is a turtle that usually - but not always - has a red blotch about where you'd expect an ear to be [1]. This particular turtle does have some red in this area, but it blends in with some yellow too. This might be a turtle with both Red-eared Slider and Yellow-bellied Slider  [2] heritage. Since both those turtles are subspecies of the Pond Slider , I'm inclined to identify it at the species level. Though both the Red-eared Slider and the Yellow-bellied Slider are native to the US (and for the former, Mexico too), neither is native to New Jersey. Both subspecies are in NJ today because they're fairly popular pet turtles. Since they're both the same species, it's not surprising that they interbreed pretty happily when they meet here. September 1, 2022 at Duke Island Park Photo 238904480, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) [1] Though most turtles hear pretty well, the

Ponds can be a great place to find dragonflies and damselflies. At the Sourland Mountain Preserve, I've had a lot of success getting pictures of them around a pond adjacent to the parking lot. Here's another place that can be good for spotting them: the Duck Pond at Duke Island Park . (Technically I suspect that the best thing about looking for them at these locations primarily because you've got easy access to the pond shore. In many places following the shoreline is difficult, perilous, or outright banned.) While there in early September, I met one of my favorite damselflies, a Violet Dancer . As frequently happens in the animal world, we know this is a male because only the males have the shockingly bright purple coloring. This little fella took a good picture staring up at me. September 1, 2022 at Duke Island Park Photo 238904748, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

A couple days ago I showed a couple Painted Turtles basking above green waters ; today I'm showing Wood Ducks swimming through it. And similar to the Painted Turtle situation, it's at least possible the ducks would eat at least some of the green vegetation.  Though it's difficult for me to know exactly what the vegetation is comprised of, if there's duckweed out there, that's definitely on the Wood Duck menu. Though they'll eat small animals - mainly invertebrates - 80% of their omnivorous diet is comprised of plant material. Still, too much green in the water is usually a sign of fertilizer runoff that's polluting the waterway. This looks like a female (left) and male (right), though the male is without the more flamboyant breeding plumage in this picture. August 30, 2022 at Washington Valley Reservoir Photo 229848163, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

Here's another reminder of how dry the summer was. It was taken at Washington Valley Park, and is usually a small stream that flows into the Washington Valley Reservoir. (It's not the larger West Branch Middle Brook.) Usually you need to do a little rock-hopping to get across it [1]. But at the tail end of August (and probably almost all of August) it looked more like a puddle with rocks in it. The rocks are still lumpy enough that you needed to cross with care, though falling today would be more of a painful than wet experience. Fortunately the water level has returned to approximately normal levels with our autumnal rains. Still, we did have one of the driest summers I've seen down here. [1] On one occasion I watched a mother attempting to coax a small boy to cross it, but he found it too unsafe.

Last summer I saw some butterfly activity; it turns out there were a couple of Red-spotted Purple butterflies fluttering around. I'm not sure what all the commotion was about: One possibility is that these were both males. Males will attack one another [1] to acquire a territory that they think females would like. It's certainly possible that I got a picture of 2 males resting before they resume their territorial fight. The other main possibility is that these were a male and female getting to know one another prior to mating. I don't think 2 females have much motivation to interact; if they're both females, they may have interacted enough to realize that neither was a male, and so their quest for a mate will need to continue. August 31, 2022 at Duke Farms Photo 229848756, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) [1] Butterflies don't have conventional mouths for biting; they drink fluids using their proboscis instead. Nor do they have claws or talons on the

Late last summer this seemed to be a favorite perching spot for this Double-crested Cormorant ; I'm pretty sure I saw it there on a few different days at Duke Farms' Vista Lake. A lot of times you'll see them on perches like this with their wings held open. This is because their feathers aren't all that waterproof - they don't produce waterproofing oils like ducks/geese - they need to dry their wings off after a good swim. And they are skilled swimmers, probably being the deepest diving birds in my area. This is aided by their large webbed feet that you can see in the picture. It sounds like Double-crested Cormorants are one species seeing a population upswing, though this is partly because of something we've stopped using. It's believed that these birds were some of the ones being hurt by our use of DDT . (I know Bald Eagles and Peregrine Falcons were similarly affected.) August 31, 2022 at Duke Farms Photo 229849056, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (C

Here's another picture of Painted Turtles . I'm not sure I can claim it as an Eastern Painted Turtle (though that's the most common subspecies around here) since I can't see more than the side of the carapace, but even if I can't see scute alignment the carapace scutes are pretty definitive for a Painted Turtle. First, I'm somewhat surprised that these turtles managed to get onto this log without getting covered in that green vegetation surrounding them. I'm guessing that the stuff looks messier than it actually is. (When turtles climb onto these logs, could they be said to have "logged on"?) Second, that greenery - whatever it is - may look yucky to you, but it's likely that the turtles look at it much differently. Painted Turtles eat "aquatic vegetation and algae" (among other things), so they might look out at it and know they're not going to go hungry today [1]. Finally, though these turtles look to be the same species, with

For good or ill, female American Bullfrog are not called American Cow frogs. (Apparently this is what a cowfrog looks like, though I'm skeptical of the biological reliability of that webpage.) You know the way you heard about all the invasive species that are altering (almost never for the better) our local ecosystems? The American Bullfrog is a local species that's accused of invading other ecosystems; they're our little green invaders. I'm pretty confident this is a female American Bullfrog because the eardrum (more properly a tympana ) isn't larger than the eye. In fact in this individual the tympana looks slightly smaller. (Presumably male American Bullfrogs find that to be terribly attractive.) August 30, 2022 at Washington Valley Park Photo 229847565, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

I got this overhead view of an Eastern Painted Turtle last summer. I think it gives a really good view of the scute alignment that can differentiate the Eastern Painted Turtle from the Midland Painted Turtle . Both of these are essentially the same turtle. They're different subspecies of the same species, so interbreeding would presumably happen quite a bit except they have somewhat different ranges. August 30, 2022 at Washington Valley Park Photo 229847442, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) Each of those "shell pieces" is a scute; this picture illustrates that alignment I've talked about. Across the middle of the back, scutes align perfectly

Here's a picture of one of the Duke Farms Wild Turkeys . I believe there are 4-5 flocks of these turkeys roaming around the property, which probably means some 15-40 turkeys that could potentially be found there. Yet most of the time you won't see 1 on a visit, mostly because they're pretty skilled at hiding/fleeing from people. (On this day I was lucky and saw more than 1 .) Since Wild Turkeys fly pretty well for short distances, the fencing around the Duke Farms core is nothing more than a minor inconvenience for them. I suspect the only time the fencing impacts their lives is when immature turkeys are with their mother, rendering the overall family earthbound until the kids can fly. Otherwise they no doubt move inside and outside the fence whenever it's convenient. Does this turkey look extremely serious to you? (That reminds me of my expression when a program isn't working, I know approximately where the bug is, but haven't quite figured it out.) August 31,

Though there are plants here, this picture deviants a little from the nature theme since it's of a mostly man-made object. This is a view of one of the many bridges at Duke Farms, and is presumably fairly old (though I'm pretty sure it's had some modern maintenance work done). If you take Railroad Lane to where it nearly meets Dukes Parkway West, this bridge gets you over Dukes Brook. This picture was taken during our summer drought, so normally the water would be higher and probably giving a look of a continuous waterflow with maybe a couple rocks poking above the surface. Despite the drought, the brook still had the water to keep the nearby plants looking green; I think the meadows had a burnt brown look at this time. August 23, 2022 at Duke Farms

Here's a Sleepy Orange butterfly I found on the ground last summer. (You can check out their open-wing look here .) They'll generally drink nectar, though like many butterflies they'll sometimes supplement that diet with minerals they get from scat, drying mud, etc.  I don't think there was much nutrition on this leaf, so in this case I'm thinking the butterfly was probably just hanging out here because the temperature was about right and/or it was construed as a relatively safe spot to rest. Maverick theory: That yellow leaf to the butterfly's left isn't too far from the color of a sulphur butterfly; could this butterfly have flown down to see if the leaf was a potential mate or rival? I don't know, and the butterfly wasn't talking. August 23, 2022 at Duke Farms Photo 229694897, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

 Here's one of the area's most terrifying predators ... at least if you're a smallish arthropod. This is one of our  Red-footed Cannibalflies , a type of fly that will sometimes prey on those other predatory insects, the  dragonflies and damselflies . (I've talked about these guys before.) Of course, they're not the only ones who'll do this; larger dragonflies are known to eat smaller dragonflies. And I'll bet if cannibalflies, dragonflies, or damselflies happen to land near a Chinese Mantis, they're taking their lives in their hands. This is the picture that came out the sharpest, though I wish I'd gotten a better shot of the head so you could see its fuzzy "mustache".  August 23, 2022 at Duke Farms Photo 229694869, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

Here's a Question Mark butterfly from last summer. These butterflies aren't big fans of nectar - preferring sap or rotting fruit - but that's not what it's doing in this picture. Many butterflies, whether they like nectar or not, have trouble getting minerals they need from their usual food sources. And this one is filling that mineral need from a source most of us would want to avoid stepping in: old, dried out scat. In the 1st picture you can see the rich orange and black coloring that makes these butterflies look appealing, though that's not the only view of them you could see. August 23, 2022 at Duke Farms Photo 229694637, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) By simply raising the wings and giving you a view of their underwings, they can blend in with leaf litter and other plant debris. While this is admittedly of only partial camouflage help when on dried out scat, take it from me that it can be extremely effective on leaves and downed tree branches

Here's a Common Snapping Turtle I met last summer. Though they'll occasionally bask out on a log , they prefer to do semi-basking in shallow water with only their shell above the water line. Your best chance for a "head shot" is when they come up to breathe, which this fella presumably was doing. Though parts of the southern US have an Alligator Snapping Turtle , the closest taxonomic relatives of the Common Snapping Turtle are probably the Central American Snapping Turtle and the South American Snapping Turtle , both of whom used to be considered subspecies of the Common Snapping Turtle. August 23, 2022 at Duke Farms Photo 229694534, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)