Richmond getaway 2025

I did a short weekend in Richmond, anchored by the Virginia Master Naturalists conference. I attended only one field trip, and one indoor session. A few of the sessions duplicated webinars that I’ve attended recently. But it was nice to walk a bit with Johnny Townsend on trails at Pony Pasture (where I had visited with Genevieve Wall last year.)

Friday was hot, so for my first visit to Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden (free! thanks, Friends of National Arboretum reciprocal membership), I ducked into the shade as much as I could.

Today started out cool and rainy. My intent was to stop by Widewater State Park for a quick visit. Giving the rain a chance to blow off, I took the long way home on U.S. 1 instead of I-95. Widewater, though small and designed for water access, had a few treats to offer: a single inflorescence of Marsh Fleabane (Pluchea odorata), a pollinator garden bursting with Bidens and host to two new moths for me, Goldenrod Stowaway (Cirrhophanus triangulifer) and Hawaiian Beet Webworm Moth (Spoladea recurvalis), and some late Summer Azures. Osprey, Belted Kingfisher, and Double-crested Cormorant scooting about on Aquia Creek.

Elklick Woodlands meadow

shoulder deep in itA quick report from the meadow unit of Elklick Woodlands Natural Area Preserve, accompanied by Darko Veljkovic and other Fairfax County Park Authority Staff. No trail, just bushwhacking through this property that’s been under restoration, with prescribed burns last year and the year before. Still lots of non-natives to be winkled out, but the Bidens aristosa are having a great time. We also found Sweet Everlasting (Pseudognaphalium obtusifolium), a relative of pussytoes.

At the park: 155

Finally closing out my reports for the Wood Duck and Hooded Merganser nesting season:

It’s not yet Labor Day, so I’m calling this report on time. Here’s our season totals.

Our Wood Ducks started one more clutch than 2024 (11 vs. 10), but lost 5 of them (3 to predation, 2 to abandonment). 111 eggs laid, 61 hatched, 55% estimated fledging success.

Our Hooded Mergansers started two more clutches than last year (4 vs. 2); 1 was lost to abandonment. 51 eggs laid, 33 hatched, 65% estimated fledging success.

It’s a typical pattern year-to-year that the HOMEs start fewer clutches but achieve about 10 points better fledging success.

Of the 16 boxes, 12 were used. We had double clutches in 3 of the boxes, with 5 of the 6 clutches successful — including one clutch that did not hatch until an estimated 8 July.

As I noted above, we lost 3 clutches to predation, presumably to Black Rat Snakes in all 3 cases. Plus, we found snakes in two other boxes; these may have consumed eggs that we didn’t have the opportunity to count.

Pennyfield Lock

Genevieve Wall led a walk for Nature Forward, meeting at Pennyfield Lock on the C&O Canal. I’ll switch it up a bit and blockquote the follow-up message I sent to her, with a bit of editing:

Hackberry Emperor topside (dorsally) shows a pattern of white and dark spots across a ground of dark brown to tan. Appalachian Brown dorsally is more or less allover brown, except for the eyespots.

I said that checkerspots and Polygonia spp. are in separate groups — that’s incorrect. They’re both in the Nymphalidae (Brushfoots) family.

Thanks for the tip about red coloration in Johnson Grass.

I’ll ask around about that mystery vine with prickles that we looked at with C.

*New observations for me!

Wakefield Park grasses and things

the easementAnother hot, muggy morning, another walk in the power line easement of Wakefield Park. I’ve explored this stretch several times, this time again with the Grass Bunch.

The only new species that I recorded an observation for is Delicate Cycnia Moth (Cycnia tenera), A/K/A Dogbane Tiger Moth, conveniently posed on a bit of dogbane. Aw, snap! I saw this species at a bioblitz two summers ago. But! Partridge Pea (Chamaecrista fasciculata) is a new species for my observations.

helloHello Kitty observations don’t count in iNaturalist.

Clifton Institute NABA Butterfly Count 2025

I returned for the second year to the Wildcat Mountain property as co-sector leader. (Hmm, I see that I didn’t post any trip report for the 2024 count.) We all survived the heat and humidity: MK and Lili had the smart idea to stage a vehicle at the bottom of the hill so that we didn’t have to trudge back up the slope.

Nothing too exciting. Scads of Eastern Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio glaucus); I got a look at but no photo of Red-banded Hairstreak (Calycopis cecrops); I got identifiable photos of Pipevine Swallowtail (Battus philenor).

Clifton Institute bioblitz July 2025

On a punishingly hot and muggy July day, we returned to a property that we had biolblitzed last summer. I was able to last about 90 minutes out in the gardens and meadow, and about an hour down where the Rush River joins the Thornton, but then I had to crash on our hosts’ porch. I was sucking wind just climbing a small rise.

In the garden, I documented my first Snowberry Clearwing (Hemaris diffinis). I tried to expand my horizons by looking for leaf miners.

At the rivers, iNaturalist honcho Carrie Seltzer and I found several species of myxomycetes, including the critter that acts like a puffball mushroom, Wolf’s Milk (Lycogala epidendrum). I got a look at a Rappahannock Darter (Etheostoma vexillare) (a Rapp endemic of cool, clean waters) before the rest of the team charged upstream—I just don’t have the footing to follow.

After dinner, activity at the lighted sheets was great. Our big charismatic beetle, Broad-necked Root Borer (Prionus laticollis), settled in at Jeff and Izabella’s setup and stayed all evening. The Scarlet-winged Lichen Moth (Hypoprepia miniata) was shockingly beautiful.

This is National Moth Week. I’m cogitating on getting my own setup for my cubby-hole of a back yard.

TickTalk

Amplifying signal from Maryland Native Plant Society:

With summer officially here, outside activities are on the rise and so too are encounters with ticks. Those who find ticks on themselves or pets are encouraged to donate them to the tick research project run by Dr. Rebekah Taylor at Frostburg State University. This research provides a better understanding about various ticks found in the region and what pathogens they carry, such as the bacteria responsible for Lyme disease. Every donated tick is identified, mapped, and tested. All of the data is uploaded to an open-access website hosted by FieldScope.

Donated ticks should be from the following counties (or areas very close to these counties):

  • Maryland
    • Washington
    • Allegany
    • Garrett
  • Pennsylvania
    • Somerset
    • Bedford
    • Fulton
  • West Virginia
    • Mineral
    • Hampshire
    • Grant
    • Preston

To donate ticks:

  1. Tape the ticks to an index or post card, and note the date and the approximate geographic location where the ticks were encountered.
  2. Place them in a freezer for at least one day to ensure that they are dead before being mailed.
  3. Mail the card to: Dr. Rebekah Taylor, Frostburg State University, 101 Braddock Road, Frostburg MD 21532.

Clifton Institute dragonfly/damselfly count 2025

Sunday, more of the same heat. We managed about 3-1/2 hours at Leopold’s Preserve before packing it in. Team leader A.J. did find a few Bar-winged Skimmers (Libellula axilena) for us. We also turned up some puzzling spreadwings; here’s a Lestes in need of a species ID. I still struggle with distinguishing Calico and Halloween Pennants.

I decided to forgo my high boots in the interest of keeping cool, and I brought a couple of American Dog Ticks (Dermacentor variabilis) home with me as a result.

Eastern Neck NWR butterflies

Continuing with his series of workshops on troublesome butterfly ID, Rick Borchelt took us to Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge in Kent County, Maryland on a hot and muggy Saturday. The refuge isn’t that far as the crow flies, but we drivers must either cross the swoopy Bay Bridge, then curl around to Chestertown to get across the Chester River, or take the long way around via Elkton.

Zebra Swallowtails were common to abundant. The headline observation was an Aaron’s Skipper (Poanes aaroni) on the same milkweed inflorescence as a couple Broad-winged Skippers (P. viator). I also got a lucky dorsal view of a Delaware Skipper (Anatrytone logan).

In non-butterfly news, I met the also-common Seaside Dragonlet (Erythrodiplax berenice).

Rick’s wrapup post includes a singularly unflattering picture of me (not that it’s difficult to accomplish) in full anti-solar gear.

At the park: 154

Overall, fledging success has been good, but we have had direct observations of Black Ratsnakes in three of our sixteen boxes, plus an additional box from which all the eggs removed/consumed by an organism unidentified. From this week’s report:

Snakes alive! Yet more Black Ratsnake activity in the boxes. We checked box #7, which was hatching on 26 May, and estimated 9 fledglings. Box #6 had reports of snake activity in the period of 26 May to 2 June. Nevertheless, we found 9 WODU eggs in the box, but they were not yet being incubated. Box #1 now has 14 eggs incubating, with an estimated hatch date of 4 July. And N. and I. found a snake in Box #3. Too much drama.

So we have four remaining boxes with possible activity: #6, #1, #3, and #60 (estimated hatch 24 June).

Let’s do a work day on Sunday, 6 July to cover those four boxes, 8:30 AM as usual. Again, we won’t need to whole team: let me know whether you can come. We’ll try to keep cool.

At the park: 153

The nesting season for our Wood Ducks and Hooded Mergansers has been a bit topsy-turvy:

Good news, bad news, what’s new? We have at least 3 new Wood Duck clutches started in the past 10 days or so. So part of the bad news is that we’ll probably be working in July. More bad news is that we lost at least one clutch to predation, and another to abandonment. Back on the plus side, 3 boxes hatched out in the past week, for a total of 6 for the season. And C and N found young in Box #7, which will make 7 boxes.

For our next work day, we’ll only need to check 5 boxes: #2, #7, #6, #1, and #3. Let’s set that date as Sunday, 8 June. We won’t need the full complement of the team. Let me know if you can make it on the 8th.

Then, depending on what we find on the 8th, we might go in late June or early July….

Vielen Dank!

NC-VA Coastal Plain 2025

the groupI took my first birding trip with Victor Emanuel Nature Tours (VENT), running up the coast from Wilmington, N.C. to Norfolk, Va. Kevin Burke was our excellent guide, always making sure that everyone got on the bird at hand—not to mention handling the driving (always ready to give an extra lift not on the tour), lodging logistics, and finding tasty restaurants. We were five participants; here’s Kevin in the lead of the other four on the beach near Oregon Inlet.

my rideclosed on SaturdayI rode Amtrak to get to Tidewater, but since the tour was one-way, I needed to bridge the gap between the cities. I hopped a Greyhound/FlixBus for the first time in decades. While the coach was quite comfortable, I needn’t have paid for a double seat because there were few riders. As I expected from the barebones stop at Union Station here in D.C., most bus stations these days are tragically spartan, with no options for food or toilets. We pulled in to parking lots and abandoned gas stations. Here’s one exception: a spiffy new transit hub in Greenville, N.C. Ha! Closed on Saturday.

early stopSunday was our first day out birding. Kevin had scouted a little-known corner of pine forest where Red-cockaded Woodpecker (Dryobates borealis) could be found, answering its wake-up call at 07:15. At Orton Pond, a very cooperative Prothonotary Warbler (Protonotaria citrea) turned up, as well as an American Alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) that slunk through the water. Down the road my first lifer for the trip arrived, Bachman’s Sparrow (Peucaea aestivalis).

After lunch, I started to learn the handful of seaside plants, among them Coastal Water-pennywort (Hydrocotyle bonariensis), American Sea Rocket (Cakile edentula), and Saw Greenbrier (Smilax bona-nox).

The next day, Kevin improvised a ferry trip to Shackleford Banks, where I found a beautiful new tiger beetle for me, Eastern Beach Tiger Beetle (Habroscelimorpha dorsalis) (woot!) (likely ssp. media), and a robber fly that predates on the tiger beetle, Sand Hammertail (Efferia albibarbus) (woot-woot!).

And then, mostly a travel day to Hatteras on two care ferries, but we did stop at a boat launch access road for another lifer and long-tormenting nemesis bird, Least Bittern (Botaurus exilis).

sea breezeI came backWednesday was scheduled for a pelagic trip, but the weather had other plans, as the surf at Avon Pier illustrates. So once again Kevin cooked up some good birding, including a visit to Bodie Island Lighthouse. The Dancing Turtle in Hatteras is a good place for early morning coffee and pastries, but skip the bagels. (David’s new rule: Don’t order bagels in a shop without “bagels” in its name.)

Thursday we got out on to the water: we were advised that it would be “sporty” and “confused.” Indeed. For the first time in decades, I joined the Fellowship of Ralph. But after tossing all of my skimpy breakfast and coffee, and having a bit of a lie-down, I roused myself to photograph four lifers, including two storm-petrels, Wilson’s (Oceanites oceanicus) and Band-rumped (Hydrobates castro). Also spotted: several flying fish and a Portuguese Man O’ War (Physalia physalis)—surprisingly tiny. The captain of our boat could take a note from VENT on customer service and being welcoming.

Takeaways:

  • Shutter priority is your friend. The bird is moving in three dimensions, and the boat is moving in three different dimensions.
  • You’re not too old for dramamine.

We wrapped up the tour, skirting the Great Dismal Swamp. Seven life birds for me; the group got skunked on Belted Kingfisher (?!). I have a thing for Boat-tailed Grackle (Quiscalus major).

Your Eastern North Carolina dialect word is preesht, that is, “I appreciate it,” otherwise, “thank you.”

Clifton Institute bioblitz May 2025

I participated in another bioblitz organized by the Clifton Institute, this time at Sunnyside Farm & Conservancy in Rappahannock County. I visited the farm last year for a dragonfly count for the Institute. With several insect experts in the group, I was able to file 57 observations, including

  • a Giant Bark Aphid (Longistigma caryae) resting on Dr. Hardtacks’ back bumper;
  • a Twice-stabbed Stink Bug (Cosmopepla lintneriana), always a popular common name;
  • a pair of conjoined Azure Bluets (Enallagma aspersum), a new damselfly for me;
  • a passable recording of Prairie Warbler (Setophaga discolor) against the background noise of breezes and naturalist chatter; I used my tablet and the Merlin app, rather than my dedicated audio recorder, trading off a better directional mic for on-the-fly ID suggestions;
  • a non-native cress that I didn’t know, Land Cress (Barbarea verna);
  • a very lucky shot of Common Baskettail (Epitheca cynosura) on the wing.

measuring the tare weightlogging the dataEarly in the afternoon, we took a break from chasing plants to observe technicians working with an American Kestrel (Falco sparverius), one of the study subjects in the Institute’s long-running research project into this species’ ecology on farmland and restored prairie.

At the park: 152

My report for April to the team:

Whew! I am caught up with my paperwork for the moment. Data and photos posted to Cornell, thank you. Six new clutches were started in April and are now incubating, 5 Wood Duck and 1 Hooded Merganser. On the downside, we clearly have two nests that have been abandoned and that we will clean out on our next work day. Nothing has hatched out yet, but I expect boxes #1 and #3 to be hatched by next time, as well as possibly box #6.

So, we’ve seen nesting activity in 11 of the 16 boxes, which is fairly typical. Plus that early arriving, fast shrinking Hooded Merganser brood that would have used a natural cavity.

Work days in May will be 11 May and 25 May (Memorial Day weekend). 11 May will go rather quick, because we have several boxes incubating that we will skip….

Arigatō gozaimasu!