OUT!! #22: That's not a Penny!

After returning from doing laundry this evening (having neglected it this weekend), I stopped for a bit to listen to the Spring Peepers (Pseudacris crucifer) outside the house. The chorus of chirrups and peeps can be heard for quite a distance and I'm certain there were hundreds of them chorusing for mates in the wet patches in the darkness beyond. As I walked inside I pondered what I was going to do for a blog posting here for this week. Being midweek, I wanted something easy to do that would pertain to the message of the blog, but substantive enough that it would be worth reading. I actually considered using the peepers as my inspiration for this week's blog posting, but what I experienced next would provide the basis for it instead.

As I entered the house and headed to my room, nothing unusual occurred. The same can be said when I opened my top drawer to open my coin/keepsake box that had my loose change rolling around in it. I had a large collection of quarters in my sweater pouch that I'd exchanged while at the laundromat and was eager to deposit them in their rightful place in the box at bottom of the drawer. However, as I lifted the lid, disaster struck. Having not been secured properly the last time I had closed it, the lid flew open sending a tide of pennies and nickels to the bottom corner of the drawer. I cursed as about 30 or so accumulated there and frustrated at this problem, began to hastily clear them up.

Out of the corner of my eye however, I noticed something orange and fast moving away from the drawer and towards my desk. At first I thought it was an errant penny I had missed, but after a second or two I realized it was something different all together. The mystery orange streak fled under my desk and paused for a moment. I rushed over to my bedside table and picked up my head lamp. Heading back to the desk I focused the light beam on the mystery object. Several wispy legs and a mottled orange and brown body froze in the corner. I then realized what I'd seen.

Come closer my dear...

Closer....

That's close enough!

The mystery streak was a House Centipede (Scutigera coleoptrata), a species that had colonized much of the human settlements of the world. They originate from the Mediterranean region and are generally seen speeding across open ground looking for cover. Like most invertebrates that live among us, they mean us no harm and only want to care for themselves and their young. It was a cool thing to see, but as long as they leave me alone, I'm more than content to leave these creepy crawly floor walkers alone too.

Have a great week y'all!

OUT!! #21: A Trip to the Sourlands

Despite sounding like lemons home domain, this place actually exists. It is a little above Hopewell, NJ and occupies a huge area of forest, riparian areas, and boulder fields. While I'm not sure how big it is, I'll definitely visit again to see what else it up there. Here are a few (slightly overexposed) cellphone photos of what I saw up there yesterday.

After looking through the first two photos, you might be thinking, "Why did he take a closeup picture of those saplings? Who does that?" In this case as you scroll further, you should be able to see the subject of my photos appear.

 

If you haven't seen it by now, you're either nearsighted like me or you don't know your Scolopax genus very well. This fine game bird is called an American Woodcock (Scolopax minor) and can be infrequently encountered in wet forests and the tangled edges of old, abandoned fields. Their courtship display is amazing to watch. On colder evenings in March and early April, the males will issue a short nasal call, peent.....peent....peent before rocketing into the skies above in a spiraling, twittering display before returning to his spot in the dirt below and continuing to call. This typically only lasts about 20 min or so and is largely weather and temperature dependent.

I've always heard about Witch Hazel (Hamamelis virginiana), bu I'd never seen its blooms up close before. It would have been even better if the camera had taken a photo of the blooms and not the background.

A Christmas Fern (Polystichum acrostichoides) slowly growing in the nearby melting snow. I'm so ready for this first day of spring too.

River foam. I think it might be a sign of pollution further upstream.

Jelly fungus

Easily being one of the most common mammals here apart from white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and white-footed mouse (Peromyscus leucopus), the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) easily colonized habitat both within wilderness and proximity to humans. Their habit of placing their scat in the middle of a walking trail is a good indicator of their presence.

A large vernal pool

A burly insect gall that I found on a branch near the trail

Salamander eggs/sperm packets(?) litter the bottom of this vernal pool. Migration occurred and finished in one night last week. The spotted salamanders (Ambystoma maculatum) should be underground by now and the wood frogs (Rana sylvatica) have largely stopped calling.

Another clear sign of spring are the appearance or increased activity of certain insects. This midge was certainly noticeable sitting on the lower trunk of this tree.

A mouse's hideout in a log is revealed by the presence of chewed seeds and nuts.

A strange afro fungi we saw in the tree. Have no clue what this was.

More moss!

Romantic tree damage. Everyone loves romantic tree damage...

Sheep lichen!

Hope you guys enjoyed that. I've only just restarted this blog so the subject content will vary week by week. It might be prose one week while another it's mostly pictures. Hopefully, I can post about something more concrete really soon. Until then, have a great week!

OUT!! #20: Signs of Spring

As I mentioned in last weeks On the Wing, I'm revamping the OUT blog by posting on here once a week. I've recently gotten an internship that allows me unlimited time outside and the ability to teach others about the environment, the natural world, and the creatures that inhabit it. However, due to not getting enough sleep last night, I am instead inside writing the first entry I've put up here in a while.

Over the past week, my roommate and I have been tasked with looking for "signs of spring" that signal the end of winter and the beginning of the slow transition from the cold, dark times to the happy, warm times. This isn't to suggest one can't have fun in the winter, but to be honest after the snow we had up north, I'm ready for the buds and blooms of spring.

Today was rainy. As such, I had to go out to do a journaling activity which involved log rolling and invertebrate investigation. It was great! Despite the puddles of water and torrents of rain soaking me from head to foot (although my Carhartt kept me nice and warm throughout), I noted several types of  invertebrates, as well as, rubs on the trees from last years deer rut and saw a flock of White-throated Sparrows (Zonotrichia albicollis) and Dark-eyed Juncos (Junco hyemalis) mingling together in the wooded tangles. As I traversed back, I managed to flush an American Woodcock that was roosting in a nearby thicket (Scolopax minor) and could hear the incessant peeping cries of Spring Peepers (Pseudacris crucifer) in the wet areas near the meadows. It was an entertaining walk and I look forward to our hike to another part of the property tomorrow.

Less friendly signs of a warm up were also apparent as I found my first Deer Tick (Ixodes scapularis) crawling on my back today. Looks like bug spray will be a necessity from now on. Despite this little pest, much of my trips have been joyous exercises of nature observation and enjoyment. I've been fiddling with a new camera and have been putting most of the photos on my Flickr account and I've been keeping a bird list of what I've see on the property (38 so far and it isn't even migration season yet!) Most of all, I'm pleased I've found an internship that fits me so well and will hopefully provide me with the path I want to follow in life. Have a great week y'all and I'll see you over at On the Wing!