next message in archive
next message in thread
previous message in archive
Index of Subjects
Hello all, The following are notes and observations from yesterday's walk. I hope they will be of interest to some of you: ------------------- Tupperville Nature Walk - notes and observation for May 14, 2016. Yesterday, Donna Crossland and I set out on the first of what we hope will be occasional nature walks in the general area of Annapolis Royal. We were hoping for a couple of more participants, but the drizzle may have dampened some spirits -- but not ours! We set out regardless. Our plan was to walk along the forest trails south of the Tupperville Hall. I had never hiked there, so it was all new territory. I will definitely return. Donna focussed on keeping a migratory bird count and pointing out wild plants, while I spent most of my time looking downward for ground dwelling creatures. I'm appending Donna's detailed bird counts and other notes. If you don't want to read about slugs and beetles, just skip on down to the BIRDS section below. The highlights of my observations are as follows: SLUGS: We saw many slugs moving along the trail - no doubt encouraged by the warm drizzle. An American Toad crossed our path, probably enjoying the good slug-hunting conditions. Most slugs that we saw were yellowish-orange and a few were quite orange in colour. I'm very accustomed to seeing these around my own place at Round Hill. They are Arion slugs - I consulted with Aleta Karstad, sending her a photo, and she replied: "The yellow slug is probably the introduced Arion vulgaris - not usually as strongly striped like A. subfuscus. Often with no visible stripe, and usually with dark tentacles, as this one has. We were finding them in New Brunswick, at the Jacquet River BioBlitz (Mary's Point area). They were either quite variable, or hybridizing with something striped, like subfuscus. I have a lot more dissecting to do." Here at my place at Round Hill, the orange slugs tend to get to be about 6 or 7 cm. long and have black eye stalks. Very striking and easily seen. Here is a photo of one of the orange slugs from yesterday's hike. I apologize for the poor photos - due to low light and water splashes on my camera lens! http://www.pbase.com/crocodile/image/163224673 The other slug was what I was quite sure was a native forest slug. It was brown-speckled and found on a bracket fungus on a fallen tree. Aleta had this to say about it: "The speckled slug is the native forest slug, Philomycus (genus). Not sure of the species. There are only two native forest slugs - Philomycus and Pallifera, which is very small and gray. Both of these natives have their mantle covering the entire body, from neck to tip of tail." Yes, another blurry, raindrop splashed photo. This slug was about 6 or so cm. long. http://www.pbase.com/crocodile/image/163224674 INSECTS: Apart from the numerous black flies, the only insect of note turned out to be the big thrill of the day for me -- as you can see, it doesn't take much to thrill me -- and that was finding a male and two female Forked Fungus Beetles (Bolitotherus cornutus) on the underside of a bracket fungus. These are among my favourite of all beetles. They are difficult to see - being dark and dull and having the habit of "playing dead" and rolling off onto the ground when disturbed from their spot on a bracket fungus. They're rarely seen by those who don't know to watch for them. However, I took a few photos, so you will get to see them for yourself The males have curving "horns" (this is a male). I'm putting up a top and side view, as well as a view from beneath - as this is how you will often find them. I see a few small parasitic mites on this fellow. http://www.pbase.com/crocodile/image/163224665 http://www.pbase.com/crocodile/image/163224666 http://www.pbase.com/crocodile/image/163224667 Now, over to the BIRD report. ----- BIRDS, PLANTS and more - notes by Donna Crossland: Despite the showers, birds were singing nearly everywhere, and a wide range of species were vocalizing. I haven’t doubled-checked spellings on my list, and some of the numbers are rough estimates, but here goes: In the more open landscape of the intervale, including pasture and orchards: · Eastern phoebe-1 · Black-capped chickadee- 1 · American goldfinch-~6 · Black and white warbler- 1 · Northern parula- 2 · Yellow-rumped warbler- 1 · White throated sparrow- 2 · Song sparrow- 1 · Oven bird- 4 · Least flycatcher- 1 · Ring-necked pheasant- 1 · Black throated green warbler- 3 · Blue jay-1 · American robin 2 · Yellow warbler 1 No activity seemed to come from newly installed wood duck nest boxes and one barred owl nest box. As we ascended the wooded trail to the Tupperville Brook hemlock ravine and falls, many more birds, though the rain came down a bit harder at that point and there were fewer vocalizations. We had a nice look at Northern parula perched close by the trail on nude branches. · Blue headed vireo 6 (we heard a couple on top of the mountain, but then hit a pocket of male BHVI singing below the falls, very nice to listen to) · Northern parula- 1 · American redstart- 1 · Black throated Green warbler- 3 · Black capped chickadee- 3 · White throated sparrow 1 · Golden crowned kinglet 2 · Black throated blue warbler 1 · Blackburnian warbler 1 · American redstart 2 · Chestnut-sided warbler 2 (disturbed woods nearer the valley bottom land) · Oven bird 3 · American robin 2 · Nashville warbler (1), probable. Checked its song on return, and it would appear to have been this species. On the stroll toward the Tupperville Hall through the orchard-pasture land: Birds- American robins (3), European starlings (4), Blue jay (1), Song sparrow (2), Eastern phoebe (1), American goldfinch (2) We commented on the loss of Bobolinks. I have not seen Eastern kingbirds in the surrounding orchards in roughly 4 years, though it is early for them to show up at this point. The Amelanchier spp. were beautiful in blossom, even in the rain, particularly A. laevis with gorgeous coppery leaves. The foliose tree lichens were even more striking in the rain! We examined a range of herbaceous plants, too many to list. May flowers still in bloom near the falls. Star flower just forming flower buds. A small ephemeral pond above the falls, shaded under the hemlocks was home to a small supply of salamander eggs. --- And that concludes our report. We'll post a notice the next time we plan an outing and maybe a few more will join us. Bev Wigney Round Hill, NS
next message in archive
next message in thread
previous message in archive
Index of Subjects