September 28, 2025: A Goldfinch Buffet

Large numbers of American Goldfinch have been feasting on the wildflower buffet provided by our hot, dry summer, and Linda's patch of Woodland Sunflowers is a popular dining spot now that the daisies and black-eyed Susans have closed up shop for the summer.

An American Goldfinch dines in the sunflower department.

Goldfinch are so light (they weigh about half an ounce) they can flit from blossom to blossom, perching on the top of each stem to rip out seeds for as long as they like.  

Did you see the bumblebee sharing the flower patch?  Here's an interesting fact about goldfinches:  They are strict vegetarians, consuming animals (insects) only by accident.  And for this reason, when a Brown-headed Cowbird lays an egg in a goldfinch nest for the goldfinch pair to raise, it inevitably dies because it can't survive on a diet consisting of purely seeds.  [Ref: Cornell Lab of Ornithology]

Several varieties of asters have taken over the open fields from the Black-eyed Susans as the predominant flower, and the goldfinches enjoy these as well.  I think asters must thrive in dry hot weather because they're so abundant and healthy.  I found these Savory-leaf Asters a couple of weeks ago, but they are still blooming, even without much rain.

Savory-leaf Aster (Ionactis linariifolia)

Without much rain until Thursday that is, when the Lake Wicwas weather station recorded 3.5" of much needed precipitation.  

That was a good start to addressing the rain deficit present throughout all of New Hampshire.

The goldenrod doesn't seem quite as prolific as some years but it still dominates many fields.  I found a monarch partaking in the nectar on this goldenrod plant.

I also learned of a new flower, easily overlooked as it's not very flamboyant.  I had probably assumed it's a goldenrod plant that hasn't turned yellow, but in fact it's a related plant called Silverrod.

Silverrod (Solidago bicolor) also known as White Goldenrod.

Both silverrod and goldenrod are also in the Asteraceae (aster) family.  Yet another variety of aster was growing on the ledges of Mount Cardigan and Firescrew:

Mountain Aster (Oclemena acuminata)

Also at an elevation of 3100' on Cardigan were quite a few Mountain Ash trees.

America Mountain Ash (Sorbus americana)

This reminded me of a stand of Mountain Ash on Mt. Roberts.  Look for them if you hike Mt Roberts at this time of year.  

There are at least two varieties of Tussock Moth caterpillars feeding on deciduous trees right now.  I've seen Hickory Tussock and Spotted Tussock caterpillars so far.

Hickory Tussock Moth caterpillar

Spotted Tussock Moth caterpillar on a birch leaf.

Keep your eye out for these on your walks.  They are pretty, but not good to touch as their long hairs have toxic chemicals that can cause a skin rash.

Now an update the loons.  Through I didn't Spangle this week, others have, and Eric Smith sent me some great pictures of her that he took last week.

Photos by Eric Smith

As large as she is now, she's still happy to have mom or dad bring her food.  

Amy Wilson also took some great pictures of Spangle swallowing a large sunfish that one of her parents caught for her.  You can see those pictures here.  

It appears only one parent is present, so it's possible the male has moved on the to ocean for the winter.  Thank you Jeff and Amy for sharing these great photos!  

A few people have asked about Spangle's younger brother, Star.  He disappeared around August 15th, at a time when there were rogue loons on the lake, sometimes as many as four at once.  We'll never know, but it's possible that Star was killed by one of these rogues.

Lastly, fall foliage season has begun.  I think the Lakes Region and north will be past peak by Columbus Day, so do your leaf-peeping early this year!

September 21, 2025: A Flock of Flickers

Tomorrow marks the autumnal equinox, and fall migration is well underway.  I was in Wilmot for a forestry class, and from one open meadow we watched a kettle of a dozen or more Broad-Winged Hawks fly over us using the warm air from the field to gain altitude on the rising thermals.  There was also a Red-tailed Hawk mixed in with them.  Another migrating species seen this week was the Northern Flicker.

Northern Flicker

There was a flock of a least a dozen birds feeding madly on some type of insect in the gravel road. 

Picking insects from the road.

They were borrowing a trick from crows which pull up chunks of sod in lawns to find grubs; the flickers were turning over small stones to find their prey.

Stones uprooted in search of insects.

That first photo was a male flicker, identified by the black "mustache" on its face.  The female is lacking that mark.

Female Flicker.

Both have a black chest mark and a red chevron on the back of their head; the eastern version, described as the "yellow-shafted" group, has yellow wing feathers, the edges of which can be seen in the above photo and the following photo.  In flight, a conspicuous white spot is visible from behind.  

Note the red chevron and yellow wing edges.

Either way, It's a handsome bird.

The Lakes Region is right at the southern limit of its breeding range (which is likely moving northward now) so this flock was probably traveling together on their way south, which for some flickers may be as near as southern New Hampshire.

This was another week of totally rain-free, warm, sunny days.  I spent one afternoon just drifting in a couple of secluded marshes watching birds and dragonflies.  The dragonflies provided the best entertainment as dozens of them darted over the water and vegetation, defending their own territory and testing the defenses of their neighbors.  Only for a moment would one hover over its claim before an intruder had to be sent away, but I was able to capture a few of them.

The next day a pretty Autumn Meadowhawk posed on a railing for me.

Male Autumn Meadowhawk

The bright red abdomen indicates it's a mature male.  Earlier I had seen a duller meadowhawk which was probably a female, or perhaps an immature male.

Floating peacefully in the late afternoon September sun, reflecting on the beauty of life, one has time to discover the smaller aspects of the world that usually go unnoticed.  On this day, low in my kayak, small white specs on fading green lily pads caught my eye.

I thought they were eggs of some sort.  But looking closely, I saw small spikes sticking out from some of them - they looked like legs.  So I plucked one of the pads and brought it home for further study. 

A macrophotograph revealed more detail.

A little digging brought me to conclude these are the shed exoskeletons of a small insect that hatched from an egg in the water into a larval stage, and when ready, climbed onto a lily pad to shed its shell and fly away as a winged insect.  My best guess is a species of midge in the family Chironomidae, which are small non-biting insects.  One study of New Hampshire lakes by Donna Frances identified 65 species of midges.  [Ref:  Distribution of Midge Remains (Diptera: Chironomidae) in Surficial Lake Sediments in New England]

I'm afraid I have to close this week on a sad note.  Rhys Bowen passed away suddenly this week.  Many readers of this journal knew Rhys from his many years of work with the Lakes Region Conservation Trust, most recently as Chair of the Board of Trustees.  In fact, the day before he passed, Rhys was with a team evaluating a property as a possible conservation opportunity.  Rhys was an expert birder; he led guided bird walks for the LRCT, and was one of my go-to experts for bird advice, whether on a bird identification, or for finding good birding spots from South Carolina to Alaska.  When I corrected a birding ID on this blog, it was usually Rhys that gently noted I may have made an error.  

Rhys was a good friend who gave so much to me and so many others in our community.  I am among the many who will miss him greatly.

September 14, 2025: Spider Webs in the Morning Dew

We had a series of cool nights this week with each night falling well into the 40s.  One cool morning, with everything drenched in condensed water, I found an extraordinary array of spider webs adorned by the dew that formed overnight.  These webs are probably there every morning, they just aren't so visible.  I enjoyed examining the different form and structure and site of each spider's web.  The variety of approaches each species takes to catch food is its own lesson in evolution.  First off, the classic spiderweb of an orb weaver:

The well-planned geometric web of an orb weaver.

This orb weaver built its nest in a small tree at the edge of a field filled with much different spider webs.

A recently mowed field full of spider webs.

These were nothing like the carefully planned and constructed web of the orb weaver, but rather a seemingly random, dense network of threads designed to capture the smallest of insects in the grass.

Thick webs built low down in grass.

This one has a tall spire attached.

Does the tall web perform a particular function in relation to the thick web below?  

This next similar web was also in the grassy field, but built on a tall flower stalk, giving it yet different properties.

This could be the same species with a different idea on how to catch breakfast, or a completely different species.

In yet another location, deep in a mature forest, were more dense webs, but these were built high up in tree branches.

Spider silk is made primarily of protein, and spiders create unique types of silk for different uses with each type formed by a different gland in their body.  The strong silk that forms the frame of a web is called dragline silk.  This silk, which isn't sticky so the spider can walk on it, is stronger by weight than nylon and even Kevlar.  [REF:  Römer L, Scheibel T. The elaborate structure of spider silk: structure and function of a natural high performance fiber. ]  A spider fills in the web structure with a sticky silk called capture silk.  There are yet other silks that are used for preserving captured prey, wrapping eggs, and even a light silk used as a balloon to travel long distances on the wind.  

The spider's ability to create such useful material made me think that we humans have evolved with the ability to create incredible things with our brains and hands, but there's really nothing useful we create using just our bodies like a spider does.  There's a whole world of science that studies spiders and their silk.  See the above reference for a glimpse into that world.

The colder nights makes me think about how the next couple of months are critical times for animals bulking up on food stores, either to get through winter hibernation or for a long migration to the south; for some animals this continues through November.  As noted last week, many food sources are ripening now, just in time for this feeding frenzy, including berries, mushrooms, and seeds from plants large (oak and beech trees) and small (milkweed and asters).  Hobblebush viburnum are highly visible with their red and black berries growing in large clumps on chest-high shrubs.

Hobblebush Viburnum

Old neglected apple trees are ripening their fruit for animals like deer, bear, fox and coyote, all of which will eat them right from the tree or after they've fallen on the ground.  Black cherry trees likewise are maturing their fruit as our young robin from last week knows.

Black Cherry

Black cherries are mostly pit with little flesh; the flesh is edible by humans, though the pits, which produce a cyanogenic glycoside, are not. [REF: https://plants.usda.gov/DocumentLibrary/plantguide/pdf/pg_prse2.pdf]  Birds consume the flesh but not the seeds, which they distribute widely after they pass through their digestive systems.  Rodents on the other hand will eat the flesh, but they also can crack open the pits to eat, or store the pits in their winter caches.  Bears and foxes are like the birds in that they eat cherries only for the flesh, and then plant the pits wherever they leave their scat.  

Other fall berries I seen now are Winterberry, False Solomon's Seal, and Bunchberry.

False Soloman's Seal

Bunchberry

I'm told the Summer mechanic team at a particular ski area has their own name for bunchberries: "Oh Shoot berries" (or something similar to that ;-)  The name derives from the fact that when these berries turn red, it means, oh shoot, we only have a couple of weeks left to finish all our summer maintenance before the snow flies!

I've seen a few garter snakes around lately.  In preparation of their winter hibernation, they're probably feasting on the many small frogs that have been hopping all over the place this summer. 

Common Garter Snake

It's amazing how large a frog a small snake can swallow whole.

We were in mid-coast Maine for most of this week so I wasn't able to check on the loons.  I spent a lot of time along marshes and estuaries where I saw the usual shorebirds including pipers, plovers, eagles, and osprey, but only one new bird, a Killdeer.  I first heard it at night as they were calling while hunting beneath a bright full moon illuminating the estuary all week.  It was unusual to hear something other than loons or owls at night.  For those who love Maine as much as we do, here are a few familiar sights from the Wiscasset Area.

Chewonki Estuary on Montsweag Brook.

Marshall Point Lighthouse in Port Clyde

Burnt Island Light in Southport

September 7, 2025: Quieter Days on the Lakes

Welcome to September, a time when things graciously slow down around all the lakes.  I took advantage of a calm day to paddle the big lake; it's a peaceful place on a September morning.

Lake Winnipesaukee in September.

I paddled around several of Meredith's Islands to the east of Meredith Neck: Beaver, Hawk's Nest, Three Mile, and Pine.  I had the lake to myself until almost 11:00, affording opportunities to see several birds including this eagle having its breakfast on Three Mile Island.

I will surmise this is an immature Bald Eagle that has not yet earned its white head and tail feathers.

A little farther along, a Double-crested Cormorant was biding its time off the eastern point of Hawk's Nest Island.

A cormorant surveys the big lake.

I discovered an interesting find deep in a secluded cove in the cut between the Beaver Islands:  a stand of Black Gum (aka Black Tupelo) trees which were starting to turn red.

There used to be several large black gum trees on Wicwas too, but most of them have been taken down by beavers, though there are still a few smaller trees around.  You can find them most easily in the fall when their thick, glossy leaves turn a deep crimson color.

Look for these dark-red black gum leaves in early to mid October.

After paddling past Pine Island I followed the shoreline of Meredith Neck north back to Leavitt Beach, and along the way I rounded a point and flushed a Great Blue Heron off its resting point on a shoreline bounder.

Here are few manmade sights you might recognize from this part of the lake.

Stone marker at the north entrance to the channel behind Pine Island

That's Red Hill directly behind, with 4043' Mt. Passaconaway the high peak off in the distance.

AMC Camp on Three Mile Island

Y-Landing on Meredith Neck

Back on Lake Wicwas, our most famous residents, the loons and our juvenile Spangle, continue to do well even while constantly fending off intruders.  I found mom and spangle fishing in the middle of the lake one bright day.

Stopping to watch - at a safe distance of course - after one dive Spangle came up right next to me!  She did her best to hide, keeping a low profile before she dove again.

Heading north after this I found what I presume to be Spangle's father right at the line defining the north and south nesting territories guarding his domain against four other loons.  Even as a nearly full-size juvenile, spangle is still vulnerable to attack by other loons and protected fiercely by her parents.  

Spangle has shed all her baby feathers and is now fully clothed in juvenile plumage.

The feeble amount of rain we received this week did little to help the drought situation.  The lake is now down about seven inches, and almost all the streams are bone-dry (this was prior to yesterday when we did get some first appreciable rain, the first since July 13th, with more on tap for today).

Not a drop of water in these streams.

The only exception are ones that have beaver dams upstream which store enough water to keep the stream running slowly all summer as water leaks through the dam.  

This stream is supplied with water from the upstream beaver pond shown below.

The pond level is down, but that's what's keeping the stream alive.

The dry summer has been great for tourism and outside activities, but hard on plants and wildlife.  Water in both beaver ponds and flowing streams are incredibly valuable resources to animals in drought years.

I'm hearing lots of reports of ground hornet nests this fall - perhaps due to the dry summer?  I have personal experience with two already.  One I found in the Hamlin forest at the intersection of the Blue and Yellow trails heading up to Crockett's Ledge.  There was a large boulder turned over beside the trail and I wondered why.  Looking around I found the hole where it came from and realized a bear had excavated a bee nest to access the eggs and larvae.  

An excavated yellow-jacket nest.

Hornets that had survived the attack, perhaps because they were away from the nest at the time, were working like a construction crew after a tornado to recover what they could from the remains.  

I still can't image how a bear can endure the dozens, maybe hundreds, of stings it sustains while it feeds on a nest.  My advice to hikers is to simply keep a steady pace as you hike.  As long as you keep moving, even if you stomp right on top of a nest, by the time the hornets come out to investigate, they won't bother you if you've gone past them.  They're only likely to be a problem if you happen sit down right next to one - so be aware of where you stop for a break on your hikes.  If you see bees, move on quickly.

I wanted to mention all the wild fruit that's ripening now but that will have to wait.  I'll share just this fun moment of watching a young robin collecting cherries from a Black Cherry tree.

It's an important time of  year for animals to start stocking up on calories for winter, whether for hibernation or migration.