July 21, 2013

The long stretch of hot and humid weather finally ended last night, much to everyone's relief.  And the strong thunderstorms that were predicted to occur when the front came through never hit Lake Wicwas - they just skirted us to the north.  Which was a good thing, because the Lake Wicwas Association was having a wonderful event at the lake just at the time the front passed!  The association was recognizing another of the many conservation events around Lake Wicwas, this time for the effort that created Hamlin Park.  Several members of the Hamlin family were present for the event.

LWA President Tom Crane Recognizing the Many Conservation Efforts around Lake Wicwas

Presentation to Beate Hamlin by LWA Board Member Marge Thorpe

Everyone who attended had a good time, and we all thank the gracious hosts for their generosity and hospitality!

I had some challenging bird identification this week, after seeing two different groups of birds flitting around the shore line, feasting on the berries now ripening.  My best guesses are that one is a pewee and the other is a warbler, but both could be wrong.  Any guidance from bird experts would be welcome here.

Yellow Warbler?

Enjoying the Blueberries left by the Chipmunks

Pewee?

The Pewee(?) was enjoying some little red berries which I have not been able to identify either.  Not a good week for me;  I have more work to do!

Those pictures were taken in the morning near a marsh where many Fragrant Water Lilies are blooming.  They provide quite a colorful show on the water.

Fragrant Water Lilies

 

There has been a fair amount of Gypsy Moth damage to the trees this year, primarily the oaks, which are their favorite food source.  However, some of the damaged trees are now putting out new growth where their leaves had been decimated.  These young, red oak leaves will have time to mature and provide extra energy to the trees to help them survive the assault.

Oak Leaves being Regenerated after Damage by Gypsy Moth Caterpillars

 

Let's hope the more pleasant summer weather will stay with us for a while now.

June 16, 2013

Success!  This week I was able to catch the fawn that Linda saw last week (at least we assume it's the same one) and its mother.  They came by in mid-morning, and the fawn has grown dramatically in just one week.

White Tail Fawn

White Tail Deer - Doe

We also had several more visits by the gray and red fox, though all these visits were in the night.  I got one picture of the red fox that shows that its winter coat is just about gone, exposing its black feet.

Red Fox in Summer Clothing

At the other end of the animal spectrum are the dragon flies which hatched out a few weeks ago and are highly abundant at this point.  Coming across a sunny spot there will be dozens of them that alight and buzz around you as you pass by.  One of the more prevalent species is this model with white on the center of its abdomen and clear wings.

Unidentified Dragon Fly

The best I can determine is that it looks like a Scarce Chaser (Libellula fulva).  But I can only find evidence of this dragon fly living in Europe, so I doubt that's correct - I'll have to keep searching.

An interesting bug I did identify is one of those animals that has a very descriptive name:  It's a Six Spotted Green Tiger Beetle:

Six Spotted Green Tiger Beetle (Cicindela sexguttata)

These are beautiful metallic green and really sparkle in the sun.  They like sunny locations and consume various insects including caterpillars.  I hope they like Gypsy Moth caterpillars, as there are quite a few of them around this year.  Perhaps you've seen them:

Gypsy Moth Caterpillar

They are quite pretty even if they are destructive.

We took my father (and mother!) up to Sugar Hill today to see the mountains and the Lupine - it was a pretty day, and we made it back to Lake Wicwas for a BBQ well before the rain started.

Looking Northeast from the Inspiration Walk at Sugar Hill

Lupine at Sugar Hill

Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there!