May 19, 2023: Woodland Wildflowers

I'm publishing early this week in case anyone wants to go out this weekend to look for woodland wildflowers.   Most of the deep-woods flowers are blooming now, and by next weekend they may be going by, depending on the weather.  One exception is the Lady's Slipper which usually doesn't bloom until late May, but you might get lucky and see an early bloomer this weekend.  Last week I noted I found a couple of trilliums blooming, but this week there were many to be found.

Painted Trillium

Several of the tiny white woodland flowers are also blooming, including the starflower and the goldthread.  

Starflower

Goldthread

There are still a few trailing arbutus around, but these, the earliest of the wildflowers, are mostly gone.  All of these deep-wood flowers take advantage of a narrow window of opportunity after the ground warms up, but before all the trees leaf out.  The bare branches of deciduous trees allow sufficient sun to reach the forest floor for these plants to collect enough energy to grow and flower before they are relegated to the dark shade of the forest.  They will continue to photosynthesize throughout the summer with what little light does reach them, but that short window is what really keeps them going.  

If your travels take you by more open sunny areas you're likely to see several other pretty blooms growing down at your feet.  Two violets, the sweet white and the common blue are in bloom now.

I love the perfect spheres of dew on the blades of grass,

Also down at ground level, wild strawberry are flowering, hoping to attract an early pollinator to let them set fruit for the birds later in the summer.

A future strawberry in the making.

Another fruit-bearer is blooming as well, and judging by the quantity of blossoms, it appears another good blueberry season might be in store for us.

Lots of blossoms have been set on the blueberry bushes.

Of course, this depends on sufficient rain coming during June and July, something we haven't seen in two weeks now.  

Bridging the borders between sun and shade is one of my favorite flowers, the fringed polygala, which can spread into large patches.

Fringed Polygala

I think it's the unusual color, somewhere between magenta and violet, that I find intriguing.  You might also see bluets and lily-of-the-valley blooming right now.

Lily-of-the-valley

The last flower I'll mention is a new one for me, and I had to work to determine what it is.  Though I found it on the forest floor, it's not one that blooms down low, but rather up high in the forest canopy.

I expected it was a flower from a tree, but which tree?  I found many of these flowers under hemlocks, but I knew that wasn't its host.  Eventually, by looking up flowers of the various trees that grow in our forests, I determined it's the flower of the American Beech; it perfectly fits the description of the male beech flower in the Audubon guide "Eastern Forests".  [Alfred A. Knopf, Inc, publisher, 1985]  The flowers are very light, and with the strong winds this week, they could have blown a long way.

The tiny flower of the mighty beech tree.

The variation in relative size between plant and flower that different species have developed is remarkable.  A trillium flower is about one third the height of a mature plant, while the flower of the American Beech is less than one one-thousandth of the height of a mature tree.

Moving on to the animals, I saw a couple of new bird arrivals this week, the American Redstart the Baltimore Oriole and the Chestnut-sided Warbler.

Chestnut-sided warbler.

These birds tell me that we're nearing the end of the migration, as these birds, based on my observations, are among the last to arrive.  I heard the oriole on the Wetland Loop Trail at Page Pond, high up in a tree with no chance to see it.  Chestnut-sided warblers flit around in the thickets of young successional forests, but its song is so loud you can easily track it, and if you watch long enough you can usually get a glimpse of him (it's always him that sings).  You're likely to see one along the Page Pond Field Trail at the Barnard Ridge Road trailhead.  Listen for its distinctive "Pleased, pleased, pleased to MEET you" song.

It can be hard to get past the bugs, but if you can, the sights and sounds of the forest are now reaching their spring climax.

Singing loudly to defend his territory.

May 21, 2017

There is so much going on around the lakes in spring and early summer - people and animals returning, trees flowering, flowers blooming, amphibians breeding - it's hard to decide what to leave out from the journal. It's always a good feeling this time of year when you meet a familiar face on the trails that you haven't seen for a while.

A Gray Tree Frog (Hyla versicolor) sitting in the middle of the trail

This little gray tree frog seemed happy to see me as well, as he was quite content to sit and chat with me for a while, even offering to pose for a portrait before I went on my way.  Later that evening he sang a nice etude for all to hear around the lake.  (You can listen to the song of the gray tree frog here.)

There is much to enjoy at a frog's-eye view at the moment, and purple seems to be the theme of the week.  

Fringed Polygala (Polygala paucifolia)

Wild  Common Violet (Viola papilionacea)

In addition to fringed polygala and violets, there are wild strawberry, sweet white violets and trillium blooming down at frog level.  A bit higher up is more purple - lilacs, rhododendron, and rhodora.

Purple Lilac (Syringa vulgaris), the New Hampshire state flower, even though not indigenous to NH

Rhododendron at Oakland Cemetery

Rhodora (Rhododendron canadense)

Other friends get the bird's-eye view of these charms, although their own colors compete for attention in the upper-level beauty pageant where yellow and orange are added to the color scheme.

Baltimore Oriole (Icterus galbula)

Hang on to that bloomin' blueberry bush!

Yellow Warbler (Dendroica petechia)

Black-throated Green Warbler (Dendroica virens)

This week brought me two new sightings.  The black-throated green warbler I have heard many, many times signing it's memorable song, but I had never seen one, as they hide deep in the trees' foliage;  I was happy to finally see one in person.  (Though I must say I can barely see the green on its back that gives it its name.) 

A small streak of olive green is visible on the back of its head and neck

The next flying ornament, a mourning cloak butterfly, was also a new discovery for me.  

Mourning Cloak butterfly (Nymphalis antiopa)

They have some unique characteristics, including the longest lifespan of all our butterflies.  Although some migrate, most overwinter locally, and thus are among the first to appear in the spring.  They breed in spring, then after feeding - especially on the sap of oak trees - they go into a state of dormancy during the hot summer, reawakening in fall to feed again and store energy for the winter. [Ref:  Butterflies and Moths of North America]  I also learned they make an audible click when they take off, a defensive trait to startle a predator.  [Ref:  "Eastern Forests," Ann Sutton, Knopf, Inc, 1985]

On a somewhat sad avian note, we appear to have had a visit from the bear this week.  We woke one morning to find one of our birdhouses ravaged by a wild beast.

Bird house, with nest to the left

I'm guessing that only a bear would be able to pull apart this house, bending five nails in the process.

Birdhouse easily and cleanly disassembled required some strength

A raccoon or a weasel would happily go after a bird nest, but with not a scratch left on the birdhouse, I think it was a feat requiring the strength of a bear.  We're glad we had taken in the bird feeders a few weeks ago.  

I did some work with the Lakes Region Conservation Trust this week on Rattlesnake Island. (Can you count a trip on Winnipesaukee and a perfect hike on an island "work"?)  It was my first time on the island and it is beautiful, including a nice two mile (round-trip) trail with great views south and west towards the Belknap Range, and north towards the White Mountains.  

If you are on Lake Winnipesaukee this summer, make a stop there.  The Lakes Region Conservation Trust does ask that you become a member if you visit, and display your decal on your boat.  Their dock is on the southeast point of the island, and is marked.  

Approaching Rattlesnake Island from the east shows the ledges upon which the trail passes

Alton Bay and Mount Major to the south as seen from the ledge

White oak flowers frame Gunstock and Belknap Mountains to the west

Boats and docks are starting to appear on all the lakes, and more people are arriving every week.  I look forward to seeing many more familiar faces on the water and on the trails in the coming weeks. 

More friends returning for the summer?

Welcome back to summer!

May 22, 2016

The first eggs of the season hatched at Lake Wicwas this week, those of the Canada Goose, which is appropriate since they are the first birds to arrive in the spring.  Earlier in the week there was a family of eight to ten Canada Geese crossing Route 104 just east of Cross Hatch Road, and yesterday a family of seven appeared on the lake. 

Look how much smaller one chick is than the others

And even though there are more than enough Geese in these parts it was still sad to see that one egg didn't make it.

Goose egg for breakfast

Finding this early one morning in the middle of a trail near the water makes me think a weasel was the lucky diner of fresh egg for breakfast. 

Land owners around the lake have taken steps to help curtail the excessive goose population by letting shoreline vegetation grow up.  Shoreline growth discourages geese from coming on the land - they love grassy areas as every park and golf course knows.  Beaches are also an invitation to geese, particularly now with little goslings in tow which have trouble negotiating a dense shoreline.  A natural shoreline helps prevent geese as well as soil erosion and nitrogen and phosphorus runoff.  Geese have few predators, and even fewer near human development.  But as they are redirected back to nesting in their natural habitat they will be more exposed to predators and the population will be better managed.

Most of our seasonal birds have now returned for their summer at the lake.  Still no news on any loon nesting, but I have seen several of our warblers hopping around in the trees, plucking worms and bugs off the new leaves, building energy to lay their eggs.

Yellow Warbler

Common Yellowthroat sing loudly in the morning sun

Birds aren't the only things returning for the summer - people are too!  Docks, rafts and boats are starting to appear around the lake.

It's starting to look like summer

I'm looking forward to seeing good friends again after many months away!

If you will be at the lake over the holiday weekend, be sure to take a short break from the spring time work to enjoy a walk in the woods;  there is plenty of beauty this time of year.

A relative of rhododendron, Rhodora bloom near the water

You'll find Trillium in the woods - there are several along the Yellow Trail in the Hamlin Conservation Area

Wild strawberry grows in most any sunny spot

There are beautiful animals as well;  this week I was treated to my first deer sighting in some time.

Any doubts about why they call this a "white tail"?

As usual, it spotted me before I noticed it.  It started snorting and stomping as it stared me down. 

After a minute or two of this it decided to bound behind a few small trees.

These guys sure can jump

But it stopped there and continued to watch me, while another deer, invisible in the thicket, joined in the snorting. 

I went on my way, leaving them to enjoy the peaceful morning, savoring their breakfast at Bistro Wicwas - a table with a view.

Morning on the lake

May 18, 2014

Signs of growth, renewal, and rejuvenation are everywhere around Lake Wicwas now.  The small, delicate wildflowers that emerge in the spring are coming into their full beauty, and with them arrives a wide range of insects that feed on the blossoms' nectar.

Hobblebush Viburnum

With Visitor

Goldthread

With its own Guest

Wild Strawberry

Fringed Polygala

Common Violet

Continuing with the progression of the Red Maple, the leaves that were tiny proteges grew rapidly in one week to become full-fledged photosynthesizing chlorophyll factories. 

Being the only trees to have developed large, green leaves, the forest is still wearing its early spring blazer of pale, yellow-green hue.

Another sign of renewal - a bright blue Robin's egg appeared one day. 

This particular beam has fledged baby robins before;  it is likely that by now another one or two eggs have arrived.  I hope I'll be able to follow this story of birth and development - it will require care and attention to not alarm the caretakers.

I wonder if the loons have selected their nesting site yet....