tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29483901596318831512024-02-08T01:14:54.057-05:00Ontario Field BiologyPatrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.comBlogger149125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-88923509229566145362017-05-10T22:21:00.001-04:002017-05-10T22:21:17.605-04:00Road Trip 2017 - Part 4Arriving in Waynesville, NC, Alyssa and I enjoyed a nice dinner at a Thai restaurant before getting back to the cottage to plot out some plans for the next day.<br />
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We settled on the exploring a few trails in the Cataloochee Valley which is located in the southern part of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. As it turned out, the valley seemed to be rather dry and kind of limited in the wildflower department.<br />
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Sassafras (<i><span>Sassafras albidum</span></i>) was blooming at a high elevation and we saw our first Eastern Towhee of the trip rustling around in the brush surrounding the lookout.<br />
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Dashing across a creek after a white butterfly I was happy to locate my first West Virginia White for the trip. I'm hoping to go out to a couple of spots in Cambridge this weekend to look for this species which feeds on Toothworts (<i>Cardamine</i> spp.).<br />
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As the group discussed lunch timing this brown butterfly caught my eye. After searching my resources later that night I had landed on Brown Elfin. Cool!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Roundleaf Yellow Violet (<i>Viola rotundifolia</i>), kind of rolls off the tongue.</td></tr>
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A highlight for the day for sure was getting good looks at a dozen or so Elk. I later learned that this population was re-introduced in 2001 when 25 animals were brought in from Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area in <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEy6EuZp9IY">western Kentucky</a>.<br />
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Bear Corn (<i><span class="st">Conopholis americana</span></i>) added a meager amount of colour to the bone dry leaf litter.<br />
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The following day we travlled to the north end of the park to hike the Schoolhouse Gap Trail. This location doesn't disappoint with stunning displays of blue and white wildflowers. There had been some significant damage caused by Wild Boar recently and park staff had set up cage traps. Here's hoping they can effectively manage them. I met a guy from Alabama in the Smokies in 2015 who when asked about the boars simply said "Oh you don't want to mess with them, they're assholes!" <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A nice patch of Sweet White Violet (<i>Viola blanda</i>)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Long-spurred Violet (Viola rostrata)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9KmfOk1bldyJc3vNJP5A1W_DDNWsAzDsem3GsdTF0e1BK7MIAYxIyMY65t7whxnrxeSs8E7vESls4eXlMsbvdUVm1l3W1szqhNCuLeM6xQ3SkizohZTBVBVTmdjCyJgC0tpeluhAKU4KF/s1600/IMG_20170411_141022.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9KmfOk1bldyJc3vNJP5A1W_DDNWsAzDsem3GsdTF0e1BK7MIAYxIyMY65t7whxnrxeSs8E7vESls4eXlMsbvdUVm1l3W1szqhNCuLeM6xQ3SkizohZTBVBVTmdjCyJgC0tpeluhAKU4KF/s320/IMG_20170411_141022.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A violet bonanza (27 species in GSMNP)! Striped White Violet (<i>Viola striata</i>) is rare in Ontario.</td></tr>
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The cream-yellow coloured flowers of Sessile Bellwort (<i><span>Uvularia sessilifolia</span></i>), one of my favourites.<br />
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We spotted a sizable patch of Narrow-leaved Glade Fern (<i><span class="st">Diplazium pycnocarpon</span></i>) growing along a watercourse. The sori (spore capsules on undersides) form an interesting herringbone type pattern.<br />
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The fruits of Buffalonut (<i><span class="st">Pyrularia pubera</span></i>), below, resemble Pokeweed (<i>Phytolacca americana</i>) which is also found in the park.<br />
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I never did ID this skink...(there are 5 species in the park). These guys are quick!!!<br />
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Andrew and myself were giddy when we arrived for a guided hike only to see that it was being led by one of the awesome trip leaders we had back in 2015. Gabes Mountain Trail led us to a waterfall for lunch and further up in elevation to get some great views of the surrounding valleys and ridges.<br />
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Oh and there were more cool plants too...<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sawbriar (<i>Smilax glauca</i>)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pink Turtlehead (<i>Chelone lyonii</i>)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">False Green Hellebore (Veratrum viride), resembling an orchid leaf (but actually in the Lily family).</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">White Clintonia (<i>Clintonia umbellulata</i>)</td></tr>
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<br />Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-9778877643307291042017-04-29T22:30:00.000-04:002017-04-29T22:34:49.041-04:00Road Trip 2017 - Part 3After staying the night in Paducah, Kentucky we set out early back over the Ohio River and to the Heron Pond Preserve near Belknap, Illinois. This spot is known as an area where many northern species meet their southern extent and vice-versa. I was told to check this spot out for a variety of herpetofauna, but as with Snake Road the day prior...it's all good...plants, birds, you name it.<br />
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A few Red-headed Woodpeckers darted throughout the treetops during our hike of about 5 hours.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blue-gray Gnatcatchers seemed abundant here as well.</td></tr>
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Heron Pond is known for having one of the most northerly Bald Cypress (<i>Taxodium distichum</i>) swamps. Here an unidentified snake suns itself in a root referred to as a 'knee'.<br />
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The banks of the watercourse were prime basking habitat for turtles including these Spiny Softshells; there were 8 in the original un-cropped photo.<br />
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Marbled Salamander was a target species and a lifer for the trip. This adult was about 10cm in length and covered in Sycamore seeds.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another lifer, a Gemmed Satyr butterfly.</td></tr>
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Exploring an area of rail line ditch I stumbled across this fresh clump of Green Dragon, an uncommon relative of Jack-in-the-pulpit (uncommon in Ontario that is)..<br />
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A sign of the Trillium diversity to come once we reached the Smoky Mountains, this is Prairie Trillium (<i>Trillium recurvatum</i>), or, as it's also known 'Bloody Butcher'...yikes.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jacob's Ladder, otherwise known as Greek Valerian</td></tr>
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As best I can tell, this is Southern Adder's Tongue (<i><span class="taxon taxon-61419 species Plantae"><span class="othernames"><span class="sciname">Ophioglossum vulgatum</span></span></span></i>), an interesting fern species I found growing alongside Green Dragon at the edge of a swamp.<br />
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The foliage of Bald Cypress beginning to emerge.<br />
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And then there was the State Champion Cherrybark Oak (<i>Quercus pagoda</i>)...<br />
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What a beast! This tree is a well-known attraction at the preserve and seemed to be in pretty good shape. Here's hoping it can add to those impressive stats. It's not an 'open grown canopy' by any means but a 35m crown spread and a diameter at breast height well over 2m make this one the biggest of it's species in the state of Illinois.<br />
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Like nothing I've ever seen before, the Bald Cypress swamp from the boardwalk. The knee roots pop up through an endless carpet of Lesser Duckweed. It was really neat to see this habitat having come across isolated Bald Cypress trees in Indiana Dunes State Park <a href="http://ontariofieldbiology.blogspot.ca/2016/07/2016-midwest-roadtrip-part-i.html">last year</a>.<br />
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The next day we were off to Nashville for 2 nights were we enjoyed a bluegrass show at the Station Inn. After that we made our way east to Waynesville, North Carolina and the Great Smoky Mountains which will be highlighted in my next post.Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-2622312531611397652017-04-23T10:40:00.000-04:002017-04-23T10:40:17.296-04:00Road Trip 2017 - Part 2Leaving Kansas City we made our way east toward St. Louis then drive south along the Mississippi toward Snake Road in Shawnee National Forest. We arrived late morning and the first thing that struck me was the lack of herper-types there...we had the place to ourselves. This turned out to not be ideal as 2 sets of eyes spotting snakes is not nearly as effective as the perhaps 15 sets of eyes I had imagined.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Larue Road, otherwise known as Snake Road</td></tr>
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Ken Burrell had mentioned I should listen for Louisiana Waterthrush, and moments after stepping out of the vehicle...<br />
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This Red-bellied Snake was the first snake we spotted, no Timber Rattlesnake, but hey.<br />
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Cave Salamader was a new one for me, these little guys can be found in the crevices of damp caves. They tended to be a little camera shy, receding back into the cracks when spotted. <br />
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The odonates, including this Common Baskettail were out in modest numbers. <br />
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I bounded down the road after this Zebra Swallowtail, a lifer and a nice looking butterfly. <br />
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It seemed like Fringed Phacelia (<span><i>Phacelia fimbriat</i>a</span>), the white flowers in this photo, was the plant getting all the pollinator attention that day.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFPkdZ3vt61JmK5Juj_-_ZZFwiVScabaP0HvDjbHlv_OC1u83AoEnB7lNyVGNKraUs69E_eyQDkR9bAbwbUeOq2wJj-4MCtzHFG8DjJCQ2hsCHHaOhPn07eZ_0X21oFe3kM62qWgxhinS0/s1600/IMG_20170406_132718.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFPkdZ3vt61JmK5Juj_-_ZZFwiVScabaP0HvDjbHlv_OC1u83AoEnB7lNyVGNKraUs69E_eyQDkR9bAbwbUeOq2wJj-4MCtzHFG8DjJCQ2hsCHHaOhPn07eZ_0X21oFe3kM62qWgxhinS0/s320/IMG_20170406_132718.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Phlox and Phacelia</td></tr>
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Try as I might to find Harbinger-of-spring (<i>Erigenia bulbosa</i>) in bloom, I could only spot a few vegetative plants. The spiky brown fruit in this photo belongs to American Sweetgum (<i><span class="st">Liquidambar styraciflua</span></i>), imagine stepping on one of those in your lawn!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizSvH3b5cqKL_DPjdqQIU8kYBBTwOwkw9fKEcupAQBW6aiOJah5D7B_T0h2CIUSS-X8OEKQplcFJoMozteZ5-RT1ugzurlhx54mZC6PFRKkOH22kpXs_2o50ccV9NR766S-8VguyjzKZbe/s1600/IMG_20170406_145834.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizSvH3b5cqKL_DPjdqQIU8kYBBTwOwkw9fKEcupAQBW6aiOJah5D7B_T0h2CIUSS-X8OEKQplcFJoMozteZ5-RT1ugzurlhx54mZC6PFRKkOH22kpXs_2o50ccV9NR766S-8VguyjzKZbe/s320/IMG_20170406_145834.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Green Violet (<i>Hybanthus concolor</i>)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggFED7gaAdKdf4RFjmyDruGu06fWTwAjs0oNKBk0VhKx6QgzvrLGngdagFuGuDpDIxF2OOq0p_gYhyphenhyphenP4tyrg-GevFlg-T8MDKC6A5G4vBpJeWbP_qxQMqyRUEgkNsATiOI60x9QWlHPKUy/s1600/IMG_20170406_154206.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggFED7gaAdKdf4RFjmyDruGu06fWTwAjs0oNKBk0VhKx6QgzvrLGngdagFuGuDpDIxF2OOq0p_gYhyphenhyphenP4tyrg-GevFlg-T8MDKC6A5G4vBpJeWbP_qxQMqyRUEgkNsATiOI60x9QWlHPKUy/s320/IMG_20170406_154206.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Walking Fern (<i><span>Asplenium rhizophyllum</span></i>) on the face of the bluff.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx0IDyM23P8KXioO3aCm7xvpxpP164qYJlBF9tR1PQzgel84cs5e_y3OQ0FKduUDZfoIg7B744C2RtDX2z8BNONtQUI07cZhwtmVOYHyKG4tuLHEaf7h2_qVJSrjtJZBwy0FbuD8bmXu64/s1600/IMG_20170406_154836.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx0IDyM23P8KXioO3aCm7xvpxpP164qYJlBF9tR1PQzgel84cs5e_y3OQ0FKduUDZfoIg7B744C2RtDX2z8BNONtQUI07cZhwtmVOYHyKG4tuLHEaf7h2_qVJSrjtJZBwy0FbuD8bmXu64/s320/IMG_20170406_154836.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wild Hops (<i>Humulus lupulus</i>)</td></tr>
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It became clear to me within 5 minutes of arriving that although being at a spot known for snakes, I was going to spend a lot of time looking at the plant life. This picture shows a nice rocky embankment of Virginia Bluebells (<i><span>Mertensia virginica</span></i>) and Wood Poppy (<i><span class="st">Stylophorum diphyllum</span></i>)...not too shabby!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxopP7radSbfZWAL87OQxSTprfuC4Umh8iCxiDXsct9D81SyHK5XLhJx5KKxlrzkSl97eP-Xlstmrf09zml1zlpKSQ_7hrhxg27uI10vQIeTDmRA61ziLWokNvczC3ZIcCzmAwseGMTAXy/s1600/IMG_20170406_133231.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxopP7radSbfZWAL87OQxSTprfuC4Umh8iCxiDXsct9D81SyHK5XLhJx5KKxlrzkSl97eP-Xlstmrf09zml1zlpKSQ_7hrhxg27uI10vQIeTDmRA61ziLWokNvczC3ZIcCzmAwseGMTAXy/s320/IMG_20170406_133231.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pawpaw (<i>Asimina triloba</i>) in flower. Large clonal populations grow along the roadside.</td></tr>
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I think the highlight of the day for me was spotting this budding flower which I recognized as Wild Hyacinth (<span class="st"></span><span class="st"><i>Camassia scilloides</i></span>) from my time spent on Pelee Island each May.<br />
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The plants on Pelee Island in May are typically clumps of basal leaves just beginning to send up a flowering stem. I had never seen this species in flower before, so I was pretty excited to look up a slope and find a couple hundred of these!<br />
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<br />Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-25151304675689363132017-04-19T18:30:00.001-04:002017-04-19T18:39:18.292-04:00Road Trip 2017 - Part 1Hey, let's take 14 days, drive 4500km, get a hike in almost every day, and see cool stuff!<br />
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That was pretty much the plan for a trip Alyssa and I executed a couple of weeks ago. She had finished a contract in Medicine Hat, Alberta, the following week I had booked us into a week stay in the Great Smoky Mountains, we live in Kitchener...only one way to go about this!<br />
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Heading south from Regina we spotted many a raptor (and a Snowy Owl) on the endless telephone poles we passed. We crossed the border at North Portal, SK. North Dakota was, for the most part cropland and the odd coulee, but our intention was to put km's under the wheels.<br />
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We arrived at our first night stop, Sioux Falls, SD. Checked into a Super 8 which may have been where Alyssa's credit card was compromised by a nice fellow with "LOCO" tattooed on his knuckles, oh well, those 2 charges of $200 to a Sioux Falls Walmart probably made someone happy. Late in the evening we made our way to J.R. Beers where I was happy to try a 'Top 10 beers in America'. <br />
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The next morning I was eager to hit the road again...to Broken Kettle Grasslands we go! This impressive site is managed by the NCC and is Iowa's largest prairie. The 3000 acres of Leoss Hills beauty is home to a herd of about 175 Bison.<br />
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Not a bad view for a lunch break. <br />
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And hey, it's not everyday you see Bison droppings. <br />
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We proceeded to the nearby Five Ridge Prairie which has a few trails to hike. The landscape was a continuation of Broken Kettle with slopes of tallgrass prairie interspersed with treed valleys. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alyssa watching Bluebirds</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Soapweed Yucca (<i>Yucca glauca</i>)</td></tr>
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We passed a swampy area with a chorus of Boreal Chorus Frog calling.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Prairie Clover remnants, not much to look at plant-wise in early April!</td></tr>
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Not much to look at except for Prairie Crocus (<i>Pulsatilla patens</i>), the one wildflower I wanted to see during our time in the Dakotas. Hundreds of these stout wildflowers, also known as Pasqueflower, peek up from the grassy thatch.<br />
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We made it to Kansas City that night, had outstanding short rib at a <a href="https://q39kc.com/">BBQ spot</a>, and prepared for our drive the next day to the famed Snake Road in Shawnee National Forest in southern Illinois.<br />
<br />Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-31836750686731235272017-03-28T20:13:00.000-04:002017-03-28T20:13:01.456-04:00Here they come!Here in the Kitchener area we're moving into one of my favourite times of the year, the spring movement of amphibians. Often starting out with a trickle (today's sightings limited to the photos below), in a week or two the wetlands will be busy with calling frogs, water bugs, and salamanders.<br />
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This morning I pulled my first of year Spring Peeper from a minnow trap at a study site near Guelph. First of year visual that is, I had heard the call of one or two ambitious individuals weeks ago near Parkhill before things went cold again. Typically a cross-like marking is visible but this one has a pretty solid pinkish colour to it, perhaps due to recent emergence (I'm not sure why this occurs).<br />
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My first Eastern Newt of the year brought a smile to my face. These guys never look very impressed and are rather common in this part of Ontario but I always enjoy encountering them. <br />
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An unexpected find in the trap was this Northern Redbelly Dace. Having observed this study pond last fall as a bone dry mat of peat, seemingly disconnected from other waterbodies I wasn't expecting fish!<br />
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<br />Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-11541831130229074982017-03-08T21:42:00.000-05:002017-03-08T21:44:00.530-05:00Odds and SodsHaven't had a tonne of material to post of late but I thought I'd share some interesting photos from the last couple of weeks.<br />
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The photo below is an amazing American Beech (<i>Fagus grandifolia</i>) growing in a woodlot near the Greenock Swamp between Walkerton and Kincardine. It's by no means the largest Beech I've encountered, but look at that crown! Full points for good (albeit not typical?) form. <br />
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Last weekend I was visiting my parents in Thorndale. Checking out a planted Tulip Tree (<i>Liriodendron tulipifera</i>) in the yard dangling structures caught my eye. I'm just starting to get more into moth identification and the best I can come up with is that these cocoons belong to either Promethea Silkmoth (<i>Callosamia promethea</i>) or Tulip Tree Silkmoth (<i>C. angulifera</i>). The larvae of each species will apparently forage on Tulip Tree so no leads there per se. There were a total of 8 cocoons on a tree that's only about 7-8m in height. I'll have to check back in on these. The moth book I recently purchased is the <i>Peterson Field Guide to Moths of Northeastern North Americ</i>a by David Beadle and Seabrooke Leckie. So far looks to be a very comprehensive resource.<br />
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An ambitious mission to Parkhill Conservation Area to search for the uncommon Harbinger-of-spring (<i>Erigenia bulbosa</i>) (a forb in the carrot family) didn't yield results (I was going on the very slight chance I could find a population I know of, perhaps poking through the leaves). A very nice spot nonetheless with some interesting shrubs like Leatherwood (<i>Dirca palustris</i>), calling Spring Peepers, and 80 cents in beer can revenue!<br />
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<br />Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-76073065124311599042017-02-20T17:41:00.002-05:002017-02-20T17:41:25.755-05:00Botany at 35,000 feetA few months ago I was out for a hike along the Thames River near Thorndale. Venturing through a rather boring expanse of Reed Canary Grass and Manitoba Maple, I got to the edge of the river and spotted a patch of Lizard's Tail (<i><span class="st">Saururus cernuus</span></i>). The common name for this plant is in reference to the long, showy white flowers which taper and look like a bushy tail...I'm not sure why lizard...it was probably a coin flip between Lizard's Tail or Unicorn's Tail.<br />
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This species inhabits river and pond edges, muddy shores and sometimes swamps. It has a distribution in Ontario which roughly aligns with what is considered to be the northern extent of the Carolinian Zone. It is considered vulnerable in Ontario but as the rest of my post indicates, it can be quite common on certain lengths of a watercourse, such as the Thames.<br />
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Here is a small stand along the Grand River in Cambridge.<br />
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What is interesting is that in fall, when the leaves and stems die back for the winter, they dry a deep reddish-brown hue in colour. This reddish-brown, when viewed from Google Earth creates a very distinct colour signature. The photo below shows the stark contrast between red and the greenish colour of what is predominantly Reed Canary Grass.<br />
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Having encountered one of these patches while out for a hike, then extrapolating that reddish brown colour up the river for a few kilometres, it quickly becomes apparent that the Thames River between Thorndale and St. Marys is packed with Lizard's Tail.<br />
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People joke about botany at 70km/hr while scanning roadsides for interesting plants, but this desktop botany, or botany at 35,000 feet is a whole other level of fun!<br />
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Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-83802344689779606542017-01-19T21:55:00.001-05:002017-01-19T21:55:14.205-05:00Niagara BirdingNathan and I were in Niagara Region the past couple days and got to do a bit of Niagara River birding in the down time. Working on my gull ID Nathan pointed out Iceland, Thayer's, Glaucous and a Little Gull today. We were chasing the Slaty-backed Gull...with inconclusive results (see <a href="http://nathanmillerbirds.blogspot.ca/2017/01/whats-that-gull-with-its-head-tucked-in.html">Nathan's blog post</a>). <br />
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While at Dufferin Islands Natural Area we did spot this female Pine Warbler. Checking out the <a href="http://ebird.org/ebird/canada/map/pinwar?neg=true&env.minX=152.018722879341&env.minY=-10.670856202243124&env.maxX=32.135910379341&env.maxY=66.85698399112208&zh=true&gp=false&ev=Z&mr=1-12&bmo=1&emo=12&yr=cur">ebird sightings</a> for January 2017 she (and he) seem content to hang around!<br />
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<br />Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-88538752249182088872016-12-12T22:16:00.003-05:002016-12-12T22:19:02.142-05:00Snow Geese, and lots of 'em.I was in Eastern Ontario for work last week and had the pleasure of pausing throughout the day to watch flocks of (noisy) Snow Geese flying over. My high count for a given flyover of a bunch of loosely-formed flocks was 3000 geese! Here's a shot and a video I took.<br />
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<br />Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-42847500556883214902016-11-28T21:21:00.001-05:002016-11-28T21:30:45.632-05:00A Week in SE AlbertaI got back last night from a week in southeast Alberta. Alyssa is working on contract in Medicine Hat and while late November isn't prime for wildlife viewing in that part of the continent, we had a fun time exploring a few local natural areas.<br />
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Home, home on the range, where the Rocky Mountain Mule Deer (<i>Odocoileus </i><i><i>hemionus </i>hemionus</i>)...<br />
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...and the Pronghorn Antelope (<i><span class="_Xbe kno-fv">Antilocapra americana</span></i>) play. The deer became a regular site pretty quick. The pronghorn were an unexpected treat just outside of Cypress Hills.<br />
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Coyotes are somewhat common and scanning the open rolling terrain yielded a half dozen or so sightings throughout the 2 days at Cypress Hills.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rose hips</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lupine getting an ambitious start on 2017.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lodgepole Pine (<i>Pinus contorta</i>) is one of the dominant conifers.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">If you dig hard you can find goodies like Prairie Smoke (<i>Geum triflorum</i>)!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8V9pUwduLDOMOrPNa6aDNXCa2mPrfH2Ga21ufrDkxXUh3Ct9l7nTh3ropfzKkbkY0jF2Ej3f8hIKJX-olYVntHXHCxapfbSHvbUMFADp9AHijmu6tiUyfH2lMB9xocmtVcSOHmCxGSKYM/s1600/IMG_20161122_123246.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8V9pUwduLDOMOrPNa6aDNXCa2mPrfH2Ga21ufrDkxXUh3Ct9l7nTh3ropfzKkbkY0jF2Ej3f8hIKJX-olYVntHXHCxapfbSHvbUMFADp9AHijmu6tiUyfH2lMB9xocmtVcSOHmCxGSKYM/s320/IMG_20161122_123246.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">American Three-toed Woodpecker (<i><span class="_Xbe kno-fv">Picoides dorsalis</span></i>), score!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...and it's preferred habitat 'round these parts.</td></tr>
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Bearberry (<i><span class="st">Arctostaphylos uva-ursi</span></i>) is a common groundcover plant among the conifer stands.<br />
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The next two photos give an appreciation of how Cypress Hills became an island untouched by glaciation which created the stark contrast with the bare shortgrass prairie that extends for thousands of miles around at lower elevations. <br />
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The Sweetgrass Hills of Montana are visible in the distance. I didn't venture too far off the trail here as a truck with an Elk hunting permit was parked at the cul-de-sac. Apparently this location is the highest elevation in Canada between the Rockies and Newfoundland. <br />
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We took a (more) scenic route back to Medicine Hat via Eagle Butte on the west side of the park. I was curious about checking out historic Margaret's Church so we stopped in. The "Beware of Dog" sign gave way to a pooch that would lick your face to death. The stained glass in the church was well-tied to the surroundings showcasing Meadowlark and Sunflower among other flora and fauna.<br />
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<br />Spending a day in Medicine Hat I decided to check out Police Point; a City park with an extensive trail system but comprising a large swath of grassland and Cottonwood floodplain.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb0kIcF_OYezPD6vf1qRKFJ7E-pJcx2phj0yzDyfY0_9U-I-kaGzn1NnMdh92vjT86O05SgJSyIPia1e8b31S-bRXVIdEeNoV1HCqPi8tkPA1CFu888YDCoTDa38-e74uQhyphenhyphenPyZJ-eSD8p/s1600/IMG_20161123_122330.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb0kIcF_OYezPD6vf1qRKFJ7E-pJcx2phj0yzDyfY0_9U-I-kaGzn1NnMdh92vjT86O05SgJSyIPia1e8b31S-bRXVIdEeNoV1HCqPi8tkPA1CFu888YDCoTDa38-e74uQhyphenhyphenPyZJ-eSD8p/s320/IMG_20161123_122330.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A favourite grass, Blue Grama (<i>Bouteloua gracili</i>s)</td></tr>
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A not-so-favourite grass, the agressive invasive Crested Wheatgrass (<i>Agropyron cristatum</i>). This species along with Smooth Brome (<i>Bromus inermis</i>) are widespread invaders of native grassland in the area and where introduced as forage for livestock. Once they take hold they suppress and out-compete prairie vegetation.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMIxxEq8mrn-d1Eru1eO1m7C8KJ9VLKEKRMCaU2Fox1bkBhLvi154ntjKsRsc0W89HIUwI_4cXQeR-RNaDz9VeQCzb6AI-7coctg39XIRCmSChHb_BQgRm70oF_mjzlc0bFiQLnz5Nv5-R/s1600/IMG_20161123_124809.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMIxxEq8mrn-d1Eru1eO1m7C8KJ9VLKEKRMCaU2Fox1bkBhLvi154ntjKsRsc0W89HIUwI_4cXQeR-RNaDz9VeQCzb6AI-7coctg39XIRCmSChHb_BQgRm70oF_mjzlc0bFiQLnz5Nv5-R/s320/IMG_20161123_124809.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wild Licorice (<span class="_Xbe kno-fv"><i>Glycyrrhiza lepidota</i>)</span></td></tr>
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I believe this downy-leaved milkweed is Showy Milkweed (<i>Asclepias speciosa</i>).<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sand Reedgrass (<i>Calamovilfa longifolia</i>)</td></tr>
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The stout, woody shrub Silver Sagebrush (<i>Artemesia cana</i>) is widespread and abundant. The only Prairie Rattlesnake I've ever seen was tucked under the shelter of one of these in Grasslands National Park in Saskatchewan.<br />
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The following morning I drive south to Red Rock Coulee. The spherical reddish sandstone concretions give the site it's name with a couple hundred of these strange features emerging from the eroding bearpaw shale within which they sit. A couple of locals told me the place was rife with rattlesnakes in the summer and they were surprised when I said I'd have to come back in season!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Colourful lichens on the concretions.</td></tr>
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A few botanical finds could be had including patches of the showy prairie wildflower Great Blanketflower (<i>Gaillardia aristata</i>) in the bottom right of this photo.<br />
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The rocky peak had a nice patch of Starvation Prickly-pear (<i>Opuntia polycantha</i>), other cactus species occur in Alberta but this is the species of Opuntia common to this area. <br />
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On our way to Calgary for the weekend we stopped by the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller. I had never been and it was a fun way to spend the afternoon after a 2.5 hour drive up from Medicine Hat. A few shots below... <br />
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This Tyrannosaurus rex is nicknamed 'Black Beauty' for the dark tone of the bones which was a result of manganese in the water during fossilization. It's in the classic 'death pose' with the head and legs pulled back.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gumweed (<i>Grindellia squarrosa</i>) hanging on to the last few petals.</td></tr>
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The landscape in and around Drumheller is quite something to see. The stratified sediments of varying colours of brown, beige and red comprising an extensive network of mostly bare, eroding hills that flank the Red Deer River.<br />
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<br />Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-68494904743710451562016-10-26T22:53:00.000-04:002016-10-26T22:53:17.050-04:00Get to the PointBack in September I headed down to the Fort Erie area, specifically Point Abino. Alongside summer vacation homes, Point Abino is home to an interesting mix of habitats including dunes, coastal meadow marsh, bedrock pavements along the shoreline and nice areas of forest.<br />
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If you spend much time in meadow marsh habitat you get familiar with a diversity of sedges and rushes. The one below is Common Three-square (<i>Schoenoplectus pungens</i>). This stand was in an area which a local told us had once been a vast expanse of meadow marsh prior to development and boat traffic. Wild Rice (<i>Zizania</i> spp.) was once rather abundant here.<br />
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Clammyweed (<i><span class="st">Polanisia dodecandra</span></i>) is sticky to the touch as the name suggests. I found the smell of the oily substance to have the odour of diesel fuel. This species is largely found in beach habitats but can also occur inland on gravelly bluffs and other similar habitats.<br />
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Another beach species, Sandbur (<i><span>Cenchrus longispinus</span></i>) is one you definitely know when it's stuck in your socks!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Bugseed (<i>Corispermum</i> spp.), of which Niagara has a few.</td></tr>
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Winged Pigweed (<i><span class="st">Cycloloma atriplicifolium</span></i>) was a new one for me. The small saucer-like flowers cover much of the plant.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The rain pounded and the wind howled...all...day...long.</td></tr>
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The point is home to Niagara Region's only population of Sand Cherry (<i>Prunus pumila</i>).<br />
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An iconic (and uncommon) wildflower of Lake Erie coastal marsh habitats, Swamp Rose-Mallow (<i><span>Hibiscus moscheutos</span></i>). When in flower the large, pink hibiscus flowers are hard to miss.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The uncommon Pringle's Aster (<span class="st"><i>Symphyotrichum pilosum</i> var. <i>pringlei</i></span>).</td></tr>
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I rarely pass up a photo of Kalm's Lobelia (<i><span>Lobelia kalmii</span></i>). Patches of the light purple flowers were in bloom here and there along the lakeside bedrock pavements.<br />
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How about that. The one and only extant population of Kalm's St. John's-wort (<i>Hypericum kalmianum</i>) in all of Niagara Region. That's it, everything in the frame of this photo.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Buttonbush (<i><span>Cephalanthus occidentalis</span></i>) fruits had turned a deep red.</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<br />Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-25232536895705361042016-10-06T19:59:00.000-04:002016-10-06T19:59:02.692-04:00Slightly Hirsute SedgeThis summer I came across a sedge I had never encountered before. One of those which immediately upon seeing it, is clearly something weird and different.<br />
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I didn't identify it in the field, rather I resorted to one of my favourite evening activities, surrounding myself with books and a microscope and hashing it out.<br />
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With a bit of paging through my resources to find an ID and later corresponding with Mike Oldham and Tony Reznicek, sure enough I had found <a href="http://michiganflora.net/species.aspx?id=977">Slightly Hirsute Sedge</a> (<i>Carex hirsutella</i>), listed as S3 (Vulnerable) in Ontario. Now, this name doesn't have the punch of say Mad Dog Skullcap or Bastard Toadflax, but it certainly is blatantly descriptive.<br />
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Below are a few shots I took (don't worry, there's still lots of plant left at the site).<br />
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Moving into the fall I'll be doing some invasive brush cutting at a couple of savannah/woodland sites in Waterloo Region over the next couple of weeks, maybe I'll set up a time lapse to capture that. Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-23434436963338819092016-09-25T13:13:00.001-04:002016-09-25T13:13:36.622-04:00Fall Botany in NorfolkI recently took a trip down to Norfolk County for a day of botanizing. Every time I set foot in a woodlot down there I tell myself I need to get there more often; so many neat and interesting plants to be found.<br />
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White Goldenrod (<i>Solidago bicolor</i>), also known as Silver-rod due to it's spike of white (not yellow) flowers is somewhat restricted in Ontario to sandy forests along the north shore of Lake Erie and Ontario. I found a new population near Pembroke a few years back but <a href="https://uwaterloo.ca/astereae-lab/research/goldenrods/classification-and-illustrations/solidago-bicolor">a map</a> produced by Semple shows an arm reaching up from New York, so not that surprising. Unlike some of our other more common goldenrods, this species 'behaves' with plants occurring more or less individually throughout the forest floor.<br />
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Exploring some sand blowout areas I found plenty of Round-headed Bush-clover (<i>Lespedeza capitata</i>). <br />
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Orange-fruited Horse Gentian (<i><span class="st">Triosteum aurantiacum</span></i>) has seeds which look just like coffee beans. <br />
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They don't make common plant names short...this is Fern-leaved False Foxglove (<i>Aureolaria pedicularia</i>). A species of sandy woodlands and savannahs. This species, along with 2 other species in the genus which occur in Ontario, is currently being evaluated by COSEWIC and will likely become listed as Threatened or Endangered. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Intermediate Pinweed (<i>Lechea intermedia</i>)</td></tr>
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May is always a great time to spot patches of Birdfoot Violet (<i>Viola pedata</i>) in bloom, but the distinct leaves can still be found come fall.<br />
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Other rarities like Virginia Goats-rue (<i>Tephrosia virginiana</i>) can be found in high quality woodland and savannah. Some recent trips to Wisconsin and Illinois have shown that this species is much more common to the southwest, but is still rare throughout much of it's range. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Whorled Loosestrife (<i>Lysimachia quadrifolia</i>)</td></tr>
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I had never seen Moss Phlox (<i>Phlox subulata</i>) and was happy to put it together that I had stumbled upon some poking up through the leaf litter. This plant has been adopted by the horticultural industry with various colour variations. Nature does it best.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A good way to end the day!</td></tr>
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<br />Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-43888624296841382242016-09-07T06:29:00.001-04:002016-09-07T06:30:54.609-04:00Wide Open Spaces in AlbertaLast week I did a whirlwind trip to Alberta for work. The task involved evaluating prairie vegetation, something I quite enjoy doing! Although brief, I made the most of my short time in the shortgrass. A couple of public-owned rangelands provided some fun post work exploring options.<br />
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The views were gorgeous, a rolling landscape with prairie potholes full of ducks, canola where the land is flat and prairie on many of the hillsides and anywhere else crops weren't an option. <br />
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Smooth Blue Aster (<i>Symphyotrichum laeve</i>) was widespread, one of my favourites this time of year. <br />
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I walked away from this dragonfly perched atop a Tall Cinquefoil (<i>Drymocallis arguta</i>) stem still a bit unsure as to whether it was alive or not. <br />
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Stiff Goldenrod (<i>Solidago rigida</i>) is rather rare in Ontario. It was fairly common there, albeit this was the single flowering plant I could locate. <br />
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Another neat goldenrod, Missouri Goldenrod (<i>Solidago missouriensis</i>). I'm not sure how to describe the difference, it has traits of several of our more common Ontario goldenrods. This S2-ranked species is known from the Kenora, Thunder Bay and Rainy River Districts of Ontario. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjankyHlXyh9ye8L3CYeb4GSYg_8oevi9STUFJdsRxwQbzMy9bqW5aarY1hvcm1PLpks7kF7qPSmdacFM4pbK_dnuI-uoy-G2xDsNVshSOYsUB-wHpfLMlNbaEMw_ivMqr_K6MN90a_JPJB/s1600/DSC05633.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjankyHlXyh9ye8L3CYeb4GSYg_8oevi9STUFJdsRxwQbzMy9bqW5aarY1hvcm1PLpks7kF7qPSmdacFM4pbK_dnuI-uoy-G2xDsNVshSOYsUB-wHpfLMlNbaEMw_ivMqr_K6MN90a_JPJB/s320/DSC05633.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Flodman's Thistle (<i>Cirsium flodmanii</i>)</td></tr>
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Silverleaf Psoralea (<i>Pediomelum argophyllum</i>), also known as Indian Breadroot is one of the first prairie plants I learned years ago in South Saskatchewan. It can be locally fairly common but similar to the sage species that grow in the western prairies it's bluish-green leaves are eye-catching.<br />
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Wild Licorice (<i><span class="st">Glycyrrhiza lepidota</span></i>), the species I was looking to relocate from an old record in Waterloo Region. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9fL2a8RE054k2FDdl2PajbTFnZnTQqZJujXAQkrcqz8MCfEOa-i_zzCjXBJH7pO86VTip6jlzQ9024L99BpqjOg_1w7IXORPyg4eR2ldzkLCDVGXRdSTU1FAgK_8rpvVVQP5DmJUnAvG_/s1600/PANO_20160830_125935.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="98" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9fL2a8RE054k2FDdl2PajbTFnZnTQqZJujXAQkrcqz8MCfEOa-i_zzCjXBJH7pO86VTip6jlzQ9024L99BpqjOg_1w7IXORPyg4eR2ldzkLCDVGXRdSTU1FAgK_8rpvVVQP5DmJUnAvG_/s320/PANO_20160830_125935.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of many prairie pothole formations. </td></tr>
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<br />Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-77824500797225435652016-08-28T21:20:00.000-04:002016-08-28T21:20:45.667-04:00Bruce AlmightySaturday I ventured up to the Bruce for some botanizing. August is a great time of year to go for a hike up there with the bugs few and far between and alot of alvar species hitting their prime. Here's a snippet of the highlights for the day...<br />
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Soapberry (Shepherdia canadensis) is one of the species I was looking for here in Kitchener from my last post. We have a single record for Waterloo Region but being known from an actively eroding bluff along the Grand River, I'm not holding my breath on finding it anytime soon. In Bruce County this species is fairly common.<br />
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Cow-wheat (<i>Melampyrum lineare</i>) is blooming and could be found at the edges of a few trails. <br />
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Calico Aster (<i>Symphyotrichum lateriflorum</i>) is one of our most common asters.<br />
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Cardinal Flower (<i>Lobelia cardinalis</i>) is maybe a week past it's prime but still quite a sight. <br />
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Kalm's St. Johns-wort (<i>Hypericum kalmianum</i>) was found growing in a calcareous, marl meadow. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEhCuWsBYZUXe2lUXWo28smkwcj_AZ-gjkDEDKo-Z-AYX8y025Qsd8-NRiWn56VydIex1coN64l5Za0sP8AIUNlFXw71oMv7cMfthyphenhyphenBz-rGTzU9j_I-G1JFSCJm3Fz3qcEyEwKpe8VF_9w/s1600/DSC05578.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEhCuWsBYZUXe2lUXWo28smkwcj_AZ-gjkDEDKo-Z-AYX8y025Qsd8-NRiWn56VydIex1coN64l5Za0sP8AIUNlFXw71oMv7cMfthyphenhyphenBz-rGTzU9j_I-G1JFSCJm3Fz3qcEyEwKpe8VF_9w/s320/DSC05578.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Flat-topped White Aster (Doellingeria umbellata)</td></tr>
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Appearing much different from Cardinal Flower, patches of Kalm's Lobelia (<i>Lobelia kalmii</i>) grew along the rocky edges of a beaverpond.<br />
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Glaucous White Lettuce (<i>Prenanthes racemosa</i>) is a strange looking plant, covered in dense hairs above and waxy smooth on the lower leaves and stem. <br />
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Fringed Gentian (<i>Gentianopsis crinita</i>) is always a highlight at this time of year on the Bruce. Unfortunately the dry conditions made for a poor year for flowering (or survival) of many plants. <br />
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A nice patch of False Asphodel (<i>Triantha glutinosa</i>) in a meadow marsh. <br />
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I was happy to see something new, this is Chestnut Sedge (<i>Carex castanea</i>) which has super long culms (stems) (these were about 90cm) and tiny hairs on the upper half of the culm. Michigan Flora notes that it is a calciphile of moist coniferous forests.<br />
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This is Round-leaved Ragwort (<i>Packera obovata</i>), a species listed as "S3" provincially. When blooming, the bright yellow flowers of Ragworts are hard to miss. <br />
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Getting into the goldenrod world...Hairy Goldenrod (<i>Solidago hispida</i>) resembles Grey Goldenrod (<i>S. nemoralis</i>) but doesn't 'nod'.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjqhHCuN41lQeVIQZCCP35jkVHpSV4t0yJhEIqWdiiJSgNlXJdraqydS6dHZvhVYJxfNTDgDCpiwPxVAGk6EI9kXPM3336myEDGYCpOA5ynzB4DQf3x9wN0oYPkEwJtEu_8yC-dwsvcNIo/s1600/DSC05612.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjqhHCuN41lQeVIQZCCP35jkVHpSV4t0yJhEIqWdiiJSgNlXJdraqydS6dHZvhVYJxfNTDgDCpiwPxVAGk6EI9kXPM3336myEDGYCpOA5ynzB4DQf3x9wN0oYPkEwJtEu_8yC-dwsvcNIo/s320/DSC05612.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Uplands White Aster (<i>Solidago ptarmicoides</i>)</td></tr>
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A showpiece of the Bruce, Houghton's Goldenrod (Solidago houghtonii). See the restricted range <a href="https://uwaterloo.ca/astereae-lab/research/goldenrods/classification-and-illustrations/solidago-houghtonii">here</a>.<br />
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And in among the Houghton's we have the odd Ohio Goldenrod (<i>Solidago ohioensis</i>) with broader leaves (and various differences int he flowering parts). <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYFnwM-WXjpcbMlghhP6PNZT78KpUOkDqIvSKaPyeqONoZ4l5k9P3AtIdCVzSDQPRbNnYqdU_5z9dQv3fZRAJHZLhyfuJ5FCASKosP8Et5a9acNoOX6BhNpItEzMDVayCs4G0t_K9Jr8qC/s1600/DSC05616.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYFnwM-WXjpcbMlghhP6PNZT78KpUOkDqIvSKaPyeqONoZ4l5k9P3AtIdCVzSDQPRbNnYqdU_5z9dQv3fZRAJHZLhyfuJ5FCASKosP8Et5a9acNoOX6BhNpItEzMDVayCs4G0t_K9Jr8qC/s320/DSC05616.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Grass-of-parnassus (<i>Parnassia glauca</i>)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgizHEpwJgFz9iwMHRhINvyETbpQXsYuRmLYkzyPRK6mf9BrkopJZvXofKTr1kH5HHA1xivdsUED-M2Vu1RwjV-vcM0_3OAHy2Lt1BMjVVjr7bQgwXVawyJwNQbVWcfDeYEgh9psMPk1wHy/s1600/DSC05617.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgizHEpwJgFz9iwMHRhINvyETbpQXsYuRmLYkzyPRK6mf9BrkopJZvXofKTr1kH5HHA1xivdsUED-M2Vu1RwjV-vcM0_3OAHy2Lt1BMjVVjr7bQgwXVawyJwNQbVWcfDeYEgh9psMPk1wHy/s320/DSC05617.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Twig-rush (<i>Cladium mariscoides</i>)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj2SP-M4Mvb2o0sEE9alaLVGg6y15xhEP5F4k4l10caM__SJSzxt6w-bbqhi2nHOKt3oVxI71Xmj48nQzkFg1UA3l2T0Jk-SbDXsOZwXWEjD-Q13isto77wknMjT3u1IjbjqfoTlesCz2g/s1600/DSC05618.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj2SP-M4Mvb2o0sEE9alaLVGg6y15xhEP5F4k4l10caM__SJSzxt6w-bbqhi2nHOKt3oVxI71Xmj48nQzkFg1UA3l2T0Jk-SbDXsOZwXWEjD-Q13isto77wknMjT3u1IjbjqfoTlesCz2g/s320/DSC05618.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Meadow Foxtail (<i>Alopecurus pratensis</i>)</td></tr>
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The song "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=foIzzAIwiQU">Your Rocky Spine</a>" by Great Lakes Swimmer comes to mind...<br />
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That's a fine looking Smooth Aster (<i>Symphyotrichum laeve</i>). <br />
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<br />Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-53580665046146501312016-08-23T22:27:00.001-04:002016-08-23T22:27:24.954-04:00Swamp Exploration in KitchenerA couple weeks back I decided to check out Homer Watson Park here in Kitchener. Despite some shady characters that hang out there, seemingly at all times of the day, it is in my opinion the City's best (or most natural) park. I say that partly due to it's size and location on the west bank of the Grand River, but also just the general mix of rich upland forest, seepage slopes, bluffs, riparian meadow and a good number of marsh and swamp pockets. Way back when this area was settled by Mennonites travelling north from Pennsylvania, the local bridge crossing of the Grand River comes right up the slope within what is today the park. In short, it's a fun spot to do some exploring on a Sunday afternoon.<br />
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On my last visit I was surprised to see Stoneroot (<i>Collinsonia canadensis</i>) in bloom. I had actually never seen it in flower before so this was a treat.<br />
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In some of the marsh and floodplain areas Field Dodder (<i>Cuscuta gronovii</i>) is common, even dominant in small patches. The twining neon orange stems are hard to miss on a backdrop of green foliage. <br />
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Some hummock areas in the swamps are home to high-quality habitat species like American Marsh-pennywort (<i>Hydrocotyle americana</i>) <br />
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One marsh area has abundant Turtlehead (<i>Chelone glabra</i>). This is the first spot I ever saw Baltimore Checkerspot (and remains a dependable location in the right season), Turtlehead is it's larval food plant. <br />
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A nice patch of Green-headed Coneflower (<i>Rudbeckia laciniata</i>), at it's best to round the day off. <br />
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Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-42094041411272916122016-08-09T21:07:00.000-04:002016-11-29T21:51:54.125-05:00Midwest Roadtrip 2016 - Part VIThe week had crawled by, which was perfect for being on holidays. With a big drive to Indianapolis we set out early to get one more prairie in. I had flagged a group of prairies (Paint Brush, Drovers and Friendly) to the northwest and had planned to stop in on our way home.<br />
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We stopped at a lookout near Osceola and enjoyed this view of the Osage River.<br />
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I wish I had seen this guy under better circumstances. One of a few Nine-banded Armadillos we saw in Missouri. <br />
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By mid-morning we arrived at Paint Brush Prairie. Stepping out of the vehicle a Northern Bobwhite was calling from near the forest edge. Immediately I was struck by the short stature of the vegetation at this site, with very little growing higher than the knee it had the feel of a short grass prairie like what you might see in south Saskatchewan. <br />
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Some of my favourites were quickly located including Purple Milkwort (<i>Polygala sanguinea</i>). <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mystery seed pod kind of resembling a Shootingstar (<i>Dodecatheon</i> sp.)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rough Buttonweed (<i>Diodia teres</i>)</td></tr>
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White forms of Blazingstar (<i>Liatris</i> spp.) are fairly uncommon and Paint Brush had a small patch of a haf dozen or so stems. <br />
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The first Coreopsis seen since Mnoke Prairie in Indiana. My Essex County instinct wants to say Tall Coreopsis (<i>Coreopsis tripteris</i>). Missouri <a href="http://bonap.net/NAPA/TaxonMaps/Genus/County/Coreopsis">has a few species</a> in the genus, but Tall seems to fit the bill.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Robber Fly and some unlucky prey.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5XRuiFypIiWhtwsu_HaBL8WKGhl3OKHUeWiaxLnYHnQSis_NaJ1OrcE57sbkd9N9NDcbi7m1wb619FbccWlmvPN3bKHed9K60dyliCxyml9PRQtF6Pc15sToU71YOKoI1c0OlOEYbDlMR/s1600/DSC05491.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5XRuiFypIiWhtwsu_HaBL8WKGhl3OKHUeWiaxLnYHnQSis_NaJ1OrcE57sbkd9N9NDcbi7m1wb619FbccWlmvPN3bKHed9K60dyliCxyml9PRQtF6Pc15sToU71YOKoI1c0OlOEYbDlMR/s320/DSC05491.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...and a behemoth Tall Green Milkweed (<i>Asclepias hirtella</i>)</td></tr>
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What a great trip. I learned alot, built up my heat tolerance (sweated off a pound or two), and saw a handful of some of North America's best prairie. Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-11744041868398952912016-08-07T23:11:00.000-04:002016-08-08T15:22:28.622-04:002016 Midwest Roadtrip - Part VThe furthest south we would get on this trip was Linden's Prairie between Springfield and Joplin and about 80km north of the Arkansas border. This spot was one of my favourites for the trip. The 171 acre original prairie was purchased by the Missouri Prairie Foundation in 2014 and named after a MPF member and odonate expert Ms. Linden Trial.<br />
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Hydrating, sunscreening up and having a snack at the car before heading in, a Hackberry Emperor was interested in the rubber surrounding the windshield. We offered up a small piece of apple which it quickly took to (and was still at when we returned to the car later that afternoon).<br />
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Red-spotted Purple butterflies were also present along the hedgerow and roadside.<br />
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Common Yellowthroat sang in the walnut tree we had parked under. I watched a Scissor-tailed Flycatcher perch next to a Mourning Dove on the hydro wire and proceed to show of it's acrobatic flight (the Mourning Dove probably thinking "show off!").<br />
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Green June Beetles were staging a battle for the ages on the road.<br />
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A Peck's Skipper nectaring on Ironweed. <br />
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I think the plant below is Bluehearts (<i>Buchnera americana</i>), a species Endangered in Ontario and a very cool find for the trip. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">That's some nice looking prairie.</td></tr>
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A nice patch of Hairy Mountain Mint (<i>Pycnanthemum pilosum</i>) grows tall among it's surroundings.<br />
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I have only seen Venus' Looking-glass (<i><span class="st">Triodanis perfoliata</span></i>) a few times, most recently at a sand barren opening near Barrie. It was fairly common at Linden's Prairie, albeit long finished blooming. It is also known as Clasping Bellflower and gets it's name from a European species which has shiny mirror-like seeds.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nuttall's Sensitive Brier (<i>Mimosa nuttallii</i>)</td></tr>
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We visited both the Niawathe Prairie and briefly admired a slope engulfed in Prairie Blazingstar at the nearby Coyne Prairie. Niawathe was another favourite of mine, ascending an interesting slope dotted with botanical goodies then reaching a plateau just plastered in colour. <br />
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Hairy Wild Petunia (<i>Ruellia humilis</i>) was common throughout most of the prairies we visited. It is low growing and easily overlooked. I have a small patch growing in my garden out front so it was nice to see this in it's natural setting.<br />
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A highlight plant for the trip for sure was Royal Catchfly (<i>Silene regia</i>) at it's peak. <br />
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Pencil Flower (<i>Stylosanthes biflora</i>) resembles a common Ontario weed Birdsfoot Trefoil (<i>Lotus corniculatus</i>). This prairie species can be found in higher quality prairies, usually with sandstone substrate.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirQPO3BBdRSD75FuZErDQMoPks-dE_LQ1ca6EbdKjOjzyfwYvHis3ah_QktgzI05VIf8wX3QZOVf1ePVHsELIYZiFAPRABFcsr9erbnALcYRe0LUki3etvgFDqicjy93nyUinq58I2sH9D/s1600/DSC05285.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirQPO3BBdRSD75FuZErDQMoPks-dE_LQ1ca6EbdKjOjzyfwYvHis3ah_QktgzI05VIf8wX3QZOVf1ePVHsELIYZiFAPRABFcsr9erbnALcYRe0LUki3etvgFDqicjy93nyUinq58I2sH9D/s320/DSC05285.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
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Late July is by no means the time to look for violets, but the distinct leaves of Arrow-leaved Violet (<i>Viola sagittata</i>) can be spotted among the thatch and taller vegetation.<br />
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I got 1 shot of this bird, don't remember the call (or if it even did call). Any opinions on an ID would be welcomed. My best guess is Grasshopper Sparrow but I say that with quite limited certainty. [Edit: Henslow's?]<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEU5DIHXrhdBitHJkn9mYeMBwrpwP9zGXdzPw5T38P4SakNdg7MKM4PRHccFbXGmbXgNQKbxD8eBg26zn4tIiOeVRnhsyZrf7hMWJ2HIegNXw63yJ73Yw8Sgc13GQr-MXEuJGXz_7c7uBo/s1600/DSC05298.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEU5DIHXrhdBitHJkn9mYeMBwrpwP9zGXdzPw5T38P4SakNdg7MKM4PRHccFbXGmbXgNQKbxD8eBg26zn4tIiOeVRnhsyZrf7hMWJ2HIegNXw63yJ73Yw8Sgc13GQr-MXEuJGXz_7c7uBo/s320/DSC05298.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The kind of image I want to reflect back on come February.</td></tr>
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Scaly Blazingstar (<i>Liatris hirsuta</i>) was another species new to me. The scales on the flower immediately stuck out as something new and unlike <i>Liatris aspera</i>. <br />
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Some sort of lettuce or more likely a hawkweed that I'm trying to figure out. The next photo shows dense hairs like nothing I've seen on a plant before which should help in narrowing this down. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0K4uiZz_nV4_61BeIaMiOgq5rjaGetlObAwjmdJUgdUymO4bZfgguuUIxmV8IAqOpxx0Nj0k1A_echhfdhlvWj1KbGfGPkJ9mb9ZEoc8KsD2OALzIRBizPwGa47pSp8JHJGXaIGLPr-Jl/s1600/DSC05327.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0K4uiZz_nV4_61BeIaMiOgq5rjaGetlObAwjmdJUgdUymO4bZfgguuUIxmV8IAqOpxx0Nj0k1A_echhfdhlvWj1KbGfGPkJ9mb9ZEoc8KsD2OALzIRBizPwGa47pSp8JHJGXaIGLPr-Jl/s320/DSC05327.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Love those Illinois Tick-trefoil flowers!</td></tr>
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Grey-headed Confeflower (<i>Ratibida pinnata</i>) was something a little more familiar. This species is found throughout the Ojibway Prairie Complex in Windsor. The dried seed heads give off a licorice-type smell when crushed. <br />
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A Poppy Mallow (<i><span class="irc_su" dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;">Callirhoe sp.</span></i>) growing in a rocky area. There are several species in this genus in Missouri.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMHenFyVxvTw8sht2s8kuvpMITC62qQJXvezx6-AhE6ew269x1ASpg7WIDxQGoI3v8WkJIjIflcaleOzn_IzFvdeGicE87zB02dt0LK5IfA38uWGiK1WuyMlrmlhXrETkHcvrrtCFo9VE3/s1600/DSC05325.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMHenFyVxvTw8sht2s8kuvpMITC62qQJXvezx6-AhE6ew269x1ASpg7WIDxQGoI3v8WkJIjIflcaleOzn_IzFvdeGicE87zB02dt0LK5IfA38uWGiK1WuyMlrmlhXrETkHcvrrtCFo9VE3/s320/DSC05325.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Interesting flowers of Spider Milkweed (<i>Asclepias viridis</i>)</td></tr>
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On our last evening we decided to head just north of El Dorado to Wah-Kon-Tah Prairie which is the largest protected prairie in the Osage Plains (4040acres!!). This area is well known for it's population of Prairie Chickens.<br />
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Looking down into a pond just beyond the entrance, Alyssa spotted a Green Heron scoping out prey. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rose Vervain (<i><span class="st">Glandularia canadensis</span></i>)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigk0FPEsQVHNkynePoOXx55zc5SBq0oyDBav1CoLGAASGhvw_9eQsRClNFDVTjrG5a-qbawQL882yMMqZmg3cHdVyPKyC8uTYCCr6q5x6kYq892EH-xd-1hGqCpmzopECwL7Pb1sxraUqp/s1600/DSC05434.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigk0FPEsQVHNkynePoOXx55zc5SBq0oyDBav1CoLGAASGhvw_9eQsRClNFDVTjrG5a-qbawQL882yMMqZmg3cHdVyPKyC8uTYCCr6q5x6kYq892EH-xd-1hGqCpmzopECwL7Pb1sxraUqp/s320/DSC05434.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ever-photogenic White Wild Indigo (<i>Baptisia alba</i>)</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifAJ6FDSIq6Yos0hthYQdiu_MqDLVAzttXIuGXyn70Eta7kM9COXENpajo2EGFu-kwXjGPxPz8S8sVbcCMWPpVTUFkikhwiFiUQzci59B5phqIgeWAzKUmaBhBM6XbpLJg1oQPHVFOfAEe/s1600/DSC05435.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifAJ6FDSIq6Yos0hthYQdiu_MqDLVAzttXIuGXyn70Eta7kM9COXENpajo2EGFu-kwXjGPxPz8S8sVbcCMWPpVTUFkikhwiFiUQzci59B5phqIgeWAzKUmaBhBM6XbpLJg1oQPHVFOfAEe/s320/DSC05435.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A nice patch of Rattlesnake Master (<i>Eryngium yuccifolium</i>)</td></tr>
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A few flowering stems of Narrow-leaved Vervain (<i>Verbena simplex</i>) growing among the gravel along the roadside. It is a species of dry and gravelly prairies but I suppose a roadside will do.<br />
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I don't know what it is but the Eastern Meadowlark in this photo (and others that were seen, for the most part) seemed lanky yet massive in comparison to those I see around here. <br />
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A dust-coated Green Milkweed (<i>Asclepias viridiflora</i>) at the side of the road at sundown. The next day we would head up to Paintbrush Prairie on our way eastward to stay the night in Indiana. <br />
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<br />Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-31813773214563683492016-08-03T22:09:00.001-04:002016-08-03T22:09:18.146-04:002016 Midwest Roadtrip - Part IVPart IV...don't worry I think I can squeeze the rest into about 2 more posts. We left St. Louis and headed southwest down the I-44 toward Springfield. It was a scenic drive passing through rolling forested hills and over the Beurbeuse River, past the ultra touristy Meramec Caverns, we even drove through Cuba and Lebanon (but didn't make it to Vienna)!<br />
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By mid-afternoon I had decided that La Petite Gemme Prairie near Bolivar would make a good starting point. I had a list of sites and was determined to get to many of them. Petite Gemme is 37 acres in size and is bisected by the Frisco Highline Trail. It was purchased from the Campbell family (owners since 1855) by the Missouri Prairie Foundation in 1977. Having only been lightly grazed as meadow it is one of a very few more or less 'original' prairies in the area. The site is home to such creatures as the Ornate Box Turtle, Glass Lizard (a lizard lacking legs) and Henslow's Sparrow.<br />
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I was surprised to see photo credit for Allen Woodliffe's name in the bottom right of this sign! No wonder the sign looks so sharp :) <br />
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Heading into the site we passed semi-familiar plants including Partidge Pea (<i><span>Chamaecrista fasciculata</span></i>), an annual legume that grows about knee-high. There is some growing in Brantford at a landscaped prairie site (Union Gas offices on Elgin Street) but I would suspect this arrived in the bottom of a bag of seed from who knows where.<br />
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Another yellow legume of which I only saw a handful, Wild Senna (<i>Senna marilandica</i>). There's a chance this could also be <i>Senna obtusifolia</i> but it's less likely given the location (and I don't know how to tell 'em apart!). <br />
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A composite with deeply three-lobed leaves, one to be ID'd still. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wild Quinine (<i><span>Parthenium integrifolium</span></i>) flowers</td></tr>
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The leaves of Sensitive Brier (<i>Mimosa nuttallii</i>) retract and close up when grazed by a finger. It's pretty cool to show somebody this trick for the first time.<br />
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Things got weird with southern grasses like Cylinder Jointtail Grass (<i>Coelorachis cylindrica</i>). See range map <a href="http://bonap.net/MapGallery/County/Coelorachis%20cylindrica.png">here</a>. The photo below shows one plant in bloom. The seed pods broke apart in a strangely satisfying manner...think bubble wrap. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pale Purple Coneflower (<i>Echinacea pallida</i>) as close to bloom as I got.</td></tr>
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Rose Pink (<i>Sabatia angularis</i>), a member of the gentian family, was a nice flower to spot among thatch and taller greenery here and there. As the photo shows I had to do some shadow casting on plants; 100% mid-day sun made for wash-out photos.<br />
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Got Prairie Blazingstar (<i>Liatris pycnostachya</i>)? I don't think I've seen a more dense patch than the lower elevations at La Petite Gemme.<br />
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Dickcissel were abundant, probably 20-30 in and around the site that afternoon. A great way to commit a call to memory when it's all you hear. <br />
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But there were other birds calling too. One of the trip's "stop walking, point a finger to the sky, open mouth grin and listen" kind of moments happened about 15 minutes into walking about La Petite Gemme. A bird on the brink here in Ontario (audible in the video). <br />
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I was nearly hit in the face by a Prairie Cicada on more than one occasion this trip.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Halloween Pennant</td></tr>
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I wanted to check in at the B&B before nightfall so we reluctantly packed up and drove to Nevada where our hosts at the Clear Creek B&B had a lovely cabin prepared for us. Really it just had AC and a tap and that was all I could ask for. I later found out the owner was a game warden for the state. He recommended I see the bison at Prairie State Park and Wah-Kon-Tah Prairie. We did get to Wah-Kon-Tah, but the bison will have to wait for another time.<br />
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Settling in I had the itch (not yet the chigger itch which would come later). I wanted to get out for a dusk visit and headed down to Osage Prairie just south of town. <br />
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When the massive cloud of dust had settled from our drive down the gravel road, we had arrived at one of the access points. I would re-iterate that aside from my field trip a couple days earlier, not once did we see a person at one of these sites. I mean, I hope they are valued and enjoyed, but the serene quiet (save for the calling birds, cicadas, crickets, whispy grasses, etc.) was awesome. <br />
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I saw my first Common Buckeye for the trip.<br />
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Lighting makes all the difference on this Sneezeweed (<i>Helemium</i> sp.) .<br />
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A few good patched of Purple Milkwort (<i><span>Polygala sanguinea</span></i>) were found among lower growing vegetation. <br />
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Something about enjoying a prairie vista at sunset (Osage is 615 acres of rolling hills), then focusing in on a sunflower... <br />
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...then looking a little bit closer at the tiny things going on at the micro scale.<br />
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The next day was big, we saw a good number of sites including the Golden Prairie south of Golden City. Through strategic acquisition of lands this site is now essentially a 1100 acre unit. <br />
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Driving up to an access point....wait, what's that! <br />
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Bam! My first Scissor-tailed Flycatchers (2 pairs doing aerial food hand-offs and preening each other no less). <br />
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Golden Prairie was heavy on the white blooms (at least where we were). We had seen a nice display of Purple Prairie Clover (<i><span>Dalea purpurea</span></i>) in Indiana at the Spinn Prairie; here we had White Prairie Clover (<i>D. candida</i>). While I had heard of a historic record for Purple near the current day casino in Sarnia, White has a slightly more western range and doesn't near Ontario. I had seen it before at the Agassiz Prairie in southeastern Manitoba. Fun fact, the U.S. has a total of 68 species in this genus...66 more to see I suppose.<br />
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A white-flowered Lespedeza which I think could be the non-native Chinese Bush-clover (<i>Lespedeza cuneata</i>). Most (all?) of the Bush-clover species in Ontario are pink flowering. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Heath Aster (<i>Symphyotrichum ericoides</i>) - something more familiar.</td></tr>
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Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-10874630066836788892016-08-02T22:56:00.001-04:002016-08-02T22:56:27.665-04:002016 Midwest Roadtrip - Part IIIAfter staying the night in St. Louis we were in Normal, Illinois for the 24th North American Prairie Conference. Over the course of 3 days I enjoyed numerous talks and workshops which vary in topics from prairie management (lessons learned), insects, birds, art, soils, restoration, poster presentations, etc. <br />
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Typically the conference will host a selection of field trips on one of the days. I chose to attend the Sand Prairie-Scrub Oak Nature Preserve which is located near Bath, Illinois in Mason County. Mason County is known for it's sandy glacial outwash soils which have in turn facilitated some interesting prairie-savannah-woodland communities and the wildlife which prefer/depend on them.<br />
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The dry prairie is dominated by Little Bluestem (<i><span>Schizachyrium scoparium</span></i>), Virginia Goat's Rue (<i>Tephrosia virginiana</i>) and Eastern Prickly Pear Cactus (<i><span>Opuntia humifusa</span></i>). This assemblage alone makes the site really quite interesting, but there was lots more to be found. Notable wildlife at the site (which weren't seen/heard) include nesting Lark Sparrow, Barn Owl, American Badger, Pocket Gophers and Western Hognosed Snake.<br />
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Stepping off the bus I was greeted by Purple Poppy Mallow (<i><span>Callirhoe involucrata</span></i>) growing in the ditch.<br />
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Also in the ditch, Dayflower (<i>Commelina erecta</i>) or Asiatic Dayflower (<i>C. communis</i>) - not sure which one this was.<br />
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Starry Campion (<i>Silene stellata</i>) is aptly named with is frilly petals. <br />
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I was excited to see Illinois Tick-trefoil (<i><span class="st">Desmodium illinoense</span></i>) which was once known from a prairie remnant in Komoka here in Ontario, but o longer occurs in the province.<br />
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Prickly Pear Cactus (<i>Optunia humifusa</i>). My ankles would later burn with the microscopic red prickles and the soles of my hiking boots were chock full of the larger white prickles. This species has beautiful yellow-orange flowers which last for a few days before withering away.<br />
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I spotted a few Monarch caterpillars, most feeding on the Common Milkweed (<i>Asclepias syriaca</i>). Sand Milkweed (<i>A. amplexicaulis</i>), Butterfly Milkweed (<i>A. tuberosa</i>) and Whorled Milkweed (<i>A. verticillata</i>) are also present on site.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Hairstreak, Edwards, Coral, Striped and Banded are known from the site.</td></tr>
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<span>Blowout areas where sand has become mobile and eroded out support their own unique species including Three-awn Grass (Aristida spp.), Mohlenbrock's Sedge (<i>Cyperus grayoides</i>) and.Sand Reed Grass (<i>Calamovilfa longifolia</i>) - pictured below. </span><br />
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The sand blowouts seemed to be preferred habitat for Six-lined Racerunner, a lizard, which I was barely able to capture in the photo below.<br />
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I found a large snakeskin, maybe 1.2m in length, which I was told would belong to either a Prairie Kingsnake or Bullsnake. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3XW1IUclWeaER-4nSjCu3mqRka0FnXnm6gAHsk_xgCe-qWuAvVxiJt6AmmJGpK3yK2xmhsU1XwuEZIwyMix9au0REYMoztgufsWM7QbF2x9nXwmz-73uzWB6002Yuz-9F41YuoigR7Npx/s1600/DSC05126.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3XW1IUclWeaER-4nSjCu3mqRka0FnXnm6gAHsk_xgCe-qWuAvVxiJt6AmmJGpK3yK2xmhsU1XwuEZIwyMix9au0REYMoztgufsWM7QbF2x9nXwmz-73uzWB6002Yuz-9F41YuoigR7Npx/s320/DSC05126.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Junegrass (<i><span>Koeleria macrantha</span></i>)</td></tr>
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Blackjack Oak (<i>Quercus marilandica</i>) was a lifer tree. The wooded areas also contained Mockernut Hickory (<i>Carya tomentosa</i>) and Black Hickory (<i>Carya texana</i>). <br />
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Rough Blazingstar (<i>Liatris aspera</i>), not quite in bloom.<br />
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Horsemint (<i>Monarda punctata</i>) is a paler, shorter, sand-loving version of Wild Bergamot (<i>M. fistulosa</i>). This species can be found in sandy areas in the Carolinian Zone of Ontario, especially the Long Point/St. Williams area.<br />
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This strange-looking plant is Large Cottonweed (<i>Froelichia floridana</i>). This annual prefers disturbed sandy areas. As it turns out, this brutally dry prairie had a history of agriculture and the prairie we see today has regenerated naturally from a history of grazing and cultivation.<br />
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In the heat of mid-day Regal Fritillary butterflies take refuge in the shade of the scrubby trees and shrubs. It was quite difficult to get anywhere near one although they constantly zipped past as we walked about the site.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Katydid</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhtdO7Pw4ck1fLMLMi8ErpqV2TPVjqABlJVpBmZ5uvuoGxygeBwI9ZVPUcSiUD8B-IuNgPc8Vn5CgpnQlhLMo-_dtkii9KrSe6ODilFZPbDb9kx3ii3jAWMOsYnC7Z7NI9AOTfKNn3ezYq/s1600/DSC05153.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhtdO7Pw4ck1fLMLMi8ErpqV2TPVjqABlJVpBmZ5uvuoGxygeBwI9ZVPUcSiUD8B-IuNgPc8Vn5CgpnQlhLMo-_dtkii9KrSe6ODilFZPbDb9kx3ii3jAWMOsYnC7Z7NI9AOTfKNn3ezYq/s320/DSC05153.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Golden Aster (<i>Heterotheca camporum</i>)</td></tr>
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Next stop, Missouri!Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-55054357508758867682016-07-27T23:15:00.000-04:002016-07-27T23:15:35.282-04:002016 Midwest Roadtrip - Part IIShortly after leaving the hotel the rain poured for 30-45 minutes. With the humidity both vehicle windows and camera lenses fogged right up. Not knowing the actual access point to the Mnoke Prairie I took this time to drive around down a few small backroads...which became hydro right of way roads, which, at the point they became brushy double track trails I decided we would try a different route. We stopped and enjoyed some snacks plotting our route and debating "Is it really raining that hard?".<br />
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What turned into a nice morning became a great day visiting 2 Indiana prairies. The Mnoke Prairie is largely recreated. After early settlers had farmed the land and pastured agriculture here, the site became quite degraded, apparently to the point that it was hardly recognizable as a prairie. Through the efforts of community and park staff brush was cleared, prescribed burns were reinstated. These fire dependent habitats would historically catch the spark of a lighting strike and in time the odd train making a bank and sending sparks into the dry fodder. Additionally fires were set by natives...some say to maintain hunting grounds, acts of warfare, even for the mere spectacle of it (picture a 2000 acre prairie fire in a time before Pokemon Go, where's the popcorn?). The introduction of the mould board plough and the demise of fire took their toll on these spaces.<br />
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But there is so much going on! Prairie's change up their colour palatte, their soundtrack, even their smell as you progress through the seasons. The photo below shows a nice combination of Rattlesnake Master (<i><span>Eryngium yuccifolium</span></i>) alongside Michigan Lily (<i>Lilium michiganense</i>). As the species epithet suggests, Rattlensnake Master has leaves that resemble the Yucca plant, tough and with spines on the margins. It is a member of the carrot family while true Yucca is a member fo the asparagus family.<br />
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The white blooms of Culver's Root (<i><span>Veronicastrum virginicum</span></i>) and a single towering Compass Plant (<i><span>Silphium laciniatum</span></i>) with passing storms in the horizon.<br />
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I finally saw Purple Coneflower (<i>Echinacea purpurea</i>) in it's natural range! This species (or derivatives of it) are prolific in horticulture and natural medicines. I would later strike out on spotting a single Pale Purple Coneflower (<i>Echinacea pallida</i>) which had retained it's petals throughout Missouri as these has passed their bloom period by a month or so . The ones outside my window here at home have just passed their peak about a week ago.<br />
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An aster native to the Ojibway Prairie Complex in Windsor, Willow-leaf Aster (<i>Symphyotrichum praealtum</i>) was one of the dominant forbs in many parts of the Mnoke Prairie. It has glabrous purplish stems and grows in both open areas and among thickets and forest edges. Under the right conditions this species can form large clones of thousands of stems.<br />
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A relative of Compass Plant, Prairie Dock (<i><span class="st">Silphium terebinthinaceum</span></i>) leaves kind of resemble tobacco. This was one of the "wow" prairie species that sparked my interest during a hike in off of Spring Garden Road (near the Southwood Community Church) with Paul Pratt years back.<br />
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Word on the street is that Winged Sumac (<i><span>Rhus copallinum</span></i>) is a bit of a pain in prairie management in these parts. It resembles several other sumac species but the prominent wings in the central portion of the leaf are diagnostic. I found some Staghorn Sumac (<i>Rhus hirta</i>) in Brant County a few years back that had similar wings but with the hairy leaves typical of that species, a potential hybrid but the verdict was that it was just a freakish Staghorn.<br />
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I saw my first Dickcissels of the trip at Mnoke, when it rains it pours! <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">FY (somebody's baby, although I can't tell if it's a Dickcissel)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Field Sparrows were well represented in the 120 acre site.</td></tr>
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Another Silphium, Rosinweed (<i>Silphium integrifolium</i>) among a patch of Wild Bergamot (<i>Monarda fistulosa</i>). There was no shortage of yellow in the prairie with Silphiums more or less at their peak and sunflowers starting to come on (of which there are a handful of species to be found).<br />
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What started as a cheerful call out to Alyssa "Hey! I've got Tall Green Milkweed over here!" became a game of Find the Tall Green Milkweed as it became rather common through some of the Missouri prairies we would visit a few days later. There are a few individuals of this species in the Ojibway Prairie Complex; this trip really made me appreciate natural ranges of certain species. <br />
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The "put your arms around them" shot made me look like a dweeb and didn't make the blog cut (says the guy with his pants tucked in his socks, sweating buckets and kneeling every 10m for shots of flowers). <br />
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<br /> After a good stroll through the Mnoke Prairie we had lunch under a massively open grown oak, seriously, I'm estimating a crown diameter of 40m, it was nuts. We punched the small town of Reynolds, IN into the GPS and started south down I-65 to stop at the Spinn Prairie. I had chosen the Spinn Prairie as the one stop to make en route through the state. A 29 acre site sandwiched between a rail line and a gravel road, this gem had been in the hands of the Spinn family since 1865 before it was gifted to the Nature Conservancy in 1987. Corn field like hallways for miles and miles, then a pin oak woodland giving way to wet-mesic prairie.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4La82xnBccANGBi1q__H8hN985NeXkgKLADHBO4TnBfz7WCVMoKAiXoX_UqqQFCeI5RSpOgaS9ujJS7CA4f31hSlBEK5q1BkxkN4K3Nk_BTFI0JtTwGILpbWfmxej4v6VTXwioGCl8tPh/s1600/DSC05030.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4La82xnBccANGBi1q__H8hN985NeXkgKLADHBO4TnBfz7WCVMoKAiXoX_UqqQFCeI5RSpOgaS9ujJS7CA4f31hSlBEK5q1BkxkN4K3Nk_BTFI0JtTwGILpbWfmxej4v6VTXwioGCl8tPh/s320/DSC05030.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Golden Alexanders (<i>Zizia aurea</i>) bearing fruit.</td></tr>
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The swollen seed capsules of White Indigo (<i></i><i>Baptisia alba</i>) - the next two photos, bring a contrast to the grasses and wildflowers. This species and the similar Cream Wild Indigo (<i>B. bracteata</i>) share a similar range which extends down to the Texas gulf coast.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Winged Loosestrife (<i>Lythrum alatum</i>), one of the good guys.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNJsoGQNClzyRfdhOVd_I3sDrcU2zzZtHiyugQOfAU5g6OKUDYCHXatE1pzeQBaZMZZEdQY3S4DUV1Fx9LnbFf7GRuBrN2KsmpmSHvX59BvcnAGfUG5DoibAc7VavceReb7dBhAiypDWud/s1600/DSC05055.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNJsoGQNClzyRfdhOVd_I3sDrcU2zzZtHiyugQOfAU5g6OKUDYCHXatE1pzeQBaZMZZEdQY3S4DUV1Fx9LnbFf7GRuBrN2KsmpmSHvX59BvcnAGfUG5DoibAc7VavceReb7dBhAiypDWud/s320/DSC05055.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Showy Tick-trefoil (<i>Desmodium canadense</i>)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ9bHD9I_iZY2rSlRNH9t0I5uPgdrInGKLV1oQcPij4m0cPKVrdpgW8Qkx-DI62G9y-9sHpdNv-WZPo8968qPjdL30VmYp5Gdm_OXM7RSzd8B5vGZybbNW4TThqVWShaBRuhbBzArw5mjF/s1600/DSC05058.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="233" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ9bHD9I_iZY2rSlRNH9t0I5uPgdrInGKLV1oQcPij4m0cPKVrdpgW8Qkx-DI62G9y-9sHpdNv-WZPo8968qPjdL30VmYp5Gdm_OXM7RSzd8B5vGZybbNW4TThqVWShaBRuhbBzArw5mjF/s320/DSC05058.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A few Bronze Coppers were flitting about.</td></tr>
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Leadplant (<i>Amorpha canescens</i>) is about as Midwest as it gets, check out the <a href="http://bonap.net/MapGallery/County/Amorpha%20canescens.png">range map</a>. One booth at the Prairie Conference had a "Guess the seeds in the vial" game, 5 vials, fill out a ballot, this was one that kept me from going 5 for 5!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Again, so much going on here!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga6P-2KGdObRLU7Mo88gVvI-lBy3LpZchYgcV9YfKPQzdBUH_Bjd45Jbtpzh6cQr5zGR_CPN6SP-_v44KjJEqfIG_PjP5k6NGMm-hw7g5jqNJyQ8stYJv1MM5rfS5VdTeMOZQlaQWTIr4A/s1600/DSC05068.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga6P-2KGdObRLU7Mo88gVvI-lBy3LpZchYgcV9YfKPQzdBUH_Bjd45Jbtpzh6cQr5zGR_CPN6SP-_v44KjJEqfIG_PjP5k6NGMm-hw7g5jqNJyQ8stYJv1MM5rfS5VdTeMOZQlaQWTIr4A/s320/DSC05068.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Purple Prairie Clover (<i><span>Dalea purpurea</span></i>), an iconic prairie species.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXsMqJRD7UbLHJ0MoCTZOrQ7JFwXjf1RJveUSH7Z7dhzC0ybcJdEHM4JVmaJ1h_KDheqGFcCvUf1jWnDa3Idh0DQNPkrJRWsVMrzWorMFrxFGf_MopDopaATY3R6LvO6mQD25AsyKpoVJ0/s1600/DSC05080.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXsMqJRD7UbLHJ0MoCTZOrQ7JFwXjf1RJveUSH7Z7dhzC0ybcJdEHM4JVmaJ1h_KDheqGFcCvUf1jWnDa3Idh0DQNPkrJRWsVMrzWorMFrxFGf_MopDopaATY3R6LvO6mQD25AsyKpoVJ0/s320/DSC05080.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A whole lotta Rattlesnake Master, what a sight.</td></tr>
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I believe this is Rattlebox (<i>Ludwigia alternifolia</i>) and not a Loosestrife species.<br />
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Smooth Phlox (<i><span>Phlox glaberrima</span></i>), another lifer for the trip. After spending a good part of the afternoon here we stopped at the Frosty Freeze, I had a mint chip cone meant for a giant and we drove west to St. Louis for a ballgame and some BBQ. Flanked by a railway to the north much of the drive I enjoyed watching the yellows, purples and whites of prairie vegetation as we zipped along.<br />
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Next post, updates from the 24th North American Prairie Conference and a field trip to an Illinois scrub oak sand prairie.<br />
Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-83786399421544760522016-07-24T22:42:00.000-04:002016-07-26T10:19:16.257-04:002016 Midwest Roadtrip - Part II just returned this afternoon from a fun week in the US Midwest. I'll provide some updates over the course of a few posts.<br />
<br />
Some fun stats for the trip:<br />
<ul>
<li>4023km driven </li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>11 - prairie sites visited (2 in Indiana, 1 in Illinois and 8 in Missouri)</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>685 - photos taken </li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>23 - Van Halen songs heard on the radio (an estimate, but by far the front runner based on my preference for classic rock and lack of podcasts/ipod/CD player, thus hours of radio listening)</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>1 - St. Louis Cardinals game taken in</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>$9.50 USD - Price of a Budweiser at Busch Stadium (12 for $7.95 at rural gas stations) </li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>125-150 - Wood Ticks pulled off</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Most Common bird at the prairie sites visited - Dickcissel</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Number of Northern Bobwhite heard - 5</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Number of people encountered during prairie hikes sunrise to sunset, multiple days (Prairie conference field trip excluded) - 0 </li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>2 Missouri BBQ meals consumed</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>36<span class="_Tgc">°C high temperature with a humidex feeling like 42</span><span class="_Tgc">°C - pretty much every day in Missouri</span></li>
</ul>
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The 24th <a href="http://nap2016.illinoisstate.edu/">North American Prairie Conference</a> (NAPC) was central to this trip; Alyssa and I added some vacation into the mix to take in a few more sites.<br />
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I'm a bit of a a planner when it comes to trips like this; I like to maximize the fun stuff and minimize the humming and hawing about where to go and what to do. The NAPC talks and sessions started on Monday so Saturday and Sunday I wanted to stop at the <a href="https://www.nps.gov/indu/index.htm">Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore</a>. I had driven by this area a couple of summers back on my way to Wisconsin and it caught my attention. By Ontario standards it would be kind of like the Pinery, but bigger.<br />
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By way of the Bluewater Bridge in Sarnia, then past Lansing and Kalamazoo, we arrived mid-afternoon. My question to the lady at the nature centre "Where can I find your best oak savannah?" drew a blank stare. It turns out the general tourism office staff share the desk and she directed me to a helpful park staff who suggested the Cowles Bog Trail. The trail is named after Dr. Henry Cowles who studied succession, the impacts to plant communities and the effects of management techniques. <br />
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A few steps in and already interesting plants (it's gonna be a long trip Alyssa). As it turned out <a href="http://michiganflora.net/species.aspx?id=2692">Catbrier</a> (<i>Smilax rotundifolia</i>) was common throughout the savannah/woodland. This species has a provincial rank in Ontario of S2 (Imperilled) and is considered Threatened both provincially and nationally. I won't get too much into Ontario rankings in these posts but suffice to say alot of what was seen during the trip had my interest as rarities back home. This species comes up from time to time for background reviews for work (known from Essex, Haldimand and Niagara) so it's great to have the visual of it first hand.<br />
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The large, sharp spines of Catbrier. <br />
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The park staff had clearly been doing some aggressive (and possibly effective) management of the invasive Common Reed. I wondered what cost this work might have on native flora but it's one of those things that within a few years you might just have a dead zone of wall-to-wall Phragmites and then where are you for native species biodiversity. I suspect there would be reliance on seed bank germination to get the good stuff back. The herbicides used in the US are a whole different thing from what is/can be used in Ontario.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuSbQcwQbqIS1UhBkEfEtP-ttnysUDcmpjkMQNiUFpcCfCSCvJwTnjLGJEekycHHNrZyD7FLAezt_e8lq5YIq2Sue1goNojvMvel1Pl5r_DisSBr9WRV779KYlv1FLGk_qmdcIJU8MRQnp/s1600/DSC04874.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuSbQcwQbqIS1UhBkEfEtP-ttnysUDcmpjkMQNiUFpcCfCSCvJwTnjLGJEekycHHNrZyD7FLAezt_e8lq5YIq2Sue1goNojvMvel1Pl5r_DisSBr9WRV779KYlv1FLGk_qmdcIJU8MRQnp/s320/DSC04874.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Buttonbush (<i>Cephalanthus occidentalis</i>) a shrub of wetlands.</td></tr>
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I have seen Black Gum (<i>Nyssa sylvatica</i>) in Spring Garden in Windsor as well as Backus Woods, but it was a bit more common here in the back dune sloughs where it could be found with it's "feet wet" at the edges of wetland areas. My first thought for this one was Flowering Dogwood base don the platy bark but closer inspection of the habitat and leaves suggested otherwise.<br />
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This one was huge! Not sure why I've turned grey in the photo, to blend in with my surroundings?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIc42rMsuPLPaWZZDOs82nsoRADQ6wjxjk-2UR_hpS5bX196U83dL6h-6fR4TOW4feQsxJ6Z6pGgY5IdWgUB8B-fsf-GxgH7xuZkvWsTW4bG5Vwu6m-lp2HMiPuAH_0nGbMk-prmWaYTZt/s1600/DSC04893.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIc42rMsuPLPaWZZDOs82nsoRADQ6wjxjk-2UR_hpS5bX196U83dL6h-6fR4TOW4feQsxJ6Z6pGgY5IdWgUB8B-fsf-GxgH7xuZkvWsTW4bG5Vwu6m-lp2HMiPuAH_0nGbMk-prmWaYTZt/s320/DSC04893.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fruits of Black Gum</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgin8fFw21i2xqdcPR9pi5JGWAA7-pOvF0m51Nb__GnIPW_3dOS79gfjVako1PFbaGIXio83RQmpUvuAUJuobYwu2GPiPaMplK1bXX3tqFVW_lVyne2RnSZU4WhvWkUxpOWJcHxfPznC1IR/s1600/DSC04879.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgin8fFw21i2xqdcPR9pi5JGWAA7-pOvF0m51Nb__GnIPW_3dOS79gfjVako1PFbaGIXio83RQmpUvuAUJuobYwu2GPiPaMplK1bXX3tqFVW_lVyne2RnSZU4WhvWkUxpOWJcHxfPznC1IR/s320/DSC04879.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Indian Tobacco (<i>Lobelia inflata</i>) at the edge of the trail.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbMF9aYkHsQ6KGJqXpL60UmFx0zgUHyZg-QtJEShJH-058n-EVx4F_CakUvn2xv-TYhziVdCNrPLGbg3t0XtPf9T9d09Lr7Jrqo3AzvFDC64Ufz4p9TdEyIVZvxX4e4xsVQd1JJG7gTcI8/s1600/DSC04881.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbMF9aYkHsQ6KGJqXpL60UmFx0zgUHyZg-QtJEShJH-058n-EVx4F_CakUvn2xv-TYhziVdCNrPLGbg3t0XtPf9T9d09Lr7Jrqo3AzvFDC64Ufz4p9TdEyIVZvxX4e4xsVQd1JJG7gTcI8/s320/DSC04881.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Little Wood Satyr looking worse for wear.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSwg8eB7eTLkJJSQgXEotrLWRMQQGTNYau56UWF0S0sFFKuPeiydj4tqQ3C6T1hXQkaufCDXgHWfdsYxZdqguRNjqr1AFWt9UnZiPFYY7_uBEMM1vrhY9Evkz6xvL0jL0X20yBRIzeuMJl/s1600/DSC04883.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSwg8eB7eTLkJJSQgXEotrLWRMQQGTNYau56UWF0S0sFFKuPeiydj4tqQ3C6T1hXQkaufCDXgHWfdsYxZdqguRNjqr1AFWt9UnZiPFYY7_uBEMM1vrhY9Evkz6xvL0jL0X20yBRIzeuMJl/s320/DSC04883.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hairy Bush Clover (Lespedeza hirta) with spreading stem hairs.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJUBRQF3MGaSEzSoT_1QHhJMjWX0NSZ8Pnuru5QhO7o0cLMYILCnkf_-NNK155cPXKKShApoCw8C3G1reELrDhvhcTeWRcU5FhECqxIlAY93GqH_sYTWCikbkS-Bl6-_hrYU87PRXgtnCi/s1600/DSC04885.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJUBRQF3MGaSEzSoT_1QHhJMjWX0NSZ8Pnuru5QhO7o0cLMYILCnkf_-NNK155cPXKKShApoCw8C3G1reELrDhvhcTeWRcU5FhECqxIlAY93GqH_sYTWCikbkS-Bl6-_hrYU87PRXgtnCi/s320/DSC04885.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ebony Spleenwort (<i>Asplenium platyneuron</i>)</td></tr>
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The False Foxgloves are a group of plants which utilize oak roots in a sort of parasitic relationship. I had expected that we could find some and although still early for their showy yellow flowers, before long we had come across Yellow False Foxglove (<i>Aureolaria flava</i>) and Fern-leaved False Foxglove (<i>A. pedicularia</i>) - the first and second photos respectively. Both are rare in Ontario and currently being evaluated federally by COSEWIC.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgorDFpRFXwe5MKBTDm7g9GSTNiHRfnLfxqzDifXzzqYVJLnzM78QcTHLrP29bYk4qKK_O3gX6Ji7Uqicc4QIPpRmi4pPHzyZrh4zV0kRct-ZYJrpxqzeswcTrjS9YrrsnHSNbMd2_i_2Xx/s1600/DSC04897.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgorDFpRFXwe5MKBTDm7g9GSTNiHRfnLfxqzDifXzzqYVJLnzM78QcTHLrP29bYk4qKK_O3gX6Ji7Uqicc4QIPpRmi4pPHzyZrh4zV0kRct-ZYJrpxqzeswcTrjS9YrrsnHSNbMd2_i_2Xx/s320/DSC04897.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Old seed capsules of a False Foxglove.</td></tr>
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A member of the mustard family which is found in woodland or savannah habitat, Sicklepod (<i>Arabis canadensis</i>) has a raceme crowded with curved pods.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg90Gi34OZcy8OWG4sz_Yd0gONqsEsa1Xr085nvVS_Ixf6_aQBVLMtOWNR3TEsQMT_DUCZkQanmXhSVQ7GZt0F9TIn_hiYNSxE3-K7dioKy3CYpg1Mh1hSaGxq009uhJrY9A7JTSvrGJK_N/s1600/DSC04902.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg90Gi34OZcy8OWG4sz_Yd0gONqsEsa1Xr085nvVS_Ixf6_aQBVLMtOWNR3TEsQMT_DUCZkQanmXhSVQ7GZt0F9TIn_hiYNSxE3-K7dioKy3CYpg1Mh1hSaGxq009uhJrY9A7JTSvrGJK_N/s320/DSC04902.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsfbcnBisy4LmP5IHL67uU21hMO_NYBSkP8wbHJ5utZz2Jrjz2M7Edn8tsr3ZzfIPcfugCwB_JNHA4gcShyphenhyphenXvJvVNCu8zLeWziQZtRl-LWvNt-68Tpne9fwyw2jQz507BG446S2d_W5k3i/s1600/DSC04903.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsfbcnBisy4LmP5IHL67uU21hMO_NYBSkP8wbHJ5utZz2Jrjz2M7Edn8tsr3ZzfIPcfugCwB_JNHA4gcShyphenhyphenXvJvVNCu8zLeWziQZtRl-LWvNt-68Tpne9fwyw2jQz507BG446S2d_W5k3i/s320/DSC04903.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">High dunes carpeted with Beachgrass (<i>Ammophila breviligulata</i>)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVNLAw4AtQCjtYPRjR6Klfxx-ko5FA_GlWftfVaHC5jJRmraYHtlzTi9SoPYoQ56t0OyI75v_b3aP_oiQqwTachjtP6Kt31NkLBafYn4akKWgRognxMO5rkkkTCjvUw2BE_URBwOVolIV7/s1600/DSC04905.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVNLAw4AtQCjtYPRjR6Klfxx-ko5FA_GlWftfVaHC5jJRmraYHtlzTi9SoPYoQ56t0OyI75v_b3aP_oiQqwTachjtP6Kt31NkLBafYn4akKWgRognxMO5rkkkTCjvUw2BE_URBwOVolIV7/s320/DSC04905.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Flowering Spurge (<i>Euphorbia corollata</i>) is widespread and abundant.</td></tr>
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Hoptree (<i><span class="st">Ptelea trifoliata</span></i>) could be found all along the transition from woodland to open dune and hanging on to bluffs where the sand was eroding.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Chicago skyline rising from Lake Michigan.</td></tr>
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Getting late we decided to take a different trail back to the parking lot and I'm glad we did, an open savannah canopy yielded hundreds of Whorled Milkweed (<i>Asclepias verticillata</i>). This species has leaves and a stem so thin that it could be overlooked when not in flower. I have found that even in the lack of flowers the upswept foliage and whorls of leaves stick out; in this case it's backdrop of Virginia Goat's Rue (<i>Tephrosia virginiana</i>) made it stick out like a sore thumb.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The peachy-pink flowers of Virginia Goat's Rue.</td></tr>
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At first glance I thought I was looking at a White Cedar, but this strange looking tree with a flared base of the trunk and delicate (seemingly deciduous) leaves was actually Bald Cypress (<i><span class="taxa-name-header" id="ctl00_Content_speciesHeaderFormview_SCIENTIFIC_NAMELabel">Taxodium distichum</span></i>). One for the life list, this tree was definitely not on my radar for the trip. Actually, referring to <a href="http://sites.ipfw.edu/native-trees/Baldcypress.htm">this</a> map, I suspect it may be considered introduced this far north. Michigan Flora notes that in the 1 county it occurs in Michigan it has "sparingly escaped".<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fruit of Bald Cypress.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A warm looking Butterfly Milkweed (<i>Asclepias tuberosa</i>) at sunset.</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Plains Puccoon (<i>Lithospermum caroliniense</i>) with it's wiry hairy stem.</td></tr>
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Returning to the parking lot this Gray Catbird saw us off with a song. Alyssa brought her new binoculars along so birding was big on her agenda for the trip. <br />
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Plan as I might, I had not booked a hotel for the first night, and on our second attempt we found a spot. Little did I know, upon pulling the curtains open there was an amazing view of a wetland feature. I mean, the development itself was about the worst thing you could do to a wetland but I found myself enjoying the views that evening and the next morning.<br />
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Taking my morning coffee to the balcony with my binoculars I panned the water, Mute Swans and Canada Geese, no other birds to be found. But then not far from the balcony I saw riffles in the water and the murky outline of something. To my surprise an Eastern Spiny Softshell turtle was foraging in the water! What a way to wake up! This species is rare in Ontario and was a real treat to see. The turtle poked it's snorkel-like nose out of the water from time to time as it swam among the lily pads.<br />
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I would estimate that the shell measured 40-45cm; a big one in my limited experience seeing them on several occasions.<br />
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Other turtles could be spotted form the balcony including this mammoth Snapping Turtle. I had never before had such a good vantage point to appreciate how they swim.<br />
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Despite cloudy skies and radar suggesting rain in 45 minutes, Alyssa and I packed up our backpacks and headed back to the dunes. The morning would bring a decent rainfall, some drive-by car botany to pass the time, and eventually a hike through the restored Mnoke Prairie in the central portion of the park. More to come in my next post.Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-49297530033109193792016-07-13T23:56:00.001-04:002016-07-14T05:58:15.503-04:00Boreal ManitobaI got back today from some time spent working in Manitoba. Hot, muggy and buggy! It's been awhile since I posted something and with the North American Prairie Conference next week (coupled with some vacation time) I thought I should post some material.<br />
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Odonates are our friends. The deer flies, horse flies, wood ticks, and mosquitoes were plentiful so any relief afforded by a hungry dragonfly was much-welcomed!<br />
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I was snapping pics of an assortment of butterflies, nothing of note that one couldn't find in Ontario but it was nice to get the high numbers of various species along roadsides and regenerating areas.<br />
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Acadian Hairstreak? <br />
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Striped Hairstreak?<br />
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A big ole hornworm feeding on Bush Honeysuckle (<i>Diervilla lonicera</i>). <br />
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We spotted what I think could be a Great-horned Owl fledgling, thoughts? <br />
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Harebell (<i>Campanula rotundifolia</i>), one of my favourites, could be found on and around rocky outcrops.</div>
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As could Three-toothed Cinquefoil (<i>Sibbaldiopsis tridentat</i>a). This species can be found as far south as Georgia and North Carolina in grassy bald habitats.<br />
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Veiny Pea (<i>Lathyrus venosus</i>) can be a dominant species in the groundcover of moist forest-swamps.<br />
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Wild Calla (<i>Calla palustris</i>). I gotta figure out white balance on my camera. <br />
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One of a few mystery plants I'm still working on ID'ing. This species was found on rock outcrops and has the square stem and inflorescence of a mint but that's about where I left it.<br />
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I was kind of surprised to see Canada Violet (<i>Viola canadensis</i>) in bloom. <br />
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Spurred Gentian (<i>Halenia deflexa</i>) is one of the less showy gentians. I recall first seeing this species along a rich watercourse in Ayr; it's considered rare in Waterloo Region. <br />
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Some of the best botanizing to be had was along the riverbanks where species like Tuckerman's Sedges (<i>Carex tuckermanii</i>) could be found. <br />
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Shinleaf (<i>Pyrola elliptica</i>) has a showy spike of flowers. I would have stayed longer for macro shots but the bugs give you about 2 seconds between swats. <br />
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Arrow-leaved Tearthumb (<i><span class="st">Polygonum sagittatum</span></i>) will mess you up, or your pants at least. Check out the nasty spines in the second photo. <br />
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Arrow-leaf Sweet-coltsfoot (<i>Petasites sagittatus</i>) was a new one for me. Palmate-leaf Sweet-coltsfoot (<i>Petasites frigidus</i>) was more abundant and apparently the two can hybridize. <br />
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A Woodsia species, my guess would be Rusty Woodsia (<i>Woodsia ilvensis</i>) but Manitoba has 5 species in the genus and I left it at that.<br />
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A nice patch of Sweetflag (<i>Acorus americanus</i>) growing along one of the rivers.<br />
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I probably ate close to a quart of blueberries, raspberries, serviceberries and strawberries, but no luck on finding any fruiting Cloudberry (<i>Rubus chamaemorus</i>). <br />
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Some real nice spruce-tamarack fen with Labrador Tea (<i>Rhododendron groenlandicum</i>), two species of blueberries and saturated moss hummocks for kilometers. <br />
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Tall Cinquefoil (<i>Potentilla arguta</i>) was another species found on rock outcrops. I was happy to return home and find the plants in my garden just starting to bloom. <br />
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So. Many. Blueberries. Both Low Sweet Blueberry (<i>Vaccinium angustifolium</i>) and the hairier Velvet-leaved Bluberry (<i>Vaccinium myrtilloides</i>).<br />
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The contact I was with for the week from the Sagkeen First Nation told me all about his father collecting Wild Rice (<i>Zizania aquatica</i>) from his canoe on an annual basis. I tasted and ate alot of edibles and medicinals this week but sadly no wild rice.<br />
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I refer to this as Sloughgrass but I see it is also referred to as Scissor-gummed Slough Grass (<i>Beckmannia syzigachne</i>), what a handle. The clumpy looking spikelets and lime green tinge make this one stand out in a crowd.<br />
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I spotted this <a href="http://michiganflora.net/species.aspx?id=1841">Slender Ladies Tresses</a> (<i>Spiranthes lacera</i>) while hunched over gleaning blueberries. <br />
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Hooker's Orchid (<i>Platanthera hookeri</i>) is rare in both Ontario and Manitoba. I was lucky to come across about 15 or so plants, albeit a little bit past their prime. <br />
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A highlight for the trip occurred while down by the river (not in a van), when some spashing among the rushes and grasses turned out to be 2 Moose calves. I put my dry boots on the line clambering over deadfall to grab grass samples and these guys just plough right through the mucky banks on their way upriver. <br />
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My next post should have some Illinois/Missouri flavour, stay tuned!Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-40078962183189766162016-06-26T21:33:00.000-04:002016-06-26T21:33:00.369-04:00Work and Play in Sault Ste. Marie - Pt IIKnowing I would have an afternoon off I contact Rob Routledge, a local naturalist, to see about checking out some fens. Rob was happy to oblige and took us to three of his favourite spots within a short distance of town. Thanks Rob! <br />
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Despite light to moderate rain, I really enjoyed the few hours we were out. There are interesting shrubs found growing on the floating peat mats which facilitate the shore fen habitat. Below is Swamp Birch (<i>Betula pumila</i>). This species grows to a maximum height of about 2m.<br />
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Bog Willow (<i>Salix pedicellaris</i>) has very glacous leaves on both the upper and lower sides.<br />
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Mountain Holly () until recently belonged to the genus Nemopanthus but has since been found to be part of the Ilex family along with other holly species. This shrub also has glacous leaves and fruits borne on long pedicels. All three of these shrub species are rare in Waterloo Region (and most municipalities where they occur in southern Ontario). <br />
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Moccasin Flower (<i>Cypripedium acaule</i>) is quite common in forests around Sault Ste. Marie. It seemed we were there right at peak bloom.<br />
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Rob showed me a good little patch of the white form of Moccasin Flower (growing right next to the pink form and with light pink-white clumps also present). <br />
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A little too early for Grass Pink (<i>Calopogon tuberosus</i>) however!<br />
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My co-worker Nathan (left) thinking, geez these botany types are a strange breed! <br />
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The deep red 'goblets' and flowers of Pitcher-plant (<i>Sarracenia purpurea</i>) added a bit of colour and texture to an otherwise sedge and moss-dominated mat. <br />
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Small Cranberry (<i>Vaccinium oxycoccos</i>), one of the finer details among the saturated peat moss. <br />
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At the fringe of the fen (where alder, willow and conifers being to take hold), it seemed that forb diversity changed and sedges became less dominant. Below is a nice patch of Three-leaved Buckbean (<i>Menyanthes trifoliata</i>). Three-leaved Solomon's Seal grew on the hummocks of dead spruce and cedar nearby.<br />
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Bog Rosemary (<i>Andromeda polifolia</i>) strongly resembles the herb you might grow in your garden. <br />
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Then there were sedges, 18 species over the 3 or so hours, not too shabby!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0O4jNVkd5nnipZj9FkDBo6N6U38KA-4cg28G8z4d7l0bQdRaX7jFy6o_WYH9-ZnTr74cLJaVE1XoVSTfeJlIqyAKQ5txyc9jhUJl3uYEuEpp2MUjozrFgbOJQA4b2SAHT7_Vy7SNd9L2p/s1600/DSC04485.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0O4jNVkd5nnipZj9FkDBo6N6U38KA-4cg28G8z4d7l0bQdRaX7jFy6o_WYH9-ZnTr74cLJaVE1XoVSTfeJlIqyAKQ5txyc9jhUJl3uYEuEpp2MUjozrFgbOJQA4b2SAHT7_Vy7SNd9L2p/s320/DSC04485.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brown Sedge (<i>Carex buxbaumii</i>)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_plvXsvX4yhWCM6KNUYQ575PumMLSES1CBl3DX0ychvmt73h5BvzVya1Uk3yBAg0DpQNAzB-QamiCSGd0mgPRQDQI4BcBnkBXjCMPHSKaTzcPfnMJLolEn9z4yCwenTiVFki7PrPOcj-f/s1600/DSC04486.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_plvXsvX4yhWCM6KNUYQ575PumMLSES1CBl3DX0ychvmt73h5BvzVya1Uk3yBAg0DpQNAzB-QamiCSGd0mgPRQDQI4BcBnkBXjCMPHSKaTzcPfnMJLolEn9z4yCwenTiVFki7PrPOcj-f/s320/DSC04486.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Michaux's Sedge (<i>Carex michauxiana</i>)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3b4AvNfLB5Noba7GeMm8gRkWus14H2lCmaax_xRqgjYA6CdQCsTJn8SQtt0qAUIzkAKXLGp_VfNJGHwai4uw4CHrsQTblYTXxBkxnyyhh_g7otnhsHly6SyJjlxnRdp9qx07NYi3fgSPS/s1600/DSC04503.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3b4AvNfLB5Noba7GeMm8gRkWus14H2lCmaax_xRqgjYA6CdQCsTJn8SQtt0qAUIzkAKXLGp_VfNJGHwai4uw4CHrsQTblYTXxBkxnyyhh_g7otnhsHly6SyJjlxnRdp9qx07NYi3fgSPS/s320/DSC04503.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mud Sedge (<i>Carex limosa</i>)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTCNrBfOUpnres94HM6zEJkoZNAF0ulDeRCqwJxx7vYxh46lLjZfpzg_2KWDGmwQ-1EQVugtiG9D6VLb9dR6rFTwGdwj6BbvPUSaNOWSvEkc8WU7QeQcCUkaFWlz8oWnQf4gREHFLTyNln/s1600/DSC04504.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTCNrBfOUpnres94HM6zEJkoZNAF0ulDeRCqwJxx7vYxh46lLjZfpzg_2KWDGmwQ-1EQVugtiG9D6VLb9dR6rFTwGdwj6BbvPUSaNOWSvEkc8WU7QeQcCUkaFWlz8oWnQf4gREHFLTyNln/s320/DSC04504.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A close up of Mud Sedge</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUnGRanhvSl5xbRZuyl0mkV0ax18Olcv75F6cheWLW_J-KDM7VB4TUwo0DyN3G0tOpvB0Bx9F-wF5VIGVCAhuuL0dpqPJDDnkoqrM5fwDeXRoSxuFU4hkASNwJ43shj5FzYKI97DYokxcd/s320/DSC04491.JPG" width="240" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Inflated Sedge (<i>Carex vesicaria</i>)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhrmaQuvPW9HvohMexXgK7qRC1lJVrca85kMxS3o6t6o_23n7Sj5zuYAM9EoYDNJnlAzZIn3TimUEKpus8jGzbM07bLwIxaZ6hgjvVCXDy2w3aK8MnZKV2P6AiPm9wdVvUbA-1R6oWwxBD/s1600/DSC04505.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhrmaQuvPW9HvohMexXgK7qRC1lJVrca85kMxS3o6t6o_23n7Sj5zuYAM9EoYDNJnlAzZIn3TimUEKpus8jGzbM07bLwIxaZ6hgjvVCXDy2w3aK8MnZKV2P6AiPm9wdVvUbA-1R6oWwxBD/s320/DSC04505.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Creeping Sedge (<i>Carex chordorrhiza</i>) was a new one for me.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3_342g71OYqNmMuJeEhomKpWyZHtBVzTHj88InYt-quqWMRY0pGtq_WLuDd102N-sPcI1EZgogwBl2418pE8MoB3ei6mA4ogqoiPlihL63-y6c2gTSOAuE7HfGqX5HrYScQa-I9-zrV5E/s1600/DSC04516.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3_342g71OYqNmMuJeEhomKpWyZHtBVzTHj88InYt-quqWMRY0pGtq_WLuDd102N-sPcI1EZgogwBl2418pE8MoB3ei6mA4ogqoiPlihL63-y6c2gTSOAuE7HfGqX5HrYScQa-I9-zrV5E/s320/DSC04516.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Few-seeded Sedge (<i>Carex oligosperma</i>)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8CmlWJHAEE_xVie_oFSHdFor6R6YbH7HUVqo3sNlOyN7j_JwYo6eeXJwivbusOLtQv2f38BBk9X0Sinxc4wA48cLfmYQRFxxxcH6Icd3DK3IJRw6w2x0zw_Kj-vZ9njjFbQI52bvk8gmE/s1600/DSC04520.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8CmlWJHAEE_xVie_oFSHdFor6R6YbH7HUVqo3sNlOyN7j_JwYo6eeXJwivbusOLtQv2f38BBk9X0Sinxc4wA48cLfmYQRFxxxcH6Icd3DK3IJRw6w2x0zw_Kj-vZ9njjFbQI52bvk8gmE/s320/DSC04520.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A favourite, Stunted Sedge (<i>Carex magellanica</i>)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiijJHPGZAittbb8sO1PRLMUW3lkMBzG2nhg7oVJOsYGU5J5iapoMx08RBRLpURir_uz_j5DtgWKb6AkPDqA4ivl3TkazbgNBYUmv7VO4sRQGKwcUtodCGrUG8z2Syr86Wue83HsGiAGTVj/s1600/IMG_20160615_155339.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiijJHPGZAittbb8sO1PRLMUW3lkMBzG2nhg7oVJOsYGU5J5iapoMx08RBRLpURir_uz_j5DtgWKb6AkPDqA4ivl3TkazbgNBYUmv7VO4sRQGKwcUtodCGrUG8z2Syr86Wue83HsGiAGTVj/s320/IMG_20160615_155339.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And one of the stranger looking sedges, Few-flowered Sedge (<i>Carex pauciflora</i>).</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br />Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2948390159631883151.post-35125454374592713152016-06-20T21:44:00.004-04:002016-06-20T21:44:53.140-04:00Work and Play in Sault Ste. Marie - Pt ILast week <a href="http://nathanmillerbirds.blogspot.ca/2016/06/the-soo.html">Nathan Miller</a> and I were in Sault Ste. Marie for work. I was looking forward to a few days of early morning bird surveys, hiking through the woods and getting out to explore some wetlands in our down time.<br />
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On our first night we were surrounded by a small group of curious Cape May Warblers, named after Cape May, New Jersey were the species was first described.<br />
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<a href="http://michiganflora.net/species.aspx?id=1237">Oval-leaved Bilberry</a> (<i>Vaccinium ovalifolium</i>) is a locally common shrub. It has a relatively small range in northern Michigan and around Sault Ste. Marie in Ontario but is also found on the east coast and west coast as well as across the Atlantic in Japan, Russia, etc.. This member of the Heath family has an s-rank of S3 (rare to uncommon in Ontario).<br />
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A hydro-cut provided good open habitat for a few species of butterflies including this Arctic Skipper. <br />
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Black Bear tracks and scat (as well as Eastern Wolf and Moose) could be found here and there. <br />
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Nathan spotted a Mink Frog while I was transfixed trying to get shots of the Cape May Warblers. <br />
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Some ferns of interest (for a southerner) include glades of Interrupted Fern (<i><span>Osmunda claytoniana</span></i>), similar to Cinnamon Fern (<i><span class="_Xbe kno-fv">Osmundastrum cinnamomeum</span></i>) but with the presence of fertile leaflets (which eventually wither away) create an interrupted effect on the frond. <br />
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Labrador Tea (<i>Ledum groenlandicum</i>) with it's in-rolled leaves with densely hairy undersides was in bloom. <br />
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Silvery Sedge (<i>Carex canescens</i>) has a bit of a bluish-silverish hue to the foliage and stems. <br />
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One of the most common wildflowers in the upland forest areas is Bluebead Lily (<i>Clintonia borealis</i>). This species is also called Yellow Clintonia, the fruits resemble blueberries hence the name Bluebead.<br />
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A few video clips of the sights and sounds...<br />
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In our downtime we checked out some fens and beaver meadows near the airport... to be continued in my next post.Patrickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09422898369647710443noreply@blogger.com0