August 6,2013

 

Morning glories

Not such a great photo but it was totally unexpected to be focusing in on these two Pipevine Swallowtails and this surprise intruder.

 

This bumble bee is enjoying a delightful bunch of sweet pea blossoms.

Colorful orange mushrooms seemed to pop up over night with a little rain.

As I was focusing in on this Black-eye Susan (Rudbeckia triloba) I spotted the oddest insect!  The next photo is it up close.

I have no idea what this bug is but it was so weird that I could not help but try to get a photograph of it.  It was very small and it began to move so I never really got a clear shot.

Cute little Lady bug.

 

A Morning Heavy With Dew

This morning was filled with moisture and as I ventured down a new path I notice an over grown trail.  It lead me to a field and it glistened with dew.  It was a gloriously cool and sunny morning.  I trudged though the tall weeds and grasses, taking in all of the beauty with lots of excitement.  And I prayed that the bugs that I have experience in Tennessee would not be as bad here in West Virginia and thankfully they weren't!  I had failed to spray myself with any protection, I had not planned to get off the cleared path.  I should have known better!!! 

Yellow Swallowtail

A skipper...

Common bluet...

I only took pictures today of these apples that I spotted.  My mind filled with a recipe that I want to try with these apples!  And it made my mouth water!

I traveled to Charleston, WV later this day and spotted this fawn resting with it's mother close by.

 

I could not get a clear shot of this odd bug as it landed for a moment on this blade of grass and crossed my path.

Heavy with morning dew...

Daisies, Chrysanthemum leucanthemum, or Oxeyed  Daisy.  Check out the crab spider's legs under the left side petals.

The morning dew was so beaded up on this sassafras plant that it looked like glitter.

By the end of my morning walk the air had begun to dry out a bit and this tiny bee was making his rounds.

I Got A Little Off Course...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mneRuhgEUbI   <~~~~~~~Video

 I got a bit off course this morning on a trail walk with our dog, Carly. We were out over 3 hours. It got cloudy fast and we had gotten some rain during the night or early morning hours.  It left the woods very drippy and moist.  Carly is a Golden Retriever and has a great sense of direction. She is almost 13 years old and this was a little too much for her.   I usually do pretty good with direction and I had asked about this trail but I either misunderstood or was given wrong information.  It was a nice trail to hike for me but after nearly 2 hours out on a strange trail Carly stops and looks at me like, "are you crazy?" She doesn't want to budge and we are several miles from where we started. We opted to turn around at her nudging. But before we did turn around I got this nice video clip of a Pipevine swallowtail feeding on milkweed in an over grown field somewhere in the middle of Beckley, WV., that we crossed through.  This was not my best idea and though we got out safely it could have been potentially dangerous.  I will not do that again! 


A hornets nest that was well hidden in the middle of these dark woods.

 

http://uswildflowers.com/detail.php?SName=Monotropa%20uniflora





http://uswildflowers.com/detail.php?SName=Monotropa%20uniflora I had no idea what these were called and I found a picture of something similar on this site.  Ghost flowers!  They look like mushroom flowers to me!

 

This flower is Nightshade,( Carolina Horse Nettle, Bull Nettle, Devil's Tomato)

 

 

Honey bee enjoying some milkweed http://uswildflowers.com/detail.php?SName=Asclepias%20syriaca.

Wild Wonderful West Virginia!

I was eager to hit the trails after a long day of driving to West Virginia. It was not such a difficult drive, it is always just so hard for me to leave family, friends, the forest, lakes and streams of our home in Sewanee and turn it over to the house sitter. This time the animals came along so I have no worries about leaving them. And I have my trail buddy, Miss Carly, in tow. And of course I was heading to be with my husband! It's nice to be torn between wonderful places!
Our outdoor adventures began a bit later than I had hoped, due to a rainy morning. But I have my new water shoes for the muddy spots and the skies had begun to clear off nicely, so we ventured out. My excitement immediately exploded with wildflower sightings and then a plethora of black and yellow swallowtail butterflies appeared in an area covered in one of my father’s favorite wild flowers, Milkweed ( Silkweed - Asclepias syriaca) and Joe-Pye weed (Eupatorium maculatum). Both Milkweed and Joe-Pye weed are tall growing, with a cluster of mauve pink blossoms and they are rugged perennials that the butterflies seem to savor. Like most woodland plants, these wildflowers prefers moist soil to dry and today they were nicely moist at their roots as I stood in the mush to take photos. And I loved every minute of it! Another interesting find for me was a very medium size blossom in soft pink to almost fuchsia. I investigated the plant and noticed fruit growing on it! I was so excited and amazed to see wild raspberries! I am an avid blackberry and dew berry picker but I have never come across wild raspberries. At least that is what I believe these are! I took a chance with what I know about berries and tasted one of these on my second outing for the day. With only a slight bit of trepidation I picked one for a taste. I gently put it to my lip squeezed it a bit then went in for a tiny taste. It was somewhat sweet but still fairly sour. I did a bit of research when I got back to the computer and I believe they were wild raspberries. I haven’t died yet from a poison berry! But I have spent a lifetime in the woods and outdoors. I would never suggest to someone who is not aware of vegetation or berry types to ever try a berry in the wild. And never try berries that the birds don’t eat. That is a sure sign that the berries are not edible! As I always try to do we squeezed in two one hour (or longer) hikes today! The evening was sunny and cooler. I was amazed as the evening went on that our temperature in Beckley dropped considerably. By dinner time it was 66 and on its way down to a possible 55! Wow! I had to pinch myself! Is it summer in West Virginia?

 

Pipevine Swallowtail

Three Pipevine Swallowtails!



 

 

 

 

I believe that these are wild raspberries blossoms!

http://uswildflowers.com/detail.php?SName=Rubus%20odoratus

 

Wild Raspberries?

 

 

A Long Day Of Travel

Today was a long day of travel with our three furry friends. That meant frequent stops along our route since Carly or Golden Retriever is nearly 13 years old now and needs to stretch those stiff areas. I'm beginning to understand her needs, use it or loss it is our motto! I missed taking a few photos that I wanted to take and as you can imagine, there are fewer photos to share due to tending to my buddies.   I have no worries, West Virginia should offer up some great opportunities for feeding my photography addiction. But I did grab a shot of one of my favorite flowers, the Passiflora edulus, Passion Fruit, Purple Granadilla, Passion Flower.  And another little purple flower that I spotted literally in the gravel on the side of highway 81.

Passion flower, Passiflora edulus

 

American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis)

My neighbors probably thought that I was a crazy "creepy peeper" if they saw me photographing the Goldfinch in their front yard.  A favorite to many and a beautiful songbird these, Goldfinch have been feeding on the flowers that must be going to seed across the street from our home.  I have tried to lure the Goldfinch into our yard this summer with thistle feeders but the seed goes bad before they visit.  I have purchased new feeders this week in high hopes of gaining their attention.  I suppose that I will have to research and plant some of these plants for them too!  It looks like some sort of salvia and there is sage in the background.  They feed almost solely on seed and they are fond of dandelions, zinnias, marigolds, cosmos and coneflowers in addition to the thistle that I mentioned and whatever my neighbors have planted, is a huge favorite!  Fresh seeds are more desirable and I understand that! 

 I adore the Goldfinches lemony yellow color and enchanting song. As fall approaches the Goldfinch takes on a more dull muted down color as they begin to molt.  The males are the prettier and brighter of the pair and they change quite drastically during this period.  

 I missed the shot of twelve to fifteen that departed as we strolled by on our morning walk.  It was fun to see so many pretty bright yellow birds in a mass take off at once.  I enjoyed the moment!