Blue Ridge

Project Fish Bugs Poster

2012-01-18T10:58:00.012-05:00

The purpose of this exercise was to familiarize the students with the process of careful documentation as well as taking a closer look at the critters themselves. We hope by helping them focus through creating these amazing drawings, that the entire experience...from our field study day to this final product...will be more greatly understood and appreciated.

These young people should be very proud of this outcome. We applaud Mrs. Gramm's efforts and the good work her students accomplished.
In early December, Scott collected the drawings from Christina Gramm, the art teacher, and handed them over to Aaron, who arranged the sketches into the poster format. Each participant in the entire year's Fish Bug experience has received their own copy. Both local newspapers, with Christina's help, published front page coverage of this BRDC sponsored art component.

This kind of collaborative effort is central to BRDC's mission, and helps illustrate the great possibilities for even more ambitious projects. By studying what is close at hand, we all grow closer to the details. We once again would like to thank the Harris and Frances Block Foundation and the many others whose support made all of this possible.

BRDC News

2011-10-30T11:22:00.008-04:00

On Tuesday, October 18th, Jesse Pope (Director of Education) and Katie Gray (Chief Naturalist) from Grandfather Mountain, gave a presentation on birds for two classes at Mountain View Elementary, Ashe County, NC.
This event was orchestrated by Doug Smith, of Blue Ridge Birders, and Ruth Turnmire, teacher. I, on behalf of BRDC, was there as facilitator and support. 90 kids from 4th grade and 5th grades, 180 in total, were treated to live owls, an informative talk, and then participated in a number of activities demonstrating various aspects of birds.

At the discovery table, the kids were given nests, skulls, feet, feathers and even a couple of stuffed birds to handle and compare.

Other activities included sound demonstrations and building birds to fit a given habitat, from parts.

On Thursday, the 20th, I gave a talk to a dozen Cub Scouts, based on conservation and the role naturalists play in our understanding of wildlife and habitat.

Two of the boys had participated in a summer Fish Bugs survey, so it seemed fitting to use a small slide show to illustrate that program and talk about the quality of our streams and the food chain related to the riparian environment.

Project Fish Bugs and the Art Component

2011-10-30T09:44:00.018-04:00

PROJECT FISH BUGS AND THE ART COMPONENT

From the beginning, the developers of Project Fish Bugs were intent on documentation by sketching in the field, a significant aspect of the program. Aaron Floyd, co-director of Fish Bugs, enlisted Christina Gramm, art teacher at Grayson County High School, to help us grow this component.

In the third week of September, Christina’s art class joined us at our Rock Bottom Cabins site along Wilson Creek, for a day of exploration. Twelve students, Christina, two parents and one volunteer, Kelly Servick, joined in the fun. Marion and Gordon Kay, property owners, participated for an hour, and to them we offer much gratitude.

As with our previous surveys, we donned waders, collected samples from the creek with seines, and then began the process of identifying, cataloging and sketching our catch.

Unlike previous surveys, we broke up into three more intimate groups, with Aaron sharing the time honored tradition of detailed illustration in natural history. While one group was thus engaged, another was in the creek and the third made valiant attempts to catch adult, or flying forms of aquatic invertebrates. We also placed more emphasis and time on sketching in the field.

On September 26^th, Aaron and I met at the school with Christina’s art class to launch the more ambitious part of the program. Aaron began with a slide show depicting, in more depth, the value of capturing the details of natural subjects through careful drawings. Some time was spent on technique as well as sharing examples of celebrated artists, such as Audubon, for inspiration. We then handed out preserved samples of our aquatic critters collected through the year, giving each student one species upon which to focus their work.

The students began drawing, while Aaron, Christina and I looked over their shoulders to offer constructive criticism. Our collective end goal is to put the finished sketches onto one poster as a guide to our aquatic invertebrates.

Second Annual Matthews Living Historic Farm Museum Event

2011-09-09T13:59:00.012-04:00

Above are a few pictures from the museum event. Guides included Zach Olinger from the Matthews State Forest, Bob Perkins, Eric Harrold, Terry Gleason, Susan Gleason, Claire Gleason and Scott Jackson-Ricketts from BRDC, and Kelly Servick from Grayson Highlands State Park. Thanks to the museum staff and Chestnut Creek School of the Arts for collaborating, to Mica Paluzzi for watching the concessions table, and to our illustrious musicians.

Connections: The Pawpaw Tree and the Zebra Swallowtail Butterfly

2011-08-03T19:00:00.040-04:00

Asimina triloba and Eurytides marcellus

By Laura Seale
Editors: Devin Floyd, Clyde Kessler and Scott Jackson-Ricketts

A pair of survivors
The Zebra Swallowtail butterfly and the Common Pawpaw tree have been through a lot together. If you see one of these distinctive long-tailed butterflies glide past, it's likely there's a pawpaw patch nearby. The Zebra Swallowtail, Eurytides marcellus, is the only species of the genus Eurytides (the kite swallowtails) that makes its home in the temperate zones of North America. Other species from this genus live in subtropical zones. The sole source of food for the Zebra Swallowtail's caterpillars is the foliage, particularly the young leaves, of trees in the genus Asimina, the pawpaws. It happens that the Common Pawpaw, Asimina triloba, from the same family (Annonaceae) as the tropical custard apple and cherimoya, is also the only of the Asimina genus that is able to grow in this region of temperate North America, suggesting that the Zebra Swallowtails and the pawpaws have been co-evolving here since this region was very different than it is today.

A first good look
The first time I saw a Zebra Swallowtail, it was clinging with wings broadly spread, to a piece of tall grass at the edge of a cluster of pawpaw trees. Wind gusts from an approaching storm were keeping it grounded, which gave me ample time to admire and study its bold coloring. Its wings are more triangular in shape (with a span ranging from 2.5 to 4 inches) and its “tails” are longer and more slender than those of our other native swallowtails. Along with the zebra-stripes of black and greenish-white, the Zebra Swallowtail has two blue spots at the base of the upper surface of the hindwing, another bright red spot close to the body, and a red median stripe on the underside of the hindwing. The summer zebras are darker, with thicker black wing-stripes, and have longer tails than the ones that hatch early in spring.

Caterpillars' diet for self-defense
The Zebra Swallowtail female chooses young terminal leaves of the pawpaw on which to lay her eggs. The eggs are laid singly, one per leaf, because if the caterpillars encounter each other, they become cannibalistic. Those young paw paw leaves and their stem bark are especially rich in acetogenins, chemicals that make the foliage unpalatable to browsers, like deer and rabbits, and the leaf-munching caterpillars distasteful to potential predators. The Zebra Swallowtail mamas might get a little help from a pyralid moth called the Asimina webworm moth, Omphalocera munroei, that eats older leaves of the pawpaw to encourage growth of new acetogenin-rich terminal leaves.

Life as a zebra swallowtail
The Zebra Swallowtail larvae are hairless and appear somewhat humpbacked. When young, the caterpillar is dark with with many narrow transverse bands of black, yellow, and white. When older, they still have the stripey rings, but are greener, and often have one thicker black band across the top of the first abdominal segment. Like some other swallowtail caterpillars, the Zebra Swallowtail caterpillar can fend off predators by pushing out its osmeterium, which is a yellow, forked organ that emits foul-smelling odors. These odors are synthesized from essential oils, called terpenes, in the host plant. When ready, the caterpillars pupate under pawpaw leaves. Their pupae are green or brown and patterned to look like a curled leaf. After hatching, the females stay near the pawpaw patch, while the males can be seen patrolling for females, or puddling, sipping mineral rich water from moist soils. The adults nectar at a variety of flowers, including common milkweed, dogbane, redbud, and blackberry. It is notable that this butterfly only occasionally strays to elevations above 3000 ft. since it generally stays in the lower elevations where the pawpaws are.

Pawpaws' ploy for pollination

Of no interest to the Zebra Swallowtail butterfly are the pawpaw's flowers, as the butterflies do not pollinate the flowers or nectar on them. In fact, there is relatively sparse pollination of the early spring flowers, resulting in few fruits compared with the number of blooms. The flowers of Asimina triloba are reddish-brown, looking and smelling like rotting meat to attract carrion flies and beetles (and occasional Polygonia species butterflies). As pawpaws are not self-fertilizing, they require pollinators to travel from patch to patch. Local flies and beetles are not especially effective with this pollination, begging the question: “Was there once a more efficient pollinator, perhaps gone the way of the long-extinct mega-herbivores that roamed this continent in the past?”

Seeds can't move themselves

In addition to lacking ideal pollinators, pawpaws also lack an ideal method of seed dispersal. I have personally slipped (a la banana peels) down a hillside slick with fallen pawpaws, coating my seat with fermented pulp, wondering as I fell why there were so many of these sweet fruits rotting underfoot. It's possibly because our native Common Pawpaw is an anachronism, missing its original seed dispersing agents. The pawpaws may have evolved with the elephant-like mastodon and other extinct mega-fauna like the American camel and the giant ground sloth. The seeds are too large to be ingested, transported, and dropped in the dung of even our largest existing native herbivores, with the possible exception of the black bear. Deer show little interest in the leaves or the fruit, probably due to the plant’s chemical defenses. Since the extinction of mega-fauna, humans have likely been responsible for most of the redistribution of pawpaw seeds.

Patches of clones
One reason why pawpaws have continued to exist in this region, despite the spotty pollination and the lack of wide seed dispersal is their habit of cloning. The long-lived roots send up genetically identical suckers. The young trees are able to grow in the shade of the older ones, which eventually form the clonal “pawpaw patch.” Though the individual trees themselves tend to be short-lived, no one knows how old the root systems in pawpaw patches can get.

"Connections". Can you think of ways that this sketch says, "pawpaw"? The sketch includes a variety of indirect references to the pawpaw tree. (See bottom of article for some answers). Print the image above as a coloring sheet (PDF)

Native food staple
The first historical mention of pawpaws was in a 1541 report from an expedition of Spanish explorer, Hernando de Soto. His party observed Native Americans cultivating and eating pawpaws. John Lawson, an English explorer, wrote about encountering Native Americans using pawpaws in his 1709 book, A New Voyage to Carolina: “ The Papau is not a large Tree. I think, I never saw one a Foot through; but has the broadest Leaf of any Tree in the Woods, and bears an Apple about the Bigness of a Hen's Egg, yellow, soft, and as sweet, as any thing can well be. They make rare Puddings of this Fruit.”

Small but chemically significant

Common Pawpaw trees often grow in the understory of a forest. They don't get very tall, their maximum height being about 40 feet. The bark is brown and relatively smooth, though covered with wart-like pores. The leaves are large, 5-11 inches long, and obovate in shape, which means they broaden towards the leaf tip. If you crush a leaf with your fingers, you'll find that it has an unpleasant smell (unless you like the smell of fresh asphalt). Chemical compounds from the pawpaw stem bark and ground seeds have been used medicinally for their insecticidal and anti-parasitic properties, and their annonaceous acetogenins are now being studied as a potential cancer treatment, as they seem to inhibit tumor cell growth.

A local fruit worth trying

Pawpaw fruits start out green, then ripen through yellow to a purplish-brown. They often grow in small clusters, which have a way of hiding under the large leaves. The fruits of the Pawpaw have custardy pulp, and 10-14 tough seeds that look like big brown beans. Some liken their flavor to banana or pineapple, though the ones I have eaten taste like a very mild soft mango. Around Central Virginia, the fruits ripen in mid to late August. People make them into puddings and pies. I have eaten pawpaws fresh, in ice cream, and in paw paw bread (recipe similar to banana bread). Cooking with them is more labor-intensive than using thick-skinned bananas or fruit with a convenient single pit, but since they are the closest thing to a locally grown, tropical-tasting fruit, and since I have a free source of pawpaws, they are worth the effort. Considered delectable by many, pawpaw fruits are not widely distributed in supermarkets due to the easily bruised flesh and short shelf-life of the ripe fruit. Large-scale commercial pawpaw cultivation schemes have not been successful so far, due to the difficulties with pollination. Maybe someday pawpaws will be available in grocery stores of every region, but for now they're an exclusive treat for to those lucky enough to find a pawpaw patch. Just follow the Zebra Swallowtails.

Sources

http://bugguide.net/node/view/3101 www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9917274
www.butterfliesandmoths.org/species/Eurytides-marcellus
www.pawpaw.kysu.edu/default.htmwww.tc-biodiversity.org/sample-extinction.pdf
www.esajournals.org/doi/abs/10.2307/1938808
www.ars-grin.gov/cor/minor/asiinfo.html
http://libres.uncg.edu/ir/uncg/listing.aspx?id=2752
http://docsouth.unc.edu/nc/lawson/lawson.html
www.dof.virginia.gov/trees/pawpaw.htm
Barlow, Connie. The Ghosts of Evolution: Nonsensical Fruit, Missing Partners, and Other Ecological Anachronisms.

______________________________________

Some answers to the sketch "connections" question above:

The human in the sketch is a Native American child. Native Americans utilized the pawpaw tree as a food source.
The plant in the middle ground is Apocynum cannabinum (Indian hemp, hemp dogbane) and was a primary fiber material. It was used to make string, rope, bags, sacks, and many other things. It is not out of the question that a collection bag or basket constructed of Apocynum cannabinum fiber would have been used to collect pawpaw fruit.
The zebra swallowtail frequents Apocynum cannabinum for its nectar.
The pawpaw tree is the zebra swallowtail's only host plant. It's caterpillar can't survive without it.
Those are wild turkey feathers in her hair, and the wild turkey loves pawpaws fruit.
Her necklace might contain pawpaw seed beads. The seeds are beautiful and hard.

The sketch illustrates, in a simplifed way, the very circular nature of connections between things. A pawpaw tree can be communicated without actually showing it.

_______________________________________________

Moth Night, July 30, 2011

2011-08-01T10:04:00.012-04:00

On Moth Night, July 30, in spite of intermittent rain showers, more than 20 people gathered at the Matthews Living History Farm Museum from 8:30 to 11:30 p.m. to look at moths and other night-flying insects attracted to black light/moth sheet setups. Bob Perkins and Cecelia Mathis photographed insects for later identification. Bob subsequently identified 24 moth species and some other insects. He is working on three moths that may or may not be identifiable. Highlights included a dobsonfly, a long-horned caddisfly, beautiful wood-nymph, showy emerald, and nais tiger moth.

Moths identified:

eastern grass-tubeworm, Acrolophus plumifrontella
black-shaded platynota, Platynota flavedana
hahncappsia marculenta, Hahncappsia marculenta
celery leaftier, Udea rubigalis
Basswood Leafroller Moth, Pantographa limata
sod webworm, Pediasia trisecta
bluegrass webworm moth, Parapediasia teterrella
red-headed inchworm angle moth, Macaria bisignata
pale-marked angle moth, Macaria signata
Canadian melanolophia moth, Melanolophia canadaria
showy emerald, Dichorda iridaria
idaea productata, Idaea productata
toothed brown carpet, Xanthorhoe lacustra
common eupithecia, Eupithecia miserulata
Isabella tiger moth, Pyrrharctia isabella
nais tiger moth, Apantesis nais
banded tussock moth, Halysidota tessellaris
hickory tussock moth, Lophocampa caryae
grayish zanclognatha, Zanclognatha pedipililas
faint-spotted palthis Moth, Palthis asopialis
clover Looper, Caenurgina crassiuscula
black-patched graylet, Hyperstrotia secta
black wedge-spot, Homophoberia apicosa
beautiful wood-nymph moth, Eudryas grata

Other Insects:

false katydid spp
field cricket spp
mayflies, at least two species
Caddisflies, several species
long-horned caddisfly, species of Leptoceridae family
stonefly, small species
dobsonfly
cabbage white (butterfly)
long-necked seed bug, Myodocha serripes
leafhoppers, several species
lady beetle spp
scarab beetles, several species

-Bob Perkins

August 20 Event Announcement

2011-08-01T07:48:00.004-04:00

Blue Ridge Discovery Center presents:

A day at the Matthews Farm Museum, August 20th from 10:00 AM until 4:00 PM.

Activities include:

An expanded orienteering activity led by the Museum staff (outdoor scavenger hunt with prizes)
American chestnut tree workshop with Zach Olinger from the Virginia Department of Forestry (morning)
Guided tree identification walk with Zach Olinger (afternoon)
Sketching in the outdoors in collaboration with Chestnut Creek School of the Arts (using found objects as subjects, such as leaves, crickets, butterflies, etc.)
Field explorations with Dr. Robert Perkins (BRDC’s director of a biological survey on the Farm’s property)
BRDC’s Fish Bugs program review with living critters (an ongoing project designed to learn about aquatic invertebrates)
Hold a live corn snake. Reptile talk by Claire Gleason

We will also have live music from Mike Floyd and Larry Paluzzi, playing their own
compositions.

Drinks and snacks will be for sale on site.

This event is free and open to the public, but any contributions will be most welcomed.
All ages encouraged to come and join in the fun!

For further information contact :
Scott Jackson-Ricketts at 276.773.2039 or scottjr@ls.net.

Visit Blue Ridge Discovery Center's website: www.blueridgediscoverycenter.org

Forest Scavenger Hunt at Ragged Mountain Natural Area

2011-07-20T10:49:00.000-04:00

About 5 families joined me on July 14 for a scavenger hunt at Ragged Mountain Natural Area, Charlottesville City's Blue Ridge jewel. We started the hunt from the parking area, where each participant got a checklist containing species that we had seen on an earlier scouting trip. Line drawings or photographs accompanied each listing to help with identification. As we started up the steep main trail, everyone immediately started trying to find and check off items. The main trail goes through an older forest on rocky soil - Chestnut Oak, and Red Maple were abundant, as were Mockernut Hickory. Black Gum , Tulip Poplar and Dogwood were also present - and on the list! A Blue Tailed Skink surprised and delighted us as he scurried over some boulders near the trail. We passed around some Ailanthus, and one of the girls said she loved the smell: it reminded her of peanuts.

The kids were hoping to find a Click Beetle, like this one that we had found on our scouting trip:

but ended up checking "beetle" off when they found a dead Cicada in the trail.

Some of the adults were happy to learn some new shrubby and ground cover plants, like Autumn Olive, Virginia Creeper, and this Tick-Trefoil:

As we left the Main Trail to turn onto the Peninsula Trail, we noticed how the forest changed. This area of newer growth included White and Virginia Pines, and more ground cover. Everyone was thrilled to reach the water's edge and the grassy "beach". Marveling at the surrounding vista was cut short by the sighting of a Brown Water Snake in the water, and the observation that no doubt it was trying to catch some of these frogs - wow, look at them! They're all over!

Cricket and Pickerel Frogs were quickly checked off.

The Peninsula Trail species seemed like some of the favorites, as people explored and found some of the many Persimmon Trees in the area, some ripe Blackberries, St. John's Wort, and Cardinal Flower.

Soon, kids were coming up and telling me they had found just about everything on the list. We headed back towards the parking lot after I pointed out a hold-out, Hercule's Club:

While I wish I could say the outing ended with the sighting of rabbits near the parking lot, I'm afraid there were some yellow-jackets, too. Everyone was a trooper, though, and the stings gave us a chance to try out the astringent properties of Plaintain. Thanks to all for a beautiful afternoon!

Exploring the Talus of Turk

2011-07-15T21:29:00.024-04:00

Today the Explorer’s Club went on an expedition in search of a rare tree. Nicolas, Julian, Luke, Keith and I set out to find the rare habitat that might harbor such a tree. We were looking for a true relic, a left over from a time that was much colder.
The trees we were after were:

Mountain paper birch, Betula cordifolia
Paper birch, Betula papyrifera

Both trees are rare in Virginia and finding just one is a real discovery. The mountain paper birch is an Appalachian species related to the paper birch of the north. There are very limited populations of this cold climate tree, and it has very specific habitat requirements. The paper birch (Betula papyrifera) is extremely rare in Virginia. In fact, its existence south of Pennsylvania has not been confirmed (as far as I know). Finding B. papyrifera would be extraordinary, a true botanical treasure.

Before our journey began we met in the parking lot at Turk Mountain Gap. We covered basic safety guidelines, including black bear, yellow jacket, and timber rattlesnake avoidance. We also pondered the qualities that a habitat would need in order to harbor a cold climate tree, a tree of northern latitudes. The group decided that high elevation, north-facing slopes, and exposure were the primary important factors.

I introduced the term “scree” to the group (it was introduced to me by Chip Morgan): an accumulation of rock fragments at the base of mountain cliffs. "Talus" is another word used to describe heaps of rock at cliff bases, but it refers to bigger rocks. A talus slope is one with large rocks and boulders, and scree is typically used by geologists when describing slopes with smaller rock fragments, pebbles and sand. We quickly reviewed the geology of the mountain. Basically, it is beach sand that has been metamorphosed. It is a very weather resistant white quartzite. Much of it is quite glassy, and later in the hike we got to listen to the talus slope sing and echo as we traversed its singing rocks. The talus slopes at Turk Mountain are a deep and layered heap of quartzite boulders and flat rocks, all having moved, at some point, down slope. These gigantic boulders clearly have not moved in a long time, and must have been heaved by some freeze-thaw force not present today. I imagine that this landscape was shaped by freeze-thaw action during the last ice age.

Might the talus slopes harbor ice into late spring, creating ideal microclimates for northern species? One hypothesis is that these slopes hold great amounts of frozen water in the winter. The talus slopes on north facing slopes may release moisture slowly from their complex web of cracks, nooks and crannies. This slowly melting ice may be responsible for creating the cool microclimate needed to harbor the paper birch. The cold air may creep down these slopes and meet the forest at the base of the talus. So, it is here that we should find paper birch...at the base of large north facing quartzite talus slopes. This predictive model has been very accurate for finding northern species (as demonstrated by the innumerable discoveries of Mo Stevens). Would it help us on this outing? We would try. Off we went in search of a north facing, high elevation, quartzite talus slope.

Skolithos trace fossils (ancient worm holes made in what was once beach sand).

We made a quick climb to the summit of Turk Mountain (2981 ft), passing through a fire impacted forest of mostly chestnut oak. On the crest we were welcomed by Canadian serviceberry, mountain holly, pitch pine and black gum. The rocks around us displayed magnificent trace fossils of the tubeworm Skolithos. It was easy to imagine beaches as the rocks were clearly composed of a bright white sand. It was more difficult to imagine the spot we were standing being lower, at sea level that is. The land was also turned so that today's east was south, and the spot we were standing on was south of the equator. I know, complicated. Check out this map for a visual (find Virginia if you can!): http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~rcb7/namPC550.jpg

Upon reaching the craggy summit we climbed upon the highest protruding rocks for an astounding view. Wow, what a day. We could see, with ease, the Shenandoah Valley stretched out before us and the Allegheny front standing strong to the west. Standing here at this summit two months ago, Chip Morgan shared his knowledge of how the paper birch trees could be found. He encouraged me to use binoculars to search for them at the base of the talus slopes, which I did. In complete amazement to both of us, I spotted what I thought was a paper birch tree. I did not get to investigate that tree on that occasion, as the talus slope that had to be traversed was much too challenging on a day that we were already planned to explore another site. It would have to wait.

This tree spotted in Chip’s binoculars would be the first target of today’s outing. After refueling with water we climbed down the quartzite cliff and slowly made our way across the enormous boulder field. The sounds of the lichens on the rock combined with the crisp clinking echos from the bowels of the boulders created an auditory experience that can be repeated nowhere. We marveled at the endless deep and tiny caverns beneath us and imagined the multitude of timber rattlesnakes that must call that talus slope home. After some swift but careful footwork, we found ourselves at the bottom of the talus slope. It was there that Nicholas found a conspicuous piece of bark on the ground. There it was! A tree with papery white bark!Having confirmed the binocular sighting from earlier in the year, we began a thorough investigation of the habitat and the tree. We need to do two things: Figure out which species it was Document the plant community it was part of. After examining several randomly selected leaves and scanning the upper reaches of the tree we concluded that this tree was Betula cordifolia. The primary attributes that distinguish this tree from Betula papyrifera are the number of veins in the leaf and the base of the leaf. In this tree the there were between 9-12 pairs of veins on each leaf. The vast majority of leaves had heart-shaped leaves. Botanists call this cordate, and you can see where this tree gets its scientific name (B. cordifolia…cordate foliage).

Having confirmed the species we began noting neighboring plants. The plant community was quite sparse. Moving from the upper canopy down to the ground we observed: black gum, black birch, red maple, chestnut oak, Canadian serviceberry, American chestnut, mountain laurel, mountain holly, American witchhazel, False azalea, lowbush blueberry, and Virginia creeper. The slope of this habitat does not face due north. In fact, it faces 20 degrees West of North (magnetic).

After a successful inquiry at the mountain paper birch site we decided to begin our hike back to the parking area. We took a route that traced the edge of the talus slope to increase our chances of encountering more rare birch trees. While walking that through the wooded talus slope, Keith caught a glimmer of bright white through the trees downslope. It was another separate quartzite boulder field. We made our way to its upper edge and noticed a bit of white in the branches hidden amongst the foliage of the forest at the bottom of the slope. So, we did it again, down hill across boulders and flat rocks that clink, sing, echo and dance beneath feet. It was here, on a slope that faces more directly North, that we hit the jackpot.
There were two large multi-trunked paper bark trees in front of us. Almost immediately we noticed a significant difference between the leaves of this tree and those of the Betula cordifolia we found earlier. Its bark was chalky white, and none of its leaves were heart-shaped. These leaves had truncate or cuneate bases, and upon closer inspection, the viens in the leaves occurred typically in pairs of 6-9. Betula papyrifera! Another notable difference was that the new growth of stems and leaves on this tree was covered with fine hair (pubescence). Indeed, I believe we have discovered Betula papyrifera at this site. This site is the second I have seen this year in the Central Virginia Blue Ridge (the first being 3 miles to the northeast in a very similar habitat). How interesting to have both Betula cordifolia and Betula papyrifera on the same mountain!

With this discovery under our belts, we continued east in an effort to intersect the Turk Mountain trail. We passed massive black birch trees rooted right in the middle of talus boulder fields. These trees must be very old. We contemplated the meanings of the words “Virgin Forest” and “Old Growth” and considered the fact that outcrops and talus slopes present habitats that are frequently “Virgin”, that is, they have not been severely impacted by humans. We pondered the eons through which many of the lichens and mosses nestled on and between the rocks must have lived. We considered the possibility of some of the gnarled black birch trees being old growth trees, as they surely would not have been harvested for their twisted wood! We passed several enormous chestnut oaks, also well healed among the talus. How old are these trees? Surely the exposed mountainside and the poor nutrient soils have stunted their growth. Surely these trees are ancient!? This is an inquiry that will have to wait until another visit.

We eventually found our path and ate wild blueberries as we hiked back. We also found an area where owls were eating luna moths (wings on the ground). Just before exiting the woods we encountered a very excited family. They had just seen black bear cubs. They pointed the way and sure enough, we were able to observe a black bear cub resting in a tree. Sounds from the thicket below made it clear that mama was there as well, so we moved on up the trail. All in all, it was an amazing day of discovery. What a world it is up there on the top of that Blue Ridge!

2011-07-10T16:34:00.025-04:00

Fishbugs goes to Grayson Highlands State Park

July 10^th, 2011

Though BRDC did not originally plan on a Fishbugs satellite program, through our friendship with Americorps intern, Kelly Servick and her association with the park's Chief Ranger, Kevin Kelley, we were invited to bring Fishbugs to the park. Kelly secured a summer position here as an educator and program director. She is simply too good for words. Below, Kelly and Justine.

We gathered by the side of Quebec Branch with tables and equipment, and began to turn over rocks and dip nets. Three kids and two moms joined us, along with park resident Andy Holland, whose help was significant. Justine Jackson-Ricketts, Aaron Floyd and Scott Jackson-Ricketts represented BRDC.

From 10:30 AM until 1:00 PM or so, we discovered, examined and listed the larval forms of mayflies, stoneflies, black flies, a variety of caddisflies, one dragonfly, at least two species of salamanders, and many crayfish. Note the two color morphs of the crayfish in this photograph.

Also we caught live adult forms of stone and may flies, one stonefly of a brilliant green. Absent were water pennies and snails, and all the stoneflies were slender and quite small. The black fly larvae were discovered ‘catching a ride’ on one of the crayfish, causing us to wonder if there were some kind of parasitic event occurring.

Because BRDC strongly believes in creative documentation, we once again encouraged the group to sketch what they had found. The kids (and adults) did not disappoint. So, here is our gallery from today.

Project Fishbugs, night survey

2011-07-06T10:45:00.022-04:00

Fishbugs night time survey

June 25^th, 2011

As planned, young people from all three participating groups gathered at 8:30PM near the confluence of Wilson Creek and the New River for a look at the adult forms of our aquatic invertebrate study subjects. Aaron Floyd and Scott Jackson-Ricketts prepared stretched sheets and lights for attracting the hatch, with special guest helper Justine Jackson-Ricketts. Inspection tables were set up with viewing boxes, Petri dishes, tweezers, flashlights, and drawing tools. Keying out the many insects flying around our faces took up most of the 2 ½ hours of our survey.

Buddy Halsey was accompanied by three Boy Scouts: Danny DeBord, and bothers Smith and Isaiah Hart. Todd Shaw brought his son, Jason, and Thomas Hart his daughter, Angela, with friend, Nikki Schultz (not home-schooled) representing the Southwest Virginia Home Educators (www.swvahe.webs.com). From the Eco Club, we had Mica Paluzzi and Allison Herrington, and along with Carolyn Spencer’s daughter, Raya, this group completed the Grayson County High School crowd.

Project Fishbugs is a program initially designed as a year-long survey of Wilson Creek’s macroinvertebrates intended to include these three groups of young folks in hands on science based inquiry. Familiarizing these individuals with what lives in our streams and rivers drives our purpose, but having fun while creating valuable documentation drives the interest. Blue Ridge Discover Center was gifted by a generous grant through the Harris and Frances Block Foundation: http://www.blockfound.org/ to support this project.

Before last light, a few of us went running through the riparian field, sweeping insect nets in hopes of catching, well, anything. Lots of lightning bugs, grasshoppers and various other insects were snagged, but the objects of our survey eluded us until dark. Then, as the lighted sheets began to work their intended magic, a few stoneflies arrived, soon followed by mayflies and midges galore. At times, we were literally breathing bugs. The ‘artists’ among us got busy sketching while the rest of us netted and examined our hatch catch. In total we keyed out adult forms of mayflies, stoneflies, caddis flies, alder flies, midges, crane flies, damsel flies and a plethora of moths.

After breaking down our work site, we stopped by the old post office in Mouth of Wilson to see what the street light brought in. There we found a giant mayfly as well as the much feared Dobson fly, or hellgrammite. In fact, there were two, who in their confusion, flew into an unprepared fellow, causing great excitement. These critters can bite.

For the exception of the scouts, Nikki and Raya, all the rest of our group had already examined the larval stages of what we discovered on our night survey. Ahead of us is one more specific day survey, with the scouts, and another full group oriented December study. We look forward to growing this program with greater inclusion and study habitats. (Look for more Fishbugs reports soon to be posted.)

Independence Day event

2011-07-05T15:39:00.012-04:00

July 4^th, 2011

Independence, Virginia

Having just returned home from the Virginia Institute for Natural Youth Leadership workshop held in Martinsville, Virginia last week, I had precious little time to prepare for BRDC’s second annual July 4^th set-up on the 1908 Historic Courthouse lawn. Be that as it may, I spent the 3^rd gathering aquatic invertebrates, insects associated with our common milkweed, and some moths from my moth sheet later that night. Hauling this zoo along with microscopes and drawing tools into town, I had everything in place by 8:30 and ready for action.

Joining BRDC, and back by popular demand, were Claire Gleason and Sylvester, her famous corn snake, Susan Gleason (Claire’s mom), and eventually William Roberts and Cecelia Mathis. Kids and adults were drawn to the table by Sylvester, who received plenty of attention, but everyone was especially curious about the tank of nearly invisible water bugs. Over and over again, I carefully removed tiny stoneflies, mayflies, water pennies, midge larvae, and so on, transferring them to well slides to be viewed through the scopes. Oohs and ahhs were common. Meanwhile, in the other tank, an assassin bug was lunching on a milkweed beetle drawing mixed reviews.

It was interesting to note how many adults took to the aquatic insects…fishermen mostly…calling up childhood memories and some tall tales. Cecelia brought a photo gallery board representing BRDC’s ongoing bio-census at Matthews Living Historic Farm Museum, which she, and Bob and Bill Perkins have been managing. On August 30^th, BRDC will hold its second annual gala event at the farm museum, which in part, was advertised through Cecelia’s poster.

A special thanks goes to William Roberts, for showing up on a moment’s notice and giving a few hours of holiday to BRDC! Also, I would like to thank Susan Gleason for her successful efforts in getting down contact information from many enthusiastic folks. We have a long list of new friends.

Plant identification challenge...Krigia virginica (dwarf dandelion)

2011-06-27T18:07:00.009-04:00

***Krigia virginica (dwarf dandelion) seems to be the consensus. Thanks for your help!
Do you know what plant this is?

We do not! We could use your help. If you know what this is or have any ideas, please let us know in the comments section below. (Some members of the Albemarle Co. Natural Heritage Committee are trying to compile a list of species for a rare habitat. This is one that has not been identified yet.)

When observed: Mid-June.
Where: Central Virginia, Albemarle County, Virginia
Habitat/ plant community type: granite outcrop
Elevation: 1025'
Aspect: south facing slope, full to part sun
Geologic substrate: granodiorite
Soils: sparse, very dry sandy loam, well drained
Associate plants: eastern prickly pear (Opuntia humifusa), fameflower (Talinum teretifolium), dwarf dandelion (Krigia virginica), Virginia pine (Pinus virginiana), pignut hickory (Carya glabra), post oak (Quercus stellata), eastern red cedar (Juniperus virginiana) and others.

Images © Devin Floyd, 2011.

Looking like a stone

2011-06-22T11:38:00.002-04:00

This hellbender salamander was found last week in Fox Creek, Grayson County, Virginia. It was 20-22 inches long! The patterns on its body allow it to hide in plain site among the large rocks and pebbles in the rapids of Fox Creek.

For more information about this rare animal check this website out:
http://www.hellbenders.org/The_Hellbender_Homepage/About_Hellbenders.html

Fire on the mountain! A BRDC Rhododendron Hike

2011-06-12T21:00:00.003-04:00

June 4, 2011.
BRDC joined forces with Mount Rogers Appalachian Trail Club for a hike on Saturday, June 4, National Trails Day. Eleven hikers and guides enjoyed the sunny 5-mile, round-trip, hike from Massie Gap at Grayson Highlands to Rhododendron Gap, where many trails meet and the rhododendron show is the best in our region. The Catawba rhododendron (Rhododendron catawbiense) were just reaching peak, with pink waves spreading over distant views. We also saw different hues of flame azalea (Rhododendron calendulaceum) lighting the hillsides. The mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia) was just beginning to open at the higher elevations.

Thanks to Michelle, we identified a new shrub that we had been seeing but confusing with the blueberries: Alleghany menziesia or minnie bush (Menziesia pilosa). The flowers are similar to the blueberry, but the leaves are more like azelea.

All photos by Carol Broderson except for the header image of flame azalea.

Eco-antique

2011-06-09T09:00:00.006-04:00

A Rare Virginia Tree in Albemarle Co., Va.:
Paper birch, Betula papyrifera

The winds of the Blue Ridge whisper tales of the past, especially when they blow through the leaves of wild growing paper birch trees.

"Not very far from that region (I recall it as in Augusta County), some bird fossils have been found in a cave, including spruce grouse, and other more northern birds….time they died was about 10,000 to 12,000 years ago. I can picture spruce grouse foraging on birch seeds new fallen on snow…can picture white-winged crossbills nearby, pine grosbeaks, hoary and common redpolls, and boreal chickadees, maybe even a few whiskey jacks (gray jays) chattering in what was at that time not a microclimate enclave. Of course a raven could show up and be wise to wolves slumping across a thicket. Maybe even a straggler caribou being hunted." - Clyde Kessler

(For more on the fossils found in Augusta, see page 3: http://ccb-wm.org/raven/TheRaven/1962.pdf )

Cold hollows and protected slopes provide a refuge for these trees and other glacial relics or disjuncts (species that were left behind and separated from their kind as the glaciers marched north thousands of years ago). They occupy small and scattered habitats that maintain conditions that suit them, conditions that are more common hundreds of miles north. This tree's habitat typically has a climate that includes short cool summers and long cold winters. It prefers to have average July temperatures be below 70 degrees Fahrenheit. These birch trees, and the plant community of which they are a part, enjoy this little Blue Ridge mountain microclimate.

The paper birch trees depicted in these photographs grow at the base of a north facing quartzite talus slope in Albemarle County, Virginia.

This particular site was found by Mo Stevens many years ago. He always thought that he was dealing with Betula papyrifera, and not Betula cordifolia (as the experts insisted). Recent efforts have confirmed Mo's hunch. This is likely to be the strongest stand of B. papyrifera in the state.

The Wood Cutter Bee

2011-06-07T07:05:00.007-04:00

This time of year our various farm out-buildings which are made out of untreated/unpainted wood receive some unwelcome visitors, the carpenter bees (genus Xylocopa based on the Greek name for wood cutter). These large bees (not the same as bumblebees which have a hairy abdomen) do two things that make them pests- they drill holes in wood for their nests and the males hover in a menacing fashion right in front of your face.

The holes are almost perfectly circular and it is remarkable how the bees are able to cut them out of wood with their jaws. The tunnels enter and then turn at right angles to parallel the edges of planks and can be a potential problem to the strength of the wood if there are enough of them. Although Wikipedia says that the burrows do not pose a threat to wood structures, you may judge for yourself from the photo of some siding with multiple burrows. It seems to be similar in some ways to the threat posed by teredo ship worms (actually a mollusk) to wooden-hulled ships in salt water; one or two is a minimal problem but a large number can indeed threaten the integrity of the wood.

Male carpenter bees have a whitish face, tend to hover close in front of you, but lack a stinger and are harmless. Females do have a stinger but are docile unless bothered. Males have larger eyes than females because of their mating behavior.

So do we tolerate these bees that can be a nuisance or exterminate them? This is an interesting conundrum that can often arise in dealing with animals that like to live around human habitation. Since many of our rather primitive sheds and barns are not really threatened by carpenter bees, I can afford to take a "live and let live attitude" and enjoy observing their antics.

For comparison I am attaching a photo of a bumblebee nectaring and obtaining pollen from a false indigo flower spike in our yard. The flowers have been unusually prolific this year perhaps due to heavy rainfall and the lack of killing frosts when the buds were forming. Note the hairy abdomen of the bumblebee (not always so easy to see beneath the folded wings), the huge amount of orange pollen stored on the hind legs, and the abundant grains of pollen scattered all over the legs, wings and body. Clearly this bumblebee is a pollinating machine! Indeed the entire story of how bumblebees operate in cool climates to forage, collect and store food is fascinating. For more information see a book by B. Heinrich entitled "Bumblebee Economics."

Bill Dunson, Galax,
VA & Englewood, FL

May 26 visit to Matthews Farm

2011-05-26T20:33:00.003-04:00

Cecelia Mathis and I had a good time at the farm today. We started at 8:30 a.m. and completed our survey by 11:30 a.m. Highlights: 14 species of butterflies, a Baetidae sp mayfly (think tiny), a fishfly of the Negronia genus, and lots of blooms. Our next survey visit will be mid-June.

Bob Perkins
Woodlawn, Virginia
Historian and General Outdoorsman

GCHS ECO Club River Ridge Farm Outing

2011-05-25T21:49:00.004-04:00

This Wednesday, the 25th of May, four members of the GCHS ECO club and many other folks headed out to River Ridge Farm to expand our slim, adolescent knowledge. On arriving, we encountered Scott Jackson-Ricketts. The birds in the general radius had accumulated to his presence; Barn Swallows darted through the air, chasing each other playfully, and sitting in a nearby tree an Orchard Oriole sang. After regrouping and introducing ourselves to some new faces, we headed down the main entrance of the farm to meet up with the farmers, our guides. Brantley Ivey, farm manager of River Ridge Cattle Company, explained the conservation aspects of River Ridge, and ways they were working to improve environment conditions on the farm, but still produce competitively.

Soon after, we drove out into the farm, all of us either riding in a "super duty" truck, or in a camouflaged ATV. Our guides, the farmers, showed us the farm and explained its approaches in even more depth. Brantley Ivey, farm manager, and Gary Mitchell from Grayson Natural Foods, helped answer any and all of our questions. Later, we drove to higher points of the land, where there was a view of the river in either direction, and the highest peak in Virginia (Mount Rogers) in a tranquil shade of blue imprinted on the horizon. Looking around us, it was very obvious why someone would want to put all the work into preserving the landscape of this area.

Nearing the end of our outing, we visited the three archaic log cabins in the valley below the ridge with the breath-taking view. Any further questions we had were answered there in the shade, and we rapped everything up with a group picture of one of the cabin's porches. I feel like, myself, all of the members of the ECO club, and anyone who attended, learned a great deal about agriculture and conservation. I also have embraced a stronger, rejuvenated appreciation for our local world. Personally, I can't wait for our next trip.

June 4 Rhodendron Hike, Mount Rogers

2011-05-16T17:40:00.002-04:00

Flowers Everywhere

2011-05-11T22:24:00.000-04:00

BRDC Whitetop Mtn. wildflower walk participants.

“They’re everywhere!”

Over and over I heard various wildflower enthusiasts repeat this phrase as they viewed the unending masses of early spring blooms that decorated the forest floor on Sunday, May 1.

Twenty-three of us joined Blue Ridge Discovery Center’s hike along the segment of the Appalachian Trail from Virginia’s Whitetop Mountain to Elk Garden two and a half miles below.

The never-ending flowers we witnessed on the mountain created an artist’s mosaic of colors.

Frilly chartreuse green rose above deep night green. Bright magenta and dark burgundy pointed skyward above cushions of rounded, green triangles. Soft pink nestled against protecting boulders and fallen trees. Speckles of white winked throughout the rolling mountainside. Sunny, golden yellow outshined its creamy, buttery cousin. Brilliant blue randomly broke the mosaic.

My camera captured personal glimpses of what we saw.

We saw Dutchman's breeches and squirrel corn which are sometimes difficult to tell apart unless they grow near each other. Both of the flowers hang upside down on the flower stem. Think of the legs of the Dutchman's breeches as looking like those of a saddle-sore cowboy with pointed legs. His breeches have a yellow waistband. The top of the squirrel corn looks like the rounded top of a Valentine, and the whole bloom looks a bit like a baby's pacifier.

The fringed phacelia is listed as "imperiled" by the state of Virginia and is quite uncommon. It blooms in innumerable abundance on Whitetop Mountain.

The bright, hot pink blossoms of the wild geranium added a striking contrast to the white fringed phacelia.

Spring beauty is a dainty plant whose flowers are usually pale, but this one has lots of color.

The golden, yellow trout lilies, whether they grew as single plants or as part of large colonies, stood out on Whitetop Mountain.

The colors of various trillium blended with the other wildflowers.

We also saw many foam flowers, and their spikes swayed gently in the breeze.

As we continued down Whitetop Mountain to the end of our hike at Elk Garden, we saw what a difference elevation could have on bloom time. At the top, there had been no yellow mandarin blooms, but near Elk Garden the blooms had begun to unfurl.

Text and Photographs by Cecelia Butler Mathis

Discovering Diversity

2011-05-11T20:24:00.001-04:00

Discovering Diversity
May 7, 2011
Mount Rogers Naturalist Rally

A summary of observations made by participants during BRDC’s “Discovering Diversity” program in a complex forest at the intersection of Big Branch and Big Laurel Creek, Konnarock, Virginia.

Introduction

Participants in the “Discovering Diversity” program were challenged to find as many different living and non-living things as possible. They worked fast, producing more than 35 sketches and several photographs of things discovered. This field guide includes those images, as well as lists and descriptions of other items discovered on site on May 7, 2011. Overall, this little field guide provides a good glimpse into the qualities of the site on the day of the program.

Findings
The participants focused on a small piece of land comprised mostly of forest. This forest and the forests nearby at similar elevations are quite unique when compared to the typical Virginia forest type (Oak-Hickory dominated). At this site we found a biological community that contains a diverse array of dominant trees including linden, buckeye, magnolia, and yellow birch.
The program was divided into two groups, and the groups were rotated half way through the program. One group focused on terrestrial forest life and another group focused on aquatic life in Big Branch (a stream along the eastern edge of the study area). The overall study area was about 150’ x 250’ in size (see map).

Location
Elevation: low point, 3050’; high point: 3080’
Latitude: 36.6740
Longitude: -81.6032
Aspect: North
Slope: gentle, lower slope semi-riparian

Geology
Rock Formations: Konnarock Formation, Mount Rogers Formation
Age: 760-730 million years old
Rock Types:
Sedimentary Breccia: A breccia (coarse-grained rock that is made up of angular broken pieces of rock that are held together by a cement of minerals) that is formed by the consolidation of loose silt, sand, pebbles or other sediment.
Rhyolite: A rock that formed as the result of cooling lava. It contains the same minerals as granite, but is more fine-grained. One may observe bands of gray and pink in this rock.
Description of the rock:

There were two primary rock types on site:
Konnarock Formation; Maroon diamictite, rhythmite, and arkose. These are rocks that were deposited in habitats that included deep icy lakes and glacial activity. They are the silicified (fancy word for 'turned into rock') remains of muds, silts, pebbles and cobbles carried by glaciers. Interestingly, the stones seen in the silicified mud were dropped into that muck and consist of materials from formations nearby...ryholite, greenstone, and granite. This makes sense because the glaciers would have been eroding these materials from the land during that time...and, it was a landscape devoid of plants and animals!...mountains and valleys of pure rock, silt, and sand!
Mount Rogers Formation; Phenocryst-poor rhyolite. These rocks are a dark purple, and are the results of lava flows! Mount Rogers, White Top, and Pond Mtn. (NC) form the core of what was a massive and explosive volcanic complex. These once towering volcanoes have seen a lot of erosion, and have even found themselves buried beneath miles of sediment at different points in the geologic past. But today, we are afforded a view of these ancient volcanoes. It is worth noting here that this rock known as "Rhyolite" is high in silica, and breaks kind of like glass (concoidal fracture). This made it a choice material for use in making spears, knives, and other tools during prehistoric times. Somewhere on these mountains hides ancient quarries used by Native Americans!

Trees and Shrubs
1. black birch, Betula lenta
2. yellow birch, Betula alleghaniensis
3. northern red oak, Quercus rubra
4. red maple, Acer rubrum
5. sugar maple, Acer sacharrum
6. shagbark hickory, Carya ovata
7. yellow buckeye, Aesculus flava
8. white oak, Quercus alba
9. eastern hemlock, Tsuga canadensis
10. cucumber magnolia, Magnolia acuminata
11. American beech, Fagus grandifolia
12. Mountain Basswood, Tilia americana var. heterophylla
13. striped maple, Acer pensylvanicum
14. green ash, Fraxinus pennsylvanica
15. American witchhazel, Hamamelis virginiana
16. rhododendron, Rhododendron sp.
17. yellow poplar, Liriodendron tulipifera

Ferns
1. Christmas fern, Polystichum acrostichoides
2. eastern hayscented fern (fiddleheads), Dennstaedtia punctilobula

Mosses, Bryophytes and Lichens
1. Unidentified lichen sp. (photo)
2. Unidentified moss sp. (by the stream)
3. Club moss species, unidentified

Wildflowers
1. foam flower, Tiarella cordifolia
2. white violet, Viola sp.
3. may apple (blooming in field, but not forest), Podophyllum peltatum
4. partridgeberry, Mitchella repens
5. jack-in-the-pulpit, Arisaema triphyllum
6. star chickweed, Stellaria pubera
7. wild strawberry, Fragaria virginiana
8. white clover, Trifolium sp.
9. A small woodland phlox, Phlox sp.

Other plants
1. poison ivy, Toxicodendron radicans
2. stinging nettle, Urtica sp.
3. Blackberry, Rubus sp.

Arthropods
Terrestrial
1. common buckeye butterfly, Junonia coenia
2. black swallowtail butterfly, Papilio polyxenes
3. bumble bee, Bombus sp.
4. Multicolored Asian Lady Beetle, Harmonia axyridis
5. Multicolored Asian Lady Beetle, Harmonia axyridis ; hatching larvae, on the underside of a cucumber magnolia leaf
6. Soil Centipedes (Order: Geophilomorpha)
7. Ant (unidentified)
8. terrestrial snail, under logs (Group: Pulmonata)
9. large slug (Class: Gastropoda)
10. Millipede (Class: Diplopoda)
11. Earthworm sp.

Aquatic
1. Clubtail dragonfly (Gomphidae family)
2. Dragonfly species (unidentified)
3. Water bug (unidentified)
4. Crayfish species (Astacoidea fam.)
5. Snail species (Class: Gastropoda)
6. Mayfly adults (Order Ephemeroptera)
7. Mayfly larvae (Order Ephemeroptera)
8. Cranefly larvae (Family Tipulidae)
9. Caddisfly larvae with a case of pebble and sticks (Order: Trichoptera)
10. Caddisfly larvae with a case of leaves and sticks (Order: Trichoptera)
11. Midge larvae (Order: Diptera)
12. Stonefly #1, roach-like (Order: Plecoptera)
13. Stonefly #2 (Order: Plecoptera)

Spiders
1. Wolf spider juveniles (Family: Lycosidae)
2. Daddy long-legs, or harvestman (Order: Opiliones)

Fungi
1. devil’s urn, Urnula craterium

Amphibians
1. American Toad, Anaxyrus americanus (in the forest)
2. Blue Ridge two-lined salamander , Eurycea wilderae (terrestrial, under logs)
3. Dusky salamander, Desmognathus sp. (in the stream)
4. Black-bellied salamander, Desmognathus quadramaculatus (in the stream)

Birds
1. American goldfinch, Carduelis tristis
2. common raven, Corvus corax
3. American crow, Corvus brachyrhynchos

Mammals
1. eastern cottontail rabbit, Sylvilagus floridanus, (scat
evidence)
2. white-tailed deer, Odocoileus virginianus (scat evidence)
3. unidentified Canidae mammal (likely stray domestic dog or coyote) (scat evidence)
4. human, Homo sapiens sapiens (helicopter driver, program participants)

_______________________________
A Common Rarity, and the Helicopter
While the woodland and stream investigations produced many magical moments of discovery, none were as exciting as the arrival of a mammal and its flying machine. After the program guides and participants gathered along the edge of the woods at one end of a large field of Fraser fir Christmas trees. This tree, a species that is quite rare to find growing in the wild, litters the agricultural fields and hills of the highlands. From the large “Christmas tree” field from which we launched our woodland exploration one can see the Fraser fir’s wild and native habitat. Mount Rogers rises in the east, and its top is crowned by a wild Fraser fir forest.

If the native Frasers standing high upon Mount Rogers had eyes, they likely would have seen the helicopter approaching their brothers and sisters planted in rows in the fields below (Christmas trees to-be). They would have seen it heading toward an unsuspecting group of humans gathered at the edge of one of those fields.
As we stood there at “basecamp”, gathering notes, taking photographs, and compiling sketches, the thunderous beat of a helicopter suddenly entered our ears. Looking up, it approached from the woodland side, and it was upon us in an instant. The chopper had a large container suspended beneath it and before we had a chance to flee, the container opened and dropped its giant load of pellets. “Run!” We dropped everything and ran toward the community center, fearing the worst. We found out several days after the event (after tracking down the helicopter’s aviation company) that the substance dropped was a relatively harmless fertilizer (Di-Ammonium Phosphate 18-46-0). That was great news!

While I gathered notes for this booklet I reflected back upon that incident and view it as such an amazing turn of events. At the onset of the outing our biggest worries were blackberry thorns, poison ivy and stinging nettle. Then, along comes human and a flying machine…our senses were instantly recalibrated. The most interesting and memorable part of the outing was undoubtedly this large mammal, and its flying contraption. As the helicopter dropped its rain of phosphorous to a leached landscape, as we ran, the complex story of the Fraser fir raced through my mind. Humans (mammals) are an integral part of nature. I do hope that humans continue to grow in the direction of valuing exploration, discovery, and sharing knowledge. The resulting understanding and wisdom can help to improve the well-being of generations to come and they can inspire all of us to love and care for the places we live.

The Fraser Fir Tree: some amazing facts

The Fraser fir forest on top of Mount Rogers is the northernmost wild community of this tree and it is the only “natural” stand in Virginia.
The habitat of the Fraser fir, known as the Southern Appalachian spruce-fir forest, is the second-most endangered ecosystem in the United States.
The Fraser fir-red spruce forest is a relic of the last ice age, meaning that in previous (and much cooler) climates it had a broader range in Eastern North America than today.
A non-native insect called the Balsam woolly adelgid (Adelges piceae) was introduced to the United States in about 1900, and it has led to a dramatic decline of the Fraser fir. More than 80% of wild growing Fraser fir trees have been killed .
There’s a really amazing set of plants and animals that live in the native stands of Fraser fir at Mount Rogers, such as the endangered Spruce-fir moss spider(Microhexura montivaga) and the Pygmy Salamander(Desmognathus wrighti).

Sources:

Virginia Division of Mineral Resources, 1993, Geologic Map of Virginia
United States Geologic Survey website: http://minerals.usgs.gov/
Google Earth, and map layer files available at USGS.
http://blueridgediscoveryproject.blogspot.com/2010/09/exploring-grindstone.html
www.enature.com
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
http://www.fs.fed.us/outernet/r8/gwj/mr/recreation/wildlife_areas/index.shtml

Elk Garden Field Trip, May 11th

2011-05-11T09:18:00.009-04:00

A "Trails to Every Classroom" field trip.

This field trip was a partnered effort of Blue Ridge Discovery Center, Mount Rogers Appalachian Trail Club, United States Forest Service, and Grayson County High School.

Through the unfailing efforts of Deborah Greif, Special Education teacher at the high school, all of us were finally able to put a long suffering plan into action. Meeting at Elk Garden, in the highlands of Grayson County, at 9:30AM, we split into four small groups of kids, which were rotated through four programs.

Several adults acted as floaters, working in one or more programs, including William Cober with the forest service and Katy Carrico, teacher.

Exploring the Appalachian Trail was one of the four activities. Anne Maio, President of the Mount Rogers ATC, and Carol Broderson, who works with the trail club and with Blue Ridge Discovery Center, led groups of students on a hike. Anne gave the students information on "Leave No Trace" principles to start and she discussed the history of the Appalachian Trail. The groups worked on wildflower and tree identification and recorded discoveries. The students really loved hiking, and most wished they could keep going.

Cecelia Mathis, with BRDC, helped kids with photography tips.

Deborah and fellow teacher Kathy Davis worked one program on mathematical descriptions.

Roald Kirby, Eric Harold and Scott Jackson-Ricketts, all BRDC volunteers, offered a biological survey on two small sections of forest edges, where they began each rotation with a discussion and identification of plants found within one square yard. This led to questions about seed dispersal, wildflower bloom sequence, the maple syrup operation obvious in our midst by the network of tubing leading down to a collection tank, the micro ecosystem contained within leaf litter, edibility of some species over others, and so on. The kids were then given free time to explore under rocks and logs, and encouraged to bring specimens to the workstation table, where we further explored under microscopes and through field guides.

Without exception, all of the kids engaged and participated with interest and good questions. They were asked to document their experience with sketches, photos, and lists of field finds. Hopefully, we will have another installment based on their observations in the near future.

Article by Scott Jackson-Ricketts

BRDC at the Rally!

2011-05-07T22:00:00.020-04:00

2011 Mount Rogers Naturalist Rally

Konnarock, Virginia

Blue Ridge Discovery Center guides offered four programs at this year's rally:

Program #1,

Mushrooms: Seaking the Morel High Ground

Rebecca Rader, President of the New River Valley Mushroom Club and BRDC guide, offered an 8am program. The program explored late-season high-elevation fungi, foraging, and gave participants an idea of what fungi would be coming with the arrival of summer.
"These pictures are from the Morel Mushroom walk I did in the morning. We had 14 people, including myself, and we found 6 morels (all of the Morchella deliciosa type). We went about a third of a mile up the Straight Branch Trail and we saw some beautiful wildflowers, too, including the jack-in-the-pulpit pictured and some showy orchis. Though late in the Morel-hunting season, I think our walk helped participants learn to spot morels and find likely habitats for them. We didn't have time to fry our finds up at the Rally, but Carrie [Sparks] got to take them home and enjoy them for breakfast on Sunday!" -Becky Rader

Program #2
Birding in the Highlands.

Blue Ridge Discovery Center's Allen Boynton and Scott Jackson-Ricketts will include stops on Laurel Valley Road and Grindstone Campground. Expect to see a good selection, including flycatchers, grosbeak, vireos, and several warblers.

Program #3
Butterflies!

BRDC guides, Allen Boynton and Gale Kuebler, led this walk looking for butterflies and showing participants how to recognize various characteristic traits to make identification easier.

Program #4

Highland Treasures: Discovering Diversity
"How many different kinds of plants, animals, fungi, and rocks can you find?" Participants joined Blue Ridge Discovery Center for a survey of diversity. BRDC's Scott Jackson-Ricketts, Devin Floyd, and Becky Rader led an expedition to find as many lifeforms as possible, document them, and compile the information so it can be shared with others! Participants used measuring tools, illustration, photography, and writing to document discoveries.
Audience: Ages 7-12 (ages 4-7 welcome w/parent)

Devin Floyd speaking to the crowd after a delicious chicken dinner on Friday night.

Whitetop Wildflower Walk

2011-04-24T15:42:00.003-04:00

BRDC wildflower walk.

2011-04-19T16:57:00.029-04:00

April 17, 2011
Those attending were:
Lee and Smadar Chaffee,

Cathy and Ernie Wheeler, and Treton and Gabriel,
Scott and Debby Jackson-Ricketts.
Guides: Cecelia Mathis and Carol Broderson.

The sunny Sunday after the raging storm of April 16 was high-season for spring wildflowers on Blue Ridge Discovery Center's first wildflower walk of the season. There were ten of us who shared our enthusiasm and curiosity in a free-flowing and lively exploration along a portion of the New River Trail State Park near Fries, Virginia.

As we walked the easy trail, we enjoyed a profusion of blooms and informally shared knowledge of edibility and medicinal uses, Latin names along with multiple common names, and other sites for some of the less common plants.

The first flowers observed were dandelions, whose uses are many. One of the participants talked about using the early leaves in salads and the golden heads to make wine. As we continued, we noted that the common blue violet, Viola sororia, is another plant with multiple food and medicinal uses. Other violets found along the trail were Viola canadensis, Canada violet, and a white violet, Viola blanda, or sweet white violet.

Dutchman's breeches and bloodroot were still blooming, and we were treated with early red fire pink and the first of the columbine flowers that often grew from crevices in the boulders that protruded from the hillside. There were also masses of early saxifrage, Saxifraga virginiencis, growing all along the rocks. We saw two species of chickweed and the two species of spring beauty, Claytonia virginica and the more distinctly petioled and colorful Claytonia caroliniana.

Two bright yellow blooms that one of the hikers scrambled down the hillside to photograph gave us the opportunity to discuss the plant's two common names, dogtooth violet and trout lily. We flipped through one of our wildflower books to discover that this speckled-leaf species, Erythronium americanum, a member of the Lily family, blooms near the beginning of trout season in many states. Consequently, trout lily is an apt name.

Cutleaf toothwort and yellow corydalis were common. The larger, purple-blooming form of the blue cohosh was standing tall on the side of the trail. The inconspicuous hooked buttercup was the only member of that varied family blooming on our walk. Ground ivy, garlic mustard, and pink to purple-blooming dead nettle were everywhere.

Even inconspicuous wildflowers did not escape us. For those willing to crawl on the ground, the bishop’s cap, Mitella diphylla, offered the sight of dainty, white blooms along its single stem. The fresh green leaves of wild ginger, Asarum canadense, hid the maroon flowers that peeped from the forest floor of dead leaves and moist soil.

A shady, damp hillside carpeted with the trillium known as wake robin led us into a discussion of this prominent, three-leafed, woodland wildflower. With the pollen intact, the blooms ranged from yellowish to mottled/stripped pink and the more numerous maroon burgundy. We debated whether these different hues of wake robins are different species. If you have thoughts or information on this issue, we invite you to leave comments below.

We examined the umbrella-shaped leaves of mayapples to find the buds that would soon open, and realized that blooms of Solomon’s seal, false Solomon's seal, and bellworts would also soon color the slopes above the old railroad bed.

If you enjoy wildflower explorations, please join our next walk on May 1 as we explore early spring in another part of the mountains. Write carol@ls.net for details.

Written by Carol Broderson and Cecelia Butler Mathis; photos by Scott Jackson-Ricketts

Wildflower Walk on the New River Trail

2011-04-10T08:02:00.005-04:00

Wildflower Walk on New River Trail
Join us on April 16! See below for details.

Join us on the New River Trail on Saturday, April 16 at 9 A.M., sponsored by Blue Ridge Discovery Center.

Carol Broderson and Cecelia Mathis will lead the very easy, flat, five-mile walk. Carol is a Mt. Rogers Appalachian Trail Club volunteer, and she also works with the Trails to Every Classroom program. "What one of us doesn't know about wildflowers, the other one does," Carol says. Cecelia's passion is wildflower photography. She is currently working with two others on a project to identify and photograph the flora and fauna of the Matthews Historical Farm, and she is also a volunteer for the Blue Ridge Parkway. The 57-mile New River Trail, the state's most narrow park, is a showcase of early spring wildflowers: spring beauty, violets, trillium, Dutchmen's breeches, saxifrage and many others.
Email carol@ls.net or call 276 773-3513 before 7 P.M. to join this spring celebration. Bring lunch, water, raincoat.

Big bugs...big fish?

2011-03-26T17:11:00.000-04:00

Yes, that's a stonefly!

Blue Ridge Discovery Center launches a new program next week called Project Fishbugs. Stay tuned to learn more about the fantastic invertebrates that lurk in the waters of the Blue Ridge highlands! For a schedule of this spring's Fishbugs activities, see BRDC's website:
http://blueridgediscoverycenter.org/events/

Fire & Water in the Blue Ridge

2011-03-20T12:58:00.011-04:00

We like to briefly enjoy early spring in the Blue Ridge Mountains while visiting our farm near Galax, VA, in mid-March. It still freezes almost every night and we often need a roaring fire to keep warm, but a few days are sunny and the signs of early spring are all around. Tree swallows are migrating through, woodcocks are peenting, the spring peepers and wood frogs are breeding, and a few flowers are blooming.

A wildlife management tool we utilize at this time of year is burning of some of our grasslands. We are hoping to achieve a greater amount of open ground under and between the clumps of grasses and wildflowers to encourage grassland birds such as grasshopper and savannah sparrows, meadowlarks, bobolinks, and quail. If you look at a panoramic photo of the area surrounding our 1880's farm house, you will notice a wide variety of habitat types: cow pasture in the foreground, hayfields made up of exotic grasses such as fescue in the background, restored meadows planted with 7 species of native grasses and 12 species of wildflowers, mowed lawn, gardens and various out-buildings, brush piles, marshes with spring-fed streams, small ponds, forests on the far horizon, and shrub borders/hedgerows. Such a diverse mosaic of habitat types is essential for maximizing biodiversity.

We have constructed 8 small ponds as part of our plan to increase habitat diversity and several of them can be seen in the photo of the house. An additional part of our plan is to maintain some ponds with and some without fish, since different communities of aquatic insects and amphibians will exist in these two situations. Three ponds near the house contain fish, in part due to colonization upstream from a creek below, and also from our stocking of the ponds. We also have four ponds that lack fish and which are beginning to attract amphibians that require such habitat. For example pond 7 (see photo) a tiny pond surrounded by woods, had 6 eggs masses of wood frogs deposited recently. The embryos are developing rapidly and will soon hatch and feed on the abundant algae. The adult wood frogs spend their entire lives in the woods except for a brief period at breeding. There was also one egg mass of the spotted salamander in fishless pond 8 nearby (see photo of milky egg mass). This was very exciting since these predatory salamanders are rare in our area. Their egg masses may be milky or clear; the cloudy masses contain large numbers of tiny crystals of protein that reflect light, but the purpose of this is unknown. It is known that the two egg mass varieties are laid by the same species. The egg masses usually become quite green later due to colonization by a symbiotic algae that helps to keep the embryos supplied with oxygen in exchange for carbon compounds excreted by the baby amphibians.

The only flower in bloom at this time was coltsfoot (see photo), introduced from Europe because it was widely used to treat colds and asthma. It has since become suspect since it contains toxins that can damage the liver. This close-up view reveals that this "flower" is in fact made up of numerous smaller "flowers" which carry out distinctly different functions. Thus the widespread and very common members of this Asteraceae or sunflower family used to be called "composites" since the flowers are made up of many individual flowers with functions that differ (ray and disc flowers). But I hardly thought of this as I simply enjoyed the first flower of spring.

So venture out beyond the confining walls of human habitation and enjoy the natural beauties of spring, one of the most wonderful times of year since it exemplifies rebirth and renewal of life after a winter period of quiescence.

Bill Dunson

Turk Mountain Textures

2011-03-14T12:40:00.006-04:00

Combine ancient sands and giant worms (Skolithos species), ice age freeze and thaw, and modern winds and fire......
...and one ends up with an amazing Blue Ridge landscape. Go visit Turk Mountain in the Shenandoah National Park for a first hand look. The trail is short and the view is spectacular.

View Larger Map

Why the Oak Trees Keep Their Leaves

2011-03-02T14:39:00.029-05:00

Ever wonder why some deciduous trees hold onto their leaves throughout the winter? I have noticed especially young oaks and the lower branches of older oaks laden with brown winter leaves.

Among many of the theories in circulation, here is one that could hold a bit of validity. Noting that wind will better catch and remove the higher placed leaves, and easily blow them away while the lower leaves are retained, suggests that the resultant minimal leaf litter below the tree might help keep the acorns from being covered before animals have a chance to disperse them. (I have a problem with this theory, such as what happens in the woods? Lots of leaves lay thick on the ground regardless of how hard the wind blows.)

The first picture is of a young red oak, not over 20 feet tall. The other two pictures are of a different tree, an older specimen, showing how the lower branches retained leaves but higher up the tree is bare.

Science explains how some leaves tenaciously hold, but not exactly why. A few tree species do not complete the development of their abscission layer until the spring, meaning that the petiole base remains alive through the winter, such as with the pin oak. Typically, abscission cells are formed in the fall, and kill the leaves by cutting off water flow, then the cells die and the leaf falls off.

But the oaks in my pictures instead retain dead plant organs, a process known as marcescence. Other trees in our area that also have marcescent leaves are hornbeams and beeches. In these trees the abscission cells form, but remain along with the old leaf until the new spring leaf's emergence causes them to sever and fall away.
Since both young trees and new branches attract browsers such as deer, it is speculated that by maintaining old, bitter tasting leaves, there is less chance of the new branches and buds being eaten. In some marcescent tree species, the old leaves may as well help protect from water or temperature stresses.

And finally for one more theory:

http://www.rosannebane.com/pdf/Why%20Oak%20Trees.pdf

Skunk Cabbage

2011-02-26T20:53:00.000-05:00

Exciting to finally see the Skunk Cabbage blooming for the first time this last week of February. Because it is a winter blooming flower I forget to go looking for it, especially with the snow cover. I have read that the heat produced by the rapid growth of the flower will actually melt snow. The snow finally melted here in Grayson a couple of weeks ago and I was determined to find the flower this year. Knowing exactly where it grows on our property helped make it more easy to come up with but it was still difficult to spot. It was tucked into a recessed pocket of soil, in a low lying ravine with water seeping all around. Even though it is a reddish color it blended in very well with its' surroundings. I kept a check on it and eventually it emerged from the ground to about 4 inches and opened up somewhat to reveal the spadix, covered with tiny prickly flowers. I accidentally step on it. Luckily it is a thick and sturdy flower, and it released it's pungent stinky onion type odor. Likely the most unusual flower I've seen.
-Jane Floyd

Montalto Prickly Pear Habitat

2011-02-02T11:35:00.029-05:00

With a strong and chilling mountaintop wind, fog lifting and sun dappled clouds racing by, we explored a very unusual habitat:

Catoctin Greenstone, Eastern Prickly Pear Cacti (Opuntia humifusa) community.

The prickly pear cacti in the larger Albemarle area is typically found on south facing and relatively horizontal rock outcrops. It also gravitates toward outcrops of granite, granulite, and related bedrock. These rocks are high in silica and decay to produce nutrient-poor acidic soils. The prickly pear cacti doesn't seem to mind. In fact, in keeping a tally of prickly pear sites in Albemarle County, all 5 have been on granite or granulite outcrops. Today I witnessed an abrupt shift in that trend.

Montalto reaches to the sky at the north end of Carter's Mountain. It is part of a strip of Virginia land that was preferred by early plantation holders (ie., Madison, Jefferson, Monroe, etc). The bedrock holding up this land (a meta-basalt known as Catoctin Greenstone) decomposes into soil that is very high in nutrients (esp. Calcium). It has a high levels of base cations, which means the soil retains nutrients and makes them available to plants.

The nutrient-rich soils of Montalto produce greater tree diversity here than at any other prickly pear habitat I've observed to date. It is likely that diversity is high in the herbaceous layer as well. (**Note: The site is maintained relatively treeless, and so we surveyed an outcrop in a forested area immediately next to it. Results are below).

Lat/Long.: 37.99949 / -78.464799

Elevation: 1272 feet
Size of the Habitat: The site is roughly 35' x 95' (+/- 5 feet)

Aspect: Relatively flat, mountain top. The prickly pear colony is most prevalent along the Southeast side of the outcrop, and the land slopes very gently toward the southwest.

Soils: Soil/silt trapped in small cracks and pockets in and around the greenstone outcrop.

Bedrock: Central Blue Ridge anticlinorium. Catoctin Formation - Metabasalt. early cambrian-age rocks (570-600 million years old).
Conditions: 50 degrees (going up to near 60) and very windy. The ground is saturated after a night of rain. The prickly pear at this site is unusually dense. I attribute this to the maintained lawn around it, giving it full access to sun, and high-nutrient soils.

Trees and Shrubs (This list was observed at an outcrop area immediately to the SW of the prickly pear habitat. The prickly pear habitat is in a maintained clearing.)
Dominants:

Chestnut Oak, Quercus prinus
Virginia Pine, Pinus virginiana
Honey Locust, Gleditsia triacantho
Eastern Redbud, Cercis canadensis

Other:

Black Oak, Quercus velutina
Scarlet Oak, Quercus coccinea
Black Locust, Robinia pseudoacacia
Red Cedar, Juniperus virginiana
Hackberry, Celtis occidentalis
Pignut Hickory, Carya glabra
Persimmon, Diospyros virginiana
White Ash, Fraxinus americana
Tulip Poplar, Liriodendron tulipifera
White Oak, Quercus alba

Other Flora noted:

Eastern Prickly Pear Cactus, Opuntia humifusa
Coralberry, Symphoricarpos orbiculatus

Non-native flora:

Japanese Honeysuckle, Lonicera japonica
Autumn Olive, Elaeagnus umbellata
Wineberry , Rubus phoenicolasius
Barberry, Berberis sp.

The cacti fruit (sweet and fermenting this time of year) is a valuable food source for wildlife including rabbits, deer. box turtles, and coyotes.

Thank you, Justin and Peggy, for a wonderful mountain-top morning!

Orbweaver....do the birds notice?

2011-01-20T09:21:00.012-05:00

Bill Dunson offers an interesting question about a spider that occurs throughout the Atlantic States, but is often overlooked:

I have been noticing a small but brightly colored spider, the orchard orbweaver (Leucauge venusta) in my rambles at Wildflower Preserve in Charlotte County, FL.

I have not been able to discover the function of the striking colors of this tiny and relatively unknown spider. If it were larger I am sure it would be well known and often photographed.

Does anyone have ideas about the purpose of such a striking coloration? The bright red colors are reminiscent of the dangerous black widow and I am thus wondering about what will happen when I by mistake walk through the web of this tiny beauty and find one on my face. For a small day-active orbweaver which is so exposed to predation by birds, such bright colors must mean something. Or could it be that it is so small (body 5.5-7.5 mm) that predators disdain to bother with it?

Bill Dunson
Englewood, FL
Galax, VA

Mid-Winter

2011-01-17T15:09:00.033-05:00

Mid-Winter’s Offerings

Prior to the on-set of colder weather, and because my new office space allows such extravagance, I set up a pond water aquarium to help me keep company with my microscopic friends. This has proven to be a welcome distraction on a snowy day, to visit my pond zoo and observe the protists, or the protoctista kingdom, which includes photosynthetic algae and a variety of protozoa more formally known as heterotrophs. Among the more familiar of these are amoebas and ciliates.

Last Thursday, the 13th of January, I discovered a damselfly perched on my windowsill, completely surprising both itself and me. This premature molt was no doubt the result of the relative warmth of my office pond, triggering what would be a typically normal response. But for a day, I had this delicate creature to observe intimately and capture its newness under the microscope. With the aid of Kaufman’s Field Guide to the Insects of North America, I was able to identify this critter as the Eastern Forktail damselfly (http://www.cirrusimage.com/damselfly_Eastern_Forktail.htm), common in eastern Canada and north-eastern US. This species has a ‘long flight season, from spring to fall’, which suggests a certain degree of hardiness.
Interestingly, the male forktails have a unique structure at the tip of their abdomens, which as well are typically quite colorful. It appears from the link photos above that this forked tail serves an important function in the reproductive embrace.

While pondering this new addition to my yard list, I heard a sudden and great commotion just outside my office. From where I sat, looking out my window all I could see were fluttering shadows. I immediately grabbed my camera and snuck out onto the deck. There in the tops of two white oaks, were seven black vultures in quite a fussy assemblage. Two of them appeared to be either fighting or courting…sometimes it is difficult to discern the difference. With grand displays of head bobbing and wing flapping they were so engrossed in their own affairs that they had yet to notice me. I thus took advantage of the moment and fairly good light to capture a few of their poses. But by far the most interesting aspect of this observable moment was their other-worldly vocalizations. I can best describe these as a combination of loud hissing and grunting, almost a mechanical or metallic squawk, uttered in a punctuated rhythmic cadence. Even when they did finally see me, they seemed relatively unimpressed. After a few more minutes, some of them grew uneasy and began to leave one by one, still not acting with any sense of urgency. Eventually the last one departed, giving a goodbye tail wave.

We have two vulture species in our region, the turkey vulture (Cathartes aura) and the black vulture (Coragyps atratus). Since most vultures are seen in flight while catching thermals, distinguishing between the two is at first a little tricky. The turkey vulture is slightly larger, has a longer tail, a red skinned head (in adults), and tilts from side to side in flight. The black vulture’s head is black, tail is shorter, and has conspicuous white in the wing tips. Turkeys are more solitary in nature, while the black is a highly communal bird, sometimes roosting in great numbers. Often both species will be found sharing the same thermal, providing a great opportunity for comparisons. As well, both are carrion specialists, with the black using its advantage of superior eyesight and the turkey its sense of smell.

Stepping out onto my deck does not compete for a good walk in the woods…so Saturday found my friend, Mica Paluzzi and me on a hike in our favorite local birding spot: Alleghany Access of the NC New River State Park. The road leading to the park was not plowed, so our walk was pleasantly lengthened. It became immediately apparent because of the snow cover that we were the first people to have been there in some time. Our intended goal was to find as many birds as possible, with a wish list that included hawks especially. We had sunshine, Fahrenheit temperatures in the upper 30s, just a slight breeze, and the whole park to ourselves…but things were pretty quiet.

The drama unfolding beneath our feet was, however, another story. One of great animation and excitement, endless descriptions molded in the snow, tales of life and death, all printed out for our curiosity and entertainment. Besides the thousands of deer tracks, solitary and grouped, raccoons, rabbits and possibly one good track of a coyote, what impressed us most were the quantity and quality of raptor kill sites. Looking like famous fossilized bird imprints, the spread of wing and tail feathers describing the pounce and lift were so numerous we named one trail ‘death row’. We could read the scene…here come little mouse prints…bang…no return mouse prints. After sharing some pictures of these events with our bird club raptor expert, Jim Keighton noted that at least one was an owl kill, evidenced by the zygodactyl toe prints, or two toes in front, two in back forming roughly a letter K or X.
As the morning warmed, so did a few birds. In one especially sunny grassy slope we scared up a minimum of 100 field sparrows. Notably absent were white-breasted nuthatch, red-bellied woodpecker, cardinal, Canada goose, red-tailed hawk, and any kind of finch. Following is our list:

22 Species Reported:
American Kestrel (1)
Belted Kingfisher (1)
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (2)
Downy Woodpecker (1)
Northern Flicker (1)
Pileated Woodpecker (1)
Eastern Phoebe (1)
Golden-crowned Kinglet (2)
Winter Wren (1)
Eastern Bluebird (13)
American Robin (1)
Carolina Chickadee (3)
Tufted Titmouse (2)
Blue Jay (2)
American Crow (15)
Common Raven (1)
Yellow-rumped Warbler (5)
Eastern Towhee (3)
Chipping Sparrow (1)
Field Sparrow (100+)
Song Sparrow (11)
Dark-eyed Junco (6)

This sightings record was recorded at: www.aviatlas.com

On my way home I saw two red-tailed hawks and one accipter…the birds we had been looking for in the park. What we did see was evidence of our ‘missing hawks’ who were probably watching us the entire time.

Mount Rogers Christmas Bird Count

2010-12-19T17:35:00.001-05:00

December 19th, 2010

We met in Volney, Virginia at 8 AM to receive our assignments from Allen Boynton, the compiler for the Mount Rogers/White Top circle. This would be the 111th annual CBC (http://birds.audubon.org/christmas-bird-count).

In order to prepare for a CBC day in the frigid high country, one must pack the appropriate clothes, field binoculars and scopes, energy food, water and a truckload of humor. Mica Paluzzi, Jim Minick and I were gifted part of area five and all of area four, (which include both lower and higher elevations), thus offering us the chance to actually see some birds.

We set off for Sugar Grove, (taking a short side jaunt down Homestead Road and back), where we caught back roads to Buller Fish Cultural Station, along the edge of the South Fork of the Holston River, and earnestly began our count. Ice covered the hatchery driveways, so we took it easy and spent most of our time on foot. At first it looked like a bust, but perseverance paid off as we quietly watched and waited. Peering into the woods we found a mixed flock consisting of golden-crowned kinglets, Carolina chickadees, a tufted titmouse, one downy, a yellow-bellied sapsucker, and blue jay. We noted crows
harassing a pileated woodpecker as Mica spotted a flyover flicker. On the water we found a dozen mallards who spooked in mass, associating any human with a gunner. While working our way back to the road, we observed the arrival of a lone fisherman, who flushed three great blue herons and one kingfisher, causing us some jubilation. Deciding to inspect the marshy spots at the entrance to the hatchery proved to be a sound idea…yielding two of both Wilson’s snipe and killdeer.

Onward. Most of the lower country covered turned out to be residential, making conspicuous and annoying our slow driving and rubbernecking. A few times did we receive the impression that folks were not happy sharing the road with us, or scoping out their bird feeders. But here it was that we saw the large portion of the 36 species tallied, including rusty blackbirds, not always expected.

Relieved to leave the human density behind, we headed to Konnorock and Fairwood Valley, on the way stopping for lunch at an iced-in overlook. While munching on carrots and granola bars I spied a red-tailed hawk perched above the parking lot, and we three got a decent look as it lifted up and away.

Many of the roads were either not plowed, or simply too slippery for safe negotiation, so we played it safe and stayed on the main road alongside Big Laurel Creek, making several stops and short hikes. A swampy zone gave us our hermit thrush and swamp sparrow, the swamp being a ‘lifer’ for Mica. Nearby a feeder hosted purple finches, (another lifer for Mica), a goldfinch or two, and the needed white-breasted nuthatch. Jim kept finding turkeys, with our first handful found on Homestead Road, and last at the very edge of our circle. Crows and juncos were abundant…where ever a birder be, so be a crow, or more likely, many crows. Between crows (61), white-throated sparrows (19), dark-eyed juncos (70), blue jays (31), mallards (28), and wild turkeys (25), our count numbers grew rapidly.

We pulled into Grindstone Campground with determined hopes of adding a red-breasted nuthatch and brown creeper. Joining us, on their way home, was another of our circle group whose entire day had been spent in the higher elevations. Together then, we made an effort to find either of these little birds, and just when we were about to give up, Mica spotted a creeper flitting from one tree to another. His keen, (young), eyesight prevailed upon the moment.

Not being satisfied without at least one winter wren, Jim urged us to stop at a couple of likely wren habitats…along the fast flowing creek…and finally, we succeeded not with one but two. Deciding that we were done, I nosed the truck towards ‘home’ and just as we were crossing the circle line, we added two bluebirds.

It needs to be said that when otherwise perfectly rational people find themselves on such a foray as this, they begin to wonder about choosing to spend a day in such harsh climate over, say, sitting in a chair by a fire reading a book, cup of tea in hand. In defense of what some would insist is a temporary condition of questionable sanity I offer this. The winter landscape in the high country is infinitely beautiful, and cannot be experienced through calendar pictures. Nope, you gotta be there, wind in face, toes and fingers numb, laughing out loud at the pure joy of it all.

SJR

How Nature Works: White-winged Crossbill Feeding Technique

2010-12-18T10:17:00.001-05:00

Bald Eagle sighting, a mating pair?

2010-12-17T20:00:00.011-05:00

Bald Eagle, Haliaeetus leucocephalus
Date: December 17, 2010
Time: 12:00pm-12:10pm
Location: Mouth of Wilson, Virginia, below the Field's Dam at the confluence of Fox Creek and the New River. (Lat/Lon: 36.602951, -81.307705)
Elevation: 2460 feet
Weather: temperature is on the rise after a two week period of extreme cold and moderate to light snow.

On my way to Mouth of Wilson, at around noon, two giant birds caught my eye. I had just crossed over the bridge where Fox Creek empties into the New River. After hitting the brakes and spilling a soda on the floor, I pulled over and watched. The adult eagles were taking turns swooping down, coming within inches of a bird in the water. Every minute or so they would perch on the trees along the south side of the river. A crow passed through, heading upstream, and one eagle dove into hot pursuit. It made chase up to the dam and returned. After diving down at a water bird several more times. I did not make an ID on that bird, but it dove under the water on occasions; cormorant sized, with dark plumage. I noticed at Aviatlas.com that a double-crested cormorant has been spotted near this locality before (during the month of October).
The pair of eagles departed together. They flew southwest, up stream, and then turned south toward Piney Creek, NC (very high in the sky but almost directly over 93). Maybe one day someone will find a nest!
I continued west on 58, admiring the up-thrust sheets of ice about to spill over the banks of the New River (this reminded me of last year's amazing January ice event: Icebergs).

A Passion for Moths--My 2010 Moth Big Year

2010-12-06T12:28:00.000-05:00

Snowflakes are falling as I type. Winter has arrived in the High Country and, I'm afraid, the end of the moth season for 2010. So now is the time to summarize my season long quest to see as many species of moths as possible at a single location. I hope the following account of my mothing big year will be interesting and inspiring to those of you out there who share a passion for the nocturnal leps. (Image to right: Painted Lichen Moth, Hypoprepia fucosa ©Merrill Lynch)

I have been interested in moths for the past ten years or so (noting new species in my tattered copy of Covell) but only started keeping detailed records in 2009, shortly after moving to Watauga County. In 2010 it became an obsession when sometime in June I added up the species I had recorded for the year and was stunned that I had close to 300 species and summer had barely begun! I then set my first goal, 500 species, which seemed at the time both realistic and reasonably ambitious. When I hit 500 species in early August, I decided to just keep at it full bore and vowed to keep the lights on and check the sheets until the last moth flew (or I was evicted from the premises by my long suffering partner!). I was also inspired by the efforts of the Tennessee moth'ers who had gotten together in the spring and decided to undertake an ambitious effort to document all of the moths in their state in 2010. (Image above right: Ailanthus Webworm Moth, Atteva punctella ©Merrill Lynch)

Before I get into the details of the big year, let me just say that I find moths infinitely interesting. For one thing, they are beautiful insects that have an incredible diversity of shapes, patterns, and palettes--even the ones that at first glance appear brown and dull reveal intricate patterns and subtly beautiful colors at closer inspection. Sorry, diurnal lepsters, but butterflies don't have anything on moths! And another thing about moths. They are ubiquitous and abundant and exist in almost endless diversity filling every conceivable ecological niche. And they literally come to you--you don't have to go and chase them! Digital photography has really opened up the moth world to closer examination and has become an essential identification tool. (Image above right: Rosy Maple Moth, Dryocampa rubicunda ©Merrill Lynch)

In 2010, I recorded 632 species of moths in my backyard, starting with a Grote's Pinion (Lithophane grotei) on March 8 and ending with Acrolepiopsis heppneri (a micromoth in the family Acrolepiidae) on November 3. (Image below right: Io Moth, Automeris io ©Merrill Lynch)

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ECO club explores wonders of the New River Plateau

2010-12-02T20:46:00.007-05:00

Independence, VA (Dec. 2, 2010)

The newly formed Grayson County High School Ecology Club met with Devin Floyd, President and co-founder of Blue Ridge Discovery Center (BRDC). The students are interested in getting involved in outdoor activities that will help them learn about the ecology of this area. The mission of the BRDC is to inspire people to explore, discover, and share the natural history of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The students plan to participate in the center's guided expeditions of the region's ecosystems, community projects, data collection, blogging, and mentorship opportunities.

After a presentation of why and how BRDC was formed, the students participated in finding their homes on a shaded relief map of the New River Plateau (Grayson, Carroll, Floyd, Allegheny, Ashe, and Watauga counties). Devin also shared his knowledge of an Internet learning tool called Google Earth and showed the students how the program allows one to explore the geology and topography of the area. The students saw what a useful tool Google Earth can be for learning about ecology. Devin also brought an assortment of items found during outdoor exploration in the western Grayson Co.: crystals, arrowheads, butterflies, leaves, and seeds. He shared with the students his own experiences growing up in Grayson County (Devin graduated from Grayson County High School, a 1992 graduate). Exploring the mountains, fields, creeks, and rivers of the area inspired his passion for art, archeology, geology, and ecology.

The students were very interested in his experiences and collections and responded with many questions and sharing of their own outdoor experiences in Grayson County. The meeting ended with plans for the club to participate in a series of BRDC expeditions to several of Grayson County's unique ecological areas. The students also plan to document and share their observations as part of a habitat study project the center is conducting.

By Deb Greif
Edited by Devin Floyd

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Trees in the Ground!

2010-12-02T18:21:00.000-05:00

TREES IN THE GROUND

GRAYSON HIGHLANDS SCHOOL
GRAYSON, COUNTY, VA.

Grayson Highlands School is positioned in a broad valley near Troutdale, Virginia. Opening this fall, this K-12 school consolidated Bridle Creek and Mount Rogers schools. In time, it will serve a larger student body, but during the transition, many kids in the neighborhood continue to attend school in Independence. Last winter, John Alexander, principal, several community members and Blue Ridge Discovery Center volunteers met to discuss broad ideas based upon outdoor classroom activities. The grounds on campus are essentially a blank slate, inspiring us to approach the possibilities with creativity and student owned ideas.

Earlier this fall, Clyde Kessler, BRDC Board Member, initiated a tree planting program at the new school by making a donation towards a tree or two. This donation grew as others heard about the program, with Carol Broderson and Blue Ridge Birders Club chipping in. After doing some research and consulting a variety of tree experts, including David Richert with Virginia’s Department of Forestry, we settled on a list of species that would do well on this windswept sandy spot.

Taking this list with me to Jones Nursery, Woodlawn, Va., on Tuesday, November 23rd, I met with Charlie Jones and Roger Hollinger, who helped me pick out and load up what $250.00 could buy. Charlie took an interest in our project, and not only helped me find the healthiest trees, but donated two large sugar maples to the cause. Charlie and Robert were incredibly helpful, including loading me up with stakes and pipe to help protect the trees from wind and deer.

The tree list is as follows:

3 large sugar maples
1 large red maple
1 large pin oak
1 medium serviceberry ( downy , shadblow, or Allegheny species)
1 medium American holly
1 small Norway spruce
1 medium eastern redbud

I then headed west to the school, where Rebecca Absher, our point person and science teacher, met me, and with several older students we began to dig the holes and plant trees. There was not enough time left in the day to plant more than three, and with the Thanksgiving Holiday upon us, we were forced to wait until the following week to complete the planting. I left the school after securing a promise that all of the trees would be properly watered. Subsequent rains through the weekend further insured that the trees would be fine.

Realizing the magnitude of the job ahead, meaning digging six large holes in very hard ground, I reached out to our local BRDC volunteer pool and received the promise of help from Carol Broderson, Niki Weir, William Roberts and Larry Paluzzi. We all met, (and just in the nick of weather time), at the school on Thursday, December 2nd. Devin Floyd joined us for an hour, on his way to Independence for another BRDC program.
Again, with a great deal of help from the kids, we succeeded in planting the rest of the trees, including roping them off and attaching the protective tubing. It was plenty cold and breezy, as can be seen in the pictures, but spirits remained high. Planting a tree is a commitment to and an association with the future. We pointed out to the kids that as they grow, so will the trees, and it will be fun to look back on this day while sitting under the shade of a spreading oak or maple.

This small but significant first step on the school grounds merely sets the stage for future activities. Among our ideas is to create a tree nursery on site, a protected space for planting seedlings and even seeds for later transplanting. From here on out, the kids are going to study the grounds with trail and garden in mind. The next step is to have the kids create a map of the campus, and then begin the process of thinking about where they would like to plant a grove, what they might place along the edges, as well as how best to utilize the resource of a small branch and wet zone on one corner of the property.

By Scott Jackson-Ricketts
photos © Scott Jackson-Ricketts and Devin Floyd

2010-11-28T10:18:00.003-05:00

As usual I got up early to do some computer work and as I gazed out the frosty windows (25 F on our back farm porch) I saw an indistinct black object moving around on a rock in the pond next to our house (see photos).

This rock often has interesting birds on it such as solitary sandpipers or green herons, sunning snapping turtles, or dragonflies and damselflies. The bluets really favor this rock.

At once I realized that it must be a mink and you may be convinced by the hasty photos I snapped before it plunged into the pond and swam away.

I only rarely see mink in this area- once before in our yard and once at Claytor Lake, yet they are obviously around. One of the neighbors told me they used to get at his chickens occasionally, and this seems appropriate for a large weasel. They are one of those cryptic mammals that we think are present but rarely get a chance to observe them.

Clearly the mink has a very thick and well-insulating fur coat since they are said to be one of the aquatic mammals that has no real blubber layer but relies only on fur to keep warm in cold water. the very thought of swimming this morning definitely sends chills up my spine!

Bill -Galax, VA

Birds at Galax Thanksgiving week

2010-11-26T08:34:00.005-05:00

We traveled back to Galax from Florida for Thanksgiving week and were not only surprised by the beautiful warm sunny weather but the number of birds and their willingness to vocalize. There were lots of sparrows (white crowned, white-throated, Savannah, field, swamp, song, chipping), a purple finch, 3 WINTER WRENS, a BROWN CREEPER, a YB sapsucker, hermit thrushes, 4 red tailed hawks in a group, a "pair" of HARRIERS, a kestrel, a sharpie, a KINGFISHER (still here!), lots of bluebirds, meadowlarks, cedar waxwings and the usual cast of characters. Our numerous and well cultivated "weeds" are getting a lot of attention from the seed eaters.

A quick photo out the window documented a behavior we had not seen before- namely a chickadee feeding on the seed pods of rose of Sharon or althaea. I knew that this hibiscus/mallow was very attractive to hummingbirds for its flower nectar, but the value of its seeds to winter birds had not been that obvious to me previously. So this is one exotic Asian species that is quite beneficial to birds. It can be invasive in some circumstances, but if you plant one of the newer hybrids that produces few seeds you will get the flowers but will not provide a benefit for winter birds. I advise planting the fertile varieties and just pulling up seedlings that are unwanted.

Margaret had incredible looks of close golden-crowned kinglets, in one case a kinglet with a huge yellow crown & next to it one with a large brilliant orange crown. So what is so different about the feeding habits of ruby crowned and golden crowned kinglets that the GCK can stay so far north while the RCK must migrate further south?

So overall we really enjoyed a late fall visit to SW VA, but aside from one autumn meadowhawk dragonfly, a few lethargic grasshoppers and a stink bug, the insects were MIA.

Bill & Margaret
Galax, VA

A Passion for Moths--Location

2010-11-21T17:11:00.036-05:00

Location: All moths were recorded in my yard or in a few instances at mobile light stations set up on my property within a 1/4 mile of my house. My farm is located in northern Watauga County, NC about 15 miles north of Boone and less than one mile from the Tennessee border. It is located in the headwaters of the North Fork of the New River and is about 3,400 feet elevation. Snake Mountain (elevation--5,580 feet) is the dominant local topographic feature; the summit is about 3 miles due south. Habitat is early to mid-successional mesic northern hardwoods (containing patches of older growth forest) with a narrow open riparian zone and nearby pastures. The area around my property is very rural and dominated by a mosaic of open pasture and hardwood forest with abundant small streams and springs/seepages. The only evergreens are scattered Fraser fir christmas tree plantations and planted white pine stands.

A Passion for Moths--Equipment

2010-11-21T17:11:00.035-05:00

Equipment: My equipment consisted of 2 sheets lighted by one 160 MV lamp located in the front yard near a small stream; one towel mounted on the sheltered wall of the house under the porch roof, lighted by a single 15W fluorescent black light; and a porch light lighted by a 15W compact fluorescent white light. I also experimented with a sugar bait concoction that I painted on a tree in the front yard. I did this periodically throughout the season and was rewarded with at least a dozen species that never came in to my lights. (image above right is of the Ironweed Borer, Papaipema cerussata ©Merrill Lynch)

My general routine was to turn the lights on around sunset and check the sheets for 1-4 hours each night, first in the early evening between dusk and midnight and again in the early morning between 3-7am (pre-dawn), leaving the lights on all night. I tried to take multiple photographs of each moth that I did not recognize and also photos of fresh specimens of all species.for photodocumentation. (Image to the right: Skiff Moth, Prolimacodes badia ©Merrill Lynch)

All of my photographs were taken with a Panasonic GH-1 using a 45mm (90mm slr equivalent) macro lens. The images were downloaded daily into my computer where I would begin the arduous task of sorting and identifying the photos to species. The identification process sometimes took days and even weeks. I relied primarily on the images on Moth Photographers Group and Bugguide websites and also consulted moth guidebooks such as Covell's Moths of Eastern North America. Occasionally, I would send photos off for identification help, sometimes to Bugguide but also to moth experts. I took over 9,000 images during the season and have photodocumentation for about 80% of the 632 species identified. (Image above left: the Hebrew, Polygrammate hebraeicum ©Merrill Lynch)

I entered the data on an excel spreadsheet that I stumbled upon on the Internet which contained a database of over 1,600 species of moths recorded in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Over 90% of the moths I've recorded in Watauga County are in this database.