Day 226: August 13th – Potpourri

Sunny, mild (high 70s) and breezy

       We simply bounced around the area near our home today with no set goal in mind.  What we found were several colorful subjects to fill the page of today’s blog…both flora and fauna.

       First up, the rich hues of the American goldfinch we found along Mine Road.  In this same little pull-off, we have found Veery, Kentucky warbler, Indigo buntings, Yellow warblers, Scarlet tanagers, and now American goldfinches….all without ever leaving the “mobile blind” of the RAV4.  The birds were following the mid-August trend of remaining relatively silent today, and it was only their brilliant yellow color that gave them away.  We found only one pair, male and female, here today, but the male was more than willing to set out in the sunlight to give us a nice portrait.

       While not as colorful, the second nice photo-op of the day came along the shore of Long Pond.  As if here to enjoy a picnic in much the same way as we humans do here at the lake, this Eastern phoebe perched on one of the cast iron grills near the water’s edge to see if any unsuspecting flying insects would happen by.  He hunted in the usual flycatcher manner, flitting off of his perch only to return to the same position after each hit or miss of his quarry.  He soon tired of my presence, however, and took off back into the woods.

       Another colorful character in today’s show at the pond was the Purple loosestrife.  Introduced into New Zealand and North America as an ornamental plant, this plant has spread throughout the US, choking out native vegetation such as cattails and may disrupt water flow in rivers and canals.  It produces up to 3 million seeds per plant annually, the seeds being carried by wind and water.  Fortunately, biological controls in the form of certain beetles are now limiting the expansion of the plant’s range by defoliation.  Many of the huge stands so commonly seen in the 70’s and early 80’s along roadsides and in the medians have all but disappeared.

       Finally, at home we found more of the Silver-spotted skippers that love to visit our butterfly bush.  What made today different was that there was one group of three which were constantly together.  The triad flew from one flower head to another, always within one or two blossoms of one another.  While their colors are mostly drab, the bright silver splashes set off by the brush-strokes of ochre make this butterfly stand out among the purple flowers of the bush.