Day 236: August 23 – Typical summer fare

A fine summer’s day…mild, fair skies, and light breezes

       Many years ago, Sharon and I used to go camping with our children as our standard vacations and weekend outings.  They loved the outdoors (or so we told them) and it was a nice cheap way to get away.  Some trips were at a fair distance from home while others were closer.  Fahnstock State Park was a park we could camp at within a 45 minute drive.  Today, we revisited that site to see the changes that occurred over the past 30 years and to see what the park had to offer in the arena of nature photos.

        We scouted out the shoreline in hopes of some shorebirds or waders.  While there were none to be found, the area did have a nice assemblage of what you normally would expect to find in the late summer months.  Our first subject was a Bullfrog sitting in wait for a juicy insect to come near.  While the Bullfrog appears quite similar to the Green frog, it is usually larger (not so much in the case of this individual) but also has a ridge that runs from its eye back and around its eardrum.  The Green frog also has a ridge, but its ridge runs past the eardrum and back towards the rear of the frog.

       Next on tap was one of our more familiar summer insects, the Carolina locust.  This critter is actually a grasshopper, not a locust at all.  It has a leathery pair of wings on the outside which actually cover and protect the inner more delicate wings used for flying.  As was the case today, this grasshopper is often found on sandy soil or beaches where its color helps it blend in with its surroundings and protects it from some hungry birds.

        Next, an entry from the avian world.  The White-breasted nuthatch is admittedly not all that rare, often being sighted right outside our windows at the feeders.  But when it is seen in its more natural woodland environment, it makes for a nice image.  This one was in its common attitude of descending down the tree as it ate, head first.

       Finally, another insect which we will be seeing right into October.  The Monarch butterfly has been pretty obvious all summer and will become even more so as it moves down the coast on its trip to Mexico. 

       So, another day which was not extraordinary, but was wonderful in its representation of a typical summer’s day.