Bird Surveys at Ganondagan SHS, NY

Grassland Bird Surveys at Ganondagan SHS south of Victor, NY (southeast of Rochester) will expand in 2017. Two primary goals of the surveys are to support the designation of Ganondagan as a NYS Bird Conservation Area (BCA) in 2017 and to aid in assessing conservation and habitat-restoration efforts going forward.  Help will be needed and greatly appreciated. Data will be collected using eBird, a free program. ("About eBird" and data-entry instructions for both the free website and free Mobile App are linked at the bottom.*) While grassland birds are emphasized, it's important to record ALL the bird species detected along with their counts or estimated counts. For conservation purposes, we need to know population trends.

For general information on NYS BCA's, go to http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/30935.html This is a state-level program on state lands, but otherwise it's similar to Audubon's Important Bird Areas (IBA) initiative.

The first 9 survey points (out of 61 planned) are active and can be used by any ebirder. Go to Hotspot Explorer - http://ebird.org/ebird/hotspots - and type in "Ganondagan SHS" and you'll see a list of all the locations. The two general hotspots are always available for any sort of birding at Ganondagan or for birds detected between survey points.

The protocol for the Ganondagan SHS grassland bird surveys, along with maps and sample data sheets, has been revised and can be emailed as a 4-page PDF. Stationary point counts will be 5-7 minutes long depending on habitat. Essentially it's five minutes in open habitat and seven in the more wooded settings. A series or sequence of two or more of the 5-7 minute counts at one point would aid detectability studies for each species reported.

eBird Hotsops (red markers) at Ganondagan SHS (satellite view)

There are five annual target surveys for each point: spring and fall migrations, breeding start and end, and one winter comparison. There is, however, no limit to the number of visits you can make, and ongoing, year-round coverage [weather permitting] would provide the greatest benefit for ornithological research and conservation. Please check the protocol PDF for all reporting details including weather notes and other information to include when using survey points. Non-ebirders can use paper forms or email their results to me at ebirder_14432@yahoo.com and I will forward them to Alexis VanWinkle, Supervising Conservation Steward, Ganondagan State Historic Site, 1488 Rt. 444, Victor, NY, 14564. She is headquartered at the Environmental Field Office, a.k.a. the old visitor center at the top of the hill near the blinking red light. Alexis is "more than willing to host introductory 'meetings' with anyone interested in helping on this project!" You can also contact Dave Spier or Alexis VanWinkle by facebook message.

Eastern Meadowlark, a grassland nesting species (© Dave Spier)

List of eBird hotspots at Ganondagan SHS with links and GPS coordinates:
Ganondagan SHS http://ebird.org/ebird/hotspot/L522250    42.9635518, -77.4154615   
Ganondagan SHS--Fort Hill site http://ebird.org/ebird/hotspot/L697829    42.9615576, -77.4322844
survey pt. (Bluestem Unit, 4.7)  http://ebird.org/ebird/hotspot/L3656677 42.964159, -77.426105
survey pt. (Bluestem Unit, 4.8)  http://ebird.org/ebird/hotspot/L3601763 42.961625, -77.427503  
survey pt. (Bobolink Unit, 8.13) http://ebird.org/ebird/hotspot/L4709300 42.95462, -77.42846  
survey pt. (Dogwood Unit, 3.6) http://ebird.org/ebird/hotspot/L4723726 42.96454, -77.42163  
survey pt. (Farmhouse, 7.12) http://ebird.org/ebird/hotspot/L4723719 42.95934, -77.42494   
survey pt. (Fort Hill, 5.10) http://ebird.org/ebird/hotspot/L4721388 42.96411, -77.43416   
survey pt. (Fort Hill, 5.9)  http://ebird.org/ebird/hotspot/L4721402 42.96125, -77.43361   
survey pt. (Hickory Unit, 6.11)   http://ebird.org/ebird/hotspot/L3601768   42.959052, -77.429034
survey pt. (Pollinator Grassland, 2.5)  http://ebird.org/ebird/hotspot/L4718764  42.96364, -77.41364

*List of eBird links:

About eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/about/
Entering data in eBird (website): http://help.ebird.org/customer/en/portal/articles/1972661
Entering data in eBird (Mobile App): http://help.ebird.org/customer/portal/articles/2411868

The annual Allegany Nature Pilgrimage

One of my favorite spring wildflowers, the Pink Lady's-slipper, makes an appearance during the annual Allegany Nature Pilgrimage. Its a beautiful orchid.

It's always a good time to think ahead to spring. Please consider joining us for the next annual Allegany Nature Pilgrimage, the first weekend after Memorial Day, in Allegany State Park, New York. It seems like 48 hours of nearly-nonstop field trips and programs, but they're spread over three days with breaks to eat and sleep. There are early-morning bird walks and bird-banding demonstrations, mid-morning walks and trips, afternoon walks, (or a choice of two all-day trips on Saturday if you prefer), evening walks (beaver and salamanders in the past), evening tent programs with a speaker on Friday and Saturday, followed by after-program frogs, insects and owling. Friday has afternoon and evening walks and events, while Sunday has the morning portion. If I'm not making much sense, just check out their schedule. The new Program Descriptions list was just finalized, and there's a nature walk for every taste, from birds to geology, wildflowers to trees, fields to forests, insects to herps, a bog slog and even specialized programs on photography, dragonflies, bats and beavers. For die-hard birders, there are birding trips from early morning to late into the night plus live birds-of-prey.

Allegany State Park is between Jamestown and Olean in southwestern New York State, next to the Pennsylvania border.

For more on the Pink Lady's-slipper, see my Adirondack blog post. Corrections, questions and suggestions are always welcome at northeastnaturalist@yahoo.com or connect through my Facebook page and photo page. There is a separate community-type page for The Northeast Naturalist.

Canada Thistle

Beware of tall, attractive wildflowers with prickly leaves growing in fields. Most have beautiful magenta or lavender-colored heads, but the leaves, and sometimes the stems, are edged with numerous, sharp spines to defend against herbivores looking for an easy meal. These are the thistles. They are composites, related to daisies and goldenrods in spite of the obvious differences. Most are biennials, starting as a ground-hugging rosette of prickly leaves the first year, then growing tall and flowering the second.
 

The Canada Thistle (Cirsium arvense), a misnamed alien invasive from Europe, is one of the less-obvious species here [in the northern Finger Lakes region of NY] because its light-purple heads are less than an inch high. The whole plant grows four to five-plus feet high and often forms dense colonies after spreading by underground stems. In Europe and northern Asia, it is known as Creeping Thistle. One plant's roots can spread to a three-foot diameter (or more) in one year and continue growing at this rate for many years, making it a difficult plant to eradicate. A single thistle plant can be considered biennial, but the root system is perennial and continues to put its energy into new clonal [cloned] shoots.
 

Canada Thistles form colonies from a spreading underground
 root system. Less energy goes into producing flowers.

Less energy goes into producing flowers which are usually dioecious (either male or female). Male flowers may be slightly smaller, but otherwise similar. Both are very fragrant, which is energy spent to attract pollinators and NOT humans. Female flowers produce 40 to 80 seeds per head, but the fuzzy pappus is loosely attached and often ineffective in seed dispersal.

Canada Thistle's main stems are smooth, but the deeply-lobed leaves are designed to keep you at a distance. In the spring, wear heavy gloves and protective clothing so you can return to the location and collect the young leaves, young stems and roots for food. One of the plant's nicknames is "lettuce from hell" (and it actually is related to lettuce). After removing the spines, add young leaves to salads or eat them cooked. The pithy, young stems are easier to deal with; just peel and eat raw or cooked. The roots of first year plants, before the tall stems begin, are a survival food, but they also can cause flatulence.


A crab spider is camouflaged against a Canada Thistle flower bud.

Canada Thistle is also food for wildlife, especially goldfinches and other finches that eat the seeds. Some butterfly and moth larvae eat the leaves. Look for Red Admirals, Viceroys and Painted Ladies on this thistle. The larvae of the Orellia ruficauda fruit fly parasitize the fertile seed heads, making them a somewhat-effective biological control.

In the past, a tea made from the leaves was used as a general tonic (stimulant) and diuretic to increase the loss of water from the body. Externally, it was used for skin sores and poison-ivy rash. Native Americans used a root tea as a digestive tract stimulant and dewormer. (I wonder what they used before Europeans introduced this wildflower.) At the other extreme, it was said to cause inflammation and irritation (Jacobs and Burlage). Go figure.
 

Cirsium comes from the Greek word, kirsion, from kirsos, a "swollen vein" remedied by one of the species in that genus. The species name, arvense, is Latin for "in the field." Among its other common names are "field thistle," "perennial thistle" and "cursed thistle." It was originally native to the Mediterranean and southeast Europe and likely arrived in North America during the 1600's.

Corrections, comments and questions are always welcome at northeastnaturalist@yahoo.com or connect through my Facebook page and photo page. There's also a community-type page for The Northeast Naturalist. Other nature and geology topics can be found on the parallel blogs Adirondack Naturalist and Heading Out.

Tree Sparrows

They migrate across southern Canada and winter in the colder portions of the lower 48 from Washington to Maine and south as far as Oklahoma. Contrary to their name, you're just as likely to find them in some bushes or feeding on the ground with the juncos. Their natural food is fallen weed seeds picked off the snow. If the snow grows deeper, they will cling to the taller plants while they pluck the seeds. In the winter they obtain water by eating snow.

Tree sparrows do not defend winter territories, but they do form dominance hierarchies and they sometimes spend the night as a group under the snow to escape bitter cold wind. Otherwise they individually roost in conifers or marshes.

tree sparrow at the Montezuma Audubon Center, Savannah, NY

In April they will head north to breed in the Arctic, generally above the tree line. They even nest on the ground, albeit in open, scrubby areas with alder thickets, dwarf willows, birches and stunted spruce. During the short summer, they eat primarily insects and spiders instead of seeds. For a bird that spends so much of its time on the ground, why would it be named "tree sparrow"? I have yet to find a good reason, but I often see them perched in trees or bushes. I suspect that early ornithologists first encountered this species sitting on tree branches.

Not quite as drab as some sparrow species, the American Tree Sparrow (Spizella arborea) sports a rusty cap, chestnut line behind the eye, some rufous on the shoulders and sides, an isolated dark spot on a gray breast, and a white wing bar. (At close range, you might notice part of a second wing bar.) One of this sparrow's distinctive field marks is a bicolored bill, dark on top and yellow on the lower mandible. This species' back is light brown with dark streaks, and the long, notched tail has dark-gray feathers with pale edges. Males and females are nearly identical and juveniles are similar but more streaked.

Tree sparrows are preyed on by Accipiters, kestrels, screech owls, weasels, foxes and even Red Squirrels. The average life expectancy is two to three years, but one tree sparrow was recorded as surviving 10 years and nine months.

For more information, photos, similar species and typical voice sounds, visit All About Birds. eBird provides an interactive range map of this strictly North American species (zoomable to your location).

Corrections, comments and questions are always welcome at northeastnaturalist@yahoo.com or connect through my Facebook page and photo page. There's also a community-type page for The Northeast Naturalist. Other nature and geology topics can be found on the parallel blogs Adirondack Naturalist and Heading Out.

Kestrels

American Kestrels (revised with new links and photos)

© Dave Spier

They're easiest to see when they sit on power lines and watch the grass below. In the absence of these utility perches, they may simply turn into the wind and hover on beating wings. Oil droplets coating the bird's eyes filter out haze and glare. Retinas, each packed with a million light-collecting cells, give it vision eight times better than a human's. Theoretically they could see a mouse from the top of the Empire State Building. After prey is spotted, the hawk drops like a stone and reaches out with needle-sharp talons. I've also heard of them gliding downhill and grabbing a mouse running across the snow, a most foolish thing for rodents to do. This maneuver caught the attention of two crows which gave chase, causing the kestrel to drop its prey. Undaunted, the hawk circled back and retrieved its fallen victim.

The American Kestrel, Falco sparverius, was once known as the sparrow hawk, a name derived from its habit of eating small songbirds, but in reality these comprise only one-third of the hawk's winter diet. On an annual basis, mice and other small rodents, plus a few frogs and reptiles represent a much larger proportion of its intake. During warm weather it eats primarily insects, and late in summer the kestrel dines almost exclusively on juicy grasshoppers which are plentiful and easy to catch. This earned the bird the nickname "grasshopper hawk" from early ornithologists. Kestrels also eat crickets, cicadas, moths, beetles and ants. Small snakes are readily dispatched, but large snakes present a problem if they wrap themselves around the bird's legs. Small roadkills, and songbirds that fly into windows, are a source of easy meals.

Kestrels are the smallest members of the falcon family, a group that is no longer considered close relatives of the true hawks. Male kestrels are nine inches long while the larger females may reach 12 inches. On average they're about the size of a robin or blue jay which makes all these birds vulnerable to larger winged predators, especially Cooper's Hawks. On the other hand, kestrels will not tolerate competitors in their hunting territory and have been known to chase off larger, but less agile, raptors like the redtail. The falcon family also includes the kestrel's larger and more famous cousin, the Peregrine, which is uncommon in the northern Finger Lakes Region of New York.

If you're close enough, kestrels are easy to recognize. In addition to small size, on a white face look for bold black marks creating a "mustache" and "sideburns." Males have gray wings and rusty-red tails ending with a black band and white feather tips. Females are mostly rufous-brown with fine cross-barring on the back, wings and tail. The lighter undersides of both are spotted, giving way to white under the tail. The wings and tail are relatively long, much like the larger harriers which also hunt the open countryside. (Harriers, also displaying sexual plumage dimorphism, are in a different family.) Unlike harriers, falcons are noted for flying with pointed wingtips, an advantage for faster speed. Peregrine falcons, which can reach a diving speed of 200 mph, are the fastest animals on earth.

Kestrels are year-round residents throughout New York and most of the United States, and a summer breeder across much of Canada and the northern Great Plains states. You can find an interactive range map on eBird under Explore Data -> Range...Maps.

Kestrels nest in tree cavities, often taking over old woodpecker holes, but the cutting of dead trees for firewood results in a shortage of natural nesting cavities. Fortunately, kestrels readily take to large nest boxes erected specifically for the purpose. The size should be at least eight inches square inside and 15 inches tall with a three-inch entrance hole centered three inches below the top. Mount it at least 10 feet above the ground. As controllers of insect and mouse populations, kestrels are valuable to gardeners and farmers, and nest boxes are one way to encourage their presence.

For more information, visit All About Birds.

Corrections, comments and questions are always welcome at northeastnaturalist@yahoo.com or connect through my Facebook page and photo page. Other nature and geology topics can be found on the parallel blogs Adirondack Naturalist and Heading Out. There's also a community-type page for The Northeast Naturalist.

Ragweed

pollen-producing male ragweed flowers on spike-like racemes
photographed with Canon MP-E 65mm 1-5x macro

       The weather segment of the local evening news sometimes gives the pollen  information for allergy sufferers. The other night I noticed that the "Tree" and "Grass" categories were absent, but "Weeds" were high, with ragweed and Artemisia (mugwort) listed as the main culprits.

        It's the peak of allergy season for ragweed victims, and according to weed ecologists, the problem is getting worse. Increased carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and warmer temperatures are producing a bumper crop and higher-than-normal pollen counts. In other words, global warming is having an immediate impact close to home. Each large ragweed plant is capable of producing a billion pollen grains over the course of its flowering period and they all travel on the wind or a breeze.

Common Ragweed is also known as bitterweed, carrot-weed, tassel-weed and hayfever-weed (probably the most appropriate of them all). Its Latin name is Ambrosia artemisiifolia. Ambrosia now refers to the mythic food of Greek gods that allowed them to live forever, but originally it meant simply "immortal." This is probably a testimonial to the tenacity of a weed that's almost impossible to irradicate, except perhaps on a temporary local basis. The second (specific) part of its scientific name indicates its relationship, both in appearance and genetics, to Artemisia, the genus of wormwoods and mugworts. They all are prolific powdery-pollen producers in the Aster (Daisy) Family. The relationship is based on technical characteristics of the flowers, even though these particular species lack showy petals because there's no need to attract insects for pollination.

Ragweed flower detail cropped from 100mm macro shot at 1.6x
[allowing for sensor-size scale] and using a flash
against natural sky background while shielding from the wind

Instead, the wind does the pollinating. The tiny bell-like flowers have green hoods covering the yellowish male stamens. On ragweed, these blossoms are lined up along the top of the stem in a spike-like raceme. (See the opening photo.) Female flowers are even less conspicuous and grow in the leaf axils where the leaves attach to the main stem. The green leaves themselves are deeply dissected and remotely fern-like.

Common Ragweed leaf photographed with 100mm macro
after creating a shadow to hide the background

During the winter, persistent ragweed seeds -- rich in oil -- are eaten by a number of resident songbirds and upland game birds.  To humans, the seeds are bitter tasting, hence the alternate name bitterweed.  In the summer, a few ragweeds may be eaten by the caterpillars of several butterfly and moth species.

Ragweed is an annual plant that grows in disturbed ground and road shoulders.  It goes through its entire life cycle in one growing season and then dies.  From the human perspective its useless if not outright obnoxious and undesirable.  From an ecological point of view, it is a native pioneer plant that colonizes bare patches of ground after some sort of disturbance, either natural or manmade.

        Ragweed's miniscule arrowhead-shaped seeds are covered with spines that cling to any passing animal brushing by the ripe plant. Eventually they drop off and a few may land in suitably dry, sunny or partly-shaded locations.

        By contrast, dandelion and thistle seeds arrive on the wind. Goldenrod seeds have smaller fuzzy "parachutes" and travel shorter distances.  The weeds stabilize the soil and reduce erosion, paving the way for shrubs to move in.  Eventually trees gain a foothold and given enough time, a forest will regenerate itself in what was once an open field.  By then the annual ragweeds and perennial goldenrods are long gone.  They lost out in the battle for sunlight.

        Goldenrods often get blamed for allergies because they flower at the same time in the same habitats as ragweeds and mugworts, but their pollen is sticky and heavier.  Goldenrods require insects for pollination, not wind.  There's more on my Goldenrod blog.

Corrections, comments and questions are always welcome at northeastnaturalist@yahoo.com  Other articles can be found on a parallel blog at http://adirondacknaturalist.blogspot.com/  More nature photos can be found at http://www.flickr.com/photos/dave_spier

A small Common Ragweed plant; they can grow much larger and more prolific of pollen!

Picris hieracioides

This is an invasive, alien weed and I generally pull it out when I have time. It resembles a tall, multi-headed dandelion with rough-hairy, almost bristly, stems and leaves. Indeed it is a relative and like dandelions, comes from a foreign land. This one is native to the mountains in southern Spain and northern Portugal. In addition to growing in my yard, I find it proliferating along roadsides, often intermingled with its close relative, blue Chicory. The combination is colorfully attractive. All these plants are in the Aster (Daisy) family and generally considered invasive weeds.

I learned it's name as "Hawkweed Picris" from a botany professor, but the rest of the world now seems to call it "Hawkweed Oxtongue." Sorry, that just doesn't have the same ring (or is it just habit)?  The scientific name is Picris hieracioides. The genus name (Picris) comes from a Greek word for bitter, referring to the plant's roots. Members of this genus are called "oxtongues." The species name indicates its close resemblance to hawkweeds, genus Hieracium.

We've described the flowers as dandelion-like, but look closely and notice that the tip of each yellow ray has five "teeth." With age, the blossom becomes a fuzzy seed head. Without adequate sunlight, though, the plant never reaches the flowering stage and remains a basal rosette of leaves (on the ground).

The lower stem leaves are long, lance-shaped and wavy-edged, or they have short teeth separated by scalloped sinuses (see the last images before the photo notes). The upper leaves are shorter, alternate, long arrow-shaped and hug the main stem. Side branches arise from the points of attachment [axils].

Picris is a biennial, taking two years to reach maturity in sunny, open yards, fields and roadsides, and sometimes it survives another year or two as a short-lived perennial. It is related to Chicory (genus Cichorium) and both are in the Chicory subfamily (Cichorioideae).

Picris is found in isolated pockets across the Northeast into Canada, but primarily in New York and Pennsylvania. There is a disconnected invasion, again highly localized, in the Northwest from Washington to Alaska and another in Hawaii.

Photo notes: To make a leaf stand out, cast a shadow into the background. Use a tripod and a cable release [or the self-timer]. After aiming and setting the exposure [manual works best], move to throw your shadow into the background. After taking the shot, check the result and adjust as needed. I've also used notebooks and shirts to create shadows where I need them.
Lenses for this project were the 18-55mm kit lens and 100mm macro on a Canon XT.

Corrections, comments and questions are always welcome at northeastnaturalist@yahoo.com Connect with me on Facebook. In addition to my personal page (with the Gaillardia flower at the top), there is a photo/artist page, Dave Spier (photographic naturalist).

Teasel

Monarch on teasel -- © Dave Spier

Teasel -- © Dave Spier

For all their prickles, one might imagine that teasels are somehow related to thistles, but are in fact in their own family (Dipsacaceae). They were brought to this country from the Mediterranean and used to tease (comb) wool, giving it the nicknames "clothier’s-brush" and "gypsy-comb." After the lilac-colored flowers are gone, the stalks and egg-shaped, pincushion heads remain stiff and withstand all but the heaviest of storms. They can be collected and used throughout the fall and winter, but now their utility seems limited to decoration. I’ve seen them spray-painted gold and added to flower decorations, but I assume the arranger was wearing gloves.

There are two common teasel species, both growing in fields and road edges. Cut-leaved Teasel, Dipsacus laciniatus, has large, opposite leaves that join and clasp around the stem so much they form a cup that holds rain water. (We should be so lucky as to get enough rain this summer.) The genus name is from the Greek word dipsa, meaning "thirst," and refers to the cup effect. The edges of laciniatus leaves are deeply lobed and fingered, hence "lacerated." The second species, Dipsacus sylvestris, has fairly smooth-edged leaves that sometimes barely clasp the main stalk without forming much of a cup.

Although an imported alien species from Eurasia and Africa, the teasel's lavender, or sometimes white, flowers are attractive to humans and butterflies. In the photo a Monarch is carefully drinking nectar from the tiny florets between the prickles.

Corrections, comments and questions are always welcome at

northeastnaturalist@yahoo.com Also, you can connect with me through my Facebook photo page at Dave Spier (photographic naturalist) http://www.facebook.com/pages/Dave-Spier-photographic-naturalist/457719854240996 or my personal page.

Common Milkweed -- Part 1 (autumn)

Ripe pods splitting open to release silky floss can mean only one thing -- the milkweed seeds are ripe and ready for dispersal on autumn and winter winds. -- © Dave Spier

Milkweeds need almost no introduction. In fact, the Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) is just that -- common and widespread in fields and roadsides. The genus name refers to Asclepius, the Greek god of healing, because of the plant's use in folk medicine, much of it derived from native American practices. A quick word of caution, though. Avoid the milky juice which contains toxic compounds including alkaloids, glycosides and cardenolides. Monarch butterflies are immune to the effects of these substances and use them to their advantage by laying their eggs on the plant. The caterpillars eat the leaves, ingest the toxic substances, and become noxious prey to would-be predators. Apparently the effects last into adulthood. One experience of getting sick is probably enough to ward off a bird from eating any more larvae or adults. (Given the date of this post, I'd say this is no longer an issue till next summer.)

The species name, syriaca, is a case of mistaken identity. When the plant arrived in Europe (before 1753) it was believed to have come from the Middle East. Actually this particular species is native to North America. Worldwide, there are 140 species of milkweeds. Once considered to be a family of plants, the group has been downgraded to the rank of subfamily in the dogbane family.

Early settlers used milkweed fluff to stuff pillows and mattresses. The silk could also be spun into candlewicks. Fibers from the milkweed stalk could be made into thread, cloth, fish nets and purses.

The Common Milkweed's sticky, white sap can be used to make a natural rubber. During World War II, when tree latex from Malaysia became unavailable, the government experimented with milkweeds. Commercial-scale production of rubber would have required the redesign of existing processing facilities, so the effort floundered. Eventually most natural rubber was replaced by synthetics made from petroleum.

Milkweed did come to the rescue of the life-preserver industry which had relied on kapok from Java. When that source was cut off in 1942, school children and scout troops in 26 states were paid 20 cents for each onion bag they filled with ripe milkweed pods (roughly 800 pods per bag). The flossy seed hairs are waxy on the outside and hollow on the inside (much like kapok). This makes them super-light and water resistant, which is perfect for life vests. Less than two pounds of filling could keep a sailor afloat on the sea for two days. After the war, milkweed again sank commercially because it was cheaper to import kapok. The only remnants of the war effort are the nicknames silkweed, Virginia silk, cottonweed and wild cotton.

Part 2 discusses summer flowers and part 3 the summer butterflies that use the plant.

Questions, comments and corrections may be sent to northeastnaturalist@yahoo.com More nature articles can be found on the website http://adirondacknaturalist.blogspot.com Connect with me on Facebook and my photo page. There is a 3rd page to create a Northeast Naturalist community.

Common Milkweed seeds travel on silky parachutes -- © Dave Spier

Harriers

© Dave Spier

At this rate, it just might spend the winter here. Sometimes it flies close to the building, passing the west windows, and then disappears across the field. I doubt it's hunting the birds at the feeder, but they are within the realm of this raptor's diet. Mostly it flies low over the grasslands and the marsh while it looks for small mammals, especially Meadow Voles (also called field mice) which are caught with a sudden pounce. Sometimes this large bird's flight drifts lazily back and forth, then stops momentarily to hover. In warmer weather it hunts snakes, frogs and insects. When all else fails, carrion is eaten.

The Northern Harrier, once known as the marsh hawk, is a slender and buoyant hawk with a somewhat owl-like face. The hawk's long wings and tail are designed for life in the open. If it tips a bit sideways toward you, watch for the distinctive white rump patch. When soaring, the wings are held in a shallow V with the tail fanned. At low altitudes, the tail is usually closed and the wings held flat to the sides. In a steep glide, the wings are sharply bent and swept back like a fighter jet.

In the winter, harriers hang around with Short-eared Owls and share the same fallow, grassy fields where mice have had time for a population explosion. Both raptors will use fence posts as hunting perches while they listen for prey. Though unrelated, the facial disks of both harriers and owls are thought to help focus sounds on the ears.

The harrier's Latin name, Circus cyaneus, refers to its circling flight and the supposedly blue plumage of the males. The color is actually gray, but that's only half accurate because females and juveniles are brown, an unusual disparity for raptors. Juvenile harriers are orangish underneath, like the two photos. The name "harrier" is Old English for "harassing with hostile attacks." Other colloquial names include blue hawk, mouse hawk and white-rumped hawk. Males are smaller and more agile and catch smaller prey, including birds. The harrier flying past the Montezuma Audubon Center (Rt. 89, Savannah, NY) was a larger, brown female probably more intent on a larger meal than the tiny goldfinches at the feeder.

Harriers nest in the marshes at Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge (between Rochester and Syracuse, NY). Last April I watched a female repeatedly carry nesting material in her beak and then drop down into the same patch of heavy vegetation. There are indications harriers also may nest in the Northern Montezuma Wetlands Complex around Savannah (Wayne County, NY). They almost certainly nest in the Lakeshore Marshes Wildlife Management Area near Lake Ontario in northeastern Wayne County as well as Howland's Island in Cayuga County. The female does all the incubating while the male brings food. After the eggs hatch, the male continues supplying prey, but only the female tears it up and feeds the young. If something happens to her, the nestlings will starve, even though the male continues to drop whole prey into the nest.

Harriers breed from Alaska across Canada to the Maritimes and south into the United States as far as a line from California to Pennsylvania. Most harriers head south for the winter and return in the spring.

Contact me at northeastnaturalist@yahoo.com More nature photos can be seen at http://picasaweb.google.com/northeastnaturalist and http://www.flickr.com/photos/dave_spier and now my Facebook photo page.

(This copyrighted article - slightly revised here - and photos first appeared in the Times of Wayne County, November 24, 2008. All rights reserved.)


 

Golden Garden Spiders

A female Argiope aurantia, the golden garden spider, hangs upside down as it finishes wrapping its prey in a gauze straight jacket. The heavy zig-zag stitching on the web (called stabilimento) is believed to warn birds that might otherwise wreck the web. The yellow flowers supporting the web are brown-eyed Susans 'Goldsturm.'
© Dave Spier photo # D050779 [resolution reduced for web use]

Golden Garden Spiders

© Dave Spier

The small patch of Brown-eyed Susans 'Goldsturm' has grown over the years and it now spreads along the entire east side of our patio. Sheltered from north and west winds, it catches the morning sun that burns off the dew. Yesterday I was leaving the house and just walking past when a new visitor caught my attention. A great, circular web stretched through a gap between several of the taller plants. A white, zig-zag stitching reinforced the center and there, hanging head down, was a huge multi-colored spider wrapping her prey. The eight black and pink legs easily spanned two inches. The egg-shaped abdomen was black with bright yellow markings. This was a Golden Garden Spider, Argiope aurantia, also known as the Black-and-yellow Orb Weaver.

I've also found these spiders in shrubs, tall grass and fields of wildflowers. They build their elastic webs by first throwing a "bridge" thread (a loose strand of silk) carried on air currents to a second support. From the center of the bridge, they drop down with an anchor thread to form a tripod. A box frame is built around the intended area and more radial spokes are added. Then a few quick spirals of non-stickly thread allow the spider to walk anywhere on the web. Finally, a tight pattern of sticky spirals completes the trap and the spider waits for its victim. They ignore the high-frequency vibrations of dangerous prey such as wasps, but quickly dash out and wrap more delectable goodies such as grasshoppers and other juicy insects. With its potential meal in a gauze straight jacket, the spider bites with fangs and injects a paralyzing venom. Then digestive enzymes are pumped in to liquify the soft body tissues, turning them into a soup that the spider sucks out. All that's left is the insect's exoskeleton.

By the end of the day, the sticky threads are too dry to be effective, so the spider eats the web and spins a new one. The silk, produced by spinnerets under the tip of the abdomen, is a liquid protein that hardens when it contacts the air. Besides the two types used to make webs, their is a third silk used to wrap prey and then another silk to wrap and protect the spider's eggs. Silk can also be used for "ballooning," sort of a magic carpet ride on the air. The heavy, zig-zag stitching, called stabilimento, across the central hub of the web is believed to warn birds that might otherwise blunder through the web. This saves the spider time, energy and material in prematurely rebuilding the web.

Late summer is spider season. Look out across any field just after sunrise and notice all of the dew-soaked webs catching the morning light. Each of these is both home and kitchen to a spider.

Contact Dave at northeastnaturalist@yahoo.com or Facebook. There is also a Facebook page for The Northeast Naturalist.

(This copyrighted article and photo first appeared in the Times of Wayne County, September 1, 2008. All rights reserved.)

Goldenrods

Goldenrods -- © 2008 Dave Spier

First, to clear the air, goldenrod does not cause hay fever or allergies. That job is done by ragweed, a distant relative with tiny, inconspicuous green flowers and copious amounts of powdery, wind-blown pollen. Goldenrod, on the other hand, has sticky, relatively-heavy pollen carried from flower to flower by insects such as wasps and bumblebees. In fact, the yellow color of golenrod serves to attract the various insects needed for pollination.

Wherever there's abundant sunshine, goldenrods take over with a tangle of underground roots and chemicals that inhibit the growth of competitors. It takes a number of years, but they can dominate small patches of real estate and this continues until shrubs rise above the challenge and begin shading the goldenrods. Assuming there are no other disturbances, trees eventually win the battle for sunlight and recreate a forest, but that takes decades. That said, there are even two species of goldenrod, the Zig-zag and the Blue-stemmed, that survive as individuals or small patches in some woods.

There are actually dozens of different goldenrod species, each adapted to slightly different growing conditions. Many have offset, but overlapping, growing periods so they are not all competing for insect attention at the same time. The individual blossoms are crowded together, usually along the top stems where they are most visible. To see the differences in their basic structure, one needs to look closely or use a magnifying lens. Many resemble miniature daisies. Of course, many things do because the daisy family (usually called the aster family) contains one-tenth of the world's flowering plants. Their basic design is a central disk of compact florets surrounded by showy petals called rays. There are a few exceptions to this rule, including ragweed, which has lost (or never developed) the corolla of rays. Unfortunately, ragweed blooms at the same time, and in many of the same habitats, as its showy cousins that get the blame. So, if you can, spare the gold and pull the ragweed.

You might call me the goldenrod ambassador.

Contact me at northeastnaturalist@yahoo.com

(This copyrighted article and photo first appeared in the Times of Wayne County, August 25, 2008. All rights reserved.)