Author Archives: Brenda Clements Jones

About Brenda Clements Jones

Brenda is a certified Virginia Master Naturalist, a Habitat Defender for Shenandoah National Park, and a devoted fan of Mother Nature. She lives in a cabin in the Blue Ridge Mountains near Shenandoah National Park, and hikes up to the higher elevations of her mountain often to see what nature is up to. Her constant hiking companion is a camera that captures nature as it unfolds through the seasons. It’s her goal to share the natural world around her through her photographs.

Virginia Creeper In October

Today, the first day in October. And here, Virginia Creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia), a gorgeous red in early autumn.

Those red leaves as well as the berries should not be eaten, at least by humans. The berries are quite popular with birds during the winter, but they and the leaves contain teeny tiny, needle shaped calcium oxalate crystals. Those crystals can cause irritation, and sometimes blisters to the tongue, mouth, and throat of us humans.

So, enjoy the beauty, but don’t get wild and crazy and eat any.

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Drama At The Web

Spiders love to decorate for Halloween, and I appreciate it so much. They spin their webs all over my cabin, making it look wondrously spooky.

This is the species of spider that created the web where this drama occurred today at lunch. A Spotted Orb Weaver (Neoscona crucifera).

As I sat eating lunch, I noticed a bit of action taking place at one of the spider webs, just outside the window. A Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta) had become tangled in the web and was fluttering about madly. The spider was sitting on the web looking quite pleased and hungry.

And then, out of the blue, “Here he comes, to save the DAY!!” A migrating, Ruby-throated Hummingbird (Archilochus colubris) enters the scene. I don’t know if it was attracted by the brilliant red-orange of the butterfly’s wings, or if perhaps the tiny bird was thinking of stealing the spider’s meal. Hummingbirds do eat insects, by the way, including insects trapped in spider webs. It approaches the trapped Red Admiral and in short order the butterfly escapes – becoming nobody’s meal, and the hummingbird came around to the feeder filled with syrup, just for the migrating hummers.

Coppery Leafhopper

Coppery Leafhopper (Jikradia olitoria). A tiny member of the Leafhopper family (Cicadellidae), measuring in at 1/4 to 5/16 inch. They’re found in eastern North America. Colors are variable, ranging from a brown-gray, to a very dark brown, to a dark blue, to a light dull yellow.

So many little things to notice in this world.

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White-marked Tussock Moth Caterpillar

Looking something like a Yorkshire Terrier, or a dragon in a Chinese New Year parade, a White-marked Tussock Moth Caterpillar (Orgyia leucostigma). Not a caterpillar to be picked up since those cute hairs can easily puncture your skin and cause hives and a skin rash. Those four white tufts on the right side can also lean toward yellow.

Look but don’t touch!

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Barn With Morning Glories

A favorite barn. I pass it every morning as I travel to yoga, often stopping to get photographs. Everyday brings new changes. Precipitation. Sunlight. Bales of hay. Shadows. Cows. Snow. Torrents of rain. Many years of images of this barn.

This, one of many at the top of my list of favorite times I’ve stopped. Barn, scattered bales of hay, and those Morning Glories (Ipomoea) hugging the fence, with Parker Mountain in the background.

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Early Autumn’s Gorgeous Tree

Black Gum (Nyssa sylvatica), showing off in early autumn with a few leaves of knock your socks off scarlet among its many leaves that are still rich green. This one has fallen away from the tree to rest on a rock cushioned with moss.

Black Gum is a medium-sized deciduous tree native to eastern North America. 

As the season develops, so does the scarlet coloring, replacing the rich greens. All become scarlet, and beautiful.

Large numbers of bees are attracted to its flowers in spring. I am attracted to the colors of its leaves in autumn.

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Oil Beetle

Roaming through the autumn leaves, an Oil Beetle (Meloe). If you see one, don’t pick it up. They have a defensive tactic to discourage predators. When provoked a bright orange, oily, poisonous chemical, called cantharidin will be released. This chemical on human skin will create very painful blisters.

A good sized beetle judging by the leaves that it is rambling across. Oil Beetles can grow to be 1.25 inches long.

Look but don’t touch.

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Cobalt Crust Fungus

What a find this afternoon. Looking around and seeing this brilliant color, I was sure someone had been using a can of bright blue spray paint. It didn’t seem possible to find this color in nature. And certainly not a fungus. But for sure, it was a fungus I was seeing, growing on a downed, quite thick grape vine.

A quick Google search and I found what I was looking for. This is indeed something of nature. Cobalt Crust Fungus (Terana caerulea). A saprobic crust fungus. A saprobic fungus is one that feeds on dead or decaying woody plants. These fungi are wonderful for our environment, breaking down wood and other debris in forests, helping to create healthy soil, making nutrients available for plants and animals in the woods.

I still can’t get over that color. So bright and beautiful.

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Showing Off Its Crimson Side

Happy first day of astronomical autumn. Quite the rainy day here but it’s time to celebrate nonetheless. First I’ll celebrate that I’m getting rain. Hooray! Something that is needed to a huge degree. Second I’m celebrating AUTUMN. Hallelujah! Lovely, warm colors all over the woods.

Celebrating with me are the Flowering Dogwoods (Cornus florida). They’re showing off their crimson side. They begin this process way back in late June, when the chlorophyll production begins to slowly shut down. Very slowly. Their leaves begin to turn from summer green to crimson. Very slowly. Mark your calendars and check out those Dogwood leaves. It really starts that early.

I hope you’re celebrating the arrival of autumn too.

A Lizard Again

Well, finally! I haven’t seen an Eastern Fence Lizard (Sceloporus undulatus) in eons. The last photo I have of one is from September of 2015.

I’ve been wondering where they’ve been. What they’re up to. That top photo is the one I saw yesterday morning. A little one. About 4 inches long. They range in size from 4 inches to 7.25 inches. This photo, immediately above, a larger Fence Lizard, is from June of 2012.

Fence Lizards are arboreal creatures that eat insects, spiders, and many other invertebrates.

The little one that I saw yesterday morning didn’t seem to be in the mood for conversation, so I didn’t find out what it and its friends have been up to, but it was super to see one again.

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