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.

They Are Back!

April 29, 2025

They arrived this afternoon. At least that’s when they came by to enjoy the bird baths. A male and female American Redstart (Setophaga ruticilla) adding their bright colors to the woods around the cabin. The image above is the male Redstart in his rich black and vivid orange.

And this the female Redstart in her very different color way, soft gray and lemon yellow.

These colorful Redstarts eat mainly insects, and occasionally will have small berries and fruits.

Very pleased to have them back!

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Brilliant Color Is A Warning

April 28, 2025

This is a Red-spotted Newt (Notophthalmus viridescens) wearing a red-orange color as a warning to predators. In all stages of their lives they are poisonous. Their skin secretes tetrodotoxin, a potent poison. During their land dwelling juvenile stage in life they are particularly toxic, therefore the warning.

They start out living in fresh water habitats as an aquatic larval stage, much like a tadpole. They emerge from the water, still in the juvenile stage (as in this picture, above), to live on land sometimes under leaf litter for 1 to 3 years before returning to the water as an adult.

Here, a Red-spotted Newt living again in the water as an adult. Notice its new coloring. Fading from the juvenile, orange-red, to an olive green or yellowish-brown. The Red-spotted Newt can live for as long as 12 to 15 years.

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Seldom Seen

April 27, 2025

This blog post title, it is not the bluegrass group, The Seldom Scene, it’s about a bird that I hear often but rarely get an opportunity to capture in a picture. The Red-eyed Vireo (Vireo olivaceus).

Both male and female make a call that sounds like a Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis) saying, “Myaaah!” The male sings a melodious song, that I use a mnemonic to remember, “Here I am! Where are you?!” Thanks to that mnemonic I’m able to know with great confidence that it is a Red-eyed Vireo singing that song from the tops of trees as he looks for insects.

Several years ago in what seemed like a moment of *magic* a Red-eyed Vireo nest was found in a Flowering Dogwood tree (Cornus florida). The nest was watched for a few days until the hatchlings fledged.

A super sighting.

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Someone Is Looking!

April 26, 2025

The past couple days there has been a male Eastern Bluebird (Sialia sialis) that has been coming to the backdoor. He sits on the ledge, and moves from side to side, while peering in. He has also come to the front door, peering in.

The female Bluebird of this affectionate couple is building a nest in a birdhouse that is between the cabin and the woodshop. When she emerges to get more pine needles and fine grasses for the nest, the two of them fly and sing their soft songs together.

He’s not being aggressive, as if defending his territory from an intruder. I’m wondering if he’s trying to ask that I pick up some mealworms or has some other meal suggestions.

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Philadelphia Fleabane

April 25, 2025

Blooming everywhere now. Philadelphia Fleabane (Erigeron philadelphicus), with blooms perfect for a doll house. Native to North America this Fleabane is found in almost all our states and Canada.

Each bloom has many threadlike ray flowers, or petals, perhaps 150 to 400 that are white and also pink. The yellow center contains disc flowers. Butterflies, bees and moths are the Fleabanes’ pollinators.

The name Fleabane originated long ago because of the inaccurate belief that the dried plant would repel fleas.

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In The Neighborhood

April 24, 2025

There have been Eastern Bluebirds (Sialia sialis) hanging around in the front of the cabin for quite some time. This afternoon I happened to spot this pair at the birdbath, and the male was checking out one of the birdhouses at the back of the cabin.

There has been a Bluebird family in that house before. Got my fingers crossed!

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Virginia State Insect

April 23, 2025

The Eastern Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio glaucus) pollinating apple blossoms, one of the steps in creating apples.

The host plants of the Tiger Swallowtail are those in the Magnolia and Rose families. As an adult this butterfly enjoys a long life compared to many other butterflies, sipping the nectar of many flowers from spring to autumn. Establishing two to three broods during that time.

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Growing At The Summit Of Hightop

April 22, 2025

A plant in the genus Sedum, and one that is quite prevalent in its native range of eastern North America. I first became acquainted with Woodland Stonecrop (Sedum ternatum) on one of my many hikes up Hightop, where it grows atop the boulders at the summit of the mountain. It enjoys growing in a shady location but tolerates a sunny location which is the case at the top of Hightop.

After seeing it that first time I was impressed and looked for it in nurseries and managed to find some. I now have a patch of it growing on my back hill. It’s a great groundcover so long as I keep other more aggressive plants from encroaching upon its space.

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More Pink In The Spring

April 21, 2025

This afternoon, climbing up the mountain I was really pleased to find a Wild Geranium (Geranium maculatum) blooming with the look of, “Happy SPRING!” These flowers are one of many on my list of favorite flowers.

And to top off the fun color, cool leaves, and how they grow into beautiful clumps, comes the enchanting way their seeds are distributed. Above you see fruit capsules waiting to dry.

As they dry they will reach a point where stress is created and the fruits split, curl up and backward, flinging the seeds as much as 10 to 30 feet away.

What is left, in the photo above, delights me. I think of it as a carousel made for tiny forest fairies.

I would love to come by one day and see the fairies riding on the carousel!

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Miniature Iris Growing In The Garden

April 20, 2025

A bright spot in one of my gardens. Flowers my Mom would adore. Dwarf Crested Iris (Iris cristata), found on rocky, wooded slopes. Native to the eastern and southern United States.

Quite short for an Iris, it grows to between 4 and 9 inches tall, and spreads by rhizomes.

Wonderful to see spring unfolding.

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