Repairing the porch. Lots of noise and commotion. It brought out something I’ve not seen before. A Broad-headed Skink (Plestiodon laticeps). A male during breeding season, with orange-red head that is puffed up which gives it the name “broad-headed.” I’ve seen lots of these skinks before, smaller ones, younger ones. Cute little ones just a couple inches long.
As a youngster, they have a distinctive bright blue tail. That blue fades as the skink matures. They also lose those stripes, at least the male does. The female’s stripes become more subtle.
But to see this big guy, this mature male, thirteen inches long, scampering around with such a bright color and no stripes. Quite a wonderful surprise.
Eye catching in its size and coloring, eye catching in its web design. Yellow Garden Spider (Argiope aurantia). A pretty large spider. The body of the female, the larger of the sexes, is about an inch in length, up to three times the size of males. Add those long legs and that is indeed a sizable spider.
Not a worry for us humans though. They are quite docile. Just be gentle and respectful. But they do have venom that they use to paralyze their prey which get caught in their webs. Yellow Garden Spiders dine on aphids, bees, wasps, grasshoppers, flies, moths.
There is no sure answer as to why they have that distinctive zigzag on their webs, but some scientists believe that it is to allow birds to see the web and avoid flying through it.
Over the years I’ve had many Carolina Wren (Thryothorus ludovicianus) nests built here at my cabin. At least one out by the vegetable garden in a bird house.
Another in a five-pointed star bird house on the porch.
And in what seems to be a favorite spot, in an antique graniteware coffeepot hanging from the porch ceiling. That coffee pot was found here, down by the very old, pre-1905 cabin. My seven year old granddaughter says the coffeepot looks like a white and black cow, with its spots. I think that’s an apt description. The coffeepot is not only their favorite nesting spot but also a favorite spot for snuggling in at night, no matter whether it’s the coldest cold of winter or the warmest of summer nights.
Nesting activities are taking place right now. In very early May a pair of wrens were going hither and yon, gathering and placing just the perfect bits, using a basket that is also hanging from the porch ceiling as a landing spot. A spot to jump from, into the coffeepot.
Endless trips back and forth bringing all sorts of stuff, from pine needles to leaves to a bit of aluminum foil from the grill.
Now, add a bit of a complication. Our porch is getting a repair job. Work on the repair had not started when the nest construction began. But once the new lumber arrived along with hammers and saws, well you can just imagine the sounds. The pounding, the sawing, more pounding. So much commotion. But still the little wrens continued.
And then the time I had dreaded arrived. Moving day. The coffeepot was hanging from the ceiling at a spot where it would be absolutely in the way. Time to move it where it and the residents would be safe. AND when the coffeepot was brought down from the ceiling, a joyous revelation. Four tiny eggs. Seven-tenths of an inch long. Six-tenths of an inch wide. That tiny. Moved to a spot that will be away from the action, within fifteen feet of where the coffeepot had been.
I watched with great apprehension and finally one of the parents showed up where the coffeepot had been but within less than a minute the coffeepot was spotted and accepted. That tense time was twelve days ago. Mom has been sitting on her eggs nearly all the time now. Carolina Wren Moms do leave the nest occasionally. And now when will the eggs hatch? In twelve to sixteen or twelve to seventeen days, depending on which source you want to depend on. That means soon! I can hardly wait!
A jewel toned beauty in a spider. Tiny too. Orchard Orb-weaver Spider (Leucauge). Most males are smaller than females. The males are about an eighth of an inch long. The female about a quarter inch long. Tiny.
I’ve happened upon these spiders on several visits to central Florida. I believe these are females because their bodies are about a quarter inch in length.
They are hard workers, consuming things that often are pests to us humans, such as flies, moths, beetles, wasps and mosquitoes. Some of the pests they eat are a help to farmers, pests that would otherwise damage commercial crops. Good to see them.
I’m always taking photos of things that I have no idea of their identification. That was the case back in late June 2013 when I took this photo. A small plant with little flowers with, oh my, what a gorgeous color. As always, I came back to my cabin and opened up my books to solve the mystery. Turns out the mystery plant is Venus’ Looking Glass (Triodanis perfoliata).
From Canada to Argentina, this annual herb is native to North and South America.
The plants generally grow to be four to twelve inches tall without branching. The flowers are about one-half inch across.
Both the leaves and the stem contain a milky sap reminiscent of the stem of a dandelion. Along with the flowers that open and get pollinated in the normal fashion, the flowers on the bottom of the stem never open and self–pollinate. Seeds capsules develop from the ovaries of all the flowers, containing tiny wind dispersed seeds the color of mahogany and the shape of a lens.
Since that summer when I first found this plant I have occasionally seen Venus’ Looking Glass growing one or two at a time at the edges of my woods. A welcome addition to my woodland home.
A clump of grass in early spring becomes green streaks, highlighted with six pointed dots of cheery blue. Common Blue-eyed Grass (Sisyrinchium angustifolium) is native to the eastern two thirds of the United States and Canada.
Though “grass” is in the common name, it is not a grass at all but is in the iris family of plants. This Blue-eyed Grass is an herbaceous perennial that is a spot of joy in spring. And quite an amazing thing if you’re watching the development of what seems to be that clump of grass wondering what it is.
If you look at those blades with knowing eyes, you can see the look of iris stems containing buds.
It is surprising for me to learn that the each flower actually consists of only three petals along with three nearly twin sepals, creating the look of six petals. The flowers are doll house sized, about one half inch across with each petal or sepal having a pointed tip and a slight indentation on either side of the tip.
The seed capsule, seen just below a flower in the above image, will split into three sections at maturity. The small black seeds to be a carried just a short distance with the wind.
As I was collecting these photographs, I took a trip to Florida and came upon a different species of Blue-eyed Grass. White Blue-Eyed Grass (Sisyrinchium albidum). Delighted to make this find.
Back in Virginia I’m enjoying my natives that bring me such pleasure.
My back hill with Green and Gold (Chrysogonum virginianum) gleeming with its yellow blooms wants the sprinkler turned on. They’ll be happier that way. It’s mighty dry here in the Blue Ridge Mountains of central Virginia. I think that will be at the top of my to do list for tomorrow.
A cute little creature that I see climbing on the cinder block foundation of my cabin on occasion. An Eastern Fence Lizard (Sceloporus undulatus). With golden eyes that stare back at me wondering what I am.
Fence Lizards grow to be between four, and seven and a quarter inches long. Usually females are gradations of gray and males are various shades of brown, both with keeled scales. Their native range is from New York to northern Florida west to Ohio and Arkansas.
Predators of Eastern Fence lizards include snakes, birds, cats, and other reptiles. When confronted they will seek a tree, running to the opposite side circling to stay out of sight.
Eastern Fence Lizards dine on invertebrates including beetles, ants, moths, grasshoppers, spiders, and stink bugs. Oh little lizard friends, please eat lots of those Brown Marmorated Stink Bugs!
Is there anything else so beautiful? Yellow Lady’s Slipper (Cypripedium parviflorum). A trek in Shenandoah National Park is pure joy no matter what, but add a sighting of this native orchid and I’m more than elated. But it’s not just in Virginia.
This species of Yellow Lady’s slipper can be found in much of North America from Newfoundland to British Columbia, and Washington, all the way south to Georgia, and Arizona. Even in New Mexico it can occasionally be found in moist conifer forests, at elevations between 5,750 and 11,000 ft. And in the garden? Bad news. A favorite of deer.
The larval host of Zebra Swallowtail (Protographium marcellus) is any of the eight species of the genus PawPaw (Asimina). I’m in the process of replacing three PawPaw trees that I recently lost. An important quest for me.
Exquisite Zebra Swallowtails depend entirely on PawPaw trees for their very existence. No PawPaw trees, no Zebra Swallowtails.
They’re native to eastern United States and southeast Canada, the state butterfly of Tennessee.
As adults these butterflies feed on the nectar of flowers such as blueberry and blackberry blossoms, lilac, milkweed, redbud, verbena, and dogbane. They also get minerals from moist sand and soil. But they need those PawPaw trees to get started. I’ve got them ordered. Soon to be put in the ground here at the cabin, and OH! Those blooms. I love ’em!
