JACKSON M. ABBOTT WETLAND RESERVE ON 9-15-21 - PART 2

Continuing my post from yesterday...

I am not sure how old this turtle was but not one of the big ones I have been seeing lately.

I was trying to get more photos but it jumped/dropped/plonked unceremoniously into the water seconds after these were taken.

It was a hot day, not the hottest we have had, but very humid. Feeling a bit like a wilted lettuce comes to mind.

A pretty one, this is the Purple false foxglove (botanical name Agalinis purpurea), and its other name is Purple gerardia.  

It is a native to the eastern United States and Canada. The caterpillars of the Common Buckeye butterfly feed on the foliage.   

These yellow flowers are called Bearded beggarticks (botanical name Bidens aristosa).  Also known as Western tickseed and Tickseed beggarticks.  It is related to the sunflower family.

I am always drawn to grasses.  Very pretty!  This is Hairy wild rye (botanical name Elymus villosus).  You might also know it as Silky wild rye.

Here is the same stalk of grass with the Bearded beggarticks.  The Hairy wild rye is a native grass of the eastern USA.  It favors damp woodlands and small meadows.  It does not attract insects as it is wind-pollinated.  Birds seldom eat the seeds and the plant is not palatable to wildlife or livestock, because the bristles on the seed heads are so coarse and can injure the animals.

More photos of the New england aster.  It is an easy-to-care perennial.  I would like to grow them in planters and was happy to find that they can be potted in well-drained compost.

Like most asters, it blooms late in the season.  It provides a critical fall nectar source for pollinators, especially Monarchs as they stock up for their Fall migration to Mexico.

This is definitely a place we would like to come back to, and our first impression was a very good one.

We had taken our photos, gotten our exercise and okay, no speed walking for us. We rested on a couple of the benches around the lake and watched whatever came into our view.  The turtles, the dragonflies, the butterflies and all the pretty flowers.  

But now it was time to go home.  

Getting out and enjoying our surroundings can be the best medicine, and so soothing for body and mind.

This fits in with the way I walk.

"One step at a time is good walking."

~Chinese Proverb~

The last plant I am sharing is Linden viburnum (botanical name Viburnum dilatatum).  Its other name is Linden arrowwood and it is a native of eastern Asia.  It will grow from 6-8 feet tall,  blooms from late spring to early summer and produces bright red berries in the fall.  Its dark green foliage turns to shades of bronze and burgundy-red in the fall.  They attract a variety of birds.  

If you ever see anything from any of my posts that you think I have misidentified, I am always happy to be helped with the correct ID, and will change accordingly.  All this research I do is a learning experience, and most definitely a fun hobby of mine.

Thank you for coming along on our walk, and I hope your day is a great one.

HUNTLEY MEADOWS CONTINUED

I am beginning with a few sights that greeted us as we walked through the wood.

A Fairy Door?  This was from a very tall tree which was hollow.  There were several holes like this one, inviting woodland creatures to take up residence, or fairies says I with a smile?  I stared into the various holes, and fortunately no eyes stared back at me in the darkness.

I saw two signs where people had begun to trample down the fauna and start their own trail.  There was a polite sign asking them not to do so, to protect the habitat.

We both said that the park was as lush and vibrant as we had ever seen it.  This is called a New york fern, a species of Parathelypteris.  Botanical name: Parathelypteris noveboracensis.  You can find more information here.

We have reached the boardwalk.  There are rules posted but there is a path on the left that you can take through more of the woods, if you have your dogs or anything else not allowed.

In all the years we have been coming to the park, visitors have been very considerate.  I did see a dog once but that was a long time ago, before this sign was posted.  The dog was very well behaved and rather sweet, but then it was in the winter time and there were no birds close to peek its interest.

Next are Cardinal flowers, a species of Lobelias. Other names are Scarlet lobelia, Red-lobelia and Cardinal flower lobelia.  Its botanical name is Lobelia-cardinalis.

One of my favorite wildflowers, it is a brilliant red, a native wildflower that grows in marshes, stream banks and low woods.  It is also a member of the Bluebell Family, and was named after the Flemish botanist, Matthias de L'Obel (1538-1616).  It blooms from July to September.  My information came from this link.

We noticed the water level was down, perhaps due to beaver activity.  There were signs of their engineering work (dam building) the last time we were here.  It is different every visit.

This interesting orange 'carpet' is a Dodder vine.

It is a slender annual vine that wraps itself around other plants, and is found in many states.   According to this website there are over 50 native dodder species listed that are known in the United States and Canada.  I have only ever seen this type grow at Huntley Meadows, so to me it was a surprising sight when I first saw it.

It was everywhere.  The white flowers seen in the photos below are Rose Mallow.  

The Common rose mallow (Hibiscus moscheutos). We came at a great time as they were blooming everywhere.  I overheard a lady say that they hadn't yet reached their peak.  

These lovely flowers will be blooming until September.  The bloom is larger than okra, cotton or hollyhocks, all of which are members of the mallow family.  The flowers are usually white or pink, but may also be a pale yellow (the only ones I have ever seen are the white).  All have the red or maroon center and the longish column of stamens.

Many species of butterflies and humming birds are attracted by the Rose mallow's nectar, but apparently it is deer resistant.

"Hibiscus" is the Greek name for mallow, and "moscheutos" means "scented like the musk rose".  Many of the hibiscus are called "marshmallow" because of their family relationship to Althaea officinalis, a plant introduced from Europe from which marshmallows were made (now produced from corn syrup and gelatin).

Getting away from flowers for a little bit, we saw this.  It was a large Snapping Turtle and I noticed he had quite a lot of moss growing on its back.  

I wouldn't make a guess at its age but I did read that they can live up to 70 years.  It takes the average common snapping turtle 15 to 20 years to reach maturity. 

Their eggs are white and perfectly round, like ping pong balls.  They can lay anywhere from 20 to 60 eggs in one clutch.   You can see what one looks like if you go to this link.  They are very prehistoric looking.  If you ever want to help a snapping turtle, there is a good video here that shows you the safe way to handle one.  An  interesting fact I learned is that they cannot retreat into their shells like other turtles.

That's all for today.  There will be another from this visit.  I have many posts from Huntley Meadows over this blog's lifetime, and if you would like to take a look at them, you can click on the label at the end of this post entitled "Huntley Meadows Park_Alexandria_Virginia".

Thanks for looking and have a great weekend.

SNAPPING TURTLES, SEAHORSES, CRABS AND FISH

 If you ever find yourself in Virginia Beach, Virginia, I can highly recommend the Aquarium, link here.  This was not a recent visit as you can guess, but not so long ago in the grand scheme of things. 

This is a Snapping Turtle.  He has a very interesting face doesn't he?

There were several small crabs scurrying around in this exhibit.

My personal favorites were the seahorses. Only a couple of photos came out. Seahorse populations are declining but it is hoped that holding and displaying them will heighten awareness of marine conservation issues, engage public support and provide the opportunity to study and improve our knowledge of their biology. Here they are not collected from the wild, instead they get animals from facilities that breed captive individuals.

I took several photos but most came out very blurry. I was happy with what I could get.

These are Lionfish and very venomous. They are native to the Indian and Pacific Oceans and were first observed in US waters in 2000 off the coast of North Carolina. Scientists have offered several explanations for their arrival - perhaps accidental or intentional release by aquarium hobbyists. Lionfish now live around wrecks from New York to South Florida where they prey on small fish and threaten local fisheries.  The lesson learned from this and other 'invasive' stories is to avoid introducing non-native species into our local environments.  As beautiful as they are, there always seems to be unfortunate consequences.

Striped Burrfish. Their range is from the Chesapeake Bay to Brazil.

These are Sheepshead and their range is from Cape Cod to Brazil.

I didn't identify all the fish and am not sure what these are.

Or this?

These look like those Sheepshead.

I always find aquariums interesting to look around.  I hope you have enjoyed these photos from our time there.  

Thanks for looking 

and enjoy the rest of the week.