July 8

On this cool, sunny morning, I’m beginning my annual hike through a 25-acre conservation easement, just east of Alma. As a volunteer monitor for the Chippewa Watershed Conservancy, I checkout this private property to make sure the owner is complying with the lease agreement made years ago with the federal government to maintain this land for the preservation of wildlife. Following an old 2-track along one of the boundaries, I spook up two adult Whitetail deer and one fawn and watch them run for cover. Scanning the meadow, I see a few Canada Thistle plants displaying some pink blossoms as well as others seeding out with feathery down that will soon be used by female Goldfinches to line the inner portion of their nests (stock photo). Other blossoms that catch my eye, include Prairie Clover and Swamp Milkweed. Barely visible in the dense grass at my feet is a 1-inch Confusing Eusarca moth. The name presumably reflects the fact that it can easily be confused with a number of other moths. Trudging through tall, wet grass toward a tall Cottonwood tree, I’m alert to the song of a male Indigo Bunting. Sometimes nicknamed "blue canaries," these brilliantly colored yet common and widespread birds (stock photo) can be heard from late spring through summer all over eastern North America. Among the lush reeds and sedges, I spot a newly developed cattail stem with a densely packed spike of female flowers, shaped like a cigar and a thin yellow spike above it, containing the male flowers. After releasing pollen, the male spike withers and falls off, leaving the brown furry fruiting female spike. When mature, this spike disintegrates to release cottony masses of minute wind-dispersed seeds. Recalling that this property is a great habitat for a variety of dragonflies, I’m not surprised to spot an Orange Meadow hawk perched on a blade of grass. Nearby, on another blade of grass, I observe a perching Eastern Amber-wing dragonfly. This small dragonfly has wasp-like markings on its abdomen to scare off predators. Also, when threatened, they imitate a wasp by rhythmically moving their wings up and down while pulsing their abdomens. Up ahead, perching in the dense foliage is a beautiful, 2-inch Widow Skimmer dragonfly. The species name means sorrowful or mournful, perhaps because the dark basal portion of the wings looks like a widow's black shawl. These skimmers are a great control of mosquito populations, consuming up to a hundred per day.

Fluttering and flying

O’er field and meadow

Monarchs of orange

Swallowtails yellow

Seeking sweet nectar

Invited by flowers

Carried on breezes

In sunshine hours

Spreading their wings

Displaying their color

Butterflies of summer

Like no other

 

D. DeGraaf