I saw a fly on a milkweed leaf and he was open to posing, so here he is. I think he’s a tachinid fly because of his bristly abdomen. Some of these flies can be very helpful in the garden, controlling squash bugs and stinkbugs. Others aren’t so helpful, and parasitize moths and butterflies, including monarchs. This one was a little lumpy up around the shoulders and looked like it had been parasitized too.
As I seem to do every year I stumbled into a red winged blackbird nesting site recently. The female shown here flew off half way across a pond to sit on a cattail and wait for me to leave while the male hovered above my head screeching at me. The same thing happened last year so I’ve learned that male red winged blackbirds can get angry very quickly, and they don’t easily back down when you’re near a nest. I got out of there as quickly as I could after taking a couple of quick photos.
I’m seeing more butterflies now but the only ones willing to pose are the white admirals. Even this one wasn’t that willing. It sat still for only a couple of quick shots and then flew off.
It landed on another leaf and then turned so he could see me before settling down to give me a hard stare.
I’m not very clever when it comes to insect identification but I think I should at least try before I bother the folks at bug guide, so I searched website after website and leafed through my insect guide before giving up on this one. It turns out the reason I couldn’t identify it is because I was looking for a moth and this is a butterfly. The good folks at bug guide.net tell me it’s a European skipper (Thymelicus lineola.) I didn’t even know that we had European butterflies here and its furry body had me convinced that it was a moth. It seemed very interested in flowering grasses.
The folks at bug guide tell me that this is a Tetragnatha spider, which is also known as a long jawed orb weaver. There are hundreds of species in the genus and I must have looked at more than half of them before giving up on ever being able to identify it. They are also called stretch spiders because of their long bodies. When threatened they stretch their legs out front and back and pull them close to their body so they look long and thin like a blade of grass.
We’ve had very dry weather here this spring and are still considered in a drought but every now and then the humidity will creep up and we’ll get a thundershower, and that is perfect weather for slime molds. These pictured are the fruiting bodies of a slime mold called coral slime (Ceratiomyxa fruticulosa, var. porioides.) They are very geometric and so small I can’t think of anything to compare them to. This slime mold likes to grow on old, bark free, well-rotted logs.
Ceratiomyxa fruticulosa slime mold has two varieties; the porioides we saw previously and this one called fruticulosa. The difference between the geometric shapes of porioides and the sausage like shapes of fruticulosa is remarkable.
The reason slime molds interest me is because they are very beautiful and also fascinating. Nobody really seems to know exactly how they move, but they do. When the microorganisms that they feed on become scarce, many of these single celled organisms meld together and move toward food as a single entity. Slime molds can reach speeds of up to 1.35 mm per second, which is the fastest rate recorded for any micro-organism.
I once followed a link that someone had used to link to this blog and found a discussion about a photo of a blue slime mold that I had posted. One person said that there was no such thing as blue slime molds so the photo must have been Photo Shopped, but since I don’t try to deceive people on this blog it wasn’t. There are indeed blue slime molds, but they’re rare enough so I might see one each year if I’m lucky. I found another one just the other day, and this photo of it hasn’t been Photo Shopped or enhanced in any way. Last year I saw one very similar in shape to this one and it was gray.
Mushrooms have been very scarce because of the dry weather but my daughter sent me this photo of a hemlock tree loaded with hemlock varnish shelf fungi (Ganoderma tsugae) that she saw recently. I’ve never seen so many on one tree. You can tell that they’re young because of the white stripe on their outer edges. As they age they will lose the stripe and become deep red. This mushroom has been used medicinally in China for thousands of years.
Several years ago I found purple cones on a pine in a local park. I’ve checked every year since and never saw them again until just recently. I’m not sure what kind of pine this is but I don’t think that it’s a native tree. I love the color of its cones, native or not.
Timothy grass has just started to flower. Each flower head is filled with tiny florets, each with three purple stamens and 2 wispy white stigmas. Timothy makes an excellent hay crop and gets its common name from Timothy Hanson, a farmer who began to cultivate and promote it in 1720, a few years after its introduction into colonial America in 1711. It should be cut for hay before it reaches this stage but it’s quite beautiful when it blossoms.
I am grateful for the magic, mystery and majesty of nature – my loyal friend and companion – always there, welcoming and waiting for me to come; to be healed. ~Tom North
Thanks for coming by.
New Hampshire Garden Solutions 
The blue slime mould and the Timothy grass photos are lovely. I wish I found more slime moulds here because they really are lovely up close.
Thanks! Look for the slime molds on the shady side of logs toward the bottom where it stays moist. Once you’ve seen the first one you’ll start seeing them everywhere. They’re real tough to get a good shot of though because they’re so small.
I spent last weekend at a rustic wedding in Vermont, and thanks to this post I remembered white admiral right off (I usually only see red spotted purples), and I impressed several people by recognizing the varnished hemlock shelf fungus. (We also drove right through Keene on our way from Dublin, NH to Bradford, VT and thought of you.)
Thank you Sara. At least now you won’t have to imagine what Keene looks like.
I’m glad you’re picking up on the identity of things by reading this blog too. That’s what I like to hear!
There is something really fundamental to summer about Rudbeckia hirta – it’s like the bread and salt of the summer garden.
Yes, and the fall garden as well.
I was just re-reading this post and thought that the shelf fungi would make a lovely water feature!
I hadn’t thought of that but you’re right, Cathy!
You probably know now that butterflies (or buckerlies, as I called them when little) have knobs or clubs on the ends of their antennae, whereas moths’ antennae are feathery. I learn a lot here. Thanks.
Thank you. I also learn a lot here, from helpful people like you.
Fascinating post, Allen! I love the shot of the blue slime mold. Such variety in nature, why would anyone think you would need to photo shop for colors!!??
Thanks Martha. That’s exactly what I was wondering! I guess because they haven’t seen a blue slime mold, one doesn’t exist.
Love the photos (the spider is my favorite); such a superb demonstration of our blessing of such great diversity in our world.
Thank you Charlie. It’s amazing what we can see out there!
I really enjoyed this “hike.” We’re so hot here now. Ugh! I did find catalpa worms yesterday!
Thanks! We’ve had hot dry weather but nothing really unbearable yet.
I look forward to seeing some photos of the catalpa worms on your blog. I know they’re not supposed to be here but once I know what they look like I’ll have a look at our trees anyway.
My fingers are crossed. They are fascinating to watch them grow, etc. We’re so hot I’m staying in the house until after supper. We’re averaging 94 with high humidity! Ugh!
Fascinating post! I enjoyed Jerry’s comment about it. The slime moulds are wonderful – I would love to find one! Skipper butterflies do look like moths with their furry bodies and large eyes. I love them very much and am always pleased to find one .
Thank you Clare. I agree that Jerry is a good commenter. Much better than I am!
I hope you can find a slime mold. Look at the base of shaded, bark free logs when it’s very humid or the day after a downpour.
I’ve never seen a European skipper so I thought for sure that it was a beautiful moth. The people at bug guide.net are very knowledgeable though and I’m always grateful for their help, which is why I try to promote them on this blog.
I wouldn’t say you weren’t good at commenting – I always enjoy everything you have to say. I will definitely try to see what I can find after rain.
Thank you Clare for being so generous, but I’ve never been a very chatty person or a sparkling conversationalist. I think it’s an offshoot of my love of solitude.
I hope you do find some slime molds. They’re very small but often appear to me as dust or a colored smudge on logs and leaves. The colors rather than size or shape are what give them away to me.
Thank-you Allen. I sympathise/empathise with you – I am usually the listener at gatherings and I would much prefer to be on my own. My husband tells me he thinks I’d make a good hermit. It’s only when I get enthusiastic about something I find it easy to talk or comment.
I don’t think you and I would have a problem just sitting in a quiet room!
I agree! I like quiet rooms. 🙂
Great pictures as always but my favourite was the slime mold.
Thank you. There aren’t too many who would say that!
I wouldn’t be surprised if you get to meet one or two in person this year with all that wet weather you’ve been having.
Seeing the photos of the insects and the bird, I thought that I had stumbled on the wrong blog for a second or two. 😉
But when you got to the beautiful slime molds, I knew that I was in the right place.
As wet as it’s been around here, I should be able to find a few around here, and fungi also, but I haven’t had time to look for them this year. Besides, I don’t have your patience to attempt to identify them, so I’ll leave that to the expert.
I’ve never seen a blue slime mold, but I know that if you posted a photo of one, that it’s real, and not photoshopped as you have no reason to deceive any one. You find all the good stuff!
I know what you mean Jerry-this isn’t the place to come if you want to see flying or crawling things but if they pose I can’t say no.
I’ll bet your area is crawling with fungi and slime molds! It’s too bad you can’t get out to see them, but summer just started so maybe you’ll have time yet.
No, I’ve tried very hard and have gone out of my way to make sure I don’t put any erroneous information on this blog and I’d certainly never do it intentionally. I’m glad that you realize that!
especially love your quote today, thanks
You’re welcome, and thank you Cathy.
Is Timothy grass a North American native or an import? As for Red Wing Blackbirds, they like to nest in the hedge on the west side of the Lurie Garden. As a result at nesting time I often get dive bombed by RWBs while strolling around the Lurie.
Timothy grass is native to Europe but came to us by way of England like so many other plants, I believe.
I know what you mean by being bombed by those birds! They have a real attitude.
Abies koreana (Korean Fir) has purple cones held upright like that. They do look beautiful.
Thank you Kate, I agree. I like seeing those purple cones. I think the needles on this tree are wrong for a spruce or fir though. I’ll have to try a little harder to identify it.
As always, a very interesting post. I think those purple cones are not pine cones, but the immature cones of red spruce. I’ve been seeing a lot of them lately.
I’m wondering if Cynthia’s viburnums are being eaten by the Viburnum Leaf Beetle. I have a friend whose highbush cranberry gets defoliated by them every spring, and they hit arrowwood pretty hard as well. Both are viburnums. Then don’t seem to bother hobblebush or witherod, two other common viburnums.
Click to access VLBimpactOnArrowwood.pdf
Thanks Al, but if those cones are on a spruce it’s a spruce with needles like I’ve never seen. They’re about 2.5-3 inches long and really say pine to me, but the tree is also in a park so it could be just about anything. It doesn’t look like a spruce or fir though. If you’re ever in Ashuelot Park in Keene wander the path the leads in the general direction of Starbucks, along the river. Keep looking to your right and you’ll see a bed that has a plaque from the Monadnock Garden Club, I believe. The tree is in that bed.
You could be right about the viburnum beetles. You’ve got Cynthia wondering!
To think of a slime mold moving fast enough to actually be seen is fascinating, yet a bit creepy too. The first time I ever read your blog was an extensive post you did on slime molds a year or two ago. Got me hooked, and I eagerly anticipate each new addition. Thanks so for all the hard work you put into your blog. It’s terrific.
Thanks very much Judy. I don’t think slime molds are creepy but I can understand why someone would. The really odd thing about them is that scientists really don’t know how to classify them because they aren’t fungi, they aren’t plants, and they aren’t animals-or maybe they’re all three! I’m glad you enjoy seeing them, they can be tricky to find.
Could that pine with the purple cones be an Abies koreana? We used to have one in our garden, a garden variety that showed upright bluish/purple cones. Albeit the Ganoderma tsugae are a show on this trunk, I don’t hope it comes to our three-trunked hemlock here as it is a special feature in our garden.
I can’t say that it couldn’t be an Abies koreana, but its needles are much longer than a fir or spruce about 2.5-3 inches.
No, I wouldn’t want to see any fungi on a favored tree. Most mean the tree is ailing and hasn’t much time left. I hope yours is good and healthy!
Love the shots of the butterflies and the spider, Allen. We get Red Admirals, but I have never seen a White Admiral before. I also enjoyed the information on Timothy grass. Just a few minutes ago I gave some Timothy hay to a rabbit that I recently adopted and always wondered where the name came from.
Thanks Mike. I think we get red admirals too but I haven’t seen one this year.
That’s interesting about the rabbit eating Timothy grass. It’s supposed to be about as nutritious as a grass can be, but I wonder if that rabbit wouldn’t appreciate a carrot more!
Reblogged this on Writing Out Loud.
Thanks very much for the re-blog!
The Hemlock Varnish Shelf Fungi look like pancakes stuck on a tree. Where’s the maple syrup?
Sent from my iPad
>
Thanks for the laugh Hal!
i love the intimidating glare from the white admiral.
I don’t think I would have realized the slime molds were slime molds if not for your post. I will have to keep my eyes open now. You got me started on lichen, now you’ve got me wondering about molds.
I’d seen the fungus on hemlock before but did not know its name; thank you for that. I know so little about mushrooms it’s overwhelming trying to look one up.
I love the purple pine cones. You find so many interesting bits of color. The other day I parked next to an arborvitae in a parking lot which was covered in cones, and I looked to see that all of them were tipped in blue, just as you’d said a week or two ago.
Thank you Sara!
Slime molds often grow on the underside of logs that are in shade. Sun is the enemy of most of them. They also look like dust or white smudges on the log.
I agree that fungi can be a bit overwhelming. I’ve been trying for years but can only identify maybe 10 or 12 by sight.
I’m glad you saw the blue tipped cedar cones. I do find a lot of colors but believe it or not I’m colorblind!
Interesting post.
And that hemlock tree is remarkable for the number of fungi growing out of it.
Glad you’re seeing more butterflies (someone recently told me the original name was ‘flutter-by’ which sounds more fun).
We are seeing many more of the huge yellow butterfly with black stripes and spots (swallowtail? not sure). I can always tell – my viburnum shrubs are eaten leafless in the springs when these butterflies are around, though I’ve never seen the caterpillars.
Thank you Cynthia. I always called butterflies flutter bys when I was young.
I’m not sure which would be the black and yellow one but it seems odd that their caterpillars would eat your viburnums. I see plenty of different native viburnums here that go untouched. I wonder if it might be tent caterpillars.
No – tent catterpillars I know and can identify.
This yellow butterfly is our largest and most elegant – and if it is responsible for defoliating the viburnum, it’s a fine price to pay for its company.
In his comment above Al says that you might have the viburnum leaf beetle, which is something I didn’t think of. Your butterfly does sound like a swallowtail. Their fairly big and I’ve seen a few this spring.
Thank you. I’ll check it out. I always thought it was the caterpillar.
You’ll have to go out early in the morning and see if you can catch them in the act.
I’ll get a flashlight….
I don’t think it has to be that early!
Many of the orb weavers are quite pretty, if one likes spiders, which I do. I’ve seen some beautifully colored ones.
I agree. I used to like seeing the big black and yellow ones when I was young. I never see them now though.
I particularly enjoyed your final three photographs and the quotation you used. Shame on the blogger who suggested that you cheated with your blue slime mold colour.
Thank you Susan. I think that person probably hasn’t discovered that if you say always or never when speaking about nature, nature will prove you wrong.