Some of the photos in this post were taken along a path that circles this small pond in Keene on a recent puffy white cloud kind of day. I’ve thought of doing a post on just this pond because a list of what I’ve found on its shores over the years would be astounding. Everything from otters, heron and cormorants to flowers, fungi, lichens, mosses, and slime molds can be found here and I’m sure there are many more things waiting to be discovered. I think the same is probably true of most ponds.
Fringed sedge (Carex crinite) lives at the pond. It’s a large sedge that grows in big, 2 foot tall clumps. I like its drooping habit and I’m not the only one, because it has become a popular garden plant. Many animals and waterfowl eat different parts of sedge plants, especially the seeds.
Royal fern (Osmunda spectablis v. regalis) also grows on the shores of the pond and is one of my favorites. When you see this fern you can bet that there’s water somewhere nearby; I’ve even seen it growing in water. Royal fern is the only fern that grows on every temperate continent except Australia, which makes it one of the most widespread of all living species. They are also thought to be one of the oldest living things, with fossil records of the Osmundaceae family dating back over 300 million years. Individual plants are thought to be able to live 100 years or more.
When some people see royal fern they confuse it with maidenhair fern (Adiantum pedatum,) so I thought this would be a good time to show them both. As the photo above shows, maidenhair fern really bears little resemblance to royal ferns. The name maidenhair comes from the fine, shiny black stalks, which are called stipes. This fern is very rarely seen in a natural setting in this area.
Bracken fern (Pteridium aquilinum,) which is sometimes called brake, is easily identified by its shiny triangular fronds. What makes identification easier still is the fact that it is the only fern that has side branches. No other fern in this country has these branches, so it’s almost impossible to confuse it with others. Though I usually find this fern about knee high, I’ve seen it reach chest height under optimum conditions. Bracken fern often grows in large, dense colonies with few other plants present and this is because it releases chemicals that inhibit the growth of many other plants. Plants compete for light, water, and nutrients but bracken fern has found a way to almost eliminate the completion.
Last year was the first time I ever saw swamp beacons (Mitrula elegans,) but that was because I didn’t know where to look for them. They’re interesting fungi that grow only in water and I find them in seeps where water runs year round. They are classified as “amphibious fungi” and use a process called soft rot to decompose plant material in low-oxygen areas. Since they only decompose soft tissue they aren’t found on twigs or bark and this photo shows how they are growing out of saturated leaves.
Another common name for swamp beacons is “matchstick fungus” and that’s exactly what they remind me of because they are just about the size of a wooden match. This one had a triangular head on it though and didn’t look very match like. If you want to get shots of this fungus be prepared to get your knees wet.
Down current a little way in the seep were these unknown mushrooms, easily the smallest I’ve seen. Those are white pine needles in the background and the stem of the largest mushroom is barely the same diameter as the pine needles. These also grew on soggy leaves just like the swamp beacons, so they must be another aquatic fungus.
English plantain (Plantago lanceolata) blooms in rings around the flower stalk, starting at the bottom and working towards the top. Though an invasive from Europe and Asia English plantain prefers growing in soil that has been disturbed, so it isn’t often seen in natural areas where there is little activity. I see it in lawns more than anywhere else.
English plantain is wind pollinated so it hangs its stamens out where the wind can blow the pollen off the anthers. Each stamen is made up of a white bag like anther sitting at the end of a thin filament. If pollinated each flower will bear two tiny seeds in a small seed capsule.
This little chipmunk looks startled because he was caught digging holes in a garden bed; he was being naughty and he knew it. Actually though, I’ve never known a chipmunk to harm any plant, and many people welcome them into their gardens. Some even have “chipmunk crossing” signs for them. They’re cute little things and people love to watch them. They’re also very curious and seem to like watching us as much as we like watching them. I always enjoy having them follow along forest trails with me when I’m out walking, even though their chattering and chipping warns all the other forest creatures that I’m coming.
Mr. Bullfrog on the other hand doesn’t like being watched, and he was hoping if he stayed very still I wouldn’t see him.
This dragonfly was hanging on to a plant stem for dear life in what was a fairly good breeze that was blowing it around like a little flag, so that told me that I should look up pennant dragonflies. Sure enough there is one called the banded pennant which looks like a lot like this one. I’m sorry that the colors on its wings don’t show very well here. I think it was because of the poor lighting but its wings looked wet to me, and I wondered if it had just come out of the pond.
This dragonfly landed on the hood of a white truck that we use at work one day, making getting the correct exposure almost impossible. I’ve seen dragonflies by the hundreds landing in some very strange places this spring, like all along the edges of dirt roads. I haven’t been able to identify this one and I’m not sure what it was getting out of being on the hood of a truck, but it stayed there for a while.
There was amazing detail to be seen in its wings.
I found this moth clinging to a building’s wood shingle siding one day so I took its photo. I was surprised when I saw that the moth was so hairy. It looked like someone had knitted it a beautiful wool sweater. I tried to find out its name but there are so many brown, gray, white and black moths out there that I didn’t have any luck.
Butterflies are easier to identify than moths, I think. This white admiral landed on the gravel in front of me one day and let me take as many photos as I wanted. I also saw a mourning cloak and an eastern tiger swallowtail butterfly that day but neither one wanted its photo taken.
Grasses like this orchard grass have just started flowering and I hope everyone will take a little time to give them a look, because they can be very beautiful as well as interesting. They are also one of the easiest plants there are to find. Orchard grass seed heads are composed of spikelets that bear two to eight flowers which dangle from thin filaments (pedicels) and shimmer in the breeze. According to the book Grasses: An Identification Guide by Lauren Brown, George Washington loved orchard grass so much so that he wrote “Orchard grass of all others is in my opinion the best mixture with clover; it blooms precisely at the same time, rises quick again after cutting, stands thick, yields well, and both cattle and horses are fond of it green or in hay.”
If you truly love nature, you will find beauty everywhere. ~Vincent Van Gogh
Thanks for coming by.
The pond shot with the reflections in the water was beautiful and you did well with the dragonflies, they never stay still for me and I love them. I wish we had chipmunks here,mthen realy are cute,
Thanks! You’ve had to get too close to the dragonflies with the cell phone. Now that you have a DSLR you’ll be able to stand farther away and zoom in on them. You’ll have so many shots of dragonflies you won’t know what to do with them.
You should bring the camera to Canada, because getting close enough to a chipmunk to get a photo can be pretty tricky too.
The camera will definitely be going to Canada 🙂
Much beauty here.
Thank you Ben. It’s a beautiful world out there!
And in here too if we take a look. 🙂
Yes!
The swamp beacons are really neat. Easy to see how they could be overlooked given their size. Chippy is cute. We had one in camp that discovered Diesel’s bowl of dog food, he really had quite a feast!
Yes, the swamp beacons are real easy to miss but it seems like once you’ve seen them they get easier to find.
I never knew chipmunks liked dog food but they are a rodent, so I guess they’ll eat just about anything.
I like all the grasses in your post, sometimes I find them difficult to photograph though. I should try again next time.
Thank you. It is very difficult to shoot green on green so I look for grass growing near a different colored background, like the blue of a stream or the brown of tree bark. It makes life easier!
Maidenhair ferns are one of those finds that always makes me smile. So delicate and beautiful. Wonderful post.
Thank you Stephi. I love maidenhair ferns enough to have them growing in my own yard. Seeing them in nature is rare here but they are out there.
I’m pretty sure the dragonfly on your truck was a juvenile chalk-fronted corporal. The adults are black and chalky white, but the juveniles have that reddish-brown color. I think they come out right about now, and seem to be pretty common along roads.
I hope that helps, because your posts have been immensely helpful to me in identifying all kinds of wildflowers, mushrooms and lichens (I originally found your blog while searching for New Hampshire lichens).
Thank you, yes, it does help and it makes sense because we have very many chalk fronted corporals here right now. I have a hard enough time identifying all the plants I see, so any help with insects is greatly appreciated.
I’m glad to hear this blog has helped you, that’s one of the reasons it’s here.
Great post. Love the bullfrog picture. That sedge is certainly attractive and I can understand it being used in gardens but I have never seen it before.
That sedge grows naturally near ponds and rivers here and I see a lot of it.
Beautiful photos, and an interesting, informative post. I remember plantain from back east and we have it here too, broadleaf and narrow leaf. I remember my father picking the broadleaf plantain leaves along with dandelion greens to cook up with supper.
I did find a local source of Loreley Iris. Our Market vendor did not have any, but suggested another person he knew. She has ones she is growing that will be available next year, or may also be able to get a clump from the garden of a business where she knows the owners and can ask permission. Apparently they have a large stand of it.
Thanks very much.
My grandmother used to cook dandelion greens but I don’t remember her ever using plantain leaves. I’ve read that the narrow leaved ones are good to treat coughs.
I’m glad you found the iris. I think you’ll find it a very easy plant to grow. All I do with mine is admire it.
I think there is nothing better than a pond for attracting all sorts of wildlife. You have found such an interesting selection of things. The fern comparison is useful. I do know maidenhair fern already – it is one of those plants that once identified I have no trouble recognising again. Your macro shots are beautiful!
Thank you Clare. You’re very lucky having your own ponds. If they’re anything like this one then you could find just about anything there.
I find ferns confusing but I do know a few. Maidenhair is certainly one of the easiest to identify, and one of the prettiest.
Yes, I love its delicacy.
I thoroughly enjoyed this post. For one thing, I didn’t realize that bracken fern is such an invasive, though it makes total sense – they do multiply and become dense. (See? The pretty plants can get away with murder, reputation intact.)
The pond is a remarkable thing, attracting and hosting so many forms of wildlife. And the chippie and the frog – what interesting faces. Great post, Allen. Thank you.
You’re welcome and thank you Cynthia. Bracken fern isn’t usually much of a problem but I recently found it trying to take over a prime wildflower area so I had to cut it. It was over my waist tall and starting to shade out lady’s slippers, painted trillium, fringed polygala, blue bead lily and Indian cucumber root.
Near any water is the best place to visit nature and this pond is a treasure trove of things I don’t see anywhere else.
We once lived in a small home overlooking a big pond. We had no need for television: we had our very own nature channel.
Yes, I believe that!
I always enjoy the things that you see and I always learn something from the words that go with them.
Thanks very much, I’m glad that you do.
Reblogged this on Dawn of Divine Rays.
Thanks very much. Have a great week!
Another enjoyable post – loved seeing all the critters. 🙂
Thank you Eliza. If they pose I’ll get their photo, but few are willing.
Who knew that there was such a thing as amphibious fungi, besides you that is. 😉
Also, thank you for the lesson in fern identification, another area where I’m lacking. I love walking through ferns, and I can sometimes tell that they’re not all the same, but I don’t have a clue when it comes to identifying them.
I’ve tried to identify dragonflies before, but I gave up, the same with small brownish moths, there are tons of them, and even the experts are sometimes fooled by them.
One thing stands out though, small areas like around this pond, are sometimes the best places to look for things not usually seen, as most people pass them by, and they remain undisturbed for those of us willing to take a closer look.
Thanks Jerry! Actually, I didn’t know about amphibious fungi either until last year. It’s certainly got an odd sound to it.
I find ferns hard to identify too, so I only know a few. I think the fact that some do look so much alike is what makes them so hard.
I agree with you on dragonflies and moths. If I get a good shot of one I usually let the folks over at bug guide identify it. They’re very good at what they do, and fast too. I’ve never even waited an entire day for a response.
You’re right about ponds and water in general, I think. I usually find far more and a larger variety of species near water. Thankfully there’s plenty of it here!
Lovely tour once again, Allen. Thank you! I posted Narrowleaf (English) Plantain on my own blog yesterday as well.
If you get a chance, check out my Black Snakeroot post – Sanicula marilandica (Maryland sanicle)- from Monday. There are many different sanicle varieties (most on the West coast), but this identification was the only one that came close.
I myself had never seen this plant before, and this colony has some unusual characteristics. The flowers are larger and much showier than any others I have found pictured. Typically they are more green than white, with small petals. There are no leafy bracts at the base of the flower stems. And the compound leaves themselves, normally a straightforward five-part palmate conformation – with all leaflets radiating from a common center, are more of a cross between palmate and pinnate: the lower two leaflets are a bit further down the stem. I am wondering if this is a rare species or perhaps a distinct sub-species.
Hi Rich,
You’ve stumped me this time. I’ve never seen black snakeroot or any other plant with those flowers. I did look it up and Sanicula marilandica itself isn’t rare in NH or VT, but you might have found a natural hybrid cross and in that case it could be very rare.
I’m curious now why I’ve never seen it!
The colony is right in town, near the Brattleboro Retreat (on one of their trails). It is compact but flourishing, and all of the plants seem uniform in appearance. Quite lovely!
That seems like an odd place for it but more power to it!
I love your shots of the butterflies and dragonflies, Allen, and the smiling bullfrog too. I wish I could help you identify the dragonfly on the truck, but I am not at all sure what kind it is.
Thanks Mike. The dragonfly shots aren’t very good so I’m not surprised your not sure of it. I had only the small point and shoot with me both times.
Keep shooting them, Allen. Identification is nice, of course, but I am always curious about the behavior and habitats of the dragonflies (and their beauty and complexity too).
If they choose to pose then they’ll have their photo taken!
Great shot of the Bracken fern. The patterns are beautiful.
Thanks Bob. I agree, bracken fern from above is amazing. I think it’s because they’re so flat on top.
Such an interesting post, I loved the first picture of the pond, the ferns and the chipmunk in particular.
Thank you Susan. Summer is nearly here!