Friday, June 6, 2014

Bobolink at BHCL

I took my lunch break at Breakneck Hill Conservation Land today and enjoyed 60 degrees temperature, partly cloudy skies, and breezy conditions as I walked through the meadows.  There were lots of butterflies flitting about, just above the tops of the grasses, as well as among the leaves of the trees.  

Common Ringlet

Orange Rust (fungus)

From what I read, this is a common problem on brambles (including raspberries) in spring due to humidity, or possibly due to rain splash.  The orange coating on the leaves is actually made up of spores of the fungus.

Green Lacewing

Blue-Eyed Grass

Peck's Skipper

Little Wood Satyr

One pair of Bobolinks may be preparing to nest at BHCL.  Today, the Bobolink male was defending a piece of the meadow against passing dog walkers and other hikers by flying about 20 feet in the air above them, squeaking and popping and making those odd Bobolink noises (kind of like a pinball machine).  He hovered above the walker, while giving his warning calls, then flew back down to another spot on the meadow.

When I left later on, the female flushed from the grasses and flew up into an apple tree.  The male was close behind her and landed near her in the tree, too.

Bobolink
(w/ 300mm lens)

again
(with the 50x zoom lens)

Stitchwort

 Northern Cloudywing

 Black Swallowtail
fly-by

European Skipper

Hobomok Skipper

Eastern Pine Elfin

 Juvenal's Duskywing

 Six-Spotted Tiger Beetle

I interrupted mating pairs of Six-Spotted Tiger Beetles twice as I walked the trails.  Seemed like there were quite a few around today.

Peck's Skipper

Mourning Cloak

 Indigo Bunting #1

Indigo Bunting #2

Also, back at home, I saw a very beautiful damselfly.

Ebony Jewelwing 


Birds:
Boblink
Brown-Headed Cowbird
Chipping Sparrow
Eastern Bluebird
House Sparrow
Indigo Bunting
Mallard
Northern Cardinal
Northern Flicker
Song Sparrow

Butterflies:
Black Swallowtail
Cabbage White
Clouded Sulphur
Common Ringlet
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
Eastern Pine Elfin
European Skipper
Hobomok Skipper
Juvenal's Duskywing???
Little Wood Satyr
Mourning Cloak
Northern Cloudywing
Peck's Skipper


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