Carrion Beetle

Here is a view of an American Carrion Beetle (Necrophila americana) that was found at Clegg Garden.  Another carrion beetle was seen nearby, but no animal carcass that may have attracted the beetles was evident. 

Photos taken July 3, 2018.

Link to American Carrion Beetle (Necrophila americana):

Scottish bluebells

Scottish bluebells (Hyacinthoides non-scripta).  Scottish bluebells can be found here or there in the woods at Clegg Garden.   They are not native and are not related to our native Virginia bluebells (Mertensia virginica) which are quite common at Clegg Garden.  Doubtless the Scottish bluebells were planted here years ago and as they are a perennial, the flowers return in the same place every spring.

Photo taken April 25, 2017.

Link to Hyacinthoides non-scripta:

Pussytoes and shooting-star

Pussytoes (Antennaria sp.), here associated with shooting-star (Dodecatheon meadia) on a dry slope at the northern part of the gravel hill prairie at Clegg Garden.  There are several species of Antennaria native to Indiana.  I don't know which species this is.

Photo taken April 18, 2017.

Link to previous post on Antennaria:

Link to previous post on Antennaria:

Link to previous post on Antennaria:

American Columbo (Frasera caroliniensis)

A good growth of American Columbo (Frasera caroliniensis) is at Clegg Garden, at the gravel hill prairie.  The American Columbo grows here in association with the shooting-star (Dodecatheon meadia), which was featured in the previous post.  A couple dozen basal rosettes of American Columbo could be found here.  Several plants have started growth of the flowering stalk.

Looking up the hill east of the trail.

Here is one plant growing a flowering stalk.

Looking down on a prospective flowering stalk.

All photos taken April 18, 2017.

Link to previous post on Frasera caroliniensis:

Link to previous post on Frasera caroliniensis:

Here is a link to a video with a good bit on Frasera caroliniensis (at 0:45 sec.)

Shooting-star

The display of shooting-star (Dodecatheon meadia) is very good this year on the gravel hill prairie area at Clegg Garden.  This area was burned earlier in the year as part of maintaining the prairie ecosystem.

Photos taken April 18, 2017.

Previous post on Dodecatheon meadia at Clegg Garden:

Previous post on Dodecatheon meadia at Clegg Garden:

Previous post on Dodecatheon meadia:

Previous post on Dodecatheon meadia:

Previous post on Dodecatheon meadia:

Link to Dodecatheon meadia:

The scientific name of shooting-star has recently been revised from Dodecatheon meadia L.
to Primula meadia (L.) A.R. Mast & Reveal.  Here is a link to the 2007 paper:

Black haw

Black haw (Viburnum prunifolium) flowering here on the east-facing slope along the trail to the lookout point to Wildcat Creek.

Photos taken April 18, 2017.

The location of the black haw shrubs are visible in this picture of the slope.  Look for the clusters of white flowers.

Previous post on black haw:

Previous post on black haw:

Virginia bluebells near the end of flowering stage

Virginia bluebells (Mertensia virginica) are near the end of their flowering stage at Clegg Garden.

Many flowers are pollinated and have lost their petals.

Photo taken April 18, 2017.

Previous post on Virginia bluebells April 18, 2015:

Previous post on Virginia bluebells April 12, 2015:

Leatherwood flowering 2017

The small non-showy flowers of leatherwood (Dirca palustris).  Photo taken April 4, 2017.

Link to previous post on Dirca palustris:

Corydalis solida

Corydalis solida, at Clegg Garden.  Not a native but here is on a wooded hillside sharing habitat with native spring wildflowers.    A little bit to the south of the front entrance to the park.  Photos taken April 2, 2017.

Link to Corydalis solida:

Link to Corydalis solida:

Snow in March

A recent snow provides a nice scene to the Wildcat Creek trail.  Snow doesn't stay around long in March.  Photo taken March 14, 2017.

Pileated woodpecker

A pair of pileated woodpeckers were exploring the area down by the Wildcat Creek at Clegg Garden.  This is a photo of one of them.  Photo taken March 14. 2017.

Link to pileated woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus):

Winter aconite

Winter aconite (Eranthis hyemalis) is flowering here behind the NICHES headquarters house at Clegg Garden.  Look closely and see a honeybee in one of the flowers.

Photos taken Feb. 18, 2017.

Link to previous post on winter aconite:

Skunk cabbage is coming up

Skunk cabbage (Symplocarpus foetidus) is appearing now at Clegg Gardens.  These pictures taken yesterday, Feb. 18, 2017, at the small wet spot by the trail that runs along the Wildcat Creek.

Link to previous post on skunk cabbage:

Under the Sea-Wind

Inside the Niches headquarters at Clegg Garden is a small library that is open to the public.  It has a fine collection of nature-related books.  Here is a particularly good piece of nature writing, Rachel Carson's first book, Under the Sea-wind.

Carson devotes two whole chapters of this book to a study of the American eel, Anguilla rostrata.  The thirteenth chapter, Journey to the Sea, describes the migration from the rivers and streams of North America to the breeding zone at the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.  The fifteenth chapter, Return, has the newly born eels journey from their mid-ocean origin to the interior of the North American continent.

Eels are occasionally seen in the Wabash River and no doubt find their way up the Wildcat Creek that goes by Clegg Garden.  They are much less common than they were many years ago but the dams that were built for shipping on the Mississippi River prevent many of them from migrating this far.  Only a few get through somehow.

Link to Under the Sea-Wind:

Another link to Under the Sea-Wind:

Link to Anguilla rostrata:

Link to Anguilla rostrata in Indiana:

Red-shouldered hawk

A red-shouldered hawk (Buteo lineatus) perches in a tree at Clegg Garden.  Photo taken October 18, 2016.

Link to Buteo lineatus:

Link to Buteo lineatus:

Phellinus gilvus and Lycogala epidendrum

Fallen logs along the trail at Clegg Garden with fresh Phellinus gilvus shelf mushroom and wolf's milk slime mold (Lycogala epidendrum).  Photo taken October 4, 2016.

Link to Phellinus gilvus:

Link to Phellinus gilvus:

Link to Phellinus gilvus:

Link to Phellinus gilvus:

Link to Lycogala epidendrum:

Link to Lycogala epidendrum:

Running strawberry bush

Running strawberry bush (Euonymus obovatus).   This is found along the trail just before you get to the lookout point over the Wildcat Creek.  This native plant is uncommon at Clegg Garden compared to its invasive relative, wintercreeper (Euonymus fortunei).  Unfortunately, wintercreeper has spread extensively at Clegg Garden.  Hopefully the invasive plant problem at Clegg Garden can be brought under control in the future.  Running strawberry bush has much the same habit as wintercreeper, as it runs along the ground like a vine, but the foliage is less robust than wintercreeper and doesn't crowd out the other native plants.

Link to running strawberry bush:

Link to running strawberry bush:

Photo taken May 10, 2016.

Wisteria

This vine with the striking blue-violet flower clusters is Wisteria.  You see it here at the entrance to Clegg Garden.  Obviously it was planted here years ago.  I don't know what species of Wisteria it is, it could be one of the non-native species, although there is a native species of Wisteria, Wisteria frutescens.

Photo taken April 26, 2016.

Link to Wisteria:

Link to reported range of Wisteria species in North America:

Hepatica acutiloba

Hepatica acutiloba is flowering now at Clegg Gardens.  It is one of the first spring wildflowers to appear in the forest.  There are a lot of them flowering this year.  This photo was taken at Clegg Garden March 18, 2016.

Link to last year's post on Hepatica acutiloba:

Link to Hepatica acutiloba:

Leaves of the Resurrection Lily appear in the spring

In the foreground, leaves of Lycoris squamigera, sometimes called resurrection lily, have sprouted out of the ground.  The leaves die back at the end of spring and later in the year a flowering stalk appears.  In the background of both photos are daffodils, just beginning to flower.  The leaves of both plants appear somewhat similar but Lycoris has blunter tips to the leaves.

Photos taken March 16, 2016.

Link to previous post on resurrection lily: