Anhinga

Posted on March 19, 2016 by tspuckler

A resident of southern swamps, this bird is known as the Water Turkey for its swimming habits and broad tail, and also as the Snake Bird for its habit of swimming with just its long head and neck sticking out of the water. It is a large bird with a long S-shaped neck and a long, pointed bill.

I saw a few of these interesting creatures on my recent visit to South Carolina. In order to dive and search for underwater prey, like fish and amphibians, the Anhinga does not have waterproof feathers (like ducks do). Because of this, the Anhinga is barely buoyant and it can stay below water more easily and for longer periods of time.

If it attempts to fly while its wings are wet, this bird has difficulty, flapping vigorously while “running” on the water. To dry its feathers, it will stand with wings spread and feathers fanned open in a semicircular shape, which led to the Anhinga being sometimes referred to as “water turkey.”

This bird is most often found in freshwater ponds and swamps where there is thick vegetation and tall trees. Using their sharp bills, Anhingas spear fish, flip them in the air and swallow them head-first.

These birds are found in the warmer parts of the Americas. They are members of the darter family and are related to pelicans and cormorants. I enjoyed seeing these odd, yet cool inhabitants of the Palmetto State.

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Mottled Trillium

Posted on March 12, 2016 by tspuckler

While visiting South Carolina earlier this month I discovered my first wildflower of the year. Mottled Trillium is a relict species, meaning there are a few remaining groups of a species that was once more abundant when conditions were different.

Significant habitat loss has occurred through clearing of forests for agricultural and pine farm uses; in 1988 this plant was officially listed as an endangered species. Mottled Trillium grows in undisturbed hardwood forests that sometimes include mature pines and that are free of understory plants such as shrubs and vines.

This is one of the first trillium species in Georgia and South Carolina to appear in the early spring. Prior to blooming, its three mottled leaves that are blue-green, to green to silver in color.

It was totally awesome to not only see my first wildflower of the year, but also one that I have never seen before.

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Green Anole

Posted on March 6, 2016 by tspuckler

On my recent trip to South Carolina I had a chance to get reacquainted with a reptile from my childhood. As a kid I kept Green Anoles as pets in the classroom in grade school as well as at home.

Despite its name, this lizard can be either green or brown depending, on environmental conditions. When brown, it may have faint markings on the back. It is sometimes referred to as the “American Chameleon” due to its ability to change color from several brown hues to bright green.

These lizards are active by day in warm weather and often bask in vegetation, occasionally charging away from their basking spots to grab an insect or chase off a rival Anole. During cool weather anoles are often found hiding under tree bark, shingles or in rotten logs. Sometimes several of these reptiles can be found taking refuge in one spot.

The Green Anole’s head is long and pointed with ridges between the eyes and nostrils, and smaller ridges on the top of the head. The toes have adhesive pads to facilitate climbing.

This creatures diet consists of small insects such as crickets, grasshoppers, spiders and other arthropods.

The male anole performs a series of visual displays to establish dominance and territory. It will bob its head up and down, do “pushups” and flare its pink dewlap.

It was cool to come across these reptiles at several places that I visited on my trip to Hilton Head.

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Lemon Disco Fungus

Posted on February 27, 2016 by tspuckler

I was doing some yardwork this week and I came across this fine fungi. It produces tiny yellow cups about a tenth of an inch in diameter, often without stalks, that fruit in groups or dense clusters on decaying wood that has lost its bark.

Lemon Disco Fungus is fairly common, but is easily overlooked due to its small size. It is also wide-ranging and can be found in North Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, and Central and South America.

Fruit bodies begin as spherical, closed globules, before expanding to become shallowly cupped or disc-shaped. The inner surface becomes smooth and bright yellow, while the outer surface is a more pale yellow. Fruit bodies that are dried are wrinkled and have a dull orangish-brown color. Its species Latin name, citrina, is a derivation of the word citrin – which means “lemon-yellow.”

Like other fungi, Lemon Disco Fungus plays an important part of nature’s continuous rebirth by breaking down dead wood into useful nutrients. Fungi digest their food outside their bodies by releasing enzymes into the surrounding environment and converting organic matter into a form they can absorb; nothing else is able to perform the function of reducing these forest byproducts back down into soil.

It was a nice surprise to come across this tiny treasure on an otherwise ordinary day.

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Black and Yellow Flat Millipede

Posted on February 20, 2016 by tspuckler

It’s still cold and snowy, but turning over a few logs on the woods can reveal hidden life. This 2-3 inch black millipede has yellow bands separating each segment along its back. It also has very bright yellow legs.

Millipedes are long, multi-segmented creatures that resemble centipedes, but centipedes have only one pair of legs on each segment, while millipedes have two legs on most segments.

Generally found in leaf litter, millipedes tend to avoid light. They do not bite humans. Centipedes and millipedes belong to subphylum Myriapoda, meaning “many footed.”

Millipedes commonly consume rotting vegetation rather than of living plant tissue. Their feeding activities speed up the decomposition of plant materials, playing an important part in Nature’s “recycling” process.

Despite their many legs, millipedes cannot run very fast. They have two main defenses. One is curling up in a ball. The other is emitting a smell. If you pick up a flat millipede, it will often release a scent resembling almonds or cherrys. While this might be pleasant for humans to smell, it apparently is distasteful to some predators.

Fossil evidence suggests that millipedes were the earliest animals to breathe air and make the move from water to land.

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Coyote

Posted on February 13, 2016 by tspuckler

While hiking in Brecksville Reservation this week I noticed two dogs romping in an open field. It was not the first time I’ve come across Coyotes in the wild, but it was a nice encounter, because I was able to observe some of their natural behavior.

This mammal is not native to Ohio; we tend to associate Coyotes with the open, deserted lands of the west. But this mammal has the ability to make the best of a bad situation and survive…or even prosper. As its presence in the Buckeye State shows, this versatile animal can make a home most anywhere.

They often will hunt in unrelated (non-family) pairs or large groups. Coyotes typically eat small mammals, but they also consume vegetation and fruit, such as summertime berries. These were very busy listening to mice, voles or shrews tunneling under the snow. It was amusing to watch them as they playfully pounced on prey that they could hear, but not see.

Coyotes have a bushy tail which is usually tipped in black and is carried down at a 45 degree angle as the animal moves. They stand about 1-1/2 to 2 feet tall and are between 41 to 53 inches in length. Males are larger than the females and weigh anywhere from 20 to 50 pounds.

The Coyote’s strength is that it can adapt and exploit almost any habitat to its advantage. It first arrived in Ohio in 1919 and can now be found in all of Ohio’s 88 counties – and they continue to expand their range.

While most wildlife species have avoided developed areas and often declined as a result of man’s expansion, the Coyote seems to be thriving.

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Red-shouldered Hawk

Posted on February 6, 2016 by tspuckler

Although the Red-tailed Hawk is the most commonly seen raptor in my part of Ohio, I occasionally come across this smaller hawk.

It is rather beautiful, sporting high contrast checkering on its wings, rufous barring on its chest and a boldly banded tail.

Rather than inhabiting open fields, like the Red-tailed Hawk, the Red-shouldered Hawk inhabits bottomland woods, wooded streamsides, swamps. At one time, it was more common than the Red-tailed Hawk, but as forests were cleared, the open areas that resulted were better suited for Red-tails.

This bird usually hunts by watching from a perch, either within forest or in the open, swooping down when it locates prey. Its diet includes includes small mammals, amphibians, reptiles and birds.

The Red-shouldered Hawk is a dietary generalist, changing its diet to reflect the local or seasonal abundance of different prey species.

This bird builds its nest 20 to 60 feet above the ground in the branches of deciduous trees in wet woodland areas. The nest usually is in a fork about halfway up the trunk and often close to water, such as along a river or stream.

Red-shouldered Hawks are about the size of crows. They show reverse sexual size dimorphism, meaning that females are larger than males.

Its intricate patterns make seeing this bird an enjoyable experience whenever I come across one on a nature hike.

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Longtail Salamander

Posted on January 30, 2016 by tspuckler

One of Ohio’s longest salamanders, the tail of this aptly named animal comprises 60-65% of its total length (up to 9”). They do not live in my part of northeast Ohio, but I have found them while visiting the southern part of the state, as well as in Kentucky. The examples in the photos above and below lost sections of their tails, which grow back, though not as long or with the same color and pattern of the original.

This amphibian can be rather attractive, with a ground color that is usually some shade of yellow or orange, but it may be brownish in some individuals. They feature black spots on their back, sides and legs. The herringbone-like pattern on the tail is the key identifying characteristic to differentiate it from its lookalike – the Cave Salamander.

Streams, springs, seeps, caves, and wet shale banks are the primary habitats for this amphibian. I usually find them under rocks along the banks of creeks.

Females lay between 60 and 110 eggs in the Winter and attach them to the undersides of rocks that are submerged in water. The eggs hatch in 4 to 12 into an aquatic gilled larval stage that inhabit streams until they metamorphose.

Like all salamanders, it is a carnivore. Long-tailed salamanders feed on a wide variety of aquatic and forest-floor dwelling invertebrates such as spiders, flies, mites, ticks, slugs and worms

This is a lungless salamander that breathes through its skin. Like most other lungless salamanders, the home ranges of adults do not typically exceed more than a few dozen square yards.

I always enjoy coming across these colorful, elongated creatures while searching for reptiles and amphibians.

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Red-bellied Woodpecker

Posted on January 23, 2016 by tspuckler

This woodpecker has a black and white zebra-like pattern on its back and a red neck. Males have red on the crowns of their heads, while females do not.

As it name implies, there is a red patch edged with yellow on the belly, but it is often hidden from view as the bird perches or feeds against a tree trunk.

Unlike most birds, Red-bellied Woodpeckers have a zygodactyl toe arrangement. What the heck does that mean, you ask? Answer: Two toes face forward and two face backward. This enables the woodpecker to grasp the bark of tree trunks as it looks for food.

These birds tend to live in old forests with large hardwood trees. Their nests are built in cavities carved into tree trunks.

Red-bellied woodpeckers have been seen playing. They play by flying and dodging around trees as if they were trying to escape a predator.

Male woodpeckers do not sing well, so they use another strategy to appeal to potential mates. In the Spring, woodpeckers are especially attracted to any sound that resonates, including aluminum shed roofs and even the hoods of cars. These birds often utilize man-made objects to get the word out.

They eat a wide variety of fruits, nuts, seeds, berries and tree sap, as well as insects. They are frequent visitors to bird feeders – including mine.

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Spined Micrathena

Posted on January 17, 2016 by tspuckler

If you’ve ever walked through a spider web in the woods, chances are it was a micrathena’s web. As an added “bonus” they tend to make their webs at face level.

This is a small species, about 1/2 inch long, with a chunky abdomen with ten spines on it. The abdomen can vary in color, but is usually it is whitish, yellow, or brownish-black. Only female Spined Micrathenas build webs. Male are about half the size of females. They only have a couple of spines and a much flatter abdomen.

To trap prey, this spider builgs her web between shrubs or small trees, three to seven feet off the ground. Insects that try to fly in between the trees don’t see the web and get caught.

The female Spined Micrathena eats her web each evening and constructs a new web the following morning. I had one that is living in my front yard this past Summer, and she built each web in the same spot.

In the daytime the spider hangs out in the center of her web, with her head pointing down. As soon as she feels the vibrations of prey trapped in her web, she runs to bite it. These spiders are slow and clums and many insects escape before they are caught.

Male Spined Micrathenas don’t build webs, though they do weave a “mating thread.” The male finds a female’s web, and weaves his mating thread onto her web. When he’s ready, he quickly runs out and mates with her. Males often do not survive the encounter.

This is a small, yet very cool spider that I usually enjoy coming across (unless I walk face-first into one of their webs).

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Tim Spuckler's Blog

Reptile Ramblings and More

Yearly Archives: 2016

Anhinga

Mottled Trillium

Green Anole

Lemon Disco Fungus

Black and Yellow Flat Millipede

Coyote

Red-shouldered Hawk

Longtail Salamander

Red-bellied Woodpecker

Spined Micrathena