Spring Ephemerals in Bloom

Trout Lily

After leaving Deb on Sunday I decided to stop by Monaghan Forest to see if any Trilliums were in bloom yet. This is a good spot for spring ephemerals; last year I had found the forest floor covered in Trilliums, Forget-me-nots, violets, and even some Toothwort during a visit in mid-May. I was a few weeks early this year, and found the Trilliums just beginning to open. Only a few were in full flower, but there were plenty of Coltsfoot and Trout Lilies in bloom, two species that had already finished blossoming by the time of my mid-May visit last year. I was also hoping to find some Bloodroot, a native flower I had found here once before, but wasn’t able to spot any.

More Amphibians

Red Eft (Eastern Newt)

Although the weatherman promised sun on Sunday, I woke up to a cool, cloudy and gusty morning, which meant the chances of seeing any butterflies were slim. When it looked as though the clouds were beginning to break up around mid-day I decided to head out anyways. Rick Cavasin had reported several interesting species at Marlborough Forest a few weeks ago, including Eastern Comma, Gray Comma, Green Comma, Mourning Cloak, and Compton Tortoiseshell. Although I usually don’t visit the Cedar Grove Nature Trail this early in the year, I wanted to see if any of these were still around.

Mystery Damsel at Mud Lake

On one Sunday in mid-July Chris Lewis, Mike Tate and I went to Mud Lake to look for dragonflies. It was a beautiful warm morning, and we were hoping to catch up with the Blue Dasher and Halloween Pennant that Mike had found there earlier in the week. Both of these dragonflies were new for the Britannia list, and I was especially hoping to find the Halloween Pennant as it would be a lifer for me.

When I first arrived I noticed a large dragonfly zipping above the road near the top of the trees. When it landed in one of the dead trees I pointed it out to Chris and Mike. I could see the dark spots on the wings which identified it as a Prince Baskettail, one of my few sightings of this species.