Photo of the Week – May 25, 2012

Posted on May 25, 2012 by

This little prairie skink was a little too slow getting under cover as I walked past him in the prairie yesterday.  As a result, he suffered the indignity of being transported back to our field headquarters where he was placed in a cardboard box for a short period while I photographed him.  (I let him go again as soon as I got a couple good shots.) 

From the looks of things, it wasn’t the first time he’d been a little slow.  He was missing his tail – a sign that he’d run into trouble recently.  (Skinks can abandon their tail to avoid predation, and then grow another one.  A nifty little trick!)

A prairie skink. The Nature Conservancy’s Platte River Prairies, Nebraska.

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From this angle you can really see the orange coloring of the jaw. Male skinks get this coloration during the breeding season. You can also see the external ear – one of the characteristics that helps distinguish lizards from snakes (legs, of course, are another pretty good clue, though not all lizards have them.)

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Sunflowers: Staring Me Right in the Face

Posted on May 23, 2012 by

It’s awfully frustrating when I fail to solve a puzzle - especially when all the information I need is right in front of me.  As an ecologist, I’m supposed to be good at this sort of thing.  Ecologists, after all, study the interactions between plants, animals, and their environments.  Why it’s taken me so long to figure out why annual sunflowers are so abundant in some places/years and not in others is beyond me.

But I think I’ve got it now.

Annual sunflower, aka garden sunflower (Helianthus annuus) is a very large plant with conspicuous blooms. While they’re considered to be weeds by most farmers, they are native wildflowers and important food sources for insect and wildlife species.

Continue reading →

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Photo of the Week – May 17, 2012

Posted on May 17, 2012 by

It’s amazing what you can find when you’re crawling around on the ground…

A wolf spider stares at me as I take its (her?) photo. The Nature Conservancy’s Platte River Prairies, Nebraska.  The leg span of this spider was only about 1.5 inches.  Certainly not the biggest I’ve seen, but plenty big to intimidate people who are already squeamish about arachnids!

As I was on my knees counting plants inside a square meter plot frame last week, this little (big?) wolf spider came crawling out of the litter.  I managed to corral it into the handy little ziplock bag I carry for just such emergencies, and a half hour later when I returned to my truck, I let it back out to see if it would pose for photos.  Not having my wheelbarrow photo studio handy, I had to make do with just blocking its repeated escape attempts with my hand until it got fed up and decided to sit still and consider its next move.  It gave me about 30 seconds to squeeze off a few shots. 

Then it dashed off again, and I let it go.  I had plants to count, and the spider had a meal to find.

Posted in Prairie Insects, Prairie Natural History, Prairie Photography | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Saving Nebraska’s Oak Woodlands… by Burning Them

Posted on May 15, 2012 by

Last week, I helped arrange a tour of recently-burned oak woodlands at Indian Cave State Park, an eastern Nebraska site owned and managed by Nebraska Game and Parks Commission.  Indian Cave State Park is one of very few deciduous woodlands in Nebraska that is managed with prescribed fire.  The Nature Conservancy’s Rulo Bluffs Preserve is another, but while we started using fire back in the mid 1990′s, we’ve not been able to use it as consistently as we’d like.  Seeing the results of four years of annual burning at Indian Cave State Park was a good incentive to keep trying to find ways to increase our burn frequency down at Rulo.  You can read here about a fire we conducted at Rulo last year.

Kent Pfeiffer (center) stands in a portion of woodland that has been burned four years in a row and points out some of the changes that have occurred over that time.

The tour was led by Gerry Steinauer (state botanist for Nebraska Game and Parks) and Kent Pfeiffer (Northern Prairies Land Trust), who have been leading the charge for woodland burning in eastern Nebraska.  In addition to Kent and Gerry, and several other Game and Parks biologists, the tour group included staff from the Nebraska Forest Service and the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

We started by talking about why Game and Parks is implementing prescribed fire at Indian Cave State Park.  Some of those reasons include:

Continue reading →

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Photo of the Week – May 11, 2012

Posted on May 11, 2012 by

Can you tell what this is?

What is this?

Need a hint?

I photographed it last week in a recently-burned sand prairie along the Platte River in Nebraska.

Think you know?  Read on to find out.

Continue reading →

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The Great Moth Migration of 2012

Posted on May 8, 2012 by

It seems that everything’s ahead of schedule this spring.  Most obviously, flowers are blooming weeks before they typically do (we’re already harvesting seeds!)    I’d love to hear from someone who knows whether or not bees are emerging ahead of schedule to synch up with those early flowers.  I assume most of them are, based on the numbers I see nectaring.  What I do know is that moths and butterflies that make annual northward migrations to Nebraska have arrived early, and in large numbers.

A celery looper moth (Anagrapha falcifera) nectaring on hairy puccoon (Lithospermum caroliniense) last week in our Platte River Prairies. This native moth is one of many species that annually migrates northward into regions of the country where it can’t overwinter. Thanks to Eric Metzler for the identification of the moth in all three photos in this post.

I don’t know if the moths and butterflies are moving early because the flowers are blooming early, or if both the flowers and insects are simply responding to the same stimuli.  As I looked into it, however, I was surprised to learn how much control moths and butterflies have over where they go.  Many species of insects use seasonal winds to help carry them where they want to go, but it’s not as simple as the “wind blowing them north”.

First, why do moths and butterflies migrate northward every spring/summer?  The migratory species are unable to overwinter where the ground freezes, so they can’t live up here year-round.  However, there are lots of nectar-producing flowers here, providing an incentive for southern insects to move north. (Nature abhors a vacuum?)

To get north, moths and butterflies take advantage of strong south winds that help push them where they want to go.  They don’t fly on days when the wind would be in their face or crosswise with their intended direction.  Even when the wind isn’t blowing the exact right direction, however, the insects can correct for drift and still fly where they want to go – a far cry from being at the mercy of the wind.  Recent studies of moth and butterfly migrations in Europe (using radar) found that the insects can also increase their speed by flying high enough to ride the stronger winds at high altitudes.  Some flew more than 1,000 feet in the air and reached top speeds of 55 miles per hour.

I’m sure many readers of this blog have noticed the abundance of miller moths (army cutworm moths) in their house and yard this spring.  The big numbers, and the fact that they end up in people’s houses, have attracted a fair amount of media attention.  In reality millers are only one of many species that have made the trip early this year.  Many other moths and butterflies – notably red admirals – have also come north already, and are busily flitting around flowers in yards and prairies.

A bilobed looper (Megalographa biloba) nectaring from the same flower species as its close relative, the celery looper. Hairy puccoon was one of the few conspicuous flowering plants in a recently burned sand prairie – making it a big target for insect pollinators of all kinds, but especially moths.

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A face-to-face look at the bilobed looper.

There’s much we don’t know about insect migration.  Not surprisingly, it’s a difficult topic to study!  As we continue to learn more, however, I’m sure the story will just get more and more interesting.  Stay tuned!

Below are some links to more information on this topic.

An article on the European moth/butterfly migration study I mentioned.

Daily Nebraskan newspaper article on the early migration.

Two links to information on the moth species featured in my above photos.

Bilobed Looper

Celery Looper

Posted in General, Prairie Insects, Prairie Natural History, Prairie Photography | Tagged , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Platte River Prairies Field Day – July 13, 2012

Posted on May 7, 2012 by

PLEASE JOIN US for a Platte River Prairies Field Day on July 13, 2012.  The day will include a range of activities, aimed to introduce relative newcomers to what prairies are all about and to allow more experienced prairie biologists/naturalists a chance to interact with a wide range of grassland experts.  This is an event that is designed for both professional biologists and the general public.  Spend the day with us and learn about prairie species, prairie restoration, and prairie management.

Gerry Steinauer, the state botanist from Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, will talk about prairie restoration and help you learn how to identify prairie plants.

Throughout the day, there will be guided tours of our high-diversity prairie restoration work and fire/grazing prairie management, during which visitors can see the results firsthand and discuss the associated challenges and successes.  We hope this will give people a chance to see some of the many options available for doing prairie restoration and management work and provide ideas that could be adapted to other sites.  The objective is not to promote the specific techniques we’re currently using, but rather to share what we’ve learned along the way, and stimulate discussion among the group that helps all of us get better at prairie conservation.

Tour prairies that are being managed with fire and grazing to enhance their plant diversity and habitat quality. Participate in discussions about the positive and negative impacts of various management techniques on a wide range of prairie species.

In addition, we’ve lined up a number of experts on various topics, including prairie ants, spiders, bees, reptiles/amphibians, plants, invasive species, and wildlife management, and those experts will give field presentations on their topics – and will also participate in the tour discussions.  This will be a great chance to learn how to identify prairie species you might not be familiar with, and also to learn how those species live and interact with each other.  If you’re like me, it’s difficult to learn how to identify tricky species when there isn’t someone there to tell you whether or not you’re guessing right!  Also, there’s no substitute for an in-person conversation with someone who is a recognized expert in their field of study.

Prairie communities consist of thousands of plant, animal, and invertebrate species. Come and meet scientists who can help you learn to identify – and identify with – a variety of these species.  Mike Arduser, from the Missouri Department of Conservation will share his expertise on prairie bees and other insects.

There is no cost for attending the Field Day.   We are grateful to Pheasants Forever and Prairie Biotic Research, Inc.  for helping to cover the costs of the event.  We will have some snacks available, and will keep big jugs of cold water, tea, and lemonade so you can fill your bottles as many times as you need to during the day.  Please bring a lunch with you – we’ll provide places to sit and eat, and might even have a slideshow by some nature photographer or other during lunch time.  In case it gets extraordinarily hot in the afternoon, we’ll have some indoor and shady activities planned as well.

Scheduled events will start at 9am and end at 4pm, but we encourage you to come early and stay late.  Trails will be open all day, so you can feel free to explore the prairies on your own as much as you like.  We would appreciate it if you would let us know if you plan to attend – so we can ensure we have enough snacks and drinks and so we can plan hikes accordingly – but you are also welcome to just stop by.

Click HERE to see the official announcement of this event on our website and to get more information.  Be sure to click on ”Show Directions” to get directions to the prairies.  PLEASE NOTE THAT THE BRIDGES NORTH OF OUR PROPERTY ARE OUT, SO FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS ON THE WEBSITE – DON’T ASSUME YOU CAN GET THERE AS YOU MAY HAVE IN THE PAST.

Here is a list of those people who have committed to help lead tours and/or present information at the Field Day.  We are still pursuing a few more.

Mike Arduser, Missouri Dept of Conservation (bees)

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Bill Beachly, Hastings College (spiders)

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Pete Berthelsen, Pheasants Forever (wildlife management, pheasants/quail)

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Karie Decker, Nebraska Invasive Species Program (invasives)

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Dennis Ferraro, University of Nebraska (reptiles/amphibians)

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Chris Helzer, The Nature Conservancy (prairie management)

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Gerry Steinauer, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission (botany, prairie restoration)

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James Trager, Shaw Nature Reserve – Missouri (ants)

 

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Photo of the Week – May 3, 2012

Posted on May 3, 2012 by

This little jumping spider was hanging out on an almost-blooming shell leaf penstemon plant this afternoon.  I happened to spot it as I was walking by, and stopped to see if it would sit for a portrait.

Jumping spider on shell leaf penstemon. Platte River Prairies, Nebraska.

The above photo was actually taken after several minutes of watching the little spider and trying to get the breeze, light, and spider to coordinate with each other so I could snap the shutter.  The below photo shows the spider as I initially spotted it – with its lunch.

Jumping spider with prey.

Very shortly after I took the above photo, the spider disappeared beneath the flower.  When it reappeared later, it didn’t have its prey anymore.  I imagine it dropped it so it could make a fast getaway if it needed to.  I hope he/she was done eating…

Trying to figure out if that annoying photographer is still there…

I know not everyone thinks spiders are cute, but you’ve got to admit, this one has a certain charm…

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Ground Nesting Robins?

Posted on May 2, 2012 by

Walking the prairies this morning, I found a bird’s nest on the ground.  That would have been fun, but not really newsworthy, except that it appeared to be a robin’s nest.  I can’t think of any other bird species around that lays blue eggs in open cup nests except dickcissels, and dickcissels haven’t arrived yet this spring.  I think the eggs were too big for bluebirds, and both bluebirds and starlings lay blue eggs in nests placed in tree cavities (or nesting boxes).  In addition, there was a robin hanging around the area…

A robin nest (?) on the ground in a burned/grazed portion of our Platte River Prairies.

I’m sure it’s not the first time it’s happened, but it’s the first time I’ve ever seen a robin nest on the ground.  Maybe our efforts to keep trees from encroaching on our prairies have been so successful that robins can’t find trees to nest in?  

…That’s definitely not the case, though it was ironic that the nest was placed right at the base of a small Siberian elm tree that had been top-killed by a prescribed fire this spring.   I’m not sure what the bird’s actual rationale was for nesting on the ground, but I wish it luck.

A punctured egg a few feet away from the nest.

Unfortunately for the robins, it looks like I wasn’t the first to find the nest.  A few feet away from the nest I also found an egg that had apparently been removed from the nest  – and it had a hole punched in it.  Cowbird, maybe?

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Photo of the Week – April 27, 2012

Posted on April 27, 2012 by

Blue Wild Indigo.  I’m not sure there’s a more distinctive spring flower in the prairie.  It’s hard to imagine confusing it with any other species…

Also, it would be a great name for a band.

Blue wild indigo (Baptisia australis).

The species just barely makes it into Nebraska – it’s more common east and south of us.  The above photo was taken at my in-laws’ prairie garden where I planted some Kansas seed many years ago.  I know there are Flint Hills (Kansas) prairies where this species blooms in abundance – I’ve yet to see that in person, but would really like to.

This is an old photo, not one from this season.  I think it’s a little early for it to be blooming, but with the exceptionally warm spring, maybe it’s in flower now?  Anyone seeing it down in Kansas or Missouri?

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Posted in General, Prairie Natural History, Prairie Photography, Prairie Plants | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 21 Comments