Category: Natural History
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No Question About It, It’s Just Chillin’
Sunday afternoon I noticed something as it went to an oak limb over the driveway. I walked over to get a closer look and saw this… You see it, don’t you? Look closely:) Okay, if you did see it, you are good, because it resembles one of the brown leaves on the oak branch. I… Read more…
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Night Lights
On Saturday night a couple of friends and I went on an impromptu night hike down the road to see what we might see (plus to help work off a large meal). It was fairly warm for early November but there was not a lot of activity other than a distant Barred Owl calling and… Read more…
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Macro Mystery #1 Answer
So, here is the answer to the Macro Mystery. It was found along the Inspiration Trail at Umstead State Park in Raleigh earlier this week. I was struck by the texture which reminded me of wavy golden hair or fur. It was actually a close-up of the underside of a mushroom cap highlighting the wavy… Read more…
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Macro Mysteries
I care to live only to entice people to look at nature. ~ John Muir Walking around with a macro lens helps me look at nature in a different way. Since even the smallest thing can have wonderful detail if only we stop to look at it, I have decided to share some of these… Read more…
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Hauntingly Beautiful
Tuesday afternoon I was joined by my good friend and mentor, Mary Ann, for a walk at Umstead State Park. It was a great chance to catch up and spend some time doing what we both love to do, woods watching. It was a walk back in time for me in a couple of ways –… Read more…
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Nice Doo
I usually think of the end of “caterpillar season” as being a week or two after the Museum’s annual BugFest event in September. This year (and maybe its just because I am retired and out and about more) I have been seeing the larvae of quite a few species in my travels well into October… Read more…
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A CROWDers Pleaser
The past several days II have been on the road in the mountains of North Carolina. I had a program on Saturday at Stone Mountain State Park and had a great hike across the large granite dome for which the park is named. The park was packed with campers and hikers taking advantage of the… Read more…
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Extreme Dining
The abundance of insects feeding on pollen and nectar in the goldenrod patch out on the power line has naturally attracted an array of predators. One of the more formidable-looking of these is the Wheel Bug, Arilus cristatus, our largest member of the so-called Assassin Bug group. Wheel Bugs are named for the unusual gear-like… Read more…
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There is a Fungus Among Us (or at least among them)
I love nature, I just don’t want to get any of it on me. Woody Allen I gave a talk the other night to the Raleigh Chapter of the Carolina’s Nature Photographers Association. They were a great group and seemed to enjoy my topic about macro photography. One story, in particular, raised a few eyebrows.… Read more…
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Caterpillar Conundrum
I have been away a few days celebrating a major birthday (hard to believe it is that number) and returned to find a few caterpillars from BugFest still active (most were released the day after the event). I was particularly pleased to see the snappily-attired Turbulent Phosphila munching away on its host plant, Greenbrier (Smilax… Read more…
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Roads End Naturalist 