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From Beast to Beauty
It has to get ugly before it gets pretty. ~Nicholas Sparks Well, that is certainly the case for at least one species of butterfly here in the woods… the red-spotted purple, Limenitis arthemis astyanax. This common species is probably not considered beautiful by most observers during its pre-butterfly stages. It is a bird poop mimic… Read more
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In an Instant
Nature taking its course – hunter and prey, the endless circle of life and death. ~Stephanie Meyer Melissa found some cool caterpillars on a Viburnum this weekend while we were walking in a city park in Richmond. I walked over to take a look and saw a beautiful hummingbird clearwing larva, Hemaris thysbe, in the classic… Read more
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Leading a Double Life on the Edge
There is more both of beauty and of raison d’etre in the works of nature- than in those of art. ~Aristotle (384 BC-322 BC) The adaptations of insects in our yard are both beautiful and incredible. Here is a little more on some leaf edge caterpillars discovered the past few days… One of the most… Read more
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Life on the Edge
In the struggle for survival, the fittest win out at the expense of their rivals because they succeed in adapting themselves best to their environment. ~Charles Darwin I shared some images last week of one of my favorite moth larvae, the unicorn caterpillar. Their shape, coloration, and behavior allow them to blend in remarkably well… Read more
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Unicorns Are Real
I guess there are some unicorns out there somewhere. ~Tedy Bruschi Indeed there are, and I have several in my back yard right now. In my last post, I mentioned I periodically check the leaves on a young wild cherry tree in the yard to see what might be using it for food or shelter.… Read more
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Seeing the Wild in Wild Cherry
The most beautiful gift of Nature is that it gives one pleasure to look around and try to comprehend what we see. ~Albert Einstein There is a wild cherry (Prunus serotina) sapling just outside our screen porch that is a favorite spot for all sorts of natural events. Wild cherry is a great host plant… Read more
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Kayaking in Columbia
I seemed to have reached a new world, so wild a place…far away from human society. ~Henry David Thoreau, on swamps Columbia, North Carolina, that is. We spent several days in this beautiful little town last week, part vacation, part getting out to see some of the region for the trails project I am working… Read more
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A Beary Hot Summer Day
The month of August had turned into a griddle where days just lay there and sizzled. ~Sue Monk Kidd Last week, we spent 5 days in the wilds of eastern NC, a combination mini-vacation and working trip to further investigate the area around the Scuppernong River for the project I am working on with NCLOW.… Read more
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The Difference a Week Makes
Nature will bear the closest inspection. She invites us to lay our eye level with her smallest leaf, and take an insect view of its plain. ~Henry David Thoreau Last week I shared some images of the some of the little things that are so fascinating in a big landscape like Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife… Read more
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The Little Things
Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things. ~Robert Brault I just returned from two hot days down at Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge. I am looking at some interpretive possibilities for the region as part of the NCLOW project to enhance ecotourism potential in… Read more
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Roads End Naturalist 