"The true naturalist is he who can see the poetry of the woods, the beauty of the flowers, the grace of the ferns, the tenderness of the mosses, and the sweetness of the wild berry. To him the forest is not a mere collection of trees and underbrush, but is a living organism, with moods and passions of its own."
― John Burroughs
Regular blog readers know that Spring Green Preserve is a unique natural area known as the Desert Prairie. Well, it isn't really a veritable desert, but there are a few sand dunes. Most of the habitat is open grassland that contains unique flora and fauna found in a desert, such as cacti, lizards, snakes, dung beetles, dry grasses, and more. Despite its name, the Desert Prairie is a remnant of a much larger ecosystem that once covered much of the Midwest.
Spring Green is also Tiger Beetle Central for Wisconsin, and Thursday seemed like a good day to take a day off from work on account of a cooler weekend forecast. I had heard there was a Painted Redstart observed at the preserve, but I was on a different mission ― Splendids! The hike up to the bluff would take me right past the spot where the warbler had been seen, but I did not linger. Given cool morning temperatures, the afternoon emergence window would be a bit short.
Amidst the verdant trees and leaves,
A curious song fills the breeze,
A melody of fluted notes,
That from a Brown Thrasher floats.
With yellow eyes and speckled brown,
This bird of song sits on a bough,
Its long, curved bill and rustling tail,
A sight that makes my spirit sail.
When you've honed ear-birding skills for decades, the bird counter begins to tick species immediately upon exiting the car: Lark Sparrow, Field Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Eastern Towhee, Blue Jay, Eastern Bluebird, and Brown Trasher all detected within seconds of opening the door.
I got a chuckle a couple of days ago when a birder approached me at the creek corridor saying that the Merlin App (I won't even link it) detected a White-eyed Vireo near where my posse and I were standing. "It's wrong," I said tersely. In my opinion the convenience (crutch?) just isn't worth it. It takes something away from the raison d'être for getting outdoors in the first place. Later on I walked past a group of birders all staring into their smart phones ― it's nearly as bad as Pokémon GO. At least that fad seems to have faded away into obscurity at the creek corridor.
Look, I can understand if someone has hearing issues, but I do not trust those apps. Naturally, I'm very grateful for intact and sensitive birdsong hearing combined with keen visual identification skills. There are no shortcuts ― put in the time and verify, verify, verify. The ability to recognize avian voices will almost always make you look like a savant to other birders. Of course that isn't the important thing ― what's important is getting it correct. Cringe-worthy to me are the eBird entries that state "Never saw it, but Merlin said it was there." Ugh!
Anyway, back to Spring Green ...
From a panoramic distance the ground appears to be a mix of green and brown, but upon closer inspection one can observe that the prairie is springing to life with colorful wildflowers and other interesting plants.
Birdfoot Violets Viola pedata
Hoary Puccoon Lithospermum canescens
Emerging Wood Betony Pedicularis canadensis.
A Rock-cress, perhaps Arabis lyrata.
Which is a host plant for ...
Olympia Marble Euchloe olympia. These little butterflies were being blown over the bluff throughout the afternoon by gusty winds and were nearly impossible to photograph. I visually followed one for a while and saw it land on a small plant just before the crest of the bluff. What luck! Like many butterfly species, the Olympia Marble is threatened by habitat loss and degradation due to human activities such as logging, grazing, and recreational use. Climate change is also expected to impact this species, as it depends on a specific alpine habitat that may shift or disappear as temperatures warm.
Lark Sparrows Chondestes grammacus were present in good numbers, whereas none were observed my last visit. Their complex and melodious sequence of notes is often described as sounding like a tinkling bell or a jangling set of keys, but to me they sound more like some kind of droid from Star Wars.
A dapper sparrow, to be sure and during another visit I could watch them for hours. But today there was no time to waste getting to the top of the bluff ― Splendids were sure to be out now that the temperature was above 60.
The rocky terrain at the top!
Is anyone home?
I'll always think of the outcroppings as tiger beetle apartment homes. It was so windy that blowing sand was getting into my eyes and ears. I didn't want to make the same mistake I did last spring, when a big gust of wind blew me from a ledge and send me tumbling down the bluff. This time I avoided the steep ones, but it's still not the easiest ground to cover ― always wear shoes with good ankle support should you venture to this part of the preserve.
And presto!
Cicindela splendida!
On account of the breezy conditions, the beetles kept low. Given my best ability to identify individuals, I would estimate between six and eight, but I only checked two of the outcroppings. There were no Claybank Tiger Beetles observed, so I might have to make a return trip the the bluff during May. A few of my tiger beetle pals are going to attempt to see all 16 of Wisconsin's tiger beetles in just one season, but I don't think I'm going to venture up north again for Boreal Long-lipped and Cow Path. Having 14 species in Sauk County alone is really enough to satiate this tiger beetler.
Keeping ...
Low ...
In the rocks.
Using rocks for cover from the wind.
Cute but deadly to small insects.
By 2:00pm they were gone, retired to their burrows in the rocks for the day.
Down on the sandy trail below the bluff there were numerous Festive Tiger Beetles, a few Oblique-lined, and my first-of-the-year Big Sand, but only a single individual. Because the Wisconsin River is unusually high right now, the Sauk City Canoe Launch is almost completely under water. Naturally, I want to obtain decent portraits of all the tiger beetles I encounter this year, so if the river doesn't recede, I might miss Hairy-necked and Sandy Stream.
Though northwest winds have returned, I did find a Black-throated Green Warbler at the Pheasant Branch Creek Corridor this morning. Overall, warbler migration seems somewhat subdued at this juncture. There are still plenty of Yellow-Rumped Warblers and Palm Warblers, but only a single Northern Waterthrush and Orange-crowned Warbler today. Yesterday my birding posse and I found a Nashville Warbler, Blue-headed Vireo, and Baltimore Oriole. The weather looks bleak again tomorrow and I'm not even sure if I'll venture out. Sometimes it's nice just to stay home, drink coffee, and read a good nature book.
That's it for April!
All images © 2023 Mike McDowell