"I tried to discover, in the rumor of forests and waves, words that other men could not hear, and I pricked up my ears to listen to the revelation of their harmony."
― Gustave Flaubert
I found myself in Oconto and Marinette Counties this past weekend at the invitation of my friend, Sue — she has a cabin at Paya Lake. I took off part of Friday afternoon so we could still get there at a reasonable hour; it's nearly a 4 hour drive from Barneveld. As weekend getaways go, they're time constrained, but we crammed in a lot of fun outdoor excursions. The northeast is a part of Wisconsin I haven't explored much, so it was kind of a guess on where to go. Intel was limited, but when you're out in Nature, there's always something interesting for the naturalist no matter where one ends up.
Being further north, there were more pre-fall foliage highlights, but the trees and plants were still very green overall. I find that early fall colors bring a sense of warmth and coziness to the environment as leaves transition from vibrant rich hues of red, orange, and yellow — a perfect time for leisurely walks and contemplation. The woodland transition serves as a reminder of the beauty in impermanence, encouraging us to appreciate the fleeting moments of life's seasons. But the temperature's would be a bit on the warm side — summer's grip remains for the time being.
On a tip from a local tourism booklet, Saturday we went looking for Snow Falls Creek State Natural Area, highlighted for birding. Wood warblers are on the move, so I was hoping to find some mixed flocks. There were two pins on Google Maps for the spot, but apparently (and unfortunately) I picked the one with an impassible trail (boulders) for my RAV4. We decided to take it by foot and hiked for about a mile. Alas, we failed to find the spot where there's a boulder-strewn trout stream. Ah well, maybe another visit when there's more time. We hiked back to the car and decided to head over to Lake Michigan's shoreline to look for tiger beetles.
Seagull Bar State Natural Area looked promising from satellite imagery, though given fluctuating water levels the exposed land changes from one season to the next. What would it be like? There's usually a sand spit and marsh — it's on the margin of Green Bay off the City Marinette. Not only described as an important migratory bird staging area, it's perfect habitat for the sand dune-loving Hairy-necked Tiger Beetle Cicindela hirticollis.
Given the geographical location, these would likely be the rhodensis subspecies, which are in sharp decline and listed endangered in Wisconsin. Readers may recall I'm a bit skeptical that it's a veritable subspecies given that they're not genetically distinct from the nominate form. The Pearson Guide states: "Along the Atlantic seashore on Long Island, New York, and on the southern boundary of the Great Lakes it intergrades with the northeastern subspecies C. h. rhodensis, which is typically darker brown above, and with thin and disrupted maculations ... some individuals have virtually no maculations." I thought it would be cool to see just how variable they can be.
The above memorial was located at Seagull Bar's beach entrance. I had never heard of Leroy Lintereur, but what a nice way to remember someone who actively studied an educated people about the importance of Green Bay's shoreline marshes.
The memorial reads:
"Every plant, every creature here was given fond and honorable recognition by Leroy J Lintereur, a retired wildlife manager and avid naturalist. Leroy reminded us we are all epigeans. 'There is no wall between man and environment. We are one.' In that spirit, seek out the natural communities surrounding you, keeping them for generations to come."
And that's what we're doing, so let's first have a look at the habitat ...
The long beach at Seagull Bar SNA.
And then there were the dead trees ...
A resident who was walking his dog along the beach was curious about what I was photographing. I pointed out the tiger beetles to him, which he hadn't really noticed — they're just beach bugs, don't you know. Educational opportunity! While I had his ear I asked about all the dead trees. Apparently, many along the spit were taken out by giant ice sheets during a recent winter thaw. The remnants are kind of eerie, but it also gave the landscape kind of an other-worldly appearance.
And the rest of this series ...
Were there any tiger beetles present? Oh yes — I was in heaven, of a sort. Though they're a little too small to see in these scenic images, they were literally everywhere on the sand. In fact, it might have been the most tiger beetles I've ever observed at a specific site. Alertness and speed keeps them from getting accidentally stepped on — it seemed like 10 or more would make escape flights with every step. Being so active, I worried for a moment about being able to photograph them. But then I remembered I'm the world's greatest tiger beetle photographer! Kidding — they were still very challenging, as per usual. Having said that, their abundance definitely worked to my advantage in getting quality portraits.
The first spot we checked produced a number of Bronzed, but I did spot a few Hairy-necked Tiger Beetles — after getting a few shots, we moved down the beach.
A bit further, a lucky find was a single Twelve-spotted Tiger Beetle ...
A nice profile angle ...
There were probably more of this species, but given the abundance of other tiger beetles on the beach, it was hard to pick them out from the multitudes of Bronzed Tiger Beetles.
Hairy-necked! The rest are all Hairy-necked Tiger Beetles, so note the maculation and color variance of the beetles that follow. I have to say, I've found fairly similar variability among populations along the Wisconsin River, so what does it mean to call these ones a subspecies if they're not only genetically indistinct, but show nearly the same variance in topological features as populations in other parts the state? I suppose it could be argued that it's merely location and nothing else, but that seems a little disingenuous with respect to a conservation strategy in calling them endangered — are they really?
They're certainly not rare here ― there were literally hundreds of them ... perhaps even thousands.
The above one is a different individual from this next ― note the weaker front maculation:
Top view ...
Oh no, you don't ... get back here!
There we go ― the coveted front-side angle ...
Look at the weak maculations on this one:
And the bold markings on this next one; very similar in appearance to most of the ones I find along the Wisconsin River, but this particular individual was smallest Hairy-necked I've ever observed ― probably smaller than a Bronzed.
Thinned maculations ...
And here's what I was hoping for ― one with almost no maculations:
Top-angle view:
A another individual with more of a bronze color tone and weak maculations:
After a couple of hours with the beetles, it was time to take a lunch break, and then move on. After a tasty burger and fries at Murray's Irish Pub in Menominee (MI), we headed back to the cabin. On the way back we stopped at Mountain to climb up the Fire Lookout Tower just a little ways out of town.
Once at the top, there are breathtaking views of the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest. Note: There are no Connecticut Warblers here ― breeding pairs have been extirpated from Wisconsin except for the three in Douglass County. We know this because the DNR has said so.
Later on back at the cabin, toward evening a strange spooky critter sound was emanating from the top of this tree ...
I couldn't make anything out, really. I didn't recognize it for any avian or mammalian sound I'm familiar with, but there were a number of Gray Treefrogs around. Alas, it would remain a mystery, as the critter never revealed itself. It was too intermittent to get an audio recording of the call.
What's a north woods trip without a campfire? Perhaps a mere coincidence, but just after starting it, a mixed-warbler flock appeared in the canopy directly overhead. There was a Black-throated Green, Chestnut-sided, Golden-winged, Ovenbird, and Black-and-white Warbler. There were also Red-breasted Nuthatches, Red-eyed Vireos, and a few other birds that comprised the frenetically feeding flock. I wonder if the warming air attracted insects, and then the birds came in to eat them.
And when nature comes a call'n in the north woods ...
Only kidding. This outdoor toilet was located at a small park along one of the roads not far from the cabin. It would be kind of an interesting experience, but I didn't have to use it at the time. Perhaps TMI, but I always bring necessary means in my backpack for those types of outdoor emergencies — when you're my age and spend hours and hours on long hikes, it's wise to be prepared.
I brought my Martin along for a bit of wistful acoustical accents which I hoped could be heard across the lake. Rather than applause, when I finished a series of improvised tunes, someone lit off a barrage of fireworks from the other side of the lake. Ah well, there's no accounting for taste!
All images © 2023 Mike McDowell