"Let us not ruminate on lost cases, creating imaginary scenarios of spite and revenge. Let us honor our valuable mental time, follow a positive road instead, and dump barren and gnawing resentments and destructive anger."
― Erik Pevernagie
September! Summer wanes ...
Avoiding weekend temperatures soaring into the 90s, I took Friday off to return to Spring Green Preserve to see if Splendid and Claybank Tiger Beetles had yet emerged. Whatever the reported temperature is, plan for it to be 10 degrees warmer when visiting Wisconsin's desert prairie. As my friend Lori found out last year around this time, it can be potentially life-threatening, especially if one isn't sufficiently prepared. It's deceptive ― mornings can start in the 50s or 60s, but reach savage temperatures by noon. One can only carry so much water, so plan carefully. Naturally, even if adequately geared and supplied, there's the comfort and enjoyment perspective ― is anything like this even worth doing under a torrid heatwave? I'm glad I'm not out there today.
An express hike to the top of the bluff was the plan ― get in, get up there, look for tiger beetles, photograph them, and get out. Spring Green General Store stops serving lunch at 2:00 PM, and I had a hankering for a good sandwich. But there was still time to photograph Upland White Goldenrod Solidago ptarmicoides. It's definitely aster and goldenrod season already; just look around you.
Remember Mary Oliver's grasshopper from her poem The Summer Day? Here's my bee ― this bee. The one that's gathering pollen right before me in a dance of survival that's been going on for millions of years. We see the flower and we see the bee, but there's so much more going with this evolutionary symbiotic relationship. The simplicity of a good nature photograph can be limited to subjects depicted, but it's the understanding that makes a naturalist. So don't merely venture outdoors only to take pretty pictures, take some time to learn about what you're chasing and documenting. As Thomas Huxley famously wrote, "To a person uninstructed in natural history, his country or seaside stroll is a walk through a gallery filled with wonderful works of art, nine-tenths of which have their faces turned to the wall." This sentiment is regularly observed in birding circles. You would think an impressive life list equates to understanding the aves (or other wild creatures), but this would be the exception and not the rule. Field guides assist and help you understand why is this, while apps just pad the list for immediate gratification what is this.
Whether flowers ...
Or butterflies ...
Or habitat ...
Add to your outdoor excursions the understanding of why things are they way they are.
Clues become cues ...
And what surprises some, instead, becomes the anticipated or expected ...
This is actually the fifth or sixth Northern Black Widow I've found in Sauk County. Like other widow spiders, Latrodectus variolus has venom that contains neurotoxins. While their bites are venomous, they are not generally fatal to humans. However, a bite can be painful and cause various symptoms, including localized pain, swelling, muscle cramps, and sometimes more severe reactions like nausea, fever, and difficulty breathing. Known for their distinctive, messy three-dimensional webs, they build them in tangled shrubs, tall grass, and around fallen tree limbs. I tend to find them when looking for Splendid Tiger Beetles; first the web, then the spider ... in places that look like this:
The first Splendid Tiger Beetle was observed right on time at 11:30 AM. While Festive, Big Sand, and Punctured Tiger Beetles were already active for a few hours, the rocky outcroppings on the south-facing slope must heat up before this particular tiger beetle emerges and begins searching for prey. Even when arriving early, there are usually other things to occupy the naturalist.
There weren't many, perhaps just 3 or 4 individuals. I suspected this would hurt my chances of finding a Common Claybank, and I was correct.
Splendid!
On the way up the the back of the bluff through the woods, there was a mixed-warbler flock that included Blackburnian, Chestnut-sided, American Redstart, Tennessee, Magnolia, and Ovenbird. While the insect season remains open, I probably won't spend too much time birding just yet. The Pheasant Branch Creek Corridor has officially reopened, but the dilapidated trail conditions haven't stopped me from going in there since the Great Flood of 2018. And just recently I've come to learn that more improvements have been made to make the creek corridor more comfortable for our olfactory senses ― that renk odor many have noted should be absent from here on out. One can hope!
All images © 2023 Mike McDowell