Nature Blog

With fall well underway, here’s the last (!) nature update for 2021. All photos below are from this morning, Sep 8, 2021.

Migration has begun, but many young birds can be seen, along with a few butterflies. A great blue heron and kingfisher were at the pond (always a hot spot), and so too was a baby beaver! The second and third rows show plants currently in flower along the trail, including typical late season asters and goldenrods and (boo, hiss) invasive Japanese knotweed and spotted knapweed. The 4th row shows end-of-season fruits. The trail will remain a very nice place to walk for another 2 months, so here’s a challenge for you: if you go soon, how many of these flowers and fruits can you see?

Late season changes have arrived with the month of August. Bird song has diminished significantly, but birds are still abundant, many young being present. The plants in flower are those with extended flowering periods, a number of which have been featured in previous updates. The photos below are all since the last KT nature update (July 19); the first row shows birds from around the pond, always a hot spot for observations.

The photos below are mostly from today, July 19, with a few from the past two weeks; they show what to look for along the trail. Thirty species of birds were singing this morning, with song sparrows, indigo buntings, common yellowthroats, and catbirds being quite common. A spotted sandpiper, belted kingfisher, and juvenile wood duck were active on the pond. A week ago, a baby killdeer and protective parent greeted walkers to the trail.

Flowers open now include soapwort, Queen Anne’s lace, woolly mullein, bindweed, beebalm, pokeweed, tick trefoil, and yellow and white sweet-clovers. Spotted knapweed has started to flower – very pretty but a noxious invasive. The summer is passing quickly as it always does, and honeysuckle, chokecherry, and red baneberry have all started producing brightly colored fruit. Tussock moth caterpillars are hanging on silk threads from overhead branches.

An information kiosk is a new addition to the trailhead! It has an excellent map and trail rules, and in the future we may add a list current nature sightings to keep trail walkers informed of what to look for. You may see orange topped stakes along the trail edge; these stakes mark distances from Dugway Rd, with the number on each telling you how many hundred yards you have come (e.g., stake 10 is at the pond, which is 1000 yards from Dugway).

This update shows what is in flower now – all flower photos are from 1 Jun – with bird and butterfly observations from the past two weeks. As always, you can see much along the Kirkland Trails! Dame’s rocket and chervil are the most abundant flowering plants, but look for the white flowering shrubs: red-osier dogwood, nannyberry, and mapleleaved viburnum. Several butterfly species can be found flying in sun-lit open areas. Tree swallows are nesting in one of the field boxes north of Dugway; I was repeatedly dive-bombed by the parents on Jun 1. Hooded warbler was a nice sighting yesterday. Two green herons are regulars at pond 10, and a wood duck was on pond 17. Watch out for baby chipmunks along the trail!

Much is happening along the Kirkland Trail. The May 1 update focused on late April wildflowers, but a surge of incoming migrant birds, especially warblers, has appeared during the first week of May, so this update focuses on birds. Most abundant are yellow warblers and common yellowthroats, along with red-winged blackbirds, song sparrows, goldfinches, cardinals, and catbirds. The distinctive songs of warblers can be heard along most of the trail, including the “wichety wichety wichety” of yellowthroats, which are the “official” birds of the pandemic – they wear a mask and stay at a social distance! I’m including these photos from the trail in the past few days to show you what you can see for yourselves.

Keep an eye on the pond at marker #10; recent sightings at the pond have included green heron, spotted sandpiper, belted kingfisher, mallards, and (always) Canada geese. Tree swallows and barn swallows fly over the fields around Dugway. Rose-breasted grosbeaks are in the area, and indigo buntings will soon be along the trail. Pheasants, chipmunks, rabbits, and painted turtles live there too.

Spring is here, and much is happening along the Kirkland trail! All the following photos and observations were from the afternoon of May 1. Most noticeable are the spring specialties: abundant red and white trilliums, marsh marigold, sharp-lobed hepatica, spring beauties, and blue cohosh. Adding to the display are shadbush, 3 species of violets, golden Alexanders, purple dead-nettle, speedwell, and myrtle (aka periwinkle, Vinca). And more are on the way!

Birdlife is abundant, with song sparrows and red-winged blackbirds singing all along the trail. Recently arrived species included brown thrasher, tree swallow, barn swallow, ruby-crowned kinglet, and chipping sparrow. Belted kingfisher and pheasant have been loudly announcing their presence. Other birds making an appearance are great blue heron, red-bellied woodpecker, downy woodpecker, white-throated sparrow, northern cardinal, house finch, goldfinch, mourning dove, red-tailed hawk, blue jay, titmouse, robin, and (of course) crow. Soon we’ll add warblers.

Also seen along the trail are painted turtles, cabbage white butterflies, and ever-present chipmunks. A beaver lodge is visible, and both leopard frogs and American toads have been singing. Although the fairies themselves have been elusive, fairy houses have reappeared along the trail north of Dugway as well as south (the north trail beyond the open field is a lovely, more intimate trail). Emerging leaves add a lace-like green to the spring forest, making this prime time for a trail walk in the woods with much to see and enjoy.

Want to test your knowledge?  Hover your mouse over or click on any image to see the name!

Spring is springing, and we’re delighted that it is! Hepatica is fully open now along the trail; it’s the first wildflower to follow skunk cabbage, which opens up very early in low wet areas. Bird life is more active now with abundant red-winged blackbirds and song sparrows. Mourning cloak butterflies have been flying along the trail during the past few warm days. The photos below (except the fairy houses) are from the trail in the past few days. This coming Wednesday (April 14) morning we will return the fairy houses that we saved from the trail before snow started flying last fall. We’ll leave them at the Dugway Rd trailhead for families and kids of all ages to reinstall wherever they want along the trail. Although the far part of the trail was disrupted last November by widening, the entire 1.9 mile trail from Dugway to Deansboro is in very fine condition now for walking, biking, running, birding, and enjoying the outdoors.

The summer is winding down quickly. The latest plants to flower, all nice additions, are blue-stemmed goldenrod and crooked-stemmed and panicled asters, along with beechdrops, a non-green parasite on beech roots. Fall is the season for seeds and fruits, and you’ll see many. A number of plants have been flowering for a long time now and have remained conspicuous in September (see the bottom row) but are fading fast. Since late April, I’ve identified 146 plant species along the trail (with the flowering phenology of most; ask if you’re interested).

Bird life is much quieter now, although catbirds and crows regularly announce their presence. Pheasants and turkeys have been sighted on the trail, while fall warblers (northern waterthrush last week) dart in and out, preparing for migration. There are always things to be seen along the trail, but this is the last nature update for 2020. Keep using the trail and keep your eyes open! Let me know what you see.

Want to test your knowledge? Hover your mouse over a picture to see what it is!