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Trail Reports
...
October 2, 2019
Notes and Changes since last report
It was 76°F, calm and mostly cloudy at 9:30 AM on October 2, 2019.
The threat of rain called for an early start, but 80° and high humidity were the only issues.
Leaves had continued to gain more color or fall.
This week's trail report covers the Wappinger Creek Trail side of the trail system.
The Trails
There was still some blue sky over the
Carriage House drive
and it was getting warm.
Overhead a
turkey vulture
circled and was quickly out of sight.
Below,
clouded sulphurs
were licking minerals off the stones.
Something else was flitting about: a
common buckeye
.
It never stayed still long, but it never strayed far. Patience would return a decent view from
below
.
A little more color had developed in the front
Old Hayfield
.
The
sky
would be constantly changing all day.
In the back of the field, invasive
burningbush
was glowing regardless of the sun.
Among the leaves, the small
fruit
was ripening.
Nearby,
common milkweed
was doing what it is famous for: sending off seeds on parachutes.
Where the Sedge Meadow
narrows
is often a good place to find eastern commas.
Indeed, there was a fresh looking one in
fall colors
, i.e. the spotted rather than black hindwing.
The silvery, namesake
comma
below was distinct.
Past the comma and down the slope, the
boardwalk
through the swamp was getting covered by fallen leaves.
In the Sedge Meadow proper,
cinnamon fern
was getting crisp.
The
maples
on the side were turning golden.
And goldenrods were
going to seed
. Yes, in spite of 80°, Fall was really here.
In the back
Old Hayfield
, there was a little more color, but also a few bare trees.
Some of the locust saplings had
folded, silk-bound leaves
.
Those would be little shelters constructed by
silver-spotted skipper caterpillars
.
Winterberry
in the Old Pasture always seems out of place.
Off the opposite side of the trail, a set of
small fern leaves
stood out.
Three feet away, another with a
fertile frond
confirmed it was a grape fern.
It is the
sporangia
- the spore containers - that are the "grapes".
The trail down to the bluff over the Wappinger Creek was a
slippery slope
indeed with acorns hidden under the fallen leaves.
But the
view
was worth the challenge.
Next week: the Cary Pines Trail side of the trail system.
Sightings
Birds
1 Turkey Vulture
1 Red-bellied Woodpecker
3 Blue Jay
3 American Crow
2 Black-capped Chickadee
2 Carolina Wren
1 Eastern Bluebird
1 American Robin
1 Gray Catbird
2 Eastern Towhee
4 American Goldfinch
Butterflies
4 Cabbage White
5 Clouded Sulphur
1 Eastern Comma
1 Common Buckeye
Caterpillars
1 Silver-spotted Skipper
Plants
1 Grape fern
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