Rare plant monitoring for the day: racemed milkwort (photo) (info)
This is much smaller and harder to find than the lupine we looked for last time. Plants were fairly scattered, and some were only a few inches tall, which made them hard to see, even when there wasn’t a lot of stuff growing. We did two areas, and I think I counted fewer than 20 total.
Other sights: a frog hiding in the duckweed, several huge carp, a bluebird, and a baby turtle sunning on a log.
And at least a dozen Great Spangled Fritillaries on thistle. The naturalists said they must have just emerged; they were bright orange, undamaged, and flapping their wings slowly. Also a painted lady and a spicebush swallowtail.
The morning also raised thoughts of all those fantasy novels in which characters stroll through the trackless wilderness with no problems. Notes on terrain: Not level even though region is flat. Logs – maybe rotten or loose. Smaller branches. Raspberry brambles. Other shrubs with prickers.