The flock of Northern Cardinals continues to populate my feeders and they are a joy to see. I am accustomed to seeing Cardinals as couples and I was surprised to learn that flocks are common in the winter months. With four males and three (maybe four) females they certainly bring some lovely color to an increasingly bleak landscape.
This female has beautiful color in her wings. At first I wasn’t sure if she was a juvenile or an adult. It is the crest that tells the difference and she obligingly shook her head revealing a crest of a delightfully punkish orange. On a juvenile there would be no color and a brownish crown as opposed to a crest. So, I would say she is a young adult. ❧
The Stalked Hairy Fairy Cup, according to Audubon’s Field Guide to North American Mushrooms, is “Often in large groups, on dead twigs, stems, beech burs, and birch catkins.” That explains the large number of these specimens that were populating the various pieces from our recent tree removal on Fawn Hill. There were plenty of dead or dying stems and twigs for this fungus to enjoy. At approximately 1/8 of an inch (3mm) in length is is very easy to overlook this unique mushroom. The actual cup is only 1/32 of an inch (1mm) wide. When you get down close to it you see that is is covered with long, white hairs. Just another wonder from the mushroom world. ❧
On Friday we had some tree removal work done at Fawn Hill. There were two really bad problems–an 80 foot Poplar that was rotted at the base and hollow for about six feet up, and some limbs on a Black Oak that had died and were hanging precipitously over the house. One piece of the Oak had already broken lose and, like a spear, pierced the roof.
The crew was here early and it was a good thing because by midday the rains had come in and the crew headed out, leaving massive quantities of lumber staged in my backyard and driveway, awaiting the chipper that may arrive on Monday, weather permitting.
Saturday dawned mild and sunny. When I looked at the pile of tree debris in my backyard I thought of one thing–opportunity! It’s not often that the opportunity to study macro-environments at 80 feet up falls into your lap. Normally you need to strap on a lot of climbing equipment and be strong enough to claw your way up a tree with your heels. I have neither the equipment, strength or, for that matter, the interest to even try. Another opportunity to accomplish this goal is to visit a few places, like Myakka River State Park, where there is a tree canopy walk and you can leisurely study the flora aloft. In my case, on Saturday, I simply needed to walk out my front door.
I spent some time studying the downed pieces. There were many things of interest. Lots of lichen…or moss…not sure which. But the limbs from the Black Oak gave me something I could identify, another addition to the growing list of mushrooms I have become acquainted with here in North Carolina. In this case it is the Crowded Parchment (Stereum complicatum). They are the orange fungi you see on the branches at the bottom of this first picture.
But here is a much better and closer picture.
I had studied the dead limbs of the Black Oak with some interest before the arborists arrived but I can’t recall seeing the fungi. No doubt it was on the sunny side of the branch which was some 60 or more feet in the air. Having photographed and identified it I then learned, via the Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Mushrooms, that the habitat for this fungi is “On dead deciduous twigs and stumps, especially oak.” Seems the arborist made a good cut. ❧
That’s my backyard bird bath this morning. It was chilly here, actually downright cold. When I awoke it was 15º F. The birds are flocking to my feeders in great numbers and who can blame them? I can barely comprehend how they manage to survive in such weather but clearly good nutrition is a part of it. Just yesterday I was talking with my neighbor about bird bath heaters. She was talking about the need to get her’s in place and I was marveling that such an item existed. It never occurred to this Florida girl but I’ve already been to Amazon.com to check it out and this morning certainly confirms the need for such a device. There are some technical issues to resolve, however. So, for the next few days at least, my feathered-friends will have to try skating. Thankfully the weather is forecast to moderate and by the weekend we will be back in the 60s. ❧
Frequent followers will have figured out by now that this summer, for me, has been a photographic love affair with mushrooms. That’s my buddy, Tango, sitting between two spectacular blooms of mushrooms in the patch of land that Boni & Gail call “the meadow,” at the top of Fawn Hill. This picture was just three weeks ago. On the right is an, as yet, unidentified stand. They may be Velvet Foot but I’m not sure. On the left is our spectacular friend, Jack O’Lantern. Tango’s presence gives a good sense of scale. These are not small ‘shrooms.
Three weeks may not seem like much time but, believe me, it is a long time ago. There have been many changes. The most dramatic and heart-wrenching were detailed in my previous post, Image #143. My friend Gail is slipping, bit-by-bit, into that abyss from which there is no return…at least none that we can know. She has talked of the bright light at the foot of her bed. A Reiki master, who came and gave Gail great comfort on Sunday, spoke of the “bright blue light” that is next to Gail. Change is coming…
On a larger scale, the air is cooler now, frosts are frequent and the leaves have fallen with a thud that announces “CHANGE!” Sigh …. it is inescapable. Throughout the summer months we trick ourselves somehow, we believe the days, long and lingering, will go on forever. But change is here and in these northern climes it is ever so much more present. Perhaps that is why the elderly love Florida so much. Change is harder to see and there is a sense that change is being held at bay. As humans we generally hate change and yet, ironically, it is the only thing of which we can be absolutely sure.
And speaking of change, frequent followers will note some changes on this website. I have finally figured out how to create galleries for my pictures. You can find them in the right-hand column. So far I have posted two — one with birds and the other with, what else, mushrooms. I hope you enjoy this chance to view just the pictures but, of course, I also hope you will stop to read the words. After all, words matter. ❧
Like Halloween caviar, the Carnival Candy Slime fungi brightens the base of a rotting tree in Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest. Carnival Candy Slime!!! Where do these mushroom specialists come up with these names?? Its Latin name is Arcyria denudata. I may not have it correctly identified and encourage any slime lovers out there to set me straight if I have the name wrong. A truly spectacular growth, whatever its name might be. ☙
A friend sent me an email today, via LinkedIn, and it said, “”you post wonderful photos! would you take one of your pets too please…” Well, I am more than happy to oblige. Here’s one of Tango from last spring. We’re at Myakka River State Park. My cat, Rainbow, wasn’t too keen on having a dog but she has warmed to Tango’s charm. He’s become her big brother and she’ll often look to him as if to ask “What’s up? Is it safe?” For those friends on Facebook you can find a lot more pictures of Tango in my Tango and friends photo album. There will be more of Tango and Rainbow as time progresses. I’ve decided to spend most of winter in N.C. and neither of them has experienced snow. That should be a real photo op! Will be in Florida for the Christmas holiday and I have a speaking engagement in Sarasota on January 2nd. So I’ll probably spend a month or so on the West Coast but then it is back to this magical place is the Nantahala Forest. I want to experience the seasons again and there is more but that will be shared another time.
According to the National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Mushrooms, “The Stalked Hairy Fairy Cup is one of a number of very small, beautiful cup fungi that are covered with hairs.” Enough said? This dainty life form lives on a tree at Wayah Bald, NC — 5,000 feet up, very exposed to extremes and very beautiful. ☙
It is definitely fall here in western North Carolina. The past few nights have brought frost and the arctic blast that is chilling bones in the midwest is on its way to our little corner of the world. This photo was taken two weeks ago up on the Blue Ridge Parkway. No doubt it has already changed significantly. Leaves are falling all around reminding us of the impermanence of life but also its renewal. They lay thick on the forest floor, making a rich mulch for the life that lays beneath the surface, waiting for the light to make its winter passage and return again in the spring. ☙
It is the crest that tells the difference and she obligingly shook her head revealing a crest of a delightfully punkish orange. On a juvenile there would be no color and a brownish crown as opposed to a crest. So, I would say she is a young adult. ❧
Alice's WanderLand 