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