HONOR’S HAVEN NATURE ALMANAC 11

As the days get shorter and the mornings get crisper we realize fall is here. Of course with fall comes the magnificent color display as the leaves change color. This year a few of our trees will not make it to that part of their life cycle due to the fact that some were uprooted because of severe weather at the end of August into the first part of September. After a very wet summer we were hit by tropical storms Irene (which dumped over seven inches of rain) and then Lee (which dumped over six inches of rain). Fortunately we have pretty much cleaned up from the mess these storms made, but the aftermath has highlighted two aspects of nature.

The first was the annoying number of gnats and mosquitoes which we normally don't have this time of year. In part this was due to the myriad of wet spots and puddles that remained after the flooded streams had receded. I say in part because this very wet summer also encouraged the breeding of gnats and mosquitoes. However, they were not nearly as noticeable then because of the predators that ate them before they became a problem. These predators include dragonflies and bats, but especially the birds. Two groups of birds that are noteworthy for their ability to catch insects on the wing are the swallows and the flycatchers such as the Eastern Kingbird above. Unfortunately after raising their young, most have headed south leaving us without our natural pest insect wranglers.

On the positive side, the second effect of the unusual amount of rain has been an abundance of mushrooms. Of course when we think of mushrooms we think of a domed cap on top of a stem similar to the Yellow Patches mushroom pictured on the right. As this mushroom grows the cap will spread out revealing gills underneath. Depending on the species these gills will be attached to or free from the stalk. Another group of mushrooms called the boletes, have no gills but pores in the bottom of the cap which looks somewhat like a sponge. Our soggy woods have a great many species at the present time. There is a great variety of size, color and shape.

The Gem-studded Puffball pictured on the left is unique among puffballs but may be confused for a golf ball which occasionally find their way into our woods due to the close proximity of the golf course. In contrast to the Yellow Patches, they are very good to eat if picked at the right time. Since I am no connoisseur of mushrooms, I never pick them, but only photograph them. Unless one is an expert in identifying mushrooms, they should never be picked and eaten as many are poisonous and some like the Death Cap or Destroying Angel, while looking like species that are edible, are extremely poisonous.

Many mushrooms don't have the classic toad stool shape associated with mushrooms. By the way, I have never actually seen a toad sitting on a mushroom. At any rate one of these groups of mushrooms are called Shelf Mushrooms or Polypores. The Turkey-tail pictured on the right is an example of this type of Polypore. Note that there is indeed a similarity of appearance to a turkey's tail. Almost all Polypores grow out of the trunks of dead trees as can be seen with this Turkey-tail. Contrasting greatly with many other mushrooms is the Bear's Head Tooth. While the Bear's head part may be hard to see, the tooth part (or should I say teeth) is very evident. Maybe this is where the Bear Tooth Fairy takes those teeth it collects. In any case, they usually grow at the base of conifers, making our wooded area a prime location with all its hemlocks.

This all goes to show that each season and weather pattern has its own treasures for those willing to take the time to find them.