Thursday, October 12, 2017

Allegheny Woodrat Project 2017


This fall, Cincinnati Museum Center (CMC) and The Nature Conservancy (TNC) are assisting the Ohio Division of Wildlife (ODOW) in an effort to conserve and protect the Allegheny woodrat, Neotoma magister. 
Sub-adult male Allegheny woodrat caught in southern portion of Edge of Appalachia Preserve  Photo by: Rich McCarty
Last year, a blog post was written here, introducing our efforts to search for new woodrat sites on the Edge of Appalachia Preserve and neighboring properties. We mapped all new sites, recorded fresh Allegheny woodrat activity and collected raccoon scat.  The raccoon is known to be a carrier of a roundworm that, if ingested by woodrats, can wipe out entire populations.  These "packrats" collect many things, including raccoon scat, to store in their middens, and if so, could contaminate not only themselves, but any other rat in the area.  The removal of said scat could prove paramount in protecting this species from extirpation.  This entire project is headed by biologists Al LeCount and Cheryl Mollohan. 
Ideal habitat or Allegheny woodrat.  Peebles dolostone cliffs jetting out of hillside with many cracks and tunnels.  Photo by: Robyn Wright Strauss
This year, CMC and TNC staff along with assistants Laura Hughes and Emily Garnich, have teamed up with these mammal biologists to capture as many Allegheny woodrats as possible in all known active sites in southern Adams County.  Once captured, small tissue samples are collected from the animal's ear, minor processing occurs, and the animal is released.  These curious and I’d have to say adorable rodents are lured into live traps with apples, rodent nutrition blocks and bedding. 
Live traps set in "cave" of Peebles dolostone cliffs
The curiosity of these "packrats" make them pretty easy to catch.  Photo by Mark Zloba

Allegheny woodrats kept satisfied with apple slices, nutrition block and bedding.  Photo by Mark Zloba

Allegheny woodrats are handled gently in soft cones for processing age, weight, sex etc.  Photo by Rich McCarty
Once all captures from all known sites are processed, the collected samples will be sent to CMC curator of zoology, Heather Farrington, for DNA analysis.  Our goal is to learn population size and health of this disappearing mammal. 


Captured woodrats are released in same location they were caught.
It may be the rarest mammal in Ohio, but more importantly, this species is imperiled throughout its range of the Appalachian region of Eastern North America.  ODOW recognizes this species as endangered and understands the possibility of the Allegheny woodrat becoming non-existent in Ohio.  So, they have joined the effort to help protect and study Allegheny woodrats.  Along with supporting this genetic project, ODOW has started distributing harmless medicinal baits that will de-worm any animal that eats it.  The theory is,  raccoons will find the bait, eat it, and the roundworm will die before woodrats collect any scat and bring it back to their middens.


Once released, these personable rats will sometimes pose for a few pictures.  Photo by Robyn Wright Strauss
Then they scurry off to hide, sometimes in a poor hiding spot.  Photo by Mark Zloba
More information to come on this large conservation project.  Many woodrats have been captured to date, and hopefully many more will be captured this fall to obtain the best genetic data possible.  The Edge of Appalachia Preserve and surrounding properties are the last stronghold of this animal in Ohio and we would like to thank ODOW, their biologists, assistants on this endeavor to better understand the Allegheny woodrat and hopefully save it from extirpation.

Enjoy these short videos of the releasing of the woodrats.  If you turn up the volume on the first video, you might hear the thumping sound this female woodrat is making with her feet to scare us away.  If you watch carefully, she continuously and quickly thumps her feet.








Posted by Mark Zloba

Monday, August 28, 2017

Alien invasion?

This is the week of the 2017 solar eclipse, and I have been staring up into the sky, a lot. With all the celestial commentating the past week, I have been thinking more about life in outer space, and the possibilities of that life reaching earth.  What does this have to do with the preserve??  Well, we find many things on the preserve that remind me of, and I cannot say 100% did not come from outer space.  ManySci-fi movies eerily portray alien creatures that look very similar to things we find creeping around the preserve.  Here are a few videos from our lab (turning up your volume might make this theory more convincible)  that star creatures that could possibly be from another world......I'm just saying.

"They" say this is a mantidfly, Climaciella brunnea, a paper wasp mimic that has an alien head and preying mantis arms.  It mimics paper wasps because they lay their eggs on wasp larva in the nests.  I'm pretty sure I've seen this creature in a black and white sci-fi movie when I was 10.


Maybe the comedians of SNL weren't joking when they portrayed aliens as coneheads.  There are coneheads (katydids) out right now at night buzzing in fields.  This Neoconocephalus retusus is Awfully alien-like I'd say.


This video of a hairy slitmouth snail, Stenotrema hirsutum, looks like a creature emerging from a rock on the dark side of the moon.

Are these clam shrimps (Cyzicus sp.?) found in a tire rut, or what alien eggs look like?  I'm not sure.  The eggs of clam shrimps can lay dormant withstanding drought, freeze and pressure for several years.  Sounds astronomical to me.

Very tribble-like (if you watched Star Trek from the 1960's), this moth caterpillar seems to have a protective fuzzy covering.  A stellar coincidence that Hollywood would know this??


On earth we call these black fly larva, Simuliidae, but to me this video looks like some sort of transedental communication occurrence.



This extraterrestrial looking caterpillar is known as the monkey slug, Phoebtron pithecium.  Its slug-like movement and stinging hairs remind me of a creature that would have chased astronauts in the old show Space Patrol.  Discalimer:  Unlike the television shows from the 1950's,  this video may contain language unsuitable for younger viewers.  Not meant to offend, but intended to illustrate the supernatural affect these creatures have on folks!


To me, the similarities are uncanny.  But when I was younger my mother always said I should be an astronaut, or astronomer..... or maybe she just said I was taking up space.....I can't remember.  Either way, this unknown, ethereal world we live in already contains sci-fi creatures waiting to be explored.

Posted by Mark Zloba

Saturday, May 20, 2017

Spring birding at the Edge

Each year, multiple bird surveys are conducted on the Edge of Appalachia Preserve. Most of these occur in the spring as many birds are on the move.  Moving because they are leaving their winter grounds, or returning to their breeding grounds.   As an event, the anticipation of  returning migratory birds never seems to get old.  Like clockwork, many birds will arrive to their breeding grounds almost on the same date they arrived the year before.  If you know the dates a specific species returns, and watch weather patterns, one could almost predict the day this species will make landfall to the same habitat it perched the year before.

For example, the hard to find Henslow's sparrow returns each year around May 1st, to old farm fields that look as if they have not been mowed in a few years.  To find them you would have to listen for their quick song in the fields which sounds like someone is saying "SLIP" real fast.
Henslow's sparrow, Ammodramus henslowii
But not all birds we find in the spring are breeding birds.  Many people find joy in the hunt to see a new bird.  And spring is one of the best times to see birds that do not breed in your area, and pass through to their own breeding grounds to the north.  Birds like this palm warbler are found only for a couple weeks in the beginning of May at the Edge. And the Black-throated green warbler start moving through southern Ohio in mid-April.  But neither bird sticks around to breed.
  
Palm warbler,  Setophaga palmarum
 
Black-throated green warbler, Setophaga virens
On the Edge, we wait all winter for some of our migratory birds to return.  If you know the right habitats and learn some of their songs, you can find many breeding and non-breeding birds of the preserve in just one day.  Here is a look at a few, and where to find them.

In April, the sweet whistling song of the rose-breasted grosbeak can be heard deep in the woods, and in yards with feeders.  Although not until discovered recently, this now is one of the preserves breeding migratory birds.  Not a common breeder in southern Ohio, it can be found in some local populations.  Most of them heard or seen in Ohio during April and May are moving north.
Rose-breasted grosbeak, Pheucticus ludovicianus
One of the most common breeding warblers found in Ohio is the common yellowthroat.  It takes advantage of old fields, wet ditches and floodplains .  If you learn the easy to recognize song of this bird, you will realize how common they are.
Common yellowthroat, Geothlypis trichas
If one bird would represent the Edge of Appalachia Preserve in springtime, it would have to be the prairie warbler.  This succession loving brush bird is found anywhere on the preserve where Red Cedars grow.  Which is almost anywhere on the preserve.
Prairie warbler, Setophaga discolor
A breath taking breeding bird in Ohio's forests is the scarlet tanager.  If you pay  attention deep in the forest, you might get lucky enough to see the rich colors of this red and black bird. 
Scarlet tanager, Piranga olivacea
Some bird species stick around all winter, but may look freshly painted in the spring because their breeding colors stand out.  This Eastern Bluebird  really stood out in a field of Butterweed.
Eastern bluebird, Sialia sialis
Since it is not a common breeding warbler on the preserve, the prothonotary warbler is an exciting find because it only nests in the floodplain forests along Ohio Brush Creek.  Only a few breeding territories are found each year on the preserve.  A fun way to survey them is by canoe.
Prothonotary warbler, Protonotaria citrea
Some of the non-breeders that pass through the preserve can best be found by listening for their songs.  Once you know their song, you know which part of which tall tree to search.  The black-throated blue warbler gives itself away by singing it's buzzy song which sounds like its saying "ZHHee, Zhhee, Zhee??"  The third part sounds as if its asking a question.
Black-throated blue warbler, Stenophaga caerulescens
Also along Ohio Brush Creek, or along roadside creeks, you might find a solitary sandpiper standing in the mud or rocks near the water.  If it doesn't fly away as soon as you see it, it might teeter-totter in place quickly.
Solitary sandpiper, Tringa solitaria
Every year, the preserve staff hunts and counts as many species as they can in a 24 hour period.  Up to 145 (averaging about 130) bird species have been counted in and around the Edge of Appalachia Preserve properties in a one day bird-a-thon.  That is a pretty good number considering almost 200 species have been recorded on or above the preserve, and at least 110 species breed here.  This preserve is rich in diverse habitats suitable for many bird species, including forest species that have declined across their ranges.  For a taste of a diverse birding experience, drive, look and listen along Waggoner Riffle Rd. and you might be surprised with what you find.

Posted by: Mark Zloba 



Tuesday, April 11, 2017

Eulett After Hours

The Spring 2017 series of Eulett After Hours programs are coming up soon! Check out the dates, times, and program descriptions on the 'public programs' page. Hope to see you then!



Saturday, March 18, 2017

Fireflies: The flash season approaches


I have always found it a little embarrassing that, as a naturalist, I never knew the differences between the fireflies in Ohio.  After all, fireflies are one of the first animals people chase as children.  If you grew up in the Eastern United States, you certainly enjoyed fireflies.  But so few people could tell you much about these glowing critters and how to identify them.  They were simply these magical beetles flittering about on summer nights, and for most of us, that's all we needed to know.  Enjoying the spectacle is something everyone can appreciate.  BUT, if you ever wanted to know more, now you can.

Yellow-bellied Fireflies, Photinus scintillans, showing the typical firefly shape and color.  many look alike, but their flash gives clue to the species identification.
I have been waiting for years for a publication to come out describing the species and life histories of these incredibly interesting creatures.  And finally, the book has arrived.  A fascinating author and friend of the preserve, Lynn Faust, has put her years of firefly knowledge together in a long-awaited field guide.  Now the rest of us can figure out who is flashing in our own backyards and when and where are the best times to search.  The book is called "Firelies, Glow-worms, and Lightning Bugs". 

Great new firefly book available now.  See link below to purchase.
You might be surprised to find out that there is more than one species of firefly.  In fact, I learned many interesting things while spending a few days firefly chasing with Lynn, and reading her book.

Did you know??
1. Not all fireflies produce light as adults, but they can as larva.
2. Firefly flash rates, intensity and color differ between the species.
3. Firefly species are seasonal and some even flash only specific times of the night.
4. Some fireflies are cannibalistic and mimic the flash of other species to lure them in, and then eat them.
5. Many fireflies are light sensitive and city lights mimicking dawn and dusk have changed the distribution of species ranges.
6. Male fireflies flash to attract females, and sometimes they flash synchronously because they are all trying to be the first noticed.

Fireflies that flash have abdominal segments that act as "lanterns" to show light created by bioluminescence. 
Pictured is the Yellow-Bellied Firefly, Photinus scintillans.

It is extremely difficult to photograph the remarkable display of light.  This photo by John Howard captures 2 flash patterns.
There is so much to learn, and Lynn has packaged all this information into one easy to read book.  I can now pick a species in the book, read about its flash pattern, what time of night it flashes, what time of year, what habitat to look in and actually find that species in the field.  It really works!

There are some fireflies that you might find in Southern Ohio this winter and spring, even though it is not quite yet the flash season.  One species you can find from late fall through the winter is the Winter Firefly, Ellychnia corrusca.  It overwinters as an adult.  This species does not flash, but from info in Lynn's book, I learned to find them on the south side of large tree trunks on sunny winter days.   

Ellychnia corrusca, the winter firefly.
One of the first flashing fireflies in the spring should start communicating through glowing abdomens in mid April.  It is the Treetop Flasher, Pyractomena borealis.  This early season beetle flashes once every four seconds in the tops of trees before the leaves grow.  It's larva can be found pupating on large tree trunks in late winter. In late summer and fall, the larva is found on the forest floor eating snails.  Pictured below is one of these larva, whose head telescopes out to reach snails inside their shell.

Spring treetop flasher larva feeding on a Northern three-tooth snail (Triodopsis tridentata). Photo by Chris Bedel.
Once May comes, the flash season begins.  Besides the Spring treetop flashers, another firefly, this one from the cannibal genus called Photuris, begins to flash.  Fields around the preserve start to fill up with the quick flashes of the Spring 4-Flashers,  Photuris versicolor var. quadrifulgens.  These beetles appear to stutter as they flash 4 times.  By the first weeks of June, this species will disappear before other species begin flashing.

Fireflies in the genus Photuris (like these P. quadrifulgens) have long legs and large pronotums, usually with a black "anchor" mark.
By June, many more species begin to flash, some right before dark like the Little Grays,  Photinus marginellus, and some right at dark like the very common Big Dippers, Photinus pyralis.  This, in Southern Ohio, is the real flash season.  The majority of firefly species will be out in June and July.  By then, we should all be skilled at counting flashes, observing flash patterns and be expert firefly hunters thanks to Lynn's field guide.
Other species found on the preserve with the help of Lynn Faust are:

The lanternless species
Sneaky Elf, Pyropyga decipiens
Woodland Lucy, Lucidota atra

The lanterned flashing species
Synchronous Firefly, Photinus carolinus
Mr. Mac, Photinus macdermotti
Creekside Tree Blinkers, Photinus sabulosus

The carnivorous species
Slow Blues, Photuris caerulucens
Chinese Lanterns and the Flashbulbs, Photuris sp.
Heebie-Jeebies, Photuris hebes
July Comets, Photuris lucicrescens
Dot-Dash, Photuris pennsylvanica
Variable Triple Flash, Photuris versicolor

This will be the year to find more new and unusual firefly species on the preserve.  Watch for blog posts this summer about new species and some of the interesting species mentioned in the above list. 

I cannot think of another long-awaited book that all naturalists need in their libraries. To purchase this great new book on fireflies, search the title on Amazon.com or click on link below.

http://www.ugapress.org/index.php/books/fireflies/

Posted by: Mark Zloba

Friday, January 27, 2017

Photo Friday: Nature's Artistry



Thanks to Steve Cox, one of our very valuable seasonal employees, for letting us use this beautiful picture he took. One of the fun things about fungus is that it exhibits just as many colors as wildflowers can. I believe that this particular fungus is False Turkey Tail, Stereum ostrea.

Posted by: Robyn Wright-Strauss


Tuesday, January 24, 2017

The Dr. Seuss-ish world of Cladonias


Cladonia pyxidata complex, photo by Robyn Wright-Strauss
 
This month I'd like to share some photos of the Cladonia lichens.  There are many species in this group, but many look distinct enough to identify the species.  These odd shaped lichens are unique and interesting.  Since they look like Dr. Seuss images, you might as well read about them in Dr. Seuss form!
Cladonia lichens generally grow with squamules below, and sometimes form stalks (podetia) that stick up into odd shapes.

A peculiar lichen with the genus Cladonia
I'm sure you've seen 'em, if I knew you, I'da shown ya!
 
Some statuesque, with stalks slender and tall,
British soldiers, Cladonia cristatella

Some come short, with no stalks at all.
Yellow-tongued cladonia, Cladonia robinsii
 
They sometimes look like tiny cities under seas...
Some old logs are covered with Cladonias of many species. Photo by Robyn Wright-Strauss
 
And sometimes look like an army of fuzzy golf tees.
Pixie cups, Cladonia pyxidata

One looks like a trumpet, inside a trumpet, inside a trumpet...
Ladder lichen, Cladonia cervicornis 

Ladder lichen, Cladonia cervicornis

Another like a floor covered in toast, cracker, or crumpet! (Lame line, I know, but I just couldn't dump it.)
Stalkless cladonia, Cladonia apodocarpa
 
One is so tangled a beetle couldn't get through...
Dixie reindeer lichen, Cladonia subtenuis
 
Another so open it couldn't block the wind if it blew.
Common powderhorn, Cladonia coniocraea


Most grow in the woods and very few are urban...
Even though some are fashionable with berets or a turban.
Southern soldiers, Cladonia didyma
Turban lichen, Cladonia peziziformis Photo by Robyn Wright-Strauss

Search the ground next time you're in a forest full of trees,
you should find Cladonias if you get down on your hands and knees.
Fence-rail cladonia,  Cladonia parasitica.  Some lichens need chemical tests to determine i.d.
 Photo by Robyn Wright-Strauss.

These small fungus are harmless, they won't bite, sting or poke us,
By the way, thanks to Robyn for some pics I couldn't get in focus!



Posted by: Mark Zloba

Friday, January 20, 2017

Photo Friday: Landscapes of the Edge


A view from a ridge in the southern portion of the preserve. The farthest hill in the picture is across the Ohio River in Kentucky.

Friday, January 13, 2017

warm winter days

The calendar reads January 12 but you wouldn't know it was a day in January by the temperature outside.  The outside air temperature is 65°F and it continues to rain.  Weather conditions like these during the winter months are likely to cause some of our herp species (reptiles and amphibians) to feel the urge to get things going.  The Jefferson salamander, Ambystoma jeffersonianum  and the spotted salamander, Ambystoma maculatum, members of the mole salamander family (Ambystomatidae) will respond to these warm winter days by migrating to vernal pools in which they will breed and lay their eggs.  These salamanders will visit the pools, even if the pools are frozen over, for courting and laying eggs.  The Ambystomids spend most of their lives underground and can sometimes by discovered under rocks or other debris with some searching. 
This spotted salamander was discovered by lifting a piece of tin adjacent to an old barn located in an open field. 

The best time to encounter mole salamanders, above ground, is during the winter migration.  Edge staff have witnessed this migration occurrence as early as mid December and the activity is usually over by late February.  Locating a vernal pool during a warm and rainy day in late December or early January, will provide the best opportunity for seeing some of these reclusive salamanders.  The salamanders are usually very active within the pool and can be viewed swimming in the usually shallow waters of the pool.  Rarely are mole salamanders visible walking above the leaf litter during the daylight hours but may be visible walking above ground during a dark and rainy night. 
Mole salamanders are not usually visible above ground during daylight hours.  The spotted salamander pictured here was removed from a trap where he paused for a photo before returning to the water. 
Now is the time to get out and locate a vernal pool (especially if you are a mole salamander) and pay attention on those warm and rainy nights.  The Jefferson and Spotted salamanders are the two species that you might expect to discover here in southern Ohio.  An unexpected salamander for the Edge, and one that you should hope to see somewhere in Ohio, would be the Eastern tiger salamander, Ambystoma tigrinum.  The tiger salamander may appear similar to the spotted salamander but should be noticeably larger and have a more irregular pattern with its spots. 

Posted by: Rich McCarty

Photo Friday: An Early Spring Sentinel


A white Trout Lily, Erythronium albidum, stands ready for early spring pollinators.


Friday, January 6, 2017

Photo Friday: Cross-eyed Katydid


A male Agile Katydid, Orchelimim agile, looks back at the photographer. It makes one wonder what exactly he was seeing?