I was on a Wildlife Trail the other day; wasn't able to get very far and definitely should have taken more pics of the plants but saw alot of these around the beginning of the trail and also shorter ones than these (that looked similar) that seemed to have a white fluff coming out of them.
Does anyone know what they are? Theres pretty little red bugs on this one.
Sorry this is the only pic. :-(
Why, those are your milkweeds of course (Asclepias spp.). Taller ones are probably the common milkweed; shorter ones may be other species depending on what may be native in NJ.
The white fluff is the pappus attached to the seeds, which allows them to become windborne and float to new homes. The little red bugs are having a feast on the seeds that haven't blown away yet.
Ohohoh pelle! Did you get any seeds??
BooHooo, No! :-(
Thanks VV.
It is closeby; I could go back and get some seeds. :-)
They had loads of native plants there and even sell native plants,trees and shrubs.
Heres where I went.
http://www.njaudubon.org/Centers/Rancocas/
Go back pelle, go back, listen to the voice and go back, return and collect seed....☺
I think I'm moving to Jersey. You guys have the coolest things out there. Not fair! The plant sale was last month, but they'll probably do it again in the spring, would be my guess. Lots of nice plants listed there!
LOL, Okay Terry!
Yes I want to go down to Cape May soon; I used to live down the shore. What ashame I wasn't into birding back then cause I would have a great Life list by now. :-)
What's a "Life" list please?
For birds a list you add to when you see a new bird.
Some will say "This is a Lifer for me" meaning its a new bird they have never seen before to add on their Bird List.
In fact I have to update mine, :-)
I have to ask a question:
When someone replied to this thread it was not put at the top of my Home Page; is that feature gone now?
BTW- Hi Equil; How are you?
This message was edited Oct 15, 2007 8:23 AM
Oh oh oh, I'd put an Indigo on a "Life" list then. I've seen an Indigo Bunting once in my area and have never seen one since. A Painted Bunting I've only seen if photos. Would love to see one of those.
Truth be known, I can't identify half the birds I'm seeing these days. My husband is the birder. Sure, I can get the basic birds but the species that are out of range because I'm in a flyway are beyond me.
Can't answer your question about why your thread isn't appearing at the top of your Home Page.
Indigo Buntings are gorgeous birds! Congratulations!
I am fine! I put up hummingbird feeders again this year and had visitors for the first time. I sort of capitalized on a sad situation. I had a neighbor who was an avid birder. She had hundreds of birdhouses and feeders up on her property. She got a divorce and the husband kept the house. Needless to say, since the birder was gone he has been taking down to the feeders and birdhouses. He takes them down and tosses them in a pile in his garage. He's got a mountain of birdfeeders and birdhouses in that garage- what a waste. Anyway, I think I'm getting the hummers that used to go to her house and next spring I'm going to try to lure over the orioles that used to go to her house with jelly feeders. So, How be you pelle! Still birding with wild abandon?
(sigh) Isn't an Indigo Bunting beautiful... too bad I only saw one once and that was now quite a few years ago. I kept hoping I'd see one again but no go. If memory serves me, I'm out of range for that species.
And after e-mailing another lady in Jersey for quite a while now, I think this life list and lifers are a term used in NJ. I had never heard it before this friend used it and now pelle, from NJ is using it too! It's got to be a NJ thing!
I heard on WGN (radio) this morning, that the morning show host has a Scarlet Tanager hanging around his house. I'll trade him! 300 HOSP for just 1 Scarlet Tanager! Think he'll bite???
No, but dream on.
Actually the terms Lifer and Life List are used world wide.
Some people are so insistent about having new birds on their list they'll drive for 12 hours and sit in a blind for 2 days in freezing cold weather!
Thats not me at all,lol.
Hi Equil, I'm hanging in there. Still looking for birds yes. Need to get out more to see new types. Sometimes their in the weirdest places. :-)
I'm hoping to go down to Cape May (and surrounding areas) next week to do some birding.
Some people are so insistent about having new birds on their list they'll drive for 12 hours and sit in a blind for 2 days in freezing cold weather!
It might be used world wide, but the only people I ever heard use the term were from NJ!
I'd sit in a blind. I have a cooler. You can buy these things that go into your gloves to keep your hands warm. I have silk long underwear. I have my Bugaboots. I've even got cover-alls somewhere. I wouldn't drive 12 hours though. I have to drive over 3 hours to see that gnat that bothers me. ☺
What's Cape May? Anywhere near the above milkweed seeds?
Cape May is on the coast, its the last town in South Jersey.
Edited to say: Its one of the Top 10 birding sites in the whole country as in Fall & Spring an enormous amount of migrating birds of all types come through that area.
This message was edited Oct 15, 2007 8:33 PM
Heres a link to some birding things in Cape May.
http://www.birdcapemay.org/autumn.shtml
Oh, you're going to a symposium AND you're going to go birdwatching. Way cool!
OH!! I wanna go! How long will it take me to hitch a ride out to South Jersey? Can I be there by Sat night? That's almost 2 weeks. Surely there's lots of nice truckers out there that would pick me up! Right? Right! I want to go to the talk on Sat night! 'Good Birders Don't Wear White'. How cool!! And on the coast....sigh. sniff sniff.
LOL, Geez I'll pick you up before letting you hitchhike Terry!
Cape May is also a beautiful Victorian town. Its lovely to walk all around or take a trolly or horse drawn carriage through several areas.
Some great restaurants too!
Hopefully I'll be able to attend a few of these birding things. :-)
Great restaurants? I'm sold on going. Now, how to be able to afford to get there is another story.
Equil, you got a thumb too!!! Let's hitch a ride to Jersey! Too far for pelle to come pick us up! We can meet pelle there. How fun! I love Victorian towns! I want to be able to see, so no horse drawn carriage for me ;( I'll take the trolley though!!
OK, big girl. You get to my house and I'll drive out there that weekend. You navigate. Nothing better than the east coast in fall. Just you and me. It would be fun, you'd have a captive audience, that's for sure.
You mean you'd be stuck (captive) in a car with my incessant talking?
Ya, something like that. I can generally hold my own if I'm not distracted but driving distracts me so you'd get to have the floor to yourself for the most part. It would be fun and we could cover a lot of topics. You would have to hush when we need to figure out where to turn so we don't end up in Canada but you could resume right after we figure out which way to go. You wouldn't want to end up in Canada now would you?
ROTFLOL!!!
Yes you will really have to be quiet once you get on the Jersey roads. :-)
Hi pelletory :)
we are practically neighbors! the red bugs were probably red milkweed beetles
http://www.cirrusimage.com/beetles_red_milkweed.htm
Hi wind! Yes we are practically neighbors!
Yes thats them (the beetles)! Thank You!
Have you ever been to RNC ?
I posted a link in my second post of this thread! Its a great place! Pelle
Well yea, Canada would be a nice place to end up on a wrong turn. How come you get to drive? You're going to drive the whole way? What do I do? Smack you when you get sleepy?
Jersey people don't allow talking in a car? Why do I have to be quiet? I don't think that's even possible. ☺
Pelle, I've always been wanting to check out the RNC! All these years and I'm ashamed to say I have never been there. I saved a copy of the linc you posted to my garden file. Thanks :)
Hopefully I can get there someday!
ps - my husband and I love Cape May and try and get there annually before the season kicks in. We like stopping at the bird observatory and usually buy a native plant or two. This yr we bought Wild Senna, Cassia hebecarpa which didn't bloom but hopefully next season.
Hey! I just bought a Cassia hebecarpa this year too! I love it. Mine didn't bloom either, but the foliage is pretty cool anyway.
LOL, No its not the talking; its the roads. You really have to pay attention.
Equil, maybe you could pick up one of those "Learn a new language tapes" for Terry while your driving.
Ugh.. on second thought never mind. I can just here her now:
Auf Weidersehn!
Auf Weidersehn!
Auf Weidersehn!
Lol, I'll think of something else, :-)
wind, Is the Bird Conservatory right at Hawk Watch?
When I sound those out it sounds like dogs barking and trying to do human talk. LOL
rotflol, that would even be worse than I had imagined!
Poor Equil would be jumping out of the car at full speed! :-)
LOL. Right now I am hearing Arf weinersin. Talk about bad.
Rotflmbo!!!!
Well yea, Canada would be a nice place to end up on a wrong turn. How come you get to drive? You're going to drive the whole way? What do I do? Smack you when you get sleepy?
Jersey people don't allow talking in a car? Why do I have to be quiet? I don't think that's even possible.
ROFLMAO!!! Oh my goodness! She's got me down pat! That is exactly what I do....something reminds me of something and I start to tell that and then something I just said reminds me of something else and on it goes and I forget what I was saying to begin with! But duct tape?? Seriously?? That stuff is sticky! And it would hurt when you pulled it off! What are you going to use on my hands to stop me from ripping it off to begin with? Those zip tie thingies?
I can borrow my dads GPS. Then we only have to listen to the lady! And if by chance, I'm keeping you from hearing yourself think (yawn), she'll re-calculate and tell us where to go. Easy as 1 2 3!!
