I took a walk around Carpenter Park in Cary this week. It didn’t seem like much was happening. There were a few turtles and a duck in the pond. There were a some eastern redbuds blooming at the front of the park, and some large white hydrangeas in full bloom in the back corner. Otherwise,… Continue reading A Springtime Walk in Carpenter Park
Author: Jaclyn
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A Trip to the Coast
Everywhere we go, we can’t help but be curious about the nature that surrounds us. We recently spent a few days at the beach here in North Carolina. While the star of the show was the Atlantic Ocean, we did take note of the plants and animals that crossed our path. Sea oats are a… Continue reading A Trip to the Coast
Adorable Ducklings
I love watching the babies this time of year! There is a mallard duck (Anas platyrhynchos) family with 10 ducklings at Morrisville Community Park this spring.
American Beech Trees Provide Winter Beauty
Did you know that American Beech (Fagus grandifolia) trees hang on to their golden brown leaves in the winter? It is thought that the leaves protect the new bud growth from hungry deer.
American Persimmon
Have you noticed piles of small white flowers on the ground? These are American Persimmon (Diospyros virginiana) flowers. Persimmon trees are dioecious, which means they have separate male and female trees. If you want to have persimmon fruit, you need to have both kinds of trees. You can tell the difference between the trees in… Continue reading American Persimmon
An Unusual Pair of Ducks in Bond Park
I came across a beautiful male wood duck (Aix sponsa) in Bond Park this week. He seemed to be friendly with a female mallard duck (Anas platyrhynchos). I read that it’s pretty common for both mallard ducks and wood ducks to breed with other types of ducks. Their hybrid offspring are usually infertile, though. If… Continue reading An Unusual Pair of Ducks in Bond Park
Ants
Have you ever noticed the large ant mounds that always seem to appear after the rain? The ants are busy rebuilding and relocating their nests. We saw at least 8 large ant hills on our walk today, all of them swarming with activity. This ant hill didn’t appear to have much going on. But look… Continue reading Ants
Autumn Beauty
I hope you’ve had a chance to get outside and enjoy the beautiful colors of autumn!
Biting Insects
Have you ever been bitten by a horsefly? Wow, that hurts! When I’m outside, I expect ticks to jump on me and mosquitos to bite me. Otherwise, bugs tend to leave you alone if you leave them alone. Right? I guess not. I walked out my front door and felt something like a razor hit… Continue reading Biting Insects
Black and Yellow Garden Spider
Fall is a great time to observe spiders. This is a black and yellow garden spider (Argiope aurantia). The female spider, shown above, can be over an inch long! Notice the zigzag pattern inside the web. This is called the stabilimentum. It is unclear what its function is, but it might be a warning to… Continue reading Black and Yellow Garden Spider