Giants, Lizards and River Cruisers

Yesterday I wandered through parts of Lambton County that I hadn't been to yet this year. Butterflies have been fewer than normal...maybe that is the new normal. Anyway, I hadn't come across any Giant Swallowtails yet this year, which is unusual given how far the summer is along. They were totally absent or in very low numbers on some of the local butterfly counts.

I often found a few in the past at the Bickford Oak Woods Conservation Reserve in west central Lambton, so that was one of my targets. There are two large grassy tallgrass prairie patches at BOWCR, each of several hectares in size They were planted into predominantly prairie vegetation about 15 years ago. I had no sooner started out into the prairie patch when I noticed a large butterfly fluttering in the distance. Bingo, not one, not two, but three Giant Swallowtails.

Some were on Swamp Milkweed, but there was an abundance of Teasel, and although it is not a native species, the butterflies didn't seem to mind at all. In fact Teasel seemed to be the preferred species. I saw at least seven of these giants at BOWCR and about 14 species of butterfly altogether in the BOWCR area.

 There is an abundance of tallgrass prairie plants at BOWCR, some of which are quite rare. This first one is Compass Plant (Silphium laciniatum). It grows fairly tall, standing well above many other prairie plants. It is arguably native in Ontario, although that isn't without some debate. Regardless, there are populations of it in Essex, Chatham-Kent and Elgin.

 This next one, Grey-headed Coneflower (Ratibida pinnata) is not nearly as rare, but still quite uncommon in prairie and prairie type settings. It is restricted mainly to Essex, Lambton and Chatham-Kent.

 Dense Blazing-star (Liatris spicata) shown next, is protected under Ontario's Endangered Species Act. It is restricted largely to Essex, Lambton and Chatham-Kent as well.

Painted Lady

Viceroy

A bit further east from BOWCR is the Moore Wildlife Area. A section of the Sydenham River goes through it, and although with the high water earlier in the year making the trail impassible, the water level had dropped considerably, and as long as one could make it through the extensive dense stands of Giant Ragweed that reached well over two metres in height, one could make it to the river in a couple of places.

As is typical of various sections of the Sydenham River, Lizard's-tail is quite abundant even though it is rare in Ontario. I saw several patches.

 Not surprisingly there was a bit of Swamp Milkweed along the lower and wetter areas near the river, and Monarchs were using them from time to time.

 This Monarch was resting on a milkweed leaf. Clearly it has seen better times, but in spite of its damaged wings, it was doing its best to carry on butterfly activities while it could.

 There were lots and lots of damselflies, and especially abundant were Ebony Jewelwings.

male

female

 The photo above is that of White Vervain (Verbena urticifolia). Its tiny, delicate white flowers go almost unnoticed to the casual eye.

I had a Hackberry Emperor stop by, allowing me a couple of quick photos before a gust of wind caused the Giant Ragweed to blow too hard, dislodging its fluttery occupant.

Another one I came across is this Common Wood-Nymph.

There were lots of dragonflies along the river, and I saw good numbers of Common Whitetail and Widow Skimmer.

But the real highlight for me was to see at least two individuals of this large dragonfly patrolling the river, sometimes disappearing around a bend but eventually coming back my way. It is a Royal River Cruiser. I had never photographed one before, and I did not have a lot of success this time, but at least a few shots were identifiable. It never landed within view, and its fast and often erratic flight made it challenging to say the least.

Another target area I had for the day was to stop by Long Creek, a tributary of the Sydenham River a bit northeast of Dresden. There is a bridge that crosses the creek along Kent Road, which is the boundary between Lambton and Chatham-Kent. Right at the bridge I found....are you ready for it.....Lizard's-tail! Both upstream in Lambton and downstream in Chatham-Kent.

 I came across a couple of stems of Sneezeweed (Helenium autumnale) ust coming into flower.

 A close-up of the stem, below, shows the "wings".

 This next one is Wild Senna (Senna hebecarpa) and is although it doesn't have any official status under the ES Act either, it is ranked as S1, which means there are five or fewer known populations in Ontario. It grows along Kent Line on both sides of the county line.

Before getting all the way home, I stopped along a roadside a bit northeast of Chatham to see if this shrub species, ranked S3, was still around. Although it has been cut numerous times during roadside maintenance, it persists but is not in great shape. It is Pawpaw (Asimina triloba).

Floodplain Favourites

Some parts of the local southern Ontario landscape don't look all that impressive at first glance.......a slow, placid meandering stream through a largely agricultural landscape, maybe with some trees and shrubs lining one or both sides. Ho hum. Yet some of them have a surprising array of interesting species of flora and fauna, including some that are quite rare.

Take this first image, photographed from the bridge just east of C-K Road 15 along Kent Line.

It is of a little known place called Long Creek and is largely on private property, so it doesn't get all that much attention as it passes from southern Lambton County into adjacent Chatham-Kent. But at this time of year, there is a surprising abundance of a fairly rare plant called Lizard's-tail (Saururus cernuus), which in places, lines both sides of this waterway.

Eventually when all the flowers have been in flower, the 'tail' will be almost straight up, but at this stage, it is quite attractive with its drooping nature. Although it is widely scattered across southern Ontario and can be abundant in areas where it does occur, it is listed as S3, which means provincially it is Vulnerable with between 21-80 known occurrences.

A bonus of stopping at this location is that just a few hundred metres away, along the road and a smaller branch of this waterway is another rarity and a member of the Legume family also in flower: Wild Senna (Senna hebecarpa).  It is sometimes known as Cassia hebecarpa.

Wild Senna is Critically Imperilled in Ontario, being officially ranked as S1, meaning 5 or fewer occurrences in the province. It is found on both sides of the road at this location, and therefore is in both Lambton and Chatham-Kent, although the majority of it here is in C-K. It also occurs in Essex. In spite of Wild Senna's extreme rarity, it has not yet been officially evaluated and placed on either federal or provincial legislated lists of Species At Risk.


Another rarity quite noticeable at this time of year is a member of the Composite Family: Wingstem (Verbesina alternifolia). It was formerly known as Actinomeris alternifolia.

Its Ontario range is limited to Essex, Chatham-Kent, Lambton and Elgin, and is officially S3 (Vulnerable). Although technically Vulnerable, it has not yet been evaluated and added to either federal or provincial legislated lists. The 'wings' along the main stem and rounded central disk, are notable identifying characteristics. It grows along various floodplain woodland settings and sometimes at the damp edges of woodlands. This small stand of a dozen or so plants is one I came across while checking out another Lizard's-tail population along the Sydenham River.

Yet another rarity that grows along floodplain woods, as well as damp rich forests, is Goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis). It isn't in flower now, as it only flowers for a very brief period typically in very late April or early May. The flowers are in their best condition just as the leaves are unfolding, as noted in the middle photo. The bottom photo shows the small red fruits that are present in mid-summer.

Goldenseal is considered S2 (Imperilled), meaning there are between 6-20 populations known in Ontario. It is legally listed as Threatened under the federal Species At Risk Act and the provincial Endangered Species Act.

Its rarity is due to declining habitat as well as its popularity for medicinal purposes. Due to its legislated status both federally and provincially, I will not be divulging any locations for it.

When exploring these meandering waterways, one can always be on the lookout for other rarities. Here is a Blanding's Turtle, enjoying some mid-August sun. Blanding's Turtles are also Threatened under both federal and provincial legislation.