The Gateway To Peace

The Gateway To Peace.
This is one of the loveliest yards in town, with a gate made of wood and vines.

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Pinewood Gingertail Mushrooms

Pinewood Gingertail Mushrooms

(Xeromphalina campanella ) are some of the tiniest mushrooms. There can actually be thousands of them on one log. They grow on the rotting wood of conifers from late spring through fall here in Vermont. Plus there's an orange mycena mushroom, as well.

Pinewood Gingertails and an orange mycena Mushroom

Pinewood Gingertail Mushrooms

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Froggy World

Rock Lounging Or Waiting For A Snack

Frog hanging out by the pond.

Froggy Companion Hanging Out With Me On The Shore 

Green Frog 

Lithobates clamitans or (Rana clamitans)

is a common amphibian found living in shallow freshwater ponds, streams, road-side ditches, lakes, swamps, streams, and brooks in the northeastern United States. They are typically green to brownish with obscure brown spots or blotches and two distinctive ridges that run from each eardrum, down both sides of the back, and the underside of this species is whitish. Males may have bright yellow throats. Mature females are typically larger than males. The male tympanum (hearing structure behind the eye) is twice the diameter of the eye, whereas the female’s is about the same size as the eye. Their distinctive call sounds like a plucked banjo string, usually given as a single note, but sometimes repeated. Green frogs will eat insects, spiders, fish, crayfish, shrimp, other frogs, tadpoles, small snakes, and snails. 

Green Frog Smile

The Greenest Frog I've Ever Seen

Green On Green

A Green frog amongst duckweed and grasses at the edge of a pond. Duckweed, or water lens, are flowering aquatic plants which float on or just beneath the surface of still or slow-moving bodies of fresh water and wetlands. Also known as "bayroot", Duckweed is an important high-protein food source for waterfowl and also is eaten by humans in some parts of Southeast Asia. The tiny plants provide cover for many aquatic species. Duckweed is being touted as a miracle plant for many reasons including: Cost effective renewable energy, biofuel Water filter, Mosquito prevention, Prevents algae growth, Reduces evaporation on bodies of water, Virtually free animal feed, Food for humans.

Green Frog In Duckweed

Golden Eyes
I love the way she has her hands turned under.

American bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus)

The baritone call of the male bullfrog is so deep and resonant, it resembles the mooing of a cow, hence its name, and their choruses can be heard during the day or night. The largest of all North American frogs, this giant can grow to a length of 8 inches or more and weigh up to 1.5 pounds. Found in freshwater ponds, lakes, and marshes, Bullfrogs are typically green or gray-brown with brown spots and have easily identifiable circular eardrums, or tympanum, on either side of their heads.

Nocturnal predators, they will ambush and eat just about anything they can fit in their ample mouths, including insects, mice, fish, birds, and snakes. They sit quietly and wait for prey to pass by, then lunge with their powerful hind legs, mouths open wide.

Males are highly territorial and will aggressively guard their land. Females are slightly larger than males.

Pickerel Frog, 

(Lithobates palustris) is a smooth medium to relatively large sized frog, which has tan skin with prominent bronze dorsolateral folds. It is often confused with the Northern Leopard Frog (Rana pipiens). However, the Pickerel frog has two parallel rows of squarish chocolate-brown spots on its back, between the dorsolateral folds, while the Leopard frog's spots are round, more random, and scattered. The pickerel frog often has bright yellow or orange coloration on the inside concealed surface of the thigh, while the Leopard frogs are white in the same area. The leopard frog may be either green or brown. The call of the pickerel frog is similar to that of the leopard frog but lacks its low grunts.

Pickerel Frog

Northern Leopard Frog
(Lithobates pipiens or Rana pipiens)

Northern leopard frogs are named for the irregularly shaped dark spots that adorn their backs and legs. They are greenish-brown in color with a pearly white underside and light-colored ridges on either side of their backs. They are considered medium-size, reaching lengths of 3 to 5 inches. Females are slightly larger than males. The northern leopard frog has several different color variations, with the most common being the green and the brown. They are found in ponds, swamps, marshes, and slow-moving streams throughout forest, open, and urban areas. They normally inhabit water bodies with abundant aquatic vegetation. In the summer, they will often venture into well-covered grasslands as well, earning them their other common name, the meadow frog. They eat a wide variety of animals, including crickets, flies, beetles, ants, worms, and smaller frogs. Using their large mouths, they can even swallow birds and garter snakes. The Leopard frog is  the state amphibian of Minnesota and Vermont.

Green Frog & A Leaf 
With Cool Shadows On Duckweed

 Tree Frog
Also known as Spring Peeper 
Spring peepers are small tree frogs, with smooth skin in shades of tan, brown, green, or gray, with lines that form an X shaped pattern on their backs. Their bellies are white to cream-colored, and they have dark bands on their legs and a dark line between their eyes.

Spring peepers are well camouflaged to look like tree bark and can make themselves lighter or darker to better match their surroundings. The pad on each of the amphibians toes allow it to grip onto plants, while its webbed hind feet give it support. Although they are good climbers, they spend most of their time on the ground, often hiding under leaf litter during the day. Spring peepers are rarely seen, but during mating season in the spring, they are often heard. They live in moist, wooded areas, fields, and grassy lowlands near ponds and wetlands. They are very tolerant of cold conditions and hibernate during the winter in soft mud near ponds, under logs, and in holes or loose bark in trees. They can withstand freezing during winter hibernation due to a natural antifreeze in their blood. Snakes, salamanders, large carnivorous insects, raptors, and other birds prey on adult spring peepers. Tadpoles are eaten by aquatic invertebrates and salamander larvae. Adult spring peepers come out to feed in the late afternoon and early evening. They generally eat beetles, ants, flies, and spiders. Tadpoles feed on algae and microorganisms. Spring peepers are known for the males mating call, a high-pitched peeping sound repeated about 20 times a minute. However, the faster and louder they sing, the greater the chances of attracting a mate. They often congregate near water and sing in trios, with the deepest-voiced frog starting the call. They begin breeding early in the spring and call on warm spring nights and during the day in rainy or cloudy weather. Females lay their eggs in vernal pools, ponds, and other wetlands where fish are not present. A female may lay anywhere from 750 to 1,200 eggs, which attach to submerged aquatic vegetation. Males fertilize the eggs as they are laid. Depending on the temperature, eggs can hatch within 2 days to 2 weeks. The tadpoles have gills to breathe underwater and tails to help them swim. Tadpoles transform into frogs over the course of 6 to 12 weeks. Spring peepers are said to have short lives, living 3 to 4 years at most.

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Gentian Pollination

Gentian being pollinated by a bee.
Bottleneck Gentian's corolla remains closed at the top even when the flower is ready for pollinating insects. Bumblebees are it's primary pollinators, as they are one of the few insects that can force their way past the closed corolla. Some gentians are used in herbal medicine as an anti-inflammatory, to lower fevers, strengthener of the memory, and as a liver tonic. It's also used as a gastric stimulant to treat a loss of appetite, digestive problems, flatulence, and insufficient production of gastric juices and saliva. It's often used in Bitters.

Cutest Little Bum

Yes, that is a bumblebee tush sticking out of a bottleneck gentian flower.

Bottleneck Gentian Flowers

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Disclaimer

My blog is meant to inform and I strive to be totally accurate. It is solely up to the reader to ensure proper plant identification. Some wild plants are poisonous or can have serious adverse health effects.

Apple Blossoms Surprise

Apple Blossoms In September? 

Yes, I took this photo today, in South Burlington, Vt. 

Have you ever seen a fruit tree bloom any time other than spring? 

THANKS FOR YOUR VISITS, FAVS AND COMMENTS. AS ALWAYS, APPRECIATED VERY MUCH!

© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED BY ELISE T. MARKS. PLEASE DO NOT USE THIS IMAGE ON WEBSITES, BLOGS OR ANY OTHER MEDIA WITHOUT MY EXPLICIT WRITTEN PERMISSION.