Gleaning Facebook: May at Arrowhead

The well-feathered Barn Swallow nest on the front porch at Arrowhead
is home to four speckled eggs as of Tuesday.

 

I may have interrupted this female Spiny Soft-shelled Turtle as she was preparing to lay some eggs right in the middle of the drive. After our extended photo shoot she ambled off the road and back to the lake.

Thanks to Ducks Unlimited and others for the 2012 wetland restoration at Arrowhead below our big lake. We use the picnic shelter here for almost every group that visits. From it we can watch Great Blue Herons, Killdeer, Great Egrets, Green Herons, Ducks, Geese, and more.

The Barn Swallows are still in the egg.

The Butterfy Weed (Asclepias tuberosa) is getting ready to bloom.

I noticed Wild Bee Balm (Monarda fistulosa) growing near the pond nearest Floyd Springs Road.

Wild Bee Balm (Monarda fistulosa)

The Butterfy Weed (Asclepias tuberosa) is getting ready to bloom.

Purpletop Vervain (Verbena bonariensis) This plant is a native of South America. It has escaped cultivation and grows in a ditch at Arrowhead, as well as in the flowerbeds.

Huckleberries? Blueberries?

I have done a lot of exploring the 350 acres of Arrowhead. I thought I'd seen all the ponds. Today I found one more secluded little pond.

Cirsium sp. (Thistle).

Another view of the pond I stumbled on today.

Plantago lanceolata (English Plantain)

Cicuta maculata (Water-hemlock)

Pyrrhopappus carolinianus (False-dandelion)

Allium canadense (Wild Onion)

Glandularia canadensis??? (Rose Vervain)

Plain Bellied Watersnake (Nerodia erythrogaster) Like most of our snakes in Georgia it is non-venomous. I didn't manage a very good pic. In my defense I must say: she didn't stick around to pose.

Sonchus asper (Spinyleaf Sow-thistle) or Sonchus oleraceus (Common Sow-thistle) (per Richard Ware)

Asclepias variegata (White Milkweed)  One of my favorites.

Scutellaria integrifolia (Narrow-leaf Skullcap)

Leucanthemum vulgare (Oxeye Daisy)