The Marsh Project Week #29

My project was complicated this week by extreme heat.  Evidently something called a "heat dome" settled upon my area, and the temperature went up well past the "boiling water" stage.  People were trying to bake things in their cars to see what would happen.  It was hot.  It was really, really hot. I avoided the trail for a few days because it was so hot, and then I just had to get out there- not for a long time, just a brief foray into the woods to see what the critters were up to.  The dragonflies were flying around just fine; I could hear birds but for the most part they seemed to be laying low. 

Here are some hot tips for you: if you are thinking about going out into nature, and it's not just hot but HOT HOT HOT- (1) think twice and then think again before venturing on the trails; (2) bring plenty of water (3) wet down some bandannas, put them in little plastic bags, store them in the refrigerator overnight, and before going outside, put them in a little cooler along with more water. When you put one of those chilled bandannas around your neck or your head, it feels so good. I took one out of the cooler and put it in my backpack; when I took it out 30 minutes later, it was still wet but not cold.  It still felt good. 

Despite the heat, I did have several great sightings, including a common five-lined skink climbing up a tree. I had heard something rustling around in the dead leaves on the ground, and just as I was thinking it must not have been anything, I saw the skink start climbing.  If I had looked away, I would have missed it:

I thought that I would see no snakes, but as I was observing a dragonfly flying around a branch and waiting to see if it would settle, I looked down and found this cottonmouth cooling off in the stream. 

 

Finally, my walking paid off, because I got to see a dragonfly I don't see very often: a swift river cruiser.  It was almost time to go back to the parking lot, and as often happens, the good finds start right before the park closing time.  

The "heat dome" seems to have backed off a bit; tomorrow, the weather forecast is for somewhat lower temperatures- meaning just hot, not bake your skin off when you step outside hot. 

Seen on the trails: Yellow-crowned night heron, painted bunting, Carolina chickadee, great blue heron, green heron, little blue heron, great egret, scissor-tailed flycatcher, Western kingbird, Carolina wren, great blue skimmer, Eastern pondhawk, regal darner, swamp darner, slaty skimmer, neon skimmer, widow skimmer, Eastern ringtail, swift river cruiser, cobra clubtail, black saddlebags, queen butterfly, several raccoons.