Corn Snakeroot

There is such appeal to the corn snakeroot for me. I think it is mostly that cornflower blue color, but I also like the thistle-y form.

The formal name is Eryngium aquaticum. It is in the carrot family and has many other common names: Button snakeroot eryngo, button snakeroot, eryngo, feverweed, rattlesnake flag, rattlesnake master, rattlesnake weed, and water eryngo. These common names come from the thought that parts of the plant could be used to treat snake bite.  (I wouldn’t recommend it.)

They seem to like to have their “feet wet” (hence that aquaticum part of its name) and can be found growing in marshy areas beside roads.

Mailbox Monday: A-tisket, A-tasket

It’s a mail basket!

Great Scot! Great Egrets!!

On Halloween we hiked with friends down at the St. Marks lighthouse. The great egrets were having a “great” time congregating around a floodgate.

And there were a few stragglers.

I’m thinking this could be a “great” Rorschach test.

Tell me, do you see two birds with their reflections or do you see two slightly opened human mouths? (You may have to squint for the latter.)

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A week later, there were even more egrets to be seen, but at a greater distance. They were gathered here across the pond from the picnic area.

What? You don’t see them? There were dozens of them.

OK. I’ll zoom in. Is this better?

There were a few white ibis thrown in for good measure in this group.

It’s a great year for great egrets.

Fall Decor

Many trees change their leaf colors to red, orange and gold in the fall. This tree has a different way of decorating for fall.

This large shelf lichen was a beautiful, fuzzy, rusty orange.

And something has found it enticing  enough to nibble the edge.

The Beauty of the Helix

Most beautyberries arrange their berries in clusters spaced out on a mostly bare stem.

But driving through the Ochlockonee River Wildlife Management Area B noticed this one plant that did things a little differently. (The light was harsh and the plant was not near the road. This was my best shot, but it is not wonderful.)

The berries spiraled around the stem, forming a right-handed helix on the stem on the left; and it looks like a left-handed helix on the right.

There were dozens and dozens of beautyberry plants in the area, but we only saw this one plant with this arrangement.

It Was a Slow Day

Not in the usual sense, but we did happen upon two turtles.

The first was a yellow-bellied slider in our own cul-de-sac. There is a swamp across from us.

This turtle was the size of my foot. B discovered what we are reasonably certain was  a leech on the side of the shell.

Look at how it could extend itself as it moved.

The second was a box tortoise in the  Ochlockonee River Wildlife Management Area. It was half the size of the slider.

So guys, if you are going to go that slow on the road, please stay in the right lane.

Fly Fishing Near Helen, Georgia

B and D enjoy fly fishing, especially for trout in the colder waters in the mountains. On Friday and Saturday, they got their chance. D had rented waders to make the experience a little more comfortable for them. Some adjustments were required.

Knots have to be tied.

Not bad scenery.

K and I amused ourselves with our own activities. I took schoolwork and we take pictures.

I like exploring the rocks.

Sometimes, I play. (I only added the toes.)

Just before dusk, six deer came across the large meadow.

This is another place the guys fished.

They each caught one here.

Pretty little trout!

 

I think they decided that waders are the way to wade. Standing in the water in the summer gets cold; but in the fall, it gets uncomfortable.