BOOK REVIEW:  In working out the list for natural flowers in our wetland we used the study from Yale  on Connecticut’s Freshwater Wetlands by Stephen P. Broeker, Yale Study. One of the first plants we chose to look for this spring is the Northern Pitcher Plant, Sarracenia
Purpurea. It flowers from May to July with dark red flowers. It is carnivorous as insects are trapped and digested inside the leaves.

NATURE THINGS TO OBSERVE THIS MONTH: Things to observe at camp this month (From Mass Audubon)  In the dried grasses of open fields, watch for the small winding tunnels of meadow mice. Last eastern phoebes and hermit thrushes can sometimes still be seen at this time of year. Watch for yellow rumped warblers and snow buntings. Some species of winter finches arrive at about this time. Watch for redpolls and white winged crossbills. First sheets of black ice appear on ponds. Gather weed stalks for winter arrangements. In old fields and meadows look for fuzzy rosettes of mullein. Hibernating animals go underground. Chipmunks, skunks and raccoons are still abroad. Wood asters and dandelions can still be found in bloom. Watch for the last flowering of evening primrose. Partridge berries are ripe. Watch for feeding grouse. Watch for the evergreen Christmas fern with leaflets like tiny stockings. See Orion and Pleiades. Find mouse nests, snake skins, chipmunk middens in your woodpile.

JOIN OUR ONGOING PROJECTS: We’re designing nature interpretation displays at Bird Spot One and Two;  We’re building owl and bat houses at camp Thursdays this winter; We’re discovering plants for the Solair Plant Atlas; We’re improving the camp GPS map and marking trails.

BOOK REVIEW:  In working out the list for natural flowers in our wetland we used the study from Yale  on Connecticut’s Freshwater Wetlands by Stephen P. Broeker, Yale Study. The second plant we chose to look for this spring is the Northern Blue Flag iris versicolor . It flowers from May to July. Leaves are folded on the midribs so they form an overlapping flat fan. The word flag comes from the Old English meaning rush or reed.

NATURE THINGS TO OBSERVE THIS MONTH: Things to observe at camp this month (From Mass Audubon)  Watch for the chipped off twigs of apple and sumac. Rabbits clip the twigs neatly; twigs with ragged ends  have been chewed off by deer. This is woodpecker season. According to folklore, on Twelfth Night animals can speak this night. At the full moon this is the traditional Hunger Moon of the Eastern Woodland Indians. Winter finch migration begins. Watch for flying bees and other insects in the January thaw. Watch for flocks of feeding pine grosbeaks in ash groves. Watch for basking stone flies  on rocks and tree trunks along woodland streams. Look for the bright purple stems of the red osier dogwood. Winter constellations are up. In rocky woodlands look for evergreen leaves of rock polypody. Polistes wasps and bluebottle flies emerge in sunny unused rooms on warm days.

JOIN OUR ONGOING PROJECTS: We’re designing nature interpretation displays at Bird Spot One and Two;  We’re building owl and bat houses at camp Thursdays this winter. The nature journal is being kept of weekly sightings and can be read at the Nature Library.

BOOK REVIEW:  In working out the list for natural flowers in our wetland we used the study from Yale  on Connecticut’s Freshwater Wetlands by Stephen P. Broeker, Yale Study. The third plant we chose to look for this spring is the Showy Lady’s Slipper  cypripedium reginae. It flowers from June to July. Flowers are pink and white and about 2 to 3 inches long. It is endangered in the state of Connecticut.  The word reginae comes from the Latin meaning queen.

NATURE THINGS TO OBSERVE THIS MONTH: Things to observe at camp this month (From Mass Audubon)  Groundhog day. Great horned owls begin nesting. Watch for snow fleas at base of tree trunks and boulders. Osier shrub stems begin to turn red. Listen for the sp;ring songs of chickadees and titmice. Flights of duck head north. Map;le sap begins running. Morning cloak butterflies  make flights on warm days. See red winged blackbirds. 

JOIN OUR ONGOING PROJECTS: We’re designing nature interpretation displays at Bird Spot One and Two;  We’re building owl and bat houses at camp Thursdays this winter. The nature journal is being kept of weekly sightings and can be read at the Nature Library.

NATURE THINGS TO OBSERVE:  1. Monarch butterflies are migrating: watch for them in coastal areas and over open fields. 2. Harvest moon of song and verse. 3. Goldenrod and asters in full bloom. 4. First hard frost. 5. Height of fall color  6. Robins and sparrows migrate about this time. Juncos arrive from the north. 7. Watch the night sky for autumnal constellations. 8. Nut crops ripen . Watch for foraging squirrels. 9. Look for bright bittersweet berries at forest edges. 10. See daddy longlegs in hayfields. Spiderlings disperse on warm days about this date. 11. Bears are fattening up for winter sleep. 12. Oaks change color. Look for the lingering yellowed leaves of beech.
13. Dragonflies can still be seen in warm meadows. 14. Watch for woolly bear caterpillars on sun-warmed roads.

JOIN OUR ONGOING PROJECTS: Uncovering the Native American hunting paths through our woodland;  Figuring out how to make maple syrup from the Solair maple trees; Designing nature interpretation displays at Bird Spot One and Two;  Building owl and bat houses on Thursdays this winter; Planning next summer’s nature group meet and greet; Planning astronomy night; Adding observations to our journal; Writing newsletter articles; Nature email chat; Adding nature library research books;  Discovering natural plants for the Solair Plant Atlas; Improving the camp GPS map; Maintaining and marking our trails.

NATURE THINGS TO OBSERVE:  1. Fruiting wild grapes  along stone walls and woodland edges. 2. Watch the moon at night for migrant wild birds silhouetted against it.  3. Berries of dogwood, cherry  and elderberry ripen  4. woolly bear caterpillars  are on the move  5. peak of the fall warbler migration-watch for them in backyard shrubbery and rooftops  6. after rains watch for mushrooms on lawns and in the forest  7. asters and goldenrods  bloom in old fields and along roadsides  8. blackpoll warblers move south en masse around this date  9. if the night is clear watch for the star system Cygnus “the swan” overhead and the Milky Way  10. green darner dragonflies begin migration-watch for them over fields and meadows 11. jack in the pulpit berries are ripe in wooded areas- look also for the doll’s eye berries of baneberry  12. hawk migration begins.

Nature group meeting:  Held at Peter B’s Site. In 2012 we plan to work on trails with Ed and Pat and help Peter B. finish a map of camp with GPS locations. We plan to tap some of our red maples for syrup this spring with Pat C. Our plant folks including Charlo M. will locate the natural plants on our acres so they can be entered in the Solar Plant Atlas and marked by Tom H. Next group meet and greet July 2012.

"Frogs cost more this summer."

NATURE THINGS TO OBSERVE  August 2011:
Goldfinches begin to nest. Yellow warblers and northern water thrushes move south. Barn swallows collect in pre-migratory flocks. Herons leave nesting sites. Watch for raccoons. First flowers of goldenrod appear. Red newts on dirt roads. Milky Way in sight. Asters bloom. Nighthawk migration. Fall webworms at tips of tree branches.

PURPOSE OF THE NATURE GROUP  AT SOLAIR. Why you should join us. The Solair property ecosystem has been described as an extraordinary and irreplacable wilderness and woodland. Our group brings attention to the needs of this varied natural habitat and seeks to record its mysteries and beauty for all Solair members to enjoy with their children.

PROJECTS:  We’re developing improved GPS maps and weekly journal records of seasonal changes in our camp ecosystem. We have an expanding Solair plant atlas with GPS. Email us with interesting plants you find at camp and we’ll mark and list them. Email also  to get info on future nature group events.

"It's our flag too."

NATURE THINGS TO OBSERVE ON THE TRAILS THIS MONTH: 1. Beginning of dog days named for Sirius the Dog Star¸which rises with the sun. 2. Day lilies bloom. 3. Listen for the whine of the cicadas. 4. Indian pipes appear in the woods. 5. Listen for the intermittent “weep” of the great crested flycatcher and the trilling chatter of the kingbirds. 6. Watch for monarch butterflies on milkweed plants. 7. fireflies appear. 8. meadowsweet and steeplebush bloom. 9. loosestrife flowers in wet areas. 10. snowy tree crickets  and cone headed grasshoppers sing. 12. pickerelweed blooms at pond edges.


Projects: We’re putting up labels on plants at both the bird spot one and bird spot two locations. Submit wild plant locations to us for labeling. In the library is a new Solair Plant atlas showing the plants and their locations by name and GPS. A GPS map is being developed based on current topo surveys.

"Your grass is greener."

NATURE THINGS TO OBSERVE ON THE TRAILS THIS JUNE 2011:  Monarch butterflies and dragonflies migrate northward about this time. Terns begin nesting in coastal areas. Listen for the bubbling sound of the indigo bunting. Orchids and bog wildflowers  bloom. Fireflies appear around this time. Watch the meadows and fields and let your lawn grow long. Watch the old fields  and uncut lawns for sun loving wildflowers. Listen for the haunting fluted song of the wood thrush. At dusk watch for the twisting flight of bats above lawns and open areas. Young hatch in heron rookeries. First meadow crickets begin singing.