26 de mayo de 2021

Northwest Illinois Public Natural Areas

Stephenson County
Lake Le-Aqua-Na State Park (closed for 2020, expected open summer 2021)
Indian Gardens (Jane Addams Parkland Foundation) Lamm and Walnut, Freeport
Freeport Prairie – a small remnant prairie surrounded by a small restored buffer
Oakdale Nature Preserve (Freeport Park District)
Wetlands Preserve (FPD)
Jane Addams Trail
Hide-a-way park (Pearl City Park District) 8701 W Block Rd, Pearl City – a small neglected woodland and river park
Mill Pond (PCPD) Goldmine Rd, Pearl City – wetland actively being restored
Espenscheid Forest (JAPF) Rock city, IL
Butterfly Farm (JAPF) along Jane Addams Trail, south of Orangeville
Wohlford Woods (JAPF) along Jane Addams Trail, in Buena Vista

Jo Davies County
Wards Grove Nature Preserve
Apple River Canyon State Park
Mississippi Palisaides SP
Buehler Preserve (JDCF)
Casper Bluff (JDCF)
Galena Gateway Park (JDCF)
Hanover Bluff (NIPE)
Horseshoe mounds (JDCF)
Schurmieir Teaching Forest (JDCF)
Valley of Eden Bird Sanctuary (JDCF)
Wapello Land and Water Preserve (JDCF)

Ogle County
Elkhorn Creek Audubon Preserve (NWIA) southwest of Forreston at the intersection of West Grove and Freeport Roads on the southeast corner. The parking area is accessed from West Grove Road.
Silver Creek Audubon Preserve directly south of Leaf River on the southwestern corner of the intersection of Leaf River and West Grove Roads.
White Pines SP
Castle Rock SP
Lowden SP
Lowden-Miller SP

Carroll County
Ayers Sand Prairie
Brookville Lutheran Cemetery Prairie
Sentinel

South West Wisconsin
Cadiz Springs State Rec Area (Browntown)

Publicado el mayo 26, 2021 02:53 TARDE por k2018lena k2018lena | 0 comentarios | Deja un comentario

17 de enero de 2021

Illinois Sumac

Staghorn: is fuzzy, serrated long leaflets
Smooth: no hair, serrated long leaflets
Northern: a hybrid that has some hairs but not abundant
winged or shining– wings in between branches, fruit droops
fragrant: 3 broader leaflets with middle biggest

look alikes: walnuts are fine serration, tree of heaven just a few leaf scent glands at base

Publicado el enero 17, 2021 05:58 TARDE por k2018lena k2018lena | 0 comentarios | Deja un comentario

Illinois bell flowers

Trying to learn to distinguish the bell flowers found in Illinois.

Useful Terms:
Acintomorphic – radial symmetry (daisy)
Zygomorphic – only one way to make symmetrical (orchid)
corolla – the collective petals of a flower
sessile – without stem/stalk

Split Corolla – Lobelia
Leaves sessile, often clasping. Solitary sessile flower – Triodanis
Else - Campanula

Triodanis
bracts circular or ovate T. perfoliata
bracts linear or lanceolate T. leptocarpa (rare)

Lobelias
Red – Lobelia cardinalis
Rose – might be a hybrid of cardinalis and siphilitica
Blue (sometimes white)-

  • not very hairy, larger flowers, lancelate or oblong ovate leaves L. siphilitica
  • southern Illinois, really hairy stems etc, smaller flowers L. puberula
  • Chicago area, bottom petals hairy, small flowers, pale blue, not very dense racemes, thin upper leaves,
    spatula bottom leaves L. kalmii
    L. inflata, small pale blue flowers with inflated seed capsules
    L. spicata, tiny pale blue or white flowers

Campanula
narrow leaves

  • not very hairy: rotundifolia
  • white corolla: aparinoides
  • blue corolla: ulginosa
    ovate leaves

  • splayed out flower: americana
  • flowers with short pedicle, drooping, 1 sided raceme: rapunculoides
  • sessile errect flowers: glomerata
Publicado el enero 17, 2021 05:56 TARDE por k2018lena k2018lena | 0 comentarios | Deja un comentario

27 de marzo de 2020

Illinois Trilliums

Trillium recurvatum: Molted leaves, sessile usually maroon flowers, leaves taper to a petiole, sepals hang down from flower

Trillium erectum: maroon or white with maroon ovary nodding flower held above leaves

Trillium sessile: leaves sessile, sepals above leaves, sessile maroon flowers

Trillium grandiflorum: large white flower held above on a short stalk, to side but not drooping

Trillium flexipes: white flower held drooping on a short stalk just above or below leaves

Trillium nivale: 2-4in tall (smaller than other white trillium) white flower on short petiole, more ovate leaves base rounder than tip

from: https://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/

Publicado el marzo 27, 2020 03:25 TARDE por k2018lena k2018lena | 0 comentarios | Deja un comentario

09 de septiembre de 2019

Distinguishing Silphium in Illinois by their leaves

S. terebinthinaceum: Large upright arrow-shaped leaves at base of plant
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/31934856

S. intergrifolium: leaves opposite going up stem but not joined together
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/31935369

S. perfoliatum: leaves opposite going up stem and joined together forming a cup
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/29797854

S. lacinatum: leaves highly lobed and pointed
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/29409542

Publicado el septiembre 9, 2019 03:28 TARDE por k2018lena k2018lena | 0 comentarios | Deja un comentario

27 de julio de 2018

Ferns

Learning new terminology that is needed in fern identification:

frond: the leaf like collection of leaves on a stalk
pinna: divisions of leaves
pinules: divisions of pinna
lobes: divisions of pinules
sori/sorus: the reproductive spots on underside
Stipe: part of stalk until leafy area
rachis: stalk within the leafy area

The D. cathusiana is distinguished from close relatives by the inner most pinule on bottom pinna being the same size or longer than the ones around it and also the individual leaflets have a jagged edge.

Identification could be further verified by turning the frond over to locate the sori. Will need to make sure to take a pic of both bottom and top of frond in future, as well as the overall structure of the fern, although in this case there was only one visible frond.

Publicado el julio 27, 2018 05:21 TARDE por k2018lena k2018lena | 0 comentarios | Deja un comentario

Popilla Japonica

I learned that p. japonica can be distinguished from other green bodied copper wing metallic look-a-likes by having white tufts of hair along the abdomen and two on the backside. However, in browsing some of the IDs it looks like in some more tropical climates there are other beetles that might also have this.

Publicado el julio 27, 2018 05:16 TARDE por k2018lena k2018lena | 1 observación | 0 comentarios | Deja un comentario

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