Hello, friends. This blog is where the El Camino Real Chapter, Texas Master Naturalists shares news, articles, and reflections. You’ll find our posts right under this introduction. We encourage your comments and likes, and of course, shares!
Our chapter meets monthly on the second Thursday of the month in the fellowship hall at All Saints Episcopal Church, 200 North Travis Avenue, Cameron, Texas. Presentations begin at 6 pm, after a potluck meal. All are welcome to attend.
Our Mission: To develop a corps of well-informed volunteers to provide education, outreach, and service dedicated to the beneficial management of natural resources and natural areas within their communities for the State of Texas.
This time of year brings so much nature right to our front AND back door. Songbirds singing and flowers blooming. Hummingbirds dive bombing each other over ownership of the sugar water feeder. And snakes, spiders and other creepy crawlers around every corner and under your feet. But every year about this time I also get a fun surprise from that pesky critter, the squirrel. I have A LOT of squirrels. Mostly Eastern Fox Squirrels. They entertain me as much as the hummingbirds. Always finding ways to get their share of bird seed from the feeders.
I put up a corncob wheel spinner and they don’t have any trouble getting that corn.
I had one in Florida and those squirrels would jump on and spin round and round, even getting thrown off trying to get it. But they weren’t as large as Texas squirrels.
Last summer I had this fellow show up.
I had never seen jet-black fur on a squirrel. I put it on iNat and no one made a peep about it. I looked it up to find out that it is the result of a rare genetic mutation causing excess pigmentation and that the odds of seeing one are estimated at only 1 in 10,000!
Then just today I was heading back to fill a deer feeder and passed a bird house with a cute little guy with big black eyes starring out at me. Baby squirrel, I thought, and grabbed my phone but only got pictures as it climbed the oak tree.
Once I got back inside and looked at the pictures, I found, to my surprise:
A Southern Flying squirrel!
I had never seen one. Research told me that they are mostly found in the eastern portion of our state, where mature hardwood forests are more common. They rely on natural tree hollows or old woodpecker cavities, or I guess an unused bird box for nesting. Their diet is omnivorous and includes nuts, seeds, fungi, berries, insects and probably the same treats I leave for my birds and ground squirrels. They can breed up to twice a year producing small litters of 2-6 young. And because of their nocturnal habits and small size, flying squirrels often go unnoticed by humans. I probably woke this guy up.
I am going to have to keep an eye out for them and my camera ready, as my husband said he wants proof of the flying action.
On Sunday morning, I went for a walk at sunrise. The fog made the morning quite beautiful over my property.
As I walked I couldn’t help but notice how beautiful the garden spiders’ webs looked with frost on them.
The wildflowers added to the beauty!
I got curious and looked up how the dew and spiderwebs interact. The droplets condense on the webs, and when the sun comes out, the droplets can create prism effects.
Shiny!
The webs are present all the time, but usually the spider silk is so thin that we humans can’t see it. Thanks to Nature for providing these ephemeral beauties!
On Saturday, May 23, our chapter finally enjoyed our long-delayed field trip to the Muller property on the border of Milam and Burleson Counties. It’s probably a good thing there were delays, because ample rain in the last couple of months prompted the May wildflowers to make up for a lackluster March and April.
In preparation for the field trip, Terri Brickey created rustic signs pointing to trails and other landmarks, and she also made beautiful maps of the property and the trails AD Muller has carved out through the woods, meadows, pastures, and scenic vistas. This undertaking was much appreciated by those who explored the trails. The property has many interesting trees, shrubs, forbs and wildflowers, so it’s a dream for iNaturalist fans. I also heard or saw 25 bird species, which is pretty darned good, too.
The Zombie YrailTerri identifies beesOne of the signs
Some of the chapter members didn’t explore the woods and fields, but that’s okay, because Carolyn’s front porch is a prime nature watching location. We enjoyed watching Rocky the friendly raccoon (no, no one touched him), a mother Phoebe and her nest, a large swamp rabbit, the resident catfish in the pond, and plenty of songbirds. If we’d stayed longer, we could have seen the many armadillos and deer.
RockyPhoebe nestMrs PhoebeSwamp rabbitSquirrel in charge of the trough
Those of us who like insects and reptiles were not disappointed, either. I found many butterflies (including an elusive small sulphur) and various wasps. Terri tried to get photos of native bees, but they were very active!
Can you see the lizard?Ringed paper waspCommon checkered white Common whitetailTed harvester antsPipevine swallowtail Dusky-blue groundstreak
And of course, there were plants! I uploaded 125 or so observations to iNaturalist, with only a few duplicate entries. There were a few rare plants that I’d seen last year and was hoping to find again, and I did see some of them. There was also a new plant for us, the Fourpoint evening primrose (Oenothera rhombipetala). It apparently will grow up to five feet tall! There have been a few observations in the area, and it appears to not be seen west of I-35. Another fairly uncommon plant is Texas Sandmint (Rhododon ciliatus).
Fourpoint evening primrose Sandmint
There was lots and lots of Gaillardia sp. and spotted horsemint (a type of beebalm, Monarda). Plus other beauties.
Maroon blanket flower (Gaillardia amblyodon)Spotted horsemintPrickly poppy in monarda Drummond’s phloxSpiderwortActually not quite sure what this isWinecup mallowRattlebushPurple pleat leaf
We enjoyed some teeny tiny flowers, too. Both Terri and I like those.
One of my favorite sites was all the blossoming American beautyberry. That is one fine plant when it’s not drought conditions.
When we finished walking around (and stepping in lots of mud), Terri fed the resident catfish. Of course, we also took lots of photos of the wetland plants, which were many rushes and sedges.
It was extra pleasant to just hang around on the porch for a while, too. We do get excited about all the natural wonders we encounter, and we love to share!
Screenshot
There were many more sights, but you’ll just have to come on our next field trip to see for yourself!
Stereum
Photos by Sue Ann Kendall and Terri Brickey. Thanks to Carolyn and AD Muller for sharing their property.
While my crew was out putting up the Bat Acoustic device Friday, I stumbled across an iNaturalist’s heaven. The pasture was covered in wildflowers – and all the butterflies, bees and other flying insects in Central Texas, it seemed.
Chad Cryer and Teri Brickey had gone to explore the Little River, while I took pictures. I found two species that I had never seen before Friday. And I found a Texas Vervain that was five feet tall. The height seemed to throw off the identification for it on iNat. I was pretty sure it was a vervain, but iNat was unsure. Luckily, Linda Jo Conn verified it for me.
Texas Vervain – 5 feet tallTexas Indian Mallow – flower has a unique colorMexican Palo Verde – a tree-like plant growing under a larger tree;
Chapter members’ work is paying off with blooms in the new barrels with signage.
The budget approved by H-E-B included funds for last minute strenuous labor which Mitchell Henderson has been doing. He has been shoveling gravel and landscaping the upper pathway for easy access and greatly reduced weeding.
New construction will enable people to get close to Pollinators and native plants they are connected to.
The Pollinators for Texas project is a collaborative effort with H-E-B and the Texas Master Naturalist (TMN) Program focused on enhancing native pollinator conservation across the state by promoting awareness, conservation efforts and creating sustainable pollinator environments. The initiative aims to engage communities in supporting pollinator-friendly practices through funding TMN chapter-led projects and programs.
Nature Along the El Camino Real 