Journal Entry #4: Invertebrates

My third visit to my natural area in Redmond, there were many significant changes that have occurred during my two week absence. While I was at Mount Rainier for my natural history field trip, Bigleaf maple leafs began to turn a bright yellow and fall to cover a majority of the forest floor. When I arrived to my area, only decomposing needles and moss covered the ground. Since there are many Bigleaf maples in other areas of the reserve, my area was free from decomposing broad leaves. Many plants are at the early stages of dying off before the winter such as the Devil's club. As I observed my site carefully I noticed that there was no longer any recognizable Devil's club leaves. Only their spiny and sharp branches emerged from the ground but have started to slightly lean over. Along with the Devil's club, many fungi that have seen in this area have completely disappeared, yet some new fungi have emerged but in different locations. Shrimp mushrooms have started to grow near decomposing logs and wood that have high amounts of moss on them. Along with the shrimp mushrooms, Witches butter has also emerged on dying logs but this type of fungi could only be seen near the developed paved path in the reserve. It's odd bright orange gelatinous shape easily catches the eye of either people or animals walking by. Another bright orange fungus that began to grow on old trees was the Orange peel fungus. Characterized by it's cup-like shape and distinctive orange color also makes it easy to see in this dark green and brown natural area. Although the fungi was plentiful, the skunk cabbage was also in full force. Since this area is a wetland, the moisture concentration is very high and allows this plant to grow large leaves to catch sunlight. While sitting at my natural area I could hear the constant hammering of a woodpecker at work. From my previous experience seeing woodpeckers in this area, my best guess for the species would be a pileated woodpecker. I continued to walk through the reserve towards the water to gaze upon the stillness it brings. Small chipmunks would make squeaking noises as I walk through the dense forest. But I spent the majority of my time in this area observing numerous insects in my natural area.

 This invertebrate is common called a Blue Darner or Aeshna multicolor. It is characterized by it's distinctive blue spots that run along the top of its segmented abdomen. Also this species of dragonfly has two fore wings and two hind wings which give it more control and maneuverability while in flight. This insect is covered by a hard black exoskeleton with a few blue spots. Also, it has three pairs of legs and uses these to land on plants and other objects. While observing this organism I noticed that it tends to land on vertical blades on thick grass. As I watched it fly across the water in the still pond, it would move quickly to various logs where it would land for about three to five seconds and then move on to the next area.

This cute little fuzzy insect is called the Banded Woollybear Caterpillar or Pyrrharctia isabella. This caterpillar is not very hard to distinguish and many people have seen these in the wild before. It is characterized by it's two black bands on each end of it;s body with an red/orange band directly in the middle. This caterpillar is engulfed with small bristles which give it some defense against predators and some species in it's family produce histamines that can be transferred when the bristles are touched by a foreign object. Also, I gently touched it with a twig and it quickly formed into a curl and stayed in that position until it believed the threat was gone. Also, a completely black head can be seen at  one end of the caterpillar yet all of its legs are covered by bristles.

This invertebrate is called the Ground Beetle or Pterostichus lama. This beetle is very common in decomposing coniferous forests under rotting or fallen logs. It can be characterized by it's ridged abdominal exoskeleton structure as well as it's constricted thorax and abdomen junction. This beetle is usually nocturnal so I have to lift up a few pieces of decomposing wood in order to see and observe this organism. I would flee immediately when exposed to sunlight and I tried to cover it with a leaf to test whether the darkness meant some safety for them. When I placed a leaf on top of the fleeing beetle, it completely stopped moving and would not emerge from under the leaf until it thought the threat was gone. Also, when exposed to sunlight this beetle would scramble towards any wood and covered areas.

The insect shown in this sketch is the Black Carpenter Ant or Camponotus pennsylvanicus. This ant is very common in decaying forests and moist environments. This ant can be characterized by it's large head, hairy thorax, and slightly brown legs. The behavior of this ant was very strange and complex. this species of ant is usually found in large swarms and there were only a few I found in my area. I dug through some decaying bark and wood piled on the ground and found some to observe. They usually scatter when exposed to daylight light and taken from their decomposing warehouse of wood. Their abdomen is plated which allows more maneuverability for the exoskelton which tend to be stiff and hard.     

Finally the last invertebrate I decided to sketch was the Sow bug or Oniscus asellus. When observing this organism, I thought it would be able to roll into a ball as a defense mechanism but I was surprised to notices that the edges of it's exoskeleton were horizontal and flat. This structure prevents the sow bug from rolling into a ball and therefore much look to shelter for protection. This insect is characterized by it's overlapping shelled exoskeleton as well as it;s two large antennae that it uses to detect objects. Also, this bug has seven pairs of legs making it distinctive from other insects. When exposed to light, the Sow bug would retreat to dark moist areas and would try to remain covered no matter what.

Some other invertebrates I encountered on my trip to my natural area were Waterstriders (Aquarius remigis), Brown marmorated stink bugs (Halyomorpha halys), and a Yellow-spotted millipede (Harpaphe haydeniana)