Land Snails

A couple weeks ago I picked up a few land snail shells that I found on the side of the road and I thought I would share those. I have been collecting them for a few years and they offer a good winter identification challenge. No killing is involved because I find the empty shells where they have washed down the sides of mountains and hills often landed just next to roads. Here is where I collected these.

I photographed a few before I picked them up. Once you see one and have a search image they are pretty easy to spot because they are usually white and round unlike the sharp edged shale and other rocks.

This particular spot is very good because I found several different species. I have found it is best to place them in a hard container like an old pill bottle so they don’t get crushed or lost in my field bag.

To identify them I have been using “How to Know the Eastern Land Snails” by J. B. Burch but that is hard to come by these days so I most often recommend going to Dan and Judy Doursons pdf at: http://www.clemson.edu/public/naturalist/2011_upstate_master_naturalist_class/pdf/snails_smoky_mtns.pdf

The Dourson's use the same features as Burch to determine the species. 
First off I look at the shell and determine several factors such as the shell shape and lip type. The shapes are Pupa Shape, Beehive Shape, Heliciform Shape, Depressed Heliciform.  Since I didn't find all of these shapes I thought I would identify the big one with the reflective lip. I didn't take a photo of the shape but the one on the left that I will identify is a Heliciform Shape.

The lip shape is easy.

Then I count the whorls, this one looks like it is what they would call five and half. I wanted to call it five but I couldn't find anything that fit the other features so I relented.

And measure the width. The tiny one on the right fell out when I cleaned off the big one so I thought I would include if for comparrison.

The Umbilicus is also important to know and there are basically 4 types, Imperforate, Perforate, Umbilicate and Rimate.

Then look for the teeth but these aren’t really teeth for chewing but they look like teeth. The ones I found that day didn't have any teeth so I included this one (below) from a previous time to demonstrate the teeth.

Using Doursons’ key I was able to determine that my big shell with the reflective lip is Mesodon normalis (Grand Globe). It is 21-38mm wide, five and half whorls, imperforate and has no teeth. Here it is in my hand.

Mesodon normalis (Grand Globe)

There is a little more involved than what I have shown here but it really is pretty simple, I just didn't have samples of all the possibilities. Anyway it is a fun winter activity.

Winter Terrarium

This year I set up a last minute winter terrarium and stocked it with things I found in the yard and woodpile while I was stacking wood. So it is random with no clear road of investigation. I found red back salamander while stacking the wood but decided not to include it because of the food issue. I captured a small snail, a couple millipedes, a large worm and some bristletails to add to the mix.

I created a habitat of top soil, leaves, moss and stuff found in the leaf litter. The snail was what caught my attention first. I had recently read The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating by Elisabeth Tova Bailey and snails were on my mind.  I had raised some in previous years. Like the author I used a sea shell to create a pool of water for my critters. I also have been adding fresh mushrooms as a food source. You can see in this photo the snail really liked the mushroom and sunk its head deep to feed. I guess it was tastier at the bottom, who knows.

One day I noticed that I had two crane flies! The eggs must have been in the soil because I didn’t knowingly add them to the mix. After a few days I realized that I had to let them go or they would get loose in the house when I added more water. Fortunately the weather was still warm so I trust they survived.

I never see the worm on the surface but occasionally I can see it along the side of the tank just below the leaves.  I took this photo by looing under the terrarium and to my surprise I found 2 worms. One is in the upper right corner and the other is spread out on the bottom. It looks strange because the view is from the bottom and not the top like we normally see worms.

Check back later to see the other critters I have been observing is this small environment.

Balanced Rock Trail

The day after the Mushroom Foray my nature buddy and I took a walk out to Balanced Rock. It had rained that morning until about 10:00 and the trail was like a small stream and the footbridge we crossed the previous day was now partially under water. But that didn’t deter us and soon we were at Balanced Rock.

In the next photo you can see where the water partially covered the bridge and the tannin stained water that Blackwater is named after.

Below are some of the many Indian Pipes (Monotropa uniflora) we saw. They are often seen when looking for mushrooms but they aren't a mushroom. In fact they are a parasite to mushrooms, most commonly the Russula and Lactarius mycelia.  Since Indian Pipes have no chlorophyll they tap into the mycleia to take up the needed nutrients.

Here are a few interesting mushrooms that we saw on the second day.

Amanita flavoconia (Yellow Patches) is a do not eat mushroom.

Entoloma salmoneum (Salmon Unicorn Entoloma) is another one you don't want to eat.

Balanced Rock was created by a difference in the rate of weathering. Sceintifically it is called Differential weathering. The top rock has with stood the elements better than the rock on the bottm and left them in this precarious position called a table rock.

Here is a close up of the conglomerate sandstone from the Pottsville Group that makes up the Balanced Rock.

My nature nerd buddy, Trillium, pointed this Velvety Black Earth Tongue (Trichoglossum hirsutum) to me. Once I saw it and had a search image in my head I could see it everywhere. We were surrounded!  These are in the group commonly called Club Fungi.

Velvety Black Earth Tongue (Trichoglossum hirsutum)

This next one is a Coral Fungi and you probably think I did something to it to make it this orange but believe me I didn't, the light was just right and it almost glowed.

Orange Spindle Coral (Clavulinopsis aurantio-cinnabarina)

Velvet-foot Fairy Fan (Spathulariopsis velutipes). They do look like tiny little fans don't they!

The Rhododendron maximum, or “great laurel,” is the state flower of West Virginia.

For the first time I really took note of those green markings on these flowers. Actually Trillium pointed them out to me but we weren't sure what they are used for.  Do any of you know?

From there we drove over to see how the rain had effected the falls. It was the fullest that I had ever seen.  All in all it was a wonderful day in a Wild and Wonderful West Virginia.

To visit other outdoor places online see Outdoor Wednesdays by clicking here.

BBC Foray 2011, Tucker County, WV

The Brooks Bird Club Foray is an annual event but this year was my first time to attend. It was a little like the Sortie the previous week but included more people and more activities. The usual morning bird walks happened along with plant identification. I focused on Lepidoptera and Odonata as my contribution, searching for, identifying and recording finds.

Early morning near the campsite in Parsons.

We stayed in Tucker County, WV near Parsons. Our travels included Canaan Valley, Blackwater Falls, Dolly Sods, Olsons Bog, Fernow Experimental Forest and well just about everywhere in the county. Below are photos of Olson's Bog near Canaan Valley.

View from Pendleton Point in Blackwater Falls State Park.  We took a side trail that lead us under the rock at the base of this photo and found the fossil pictured below.

It is a tree fossil and I believe someone said it was a Lepidodendron.  It wa about the length of my fore arm.

Antother day we drove up along one of the ridges to find invasive species.  We had just had a class on them and were competing in a invasive species scavenger hunt.  Above you can see windmils in the distant. They are very common in this part of West Virginia.

I took this photo to have a good example of the ridge and valley formation.

While we were up on the rigde we stopped at his house to pick some invasive plants. Below is the out house.

The owners of this house obviously have a good sense of humor as well as a fantastic view.

My last day on the foray I spent at Fernow Experimental Forest. It had rained the night before so this stream was full of water and there were land snails all about. I have never seen so many in one location.

There was just so much to see and experience that I decided to post flowers in another blog.

Be sure to visit other places at My World Tuesday.

the unexpected

I returned to the Blue Ridge Tract to see how it had changed since the 19th of October, just two weeks ago. The leaves were darker and more of them were on the ground this time.

When I came to the fallen tree I found mushrooms as usual but this time they were on a standing tree nearby. I think they are Oyster Mushrooms. My mother would have been appalled if I had collected them to eat and my friend Angie is probably appalled that I didn’t collect them for dinner. But I was on the hunt for slime molds and other delights to the eyes.

Click on this and other photos for larger views.

I pulled up some of the bark from that old downed tree and this time was rewarded by a hibernating slug snuggled just under the bark and some unknown egg cases. You can see the mantle fold on its back in the area that would have a shell if it were a snail. You can also see the pneumostome which is an air hole used for breathing. Notice that little slimy silk like stuff attached to one end. I’ve seen that before but I’m not sure what its function is. If any one knows please let me know.

These are the egg cases I found.

At the bottom of the hill down in the Furnace Run Wetland area I spotted a Common Checkered Skipper. It was so “fresh” meaning the wings were not ragged or torn and newly hatched. It was a beautiful and unexpected sight on this fine fall day. A butterfly was the last thing I expected to see.

I took some time to photograph some British Soldiers, the lichen Cladonia cristatella, because I found a large quantity of them on a log that is normally surrounded by water. They are always fun to find. The red part of the “British Soldier hat” is the part that makes the spores that are blown by the wind to start new fungus. It takes about four years before the British Solders can make their spores. When the algae Trebouxia erici connects with the fungus then it becomes this lichen. Another interesting feature is that it can make new lichen from a broken piece if it is in the proper environment. So I guess it is a good idea to either leave them in place or at least put it back in the environment you found it.

UPDATE: Woodswalker commented: "Not to nitpick, but I think your Cladonia lichens may be Cladonia macilenta instead of Cladonia cristatella because they are far less branchy than British Soldiers. My lichen book (Lichens of the North Woods by J. Walewski) calls them Lipstick Powderhorn, an aptly descriptive name."

I think she is correct and am grateful for her correction because I learned even more. I now wonder if the British soliders used lipstick powderhorns during their battles. Tee Hee. 

Beside the trail was Witch-hazel that I had never noticed before. I recognized them after seeing reading Woodswalker’s blog “Saratoga Woods and Waterways”. They are really interesting deciduous shrubs that can grow to small trees. The genus name Hamamelis means “together with fruit” is a reference to its unique ability to have fruit, flowers and next year’s leaf buds all on the same branch simultaneously. Here you can see new flowers and fall leaves on the same branch and thus the origin of the other common name “Winterbloom”. The common name that I am most familiar with, witch-hazel” comes from the old English words “wice” meaning “bendable”. Hazel is from the English hazel twigs used as divining rods so I guess this is a good tree to use for finding water. Personally I now associate it with Halloween witches that are flying about the same time this plant is in bloom.

Finally I came to the log I knew would have slime mold and sure enough I found about four different varieties. Also some interesting mushrooms and other critters were crawling around. One was a lightening bug from the beetle family Lampyridae, again an unexpected sight. I had no interest in flying away but I am not sure what it was searching for but it was very intent to go about its business. They overwinter in their larval stage, so maybe it was looking for a good place to lay eggs.

On the way back up the hill I found a green metallic sweat Bee (Halictidae) on this lonely blossom. From the looks of it you would never know it was October 31st instead of a find summer day in August. The forest is always full of interesting surprises and challenges my limited expectations.

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