reptiles

Adolescent Eastern Box Turtle /  by Todd Henson

Our first view of an adolescent eastern box turtle

My father has great eyes for noticing interesting things on the trail, and while hiking Sky Meadows State Park in Virginia he saw a young eastern box turtle right on the trail. We could easily have stepped on it if he hadn’t noticed it as soon as he did.

Getting closer to eye-level with the young eastern box turtle

Unfortunately, right after he noticed it we heard what sounded like the barking of a dog not too far ahead on the trail, and we had run into some hikers with their dog when we first set out. So I quickly got down and attempted to capture a number of photos of this beautiful turtle from several angles. Then I did something I rarely do as I hate directly interfering with nature. I picked up the young box turtle and gently placed it in the brush a little ways off the trail hoping it would minimize the risk of dogs finding and injuring it or of hikers accidentally stepping on it if they didn’t see it.

Getting a front view of the young eastern box turtle.

Not long after I moved the turtle a single person came down the trail and walked by us. We stood by the turtle for a little while in case a dog showed up so we could keep them from sniffing around the turtle, but no dogs showed up. We then wondered if that person had been practicing his dog calls. :-) Either way, we walked on, leaving the young eastern box turtle in peace.

Looking down on the young eastern box turtle shows the beautiful patterns on its shell.

This wasn’t the youngest turtle I’ve ever seen, as I my father and I have seen a newly hatched snapping turtle walking on the trail towards water. But this was certainly the youngest eastern box turtle I’ve seen so far, though I don’t know how old it is. Look at the bright and beautiful patterns on its shell.

I tried to help the young eastern box turtle blend in to better protect it from whatever might be coming down the trail.

Do you have any box turtle stories to tell? I’d love to hear about them.

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First Eastern Gartersnake of 2023 /  by Todd Henson

On April 2nd while hiking Seven Bends State Park in Virginia my father sighted our first Eastern gartersnake of the year. It was resting just off the trail on some leaves. He said he might not have seen it if we hadn’t been actively looking for Virginia bluebells and that while scanning the edge of the trail he noticed the coiled snake. He called me over and I created a couple photos.

The photo below was the first photo I created, looking down on the snake, trying to get something quickly in case the snake fled. This is nice in that it shows how the snake can blend into the scene. Look closely and you might notice at least a couple boxelder bugs.

First view of an Eastern gartersnake in 2023

Then I got down low to get closer to eye level with the snake. I love the added intimacy of these sorts of views. Getting low and close with a macro lens helps simplify the scene by blurring out the background, really focusing the viewers attention on the snake, and in particular the eye of the snake.

Eye to eye with an Eastern gartersnake

Unfortunately, shortly after I created the photo above the snake slithered away into the leaves. I always hate it when I scare away a subject, but as slow and quiet and respectful as I try to be, it does sometimes happen.

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One Morning at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge /  by Todd Henson

Periodically I like to share a sampling of what one can see on a single visit to locations I enjoy. On most visits I don’t have any goals other than to enjoy the hike and see and photograph as much as I can. I accept what nature provides. And then I gather together what I’ve seen and share it with you.

Today’s post is about an early June morning spent hiking at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, a hidden gem in northern Prince William County, Virginia. It’s located at the point where the Occoquan River flows into Belmont Bay, and then into Occoquan Bay, before merging with the Potomac River. It contains a variety of terrain and habitats, with trails along the waters edge, through wetlands, across grass fields, into the woods, and beside ponds.

Below is a small sampling of what I photographed on that morning. Click on any of the photos for a larger view.

Flowers

This can be a great location for photographing wildflowers throughout the year. They border many of the trails, so you don’t have to go far to see them. Do be careful, though, if moving into the grass and brush beside the trail. Some years ticks are plentiful here, so carry bug spray and check yourself after each hike.

A pink Virginia Rose

A beautiful American Water-willow growing along the shoreline.

A small cluster of Hairy Skullcap flowers

I plan on sharing more of the flowers in a future post, but today I’m sharing a bright pink Virginia Rose, a small cluster of Hairy Skullcap, and an American Water-willow. Many thanks to Steve Gingold for identifying the American Water-willow (USDA profile of American Water-willow / Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center profile of American Water-willow). Check out Steve’s blog for some great photography and education related to nature and the outdoors.

Butterflies

If you want to photograph butterflies it’s easiest if you can get here first thing in the morning, before the butterflies have become more active. But with a little patience you can still photograph them later in the morning or throughout the day. Those in this post were photographed between 9 to 10 in the morning.

A Monarch butterfly on milkweed.

A Zebra Swallowtail butterfly which proved a very patient subject.

A Skipper butterfly resting on grass. I don’t know the specific species of Skipper, but if you do let me know.

Many of the butterflies would fly away anytime I approached to photograph them. But occasionally one would sit still long enough for me to capture a few pictures. The Monarch was a challenge. It kept moving. The Skipper was a little easier to photograph, sitting still for a brief time before disappearing. The Zebra Swallowtail was a complete joy to photograph. It sat very patiently as I approached, letting me capture a number of photographs before moving on.

Reptiles & Amphibians

This is a perfect environment for a variety of reptiles and amphibians, so keep your eyes open while hiking. The first we found was a very small young Eastern American Toad, at least that’s what I think it is. It could be a Fowler’s Toad, as these do sometimes resemble one another. Let me know if you think I’ve misidentified it.

A very small young Eastern American Toad, or perhaps a Fowler’s Toad.

Further on we encountered two different snakes. The first was a Northern Watersnake feeding at the edge of the water. I shared a number of images of this watersnake in last week’s post. Not long after this we encountered a Northern Black Racer along the side of the trail. Whereas the watersnake didn’t react at all to our presence, the racer was very watchful, flicking its tongue, getting our scent as we stood around watching it.

A Northern Watersnake swallowing prey along the waters edge.

A Northern Black Racer snake, flicking its tongue as we watch.

Not long after this we ran into a Southeastern Mud Turtle trying to quickly get back to the swampy area just off the trail. I barely had time to snap a photograph before it was back in the brush.

A Southeastern Mud Turtle hurrying off the trail towards the swampy area.

Mammals

I’ve been fortunate to see many species of mammals here over the years, such as Coyote, Red Fox, White-tailed Deer and Northern Raccoon. On this particular day I photographed two very different species. One was an young Eastern Cottontail Rabbit just off the trail. It froze when it saw us, hoping we couldn’t see it. We just stood there, quietly, until it grew used to us and went back to eating the greenery on the ground. I love watching these rabbits.

A young Eastern Cottontail rabbit.

The second species was a most curious one, some form of mouse. It’s the first time I’ve seen one of these at the refuge. I don’t believe it’s native to these parts, and appears to have washed ashore. But it just goes to show, you can see all sorts of crazy and wonderful wildlife while hiking Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

What strange species of mouse is this?

Parting Thoughts

This was a small sampling of what you might find at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. There are so many other species to see here, whether they be insects, reptiles, or wildflowers. It’s also a good birding location, and in fact is a great place to see nesting Osprey and Bald Eagles.

One drawback during parts of the year are the biting insects. The hot humid months of summer can be miserable in parts of the refuge, especially those that border wetlands areas. And ticks can be very bad some years. So don’t forget your bug spray, and again, check yourself thoroughly after each hike. But don’t let this scare you off. This refuge has a lot to offer a nature lover. Check it out if you’re in the area.