Stalking the Wild Pogonia (and other orchids)

 When photographer Jeff Nadler asked me to show him around the Ice Meadows yesterday, I jumped at the chance.  Who cares if I'd already been there just the day before?  I could visit this wonderful stretch of Hudson Riverbank every day of the year and always find something there to amaze me.  And besides,  I knew exactly where to find the orchids Jeff needed to photograph to carry out his assignment for Adirondack Life magazine, an article about New York's native orchids to be published sometime next year.

I had scouted the area on Sunday and found one of those orchids, Rose Pogonia, not only already in bloom, but perhaps even on its way out, with many of the flowers already touched with brown.  So I'd sent Jeff an email, telling him he had better come photograph them fast.

Luckily, as we explored various sites along this stretch of the Hudson north of Warrensburg, we found many groups of this beautiful little orchid still in their prime.

Unfortunately, the wind was blowing so hard and the sun was so bright, conditions were not optimum for achieving perfect photos, so Jeff was determined to spend the rest of the afternoon on the river, waiting to see if the wind would fall and the light would soften as day moved into evening.  And his efforts certainly paid off, to judge from the exquisite photos he sent me today, of the Rose Pogonia as well as of a second orchid we found along the river, the Shining Ladies' Tresses.  I can't wait to see the finished article when this issue of Adirondack Life comes out.



 
 There were more than orchids to fascinate us as we wandered these shores.  I just love the tousled look of Alpine Bulrush, especially when the wind is whipping that wild white hair around.

A big surprise was an abundant patch of One-flowered Pyrola we found as we made our way through the woods on the way to our cars.  It looked like a handful of shining stars had been tossed down on the forest floor.

Since One-flowered Pyrola dangles its blossom downward on an arching stem, you have to turn it upward to see its pretty face with the most unusual stamens.

Another surprise was a stunning black-and-white White Admiral Butterfly that came flitting around us, landing in perfect pose on a nearby bush.  But then, by the time we unpacked our cameras, the butterfly had fluttered far above us, coming to rest on the other side of this overhead sunlit leaf, so that all we could see was its silhouette.

I was luckier getting a shot of this tiny Hoverfly visiting the bloom of a Rough Cinquefoil:  lucky because the fly stayed put, and also lucky that my camera decided to focus on what I wanted it to.  I just love the intricate pattern on the insect's abdomen and the delicate tracery of its iridescent wings.

I remember some years ago taking an even better photo of a Hoverfly, showing more clearly that marvelous iridescence of the wings.  I wanted to see it again, so I'm posting it once more.

P.S.:  I'm off tomorrow for a few days in central Massachusetts near the Quabbin Reservoir.  Who knows what natural wonders I may witness? 

The Ice Meadows in Early June

Ah, here it was at last, that perfect day in June:  bright sun, warm air, soft breeze, not a rain cloud in sight.  And lucky me, I had the whole day to spend outdoors.  And what better place to spend it than up on the Ice Meadows along the Hudson River north of Warrensburg?

Here's where the river runs swiftly over rocky rapids, creating the cooling sound of rushing water on a hot summer day, and in the winter, creating heaps and heaps of ice deposits along these shores that contribute to a distinctive habitat for some of the northeast region's rarest plants.

Although it's hardly a rare plant, being one of our state's commonest orchids, Rose Pogonia is certainly one of our prettiest flowers.  Since it flourishes here along these banks, I shouldn't have been so surprised to see it blooming today -- especially since many flowers are blooming weeks early this year.  But I was surprised.  And equally delighted.

So many of them!  As I said, Rose Pogonia is not at all a rare plant, although it is protected by law as exploitably vulnerable.  No picking allowed!

Sticky Tofieldia (Triantha glutinosa), however, is indeed a rare plant, and not just in New York State, where it is listed as "Endangered."  This little plant with its puffy clusters of small white flowers is also listed as threatened or endangered in many other states.  On the Ice Meadows, however, it abounds.  And today it was beautifully in bloom.

Also called "Sticky False Asphodel," this plant gets its common name from its stems that are covered with sticky red hairs.

Here's another one of New York's native orchids, the Wide-leaved Ladies' Tresses, also called Shining Ladies' Tresses (Spiranthes lucida).  I had found this plant on the other side of the river, but never before here on the west bank.  Until today.  They are easy to overlook, being very small, but because of their white flowers, they do stand out from the sand and grass that they grow in.

S. lucida is our earliest Ladies' Tresses  to bloom, so it's not likely to be confused with other Spiranthes species that also grow here. Its distinctive yellow lower lip is also diagnostic.

I was happy that I arrived here early enough in the day to see the Frostweed fully in bloom.  Those bright yellow petals will drop or close up before the day's end.

I detected the lovely fragrance of wild roses even before I saw this beautiful pair.  I was happy to see they were one of our native roses (Virginia Rose?) instead of the invasive Multiflora Rose  that has taken over many roadside banks.   The harsh conditions created by the annual ice build-up have helped to keep this riverside habitat free of most invasive species.

For years I just assumed this trailing yellow flower was simply an undernourished variety of our Common Cinquefoil, but one year I looked more closely at the plant.  Its leaves being toothed only from above the middle are a defining feature of the Dwarf Cinquefoil (Potentilla canadensis).

Clambering among the riverside rock formations, I am often delighted to find miniature rock gardens tucked into cracks in the stone.  These are Small Sundrops and Bluets sharing their niche with some very colorful grasses.

The Ice Meadows are home to many flowering shrubs that are dwarfed, both by the massive tons of ice that lie over the shore each winter, as well as by the leaching of nutrients caused by periodic flooding.   Panicled Dogwood normally towers over my head, but here it barely reaches my knees.

Winterberry also can grow to a towering height in more favorable sites, but here it is definitely dwarfed, where it shelters among the rocks.

I puzzled and puzzled over what kind of berries these might be, until I realized they were those of a Shadblow, dwarfed to a miniature of its normal height.

Higher up on the banks, where the Ice Meadows meets the forest,  shrubbery is able to assume its normal size.  That's where I found this Bush Honeysuckle (Diervilla lonicera), one of our very few native shrubby honeysuckles.

Many other creatures were enjoying this splendid summer day, but this frog was the only one that would sit still long enough to have its photo taken.  Well then, have we found a Mink Frog this time?  Those do look like  dark splotches, rather than stripes, on its legs.  Don't they?

Yes, I am certainly delighted to have found so many rare and unusual flowers as I have this spring/summer.  But I also delight in some of our much more common species, such as these in my final two photos.  The heavenly blue one is Chicory, and the dazzling pink ones are Maiden Pinks, both of them introduced species that generously endow our roadsides with abundant beauty.