Fall Rally Re-Cap!
We were so excited to host the first ever Mount Rogers Fall Naturalist Rally this October!
Arachnid Guide Cade Campbell & his marbled orb-weaver
We were so excited to host the first ever Mount Rogers Fall Naturalist Rally this October! In the past couple of years we have been fortunate enough to host the Mount Rogers Spring Naturalist Rally, and we were so happy to now start a new fall annual rally as well. This rally specifically focused on the flora and fauna that is unique to the fall! 68 enthusiastic individuals participated in this rally where we experienced lots of beautiful weather and stimulating outdoor activities. Our programs for this rally included salamander hikes, nature photography, a mushroom hike, stream ecology, an all-day Mount Rogers hike, bird watching, bird acoustics, arachnids, nocturnal nature, an owl prowl, a campus tour, the natural history of the white-tailed deer, and flint knapping.
Bird Watching at Elk Garden with Guide Allen Boynton
Guide Doug Meyer teaching Leah Wilson how to flint knap
We would like to say thank you to our keynote speaker, Michael St. Germain, for an amazing talk about the Bats of Appalachia. We would also like to say thank you to our incredible guides that really helped make our first ever fall rally a success. Thank you to Neil Fredericksen, Phil Shelton, Allen Boynton, Joshua Ward, Maddie Cogar, Lee Diggs, Steven Hopp, Cade Campbell, Linda Hylander, Doug Meyer, and Kevin Hamed.
Salamander Photography at the Salamander Hike. Photo credits to Joshua Ward.
We were also able to lead kids programs during this rally as well! These programs were led by BRDC staff Landscaper and Naturalist Educator Ali Reilly. The childrens programs included nature journaling, fall bingo, and stream ecology.
BRDC Naturalist Educator Ali Reilly leading Fall Bingo. Photo credits to Eva Walls.
We are also so thankful for our generous donors that supplied our raffle table. Thank you to Wolf Hills Coffee (Gift Card), White Birch Food & Juice (Gift Card), Sister’s Cafe (Appalachian Puzzle), Mike Pender (Chickadee Box), Mountain Sports Limited (Naturalist Hats), Marion Outdoors (Great Naturalist Gear), Charlotte Phillips (Two Homemade Pumpkin Rolls), Brian Livingston (Signed Book), Barbara Kingsolver (Signed Books), Bohicket Apothecaries (Candles, Wax Melts, and Soap), Flora of Virginia (App download), and Adventure Damascus & Sundog Outfitter (2 Rentals & 2 Shuttles).
Emory & Henry Volunteers and our BRDC Staff.
We would also like to give a special shoutout to our amazing volunteers from Emory & Henry! Their help was so appreciated, especially by our Head of Hospitality Charlotte Phillips.
We cannot wait to see everyone back on our campus for our Winter Rally coming in February! Stay tuned for more updates to come!
Join BRDC for the Summer Naturalist Rally!
EXPLORE THE NATURAL HISTORY OF MOUNT ROGERS, THE CROWN JEWEL OF SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA
The Summer Rally gives us a chance to explore Mt. Rogers in a different season. We have assembled a wide variety of field trips with leaders who are experts in their field and able to make it understandable and interesting for everyone from inquisitive amateurs to accomplished naturalists.
Get Outdoors & Discover New Heights
August 18-20, 2017
EXPLORE THE NATURAL HISTORY OF MOUNT ROGERS, THE CROWN JEWEL OF SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA
The Summer Rally gives us a chance to explore Mt. Rogers in a different season. We have assembled a wide variety of field trips with leaders who are experts in their field and able to make it understandable and interesting for everyone from inquisitive amateurs to accomplished naturalists.
GUIDED TRIPS INCLUDE:
- Mushrooms
- Butterflies
- Wildflowers
- Geology
- Birding
- Salamanders
- Stream Ecology
- Big Trees & More!
FEATURED SPEAKER
Ann Berry Somers, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Biology, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, will discuss the natural history of the box turtle and the 100-year study The Box Turtle Connection (BTC), now entering its 10th year.
An award-winning teacher of biology and wildlife conservation, Somers teaches courses on NC wildlife and sea turtles (travelling with students to Costa Rica to collect data). She serves on several conservation organization boards and is a member of the North American Box Turtle Conservation Committee. Her international work includes serving as a consultant for the “Safe Home for Turtles” conservation and education project at the University of Bengkulu in Sumatra, Indonesia.
FRIDAY NIGHT DINNER
5:30PM @ THE KONNAROCK COMMUNITY CENTER
BRDC is excited to partner with the Independence Farmers Market www.independencefarmersmarket.org to provide high quality and locally sourced ingredients! The meal will feature a meat or vegetarian option, plenty of local veggies, home-made baguettes, and a garden salad to die for. Home-made desserts will finish off the meal.
Dinner is by pre-paid reservation ONLY. There will be no dinners sold at the door. Registration is due by August 14. Please join us for this great meal, catchup with old friends, and proudly support our local farmers with this opportunity to eat a locally sourced home-cooked meal.
1st Annual Mount Rogers Summer Naturalist Rally
After many years of thinking about a summer season rally, this August we achieved our goal. Gathering at the Konnarock Community Center for a potluck dinner and meet and greet, many new faces joined the familiar for a weekend preview of programs and hikes spanning from Friday night through Sunday morning.
After many years of thinking about a summer season rally, this August we achieved our goal. Gathering at the Konnarock Community Center for a potluck dinner and meet and greet, many new faces joined the familiar for a weekend preview of programs and hikes spanning from Friday night through Sunday morning. With over 60 participants for Friday's dinner, the potluck approach pleased everyone. Without a speaker presentation, we all had time to visit before heading to Grindstone Campground for the evening moth identification program.
Though rain fell intermittently, we were able to dash back and forth between the lit moth sheet and our tent cover for serious keying of our catch. From the very young to the almost elderly, everyone focused on the effort to ID even down to the species level.
Saturday morning, following tradition, all gathered at the community center to line up for the day’s program offerings. A simple breakfast was available, including good strong coffee. Field trip sign-ups continued right up to 8am when the trips dispersed. Birding, a hike sponsored by the Mount Rogers Appalachian Trail Club, fly fishing, medicinal plants, insect investigations, and glaciers in the Blue Ridge highlighted our morning walks. For kids, the world of spiders was explored.
Returning for lunch, hikers regained their strength for the afternoon hikes. Afternoon choices included snorkeling, a mushroom walk, a wildflower walk, a salamander hunt, tree identification, butterflies and flint knapping. The kids program involved small bio-surveys with microscopes.
The mushroom walk was a major hit, with samples brought back to the community center for identification. For over an hour, many gathered around the tables displaying a huge variety of fungal forms, as a species list grew.
Rain was an issue, but mostly after the day's activities came to a close. Back at Grindstone, campers shared an evening meal, potluck style once again, and revisited the day’s activities. Because of the rain, our hopeful star watch program was cancelled, but a salamander foray was well suited to the weather. Some intrepid hikers were treated to a rarely observed courtship behavior of the Yonahlossee salamander along the gravel road to Whitetop.
Sunday dawned behind of veil of clouds and rain, yet an ornithology walk was offered and attended. It is often said, weather is not an issue, just correct clothing. This exemplifies the spirit of a naturalist, a person whose curiosity trumps comfort while exploring the richness of our Southwest Virginia highlands.
Special thanks to the planning committee, guides and volunteers who pitched in to create such a great event!
Blue Ridge Discovery Center’s Fall Mushroom Walk
Twelve curious hikers joined Ken Crouse for his second annual BRDC mushroom walk on Saturday, September 19th. We met at Cox’s Chapel Low Water Bridge at 10am for a brief introductory show-and- tell prior to carpooling to a location across the river and into the woods.
Twelve curious hikers joined Ken Crouse for his second annual BRDC mushroom walk on Saturday, September 19th. We met at Cox’s Chapel Low Water Bridge at 10am for a brief introductory show-and- tell prior to carpooling to a location across the river and into the woods.
It was a ‘beautiful’ morning, crisp and clear, but also very dry following a week of bright, sunny days and low humidity...not the best of conditions for a mushroom foray. However, cool nights and mornings also trigger the fruiting of many fungi, so we had at least one thing in our favor.
Ken took us into damp areas, which proved to be productive enough to keep us busy identifying and comparing a wide variety of mushroom species. It is the purpose of most mushroom hunters to harvest for the kitchen table. Ken focused on offering descriptions of what to look for in great detail, how to sort through similar looking species from safe to deadly. The general morphology of a mushroom is an indicator, but the base of the stem and ‘root’ structure, careful inspection of the underside of the cap, and spore prints all add up to the level of confirmation needed to be certain of identification. Other clues include gill structure and attachment, smell, bruising color, and habitat. In fact, Ken said he usually employs seven systematic taxonomic features to assure a firm ID, and has not once in his long mushroom hunting life experienced any gastronomical discomfort from eating fungi. There are several spore dispersal systems besides gills, and serve to link specimens to family...such as the boletes which have fleshy tubes or pores, or the tooth fungi in the Hydnaceae family, puffballs which form spores inside, and club and coral fungi, which disperse spores from a fertile outer surface.
After collecting a number of specimens, we drove to a local picnic area where, and while taking lunch, Ken spread out field guides and our collection for a more thorough discussion on identification.
Following is a full species list from our day in the woods:
BRDC 9/19/15 Mushroom Walk, River Ridge Farm
Austroboletus gracilis – Graceful Bolete
Tylopilus plumboviolaceous – Lilac-brown Bolete
Suillus granulatus – Granular-stalked Bolete
Polyporus badius – Black-footed Polypore
Stereum ostrya – False Turkey Tail
Stereum complicatum – Bracket Mushroom
Trametes versicolor – Turkey Tail
Oxyporous populinus – White Polypore
Tyromeces chioneus – Cheese Polypore
Phellinus rimosus – Cracked Cap Polypore
Daldinia concentrica – Carbon Ball
Chlorocibora aeruginescens – Green-wood Stain
Lycoperdon perlatum – Gem-studded Puffball
Lycoperdon pyriforme – Pear-shaped Puffball
Schleroderma citrinum – Poison Pigskin Puffball
Scuttelaria scuttelina – Eyelash Cup
Hygrophorous praetensis – Waxy Cap
Clitocybe dilitata – White Clitocybe
Russula variata – Variable Russula
Marasmius sicca – Orange Pinwheel
Marasmius rotula – White Pinwheel
Crepidotus mollis – Jelly Crepe
Mycena pura –yellow Mycena
Mycena luteopallens – Walnut Mycena
Panellus stipticus – Luminescent Panellus
Collybia confluens – Tufted Collybia
Ramaria conjunctipes – Violet Coral
Usnea sp. – Tree Beard Lichen (Medicinal)
For a brief review of fungi see: http://eol.org/pages/5559/overview
Scott Jackson-Ricketts
Ken Crouse
Morel Mushroom
At this time of year, eager and intrepid mushroom hunters go in search of the highly sought morel. Understood by many to be one of the finest delicacies of the fungi world, hunters are loath to reveal their hot spots. The harvest window is sudden and short, meaning one has to be in the right place at the right time. Before I go any further, I am not an expert by any stretch, so do pay attention to the sources listed at the end of this feature.
At this time of year, eager and intrepid mushroom hunters go in search of the highly sought morel. Understood by many to be one of the finest delicacies of the fungi world, hunters are loath to reveal their hot spots. The harvest window is sudden and short, meaning one has to be in the right place at the right time. Before I go any further, I am not an expert by any stretch, so do pay attention to the sources listed at the end of this feature.
Morels are in the family Morchellaceae, with three genera and several more species. Most of these are considered edible, but it is highly recommended that they be cooked. Similar enough in appearance, false morels, family Helvellacaea, contain many poisonous species, meaning the harvester needs to have solid knowledge and identification skills. As in all wild harvesting, caution is the first rule.
Sticking with the true morels, or sponge mushrooms, distinguishing features (with the exception of the cup shaped morels, genus Disciotis) are thin brain like fleshy folds, brown to tan color and hollow stem. I have been told and shown that morels like apple trees and orchards. For a more extensive look at habitat, I refer you to this http://amateurmycology.com/?p=637.
And for further reading sources:
-Mushrooms by Kent and Vera McKnight (Peterson Field Guide)
-Mushrooms Demystified by David Arora
Scott Jackson-Ricketts
Carol Broderson asked me to post these pictures of the morels that she and Chris found. They left quite a few.
Mushroom Walk at River Ridge Farm
Last Saturday's mushroom walk at River Ridge Farm was a great success! The weather was just perfect we had at least 16 participants. There was a lot of interest and excitement and the fungi were out in force. With the time we had; it was not possible to prepare a comprehensive species list. However, just in a quick run through I was able to ID 56 species from the walk. Not bad for a morning stroll through the forest!
Last Saturday's mushroom walk at River Ridge Farm was a great success! The weather was just perfect we had at least 16 participants. There was a lot of interest and excitement and the fungi were out in force. With the time we had; it was not possible to prepare a comprehensive species list. However, just in a quick run through I was able to ID 56 species from the walk. Not bad for a morning stroll through the forest!
Photo Credit: Joan Sunday
We started out the day, while everyone was arriving, by reviewing a selection of several species that I had previously collected and brought for demonstration. This gave everyone a chance to meet one another and familiarize themselves with a bit of the language of mycology. This turned out to be very helpful once we started collecting during our walk. There was at least some familiarity with how to look at fungi and some of the terminology.
Here are a few highlights and notable finds: We did come across 3 different species of Amanitas, which made it possible to familiarize everyone with the characteristics the make up this genus.This is very important since some species of amanitas can be deadly poisonous!
We ran across a dozen species of Boletes; including the beautiful "Two Colored Bolete" B. bicolor and the blue staining Gyroporus cyanescens which stains dark blue immediately when it is handled.
There were 3 species of the highly sought after chanterelles; ie, the "Cinnabar Chanterelle"Cantherellus cinnabarinus, the "Horn of Plenty"Craterellus cornucopoides, and the "Golden Chanterelle"C. cibarius.
Other notable finds among the gilled mushrooms were many species of Russulas of many colors and Lactarius species that exude a type of "milk"when injured. There were several species of the colorful Entolomas, including the "Yellow Unicorn"E. murrayii and the "Salmon Witch's Hat"E salmoneum. We looked at many types of Polypores or "shelf fungi" such as the medicinal "Turkey Tails"Trametes versicolor and the "Cinnamon Polypore"Coltricia cinnamomea. An exciting find; growing from the base of a dead tree was Meripilus gigantea, which can grow to the size of several pounds. Higher up on the same tree were 2 specimens of the "Bearded Tooth"Hericium erinaeus, another highly regarded edible. Unfortunately,all we could do was look at them since they were way out of reach.
We were able to compare the edible and common "Gem-studded Puffball"Lycoperdon perlatum with the "Poison Pigskin" Puffball Schleroderma citrinum. Also, there were several different colorful species of the coral mushrooms including the "Golden Tuning Fork"Clavulinopsis fusiformis. One of the most exciting finds for me was a species of "Cup Fungus"called "Moose Antlers"or Wynnea americana. This is a very unusual looking fungus and fairly rare in our area.
We ended the day by going over to the picnic area and displaying our finds and having a discussion of each type; including toxicity/edibility, etc followed by a great picnic lunch and more mushroom talk. I believe a good time was had by all and a lot was learned and shared. There were several requests for a repeat sometime in the future.
- Ken Crouse
Mushroom Species List
River Ridge Farm
9/20/2014
Gilled mushrooms:
Amanita vaginata – Grisette
A. flavaconia – Yellow Patches
A. ceceliae
Russula virescens – Green Russula
R. variata – Variable Russula
R. compacta – Firm Russula
R. rosacea – Rosy Russula
R. aeruginea – Green Quilt Russula
R. brevipes – Shortstalked White Russula
Lactarius croceus
L. peckii – Peck's Milky
L. rufus – Redhot Milky
L. torminosus – Pinkfringed Milky
L. subpurpurea – Variegated Milky
Tricholoma sp.
Gymnopus dryophila – Oak Loving Collybia
Clitocybe clavipes – Clubshaped Clitocybe
Clitocybe gibba – Funnel Clitocybe
Hygrophoropsis aurantiacaFalse Chanterelle
Hygrocybe coccinea Red Waxycap
Cantharellus cinnibarenis—Cinnabar Chanterelle
Cantharellus tubaeformis –Trumpet Chanterelle
Cantharellus cibarius Golden Chanterelle
Craterellus cornucopioides – Horn of Plenty
Nolanea murrayii – Yellow Unicorn
Nolanea salmoneum Salmon Unicorn
Marasmius siccus – Orange Pinwheel
Marasmius rotula – Pinwheel Marasmius
Marasmius nigripes Black Foot
Poroid Fungi:
Boletus bicolor – Twocolored Bolete
B. subvelutipes – Redmouthed Bolete
B. chrysenteron – Cracked Cap Bolete
B. ornatipes – Ornatestalked Bolete
B. griseus
B. subglapripes
Gyroporous cyanescens Bluing Bolete
Leccinus scabrum – Scaber Stalk
Suillus granulatus – Granularstalked Suillus
Strobilomyces floccopus – Old Man of the Woods
Tylopilus felleus – Bitter Bolete
T. plumboviolaceus Lilacbrown Bolete
Polypores/Shelf Fungi
Meripilus gigantea – Blackstaining Polypore
Hericium erineus – Bearded Tooth
Trametes versicolor Turkeytails
Stereum ostrya – False Turkeytails
Polyporus badius – Blackfooted Polypore
Coltricia cinnamomea—Shiny Cinnamon Polypore
Puffballs'Earthballs:
Lycoperdon perlatum – Gemstudded Puffball
Schleroderma citrinum – Poison Pigskin Puffball
Coral/Club Fungi:
Clavaridelphus truncaFlattopped Coral
Cordyceps militaris Trooping Cordyceps
Clavulinopsis fusiformis Spindleshaped Yellow Coral
Tremellodendron pallidum White Jellycoral
Ramariopsis kunzeii – White Coral
Cup Fungi:
Wynnea americana Moose Antlers
Peziza badioconfusa –Common Brown Cup
Peziza repanda – Recurved Cup
Parasitic Molds:
Hypmyces hyalinus – Amanita Mold
Hypomyces chrysospermus White Bolete Mold
Brilliant Yellow!
The children and I were riding home in the car the other day and there, on the side of the road, was the most brilliant color of yellow I have seen in a long time. I just had to stop and take a picture of it. The closer I got I was able to discover that it was a cluster of mushrooms. Now I had never seen this mushroom before and the people in the house must of thought I was crazy but there I stood taking picture after picture. Once we arrived at home I took out the ole trusty Audubon Field Guide of North American Mushrooms and looked it up. Found out it is an edible mushroom in the Chanterelles family. It is in fact the Canterellus cibarius. How I wish it grew in my yard, I would have loved to try it. They say that they smell like sweet apricots and taste sweet as well. Without being able to get real close to see the underside of the mushroom I didn't dare pick it (not only because it wasn't in my yard but because of the fakers that try to resemble it that are poisonous.) Maybe you can tell if it is in fact the edible species.
-Cindy
Shaggy Manes, Autumn Olives, and Hickories
Amidst a weekend of meetings some BRDC crew managed to get outside and do some exploring. Here's a description of discoveries offered by Scott, with some photographs snapped on an I-phone (?) by Eva Baird:
"A little after noon, on the 17th of October, Devin and Aaron Floyd, Eva Baird, and Scott Jackson-Ricketts met in Mouth of Wilson to plan a walk. Resulting from a conversation between the brothers Floyd [and Eva B.] of the previous night, we decided to 'test' the idea of harvesting as a theme for outdoor experience. The details of this were discussed throughout the afternoon, including a harvest calendar based upon accumulated information through time.
A large sprouting of shaggy mane mushrooms was spotted along the highway between MOW and Grant, to which the adventurous four headed. After seeking permission to pluck some 'shrooms' from the property owner, we went at it.
From there we headed to the Floyd house to further harvest Autumn Olives, noted in abundance earlier in the week. Leaving the 'shrooms in the kitchen, we headed out with baskets and high expectations of creating fruit leather from
these sweet berries, but found to our disappointment, that a black bear had beat us to them. This theory was verified by scat and broken branches with abundantly attendant claw marks. We also determined, for the elevation, that we were a tad late.
Setting aside this disappointment, we headed up the hill to attempt
identifying the hickories now in golden leaf. All of us had recently
been studying the new Sibley's 'Guide to The Trees', and wished to
measure its worth. Studying bark configurations, leaf size, leaflet
numbers, and what nuts we could recover from under the trees, we went
back to the house for further identification exercises as well as preparing and frying shaggy manes. The possibilities of hickory species were mockernut, pignut, shellbark, and shagbark. It is noteworthy that some of these species hybridize.
Our first attempt at preparing the mane did not go well, too many bits in the pan, too soggy. Separating the bits, adding more butter, frying them to nearly crisp, and adding a bit of lemon, created a more palatable cuisine. Someone mentioned Julia Child's strong recommendation to not let mushrooms touch one another when cooking this way. More conversation about the value of a harvest orientation to discovery in the outdoors was had, including the idea of creating an entire focus that could even lead to a club-like approach, garnering interest through a unique aspect that could become a significant part of BRDC. "
-SJR
Piedmont Morels
Norah and Eva
OK. This is a heads up to those of you in the mountains. We found a mess of morels two days ago, April 24th. To see correlations between different elevations and latitudes I offer the following observations. Let me know if and when you Blue Ridge folk find morels.
- Slope/aspect: 1%-2% west facing
- Elevation: 580 feet, 20-30 feet from a small stream
- Latitude/ Longitude:
- Latitude: 37.85868
- Longitude: -78.63983
- Forest mix: canopy of large yellow poplars and white oaks, understory of dogwood and hazel alder, herbaceous ground cover of christmas ferns and honeysuckle vine.
We found these two days after a heavy rain and they were just beginning to dry up a bit. They were heavily infested by wood fleas...something that a quick soaking in salty water fixes.
It is only 85 miles from this latitude south to a latitude that is in central Grayson County. the elevation change is roughly 1500-2000 feet . I am curious about the relative time-lag between the morel show at differing elevations.
Some generalizations floating out there are that, if one remains at the same elevation, same slope and aspect, heading 230 miles north is the ecological equivelent of climbing 1000feet. There is also a 3.4 degee f reduction associated with this move. So wether you climb upslope 1000 feet, or head north 230 miles, one should see, on average, a reduction of 3.4 degrees.
Ooh, lightening strike...I should probably turn off the computer.
