What is it Wednesday: August 26, 2020

Can you identify what's in this photo?

 

 

Each Wednesday morning 

on Camp Lutherlyn's Facebook page

 the Lutherlyn Environmental Education Program posts a photo. 

 

 

Readers have all morning and afternoon 

to make their best guess about what the photo is. 

 

Around 6 pm LEEP provides the answer and a brief explanation.

 

 

Each week's What is it Wednesday post 

will also be posted on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

 after it is posted on Facebook,

sometimes with additional bonus information. 

 

In addition to bringing you current editions of What is it Wednesday 

on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

we will be reposting old editions,

creating a What is it Wednesday archive. 

 

This photo was posted as a What is it Wednesday on

August 26, 2020. 

 

 

 

And the answer is....

 

This is the underside of the hindwing of a male tiger swallowtail butterfly.

Tiger swallowtails are large yellow butterflies with black markings. The males have subtle blue and orange markings near the tail of the upper side (dorsal side) of their hindwing. (These may be hard to spot, or may even get broken off or worn off during its lifetime.) 

The females have more prominent blue markings in the same area. Both males and females have additional orange and blue markings on the underside (ventral side) of the hindwing. (The female has more orange than blue here.) There is also a female color variation that is mostly black with blue markings.

 1. dorsal male; 2. dorsal female; 3. dorsal female (dark morph);
 4. ventral male; 5. ventral female; 6. ventral female (dark morph)

photo by Megan McCarty, permission through Creative Commons license
 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en

The tiger swallowtail is a generalist , feeding on many different types of plants as both larvae and adults, so it is common and seen frequently in many habitats throughout Eastern North America. Though common, their size and bright colors make them a stunning sight! 

Like and follow Camp Lutherlyn on Facebook, to see What is it Wednesday posts when they come out and have the opportunity to share your guesses in the comments!

What is it Wednesday: August 19, 2020

 

Can you identify what's in this photo?

 

 

Each Wednesday morning 

on Camp Lutherlyn's Facebook page

 the Lutherlyn Environmental Education Program posts a photo. 

 

 

Readers have all morning and afternoon 

to make their best guess about what the photo is. 

 

Around 6 pm LEEP provides the answer and a brief explanation.

 

 

Each week's What is it Wednesday post 

will also be posted on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

 after it is posted on Facebook,

sometimes with additional bonus information. 

 

In addition to bringing you current editions of What is it Wednesday 

on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

we will be reposting old editions,

creating a What is it Wednesday archive. 

 

This photo was posted as a What is it Wednesday on

August 19, 2020. 

 

 

 

And the answer is....

This pretty pink plant growing at Miller Lake at Lutherlyn
(formerly known as Upper Lake)
is called steeplebush. 

It often grows in wetlands and along the edges  of ponds throughout eastern North America. It is actually a small shrub, but the stems often die back after the growing season each year. We see its pretty pink blossoms towards the end of summer. 

What other wildflowers do you look for at the end of the summer? 

Like and follow Camp Lutherlyn on Facebook, to see What is it Wednesday posts when they come out and have the opportunity to share your guesses in the comments!

What is it Wednesday: August 12, 2020

 

Can you identify what's in this photo?

 

 

Each Wednesday morning 

on Camp Lutherlyn's Facebook page

 the Lutherlyn Environmental Education Program posts a photo. 

 

 

Readers have all morning and afternoon 

to make their best guess about what the photo is. 

 

Around 6 pm LEEP provides the answer and a brief explanation.

 

 

Each week's What is it Wednesday post 

will also be posted on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

 after it is posted on Facebook,

sometimes with additional bonus information. 

 

In addition to bringing you current editions of What is it Wednesday 

on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

we will be reposting old editions,

creating a What is it Wednesday archive. 

 

This photo was posted as a What is it Wednesday on

August 12, 2020. 

 

 

 

And the answer is....

This pretty flower is shrubby St. Johnswort (Hypericum prolificum),
growing near Baker Chapel at Lutherlyn. 

It is related to common St. Johnswort (Hypericum perforatum) and has a very similar flower and leaves, but instead of an herbaceous plant with a soft stem, it is a small shrub with woody stems.

Shrubby St. Johnswort is native to North America, while common St. Johnswort and other varieties originated in Europe and have been naturalized here. Additional varieties grow all around the world. Common St. Johnswort is the only variety that is used as a medicinal herb, often in tea as a remedy for mild depression. This is a good reminder to be certain exactly what plant is used for which purposes, and which plant you actually have found, before using a wild plant for food or as medicinal herbs.

Like and follow Camp Lutherlyn on Facebook, to see What is it Wednesday posts when they come out and have the opportunity to share your guesses in the comments!

What is it Wednesday archive: August 8, 2018

Can you identify what's in this photo?

 

 

Each Wednesday morning 

on Camp Lutherlyn's Facebook page

 the Lutherlyn Environmental Education Program posts a photo. 

 

 

Readers have all morning and afternoon 

to make their best guess about what the photo is. 

 

Around 6 pm LEEP provides the answer and a brief explanation.

 

 

Each week's What is it Wednesday post 

will also be posted on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

 after it is posted on Facebook,

sometimes with additional bonus information. 

 

In addition to bringing you current editions of What is it Wednesday 

on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

we will be reposting old editions,

creating a What is it Wednesday archive. 

 

This photo was posted as a What is it Wednesday on

August 8, 2018. 

 

 

 

And the answer is....

These are the eggs of a squash bug, on the bottom of a zucchini leaf.

Squash bug is a pest of zucchini, butternut, pattypan, cucumber, and other plants in the squash family. 

The Lutherlyn gardens at Terra Dei use no chemicals as pesticides or fertilizers, so often we try to control pests by hand. When we find squash bug eggs, we squash ‘em! 

Birds, frogs, toads, snakes, and some insects also help us control pest populations by eating animals that could be pests. We have added many features around Terra Dei to provide habitat for these helpful predators. This allows us to supplement the dining hall salad bar with fresh, organic, very local veggies!

Like and follow Camp Lutherlyn on Facebook, to see What is it Wednesday posts when they come out and have the opportunity to share your guesses in the comments!

What is it Wednesday: August 5, 2020

 

Can you identify what's in this photo?

 

 

Each Wednesday morning 

on Camp Lutherlyn's Facebook page

 the Lutherlyn Environmental Education Program posts a photo. 

 

 

Readers have all morning and afternoon 

to make their best guess about what the photo is. 

 

Around 6 pm LEEP provides the answer and a brief explanation.

 

 

Each week's What is it Wednesday post 

will also be posted on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

 after it is posted on Facebook,

sometimes with additional bonus information. 

 

In addition to bringing you current editions of What is it Wednesday 

on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

we will be reposting old editions,

creating a What is it Wednesday archive. 

 

This photo was posted as a What is it Wednesday on

August 5, 2020. 

 

 

 

And the answer is....

This is a wildflower called boneset, growing in the marsh at the upper end of Miller Lake. The blossom that is in something like a cage of leaves at the top of the stem will soon open into a white flower, and the leaves will spread out to give it more room.

Boneset is a wetland plant that only grows in wet places. In the past it was thought to help in the healing of broken bones, hence the name. It is distinctive for the way the widest part of the leaves grow right up against the stem and directly across from each other, making it look like the leaves are “pierced” by the stem.

Like and follow Camp Lutherlyn on Facebook, to see What is it Wednesday posts when they come out and have the opportunity to share your guesses in the comments!

What is it Wednesday archive: August 1, 2019

Can you identify what's in this photo?

 

 

Each Wednesday morning 

on Camp Lutherlyn's Facebook page

 the Lutherlyn Environmental Education Program posts a photo. 

 

 

Readers have all morning and afternoon 

to make their best guess about what the photo is. 

 

Around 6 pm LEEP provides the answer and a brief explanation.

 

 

Each week's What is it Wednesday post 

will also be posted on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

 after it is posted on Facebook,

sometimes with additional bonus information. 

 

In addition to bringing you current editions of What is it Wednesday 

on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

we will be reposting old editions,

creating a What is it Wednesday archive. 

 

This photo was posted as a What is it Wednesday on

August 1, 2019. 

 

 

 

And the answer is....

This is a half-eaten mayapple. 

Some critter, likely a chipmunk, decided to bite into it and may have decided it wasn’t tasty enough yet.

 The small fruit that hangs under the umbrella of mayapple leaves are edible, for people too, but only when ripe - when it gets soft and yellow, usually toward the end of summer. It is often difficult to get to eat a mayapple, because it seems like animals are willing to eat them just a little bit earlier than humans – while we wait for them to ripen, the animals eat them up! Remember to only eat wild plants when you know for certain what they are, what part to eat, and when they can be eaten!

Edible hikes are one of our most popular nature activities during summer camp, but we sometimes teach about what can be safely eaten in nature during school field trips, retreats, and special events too! Check out www.Lutherlyn.com to learn all about how you can learn from LEEP about edible wild plants and lots of other amazing things too! And like and follow Camp Lutherlyn on Facebook, to see What is it Wednesday posts when they come out and have the opportunity to share your guesses in the comments!