Whence the flowers?

 

Zebra Swallowtail (Eurytides marcellus) on
West Indian Lantana (Lantana camara).
Rowan County, North Carolina.

High summer is upon us, and the flowering abundance of spring is behind.  But our yard still has some plants in flower.  They bring color to the yard and food for the small creatures that live among us.  Some of these plants are natives but many of the summer bloomers are introduced from somewhere else in the world.  As I was admiring the summer flowers I was inspired to explore the geographic origin of our plants.  

Common Zinnia (Zinnia elegans).
Rowan County, North Carolina. 

Common Zinnia (Zinnia elegans) comes in many colors and sizes.  It originated in dry tropical regions of Mexico and Central America but is now planted in gardens throughout the world.  A wide variety of insects sip the Zinnia's nectar while gathering pollen.   

Purslane (Portulaca sp.).
Rowan County, North Carolina. 

Purslane. 
Rowan County, North Carolina. 

Purslanes (Portulaca sp.) can be found in both the Old World and the New.  These drought and heat tolerant plants are succulents and the flowers open only on sunny days for a few hours after sunrise. 

Shasta Daisy (Leucanthemum x superbum).
Rowan County, North Carolina. 

Shasta Daisies (Leucanthemum x superbum) have an interesting history.  It is a hybrid produced by American plant breeder Luther Burbank in the late19^th century.  He crossed, in succession, four different species of daisies from Europe and Asia to make this tall, hardy and prolific plant. 

Purpletop Vervain (Verbena bonairensis).
Rowan County, North Carolina. 

Verbena bonairensis or Purpletop Vervain is a tall spindly plant that makes clusters of small purple flowers on the tips of the stems. It originated in South America and is now widely grown in gardens.  Purpletop Vervain is a favorite of pollinators including butterflies and bees. 

Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca).
Rowan County, North Carolina. 

Butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa).
Rowan County, North Carolina. 

Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus) caterpillar 
on Common Milkweed.
Rowan County, North Carolina.

Two native species of milkweed flower throughout the summer in our yard.  The tall, purple flowered Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) and  the short, orange flowered Butterflyweed (Asclepias tuberosa) attract pollinators and provide food for Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus) caterpillars.  

Balsam (Impatiens balsamina).
Rowan County, North Carolina. 

Balsam (Impatiens balsamina) is an annual with thick, succulent stems. Flowers range in color from white to red.   Balsam makes large fruits that explosively scatter seeds when touched giving rise to another common name, Touch-me-not.  Balsam is favorite of hummingbirds in our yard. 

Scarlet Beebalm (Monarda didyma).
Rowan County, North Carolina. 

Scarlet Beebalm (Monarda didyma) is a member of the mint family (Lamiaceae) and is native to Eastern North America. It produces abundant red flowers.  As the name Beebalm suggests they are pollenated by bees but they are also attractive to hummingbirds.   

West Indian Lantana with yellow and orange flowers.
Rowan County, North Carolina. 

West Indian Lantana with yellow and purple flowers.
Rowan County, North Carolina. 

West Indian Lantana (Lantana camara) is related to Verbena bonairensis and it also originated in tropical America.  Its abundant flowers and drought tolerance have allowed it to spread around the globe as a garden plant.  Flowers are borne in clusters on the ends of branches. The newest flowers are at the center of the cluster and older flowers to the outside. We have two different colored Lantana flowers in our yard.  One type has flowers that open yellow and turn orange as they mature.  Another starts yellow and turns purple.  With these brilliant flowers West Indian Lantana is a favorite of wide variety of insects. 

St. John's Wort (Hypericum calycinum).
Rowan County, North Carolina. 

Hypericum calycinum or St John’s Wort is a small shrub.  Its natural range is Turkey and Southeastern Europe.  St. John’s Wort makes large, yellow, five-petaled flowers with many stamens.  This is another widely planted species and is found in gardens in temperate regions. 

Bottlebrush Buckeye (Aesculus parviflora).
Rowan County, North Carolina.

Bottlebrush Buckeye (Aesculus parviflora) is a small tree native to the Southeastern United States.  It naturally grows in rich woodlands but is widely planted as an ornamental.  Bottlebrush Buckeye flowers in summer and produces a spike of white flowers. 

American Beautyberry (Callicarpa americana).
Rowan County, North Carolina. 

American Beautyberry (Callicarpa americana) flowers in midsummer and its white flowers come in clusters born at the base of the opposite leaves.   In the fall American Beautyberry makes beautiful purple berries that are a favorite food of wildlife.  This handsome shrub is native to the Southeastern United States. 

As I work on this blog the outside temperature on the Piedmont of North Carolina is about 100 degrees.  All the plants, animals and people are stressed by this heat.  We have a number of plants native to this part of North America, but it is striking how many of the flowers are of tropical origin or from dry environments.  I expect plants that tolerate our hotter and dryer environment to be more and more common in our gardens as the climate changes. 

Sea Cliffs of Shetland - Part 2

 

Northern Gannet (Morus bassanus). 
Isle of Noss, Shetland, Scotland. 

Shetland is a group of islands north of the mainland of Scotland. We visited these foggy, rainy and windy islands in June and found life teeming around the cliffs that fringe the islands.  The sea cliffs were swarming with birds nesting, resting and raising young.  We were privileged to view the birds closeup, from the water in a small boat and from trails along the cliff tops.  These perspectives gave us an intimate portrait of the seabirds during the crucial nesting season. 

In the last post of this blog, I described Atlantic Puffins, Common Murres, Razorbills and gulls on the cliffs.  Despite this impressive list there were still more birds on the sea cliffs of Shetland.

Northern Gannet.
Isle of Noss, Shetland, Scotland. 

Northern Gannets on cliff.
Isle of Noss, Shetland, Scotland. 

Northern Gannets mating.
Isle of Noss, Shetland, Scotland. 

Northern Gannets on nests.
 Isle of Noss, Shetland, Scotland. 

Video of Northern Gannets plunging for food.

Isle of Noss, Shetland, Scotland. 

One of the largest and most abundant of these birds was the Northern Gannet (Morus bassanus).  With a six-foot wingspan, white body with black wingtips, a head tinged with gold, a dagger-like beak and striking blue eyes, the Northern Gannets wheeled about the cliffs, plunging headfirst into the water to catch fish.  Northern Gannets nest in colonies that can have tens of thousands of birds.  The nests were loose cups made of seaweed, land plants and even debris like scraps of fishing net and rope.  

Northern Fulmar (Fulmarus glacialis). 
Sumburgh Head, Shetland, Scotland. 

Northern Fulmar.
Isle of Noss, Shetland, Scotland. 

Northern Fulmar.
Isle of Noss, Shetland, Scotland. 

Northern Fulmar.
Sumburgh Head, Shetland, Scotland. 

Northern Fulmars.  Adult feeding young.
Isle of Noss, Shetland, Scotland. 

Northern Fulmars (Fulmarus glacialis) look similar to gulls but they are Tubenoses (Order Procellariiformes) and more closely related to albatrosses.  Northern Fulmars are gray on the upper wings and back with a white head and belly.  The tube that gives the Order its name is on top of the beak and contains a salt gland that allows these birds to drink seawater.  Northern Fulmars glide just above the sea surface on stiff wings and take small animals from the surface or dive for food.  

Great Skua (Stercorarius skua).
Fair Isle, Shetland, Scotland.

Great Skua trying to steal a fish from a Great
Black-backed Gull (Larus marinus).
Isle of Noss, Shetland, Scotland. 

Great Skua.
Isle of Noss, Shetland, Scotland. 

Great Skua.
Isle of Noss, Shetland, Scotland. 

Great Skuas (Stercorarius skua) are large, dark and aggressive predatory seabirds. With their brown mottled color and heavy black bill, they look downright menacing. Their massive, barrel chest and white wing patches make Great Skuas easy to identify on the wing.  Great Skuas nest in the grasslands above the sea cliffs and catch fish, steal from other birds, take eggs and snatch young birds from their neighbor's nests.  In Scotland Great Skuas are know as Bonxies.   

European Shag (Gulosus aristotelis).
Isle of Noss, Shetland, Scotland.  

European Shags.
Isle of Noss, Shetland, Scotland. 

European Shags (Gulosus aristotelis) are related to our Double-crested Cormorants (Nannopterum auritum).  They are black with a hooked beak and dive from the surface to catch fish.  European Shags nest in small caves and crevices of the sea cliffs. 

Wild Rock Pigeons (Columba livia),
Sumburgh Head, Shetland, Scotland. 

A denizen of the cliffs that is not a sea bird is the familiar Rock Pigeon (Columba livia).  We are accustomed to seeing these birds eating food scraps on the city sidewalks or nesting under interstate highway bridges.  But these are all feral birds whose ancestors escaped from captivity and are now naturalized.  In northern Scotland, Rock Pigeons are wild and have never been domesticated.  It is nice to see these Rock Pigeons living wild in this wild place. 

Cliffs and lighthouse at Sumburgh Head.
Shetland, Scotland. 

The sea cliffs of Shetland look forbidding, even dangerous. In the fog with waves crashing and steep drop offs the cliffs can give people pause.  But to the birds these cliffs are a safe place to make their nests and bring on the next generation. 

Sea Cliffs of Shetland

 

Atlantic Puffin (Fratercula arctica) outside its nest burrow.
Sumburgh Head, Shetland, Scotland. 

Shetland is a splash of islands north of mainland Scotland.  This mostly treeless archipelago is in the North Sea, and many of the islands are bound by cliffs.   They are made of tilted sandstone dating from the Devonian Period over 300 million years ago. 

Sandstone cliff.
Isle of Noss, Shetland, Scotland.

We visited Shetland in June and found an abundance of life.  Hardy plants were growing on the cliffs and brought color to this rocky environment.  Sea Thrift (Armeria maritima) with its pink flowers and Red Campion (Silene dioica) dot the cliff tops.  

Sea Thrift (Armeria maritima).
Sumburgh Head, Shetland, Scotland. 

Red Campion (Silene diocia).
Sumburgh Head, Shetland, Scotland.

Ribwort Plantain (Plantago lanceolata), bright blue Spring Squill (Scilla verna) and the buttercup relative Marsh Marigold (Caltha palurtris) were flowering too.  Lichens encrust the rocks and cliff faces with shades of gray, green and bright yellow. 

Ribwort Plantain (Plantago lanceolata).
Sumburgh Head, Shetland, Scotland. 

Spring Squill (Scilla verna).
Sumburgh Head, Shetland, Scotland. 

Marsh Marigold (Caltha palustris).
Sumburgh Head, Shetland, Scotland. 

Lichens.
Sumburgh Head, Shetland, Scotland. 

While the geology and botany of the cliffs are engaging the real attraction is the birds.  Sea birds nest in vast numbers on the cliffs each summer.  They wheel through the sky giving their harsh cries and the ammonia smell of their droppings can be overwhelming.  Atlantic Puffins (Fratercula arctica) are elegant little birds in black-and-white plumage.  These iconic birds have stubby wings, a large multicolored, parrot-like beak, light gray face and a black mark above the eye.  Their bright orange webbed feet and waddling gait give them a comical look.  Atlantic Puffins dig burrows for their nests and fly from the cliffs to settle on the sea. There they dive for fish and return them to the nest to feed their mates and young.  

Atlantic Penguin,
Sumburgh Head, Shetland, Scotland. 

Atlantic Penguin,
Sumburgh Head, Shetland, Scotland. 

Atlantic Puffins are alcids classified in the auk family, the Alcidae.  Most alcids have variations on the black-and-white pattern of the Atlantic Puffins and nest on cliffs.  Razorbills (Alca torda) were present in small numbers.  They are about puffin-size and their black beak resembles the blade of a straight razor.  Razorbills are black above and white below with a white line on the beak.  

Razorbills (Alca torda) and Common Murres (Uria aalge).
Isle of Noss, Shetland, Scotland. 

Another alcid nesting on the cliffs is the Common Murre (Uria aalge).  In Britain these birds go by the name of Guillemots.  Common Murres are black or dark brown above with a white belly.  They have short, pointed beaks and black feet.  Most members of the population have a black or dark brown head but some, called Bridled Guillemots, have a white eye ring and white line extending back from the eye. They are present in vast numbers.  On the cliffs of the Isle of Noss we saw about 30,000 birds.  

Common Murre.
Isle of Noss, Shetland, Scotland. 

Common Murres.
Sumburgh Head, Shetland, Scotland. 

Bridled Common Murre with its white line and eye ring.
Isle of Noss, Shetland, Scotland. 

Gulls also find a home on the cliffs.  The Great Black-backed Gull (Larus marinus) is the largest gull in the world and is a predator, scavenger and pirate, stealing hard won fish from other sea birds.  This giant gull has a white head, belly and tail, with black on the back and upper wing surfaces.  It has pink legs and heavy yellow beak with a red spot.  

Great Black-backed Gull (Larus marinus).
Isle of Noss, Shetland, Scotland. 

The smallest gull on the cliffs is the Black-legged Kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla).  These petite gulls are white with a light gray mantle. They have yellow bills and their namesake black legs and feet.  Immature Black-legged Kittiwakes have a white head with a black smudge at the ear and a dark “W” pattern on the wings when seen from above.  They spend most of their lives at sea, returning to land only to nest on steep sea cliffs.  

Black-legged Kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla) on nest.
Isle of Noss, Shetland, Scotland. 

Immature Black-legged Kittiwake.
Sumburgh Head, Shetland, Scotland. 

The Sea Cliffs of Shetland are dazzling in their biological diversity and in the sheer number of birds present.  More on the cliffs and their life will come in the next installment of this blog.