Smartweed Caterpillar

A smartweed caterpillar (Acronicta oblinata) crawls along a smartweed. 

Link to smartweed caterpillar:

Link to smartweed caterpillar:

At Celery Bog Park, Sept. 11, 2012.  There are plenty of these guys crawling around here.  The pond has refilled with water since the drought caused it to dry up during the summer.  The dense growth of herbaceous vegetation that was able to grow on the dry pond bed is still there above the standing water.  Most of it is Persicaria lapathifolia, Persicaria pennsylvanica, Persicaria punctata, Amaranthus tuberculatus and Cyperus esculentus.  All of these plants should be providing a huge amount of food for waterfowl in the coming months.

Link to pond earlier in the summer:

Dodder at White River State Park

An extensive growth of dodder (Cuscuta sp.) nearly covers an entire island at the base of one of the piers of the old Washington Street pedestrian bridge at White River State Park at Indianapolis.  The dodder is the yellow stuff you see on the island.

 Another view of the same dodder seen in the first picture, looking down from the Washington St. pedestrian bridge.  The host plant for the dodder is unknown. 

Two more patches of dodder, on the east bank of White River.  This view is also from the old Washington St. pedestrian bridge at White River State Park.  I will guess that it is the same kind of dodder as seen in the first two pictures. 

Pictures taken August 12, 2012.

Link to Cuscuta:

Link to how Cuscuta finds its host plant by smell:

Tree moss

This is tree moss, Climacium americanum, at Fall Creek Gorge nature preserve in Warren County..  Picture taken August 11, 2012.

Link to Climacium:

Link to Climacium: