september

Explore! By Master Naturalist Pam Johnson.  All photos (c) Pam Johnson/JDCF.

September is the month of yellow and purple on the prairie. Now the asters and goldenrods show off their splendor at Wapello, Horseshoe Mound, Casper Bluff and Valley of Eden. At Wapello, you can see the yellow haze from the road but you have to walk among the forbs and grasses to the purple New England Asters and Rough Blazing Stars.

I believe It is no accident of nature that yellow and purple is so pleasing. The colors are opposite each other on the color wheel and are called complementary colors because they complete each other. Yellow is a primary color and purple is made from red and blue which are also primary colors. Whatever the reason I enjoy the sight of the asters and goldenrods in the fall.

The last butterflies of the season are gathering nectar. Some, like the Monarchs and Painted Ladies, are gathering for the flight that takes them to their over-wintering locations. They can be seen in great numbers, generally on those purple and yellow flowers. Walking Sticks are also prevalent in September. You might miss them in the forest but see them on your screens.

My favorite insects to look for in September on the forbs are the flower flies. They are quite different from those pesky cluster flies or the nasty biting flies. The flower flies do not bite or sting. I can often mistake a flower fly for a bee as they have beautiful markings on their body. But then you look for the telltale features of a fly versus a bee. The fly has two wings generally held horizontally from its body. It has very short antennae whereas the bee has longer antennae. It has large eyes that touch on top of its head whereas the bee has eyes on the side of its head.

Journaling is one of my favorite ways to document what I see on my walks. In September I start looking for signs of migration. The Wood Ducks are gathering. I love to take pictures and then draw the Wood Ducks. They are so beautiful. Join me for a journaling with watercolor workshop this month.

September is the peak time for migrating songbirds such as warblers, grosbeaks and tanagers. The warblers I see are harder to identify because they are in their non-breeding colors. Most of the bird species in these groups only eat insects and have to continue south as the weather turns cold and the population of their prey diminishes. I still see the White Pelicans soaring in the sky. In September, too, huge numbers of Common Nighthawks ply the skies snatching the last of the season’s insects on their way to Central and South America. On a warm September day at at dusk, nighthawks can be seen, even right over your house, as they feed on the wing.

Remember those Green darner dragonflies I talked about in June. They are now migrating south. You might see them over the prairie in large numbers. Around Lake Superior, their peak migration coincides with the peak of the American Kestrel migration, nature’s way of providing the hawks with a sure food source traveling south.

Seed picking is important to local prairie restoration. JDCF prairies supply seed for the Northwest Illinois Prairie Enthusiasts efforts for restorations. It is the first thing I volunteered for when I moved to Galena. You concentrate on one type of flower as you pick. It is a wonderful way to learn the native flowers of our prairies and it is a very social occasion.

Days are getting shorter so I hope you will get to one of the JDCF preserves and enjoy the change of seasons.