Rain Lilies Mark August Rains

Many ornamental plants have been selected for prolonged blooming, but a few species are distinguished because their blossoms last a few days or less. One example on campus are rain lilies, Zephyranthes rosea. The bloom in late summer after a heavy rain and usually before students return to campus.

Wild Honeybees on Campus

Despite the difficulties commercial beekeepers face, it is not uncommon to find wild colonies of honeybees on campus. They have been found in Laurel Oaks, Live Oaks, and Cabbage Palms. Now we have a colony in a fig tree -- not in a cavity but out in the open. 

We've contacted a local beekeeper who may be able to both remove and save the colony, which faces an uncertain future out in the open as winter approaches. We may even get some honey, but the beekeeper cautions that this late season honey is likely to be from Brazilian Pepper and Melaleuca, which are considered commercial, not table, grade honey.

Spring Puts the erythr (red) in Erythrina

Coralbean or Cherokee Bean is a native pea Erythrina herbacea and a big specimen can be found in the northwest corner of the Caples Garden.

The red flowers are said to attract hummingbirds. Toxic alkaloids are found throughout the plant, so don't be experimenting with this one. The seeds are just as red as the flowers and lack the black spot that distinguishes the similarly poisonous Rosary Pea (Arbrus precatorius), which is also found on campus. General rule of thumb: Don't eat red seeds!

Mulberries 2011

It's early March and the mulberries are blooming. Look for them on the Caples campus (two varieties) in the garden area, on the Ringling grounds (walk south from the southeastern corner of the Rose garden past the stumps and cabbage palms) and northeast of the Four Winds cafe.

For more about mulberries, see an earlier blog entry.

Blooming Oaks

Two species of native oak trees are common on the New College campus - live oak (Quercus virginiana) and laurel oak (Quercus laurifolia). Instead of dropping all their leaves in the fall like northern oaks, live oaks and laurel oaks drop all their leaves in the early spring, just as their flowers emerge and just before new leaves appear. This process is beginning now in the last weeks of February and will continue over the next couple of months.

Each tree seems to be on its own time table and have its own shade of green-brown-rust colored catkins. Oak catkins are long thin pendants with multiple inconspicuous male flowers. The male flowers produce pollen which is distributed by the wind. The fine yellow dust on our cars this time of year could be either oak or pine pollen. Following the catkins, bright green new leaves appear. Walking around campus and driving around town during the spring, its easy to see oak trees at all different stages of transition: some still sporting last year's dark green leaves; some covered in rust and golden colored catkins after the old leaves have dropped; and many bursting with the bright green of new leaves.

For more information on laurel oak, including a slide show: http://florida.plantatlas.usf.edu/Plant.aspx?id=3901

For more informatin on live oak, including a slide show http://florida.plantatlas.usf.edu/Plant.aspx?id=3904

Cooper's Hawk

During the week of February 5, a Cooper's Hawk returned to the roof of Cook Hall. The hawk perched at the top of the north chimney at Cook Hall. A Cooper's Hawk was a regular visitor during the winter of 2008, using the same perch, particularly in cold or rainy weather.

Cooper's hawks are medium sized hawks with long tails, alternating bars of brown and white across its tail. It preys on medium sized birds and mammals. Whenever the Cooper's Hawk shows up, the small flock of pigeons that lives on the north tower roof of Cook Hall, vanishes.

For more information on Cooper's Hawks, see : http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/Coopers_Hawk_dtl.html#habitat

Osprey rebuild nest east of Cook Hall

During the week of January 26, a pair of osprey began rebuilding a nest in a standing dead pine tree east of Cook Hall. This tree has supported an osprey nest every winter for the past 6 years, with the exception on one year when the nest was taken over by Great Horned Owls. Now three weeks later, the osprey pair are still adding spanish moss and sticks to the nest. The osprey are perched on the tree every day. Sometimes one osprey is sitting on the nest while the other is perched on a nearby branch.

This nest tree stand in a grassy parking area for Cook Hall. Several years ago the college hired an arborist to remove all branches that were likely to fall, in order to prevent damage to cars in the parking area.

Osprey incubate their eggs for 32-43 days. Once the young birds hatch, they spent 48-59 days in the nest and nest tree before they fledge. Female osprey are larger than males and have a necklace of heavier brown marking across their breast. Male breasts are uniformly white. Both parents incubate, but the female does the majority of the incubation while the male primarily provides food.