The forecasters called for a dangerously hot day today, but it was cold down at the creek, where we summer campers spent part of the afternoon. It's a tough job, but somebody's got to do it. While there, I saw this Great Spangled Fritillary (Speyeria cybele) on a swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata). Compare this with the common milkweed found at the pond, below.
Cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis) also grows at two locations in open, wet woods along French Creek. This is a plant that blew my mind when I first arrived at Crow's Nest. Having worked at public gardens and arboreta, I had seen this plant in cultivation, but had never seen it growing on its own in the wild. It's a short lived perennial, although some sites will aslo support its regeneration by seed, so the population remains present.
