The March Hare: Fall '04
Issue 42

The many faces of Fall * The Ecovillage at 1 Jaunty Weasel Lane * Member Bio: Amy * A growing appetite for life at Dancing Rabbit * 7th Annual Land Day Celebration and Open House * Nature Corner: Metamorphosis * Eggplant "Caviar"-- Missouri style

Nature Corner: Metamorphosis
by Rachel Katz

I have been so busy recently (and probably recovering from my summer field work) that I haven't gotten out and about on the land as frequently as usual. But here, nature really comes to you. I was putting the finishing touches on the plaster of my wood-fired outdoor hot tub, when Tamar came by with a huge red caterpillar she had found on her wood. Wow! It was a gorgeous rusty red, with yellow spikes and spots and a hardened yellow posterior. After spending some time with my (copious) field guides, we found that it was the larva of an Imperial Moth. Imperial moths are impressively large, up to almost 6 inches across. They live in forests, eating the leaves of trees.

Tamar introducing herself to an Imperial Moth caterpillar

That caterpillar and an increasing number of squirrels are all signs that our local habitat is changing. In the village and down near the creek, we have more trees and they are bigger each year. Looking at pictures of the village from just a few years ago, you can really see how the trees have grown up. It's nice to have more shade around town and more trees to control erosion and provide habitat.

Ironically, while we are working to put the trees in some places, we are working hard to keep them out of others. Prairie is an even scarcer habitat than forest, and we are doing our best through mowing and fire to provide places for northern harriers to hunt, and for all their prey too.

I keep my eyes peeled when I'm traveling down country roads for unusual native wildflowers. Roadsides are often one of the only places that never got plowed and can evince a diversity of beautiful and unusual flowers. Then I make a mental note of where the flowers are, so I can come back when the seed is ripe. I collect it and spread it on our prairie restorations and prairie demonstration plots. That way we can perpetuate some of the diversity that was once here by taking advantage of (often imperiled) remnants.

Tamar introducing herself to an Imperial Moth caterpillar

The many faces of Fall * The Ecovillage at 1 Jaunty Weasel Lane * Member Bio: Amy * A growing appetite for life at Dancing Rabbit * 7th Annual Land Day Celebration and Open House * Nature Corner: Metamorphosis * Eggplant "Caviar"-- Missouri style