Isn't it a beautiful season to hike the woods and carry along a nature journal? You never know what you'll find.
Stopping for a water break on a recent hike, I spotted this large and curious looking beetle resting on a stump.
It looked like a giant version of the familiar click beetle, one of those black, flat-ish beetles that flip into the air and make an audible click to escape when caught.
An internet search showed that indeed it was an Eastern Eyed Click Beetle, and that its young eat an abundance of the wood-boring insects that damage hardwood trees.
In my eyes, that makes this beautiful beetle is a hero!
We also found loads of Great White Trilliums blooming in the woods along the trail, and watched as a Scarlet Tanager warbled just 13' away from us in a sapling. I didn't dare reach for my nature journal. I didn't want to scare away this magical bird.
I've been keeping a nature journal for over 25 years, and it's still exciting to sketch and write about nature in my journal.
Would you like to learn more about keeping a nature journal? I invite you to join me for a Nature Journaling class at the Community College of Beaver County in July. You can read about and register for the class here:
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