I had a great time yesterday, May 21st, iNatting on my 75th birthday. Ed and I went to Roosevelt Island so that I could have what was only my third exploratory visit there, and my very good iNat friend Misha came too.
I wanted to visit the Roosevelt Island Community Garden. We took the free red bus to the Octagon stop which is the last stop not very far from the north end of the island. For the Community Garden stop you stay on that bus, because the stop you need is the first one on the way back, opposite the fire station.
Once we got to the main entrance of the Community Garden, I noticed there was a big, mostly empty, vacant lot at the dead end of that small street. We asked the young man who was presumably guarding the lot if we could go in to see if there were any interesting plants there, and he said yes.
It turned out to be a pretty good location with a lot of cool wild plants and some nice birds singing. The most exciting organisms we saw were a groundhog running across the gravel-covered center of the lot, and a very cute little Fowlers toad that Misha spotted sitting on the ground at the northeast end of the lot. We also saw four cats, all of which I think were feral.
After we had spent quite some time in the vacant lot, we went next door to the Community Garden. It is a very pretty garden, but I was surprised that there were not more insects there. The most interesting insect I saw was a Narcissus Bulb Fly. The only butterflies were two or three Cabbage Whites. As for mollusks, there were Physa acuta freshwater snails in the nice little ponds there and two Cepaea nemoralis land snails in the cuttings basket. There were lots of gorgeous fragrant roses and peonies in full flower in the garden plots.
As for plants, the best thing I found was a really huge Bukhara Fleeceflower creeper growing wild at the entrance to the vacant lot and completely covering a young American Elm Tree. I had never seen Bukhara Fleeceflower before, and indeed, it is somewhat rare in NYC. I also saw, but did not photograph, Miguel's Mazus (very pretty and new-to-me) growing rampant in some of the garden lots, and it turns out that is invasive here in the northeast, so I need to go back soon and photograph that, as I assume it counts as wild in NYC.
The three of us walked back to the tram along the western coast of the island, and Misha rode with us on the tram to the Upper East Side. Having had a very late night the day before, Misha was tired and went home, but Ed and I went up to Hummus Kitchen (2nd Ave between 83rd and 84th) for dinner with our friend Tom Kleh to celebrate both Ed's birthday (which took place while we were on Nevis in March) and my birthday too.
This big creeper is new to me. but it sure looks like a Fallopia.
Plants growing along the water's edge path.
A huge example of this creeper was growing right at the entrance to the vacant lot, mostly covering American Elm branches.
I have never seen this species before, but it certainly looks like a Fallopia.
Comments
Happy Birthday Susan !!!
Thanks Cindy!
Happy birthday Susan! It has indeed been a sadly sparse season for insects. But at least the groundhog showed up to wish you a happy day.
Happy birthday Susan! And thank you for your beautiful pictures and words (and expertise) shared with the iNat community.
Happy birthday! It sounds like it was indeed a good one. I momentarily forgot you are in NY when I read "Roosevelt Island", and was confused at the mention of community gardens, as we have an island by that name here in DC, too. I had the same experience upon first encountering Miquel's Mazus, as I found it in large patches full of those pretty purple blooms. I recognized right away that it was probably invasive, given the way I found it growing, but I could see why it had come here. Thanks for sharing your day here!
Thanks @ahaislip!
And thanks @ashley_bradford; glad you enjoyed my account of the other Roosevelt Island.
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