Coral Honeysuckle welcoming guests to the native pollinator garden.
May Nature Walk
at
Cane Creek Mountains Natural Area
Friday, May 15th 10AM-12PM
Please join us as we partner with TriadWild!, the local NCWF Chapter, for our May Nature Walk. We explore the Longleaf Loop at Cane Creek Mountains Natural Area. We will meet in the parking lot and from there check out the pollinator garden to see what we can find. From there we will check out the Longleaf Loop Trail is a 1-mile packed gravel loop offering views of the mountain range above. The trail meanders through an area of the park that was recently planted with Longleaf Pine, a species native to Eastern North Carolina, but rarely found in the Piedmont. If time permits, we can caravan to the new trails down the road and explore the Varnals Creek Trail which is a 1-mile loop trail with a nice stopping point along a creek. This trail is a nicely maintained dirt trail but does have a bit of an uphill slope on the return portion.
Due to the mountain’s height and inaccessibility, many species that are not easily found elsewhere in Alamance County, or even in the entire Piedmont region, thrive on and around the mountain. At least 8 different species have been identified on the mountain including New York Fern, Cinnamon Fern, Southern Lady Fern, Christmas Fern, Netted Chain Fern, Royal Fern, Broad Beech Fern and Resurrection Fern. Native blueberry bushes are prevalent in the Cane Creek Mountains. The most efficient pollinator in the south, the Southern blueberry bee, can be found pollinating through “buzz pollination” which the flowers of blueberry plants require.
In spring we can look forward to seeing and/or hearing Indigo Buntings, Northern Flickers, Pileated, Hairy, and Downy Woodpeckers, Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, White-eyed and Red-eyed Vireos, Yellow-breasted Chats, Summer Tanagers, and Prairie Warblers, but you never who all might make an appearance!
We will meet at the Pine Hill Trailhead: 5075 Bass Mountain Rd, Snow Camp, NC 27349. There is a large parking lot with restrooms at the trailhead.
Contact trip leader Heather Russell at
contact@tgpearsonaudubon.org with any questions. Dress for the weather; we will be walking in part sun and part shade. Bring your water and binoculars/camera if you’d like. It will be a slow-paced, fun walk.
Like all our walks, it is free and all are welcome!
Male Prairie Warbler photographed at Cane Creek by Heather Russell