Yesterday was a great day for a walk in the woods at O'Loughlin.

Guppy Farm was muddy and very walkable today.  Mild temperatures help to get one outside.

Walked along the Charlie Major nature trail today and were treated to a small flock, 3, of bluebirds down by the creek.

Lovely fall walk through the woods today.  Here are the spicebushes the caterpillar in the previous post would've found tasty.

We had a real treat today when we found this unusual looking caterpillar on the O'Loughlin trail.  At first I thought it might be a small rubber child's toy. On closer inspection, I found it was a caterpillar and  very much alive.  While graciously photogenic in the middle of the trail, we moved the caterpillar to the side so no one would inadvertently take a wrong step.

Once home I googled the caterpillar to find it is a Spicebush Swallowtail, Papillo troilus, which turns yellow before it pupates.  More information can be found at http://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/species/Papilio-troilus

Met a very nice woman today who has just discovered the conservation areas and is burning through the trails.  She wondered why some are marked and others aren't.  I pointed her in the right direction.

Glorious late summer day with asters and golden rod blooming.

Met Dr. Greg McGee with his students from ESF today on the trails at Guppy.  He brings students for a variety of programs using this great resource.  Today's group consisted of grad students who would in turn lead freshman groups next week on the property.