If you have ever taken a quiet walk through deeply wooded areas, you have likely passed right by one of the forest floor’s most reliable residents: the Christmas Fern (Polystichum acrostichoides). While much of the surrounding understory drops its leaves and goes dormant for winter, this hardy native stays rich, dark, and green year-round. It […]
Category: Ranch Flora and Fauna
BHR Flora: Blue Mist Fower
Late September brings a striking change to the meadows at Briarhopper Ranch. Even as the big and bold bloom of high summer fade, the late-season landscape lights up with vivid shades of blue and purple. Among the native flora stealing the show this time of year is the Blue Mist Flower, also widely known as […]
Meet the Locals: The Eastern Rat Snake
Call them rat snakes, chicken snakes, or black rats. No matter what the experts are naming them this week, these native reptiles are essential, non-venomous members of the Briarhopper Ranch ecosystem. Plentiful across the farm, they are very much friend, not foe. Growing typically between 3.5 to 6 feet long (with the largest exceptional individuals […]
Meet the Locals: The North American Crawdad
Call them crayfish, crawdads, mudbugs, or crawfish: no matter which name you prefer, they all refer to the same resilient little freshwater crustacean. These creatures are standard inhabitants of clean, healthy ecosystems throughout North America. They thrive in freshwater habitats where they can find plenty of cover, feeding on a wide variety of organic material […]
Meet the Spiny Softshell: The Pond’s Living Fossil
Don’t let the name fool you; there is nothing delicate about the Spiny Softshell Turtle. Unlike most turtles with hard, bony shells, this ancient-looking reptile sports a flat, rubbery, leather-like shell that acts as the perfect camouflage at the bottom of the pond. Capable of growing up to 18 inches long, the large females are […]