Banks County: Wilson Shoals Wildlife Management Area

We explored Wilson Shoals Wildlife Management Area in Banks County this afternoon. We entered the WMA on Grant Mill Road from the Yonah-Homer Road (GA-51) and drove north through the area. A map may be downloaded here.



Hudson River and its tributaries flow through the area. We crossed this tributary on Grant Mill Road. The water was cascading gently over a solid-rock riverbed that the road forded. Interestingly, a 2-mile section of the river including this section is rated as a Class I-III+ whitewater for kayaking. The water level was too low today to kayak though.

The roads were in good shape. This section had been recently re-graveled and was ‘tame’ compared with many sections. Many sections were very steep.

This small boulder on an open hillside had an overhang which is not clearly visible in this photograph. Organpipe Mud Dauber wasps had built mud nests under the overhang.

A closer view of the mud dauber nests.

We were high enough at about 925 feet above sea level to see rhododendrons on east-facing slopes. Based on leaf color and shape, there were at lest two different species in this area.

A closer view of one species. It's beginning to bud so we'll have to plan to return to the area in the near future.

We saw a couple of small patches of the club moss, Southern Ground-cedar (Lycopodium digitatum). This moss is much more common further north in Georgia where we’ve seen it fruiting in mid-February. These patches showed no sign of fruiting.

This large flat area extended along a small creek and was completely unexpected in an area that was characterized by ridges and narrow valleys. It is a primitive campground and would be a tempting place to camp in warmer weather.

Driving in Wilson Shoals WMA is not for the faint of heart. Some sections of road descended straight down or climbed straight up steep hillsides. Frequently we would be driving down over ridges – intended to ensure that water ran off the road rather than erode gullies along the roadway – without being able to see the roadway beyond the ridge in front of us. We used 4-wheel drive in many places. This would not be a place to visit during wet weather. Today, several roads were closed. It’s not clear if these closures are temporary or permanent. These may be roads that are open only during hunting season.
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The Sap Tree

I don’t even know what kind of tree it was. But as I made my way from the parking lot down to the lake shore (segment 12) I noticed that a number of insects and butterflies gathered at the base of the tree. Only this tree among all the others along the bank.

There was a large black area at the base of the tree.

A closer view.

At first I thought a mushroom had ‘decomposed’ to leave a black patch which has been common in the woods this Fall. However, the tree appeared to be oozing sap and quite a diverse variety of creatures were puddling. A Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta) and an Eastern Comma (Polygonia comma) stopped by for a few seconds but didn’t settle.

A Gemmed Satyr (Cyllopsis gemma)

Sharing the same space with an ant

At first I thought it was a cicada skeleton but a close look revealed it was a beetle. I don’t know what it is. I don’t know if it was alive or not. It looks like it’s cemented in. And it was sharing space with an Eastern Yellowjacket.

The Eastern Yellowjacket (Vespula maculifrons) was dwarfed by a European Hornet (Vespa crabro).

And a closer view of the European Hornet. I’d seen a few of these along the trail over the last few weeks but they were twitchy and flew away as I approached. This one was posing.

I usually go down to the lakeshore by a different route. I’m not sure why I went this way on this day but this was a serendipitous find.

Postscripts:
I checked the tree a week later
1. It's an oak.
2. The sap had stopped oozing.
3. The beetle had disappeared so I guess it was alive and not permanently 'glued' into the crevice.
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Identification resources:
- Butterflies and Moths of North America: Gemmed Satyr (Cyllopsis gemma)
- BugGuide: Eastern Yellowjacket (Vespula maculifrons)
- BugGuide: European Hornet (Vespa crabro)

Red Wasp (Polistes carolina)

We’ve been in a drought pattern for the last few years and we've seen numerous wasps coming to water plant containers to drink. This year has been a ‘wet’ year and we haven’t seen a lot of wasps until now that we’re in the ‘dry’ months.

Red Wasps (Polistes carolina) have been visiting the Sicklepod (Coffeeweed; Senna obtusifolia) flowers near the house in the last week or so. In my experience, they are not aggressive wasps and will fly away if I get too close.

And a close-up...

Identification resources:
- BugGuide: Red Wasp (Polistes carolina)
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