Franklin D. Roosevelt State Park

Next for April Fool’s Day, let’s explore a few amazing mimics! Some mimicry can keep harmless creatures safe from predators by closely resembling something dangerous or unappealing. Look at the following master mimics! Spicebush swallowtails have a couple tricks to keep themselves safe before they turn into beautiful and agile butterflies. Their caterpillars look a lot like snakes with their large fake eye spots and coloration, and their pupa stage mimics a leaf, making gre...at camouflage. For more on butterflies: https://georgiawildlife.com/backyard-butterflies Scarlet snakes, milk snakes and some kingsnakes, like the scarlet kingsnake pictured, mimic the venomous coral snake. The vibrant red, yellow, and black bands of the coral snake serve as a warning that they are dangerous and probably not worth the trouble of catching. Other harmless snakes take advantage of this by mimicking the bands. However, there is a distinction (in North America), the pattern of color is not the same. The non-venomous mimics have red and black next to each other whereas the venomous coral snake has red and yellow next to each other. The non-venomous ones also have both red and black on their heads (usually with a red snout) while the coral snake has a completely black head. To tell the difference between these snakes, remember: -Red next to black is a friend of Jack, red next to yellow will hurt a fellow! -Head is black, put it back! What to do if you see a snake: https://georgiawildlife.com/dnr-what-do-when-you-see-snake-0

Today is April Fool’s, the day for tricks, pranks, and deception! And the animal kingdom has some of the best tricksters around. First up let’s look at the masters of hide-and-seek. Camouflage out in the wild helps keep unwanted eyes from finding you. See if you can find these camouflaged critters!

Lovely trickling stream seen on Saturday's ranger-led hike.

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