TOPIC: WHAT THE?????????

WELL I KNOW THAT BEING IN THE WOODS IS A GREAT JOY I WAS JUST WONDERING WHAT IS THE WEIRDEST OR WILDEST THING YOU HAVE EVER FOUND?tODAY I COME ACROSS THIS TREE THAT WAS COVERED IN FLUFFY WHITE AFIDS SO WHITE IT LOOKED AS IF IT GLOWED.

Where they dancing?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&NR=1&v=yxc4xWQrT6M

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cryptococcus_fagisuga

They are about the weirdest thing I've seen in the woods! Creepy...

Looks like powdery mildew, but if you can see what looks like aphids it's a small pest called white flies. What are they congrigating on?

Looks like wolly beech afids to me. Found it a couple of time here in Vermont.
Sargie

Yep, Wooly Aphids (sometimes called White Fairies) for sure! Once the females mature, they begin cloning themselves (producing Wolly Aphid Nymphs) and quickly take over the host plant in a large swarm. Once the host plant dies, many of the Aphids will grow wings and take off being carried by the wind. The wings don't actually allow them to fly but helps them stay aloft once the wind picks them up. Weird huh??

One of my favorites of the big woods is Foxfire! Back in the early 90's, I was walking back out of a National Forest area in West Virginia after hunting til dark. My' flashlight went on the fritz and although I knew my way, it was hard to keep from stumbling over every log, tree limb and dead snag on the way out. I was using my' cigarette lighter to navigate the rough areas but then came across an old downed and rotted tree with Foxfire all over it. It was glowing really bright and I scooped up as much of the Foxfire that I could hold in one hand, hoping that I could use it to navigate my way. However, the Foxfire was not bright enough to help very much and I found that once disturbed, it's luminescence quickly diminishes. Interesting Fungi to say the least and something that has spawned a lot of Old Wive's Tales, Folk Lore and Ghost Stories!


Frank