Milkweed seed pod

Sunday
Another gorgeous Autumn day, and another bike ride this afternoon, but this time on the Shaker Trace trail in Miami Whitewater Forest, a Hamilton County Park, over on the west side of town. It’s a lovely trail, passing through some farming country and meadow areas, not just forest, as the name may imply, and I think it’s probably at its best in the Fall. It’s a loop trail, and only 8 miles in length, so we did it twice. I would have stopped more often for photographs, but I don’t like to frustrate Roger too much - I did suggest to him he could go on at his own pace, but he didn’t take me up on the idea! One of my favorite sights amidst the meadow areas at this time of year is the Milkweed seed pods splitting open revealing the brown seeds amongst its white “fluff” which aids in wind dispersal. Milkweeds are a critical resource for our environment, their nectar providing valuable food for butterflies, bees and other pollinators, and the leaves of all milkweed species are the only food that the caterpillars of the beautiful Monarch butterflies can eat. Unfortunately, due to widespread pesticide use, wild-growing milkweeds are disappearing in places where these butterflies breed. This has led to a 90% decline in the number of Eastern Monarch butterflies in a single decade.