Today at 08:30 • Updated today at 09:59
Forest ranger Frans Kapteijns shares his knowledge of nature every week. Anyone can submit questions via [email protected]. This time Frans pays attention to, among other things, a spider with a beautiful name that also occurs in Brabant, an edible vegetable that is seen as a troublesome usurer, very strange dandelions with sometimes two flower heads and a Southern European dangerous poison-squirting beetle that cannot fly. Part one of this Stuifmail was already published on Saturday.
What do fat-legged leopard spiders have on the menu?
André van Drunen sent me a nice photo a while back with a question about the field cricket, click here to see what he is talking about. He also saw that a big-legged leopard spider came out of one of those field cricket holes and he wondered whether this rather rare spider might have field crickets on its menu.
Thick-legged leopard spiders belong to the wolf spider family and are mainly found in sunny and open places, but also in forest edges and roadsides. Previously also in beautiful, sparse and dry grasslands, but there are no longer so many. Since the big-legged leopard spiders are wolf spiders, they do not make a web to catch food, but go hunting. So they are hunting spiders that mainly search for food on the ground.
The fat-legged leopard spider’s menu mainly includes small insects, such as flies, springtails and small beetles, so such a large field cricket will not be among them. However, abandoned field cricket holes are ideal hiding places for this species of spider. Thick-legged leopard spiders are mainly active in spring and early summer. Most reports of this species are mainly in April and May. The name fat-legged leopard spider mainly owes the species to the spotted, panther-like patterns on the spider’s body. The explanation for the word thick-legged in the name is due to the noticeably thickened legs of the males.
What has been in and against a lawn for years?
Theo Sanders sent me a photo of a plant (he calls it a weed, but weeds do not exist) that he has been finding in and around his lawn for years and of course he wants to know what it is. In his photo I see a beautiful green leaf, but not yet the white flowers. This beautiful plant is called winter purslane. It originally occurred in North America. The winter purslane probably entered Europe via Cuba. Nowadays, the plant is often found grown wild in the Netherlands, but there are also gardeners who grow this plant as a winter-hardy variant. The latter is also easy, because winter purslane is resistant to frost. Hence the name. In early spring you often encounter them in various places, especially as a pioneer plant. This species likes to grow in open places with little competition and often on unprocessed or bare ground in winter. How do you combat winter purslane? The best way to do this is to hoe it before seed formation or to pull the plants out of the ground in their entirety. An even better control is to harvest and eat it.
Winter purslane is full of vitamin C. There are many minerals in this plant, such as calcium, magnesium, and iron. During the gold rush in America, winter purslane was used as an important food source against scurvy. Various Indian tribes ate not only the leaves, but also the tubers and roots of this plant. So it’s great if winter porcelain appears in your garden, free vegetables!
What strange thing is going on with dandelions?
Both Thea Verkamman and Monique Spooren came across dandelions with a double stem and wondered what that could be. We call this natural phenomenon fasciation, band formation or cristate formation and you then see a dandelion with a flat or double stem. In addition, there are often two or three flowers at the top of such a stem, which are fused together.
This phenomenon is often caused by a disturbance in cell division during growth. There are several causes for this mutation. Bacteria can be the cause, but also weather conditions, for example sudden extreme cold, but also hormonal imbalance. The latter can be caused by insect bites or diseases. In short; many different causes and this phenomenon can occur in many different plant species. For trees these are mainly the willow and ash, for herbs mainly foxglove, dandelion, pigweed and cockscomb and for vegetables mainly asparagus, strawberries and tomatoes.
There is another special genetic abnormality in which the top flower at the top of the stem is not bilaterally symmetrical, but omnidirectionally symmetrical. We call this phenomenon Peloric Topflower and I have observed it in my garden with foxgloves, see photo. The term peloric means something like monstrous. These types of unusual flowers mainly occur in plants that are symmetrical on all sides (i.e. not two-sided) and where inbreeding occurs. Peloric flowers are especially noticeable because they always grow at the top of the plant.
Is this a dangerous or poisonous animal?
Ruben Buhrmann sent me a photo of an animal and asked what it is and whether it is dangerous? I think it is a red-striped oil beetle (once seen in a friend’s photo), and I think Ruben photographed the animal in southern Europe. This oil beetle species is therefore a southern European and has two conspecifics in our country, namely the common oil beetle and the blue oil beetle. Both species are rare in our country, especially in the south and east of our country.
Nowadays also found on dikes and in the Delta area. The southern European red-banded oil beetle is a large, wingless (no hindwings) beetle species, known for its striking red transverse stripes. This member of the oil beetle family, to which both our oil beetle species also belong, does have small elytra. The red-striped oil beetles grow to a maximum of 6 cm and have their legs at the front, so that their abdomen drags on the ground. Despite this, the red-banded oil beetles can reach considerable speed, see this beautiful video about the species.
The red-striped oil beetles, just like our Dutch oil beetles, secrete an irritating, oily substance. This substance contains the toxin cantharidin, which causes an ‘oil trail’ on the skin and can cause blisters on the skin upon contact.
Beautiful photos section
Just outside the Kampina, Bas came across this beautiful hairy beewolf and it certainly belongs in this section, photo by Bas van Sambeek
Nature tip
On Sunday, May 17, you can go to the Loonse and Drunese Duinen from ten in the morning until noon.
In this unique nature reserve you will find forests, heathland and, above all, a lot of sand. It is the largest drifting sand area in Western Europe. What is needed to preserve these unique properties and natural values? Our forester will tell you everything about its origins and management, in the past and today.
More space for nature
By purchasing the Loonse and Drunense Duinen in 1921, this area has been protected for over 100 years. This way we can still enjoy this Brabant Sahara. But that does not happen automatically: Sometimes intervention is necessary to improve biodiversity. During a walk through the forest and over the drifting sand around Giersbergen, our ranger will tell you all about this. Using examples you can see what is already going well and what is still being worked on. An educational tour through centuries-old and young forests, where you discover how Natuurmonumenten preserves and improves this unique nature reserve.
More information
- Registration is required and can be done via this link.
- Departure point Giersbergen parking lot: Giersbergen 9-10, 5151 RG Drunen (NB).
- Costs for members of Natuurmonumenten are 7.70 euros and for non-members it costs 11.00 euros to participate.
- This excursion is aimed at adults. Older children are welcome if accompanied by an adult.
- Wear sturdy walking shoes.
- Wear clothes that suit the weather.
- Always check yourself for ticks afterwards.
- Dogs are not allowed.
