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Jordan Lake Gameland (bridge over NC 751), Chatham County, NC
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Jordan Lake, 7/8/14 | Common Buttonbushes in Jordan Lake, 7/8/15 | The pond connecting with Jordan Lake, 7/8/15 | Water Primroses in the pond, 7/8/15 |
This area is near the border between the Piedmont and the Coastal Plain of North Carolina. You can see clay and sand mixing at the lakeshore, though the clay of the Piedmont predominates.
This inlet of Jordan Lake, in the northeastern corner, is my favorite natural area in driving distance of Durham, largely because of the large mudflats that occur during droughts, especially in the fall dry spells. You aren't confined to trails in the woods, unlike in nearly all public-access natural areas. During the dry spells, when the shrinking lake water reveals substantial mudflats, here are large stretches of ground crowded with a large variety of small plants without any nuisance value, although you can pick up "stickers" from Spanish needles (aster seedheads) in the bushes closer to the woods. False Nutsedge and Valley Redstem are the biggest of these, while most others lie close to the ground and in the shallowest water. In the summer, during a drought, there was a small stream running from an inland pond to the lake across the mudflats, and the many species of aquatic insects in it and nearby couldn't hide from from my camera, although the invariably fast-moving beetles gave me a challenge. In contrast, the inland pond is deep, and covered with vegetation such as Water Primroses in the summer.
In 2016, however, water levels were much higher than usual, and no mudflats were found. But it was still possible to see water boatmen near the lake's edge. The mudflats came back in 2017.
On the west side of the bridge is an area with trails and fields planted with corn. On the east side is a trail leading through the woods which reaches either the lake or mudflats surrounding the lake, depending on how great the rainfall has been at that time of the year. For directions, see a live map.
Inlet east of bridge
9/27/19
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Male Roseate Skimmer | Same male Roseate Skimmer | Female Roseate Skimmer | Same female Roseate Skimmer |
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Wandering Glider | Northern Cricket Frog | European Hornet | Same European Hornet | European Hornets |
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Great Egrets and a Great Blue Heron | Great Blue Heron and all of the Great Egrets on this spit |
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View of first lake access from the other end | View across inlet from mudflats | Little Yellow | Long-jawed orb weaver over pond | Red Admiral |
10/28/17
This time, the lake bed had no water other than a few small puddles, and was mostly dry enough to walk on. False Nutsedge, a marsh plant, dominated the vegetation bordering the lake, and those farthest from the center of the lake had died. A few Water Primrose and smartweed plants showed up on the lake bed, and Tarnished Plant Bugs found their way to the smartweed. The nearby pond, apparently much deeper, remained full, without either vegetation or animal life. As I did last time, I found a discarded boot, this time lost under more mysterious circumstances.
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Toad bug | Seed-bearing Valley Redstem and False Nutsedge, on the far east end of the inlet | Blooming Valley Redstem | Blooming Water Primrose | American Lady |
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Blackbirds | Boot | Clam shell | Another clam shell |
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Convergent Ladybug Beetle (Hippodamia convergens) | Same beetle | Deer scat, with flies and persimmon seeds | Grasshopper |
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Monarch (dorsal view) | Same Monarch (ventral view) | Moth | Mystery muck |
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Tarnished Plant Bug on smartweed |
6/15/17
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Red-spotted Purple (dorsal view) | Question Mark | Red-spotted Purple (ventral view) | Slaty Skimmer | Another Slaty Skimmer |
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Black and Yellow Mud Dauber Wasp (Sceliphron caementarium) digging | More digging | Yet more digging | The wasp has retrieved a spherical object | And carries it away |
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Tachinid fly | Toad bug | Virginia Hoverfly | Same Virginia Hoverfly | Same Virginia Hoverfly on a Common Buttonbush |
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Water boatman | Another water boatman with mysterious circular motion | Climbing Dogbane (Thyrsanthella difformis) | Wolf spider and toad bug | Wolf spider on feather |
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Antmimic spider | Aquatic beetle and winged insect in trouble | Virginia Hoverfly on a Common Buttonbush | Common Buttonbushes, not blooming | Wolf spider and Northern Cricket Frog |
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Dragonfly | Same dragonfly | Male Eastern Amberwing | Stilt-legged fly | Grasshopper nymph |
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Ground beetle | Mating ground beetles | Mystery insect | One view of the lake | Another view of the lake |
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Leafcutter bee | Leaffooted bug | Moth | Orchard spider |
4/15/17
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Northern Cricket Frog | Feather | Another feather | Tiny fly | Ground beetle (Bembidion genus) |
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Ground beetle (Bembidion genus) | Inchworm | Longhorn beetle (Euderces pini) | Man on jetski | Male midge |
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Pygmy grasshopper pair | Skimmer in flight | Another skimmer in flight | Spider exuvia | Toad bug climbing onto grass blade |
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Toad bug | Whirligig beetle | Wolf spider | Another wolf spider with an egg sac | Wolf spider carrying spiderlings |
2/07/17
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Water boatman | Several water boatmen, including a nymph | Water boatman exuvia |
1/13/17
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Water boatman | Three Water boatmen, including a nymph | Small succulent plant | Orb weaver | Fly |
9/26/16
The most surprising discovery was a group of water scavenger beetles, apparently trapped by viscous water and some large debris, in the stream leading from the lake in the direction of the pond. A recent rain had brought this water, but the remaining mud apparently restricted their movement, causing them to get stuck on their backs and clustering around a fallen branch.
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Cloudless Sulphurs | Cloudless Sulphur on Purple False Foxglove | Fritillary wing | Red-spotted Purple | Asian Dayflower |
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Fungi | Another type of fungi | Purple False Foxglove | Where the lake meets the stream leading toward the pond | Another view of the stream |
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Toad bug #1 | Toad bug #2 | Toad bug #3 | Long-jawed orb weaver | Least Skipper |
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Water scavenger beetles, all on their backs, | One water scavenger beetle, separated from the group but still on its back | Osprey | Water scavenger beetle (Tropisternus collaris) |
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Cloudless Sulphur | Great Egret | Jumping spider |
9/18/16
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Walnut Lace Bug (Corythucha juglandis), not at the lake, but nearby | Rove beetle larva | Toad bug | Water scavenger larva and worm | Water scavenger beetle larva with prey |
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Wolf spider with spiderlings | Mystery fly | Fly with prey | Not sure... | Water scavenger beetle larva (note mandibles) with worm. |
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Crambid moth | Tiny caterpillar eating a tinier plant | Shore bug (Saldula genus, maybe) nymph | Same bug nymph | Tiny bug on skinny grass |
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Ground beetle larva | Another rove beetle larva with butterfly wing | Water scavenger beetle | Same beetle | Same beetle |
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The same water scavenger beetle larva mentioned above | Gemmed Satyr | Male Eastern Amberwing |
9/1/16
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Giant water bug (Belostoma genus) | Horse flies seeking sap on a Loblolly Pine | Same horse flies | Toad bug | Same Toad Bug illustrating camouflage |
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Water strider (Trepobates genus) | Same water strider | Red-spotted Purple | Same Red-spotted Purple | Little Yellow |
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Northern Cricket Frog | Another Northern Cricket Frog | Least Skipper on Seedbox | Blue Dasher | Male Eastern Amberwing |
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Orb weaver (Micrathena gracilis) | Another Micrathena gracilis | Same Micrathena gracilis | Tiny ground beetle | Blue-gray Gnatcatcher |
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Female Great Blue Skimmer |
9/23/15
This time, this part of the lake was almost entirely dried up. There was a large puddle on the far side, where Great Egrets gathered. Apparently while the lake bed was wetter, some people tried to walk across it in search of the many large clams there, but it claimed the boots of some.
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Green Treefrog, among sedges and Valley Redstem | Same Green Treefrog | Cricket frog, on lake bed | Male Fiery Skipper | Same Fiery Skipper, on Seedbox |
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Southern Bee Killer (a bee-mimic robber fly) | Wolf spider with egg sac | Seven-spotted Ladybug Beetle | Butterfly wing, probably of a Great Purple Hairstreak | Same wing |
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Valley Redstem | Thread-waisted waap | Red-banded Hairstreak | Purple False Foxglove | Teneral-to-adult transitioning male Eastern Pondhawk |
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Flower fly (Toxomerus genus) | Great Blue Skimmer | Ground beetle larva | Eastern Phoebe | A view across Jordan Lake, with Great Egrets on the other side. |
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Deserted boot, from when the lake bed was wetter | Another such boot | Bootprints on the lake bed | A general view of the lake bed | On the other hand, the nearby pond had more water than usual. |
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Female Common Whitetail | Caterpillar in a nutshell on the lake bed | Wolf spider and caterpillar at crack in lake bed | A caterpillar on the lake bed, feeding on a tiny plant. |
8/30/15
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Cloudless Sulphur | Spicebush Swallowtail | Sleepy Orange | Female Sachem | Silver-spotted Skipper |
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Monarch | Transitional male Eastern Pondhawk | Moth | Male Eastern Tiger Swallowtail | Female Eastern Tiger Swallowtail |
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Toad bug | Toad bug, showing important details | Toad bug | Virginia Hoverfly | Same Virginia Hoverfly |
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Waterpods (Hydrolea quadrivavlis) common in the formerly adjoining pond | Wolf spider with egg sac | Great Egret flying | More Great Egrets | View of the mudflats |
8/15/15
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Morning glories | Horace's Duskywing | Two long-legged flies attacking a mystery larva | Eighteen millipedes! |
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Red-spotted Purple seeking tree sap? | Wolf spider with egg sac | Osprey carrying fish | A view of the mudflats looking east | A view of the mudflats looking west |
7/24/15
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Red-spotted Purple | Same Red-spotted Purple | Two Red-spotted Purples apparently seeking sap | Same Red-spotted Purples | Duskywing |
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Mating grasshoppers | Male Great Blue Skimmer | Ground beetle | Horse fly (Tabanus atratus) | Orb weaver (Mangora genus) |
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Red Admiral | Robber fly (Diogmites genus) | Robber fly (Promachus genus) | Blue Dasher |
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Robber fly (Diogmites genus) with wasp prey | Silver-spotted Skipper | Same Silver-spotted Skipper | St. Andrew's Cross | Toad bug |
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Two Red-spotted Purples seeking sap |
7/12/15
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Assassin bug (Pselliopus cinctus) nymph with two acanaloniid planthopper nymphs | Toad bug | Male Eastern Pondhawk | Robber fly |
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Male midge | Amber on a pine tree | Antmimic spider (Castaneira longipalpa) | Spined micrathena | Female Great Blue Skimmer |
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Robber fly | Fish apparently attacking a water boatman. Yes, this type of predation is apparently well-known, according to a guide by the Missouri Department of Water Conservation. | A Horace's Duskywing and an Ailanthus Webworm Moth on a Common Buttonbush composite flower |
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Fly, aquatic snails and other forms of life | Clamshells, possibly showing human intervention | Eastern Tailed-Blue, with spider exuvia | The lake itself |
7/8/15
The lake waters were actually quite high this time, going past the Common Buttonbushes normally at the shoreline. The connecting pond was full of blooming Water Primroses. The dominant animals this time were dragonflies, mainly Common Whitetails, Eastern Pondhawks and Slaty Skimmers, with a couple of Great Blue Skimmers, Blue Dashers and Widow Skimmers. A couple of bumblebees had dug nest holes in the ground near to the water, and visited them at long intervals. I was surprised to see a bumblebee-mimic robber fly, the Southern Bee Killer, which flew around with bumblebee prey. I only saw two species of butterflies, Horace's Duskywings (I think) and a Red Admiral. I was happy to see a toad bug, a well-camouflaged insect that leaps very far, very fast.
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Fowler's Toad | Ground beetle | Horace's Duskywing on unidentifiable flower | Entrance to a bumblebee nest | Bumblebee |
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Toad bug, well-camouflaged. You can see some sand here as well as clay. | Teneral Widow Skimmer in flight | Slaty Skimmer in flight | Spider wasp |
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7/8/14
The mudflats had come back, and some new animals had arrived (and some have left.) The pond fed by lake waters had dried up almost entirely, leaving hundreds of water strider nymphs stranded in a puddle a few feet across. Had they been adults, they probably would have flown to a more suitable aquatic environment. The Common Buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis) was the only wildflower species seen.
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Bee fly | Beetle and Giant Water Bug exuvia | Same beetle, as discovered | Blue Dasher | Feather |
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Eastern Tiger Swallowtail on Common Buttonbush | Dark Fishing Spider carrying spiderlings | Male Eastern Amberwing | Bumblebee on Common Buttonbush | Common Buttonbush |
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Robber fly with bumblebee prey | Same robber fly and bumblebee | Shore bug (probably Pentacora ligata) | Skipper on Buttonbush | Silver-spotted Skipper on buttonbush |
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Wasp | Some water beetles | Several water striders, apparently all nymphs, in the nearby pond | Waterstrider nymphs, in the nearby pond |
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Just a fraction of the many water strider nymphs found in the puddle that was mostly what was left of the pond usually there |
11/26/11
After a hard freeze and several inches of rain, the mudflats were gone and a new large creek made it impossible to walk along the far (east) end of the lake. A few gulls near the south side of the lake were visible, and a Great Blue Heron appeared briefly on the east end of the lake. The new creek was perhaps eight feet wide and several feet deep, with several minnows in its murky waters.
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Jordan Lake waterfront, showing partially submerged trees | Jordan Lake, far end | Pond, west side | Pond, north side | Pond, west side, close up |
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Ichneumon wasp | Willow | Minnows with maple leaf in new creek |
11/3/11
The shallowest waters of the lake contained countless fairly well-camouflaged water boatmen, "true bugs" 1-2 mm long. Hydrophorus genus long-legged flies skated nearby on the water surface, blown by a fairly strong wind, occasionally clinging to vegetation. Large fish frequently leaped out of the water as close as 20 feet away. Farther inland, the Valley Redstems were starting to fade, though still bright red.
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Mosquito pupa, with interesting debris, maybe its larval exoskeleton | A marshy area near the far side of the lake. The green matter is algae. | Bidens genus stickers, broken off seedheads |
10/26/11
Most of the beetles were gone, but I noticed some new species on this hurried trip, discovered the color variations in a tiny grasshopper species.
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The vegetation near the lake at the far end from the bridge. The red stuff at the bottom is Valley Redstem. | Toad Bug scooting across the water surface of a small stream | Fiery Skipper (in the parking lot across the street) | Pygmy grasshopper (Paratettix cucullatus). Not all members of this species have this black colorations. ID thanks to David J. Ferguson | Algae on a recently flooded part of the lake, at the far end from the bridge |
10/15/11
This time I had a chance to observe the Great Egrets before they flew to the other side of the lake. Butterflies and honeybees were prominent; the Valley Redstem was still blooming. Grasshoppers of many species appeared.
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American Lady (in the parking lot on the other side of the bridge) | Monarch | Same Monarch | Eastern Comma | Fiery Skipper |
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Great Egrets | Northern Cricket Frog | Two aquatic snails, apparently interacting |
10/9/11
After a long drought, the mudflats were especially exspansive. A tiny stream flowed from a pond to the lake about a city block away; it presented a rare opportunity to observe elusive aquatic wildlife, e.g., several species of beetles, water scavenger beetles and Northern Cricket Frogs showing a great variety of camouflage. At the far end of the lake from the bridge, at least five curious Palm Warblers showed up, apparently migrants.
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A view of the mudflats | A pond inland from Jordan Lake | An osprey carrying a fish | Fiery Skipper |
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Palm Warbler, at the edge of the woods at the far end of the lake. See other birds. | Another Palm Warbler | Northern Cricket Frog #1 | Northern Cricket Frog #2 | Northern Cricket Frog #3 |
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Ground beetle (Calosoma sayi), almost an inch long. ID thanks to Jeff Winget. | Male Eastern Amberwing, on what is probably a Water Primrose. | False bombardier beetle (Galerita janus, maybe), rapidly scurrying around at the stream's edge | Water scavenger beetle, all underwater |
Jordan Lake Gameland west of the bridge
7/12/15
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Sunflower | Leafhopper | Slaty Skimmer | Long-legged fly | Another Slaty Skimmer |
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Female Great Blue Skimmer | Red Admiral | Same Red Admiral | Grasshopper making itself at home on this leaf |
6/19/07
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Female Common Whitetail, Jordan Lake Gameland, Chatham County, NC, 6/19/07 |
10/29/06
Copyright © 2011-2022 by Dorothy E. Pugh. All rights reserved. Please contact for rights to use photos.
B. Everett Jordan Lake Gameland near the NC 751 bridge: The bridge is in the center of the map with "751" on it.
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