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Project Noah Nature School
Amateur naturalist, river wanderer, and curious soul with an interest in zoology and fungi.
West Virginia, United States
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This could be an old, decayed Oak Bracket fungus, Inonotus dryadus. Normally they are not this dark, but this looks like a very old specimen. They are typically found growing on oak trees near the base like this.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inonotus_d...
Looks like a Jumping Spider, but not enough detail to say any more.
This may be either Trillium sessile, a/k/a Toadshade, or Trillium cuneatum, a/k/a Sweet Betsy. When the bloom is not long and extended, I have trouble distinguishing these species, but this article may help you.
http://www.friendsofthewildflowergarden....
Wonderful sighting! This is one of the large Crane Flies, Tipulidae.
http://eol.org/pages/514/details
If you want to try to search for a species identification, you may be able to use this site:
http://ccw.naturalis.nl/
This is a Soldier Beetle. It may be the Colorado Mountain Soldier Beetle, Chauliognathus deceptus.
https://bugguide.net/node/view/29754
Looks like a Garter Snake, Thamnophis sirtalis.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_gar...
This looks like an Argiope spider. It may be Agiope aemula
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argiope_ae...
or
Agriope catenulata
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argiope_ca...
Looks like an Osprey, Pandion haliaetus.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osprey
Yes, looks like a cuckoo.
Perhaps it is a Plaintive Cuckoo, Cacomantis merulinus, which can be found in China and Southeast Asia.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plaintive_...
Here are additional photos of the Common Flameback or Flame-backed Woodpecker for comparison with your sighting.
http://malayanparadise.blogspot.com/2012...
