Backyard and Beyond

Starting out from Brooklyn, an amateur naturalist explores our world.

As John Burroughs said, “The place to observe nature is where you are.”

Tanagers

As the light hits this male Scarlet Tanager…
Too much light in this case. That’s a ground Yellowjacket, one of the Vespula wasps.
A female, hunting in the same area. Perching at eye-level or even below, looking all around. Zipping after Hymenoptera. The male virtually crash-landed getting his prey.
Piranga olivacea is actually named for the female: olivacea means “olive-colored.” Choate’s Dictionary of American Bird Names says this probably because the Summer Tanager was named for the color red: P. rubra. The genus name Piranga seems to come from a native South American word “for some kind of bird.” As does “Tanager,” from tangara.

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