mthew
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Seeing (Spring) Red
Female American Sweetgum flowers, smaller than a dime so far. These mature into green, golf ball sized fruit balls, eventually drying to dark brown. Ailanthus buds. Male Eastern Cottonwood flowers. Red is a popular color in spring time. The pigment anthocyanin protects tender plant parts: buds, new leaves, and young fruits from the the UV…
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Halteres
Revisiting this large crane fly. Rather prominently on the left side of the fly is a halter (also spelled haltere). The creature has two of them. This is a big fly, so they’re really quite prominent, but every fly has them (plural: halteres). They can be paddle-shaped, drumstick-shaped, even a bit bowling pin-shaped. Here they’re…
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Wild Yards
In one sense, this is a rather depressing book. Nancy Lawson is the author of two books on the wilds of the backyard. This doesn’t seem to have had much effect on her neighbors. She’s surrounded by killers. Her neighbors are constantly felling trees, mowing and whacking, leaf-blowing, and, periodically, madly stomping on 17-year cicadas.…
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Bird, Caterpillar
“Flycatcher” you say? A big fat caterpillar being battered to death. The bird actually dropped this juicy specimen and re-caught it in the air. Quite impressive, as I noticed this when reviewing my pictures. The bird’s upper bill is missing. *** Oof! I put the wrong link in yesterday for tomorrow’s Snail Safari. It’s updated…
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Flaring
There were a few Ruby-crowned Kinglets foraging in this oak, and that got some of their hackles up: *** It’s almost the last chance to sign up for our Snail Safari on Saturday…
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Raptor Wednesday
This is the second year for this nest. The mate, presumably the male. Distinctively wing-gapped. This one is banded with both a federal band (silver–not much good to the observer unless the bird is in hand) and a light blue with alphanumeric 10 over A (just readable in photographs) band. I reported to the Bird…
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Reporting for Duty
April 9th: Cabbage White April 9th: Sylvanelater cylindriformis (I think) April 9th: a small mining bee April 9th: another unknown bee April 10: American Lady April 11th: mining bee (species unknown) April 11th: Ichneumonidae wasp April 12th: Cabbage Whites don’t waste time. April 13th: Common Blue Darners, a migratory species, the first Odonata I’ve seen…
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Foraging
There were four or five female Red-winged Blackbirds in this blooming Eastern Cottonwood. Well, it certainly does look delicious. These are the anthers, and yes, they were shedding pollen.
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Here They Come
Louisiana Waterthrush Palm Warbler Yellow-rumped Warbler Yellow-rumped Warbler Pine Warbler Swamp Sparrow Chipping Sparrow Brown Creeper Carolina Wren
Backyard and Beyond 