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.”

  • Moths

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  • Oak Rough Bullet… Nectaries

    Oak Rough Bullet Gall wasps ( Disholcaspis quercusmamma) create stem galls on some species of white oaks. In Brooklyn, I find them on Swamp White Oaks (Quercus bicolor) with some frequency. Unusually for galls, these structures are also extrafloral nectaries, producing the sweet stuff that attracts ants, bees, flies, wasps, butteries, and other insects. (This thesis…

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  • Anax junius

    Wait, so a fair number of the Fox-poisoned believe major American cities are smoldering ruins? Good gravy, some people need to turn off their televisions and get some air.

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  • Rooted

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  • Eggs etc.

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  • Raptor Wednesday

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  • White Snakeroot Fly

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  • Polistes exclamans(!)

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  • A Robin Tableau; or, a Royal Metaphor

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  • New Galls

    Galls are created when the inducer’s chemistry re-engineers the plant’s chemistry. The gall itself is abnormal plant growth, which can occur on the leaf, stem/branch, flower, fruit, etc, depending on the species of inducer involved. Inducer larvae grow up inside the gall, which provides protection (at least some protection; there are plenty of parasitic wasps…

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