Author Archives: Brenda Clements Jones

About Brenda Clements Jones

Brenda is a certified Virginia Master Naturalist, a Habitat Defender for Shenandoah National Park, and a devoted fan of Mother Nature. She lives in a cabin in the Blue Ridge Mountains near Shenandoah National Park, and hikes up to the higher elevations of her mountain often to see what nature is up to. Her constant hiking companion is a camera that captures nature as it unfolds through the seasons. It’s her goal to share the natural world around her through her photographs.

What Was That?

July 18, 2025

Zigging and zagging. Flying back and forth. A long, icy white body, with four interesting wings. It’s a male Common Whitetail Dragonfly (Plathemis lydia), with a body that is approximately 2 inches in length. The female is slightly smaller with a brown body. And those translucent wings? The females’ wings are similar with a slightly different pattern.

They’re widespread in North America, in all 48 of the contiguous United States, parts of eastern Mexico, and also southern Canada. Living as adults, just a few weeks.

Often found near bodies of water, whether a trickle of a stream, a large pond or just a small vernal pool. These Dragonflies eat many different flying insects such as mosquitoes, midges, flies, moths, and butterflies, catching their prey mid-air.

To aid in catching those insects mid-air, Dragonflies can move each of their four wings individually giving them the ability to fly backwards, up and down, hover, and make sharp turns.

Hmmm. Sounds like a drone!

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Two Sleepy Orange Butterflies

July 17, 2025

Two Sleepy Orange butterflies (Abaeis nicippe) sitting on some rotting wood out along the road. They’re butterflies with a wingspan of 1.5 to 2 inches, though you will seldom see them with their wings open, unless they are flying. And quick fliers they are, staying close to the ground.

Their caterpillars prefer to feed on plants in the pea family (Fabaceae). As adults they seek out the nectar of a wide variety of flowers. Males in particular enjoy the practice of puddling, drinking from wet soil, or puddles, and animal droppings, to obtain the minerals and salts that can be found there.

Like many butterflies, they’re adding color to the summer landscape.

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Silvery Checkerspot On Apple Mint

July 16, 2025

Catching a bit of sunlight, a Silvery Checkerspot (Chlosyne nycteis) enjoys the nectar of a flower popular with pollinators, Apple Mint (Mentha suaveolens).

Despite my love of winter, I must admit, there are so many reasons to enjoy summer.

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Eastern Cicada Killer Wasp

July 15, 2025

The largest wasp species in Virginia, the Eastern Cicada Killer Wasp (Sphecius speciosus). Both males and females live about 2 months as adults. They eat tree sap and flower nectar. Males die, not long after mating.

The female continues with her duties, taking care of her young. She does this by hunting Cicadas, mainly Annual Cicadas (Neotibicen canicularis). She will sting each one to paralyze it, and takes it to her elaborate nest which she has tunneled into the ground. The nest reaches several feet underground, branching out into many cells.

She places these Cicadas in cells with an egg, and seals off each of the cells, which she has provisioned with paralyzed Cicadas, with one egg in each cell. The eggs will typically hatch in 2 to 3 days.

The hatched larvae feed on the Cicadas over the course of about 2 weeks. Eating until there is only the exoskeleton left. In preparation for winter the larvae will spin a cocoon, spending the winter in their cells.

Winter fades, spring arrives and soon summer occurs, at which time they will pupate and emerge as an adult Eastern Cicada Killer Wasp.

Despite their size, which makes them appear threatening, these Cicada Killers are beneficial insects to have around.

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Hummingbird At Scarlet Beebalm

July 14, 2025

Look closely at the upper right corner and you’ll see a Ruby-throated Hummingbird (Archilochus colubris) enjoying the nectar of a perfect flower for her, Scarlet Beebalm (Monarda didyma). Perfect because of its brilliant red color, funnel-shaped flowers, and abundant nectar production. Those Scarlet Beebalms, amid Orange Coneflowers (Rudbeckia fulgida).

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What A Brightly Colored Bumblebee!

July 13, 2025

A Perplexing Bumblebee (Bombus perplexus). Native to northern North America including across Canada into the northeastern United States as well as Maryland and Virginia.

This creature fascinates me because of its wonderful coloring, that rich, warm yellow. That coloring seems it would be perfect as a stuffed Teddy Bear type toy.

The size of the queens are about .75″ and the workers are around .5″. They eat nectar and pollen from a wide variety of flowers.

This Perplexing Bumblebee is nectaring at an invasive Spotted Knapweed (Binomial soebe) which is native to Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe.

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Tiger Bee Fly

July 12, 2025

As I write this, I’m thinking of those who really dislike Carpenter Bees (Xylocopa).

This is a Tiger Bee Fly (Xenox tigrinus). No need for concern about biting or stinging. They won’t harm you. And if you are looking for a way to control Carpenter Bees, this is a potential native and natural partner in their management. The Tiger Bee Fly is a natural predator of Carpenter Bees. Females lay their eggs in close proximity to the nests of Carpenter Bees. After the fly larvae hatch they will enter the tunnels of the bees and eat the bee larvae or wait until the larvae matures to the pupal stage and then dine on them.

And in defense of Carpenter Bees, they don’t eat the wood that they tunnel through. Their purpose in excavating those tunnels is to create nests for their offspring. And much more important is their role in pollination, not just in our gardens, natural areas, but also on farms. 

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Transverse Flower Fly

July 11, 2025

A Transverse Flower Fly (Eristalis transversa) enjoying the nectar of Gray-headed Coneflowers (Ratibida pinnata). Measuring in at 0.28″ to 0.47″. Though it looks like a bee, it does not sting. Often found hanging out around flowers, which explains its common name.

Flower Flies are energetic fliers, able to beat their wings several hundred times a second, which gives them the ability to hover, dart, zoom and back up in mid-air.

Hmm, the hummingbird of the insect world?

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I Can Hear You!

July 10, 2025

A male Scarlet Tanager (Piranga olinacea) sitting among legumes of a Redbud (Cercis canadensis).

A brilliant red bird. Even a shade brighter than our year-round, red bird, the Cardinal (Cardinalis Cardinalis).

Scarlet Tanagers, both male and female, sing a song that sounds like our Robin (Turdus migratorius), although the Scarlet Tanagers sound like they have a cold, and don’t quite know the tune. Because of that they don’t have the perfect sweet song that the Robin has.

A female Scarlet Tanager enjoying some of my blueberries

I hear Scarlet Tanagers singing all day long, and if I’m in the vicinity of my blueberry bushes, I’ll get to see one!

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Time For Starry Campion!

July 9, 2025

Starry Campion (Silene stellata)

When I find this plant in bloom along the trails up here I’m totally delighted. This is Starry Campion (Silene stellata). Native to the eastern and central United States.

Starry Campion (Silene stellata)

I sometimes see Bladder Campion (Silene vulgaris)(see the picture below), a plant that fascinates me, much like Starry Campion. These two plants are related, belonging to the same genus, Silene, within the pink family (Caryophyllaceae).

Bladder Campion (Silene vulgaris)

But Bladder Campion is not native to North America. It is native to Europe and Asia. So the native Starry Campion wins. Not only is it native but it is actually more beautiful!

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